5: U.S. Enters Yemen War Directly for the First Time With Attack on Houthis
THE U.S. MILITARY directly attacked Houthi rebels in Yemen for the first time on Wednesday – firing Tomahawk cruise missiles at three rebel-held radar stations on the Red Sea coast. The attack, which was in retaliation for a failed missile attack on a U.S. Navy destroyer on Sunday, risks drawing the U.S. further into the 18-month war.
In March 2015, a coalition of states led by Saudi Arabia began a U.S.-backed bombing campaign against the Houthi forces, which four months earlier had seized Yemen’s capital and deposed the country’s U.S.- and Saudi-backed dictator. Since then, the U.S. has flown refueling missions for Saudi aircraft, supplied targeting intelligence, and resupplied the Saudi effort with tens of billions of dollars of weapons.
While the U.S. has previously conducted direct attacks in Yemen against Al Qaeda – which controls vast territory in central and eastern Yemen – it had not directly engaged Houthi forces before.
The escalation began last week when the U.S. dispatched warships to the Bab al-Mandab Strait – which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden – after the Houthis fired on and nearly sank a ship from the United Arab Emirates. The UAE is a part of the Saudi-led bombing coalition, which has maintained a strict naval blockade of the country since the war began.
The Intercept
A New York Times investigation has found at least half of the 39 detainees who went through the CIA’s so-called enhanced interrogation program have since shown psychiatric problems—some have been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, paranoia, depression or psychosis. These detainees were subjected to torture techniques such as severe sleep deprivation, waterboarding, mock execution, sexual violations and confinement in coffin-like boxes in secret CIA prisons and at Guantánamo. We speak to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist James Risen and military psychiatrist Dr. Stephen Xenakis.
Democracy Now
3: Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej dies at 88
Thailand’s venerated King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world’s longest-reigning monarch, has died at the age of 88, the Royal Palace announced.
King Bhumibol passed away at Bangkok’s Siriraj Hospital on Thursday. The palace did not give a reason for his death.
“His Majesty has passed away at Siriraj Hospital peacefully,” a statement said, adding he died at 15:52 (08:52 GMT).
The highly revered monarch spent most of the past decade hospitalised for a variety of ailments, including kidney and lung problems.
The palace recently said the octogenarian had been in a “not stable” condition for several days after receiving dialysis treatment.
Aljazeerza
2: Bob Dylan Doesn’t Need a Nobel Prize
A fun exercise I like to torture myself with: Think of a famous person over 70. Now imagine how insufferable Twitter will be with hot takes on the day they die. For as long as I have been playing this game, I have assumed Bob Dylan would be the apex. I woke up this morning to find that what I’ve been dreading: The laudatory superlatives and the actually, he’s bad’s have arrived. Ever the visionary, though, Bob Dylan didn’t even have to die to have his day on Twitter. Instead, he won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
I should say that, to me, Bob Dylan is good. I’m not a rabid fan, but I think that if someone wants to argue that Bob Dylan is the greatest songwriter ever, that’s as acceptable of an answer as anyone. Even if you feel allergic to his iconic 60s folk ballads about changin’ times (though I’d invite you to seriously listen to “Like a Rolling Stone” again and honestly say that it doesn’t fucking rule), his output from 1970’s New Morning to 1976’s Desire is unparalleled, and even the early-80s records have moments of transcendence (“Lenny Bruce,” “Jokerman,” the photo on the front of Infidels). In my adult life, I’ve spent more free time reading than doing anything else, but I’ve almost definitely spent more hours listening to Bob Dylan than I have reading all but a handful of particular writers. Still, I’m not exactly thrilled that he won the Nobel Prize.
Vice News
1: Trump blames sexual assault claims on collusion between Clinton and media
Donald Trump scrambled to dig himself out from an avalanche of fresh abuse allegations on Thursday after a series of women came forward to dispute his claim that his comments about sexual assault were only empty boasts.
The torrent of accusations, which includes claims from beauty pageant contenders who allege he burst into their dressing rooms to ogle them while they were nude, added nearly a dozen new names to the tally of women who have accused the Republican nominee of inappropriate behavior.
Many say they were galvanised into speaking by Trump’s denials during Sunday’s presidential debate, where he dismissed a recording of him bragging about groping women as “locker room talk” and insisted they were “words not action”.
But with allegations to the contrary casting an ever-growing shadow over the campaign, Trump instead sought to dismiss the accusations as a vast establishment conspiracy, orchestrated by his opponent Hillary Clinton “as part of a concerted, coordinated and vicious attack”.
The Guardian
