The man who was convicted of assaulting then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband in 2022 was re-sentenced to 30 years in prison on Tuesday, with no change in the original sentence after the case was reopened so he could speak during his sentencing hearing, local news reported.

David DePape was originally sentenced to 30 years in prison on May 17 for forcibly entering Pelosi’s home in San Francisco early on Oct. 28, 2022 and clubbing her husband Paul in the head with a hammer in a politically motivated attack.

During the original sentencing, U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley failed to give DePape a chance to address the court, a “clear error” under the federal judicial rules, the judge wrote in a court filing the next day.

She also scheduled a hearing for Tuesday to resolve the issue, allowing DePape to speak on his own behalf. He did, apologizing for the attack, before Corley sentenced him again to 30 years in prison, reported ABC7, a local ABC affiliate in San Francisco.

In November, a jury found DePape guilty of attempting to kidnap a federal officer and assaulting an immediate family member of a federal officer. Prosecutors said the 44-year-old was driven by the far-right conspiracy theories known as QAnon.

Paul Pelosi, 82, suffered skull fractures and other injuries that have continued to affect him, according to a letter filed in court. In addition to dizziness and a metal plate that remains in his head, Pelosi said he has struggled with balance and has permanent nerve damage in his left hand.

Pelosi, the Democratic speaker of the House of Representatives at the time of the attack, was in Washington when it occurred.

DePape still faces separate state charges stemming from the Pelosi break-in and attack, including attempted murder. Those charges carry a potential sentence of 13 years to life in prison. He has pleaded not guilty.

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the first woman to hold that powerful post, said on Thursday she will step down as the chamber’s Democratic leader as her allies prepared a passing of the torch to Representative Hakeem Jeffries.

Pelosi, an 82-year-old liberal from California who has served two stints as speaker, said she will remain in Congress, representing San Francisco as she has done for 35 years. She made the announcement a day after Republicans secured a slim majority in the chamber following last week’s midterm elections.

Jeffries, of New York, would be the first Black lawmaker to lead one of the major parties’ caucuses in Congress. The current No. 2 House Democrat, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, endorsed Jeffries for the party’s leadership post and said he also would not seek a leadership job in the next Congress.

On Wednesday, House Republicans offered initial support for Kevin McCarthy, who represents the Bakersfield area, to serve as speaker when the next Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3. He currently serves as Republican leader.

In a statement, President Joe Biden called Pelosi “the most consequential speaker of the House of Representatives in our history.”

Pelosi received cheers from her fellow Democrats as she took her place in the chamber to make the announcement and throughout her remarks. Calling the House chamber “sacred ground,” Pelosi recalled visiting the Capitol for the first time as a child when her father was sworn in as a House member.

She recounted working with three American presidents — Republican George W. Bush and Democrats Barack Obama and Biden — but did not mention Republican President Donald Trump, who was impeached twice by the House under her leadership. But she alluded to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol by Trump’s supporters.

“American democracy is majestic, but it is fragile. Many of us here have witnessed our fragility firsthand, tragically in this chamber. And so democracy must be forever defended from forces that wish it harm,” Pelosi said.

Pelosi also noted the increase in women and minority lawmakers since she joined the House in 1987.

Republicans on Wednesday were projected to win control of the House following last week’s congressional elections, giving them a narrow majority in the chamber that will enable them to impede Democratic President Joe Biden’s legislative agenda. Democrats retained control of the Senate.

Pelosi has played a central role in getting Democratic Biden’s legislative agenda through Congress, as she did previously for Obama. She helped pass Obama’s signature 2010 healthcare law as well as major expansions of infrastructure and climate spending under Biden. She has been a regular target of criticism from U.S. conservatives.

Pelosi has been under pressure during the past few years from younger House Democrats to yield power. She was the highest-ranking and most powerful elected woman in U.S. history until Kamala Harris became vice president in January 2021. House speaker is second in the line of succession to the presidency.

Pelosi in recent days had said the Oct. 28 assault on her husband Paul by a politically motivated hammer-wielding intruder in their San Francisco home, as well as other factors, would impact her decision on whether to keep her leadership role.

House Democrats are set to vote on their leaders on Nov. 30.

Jeffries, 52, would herald a new generation of leadership for the Democrats. Democratic Whip James Clyburn, 82, said he planned to stay in leadership but did not know what position he would fill.

Biden turns 80 on Sunday. The aging leadership of the Democratic Party has raised questions about the its next generation even as Americans are living longer.

Pelosi was first elected to the House in a special election and steadily moved up the ranks, securing leadership positions before winning her first term as speaker in 2007.

She first served as speaker from 2007 to 2011 as Democrats rode opposition to the Iraq War to control of the House. She became speaker again in 2019 when Democrats rode a wave of opposition to Trump to win control of the House and was re-elected as speaker in November 2021.

Republican control of the House, projected on Wednesday, gives that party not only the ability to rein in Biden’s agenda but to launch potentially politically damaging probes of his administration and family.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday that she does not have plans to step away from being a member of Congress, according to an interview on ABC News with the Democratic leader.

Amid predictions of an electoral “red wave,” and the attack on Pelosi’s husband at their home in San Francisco, speculation built that the 82-year-old lawmaker who has served in Congress since 1987 might consider retiring.

But she told interviewer George Stephanopoulos, “I don’t have any plans to step away from Congress.”

However, she said she hasn’t decided whether to seek a leadership position in the next Congress, which could have a thin Republican majority.

“My decision will then be rooted in the wishes of my family and the wishes of my caucus. But none of it will be very much considered until we see the outcome,” she said during a second interview Sunday on CNN.

It could take several days or more before the outcome of enough House races is known to determine which party will control the 435-seat chamber.

Returns were still flowing in for several races, including many in liberal-leaning California. As of late on Saturday, Republicans had won 211 seats, with 218 needed for a majority, ahead of the Democrats with 205.

“It’s very close,” Pelosi told Stephanopoulos. “We haven’t given up.”

Reuters contributed to this article.

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said this week the recent attack on her husband by a hammer-wielding intruder in their home was especially painful to her knowing she was “the target” and would factor into her decision about when to retire from Congress.

Appearing on CNN in her first televised interview since Paul Pelosi suffered skull fractures and other injuries in the Oct. 28 assault, the speaker said it stemmed from the same strain of “misrepresentation” that led a mob to storm the U.S. Capital on Jan. 6, 2021.

Choking back tears, Nancy Pelosi recounted the bewildering moment when she was awakened by U.S. Capitol Police at her Washington apartment on the morning her 82-year-old husband was attacked to be informed of the violent break-in at their San Francisco home.

“For me, the really hard part” was knowing that she was the intruder’s intended victim, the speaker, also 82, said in the interview. “Because Paul was not the target, and he is the one who is paying the price.”

Asked by CNN anchor Anderson Cooper whether she had made up her mind about whether to retire from Congress, and her post as speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, if the Democrats lose their thin House majority in Tuesday’s midterm elections, Pelosi demurred.

However, she told him, “I have to say, my decision will be affected by what happened the last week or two.” Pressed by Cooper if she was referring to the attack on her husband, the speaker replied, “Yes.”

“And it will be impacted by – but – let me say this,” she added without finishing her thought, and saying that she felt “blessed” by her 35 years of public service in the House.

Court affidavits filed by prosecutors with charges against the suspect, David Wayne DePape, 42, say he told police after his arrest that he had planned to kidnap the speaker, interrogate her and break her kneecaps if she “lied.”

DePape is accused of forcing his way into the couple’s home and creeping upstairs to a bedroom where he awakened Paul Pelosi from his sleep demanding to see the speaker, who had flown back to Washington the night before.

Paul Pelosi managed to place an emergency-911 call, and police arrived just in time to witness the intruder club the real estate and venture capitalist over the head with a hammer, according to court documents.

DePape has been charged in federal court with attempted kidnapping and assault. In California state court, he pleaded not guilty to separate charges of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, burglary, elder abuse, false imprisonment and threatening a public official.

The man accused of bludgeoning U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi‘s husband with a hammer after forcing his way into the couple’s home threatened to take her hostage and break “her kneecaps” if she lied under his questioning, according to a federal criminal complaint filed on Monday.

David Wayne DePape’s alleged intentions emerged as federal prosecutors charged the 42-year-old suspect with assault and attempted kidnapping in Friday’s predawn break-in at the Pelosis’ San Francisco home.

The 82-year-old speaker, a Democrat who is second in the line of succession to the U.S. presidency, was in Washington at the time. Her husband, Paul Pelosi, 82, has been hospitalized as he recovers from skull fractures and injuries to his hands and right arm.

Doctors expect a full recovery, the speaker’s office said.

DePape was arrested by police officers dispatched to the home after Paul Pelosi placed an emergency-911 call reporting an intruder, according to the complaint.

The San Francisco Police Department recovered zip ties in the bedroom and in the hallway near the front door. Police also found a roll of tape, white rope, a hammer, one pair of rubber and cloth gloves and a journal in DePape’s backpack, the U.S. Justice Department said in a statement.

Paul Pelosi, who was initially left unconscious from the attack, later told police that he was asleep when a stranger, armed with a hammer, entered the bedroom and demanded to speak with his spouse, the complaint states.

According to Paul Pelosi’s account in the criminal complaint, he told the intruder that his wife would be away for several days and the intruder responded that he would stay and wait for her.

The intruder told Paul Pelosi he planned to hold his wife hostage for questioning, and that if she told the “truth” he would let her go. If she “lied,” he threatened to break “her kneecaps,” the complaint said.

Pelosi told police he managed to slip away to the bathroom to place the 911 call.

The incident stoked fears about political violence ahead of midterm elections on Nov. 8 that will decide control of the House of Representatives and Senate during one of the most vitriolic and polarized U.S. campaigns in decades.

Authorities said police officers arriving at the Pelosi home saw DePape and Pelosi struggling over a hammer. As the officers shouted at both men to drop the tool, DePape yanked the hammer away and struck Pelosi before the officers subdued DePape and took him into custody.

DePape was charged with one count of assault on a family member of a U.S. official and one count of attempted kidnapping of a U.S. official. Prosecutors alleged both offenses were motivated by the U.S. official’s “performance of official duties.”

The charges carry a combined maximum sentence of 50 years in prison, the Justice Department said in a statement announcing the charges.

Local authorities say DePape still faces several state charges stemming from the attack, including attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse and battery.

San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said hours after the attack that it was not a random act of violence. The intruder shouted, “Where is Nancy?” before attacking, according to a person briefed on the incident.

Pelosi later flew to San Francisco to be with her husband and released a statement on Saturday expressing dismay that “a violent man broke into our family home, demanded to confront me and brutally attacked my husband Paul.”

After he was arrested at the house, DePape was taken to a San Francisco hospital, but it was unclear whether he was there for medical or psychiatric care, or both.

A man who clubbed U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi‘s husband over the head with a hammer, shouting, “Where is Nancy?”, faced charges of attempted murder and other felonies a day after the violent break-in at the couple’s San Francisco home.

Police initially declined to offer a motive for Friday’s attack on Paul Pelosi, 82, who according to his wife’s office underwent surgery for a skull fracture and injuries to his right arm and hands, though doctors expect a full recovery.

But the assault stoked fears about political violence less than two weeks ahead of midterm elections on Nov. 8 that will decide control of the House of Representatives and Senate, coming amid the most vitriolic and polarized U.S. political climate in decades.

The 82-year-old House speaker herself, a Democrat who is second in the constitutional line of succession to the U.S. presidency, was in Washington with her protective detail at the time of the assault.

She flew to San Francisco to be with her husband.

Police identified the man arrested at the scene by officers who intervened in the attack as David Depape, 42. He, too, was taken to a San Francisco hospital.

Online sheriff’s records showed he was booked into custody on suspicion of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, battery, burglary, and several other felonies. Formal charges were expected to be filed by the San Francisco district attorney’s office.

San Francisco Police Chief William Scott told a Friday night news briefing that police detectives, assisted by FBI agents, had yet to determine what precipitated the home invasion but said, “We know this was not a random act.”

A statement from Nancy Pelosi’s spokesperson, Drew Hammill, said Pelosi’s husband had been attacked “by an assailant who acted with force, and threatened his life while demanding to see the Speaker.”

The intruder shouted, “Where is Nancy?” before attacking, according to a person briefed on the incident but who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.

From Hemp to Hate

In the search for a motive, attention turned to the suspect’s apparent internet profile.

In recent posts on several websites, an internet user named “daviddepape” expressed support for former President Donald Trump and embraced the cult-like conspiracy theory QAnon. The posts included references to “satanic pedophilia,” anti-Semitic tropes and criticism of women, transgender people and censorship by tech companies.

Older messages promoted quartz crystals and hemp bracelets. Reuters could not confirm that the posts were created by the man arrested on Friday.

The San Francisco Chronicle posted a photo of a man it identified as Depape dancing at the 2013 wedding of two nudist activists in San Francisco, though he was clothed. Depape, then a hemp jewelry maker who lived with the couple in Berkeley, was the best man, the newspaper reported.

Scott said the intruder forced his way into the Pelosis’ three-story red brick townhouse through a rear door. Aerial photos showed shattered glass at the back of the house in the city’s affluent Pacific Heights neighborhood.

The chief said police were dispatched for an “A-priority wellbeing check” at about 2:30 a.m. on the basis of a somewhat cryptic emergency-911 call from the residence. Other news outlets reported the call was placed by Paul Pelosi.

Scott credited the 911 operator with using her experience and intuition to “figure out that there was more to this incident than what she was being told” by the caller, so she dispatched the call at a higher priority than normal. Scott called her decision “life-saving.”

According to Scott, police arriving at the scene caught a glimpse through the front door of Depape and Pelosi struggling over a hammer. As the officers yelled at both men to drop the tool, Depape yanked the hammer away and was seen striking Pelosi at least once, the chief said.

The officers then tackled, disarmed and arrested Depape and took both men to hospital, Scott said.

Season of Extremism

The incident came a day after New York City police warned that extremists could target politicians, political events and polling sites ahead of the midterm elections.

The U.S. Capitol Police said they investigated 9,625 threats against lawmakers from both parties in 2021, nearly a threefold increase from 2017.

As a Democratic leader in Washington and a longtime representative from one of America’s most liberal cities, Nancy Pelosi is a frequent target of Republican criticism.

Her office was ransacked during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by supporters of Republican then-President Trump, some of whom hunted for her during the assault.

In January 2021, her home was vandalized with graffiti saying “Cancel rent” and “We want everything” painted on the house and a pig’s head left in front of the garage, media reported.

The home of Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell was also vandalized around that time.

McConnell said he was “horrified and disgusted” by Friday’s violence, and House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy said he reached out to Nancy Pelosi.

But one of the most forceful reactions came from U.S. Representative Adam Kinzinger, one of two Republicans on the House panel investigating the Jan. 6 attack, who condemned the rise of incendiary rhetoric vilifying political opponents and promoting falsehoods about voter fraud.

“When you convince people that politicians are rigging elections, drink babies blood, etc, you will get violence. This must be rejected,” he wrote on Twitter.

Speaking at a campaign event in Pennsylvania, President Joe Biden told the crowd, “Enough is enough.”

“Every person of good conscience needs to clearly and unambiguously stand up against violence in our politics, regardless of what your politics are,” Biden said.

Updated at 4:55 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022

The U.S. is stepping up its diplomacy in Eurasia’s South Caucasus region following the recent clashes that killed at least 280 soldiers along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, including National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Sept. 27 meeting with Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign policy officials as well as Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s prior call with Azerbaijan’s president.

Yet while Washington’s attempt to foster peace in the region is encouraging, it is undermined by members of Congress, particularly in California, who are taking a one-sided approach that flies in the face of effective diplomacy both in values and practice.

After House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi led a Democratic congressional delegation to Armenia that also included California Reps. Jackie Speier and Anna Eshoo, in addition to Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, the visiting lawmakers (in addition to California’s Rep. Adam Schiff) introduced a House resolution that exclusively blamed Azerbaijan for the recent hostilities as well as the 2020 war between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

It is hardly surprising for longtime congressional advocates of Armenia to visit Yerevan in the aftermath of September’s violence. But given that soldiers died on both sides, it is a diplomatic conundrum for a high-ranking official such as Pelosi, who stands second in the line of succession should the president leave office, to only visit Armenia and to refuse to hear from Azerbaijani leaders.

A more balanced diplomatic approach to the region is long overdue. If she visited Azerbaijan and particularly Karabakh, the territory that Azerbaijan liberated in the 2020 war following three decades of Armenian occupation, Pelosi would witness the comprehensive Azerbaijani efforts to redevelop the area amid the lingering devastation of the occupation.

This desecration, which I saw with my own eyes during a recent visit to Karabakh, is typified by miles of looted homes, mosques, and cemeteries whose roofs were burnt off and whose stones were resold by Armenians in the construction business, according to the Azerbaijani officials whom I spoke with on the ground. Vandals also sold marble from gravestones and golden teeth from corpses, while the mosques were frequented by livestock rather than worshippers.

Across Karabakh, it is difficult to take a step in any direction without considering landmines — as U.N. experts estimate that there are more than 1 million explosive devices in the area, which will take 25 years and $50 billion to fully clean. Araz N. Imanov, senior advisor to Azerbaijan’s president in the Karabakh Economic Region, explained that in November 2020, when Armenians had several weeks to withdraw from Karabakh in accordance with a Russian-brokered ceasefire following their surrender in the war, they used the time to plant difficult-to-detect explosives that have complicated Azerbaijan’s redevelopment of the liberated territories and have left the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action with a seemingly endless task.

What had been a lush green area with vineyards as well as thriving wheat and cotton production prior to the occupation was decimated by “ecocide,” as springs were blocked to divert water for military purposes, said Imanov, whose emotion is palpable as he discusses how he is “still trying to come to terms with what happened in Karabakh.”

Despite the obstacles, Azerbaijan continues to forge ahead with the journey of restoring the territory. A smart village (in which electronic methods and sensors collect data that is used to efficiently manage assets, resources, and services) has been constructed in Zangilan, where Karabakh’s first school in 30 years opened this past month. In Fuzuli, a new international airport is poised to serve as a gateway to the region.

In Shusha — a city known before the occupation as the “Conservatory of the Caucasus” due to its status as a significant political, economic, and cultural center in the region — Apple Pay came to the area just one week after the 2020 war, signifying the renewed openness to modern technology that promises to revitalize the region. Officials in Shusha said that the city, which Azerbaijan redeclared as its cultural capital following the victory over Armenia, has hosted 40 international conferences this year.

While the United Kingdom in August committed $1.2 million to Azerbaijan’s demining efforts in Karabakh, increased investment in the rebuilding initiative serves America’s strategic and moral interests.

From a geostrategic perspective, Azerbaijan is a crucial U.S. ally in the realm of energy security and diversification as the leader of the Southern Gas Corridor — which spans 2,200 miles across seven countries and three pipelines, representing a linchpin of aspirations to decrease Europe’s dependence on Russian natural gas. In July, the European Union signed a memorandum of understanding to more than double the supply of gas from Azerbaijan to EU countries.

Further, from a moral perspective, four U.N. resolutions affirm that Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan. Although Armenia’s supporters in Congress continue to accuse Azerbaijan of “war crimes,” international law is on Baku’s side when it comes to the rebuilding of Karabakh. U.S. policy towards Karabakh should follow accordingly.

Armenia’s sizable American diaspora population, as well as its congressional advocates in California and nationwide, will undoubtedly continue to be vocal and active. It is now incumbent upon those who understand the strategic importance of the U.S.-Azerbaijan relationship to also make their voices heard.

Simultaneously, in the foreign policy arena, the bare minimum that we should expect from high-ranking American and Californian leaders such as Nancy Pelosi is an attempt to conduct balanced diplomacy. Any one-sided efforts will do nothing but undermine peace.

Jacob Kamaras is the editor and publisher of the San Diego Jewish World, the former editor in chief of the Jewish News Syndicate, and the founder of Stellar Jay Communications, a PR firm representing Azerbaijan.

The husband of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was sentenced to five days in jail and ordered to pay $6,800 in fines and restitution on Tuesday after he pleaded guilty to causing injury by drunken driving in Napa County.

But Paul Pelosi, 82, will avoid any further incarceration after the judge gave him four days’ credit for time already served in jail following his arrest and ordered him to perform eight hours of community service in lieu of the one remaining day, according to his attorney Amanda Bevins.

Bevins entered the guilty plea on her client’s behalf in Napa County Superior Court. The defendant chose not to appear for the proceeding, as his presence was not required, according to a press release from the county prosecutor’s office.

Paul Pelosi, a venture capital executive, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol after he was involved in a two-car crash in California’s wine country in May. Police said his Porsche collided with a Jeep when he attempted to cross a highway, though no one was seriously hurt.

His wife, a California Democrat and second in line to succeed the U.S. president as speaker of the House of Representatives, was in Rhode Island at the time of the incident to deliver a commencement address at Brown University.

Under an agreement reached with prosecutors to settle the case, Judge Joseph Solga on Tuesday accepted Paul Pelosi’s guilty plea to a single misdemeanor count of DUI causing injury.

The judge dismissed a second charge of driving with a blood-alcohol level of .08% or higher, the state’s legal limit, and causing injury. That charge, like the one Paul Pelosi pleaded guilty to, carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail, a spokesman for the county district attorney’s office said.

Although spared any additional jail time, Paul Pelosi was placed on three years probation and forbidden to operate a motor vehicle for a year unless it is equipped with a DUI ignition device, which prevents the driver from starting the car without first providing an instant alcohol-free breath sample.

Paul Pelosi also was ordered to pay $4,927 in restitution to the driver of the other car for medical bills and lost wages, plus the standard restitution fee of $150 and a $1,723 court fine, the district attorney’s office said.

Besides the penalties imposed by the judge, the state Department of Motor Vehicles could also suspend Paul Pelosi’s driver’s license for a year based on his conviction, the D.A.’s office said.

At lest four U.S. warships, including the San Diego-based USS Tripoli, were positioned in waters near Taiwan Tuesday on what the Navy called routine deployments amid Chinese anger over House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit the island.

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan had transited the South China Sea and was currently in the Philippine Sea, east of Taiwan, a Navy official told Reuters.

The Japan-based Reagan is operating with a guided missile cruiser, the USS Antietam, and a guided-missile destroyer, the USS Higgins.

“While they are able to respond to any eventuality, these are normal, routine deployments,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The official said the USS Tripoli, the Navy’s newest big-deck amphibious ship, was also in the area. The warship is carrying 20 F-35 stealth fighters as well as a Marine reaction force of 1,700 with their helicopters and tiltotors.

Pelosi, a long-time China critic, arrived in Taipei on Tuesday night local time, people briefed on the matter said, as the United States said it would not be intimidated by Chinese warnings over the visit.

Signs emerged of military activity on both sides of the Taiwan Strait ahead of Pelosi’s visit.

Chinese planes flew close to the median line dividing the waterway on Tuesday morning and several Chinese warships had remained close to the unofficial dividing line since Monday, a source briefed on the matter told Reuters.

China’s defence and foreign ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The source said the Chinese aircraft repeatedly conducted tactical moves of briefly “touching” the median line and circling back to the other side of the strait while Taiwanese aircraft were on standby nearby — a move they described as provocative.

The person said three other Chinese warships on Tuesday carried out drills to simulate attacks on carrier-borne aircraft in waters east of Taiwan. The ships had been tracked sailing through Japan’s southern islands at the weekend, the Japanese Defence Forces said.

Neither side’s aircraft normally cross the median line.

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said it would appropriately send forces in reaction to “enemy threats”.

The ministry had reinforced its combat alertness level from Tuesday morning to Thursday noon, the official Central News Agency reported, citing unidentified sources.

Since last week, the People’s Liberation Army has conducted various exercises, including live fire drills, in the South China, Yellow Sea and Bohai Seas.

Some regional military analysts say that increased deployments at a time of tension raise the risk of accidents, even if no side wants an actual conflict.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is widely reported set to visit Taiwan on Tuesday despite warnings from China that its military would never “sit idly by” if she visited the democratic-ruled island claimed by Beijing.

The Defense Department had advised against the trip, but has forces in the region in the event of a crisis. The aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and its strike group departed Singapore last week, and the San Diego-based USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship with F-35 stealth jets, was near Okinawa.

Pelosi, who represents the San Francisco area in Congress, is flying on an Air Force C-40, a military version of the Boeing 737 that is used to carry political leaders on international visits.

Pelosi, who began her Asia trip on Monday in Singapore, was due to spend Tuesday night in Taiwan, according to sources quoted by Reuters.

Taiwan’s foreign ministry said it had no comment on reports of Pelosi’s travel plans.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said earlier on Monday that it would be “a gross interference in China’s internal affairs” if Pelosi visits Taiwan, and warned that it would lead to “very serious developments and consequences.”

“We would like to tell the United States once again that China is standing by, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army will never sit idly by, and China will take resolute responses and strong countermeasures to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Zhao told a regular daily briefing.

Asked what kind of measures the PLA might take, Zhao said: “if she dares to go, then let us wait and see.”

A video by the People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command, which showed scenes of military exercises and preparations and was posted on state media sites on Monday evening, urged troops to “stand by in battle formation, be ready to fight upon command, bury all incoming enemies.”

The White House dismissed China’s rhetoric as groundless and inappropriate. “It is not uncommon for congressional leaders to travel to Taiwan,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in an interview with CNN early Monday.

A visit by Pelosi, who is second in the line of succession to the U.S. presidency and a long-time critic of China, would come amid worsening ties between Washington and Beijing. Republican Newt Gingrich was the last House speaker to visit Taiwan, in 1997.

Washington does not have official diplomatic ties with Taiwan but is bound by U.S. law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.

On Monday, Pelosi and her delegation met with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, discussing issues including cross-strait relations, the Ukraine war and climate change, Singapore’s foreign ministry said.

“PM Lee highlighted the importance of stable U.S.-China relations for regional peace and security,” it said.

Beijing considers Taiwan to be part of its territory and has never renounced using force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan rejects China’s sovereignty claims and says only its people can decide the island’s future.

Pelosi’s trip is expected to also to include trips to Malaysia, South Korea and Japan.

Reuters contributed to this article.