Today's Headlines and Commentary

A wave of suspicious packages addressed to prominent Democrats and critics of President Trump have been intercepted by the government. In addition to packages sent to Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, the CNN offices in New York, billionaire George Soros, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Maxine Walters, two additional devices addressed to Joe Biden and Robert De Niro were found Thursday morning, reports the New York Times.

American intelligence reports indicate that Chinese and Russian intelligence officers are routinely eavesdropping on calls that President Trump makes from his iPhones, reports the Times. On Thursday morning, President Trump tweeted that the Times article was incorrect.

A category 5 supertyphoon crashed through the Northern Mariana Islands of Tinian and Saipan early on Thursday, and experts say the storm rivaled deadly Typhoon Mangkhut in the Philippines. No deaths have been reported, but the storm has “all but destroyed” the island, says the Wall Street Journal.

The Saudi public prosecutor said on Thursday that based on new evidence form a Saudi-Turkish probe, the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi was premeditated—the latest shift in the kingdom’s narrative of how Khashoggi was murdered, says the Times.

NATO is kicked off its largest military exercise since the end of the Cold War, Trident Juncture-18, on Thursday reports the Post. Writing for the Post, Ralph Clem provided analysis on what Norway’s role in the exercise could mean for the future of the Nordic region.

Pakistan is seeking aid from the IMF, China and Saudi Arabia after the U.S. froze aid earlier this year over concerns that the Pakistani government was not doing enough to deter terrorist groups operating in Pakistan, reports the Times.

ICYMI: Yesterday on Lawfare

Ben Buchanan and Robert D. Williams assessed rising tensions in U.S.-China relations, and the cybersecurity dilemma that is central to the cycle of escalation.

Ingrid Wuerth argued that, in the upcoming Jam v. International Finance Corp. case, the Supreme Court should be narrow in its reading of The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and the International Organizations Immunities Act.

Leah West explored Canada’s foreign fighter and repatriation problem.

Jack Balkin posted the latest edition of the Hoover Institution’s Aegis paper series—his paper examines on the nature of digital capitalism and how we pay for the digital public sphere we have.

Victoria Clark uploaded the affidavit and criminal complaint against Robert Paul Rundo and three other members of the white supremacist group Rise Above Movement, which was allegedly involved in the August 2017 rally in Charlottesville.

Harry Graver analyzed the motivation behind the Justice Department’s change in rationale for holding Asadullah Haroon Gul (aka al-Afghani) at Guantanamo, and the associated implications his detention has on habeas litigation.

Mikhaila Fogel provided a resource page for what is known so far about the string of explosive devices sent to political figures over the last few days.

Jen Patja Howell posted this week’s episode of Rational Security, covering the package bombs and L’Affaire Russe’s influence on midterm elections.

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