Reminder: Chuck Holton is going live tomorrow, October 18, at 9 AM PST / 12 PM EST for a private Google Meet call with paying Locals members.

This is your chance to ask questions and connect directly with Chuck.

I’m coming to you today as we watch live feeds from Soroka Hospital in Be’er Sheva, where freed Israeli hostages are arriving after more than 700 days in Hamas captivity. It’s one of those rare days when the cameras catch something other than destruction or outrage—today we get to see relief, tears, and reunions.

At 8:00 a.m. local time, Hamas began transferring the first group of hostages. By 10:28 a.m., the last of the twenty living Israeli captives crossed out of Gaza and into Israeli hands. The Red Cross handled the official transfer, and the Israeli Defense Forces escorted them to safety.

This is a moment of celebration for Israel—and a key milestone in the Trump-brokered Gaza peace framework. Streets across Israel are lined with flags, music, and families hugging for the first time in two years. And honestly, I couldn’t be happier to say this: I was wrong.

Weeks ago, I said I didn’t think we’d see these hostages alive without a negotiated deal. I still think the odds were slim—but the fact that they beat those odds, thanks to President Trump’s diplomatic push, is something we can all be grateful for.

The Cost of Freedom

Israel held up its end of the bargain—releasing roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including many serving life sentences for terrorism. Only a couple dozen of the most notorious offenders were withheld. None of the October 7th attackers were freed.

In exchange, Hamas released all of the remaining living hostages.

But not all promises were kept.

Out of 28 deceased hostages Hamas had pledged to return, only four have been recovered. Hamas now claims it “cannot locate” the rest—saying the bodies may be buried in rubble or collapsed tunnels. That may sound like an excuse, but as Vice President J.D. Vance said yesterday, it’s likely true that some remains may never be found.

Still, for the families waiting on closure, that’s cold comfort.

“Every Israeli mother and father wants to bury their child,”
said one member of the Hostage Families Forum.
“This deal is not finished until every one of them is home.”

I’m going to be blunt: the indicators for a large, coordinated attack inside the United States are stacking up. This isn’t doom-scroll drama. It’s a pattern, and it’s getting clearer by the day. Here’s what you need to know—fast.

1) Open Calls for Violence in U.S. Streets

On the anniversary of October 7th, a New York rally leader literally urged people to “show up stronger” than Hamas did the first time—and to “globalize the intifada.” That’s not “speech I dislike.” That’s incitement. When thousands chant “from the river to the sea,” they’re calling for Israel’s destruction—and the spillover of that violence here. This is radicalization in the open.

2) SIM-Farm Networks Enabling Covert Comms

The Secret Service uncovered huge SIM farms around NYC—hundreds of thousands of active cards tied to encrypted, anonymized messaging. That takes money, logistics, and state-level tradecraft. If it’s in New York, bet on parallel nodes in Chicago, L.A., D.C., Seattle, Portland. You don’t build that to share cat videos. You build it to coordinate.