Links to six reports: from Middle East Eye, the Cradle, Anadolu Ajansi, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for IRAN 1-28-26, and UKRAINE, GAZA, VENEZUELA, and MEDIA.) — MCM

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U.S. warship docks in Gulf of Aqaba as fears of Iran strike grow. From Middle East Eye. A United States military vessel began to dock in the Gulf of Aqaba today as tension with Iran escalates, Israel‘s public broadcaster Kan reported. READ MORE . . .

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Turkiye hosts Iranian FM for ‘de-escalation talks’ as Trump renews war threats. From the Cradle. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi visited Turkiye’s capital, Ankara, today for talks to de-escalate the volatile situation in West Asia, caused by Washington’s threats to attack the Islamic Republic and Tehran’s vow to defend itself. READ MORE . . .

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Türkiye opposes military action against Iran: foreign minister, by Gizem Nisa Demir | Anadolu  ISTANBUL — Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said today that Ankara opposes any military intervention against Iran and supports a peaceful, internal resolution of the country’s issues by its own people. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same Anadolu report in French, and HERE for others.

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FROM JAN. 29  Iran unveils underwater missile tunnels, says Strait of Hormuz ‘will not be safe’ if U.S. attacks. From the Cradle. Tehran has unveiled a network of “underwater missile tunnels” and has warned that the Strait of Hormuz will “not be safe” if the Islamic Republic is attacked by the U.S., Iranian state television reported. Click HERE for report including video.

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FROM JAN. 29  A timeline of how the protests in Iran unfolded and the crackdown that followed, by David Rising and Jon Gambrell | AP  DUBAI — Demonstrations broke out in Iran on Dec. 28 and have spread nationwide. Here is how they developed. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JAN. 29  What comes next for Iran? Reported by Courtney Dorning, Mary Louise Kelly and Erika Ryan | NPR  Kelly speaks with former Israeli intelligence official Sima Shine about tensions in Iran and what they could mean for the future of the regime. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Links to four reports: from Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press, and the Moscow Times; others are accessible by clicking on their names and initials below. (Scroll down for UKRAINE 1-29-26, and for IRAN, GAZA, VENEZUELA, and MEDIA.) — MCM

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Ukraine orders children, guardians evacuate from seven villages in East. From AFP. Ukraine today ordered the evacuation of families with children from seven villages in the northeastern Kharkiv region, as the invading Russian army advanced close to the area. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AFP report in French, and HERE for others.

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Trump claims Putin agreed to temporary halt in energy attacks on Ukraine, but terms are unclear, by Susie Blann | AP  KYIV — The terms of a Russian commitment to U.S. President Donald Trump to temporarily halt its bombardment of Ukraine during one of the country’s bleakest winters in years remained unclear today, as Ukrainians braced for even worse conditions to come next week. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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Kremlin agrees to pause air strikes on Kyiv until Sunday. From the Moscow Times. U.S. President Donald Trump asked Russia to pause strikes on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv until Feb. 1, the Kremlin said today, coming as officials from the two warring countries prepare for a second round of trilateral talks with American delegates in Abu Dhabi scheduled for this weekend. READ MORE . . .

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Trump says he asked Putin not to target Kyiv for 1 week during brutal cold spell, by Madhani and Susie Blann | AP  KYIV — U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that President Vladimir Putin has agreed not to target the Ukrainian capital and other towns for one week as the region experiences frigid temperatures. There was no immediate confirmation from the Kremlin. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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Links to three reports: from the Associated Press, the Cradle, and Reuters; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for GAZA 1-29-26, and up or down for IRAN, UKRAINE, VENEZUELA, and MEDIA.) — MCM

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Israel reopening Gaza’s border crossing with Egypt on Sunday after long closure, by Sam Metz | AP  JERUSALEM — Israel said today it will reopen the pedestrian border crossing between the Gaza Stripand Egypt in both directions over the weekend, marking an important step forward for U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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Trump declares Hamas ‘will disarm’ as resistance says it never agreed. From the Cradle. U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday repeated his claim that Hamas will surrender its weapons as part of the Gaza ceasefire, one day after an official from the resistance movement said the group never agreed to such a thing. READ MORE . . .

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Early warning of ‘Apocalyptic Wasteland’ in Gaza blocked by U.S. envoys to Israel, by Erin Banco, Jonathan Landay and Humeyra Pamuk | Reuters  WASHINGTON — U.S. Agency for International Development staffers in early 2024 drafted a warning to senior officials in Joe Biden’s administration: Northern Gaza had turned into an “Apocalyptic Wasteland” with dire shortages of food and medical aid. READ MORE . . .

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A link to an article of commentary from CodePink; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (Scroll down for VENEZUELA 1-28-26, and up or down for IRAN, UKRAINE, GAZA, and MEDIA.) — MCM

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FROM JAN. 27  The war intervention: AI, data centers, and the environment, by Aaron Kirshenbaum | CodePink  Early on Saturday, Jan. 3, Venezuela was attacked on behalf of oil, mineral, tech, and weapons profiteers in a regime change operation. Since then, the Trump administration has threatened Iran, Greenland, Cuba, Colombia, and Mexico. What unites these threats?  READ MORE . . .

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A link to music from Focus via Sire Record Company or Polydor Records, and YouTube; more may be accessible by clicking on the band’s name in a search engine. (Scroll down for MEDIA 1-28-26.  Scroll up for today’s IRAN, UKRAINE, GAZA, and VENEZUELA.) — MCM

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‘Hocus Pocus,’ by Bert Ruiter, Pierre van der Linden, Jan Akkerman and Thijs van Leer | Focus / Sire Record Company and Polydor Records  Single version of the Dutch band’s 1973 hit. Click HERE for it, and HERE for video of longer version via YouTube and report from Louder.

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Links to reports from the Associated Press and Reuters; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for UKRAINE 1-27-26 and 9/11 TRUTH and MEDIA.) — MCM

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Russian drone attack kills 3 in southern Ukraine as further U.S.-led peace talks approach, by Susie Blann | AP  KYIV — A Russian drone attack killed three people in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region overnight, authorities said today, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Moscow is planning another large-scale barrage despite plans for further U.S.-brokered peace talks at the weekend. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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Kremlin says Russia has invited Ukraine’s Zelensky to Moscow for peace talks. From Reuters. MOSCOW — The Kremlin said today that Russia had reiterated its invitation for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to come to Moscow for peace talks, as U.S.-led efforts to reach a deal to end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine intensify. READ MORE . . .

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Before turning in last night, I began a list of verbs to describe ways to keep people in the dark about the events of Sept. 11, 2001 — or about anything else for that matter. Here are some. (Click HERE for 9/11 TRUTH 1-9-26. Scroll up or down for UKRAINE and GAZA.) — MCM

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Words, words, words, by Mark Channing Miller | x-ma911truthwalk.com  In order of being written down: hornswoggle, bamboozle, hoax*, sucker, buffalo, baffle, bewilder, confuse, divert, overwhelm, dominate, perplex, fool, deceive, manipulate, control, astound.

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* Merriam-Webster defines the verb hoax as “to trick into believing or accepting as genuine something false and often preposterous,” noting it is [prob. contr. of hocus].

Links to two reports: from the Associated Press and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their initials below. (Scroll down for GAZA 1-28-26.  Scroll up for UKRAINE and 9/11 TRUTH.) — MCM

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FROM JAN. 28  What to know about Gaza’s Rafah crossing, which could open within days, by Sam Metz and Julia Frankel | AP  JERUSALEM  — Ali Shaath, newly appointed to head the Palestinian administrative committee governing Gaza’s daily affairs, said on Jan. 22 that the crossing would “open next week in both directions.” Click HERE for report including map.

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Two friends, an Israeli and a Palestinian, believe peace is possible after war. Reported by Michele Kelemen | NPR  A Palestinian man and his Israeli friend are dedicating themselves to a peaceful coexistence in the aftermath of the devastating war in Gaza. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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NOTE: Except for its headline, the content of this entry was somehow erased temporarily late this morning or early this afternoon Eastern time — scroll down for the reappeared complete entry. Just in case, here it is again as of about 1:34 p.m. ET.

A link to a report from Reuters; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (Scroll down for WEST BANK 1-22-26, and up or down for IRAN, VENEZUELA, SYRIA, WEST BANK (erased and now back), GAZA, and MEDIA.) — MCM

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Israel steps up evictions of Palestinians from East Jerusalem, by Ali Sawafta and Pesha Magid | Reuters  Israel deems all of Jerusalem its capital — a status not recognised internationally — and has encouraged Jewish settlement of predominantly Palestinian areas. READ MORE . . .

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Links to a report and an article of commentary: from the Associated Press and Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for UKRAINE 1-27-26, and up or down for WEST BANK (restored), VENEZUELA, SYRIA, WEST BANK (as originally posted before temporarily erased), GAZA and MEDIA.) — MCM

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A month after Iran protests began, worry pervades Mideast over possible possible U.S. strike, by Jon Gambrell | AP  DUBAI — Iranian officials reached out to the wider Middle East today over the threat of a possible U.S. military strike on the country, a month since the start of protests in Iran that soon spread nationwide and sparked a bloody crackdown. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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Iran’s battle for survival is the Arab world’s fight too, by David Hearst | Middle East Eye  The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group arrived within striking range of Iran on Sunday. F-15E Strike Eagles and B-52 bombers have been sent to Jordan and Qatar respectively. READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED