NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight’s 7 p.m. ET show. Subscribe to War Notes here.  

Irony alert: The Left is up in arms that Daniel Penny is free, but the guy who killed the UnitedHealthcare CEO is “starting a conversation about healthcare” and is a folk hero to the left.

• Watch tonight: Bill O’Reilly will be on to discuss if the jury verdict in Manhattan proves America is coming to its senses. 

Ask the Zen Master

I am going to tell you something that nobody else will say about Syria and I am the only one who is unquestionably right: I don’t know. 

• Movie clip: To understand all events in the Middle East, watch Philip Seymour Hoffman explain the story of the zen master and the little boy in the film “Charlie Wilson’s War.”
  • It comes just after Russia left Afghanistan in the 1980s. 

Well, thirteen years later, Barack Obama, John Kerry, Joe Biden and Hilary Clinton finally got their wish — Syria’s Bashar al-Assad is gone. 

It will take close to another thirteen years to figure out if it’s a good thing or not. 

• A smart friend: If Assad’s replacement is worse, does that mean Tulsi Gabbard was smart for meeting with Assad?

Ground truth: Assad’s replacement will be worse, but terrorists fighting against each other is better than them having a safe haven.

• The Middle East is a very complicated place – the Israelis understand that the best. 

The Washington Post writes, “Western governments long worried about a ‘catastrophic success’ in Syria if Islamist fighters gained control. But experts say the rebels have changed.”

“We are moderate,” says the terrorists — ha! 

• Watch: Jerusalem is next.
  • The Syrian rebels said in this video, “We will also conquer Jerusalem and Mecca with the help of Allah.”
    • “Conquer Mecca” sounds a lot like ISIS, who wanted to take over the entire Middle East….

I lived in the Middle East for years — jihadists don’t change — just read this quick primer on the new Syrian leader. 

Does that outweigh the colossal embarrassment and loss for Iran of its land bridge to Hezbollah, its main client state and a border with Israel? We’ll see.

• One thing is for sure: Fourteen months after the October 7 attacks on Israel, Iran’s big gamble to use its ring of fire and embroil Israel in a massive regional war failed miserably.
  • Hamas is destroyed and its leadership is decimated.
  • Hezbollah is destroyed and its leadership is decimated.
  • Syria’s Assad is gone, leaving Iran with zero influence.
  • Houthis/Yemen: Israel keeps pounding away.  
• Be fair: President Joe Biden predicted as much.
  • Check out this must read from Axios’ Barak Ravid here.
    • “After Oct. 7, when much of the world was still reeling from the Hamas terrorist attack, Iran and its proxies ‘chose to launch a multi-front war against Israel,’ Biden said in a speech from the White House Sunday. ‘That was a historic mistake on Iran’s part,’ the president declared.”
• Be more fair: All of this happened because Israel often ignored the Biden administration’s advice and demands.

Pretty good take on the Putin question: Except I thought we couldn’t negotiate with Russia?! 

• Russian military doctrine says to escalate to de-escalate – now that a bunch of jihadists have embarrassed Putin, will he double down in Ukraine, or sue for peace?

Lindsey Graham – let’s go! 

• Read Sen. Lindsey Graham’s statement here — he never met a war he didn’t like — that doesn’t mean he’s wrong.

The United States is already involved. There have been dozens of airstrikes by U.S. forces over the past few days.

Opportunity: Israel spent the past few days pounding away at:

• Syrian chemical weapons facilities: They don’t want terrorists with weapons of mass destruction. 
• Syrian air defenses and Iranian outposts: This clears the airspace for direct attacks on Iran.
  • Watch Israel’s attacks on Syria here.

Memories: In the weeks after rebels took over eastern Libya and kicked out Gaddafi’s forces, I headed in — the first city we reached was Tobruk. 

• We headed to the local outpost of Gaddafi’s secret police and toured the torture cells.
• It made me physically ill: I still remember my producer and photographer putting me in a cell, slamming the door, and having me speak to the camera about what I felt. 
• Syria makes that look like a picnic – if half of this stuff is true – WOW!
  • Watch this clip of Assad’s prisons. 
  • This video shows the bodies of detainees. 
  • Read more about the torture prisons here.

Last question: Where is Austin Tice? 

Tune into “On Balance with Leland Vittert” weeknights at 7/6C on NewsNation. Find your channel here. 

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of NewsNation.