PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN

President Joe Biden vowed Sunday that the United States “shall respond” to the killing of three American military service members – and the wounding of at least 34 others – in a drone strike in Jordan on Saturday. Biden blamed the attack on militias supported by Iran.

“We had a tough day last night in the Middle East,” said Biden. “We lost three brave souls in an attack on one of our bases. And we shall respond.”

These are the first U.S. military casualties in the wake of the outbreak of the conflict between Hamas militants in Gaza and Israel. About 1,200 Israelis died in the initial attack on Oct. 7. Upwards of 25,000 Gazans are believed to have been killed in combat that still continues.

Iran launches three satellites

After several fails, Iran successfully launched three satellites into low earth orbit, according to the Iranian government.

It’s claimed that the “home-made” rocket that carried the satellites was part of a peaceful civilian program. Much of the world’s telecommunications data is transmitted with the aid of such devices, but its believed that the Simorgh rocket could be used to carry an intercontinental ballistic missile.

Chiefs, 49ers Super Bowl-bound

The matchup for the NFL championship is set. Super Bowl LVIII will be played on Feb. 11 between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers in Las Vegas.

On Sunday, the Chiefs defeated the Baltimore Ravens 17-10 for the American Football Conference title. Patrick Mahomes turned in a 256-yard performance (241 yards passing – including a TD – and 15 rushing for KC and Travis Kelce caught 11 passes for 116 yards and a score.
Lamar Jackson of the Ravens passed for 272 yards and a TD, but was intercepted once. He rushed for 54 more yards.

Later in the day, the 49ers rallied from a 24-7 halftime deficit to stun the Lions. Brock Purdy threw for 267 yards and one score; Christian McCafferty rushed for 90 yards and two touchdowns.
For Detroit, Jared Goff passed for 273 yards and one score. David Montgomery gained 97 yards and scored once.

• Kings lose: The Los Angeles Kings lost 4-3 to the St. Louis Blues on the road. The Kings are now 22-15-10, and have lost four games in a row.

Weather: Sunny and then …

We’ve been waiting for sunny skies in our West Orange County for a while. The forecast calls for sun on Monday with daytime high of 77 with an overnight low of 49. Partly cloudy conditions expected to move in on Tuesday with a high of 74 (53). Wednesday will be cloudy at 66 (55) and rain is expected on Thursday with a high of 60 and a low of 49.