Morning Headlines - Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023

U.S. and World Headlines

More Hostages Released After Israel And Hamas Agree To 2-Day Extension Of Cease-Fire

Hamas released another group of hostages on Monday, not long after officials announced an agreement between the Palestinian group and Israel to extend a short-term cease-fire in the Gaza Strip for another two days.

Israel's military and security services confirmed that the 11 hostages are now back in Israeli territory. The Red Cross had said about three hours earlier that the freed group had been turned over into its care.

Dr. Majed Al-Ansari, the spokesperson for Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the group includes 3 French citizens, 2 German citizens and 6 Argentinian citizens. In exchange, Al-Ansari said, Israel is releasing 33 Palestinians — 30 minors and 3 women — from Israeli prisons.

How Hamas Built A Force To Attack Israel On 7 October

Five armed Palestinian groups joined Hamas in the deadly 7 October attack on Israel after training together in military-style exercises from 2020 onwards, BBC News analysis shows.

The groups carried out joint drills in Gaza which closely resembled the tactics used during the deadly assault - including at a site less than 1km (0.6 miles) from the barrier with Israel - and posted them on social media.

They practised hostage-taking, raiding compounds and breaching Israel's defences during these exercises, the last of which was held just 25 days before the attack.

BBC Arabic and BBC Verify have collated evidence which shows how Hamas brought together Gaza's factions to hone their combat methods - and ultimately execute a raid into Israel which has plunged the region into war.

The US Used A Contentious Surveillance Power To Disrupt Iran’s Weapons Program

U.S. officials say a controversial surveillance authority has been key to helping them stop the sale of certain weapons parts to Iran in recent years.

The CIA and other intelligence agencies used information gathered by monitoring the electronic communications of foreign weapons manufacturers to stop several shipments of advanced weapons parts to Iran by land, air and sea, according to two U.S. intelligence officials familiar with the matter.

Amazon Looks To Grow In Florida As Bezos Moves To Miami

Amazon is searching for 50,000 square feet of office space in the Miami area, a company spokesperson confirmed to Axios Monday.

It comes as founder Jeff Bezos announced earlier this month that he's moving from Seattle, his home of nearly three decades, to Miami — one of the hottest new influence frontiers and a rising tech hub.

Amazon is seeking the leased office space as part of its organic growth over the past few years in the Miami region, a company spokesperson told Axios.

A Viral $16 Mcdonald’s Meal Won’t Go Away, And That’s A Problem For Democrats

Sticker shock, a feeling as old as commerce itself, is no longer just an irksome, unexpectedly high bill. In the era of social media, overpaying for dinner is an invitation for anyone and everyone to publicly shake their fist over the health of the global economy.

Take the $16 McDonald’s meal that struck a nerve on TikTok late last year. If you missed it, the gist is there’s a guy in Idaho who paid $16.10 for a burger, large fries and a drink.

“I get there’s a labor shortage. I get there’s wage increases and a number of other things,” he says in the video. “But $16? … It’s just crazy.”

Wisconsin Headlines

We Discovered Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ Secret Email Address

Tony Evers has a secret state email account appropriating the name of a dead baseball legend, but he doesn’t think the public has a right to know about it.

Gov. Tony Evers has been communicating with state workers about public business using a secret government email account in the name of a deceased Milwaukee Braves baseball legend, and over 17,000 emails sent to and from the account exist, Wisconsin Right Now has exclusively documented.

But the governor’s office thinks the public has no right to know the account’s name and won’t provide most of the emails. We verified Evers is using the account, first through a source who saw communications between Evers and a state worker, and then through the open records request. The response provided other details that verified it, even though the address was blacked out.

A Grand Chute Police Recruit Alleged She Was Sexually Assaulted By Two Other Cadets — Days Later She Lost Her Job

A 21-year-old police recruit stood in the early morning winter darkness, unsure of what had just happened inside the Comfort Suites in Grand Chute.

After a night of heavy drinking she awoke partially clothed in a hotel bathtub. Two male academy recruits — from Appleton and Sheboygan — were dousing her feet with cold water and slapping her awake. She dressed and fled the hotel room, but still felt too drunk to drive, so she phoned a trusted co-worker at the Grand Chute Police Department.

Wisconsin GOP Lawmakers Introduce Legislation That Could Impact 2024 Election Preparation

Wisconsin remains a key battleground state ahead of the 2024 election. Actions taken by the state's Republican-led legislature have left many election officials concerned about how proposed regulations could impact preparations for next year's races.

"We really need people to believe in our elections. That's our system. It's based on trust," Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell said. "When you lose that trust, or people are continuously trying to break it down. It's a problem for our democracy, and certainly, as a purple state, we're one of the four or five states that are going to get national scrutiny."

In November, 20 election-related bills were introduced in the state Senate. Lawmakers passed three proposals to amend the state's Constitution for stricter voter ID laws, restricting opportunities for election officials and local municipalities to use privately-sourced funds to conduct elections.

Scam Callers Using 'Spoofed' Caller IDs Would Face Fines Under Wisconsin Proposal

Spam calls that use false or misleading caller ID to commit fraud would be prohibited under a bipartisan proposal in the Wisconsin Legislature.

The spam call bill would make a person or company pay a fine of up to $10,000 if they knowingly use inaccurate caller ID information, a practice known as "spoofing."

Law enforcement or people following court orders allowing the use of inaccurate caller ID would be exempt.

At a public hearing earlier this month, the bill's GOP authors said their plan will help prevent phone scams that disproportionately target elderly Wisconsinites.

"More than simply being a nuisance, these calls are often used in furtherance of scams, fraud and identity theft," said Rep. Ty Bodden, R-Hilbert.

Bill Would Limit Foreign Purchasers Of Wisconsin Ag And Forest Lands

Proposed legislation would limit foreign ag and forestry land purchasers in Wisconsin. Representative Jon Plumer (R-Lodi) is the measure’s author. “The overall goal of this bill is to keep bad actors from owning Wisconsin farmland and forestry,” Plumer said during a hearing in the Assembly Agriculture Committee.

While Plumer cited concerns over buyers who could be affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party, Jason Mugnaini with the Wisconsin Farm Bureau raised concerns.

“We have long standing farms throughout the state who have been farming here for decades but are not US citizens,” he said.