NEWS SUMMARY-INTELLIGENCE REPORT WEDNESDAY 4/1/2020 WARNING TO IRAN

(LIMITED SERVICE WHEN ABLE THROUGH LATE TONIGHT)

The coronavirus story later but first......

AN INTERESTING SIDEBAR TO THIS EVENING'S  WHITE HOUSE CORONAVIRUS NEWS CONFERENCE IS THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF US MILITARY AND LAW ENFORCEMENT OPERATIONS IN THE EASTERN PACIFIC OCEAN AND CARIBBEAN SEA SAID TO BE AIMED AT DRUG TRAFFICKING......VIDEO LINK DEFENSE SECRETARY MARK ESPER

THIS MOVE CREATES A US MILITARY PRESENCE NOT JUST NEAR COLOMBIA KNOWN FOR ITS DRUG TRAFFICKING BUT ALSO NEAR VENEZUELA WHERE THE TOP LEADERS OF ITS REGIME INCLUDING NICOLAS MADURO WERE INDICTED FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING LAST WEEK.    THE US PUTTING A 15 MILLION DOLLAR BOUNTY ON MADURO AND OTHER MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR BOUNTIES ON INDICTED GOVERNMENT LEADERS.

PRESIDENT TRUMP SAYING ON TWITTER THAT IRAN IS PLANNING TO ATTACK US TROOPS IN IRAQ AND THAT "IF THIS HAPPENS, IRAN WILL PAY A VERY HEAVY PRICE, INDEED!".....PRESIDENT TRUMP TWITTER

Efforts to form a unity government in Israel are stalling with Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz suggesting he may move forward with legislation to prohibit a parliament member who is under indictment from serving as Prime Minister.    Such a law would bar current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from forming the next government.

Gantz believes Mr. Netanyahu is stalling until the end of a 30 day period Gantz now has to form a new government.....

ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS STORY

TURKISH FORCES SHELLING SYRIAN ARMY POSITIONS IN NORTHWESTERN SYRIA LATE TUESDAY IN THE CITY OF SARAQIB......RECENT REPORTS OF TURKISH ACTIVITY SUGGEST PREPARATIONS FOR AN OFFENSIVE IN THE GREATER IDLIB REGION......SOUTHFRONT STORY

TURKISH PRESIDENT RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN  DISCUSSING THE SITUATION IN SYRIA WITH RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN TODAY......TASS NEWS STORY....RUSSIA BACKS THE SYRIAN GOVERNMENT AND RUSSIA ALONG WITH TURKEY ARE TO GUARANTEE THE CEASE FIRE IN NORTHWESTERN SYRIA WHICH HAS NOT HELD UP.

The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today that there are no talks going on between Russia and Saudi Arabia regarding oil prices.    At his news conference last evening President Trump said that talks between the two countries over oil prices were going on.....TASS NEWS STORY

The story from the Kurdish media in Iraq today is that the US led military coalition will continue operations now after some nations pulled their troops out and US forces moved to consolidate their positions on fewer bases backed up by Patriot missile defenses....KURDISTAN 24 NEWS STORY

US military equipment has been moved from Iraq into northeastern Syria.   That's what the Syrian government news agency is saying.   The US maintains a military force in northeastern Syria that President Trump has described as one that protects the oil fields there.......PRESS TV IRAN NEWS STORY

In Afghanistan a senior female intelligence official died from her injuries in a bomb blast and the US Embassy is offering its condolences......KHAAMA AFGHANISTAN NEWS REPORT

THE PRISONER EXCHANGE BETWEEN AFGHANISTAN'S GOVERNMENT AND THE TALIBAN IS SET TO BEGIN AS PART OF MEASURES AGREED TO BY THE UNITED STATES AND THE TALIBAN IN THE PEACE DEAL THEY SIGNED.    A THREE MEMBER TALIBAN TEAM HAS ARRIVED IN THE AFGHAN CAPITAL KABUL TO FACILITATE THE EXCHANGE......REUTERS NEWS REPORT......LATER WORD IS THAT PRISONER EXCHANGE TALKS HAVE BEGUN.....BBC NEWS STORY

New coronavirus figures from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo today more than 47-thousand cases in New York City and 83,712 statewide, that number updated tonight to 83,901 statewide with 2,219 deaths.....GOVERNOR CUOMO NEW YORK UPDATE 4/1/2020

Other stats tonight include 22,255 cases in New Jersey, 9,807 cases in California and 9,334 cases in Michigan.

In Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer adding to her previous state of emergency declaration a state of disaster declaration today....WDIV DETROIT NEWS REPORT

"The virus is spreading rapidly"

The words of Pennsylvania's Governor Tom Wolf as he extended selective stay at home orders to cover the entire state today......PENN LIVE STORY

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ordering a statewide stay at home order today after only imposing it in selected counties.....

The coronavirus story in the USA today in Georgia today is 521 new cases reported to bring the statewide total to 4,638.    952 are hospitalized there with 139 deaths reported.......WRBL-TV COLUMBUS GEORGIA REPORT

In Israel tonight police facing off with Orthodox Jewish protesters objecting to government coronavirus policy......YNET NEWS ISRAEL REPORT....Travel restrictions and additional measures imposed in that community Bnei Brak....YNET NEWS REPORT......Some 6,092 cases of Covid-19 now in Israel with 26 reported dead.....Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu telling Israelis to wear masks in public....ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS....Israel's Health Minister Yaakov Litzman and his wife diagnosed with coronavirus and they are in isolation.

The coronavirus story in Chile today is that there are now more than three thousand cases with some 16 deaths and 234 recoveries.....TASS NEWS STORY

A Russian plane carrying medical aid to the Untied States landed at JFK International Airport in New York today......TASS NEWS REPORT

A pastor here in Pennsylvania whose mailing address is in the Pittsburgh area is planning an Easter service outdoors in protest of orders by governments to stay-at-home.    Jonathan Shuttlesworth (JD Shuttlesworth) spoke about his plans online and noted the arrest of a pastor in Florida a few days ago.....FOX NEWS REPORT

The Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison involved in an online prayer group to address the coronavirus situation in his country and raising the eyebrows of secularist groups.....EMBEDDED VIDEO LINK-THE GUARDIAN

The coronavirus story as covered by the BBC News blog........BBC NEWS CORONAVIRUS BLOG 4/1/2020

BREAKING NEWS SPECIAL:  WORD FROM AMMON BUNDY THAT ANOTHER CITIZENS MEETING IS SET FOR EMMETT, IDAHO THURSDAY AT 8 PM TO DISCUSS THE IDAHO GOVERNOR'S STATE OF EMERGENCY-STAY AT HOME ORDER AND ITS IMPACT ON PERSONAL LIBERTY AND THE ECONOMY.    MORE DETAILS IN THE THURSDAY SUMMARY WHICH WILL BEGIN POSTING LATER BY 615 AM EASTERN US TIME THURSDAY.

THE CORONAVIRUS STATS AS OF 1105 PM EASTERN US TIME TONIGHT FOR THE US FROM WORLDOMETERS ITS 215,215 CASES WITH 5,110 DEATHS AND 8,878 RECOVERIES.

AND FROM JOHNS HOPKINS THE WORLDWIDE STATS ARE 935,817 CASES WITH 47,208 DEATHS AND 193,700 RECOVERIES.

Other news today.......

The international human rights group Amnesty International says that US air strikes in Somalia aimed at terrorists in February killed and wounded civilians.....REUTERS NEWS STORY

That's the way it really is Wednesday April 2nd, 2020.