58 rescued from TN hospital roof amid Helene flooding – National & International News – 27Sep2024

58 rescued from TN hospital roof amid Helene flooding.

Trump meets Zelensky in NY, wants deal that’s “good for both sides”.

Israel strikes Beirut in attempt to assassinate Hezbollah leader.

NATIONAL NEWS

58 rescued from TN hospital roof amid Helene flooding

Hurricane Helene has now been downgraded to a post-tropical storm and is currently plowing its way through the Mid-South. Though it has lost some of its power, the storm is still bringing heavy rains, high winds, and a risk of spawning tornadoes to the entire region. There is a moderate risk of flash flooding in areas of North Mississippi tonight, with a warning in effect until tomorrow morning at 8:00 a.m. 

Earlier this afternoon in Erwin, Tennessee (near the North Carolina border), 58 people, medical personnel and patients were trapped on the roof of the Unicoi County Hospital as flood waters rose around them. All were rescued by helicopter, at least some of those were supplied by the State Police in neighboring Virginia. 

Helene has left flooding, death and devastation in its path. Atlanta broke a 48-hour rainfall record in the past 2 days with 11.12 inches of rain. This record keeping goes back to 1878 and the previous record of 9.59 inches was set in 1886. In western North Carolina, floodwaters overtopped a dam, forcing evacuations. Over 40 people are dead in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. 

Trump meets Zelensky in NY, wants deal that’s “good for both sides”

After previously saying he would not meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, former president Trump suddenly changed his mind and agreed to meet with him today. The two met at Trump Tower in New York City, where Zelensky is visiting to address the UN General Assembly. 

Following the meeting, Trump told reporters that the war between Ukraine and Russia “has to end. At some point, it has to eRemovend. [Zelensky] has gone through hell. His country has gone through hell”. He also said that, if re-elected, he would work to end the Russia Ukraine war with a “fair” deal that is “good for both sides”. When a reporter asked what a fair deal would look like, Trump answered it was “too early to say”.

Earlier this week, Trump had much harsher words for Zelensky at a rally in Georgia. “Every time Zelensky comes to the United States he walks away with $100 billion. I think he’s the greatest salesman on Earth“. Trump also dismissed any possibility of Ukraine prevailing militarily, saying that Russia “beat Hitler, they beat Napoleon- that’s what they do. They fight”.

Good money after bad blood

Zelensky and Trump have a fraught history. In 2019, when Trump was president, he had a contentious phone call with Zelensky, who had recently become President of Ukraine. Trump reportedly threatened to withhold military aid unless Zelensky would push for an investigation into Hunter Biden’s business dealings in Ukraine. Congress later impeached Trump over this phone call, despite the fact that Trump did later release military aid to Ukraine. Trump was acquitted in the Senate.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Trump has been critical of President Biden’s handling of the crisis. As the war has dragged on, Trump has been increasingly skeptical of US military involvement in Ukraine, including over $175 billion in US aid. 

Trump has repeatedly asserted that, if he wins reelection, he would bring an end to the war “very quickly” by hammering out a deal between Ukraine and Russia. Supporters of Ukraine object that this will almost certainly require Ukraine to make significant territorial concessions. However, Ukraine has failed to retake any of the territory it has lost in the past year, and Russia continues to make gains on the battlefield.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Israel strikes Beirut in attempt to assassinate Hezbollah leader 

This afternoon, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the UN general Assembly in New York. Netanyahu delivered this speech to a largely empty room. Most of the diplomatic delegations left the hall right before Netanyahu took the podium.

Netanyahu denounced the UN as an “antisemitic swamp”, referring to the body’s repeated calls for Israel to end its aggressions in Gaza. He also took a swipe at the many world leaders who called on Israel this week to end its attacks in Lebanon and Gaza, accusing them of “appeasing” Iran. He also did some saber rattling, claiming that Israel is “winning” its various wars and that “there is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach, and that’s true of the entire Middle East”. 

To punctuate this point (or possibly in a fit of pique after his snub at the UN), almost immediately after wrapping up his speech, Netanyahu ordered a major aerial assault against Beirut, targeting Hezbollah’s leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. Nasrallah’s fate is currently unknown and there are contradictory reports as to his condition.

The Israelis were targeting a purported underground command center in the Beirut suburb of Dahiya, a Hezbollah stronghold which is also home to a large Palestinian refugee center. The strike flattened at least 4 apartment blocks, and was apparently carried out with US-made bunker buster bombs. At least 6 people were killed and over 90 were injured. Even as Israeli strikes in Dahiya continue overnight, rescuers are still sifting through the rubble and the death toll is likely to rise.  

Uncertain fate, unpredictable consequences 

Nasrallah, 64, took over leadership of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in 1992, after the Israelis assassinated the previous leader. At that time, southern Lebanon had been under Israeli occupation since 1985. Under Nasrallah’s leadership, Hezbollah was able to drive out the Israeli occupiers in 2000. In 2006, Hezbollah succeeded once again in fending off an attempt by Israel to reestablish a presence in southern Lebanon. 

Nasrallah is considered to be a serious player and a formidable tactician and political operative. For decades, he has been the most prominent public face of the Arab world’s opposition to Israel’s aggression and oppression against the Palestinians and others in the Middle East. Nasrallah is seen as the linchpin of the Iran-backed axis of resistance, coordinating with militant groups in Palestine, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. Nasrallah has often been a moderating influence over the years. In the past year, he has many times called for restraint by the various Iranian proxies – and when he speaks, they listen.

If Nasrallah is dead, it is not clear who would take over Hezbollah. The Israelis may be counting on his death causing disarray in Hezbollah’s ranks, and potentially even unraveling the ties between Iran’s other proxies in the region. However, his death would be unlikely to end military resistance against Israel. If anything, his death would make the various proxies more difficult to rein in and less predictable.