World
Reporter's Notebook: Aboard the USS Dwight D Eisenhower in the Red Sea: 'Constant self-defense'
![Reporter's Notebook: Aboard the USS Dwight D Eisenhower in the Red Sea: 'Constant self-defense' Reporter's Notebook: Aboard the USS Dwight D Eisenhower in the Red Sea: 'Constant self-defense'](https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/02/Carrier-Strike-2jpg.jpg)
It’s the dark of night, the middle of the Red Sea, but it’s not quiet. The whine of several F-18 super hornet fighter jets produce an ear-splitting sound on the deck of the USS Dwight D Eisenhower.
In bright primary-colored shirts, sailors on the flight deck tend to their specific jobs. The munitions officers, in red shirts, flip a switch that engages the sidewinder missiles on the outside of the fighter jet’s wings. It’s like taking the safety off your gun. The missiles are now ready to be fired. The pilot inches his jet forward so catapult officers can hook the tow-bar on his front wheel to the shuttle which runs down a steaming slot to the end of the flight deck.
Through a series of hand signals, a deck officer with yellow flashlights tells the pilot it’s time. He throttles the jet engines to full power and everyone’s rib cages shake on deck. An officer with the title shooter triggers the catapult and with a mighty roar the super hornet is launched into combat over the Red Sea.
REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: EMBEDDED WITH THE IDF DEEP INSIDE HAMAS TUNNELS UNDER UNRWA HQ
Fox News correspondent Mike Tobin on board the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Red Sea (Fox News)
Each takeoff is a launch into combat. Everything happens in the “weapons engagement zone,” close enough to Houthi controlled Yemen that they are in range of hostile fire.
“We are in constant self-defense out here when it comes to threats that can be shot at us,’ says Rear Admiral Marc Miguez, commander of the strike group.
Self-defense does not mean they don’t go on the offensive. Often times, the F-18s launch with a planned target. Captain Marvin Scott, commander of the air wing on the carrier says his pilots have already degraded the ability of the Houthis to fire at cargo ships and warships crossing the Red Sea. “By targeting their ability to see us, their surveillance radars, and now we’re primarily focused on their military capabilities,” he says.
![USS Dwight Eisenhower](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/02/1200/675/USS-Dwight-D.-Eisenhower.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Red Sea (Fox News)
Many of the targets are “dynamic targets”, something that presents itself after the F-18 is in the air. U.S. Central Command says on Thursday U.S. forces struck four drones and two anti-ship cruise missiles that were prepared to launch. On Friday, they shot down three drones near commercial ships in the Red Sea.
US, COALITION FORCES DESTROY 6 HOUTHI ONE-WAY ATTACK DRONES
![Oil tanker on fire](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/01/1200/675/marlin-luanda.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
In this photo provided by the Indian Navy on Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024, a view of the oil tanker Marlin Luanda on fire after an attack, in the Gulf of Aden. The crew aboard a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker hit by a missile launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels is battling a fire onboard the stricken vessel sparked by the strike. (Indian Navy via AP)
The threats are constant and while the sailors have proven to be effective at shooting missiles out of the sky, it’s not an easy task and failure is not an option. “We have to be right 100% of the time and they only have to be right once,” says Miguez.
The USS Eisenhower is one of six ships in strike group two. One of them is a cruiser, the USS Philippine Sea. It serves as a sentinel for the strike group, with layers of sailors who monitor high-tech electronics that detect incoming threats. In a matter of seconds, the “watchstanders” determine the nature of the threat and how to respond.
“It just depends what the threat is and what’s coming at us,” Says Captain Steve Liberty who defined what his ship is ready for, “Anything they can throw our way,” he says.
![USS Dwight D Eisenhower](https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/02/1200/675/Carrier-Strike-3jpg.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
Sailors on the flight deck of the USS Dwight D Eisenhower. (Fox News)
In the end, their mission is as old as the Navy itself. Protecting safe maritime trade is the reason the Navy was created in the first place. “Freedom of Navigation,” Says Captain Chris Hill, Commander of the Dwight D Eisenhower, “It’s something we’ve been doing since 1775, and it’s something we’re really good at.”
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World
Celine Dion Makes Triumphant Comeback at Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony — Watch Full Performance
![Celine Dion Makes Triumphant Comeback at Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony — Watch Full Performance Celine Dion Makes Triumphant Comeback at Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony — Watch Full Performance](https://tvline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/celine-dion-olympics-performance-video.jpg?w=650)
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World
95 Libyan nationals arrested in South Africa at suspected secret military training camp
![95 Libyan nationals arrested in South Africa at suspected secret military training camp 95 Libyan nationals arrested in South Africa at suspected secret military training camp](https://static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2024/07/South-Africa-Secret-Military-Camp.jpg)
South African police arrested 95 Libyan nationals in a raid on a suspected secret military training camp on Friday and authorities said they were investigating whether there were more illegal bases in other parts of the country.
The camp was discovered at a farm in White River in the Mpumalanga province, about 360 kilometers (220 miles) northeast of Johannesburg, police said.
ELEPHANTS KILL TOURIST IN SOUTH AFRICA AFTER HE TRIED TO GET CLOSE TO TAKE PICTURES
National police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe said in a post on the social media site X that the Libyans stated they had entered the country on study visas to train as security guards, but police investigations suggest they have received military training.
The Newzroom Afrika TV news channel broadcast pictures of the site of the arrests, showing a military-style camp with large green and khaki tents set up in a row. Dozens of men were seen lining up as they were arrested. They were wearing civilian clothing.
Local government official Jackie Macie said investigations were ongoing and the owner of the farm would be questioned. He said authorities received information that there were similar secret camps near two other towns in Mpumalanga province.
A camp where 95 Libyan nationals were arrested on suspicion of running an illegal military camp are seen lining up after their arrest on Friday, July 26, 2024 in White River, South Africa. Police say that 95 Libyan nationals were arrested on suspicion of receiving training at a secret military camp in the north of the country. (AP Photo/Bulelwa Maphanga)
The province borders neighboring countries Mozambique and Swaziland and is an area of concern for South African authorities with regards to illegal immigration.
Police and authorities have not said whether the camps are suspected of being connected to a particular group or conflict.
Macie said investigations would establish if there was a network of camps in South Africa and show “why they are here doing military training in our country.”
Police said the men may be linked to crimes reported in communities close to the farm in recent months.
“We have serious cases which have been opened with the police, including cases of rape and armed robberies, which complainants claim were committed by unknown foreigners who seem to be of Asian descent,” said police spokesman Donald Mdhluli.
“We take what we have found here today very seriously because we don’t know who was training them, what were they being trained for and why that training is happening here in South Africa. It may be a threat not only to South Africa but also to the entire southern Africa region.”
Police said the operation to arrest the Libyans and close down the camp began two days ago. Macie said the Libyan nationals had been in the country since at least April.
“The 95 individuals taken into custody are all Libyan nationals and are currently being questioned by the relevant authorities,” Mpumalanga acting provincial police commissioner Maj. Gen. Zeph Mkhwanazi said in a statement.
Mdhluli, the police spokesman, said the country’s security regulator had confirmed that the kind of training that appears to have been taking place at the camp was well beyond the scope of training for security guards.
“The kind of equipment we found here shows that there was intense military training taking place here. This was basically a military base.”
World
Passengers face long, uncertain wait at stations amid rail disruption
![Passengers face long, uncertain wait at stations amid rail disruption Passengers face long, uncertain wait at stations amid rail disruption](https://static.euronews.com/articles/stories/08/60/76/94/1200x675_cmsv2_f96d39cf-cf5a-5a0e-9323-49dbeb24b261-8607694.jpg)
A deliberate fire in a signal box about 60 km south of Lille caused the disruption on the northern high-speed line, with traffic halted around 5 a.m. local time on Friday.
Travel was severely disrupted in Lille on Friday, one of the stations affected by the sabotage that hit major French rail lines ahead of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.
Many passengers waited with hope that soon turned to resignation.
“We’ve been waiting since 10:38 a.m. for the 11:38 a.m. train, and now we’re just waiting for it to arrive at 2:08 p.m.,” said Delphine, one of the stranded passengers.
“It’s still quite a delay, and we’ll be even later since we’re on a secondary route. I work in Avignon at 9 p.m., so it’s going to be very, very tight. We have a concert tonight — will it even happen? This is all very confusing, and we don’t understand what’s going on.”
For one traveller, this was a rough start to the holidays. “The worst case would be if the train is cancelled entirely and we have to buy new tickets for next week. It would shorten our already brief vacation. That would be a huge problem,” said Hippolyte.
When asked if he had been informed of the delays, Hippolyte said he received the notification just before departure.
“At around 10 a.m. this morning, we were told we were an hour late and would be leaving at 1 p.m.”
“It just keeps getting later as the day goes on. Every time we approach the new departure time, it gets pushed back another hour and a half, or half an hour each time.”
A deliberate fire in a signal box about 60 km south of Lille caused the disruption on the northern high-speed line. Traffic was halted around 5 a.m. on Friday.
The recent acts of sabotage on the rail network highlight that the Olympic Games are turning France into a prime target.
The attack disrupted the transport system on the opening day of the Games, causing delays of up to two hours or even cancellations that affected hundreds of thousands of passengers nationwide.
Authorities in Paris have said they are deploying substantial human resources to counter any threats and to ensure the safety of the events.
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