State of Siege: Police in the Schaerbeek neighborhood of Brussels yesterday shot and detained a man linked to a failed terrorist plot in France as the international investigation is building evidence of connections between the Brussels suicide bombers and the Paris attacks last fall. The man was carrying a bag with explosives in it..

Investigators say Najim Laachraoui, 24, a Belgian citizen, was the bomb maker who built at least two suicide vests used to kill some of the 130 victims in Paris. He was one of the Brussels suicide bombers. Also, German police arrested a Moroccan man whose cellphone messages tie him to the Brussels attacks.

Permawar: Earlier this week the US killed the Islamic State’s second in command, according to Defense Secy. Ashton Carter. The target known as Haji Imam was hit in his vehicle — the Defense Department says US troops had planned to capture him, but opened fire instead. Just last week the US claimed to have killed the ISIS minister of war, Omar al-Shishani.

Carter said in a press conference, “Striking leadership is necessary, but as you know it’s far from sufficient. As you know leaders can be replaced.”

The US has a special team of commandos in Iraq targeting ISIS leaders and weapon caches.

On the battlefield, Syrian forces say they are closing in on the ancient city of Palmyra, a World Heritage site that has been partially destroyed by ISIS fighters.

Suffragette City: As always, women voters hold great sway over who will be the next president, and it doesn’t look good for Donald Trump. A full 70 percent of female voters have a negative opinion of Trump, according to recent polling. Male voters are 59 percent negative and 28 percent positive.

Republican leaders are so scared of a Trump candidacy they are turning to Ted Cruz, a man they hate only a little less. Chris Cillizza writes in The Washington Post that, “What is now beyond dispute is that Ted Cruz, the most hated man in Washington Republican circles, is the establishment GOP candidate in the presidential race.”

Someone out there thinks being detestable isn’t enough to sink the Cruz ship. The National Enquirer reports that the holy Tea Partier has had affairs with at least five women. The traditional press had avoided even mentioning the story until Cruz issued an angry denial. “This National Enquirer story is garbage,” Cruz told reporters yesterday. “It is complete and utter lies. It is a tabloid smear…that has come from Donald Trump and his henchmen.” True or false, now the accusation is on the official record.

Science Beat: The Japanese whaling fleet has returned to port with the bodies of 333 whales collected in the name of scientific research. Commercial whaling was banned in 1986, but the rules left a loophole for scientific research, which the Japanese exploit. The Japanese are researching the health and reproduction of the whale population and while they think about it, they’re serving whale dinner.

Satisfaction: The Rolling Stones rocked Havana last night in a free concert attended by tens of thousands of Cuban fans. It was an historic moment for the isolated island country. Mick Jagger welcomed the crowd in Spanish before launching into a two-hour set. “After today I can die,” Joaquin Ortiz, a 62-year-old night watchman, told the Associated Press. “This is like my last wish, seeing the Rolling Stones.”