NEWS SUMMARY-INTELLIGENCE REPORT MONDAY 3/16/2020

(SERVICE IS LIMITED UNTIL MONDAY EVENING WHEN FINAL POSTINGS WILL BE MADE WITH SERVICE SUSPENDING AT 10 PM EASTERN US TIME)

The coronavirus news later but first........

Israel's Parliament convened for the first time following the election earlier this month but the coronavirus looms large with some 250 plus cases reported in Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu was set to face trial on corruption charges tomorrow.....

The political situation will evolve during the day and you can read about it at the links.....

HAARETZ

ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS

The Israeli Parliament formally met today and Israel's President Reuven Rivlin handed the 28-day mandate to form a new government to Benny Gantz of the Blue and White Party.  Behind the scenes observers believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu's Likud Party will end up in a national unity government with Gantz's Blue and White Party........

YNET NEWS STORY

And Israel's Justice Minister a member of Netanyahu's Likud Party imposed restrictions on court operations Sunday due to the coronavirus postponing the Netanyahu corruption trial......

HAARETZ NEWS STORY

Word that the US Justice Department is backing away from litigation against a Russian company that has been accused of "interference" in the 2016 election.....TASS NEWS STORY

THE US MILITARY  IS CHANGING ITS FOOTPRINT IN IRAQ CONSOLIDATING ITS PRESENCE ON FEWER BASE LOCATIONS IN THE COUNTRY.......BBC NEWS STORY

Separatists backed by the United Arab Emirates in Yemen's civil war say US and British military intervention is beginning in the southern part of Yemen.

The "Southern Transitional Council" group says that some 450 US and British soldiers have arrived in the port city of Aden and that eventually 3,000 will be deployed in and around Yemen.......PRESS TV IRAN NEWS REPORT...This story is also reported on by "Southfront".....SOUTHFRONT STORY

In Syria the story of the cease-fire agreed to by Turkey and Russia in the country's northwest is one of compliance by Turkey and Turkish backed jihadists opposing the Syrian government.  But it is also a story of cease-fire violations by Al Qaeda movement jihadists groups not formally aligned with the Turks.....TASS NEWS REPORT

President Trump tweeted Sunday that he is strongly considering a full pardon for his former National Security Adviser General Michael Flynn noting that the Justice Department and FBI say they have lost records related to his case.

More on this as reported by ABC News....LINK

The first coronavirus vaccine test opening today in Seattle.......ASSOCIATED PRESS NEWS STORY

The mayor of Los Angeles moving to limit public gatherings Sunday night joining with other states and localities across the country in a bid to slow the spread of the coronavirus.....

Restrictions like those now spreading rapidly across the country from coast to coast and border to border state by state.     President Trump urging gatherings to be limited to 10 people or less.

"This is a bad one,   This is a very bad one"

The President speaking to reporters at the White House today.......POLITICO NEWS STORY

Across Europe borders are closing and nations are imposing restrictions on movement in the midst of the pandemic......

The French government announcing restrictions effective at Noon Tuesday President Macron saying the country is "at war" against the coronavirus with Premier Edouard Philippe saying the watchword is "stay at home".   100,000 police being deployed to enforce the restrictions.

6,633 cases in France with 148 deaths now reported......

Italy's latest report is that there are 27.980 cases and some 2,158 deaths.    Italy's population is some 60 million people and China's is some 23.4 times greater roughly.      This means Italy is bearing the equivalent of some 654,732 cases in a nation with population size of China and 50,497 deaths in a nation with the population size of China.

In Moscow the mayor is banning gatherings of 50 people or more people......TASS NEWS STORY

The BBC News coronavirus blog is at this link.......BBC NEWS CORONAVIRUS BLOG

And the story of the markets today with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down some 12.93 percent ...Futures for tomorrow's trading were up over 3 percent just after 915 pm tonight Eastern US time.

That's the way it really is Monday March 16th, 2020.     Disruption of regular routine likely from this blog in light of an extensive work schedule in the "front line" of the present situation facing the world.