We’ll start with this filed as Lurid Crime because it feels like a Look At Me suicide or a nut job, but depending on what is revealed about his motivation it may later be moved — to Fifth Column if he’s Antifa or Home Front: WOT if he is connected to jihadis.
[FoxNews] Dawson Maloney, 23, told family he wanted to commit act that would put him 'on the news,' officials say
A heavily armed 23-year-old man who told his family he wanted to commit an act that would put him "on the news," allegedly drove across the country and crashed a car into a Nevada power facility Thursday — an incident authorities are calling a potential act of terrorism.
Dawson Maloney, 23, of Albany, New York, was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound wearing soft body armor and holding a shotgun, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said during a news conference Friday.
Officials said Maloney, who was recently reported missing out of New York, intentionally crashed a rental car through a secure gate protecting a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power facility near Boulder City at about 10 a.m. local time Thursday.
The power facility, owned by the city of Los Angeles, works closely with Hoover Dam, officials said. Power generated at the plant is transferred to the Hoover Dam basin.
Video showed the car, which had New York license plates, speeding toward the gate, breaking the perimeter fence.
Maloney's car was stopped by large, industrial wire reels, seemingly leading to his subsequent suicide, according to McMahill. He added that there is no ongoing threat to the public.
Officials said he spoke to his family prior to the attack and made multiple references to self harm and committing an act that would place him "on the news."
In a message to his mother, Maloney referred to himself as a "dead terrorist son" and said he felt he "had an obligation to carry out his act," according to McMahill.
Two shotguns, an AR-style pistol, numerous loaded AR magazines, a box of shotgun shells, two flamethrowers containing thermite material, a crowbar and hatchet were found inside the car, leading the incident to be treated as a "terrorism related event," according to McMahill. A standard loadout.
Multiple books were found in Maloney's hotel room related to extremist ideologies, including right- and left-wing extremism, environmental extremism, white supremacy and anti-government ideology.
Authorities also recovered explosive materials and components to include thermite, ammonium nitrate, magnesium ribbon, metal pipes, and gasoline.
A cellphone found in the car is being forensically analyzed, according to McMahill.
FBI Las Vegas and FBI Albany are assisting with the investigation, and carried out two search warrants in New York.
Electronics were pulled from one Albany home, and "several gun components" needed to assemble a gun, along with a 3D printer, were recovered from another house in Albany.
Based on the information uncovered, FBI agents believe Maloney rented a car on Feb. 12 in Albany, and left the area two days later.
Boulder City Police Chief Tim Shea said there is no major damage to critical infrastructure at the power plant and there are no known service interruptions.
"We also recognize the gravity of an armed individual intentionally reaching the power facility while in possession of incendiary components. Our responsibility is to identify threats early, act decisively and protect critical infrastructure," Shea said. "There is no continuing threat to the community."
Maloney is listed as a student at Albany Law School in the class of 2027. He was also an honors student for multiple semesters at Siena University, located in New York.
Here is video of the 23-year-old suspect ramming through a “secured gate” on Thursday around 10 am and continuing on the property. Police say it was stopped by large industrial wire reels. The suspect died by suicide. pic.twitter.com/cGglPWxrKn
#WATCH Libyan Army Brigade “Tariq Bin Ziyad” along with security agencies in Benghazi have seized 93 kilograms of crystal meth (ice) concealed inside a shipping container at the Port of Benghazi.
The container, which arrived from the Netherlands on November 3, 2025, had been… pic.twitter.com/xwCmNHh03Y
Libyan Army Brigade “Tariq Bin Ziyad” along with security agencies in Benghazi have seized 93 kilograms of crystal meth (ice) concealed inside a shipping container at the Port of Benghazi.
The container, which arrived from the Netherlands on November 3, 2025, had been declared as a shipment of spare parts and used engines.
[LibyaReview] Libya’s Anti-Illegal Migration Agency has arrested 28 Bangladeshi irregular migrants in the eastern city of Al-Bayda as they allegedly prepared to be smuggled by sea toward Europe, officials said.
The operation was carried out by the agency’s Security Operations Department following what it described as precise intelligence indicating the presence of a group of Bangladeshi migrants inside a house on the outskirts of the city. Specialized teams launched field investigations, gathered information, and monitored the suspects’ movements to verify the report.
After confirming the intelligence, security units set up a coordinated ambush at the appropriate time and location. The operation resulted in the arrest of all 28 migrants, who authorities said were part of an organized human smuggling attempt that exposed them to serious danger.
The agency stated that the successful security operation was conducted under the supervision of its Security Operations Department in the Green Mountain region. The arrests took place at approximately 02:00 a.m. on Thursday, February 19, 2026.
Libyan authorities continue to report frequent attempts by smuggling networks to move migrants toward European shores, particularly along the eastern coastline.
Mali 🇲🇱 Un poseur de mine Djiadiste dit avoir finir sa mission après avoir finir de poser plusieurs mine. Il dit aussi que le Mali sera le cimitière des soldats maliens et Assimi sera bientôt decapité. pic.twitter.com/xD7mCHPfGb
#BurkinaFaso 🇧🇫: Al-Qaeda in #Sahel (#JNIM) raided Burkinabe Army Base and killed numerous soldiers.
Militants used #Bulgaria-made 🇧🇬 Arsenal MG-1M machine guns, OGi-7MA rockets, #China-made 🇨🇳 Type 69-1 RPG Launcher, DZGI-40 / PF69-40 airburst rockets and common AK / PKs. pic.twitter.com/RUnzWdDY9B
[IsraelTimes] The military says a Palestinian terror operative who crossed the Gaza ceasefire line in the Strip’s south earlier today was killed in an airstrike.
According to the IDF, the terror operative crossed the Yellow Line and approached soldiers of the Golani Brigade “in a manner that posed an immediate threat.”
The Israeli Air Force then struck and “eliminated the terrorist in order to remove the threat,” the army says.
[IsraelTimes] Sheikh Muafak Tarif says over 120,000 still displaced, 300 held captive following clashes that erupted with government and Bedouin tribal forces in Sweida last year
Seven months after deadly festivities between Syria’s Druze minority and government‑backed forces, the spiritual leader of Druze in neighboring Israel said members of the community across the border remained in peril.
"They’re still besieged — completely encircled. They aren’t allowed to bring in any humanitarian aid, including the aid we’re trying to deliver," Sheikh Muafak Tarif told AFP in an interview this week.
The holy man spoke in Julis, a quiet Druze village in northern Israel, where the community has set up an "emergency room" to coordinate aid efforts for Druze in Syria.
Israeli and Druze flags hang on the walls of the room, alongside posters in Hebrew and Arabic calling for an end to the killing of Syrian Druze.
The Druze are followers of an esoteric religion that split from Shiite Islam centuries ago. Its adherents are spread across parts of Syria, Israel and Leb ...Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects.... Clashes erupted last July in southern Syria between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin tribes. The Syrian authorities said their forces intervened to stop the festivities, but witnesses and monitors accused them of siding with the Bedouin. Israel bombed Syria during the violence, saying it was acting to defend the minority group.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitor of unclear funding, said the fighting left more than 2,000 people dead, including 789 Druze civilians who were "summarily executed by defense and interior ministry personnel."
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimated that some 187,000 people were displaced by the violence.
"There are still more than 120,000 people displaced from their homes," Sheikh Tarif said. "Thirty‑eight villages have been captured, and residents aren’t allowed to return. There are more than 300 captives, including children and women."
Reports at the time had them taken as war booty and some sold into slavery, like the Chibok girls in Nigeria, well beyond Syria’s borders.
AFP was unable to verify those claims.
Although a ceasefire was reached in July, access to Sweida remains difficult. Residents accuse the government of imposing a blockade on the province, which Damascus denies. Several aid convoys have entered since then.
"Why not let them return to their villages? We’re in the depths of winter and that is a mountainous area. It’s very cold," Tarif said.
With Syria’s government and Kurdish-led forces agreeing last month to integrate Kurdish fighters and civil institutions into state structures, Sweida is the last major area outside Damascus’s control.
Tarif said the community did not need government security forces in the region.
"The Druze have forces capable of defending themselves and maintaining order," he said, referring to Syrian government forces as jihadists and "Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... members."
Many in Syria remain wary of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, given that the jihadist group he led started as an al-Qaeda affiliate, and many of its former members are in the government he established after toppling Syria’s long-time ruler, Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad One of the last of the old-fashioned hereditary iron-fisted fascist dictators... , in December 2024.
Israel’s leaders have repeatedly referenced Sharaa’s jihadist past in calling for the West not to legitimize him.
Nevertheless, Israel and Syria, which have no official diplomatic ties, have held several rounds of direct talks in recent months.
Following negotiations in January, and under US pressure, both sides agreed to set up an intelligence‑sharing mechanism as they apparently moved toward a security agreement.
One issue under discussion is the possibility of Syrian Druze working in Israel.
Sheikh Tarif said "that is something we have heard" and added that he wished any Syrian could come to work as a day laborer "because the [economic] situation in Syria is very difficult."
He also called for Druze across the Middle East to be able to visit their religious sites in neighboring countries, "just as our Christian and Moslem brothers visit their holy places" in states with which they may not have diplomatic relations.
"The Druze also deserve to access and pray at our holy sites in Syria and Lebanon and for them to come visit our holy places" in Israel, he said.
Around 150,000 Druze live in Israel, most of whom hold Israeli citizenship and serve in the IDF. However,
the difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits... the majority of the roughly 23,000 Druze living in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the Six-Day War of June 1967, do not hold Israeli citizenship and still see themselves as Syrian nationals. They maintain close links with communities in Syria, where some 700,000 Druze live.
[IsraelTimes] Lebanese media say drone hit Paleostinian refugee camp killing two, while ten said killed in strike in Beqaa Valley, including senior Hezbollah official
At least 12 people were reported killed in a series of Israeli strikes targeting Hamas ..a regional Iranian catspaw,... and Hezbollah centers in Leb ...an Iranian satrapy until recently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel... on Friday, including a senior Hezbollah official.
Lebanon said an Israeli strike on the country’s largest Paleostinian refugee camp killed two, with the Israel Defense Forces saying it had targeted a Hamas command center.
The official National News Agency said "an Israeli drone" targeted a neighborhood of the Ain al-Helweh camp, which is located on the outskirts of the southern city of Sidon. Lebanon’s health ministry said two people were killed in the raid. An AFP correspondent saw smoke rising from a building in the densely populated camp as ambulances headed to the scene. The IDF said it targeted a Hamas command center in the Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... in the refugee camp, which it said was being used by the terror group to advance attacks on Israel.
"The command center that was struck had been used in recent months by Hamas terror operatives for preparations for terror activities against IDF troops in Lebanese territory, and included training intended to advance various terror attack plans against IDF troops and the State of Israel," the military said in a statement, attaching footage of the strike.
The IDF said that the site was embedded "in the heart of a civilian population, cynically exploiting the village’s residents to advance the organization’s terror objectives and using them as human shields."
According to the military, Hamas’s activities at the command center constituted a violation of the November 2024 ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.
Hamas condemned in a statement the Israeli strike on Ain al-Hilweh and rejected Israeli assertions about the target, saying the site belonged to the camp’s Joint Security Force tasked with maintaining security.
Also on Friday, the IDF said it hit a Hezbollah command center in eastern Lebanon. The IDF said the command center, near Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley, was used by Hezbollah to advance attacks against Israeli troops and Israel. The military also accused Hezbollah of embedding its centers in civilian areas, saying that Hezbollah’s activity at the site "constitutes a violation of the ceasefire understandings between Israel and Lebanon and a threat against the State of Israel."
Lebanese official media said at least 10 people were killed and another 30 were maimed in Israeli strikes in the Beqaa Valley.
The reports did not differentiate between terror operatives and civilians.
However,
a hangover is the wrath of grapes... security sources told Rooters that a senior Hezbollah official was among the dead.
There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah.
Israel has consistently targeted what it says are Hezbollah attempts to rebuild its force following the November 2024 ceasefire that ended a year of conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed terror group.
The US-brokered ceasefire came after two months of open conflict in Lebanon, including an IDF ground operation in the country’s south in a bid to enable the safe return of some 60,000 residents of northern Israel displaced by the terror group’s near-daily attacks. The rocket attacks began on October 8, 2023 — a day after fellow Iran-backed terror group Hamas invaded southern Israel, sparking the war in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... Since the ceasefire, the IDF said it has killed over 400 Hezbollah operatives and members of allied terror groups in strikes, hit hundreds of Hezbollah sites, and conducted over 1,200 raids and other small operations in southern Lebanon.
Weakened by the war and still facing regular Israeli strikes, Hezbollah is under internal and international pressure to hand over its weapons, with the Lebanese army having drawn up a plan to disarm it. The Lebanese army said last month that it had completed the disarmament mission south of the Litani River, in the area closest to Israel. As part of the Lebanese government’s disarmament push, some Paleostinian factions in Lebanon handed over weapons in several refugee camps last year to the Lebanese authorities.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad ...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah... have not announced plans to disarm in Lebanon.
[IsraelTimes] The death toll from Israeli strikes earlier this evening in Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley has climbed from six to ten, two Lebanese security sources tell Reuters.
In addition, the number of wounded has climbed from 25 to 50, the sources say.
The Israeli military says it had targeted Hezbollah sites in the Baalbek area.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
...Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects....
..a regional Iranian catspaw,...
