Terrorism

The hacking of the Municipal Water Authority of Aliquippa and other utilities around the country is prompting new warnings from U.S. security officials at a time when states and the federal government are wrestling with how to harden water utilities against cyberattacks.The danger, officials say, is hackers gaining control of automated equipment to shut down pumps that supply drinking water or contaminate drinking water by reprogramming automated chemical treatments. Besides Iran, other potentially hostile geopolitical rivals, including China, are viewed by U.S. officials as a threat.

Hamas on Friday released 24 hostages it held captive in Gaza for weeks, and Israel freed 39 Palestinians from prison in the first stage of a swap under a four-day cease-fire that offered a small glimmer of relief to both sides.Israel — wrenched by the abduction of nearly 240 people in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war — cheered as 13 Israeli women and children emerged free from Gaza. Most were in their 70s or 80s, and the youngest was a 2-year-old. Also released were 10 people from Thailand and one from the Philippines.

A four-day cease-fire between Israel and Hamas began Friday, allowing sorely needed aid to start flowing into Gaza and setting the stage for the release of dozens of hostages held by militants and Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.There were no reports of fighting in the hours after the truce began. The deal offered some relief for Gaza’s 2.3 million people, who have endured weeks of Israeli bombardment and dwindling supplies of basic necessities, as well as for families in Israel worried about loved ones taken captive during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, which triggered the war.

Israeli soldiers battled Hamas fighters in the streets of southern Israel on Sunday and launched retaliation strikes that leveled buildings in Gaza, while in northern Israel a brief exchange of strikes with Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group raised fears of a broader conflict.

Israel’s military scoured the country’s south for Hamas fighters, guarded breaches in its border fence and pounded the Gaza Strip from the air on Monday as it vowed to lay total siege to the impoverished, Hamas-ruled territory in the wake of an unprecedented weekend incursion.

Theatre Conspiracy at the Alliance for the Arts in Fort Myers is mounting the Florida premiere production of the courtroom drama “Faceless.” The play, based on true events, concerns the trial of a young white American woman radicalized into Islamic extremism online and charged with conspiring to commit acts of terrorism and the Muslim attorney chosen to prosecute the case. We hear from two actors in the show: Sharon Isern and Matt Flynn.

Nineteen-year-old Mohammed Haitham was one of three people killed on Friday at the Pensacola Naval Base. Over the weekend, family and friends remembered...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Sunday called for increased vetting of foreign nationals training on U.S. military bases following the shooting Friday at...

Palm Beach County is pushing for the federal government to raise its terrorism threat level, a move that could help draw down more in federal grants,...

A prominent member of the Jacksonville community, who is the former chair of the Council on American Islamic Relations, is speaking out about an alleged...