U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) has published footage of and announced, that at the direction of Gen. Francis L. Donovan, the Commander of SOUTHCOM, military forces under Joint Task Force-Southern Spear (JTF-SS) carried out a strike today, February 9, against an alleged narco-trafficking vessel operating in the Eastern Pacific. According to SOUTHCOM, intelligence indicated that the vessel was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route and carrying illicit narcotics, with two suspected narco-terrorists killed in the strike while one survived, all believed to have been members of a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO). Following the strike, search-and-rescue assets were launched by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Israel’s far-right government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, took unilateral steps on Sunday to give itself and settlers greater control over the current occupation of the West Bank and Palestinians, despite direct opposition to the plan by President Donald J. Trump and his administration who are concerned that the move could seriously harm ongoing diplomatic talks between Arab allies in the region and Israel, according to the New York Times.

Changes to Israeli policy in the West Bank were decided by the Israel’s security cabinet during a closed-door meeting on Sunday, primarily making it easier for Jewish settlers to buy land and undercut the Palestinian Authority in areas under its control in the West Bank, while paving the way for the potential future annexation of the territory by Israel.

Neither Prime Minister Netanyahu nor his government publicly announced the changes, instead leaving the details to be published after the meeting by two far-right government ministers, specifically Bezalel Smotrich - Israel’s finance minister - who said in a statement after the meeting, “We are deepening our roots in all parts of the Land of Israel and burying the idea of a Palestinian State.”

Netanyahu is expected to meet President Trump at the White House on Wednesday, with a White House officials telling Axios regarding the Israel’s change in policy toward the West Bank, “A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration’s goal to achieve peace in the region,” once again alluding to its opposition to any Israeli annexation of the West Bank.

Four KC-135R/T “Stratotanker” Aerial-Refueling Tankers, BLUE61/62/71/72, departed this morning from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar and are currently heading westward across the Mediterranean, briefly orbiting south of Crete, likely supporting the return of twelve F-15E Strike Eagles assigned to the 391st Fighter Squadron, out of Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, back to the United States from Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.

The F-15E Strike Eagles will be replaced at Muwaffaq Salti by two flights of six F-35A Lightning lls with the “The Green Mountain Boys” of the Vermont Air National Guard’s 158th Fighter Wing, that over the last week have pre-staged at RAF Lakenheath in England and Naval Station Rota in Spain.

President Donald J. Trump told Axios in an interview Tuesday that he's considering sending a second aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East to prepare for military action against Iran if ongoing negotiations fail, with Trump telling Barack Ravid, “We have an armada that is heading there and another one might be going.”

A U.S. official confirmed to Axios that there had been discussions about sending a second aircraft carrier strike group to the region, though officials could not say which carrier that would be and how long it could take to reach the U.S. Central Command’s Area-of-Responsibility.

“Last time they didn't believe I would do it,” President Trump said during the interview, alluding to his decision to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities last June. “They overplayed their hand,” but this time the talks are “very different,” claiming that “We can make a great deal with Iran.”

Besides the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) already in the Arabian Sea, only one other carrier is deployed right now and could immediately head to the region, that being the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) currently operating in the Caribbean. However, for a number of reasons, one being that the carrier has already been deployed for going on eight months as well as several problems recently aboard the Ford, she will not be going to the Middle East.

The only carrier that could deploy anytime soon to the Middle East would be the USS George H.W. Bush, who is currently completing her Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX) off the coast of Virginia for a scheduled deployment later this year, with the exercise likely taking roughly two more weeks and then at least two weeks to reach the U.S. Central Command’s Area-of-Responsibility near Iran. The USS George Washington (CVN-73) is available to deploy from Fleet Activities Yokosuka in Japan, however this would leave the Indo-Pacific without an aircraft carrier to counter China.

U.S. Forces at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest airbase in the Middle East, were seen loading up to ten launchers for a MIM-104 “Patriot” Surface-to-Air Missile Battery onto M983 Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Trucks (HEMTT) in early February, according to satellite imagery seen by Reuters. Attaching the interceptor launchers to trucks gives them much greater mobility, meaning they can be moved to an alternative site or repositioned with greater speed in case of a ballistic missile attack by Iran.

The United States will deploy an additional 200 Servicemembers to Nigeria in the coming weeks to assist training the country’s military to fight ISIS, Boko Haram, and other Islamist terror groups, roughly two months after President Donald J. Trump ordered missile strikes against terrorist sites in Northern Nigeria on Christmas Day, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Maj. Gen. Samaila Uba, the Spokesman for Nigeria’s Armed Forces, told the Journal that American troops will not be involved in direct combat or operations in the country, and that the additional assistance was requested by Nigeria, likely during a recent visit by Gen. Dagvin Anderson, the Commander of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM).

Satellite imagery captured late last month by the BBC via Planet Labs showed additional air-defense systems, likely MIM-104 “Patriot” Surface-to-Air Missile Launchers, being erected at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) Wednesday morning entirely closing the airspace over the Western Texas city of El Paso for the next ten days, citing “special security reasons,” while classifying a large area over both El Paso and the neighboring community of Santa Teresa, New Mexico as “national defense airspace” under the control of the Defense Department. All flights in and out of El Paso International Airport and nearby regional airports have been canceled or grounded, with even medical evacuation flights being restricted, as local authorities and military officials state that they have received no information regarding the NOTAM. Such an airspace closure over a major city in the United States is unprecedented, with the last time such a restriction like this was issued occurring after September 11, 2001.

Under the NOTAM issued this morning covering El Paso, “THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT MAY USE DEADLY FORCE AGAINST THE AIRBORNE AIRCRAFT, IF IT IS DETERMINED THAT THE AIRCRAFT POSES AN IMMINENT SECURITY THREAT.”

Three KC-135R/T “Stratotanker” Aerial-Refueling Tankers have departed from RAF Mildenhall heading south across Europe, supporting a flight of six F-35A Lightning lls with the “The Green Mountain Boys” of the Vermont Air National Guard’s 158th Fighter Wing flying from RAF Lakenheath in England to their final destination of Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.

In a statement to Defender Media, Southwest Airlines has acknowledged today’s Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) over El Paso, stating:

“At the direction of the FAA, Southwest has paused all operations to and from El Paso International Airport. We have notified affected Customers and will share additional information as it becomes available. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of its Customers and Employees.”

Today’s Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for the next ten days over El Paso is reportedly due to counter-drone operations by the U.S. Armed Forces targeting the cartels in Mexico, utilizing experimental technologies from Biggs Army Airfield at Fort Bliss, with the Defense Department telling the FAA that they could not assure “civilian flight safety” over El Paso and parts of New Mexico, sources briefed on the situation have told CNN.