"The number of lights blinking red is growing faster and faster as more dominos fall. If this is the case, then just solving existing problems will never be enough: every effort to fight one fire may just set off new fires. "
US fighter jets strike Syria after attacks by Iran-backed militia (msn.com)
"Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said at the United Nations on Thursday that if Israel's offensive against Hamas did not stop, the United States will "not be spared from this fire"...
"What we want is for Iran to take very specific actions, to direct its militias and proxies to stand down," a senior U.S. defence official said. The United States did not coordinate the air strikes with Israel, the official added."
As the World Looks Elsewhere, China Stirs Trouble in the South China Sea | RealClearDefense
"...This is the first time the Philippines has reported Chinese ships deliberately hitting Philippine government vessels. However, it’s not unexpected.
China has been steadily escalating tensions over several months. More than 100 militia ships and numerous Chinese Coast Guard ships have been swarming around, at times almost colliding with Philippine Coast Guard ships. China’s actions are now being regularly publicised by the Philippines government and the SeaLight think tank, which has monitored China’s tactics.
...China argues its Coast Guard and the militia are simply enforcing China’s domestic laws, which the country has unilaterally decided apply to the 90 per cent of the South China Sea it claims. China’s contested take-over of this expanse dwarfs Russia’s attempted annexing of Ukraine at five times larger, and was rejected by the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague in 2016."
Blink. Blink.