For today, links to reports from Reuters and Middle East Monitor, and to commentary from Middle East Eye and the Kyiv Independent; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM   

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Lebanese rescuers scour the site of Israeli strike south of Beirut that killed 20. From Reuters. BARJA, Lebanon — Lebanese rescuers scoured the rubble of a destroyed apartment building south of Beirut today for bodies or any survivors of an Israeli strike that health authorities said killed at least 20 people the previous evening. READ MORE . . .

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FROM NOV. 5  Netanyahu fires Defence Minister Gallant citing lack of trust. From Middle East Monitor. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appointed Foreign Minister Israel Katz, to succeed Yoav Gallant as Defence Minister, while Gideon Saar becomes the new Foreign Minister, Netanyahu’s office said Tuesday. READ MORE . . .

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Israel’s Unrwa ban will be devastating for Palestinians, by Lubna Masarwa | Middle East Eye It is an act that seeks to deprive three million people in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and occupied Jerusalem of all their schools, primary healthcare, pharmacies, rubbish collection and many other essential services. READ MORE . . .

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Biden’s foreign policy missteps weakened the West and undermined Harris’ path to the presidency, by Timothy Ash | The Kyiv Independent  U.S. President Joe Biden’s foreign policy weighed heavily on Vice President Kamala Harris’s prospects to win the presidency. In fact, Biden’s foreign policy decisions have generally been disastrous. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to commentary from Middle East Eye and Informed Comment, and to five reports: from Middle East Monitor, the Times of Israel, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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As Americans head to polls, the world braces for the fallout, by Umar A Farooq, Azad Essa and Faisal Edroos | Middle East Eye  WASHINGTON / NEW YORK / LONDON — In what is essentially a two-horse race, sitting Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump appear to be locked in a knife-edge contest with hardly any light between them, according to national opinion polls. But the policies of the White House hopefuls . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM NOV.  4  Fatah and Hamas sign agreement on post-war Gaza. From Middle East Monitor.  Last weekend, Fatah and Hamas signed an agreement in Cairo to set up a joint technocratic government to rule Gaza as part of the post-war reconstruction, Anadolu News Agency reports. According to the report, the deal seeks to establish . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Times of Israel.

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An Israeli airstrike kills 20 people in northern Gaza, Palestinian officials say, by Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — An Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza has killed at least 20 people, mostly women and children, Palestinian officials said today, as Israel wages a nearly monthlong air and ground operation in what was already the most isolated and heavily destroyed part of the territory. READ MORE . . .

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FROM NOV. 4  Israel ends agreement with UN agency providing aid in Gaza. From  AP.  Israel said Monday that it has terminated the agreement facilitating the work of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, the main aid provider in Gaza, in what appeared to be a step to implement legislation passed last month that would sever ties with the agency and prevent it from operating in Israel. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from NPR.

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FROM NOV. 2  As UN warns all of Gaza is at risk of death, Bill Clinton isn’t keeping score, by Juan Cole | Informed Comment / ScheerPost  ANN ARBOR — United Nations officials have their hair on fire, shouting at the top of their lungs that the entire population of Gaza is at risk of death. That is over 2 million people on the verge of . . . READ MORE . . .

For today, links to five reports: from Tass, Kyiv Post, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press, and the Kyiv Independent; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Putin reiterates Russia’s willingness to engage in talks with Ukraine. From Tass.  MOSCOW  — “I have said it more than once,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said today at a ceremony receiving credentials from foreign ambassadors, “that Russia is not just ready for talks but has already held such talks at a certain point, specifically at the very beginning of this conflict.” READ MORE . . .

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FROM NOV.  3  The drone age, by Marco V. Pereira | Kyiv Post  Yaroslav, a onetime hardcore game and later an IT project manager, is now in the Ukrainian army piloting drones for the 116th Brigade, again spending many hours each day with a controller in his hands. READ MORE . . .

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Russian missile kills six, injures 20 in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia. From Reuters.  KYIV — A Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia today killed six people, injured at least 20 more and destroyed a critical infrastructure facility, Ukrainian officials said. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from AFP.

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North Korean troops in Russia are shelled by Ukrainian forces, an official says, by Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — North Korean troops recently deployed to help Russia in its war with Ukraine have come under Ukrainian fire, a Kyiv official said today. It is the first time . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM NOV. 4  Germany’s top diplomat is in Kyiv as Ukraine girds for impact of U.S. election on the war, by Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — Germany’s foreign minister arrived Monday in the Ukrainian capital on an unannounced visit, in what appeared to be a show of European support for Ukraine on the eve of a U.S. presidential election that could bring far-reaching changes in Washington’s policy toward Russia’s all-out invasion of its neighbor. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine struggles to contain Russian advance in Donetsk Oblast as U.S. elections loom, by Francis Farrell | The Kyiv Independent  According to a Bloomberg analysis published on Nov. 1, Ukraine has lost 1,146 square kilometers of its own territory since the launch of the Kursk Oblast incursion in early August, with the week up until Nov. 1 reported as . . . READ MORE . . .

For today, links to five reports: from the Anadolu Agency, Middle East Eye, National Public Radio and Middle East Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (UKRAINE entry for this date and a MEDIA entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Harris pledges to ‘do everything in my power to end the war in Gaza’ if elected U.S. president, by Michael Hernandez | Anadolu Agency   WASHINGTON — U.S. Democratic nominee Kamala Harris pledged Sunday to do everything in her power to end Israel’s war on the besieged Gaza Strip if she is elected president in remarks delivered just two days ahead of Election Day. READ MORE . . .

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Armed Israeli settlers torch Palestinian homes, cars and olive trees across West Bank. Middle East Eye.  Armed Israeli settlers launched a wave of attacks on Palestinian properties in several areas of the occupied West Bank overnight, torching homes, vehicles and olive trees. READ MORE . . .  

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FROM NOV. 3  Dismantling UNRWA to deprive Palestinian children of learning, agency chief warns, by Rasa Evrensel | Anadolu Agency   ISTANBUL — The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees called Sunday to mobilize efforts to reach an agreement to end the Israeli war on Gaza instead of focusing on banning the UN agency. READ MORE . . .

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Gaza poet, who lives in the U.S., shines light on Palestinian civilians in north Gaza. Leila Fadel of NPR  asks Mosab Abu Toha, a poet from Gaza, about his family’s experience in northern Gaza, where the Israeli military is intensifying its ground operation. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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FROM NOV. 3  Israeli media: 50,000 troops fail to capture a single village in Lebanon. From Middle East Monitor. Israeli occupation forces have faileD to capture even a single village in southern Lebanon, despite deploying over 50,000 troops in a month-long ground invasion, according to the Hebrew-language newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth has reported. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to five reports: from Kyiv Post, the Kyiv Independent, Reuters, Tass, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date and a MEDIA entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Uncensored Google Earth update could compromise Ukrainian military positions. From Kyiv Post.  Ukraine potentially received another blow to its ability to defend itself from continuing brutal Russian attacks with the appearance of unspecified Ukrainian military positions and systems on Google’s Oct. 12 update of its freely accessible satellite imagery maps, according to . . . READ MORE . . .

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63% of Ukrainians ready to endure the war as long as necessary, survey shows, by Boldizsar Gyori | The Kyiv Independent  Almost two-thirds of Ukrainians said they are ready to endure the war as long as it takes, a survey by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology showed today. READ MORE . . .

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Russian drone attack sparks park fire in Ukraine’s Kyiv, mayor says. From Reuters. KYIV — Debris from destroyed Russian drones sparked park and grass fires in Kyiv, the mayor of the Ukrainian capital said today, in what was Moscow’s third drone attack on the city in as many nights. READ MORE . . .

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Russian air defense forces shot down 4 HIMARS missiles, a Hammer bomb, 42 Ukrainian UAVs — Defense Ministry. From Tass.  MOSCOW — Air defense systems have shot down 42 Ukrainian drones, four HIMARS missiles, and one Hammer aerial bomb over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said today. READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainians worry about results of the U.S. presidential election. Reported by Joanna Kakissis and Michel Martin | NPR  Much of the world is following the U.S. presidential election, but probably nowhere more closely than in Ukraine. Ukrainians worry what a change in the White House would mean for their survival. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

A link to a report from The Cradle via Popular Resistance; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date, so far, are HERE and HERE.) —MCM

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FROM NOV. 3  Lebanese journalists defy Israeli threats to expose the truth, by William Van Wagenen | The Cradle / Popular Resistance  Despite constant death threats and targeted airstrikes, Lebanese journalists Ali Mortada and Amal Khalil continue reporting from the frontlines. They are determined to . . . READ MORE . . .

For today, links to four: reports from Reuters, the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, the Anadolu Agency, Middle East Eye and, via ScheerPost, Jewish Voices for Labour; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date and a MEDIA entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Israeli attacks kill at least 31 people in Gaza, medics say, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  CAIRO — At least 31 people were killed during Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip today, Palestinian medics said, with nearly half of the deaths in northern areas where the army has waged a month-long campaign it says aims to prevent Hamas regrouping. READ MORE . . .

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Palestinians say Israel struck a Gaza clinic during a polio campaign. The army denies it, by Samy Magdy | AP  CAIRO — Palestinian officials say an Israeli drone strike on a clinic in northern Gaza where children were being vaccinated for polio wounded six people, including four children. The Israeli military denied responsibility. The alleged . . . READ MORE . . .

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Lebanon says 3 killed in Israeli strike near Sidon City. From AFP. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s health ministry said three people were killed and nine others wounded in an Israeli strike today on Haret Saida, a densely populated area near the southern city of Sidon. READ MORE . . .

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More than 100 BBC staffers accuse broadcaster of bias in coverage of Israel’s war in Gaza, by Burak Bir | Anadolu Agency  LONDON — The BBC has been accused by more than 100 staffers of providing Israel favorable coverage in its reporting on the war against the Gaza Strip, calling on the broadcaster to “recommit to fairness, accuracy, and impartiality.” The letter sent to . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Middle East Eye, and HERE for report from Jewish Voices for Labour, via ScheerPost.

For today, links to eight reports: from the Kyiv Independent, Kyiv Post. Tass, the Moscow Times, the Associated Press, Reuters, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for today and a MEDIA entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM 

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Buildings of Ukraine’s largest university damaged in Russian drone attack on Kyiv, by Olena Goncharova and Dinara Khalilova | The Kyiv Independent  Russia launched its latest overnight drone strike on Ukraine, targeting the capital in an attack that lasted over five hours, city officials said today. Several waves of explosions . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainian forces counter ‘one of the most powerful’ Russian offensives, says Army chief. From Kyiv Post. The Russian military is mounting one of its most powerful offensives since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces, Oleksandr Syrsky said in a meeting with Karel Rzegka, the head of the General Staff of the Czech Republic. READ MORE . . .

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Russian forces liberate settlement of Vishnyovoye in Donetsk People’s Republic. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian forces have liberated the settlement of Vishnyovoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Russian Defense Ministry said today in a broader statement. READ MORE . . .

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FROM OCT. 31  As Russia advances in the Donbas, Ukraine faces a new surge of displacement, by Joseph Roche | The Moscow Times  Since the beginning of summer, Russian forces, in a renewed offensive in the Donbas, have managed to . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine’s Zelenskyy urges allies to act before North Korean troops reach the front. From AP. KYIV — Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged its allies to stop “watching” and take steps before North Korean troops deployed in Russia reach the battlefield, and the country’s army chief warned that his troops are facing “one of the most powerful offensives” by Moscow since . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM NOV. 2  Ukraine ‘holding back’ powerful Russian offensive, Kyiv top commander says. From Reuters. Ukrainian forces are restraining one of Russia’s most powerful offensives since the start of Moscow’s full-scale invasion on its smaller neighbour, the top commander of Kyiv’s forces said on Saturday. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine plans to conscript over 160,000 more men in the war. Ayesha Rascoe of NPR talks with Andrew Weiss of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace about Ukraine’s latest conscription efforts following recent Russian military gains. Click HERE later to listen and, still later, read

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FROM NOV. 2  Russian exiles push Western countries to support Ukraine. Reported by Michele Kelemen of NPR  Russian dissidents, who were exchanged in a prisoner swap, are trying to stay relevant abroad, planning a protest in Berlin and advocating for a U.S. policy that ensures that Russia loses the war against Ukraine. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

For today, links to a report from the Anadolu Agency, Middle East Eye and, via ScheerPost, Jewish Voices for Labour, and to commentary from Consortium News; others are  accessible by clicking on its name below. (GAZA entry for this date and a UKRAINE entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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More than 100 BBC staffers accuse broadcaster of bias in coverage of Israel’s war in Gaza, by Burak Bir | Anadolu Agency  LONDON — The BBC has been accused by more than 100 staffers of providing Israel favorable coverage in its reporting on the war against the Gaza Strip, calling on the broadcaster to “recommit to fairness, accuracy, and impartiality.” The letter sent to . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Middle East Eye, and HERE for report from Jewish Voices for Labour, via ScheerPost.

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FROM OCT. 31  Portents of chaos, by Patrick Lawrence | Special to Consortium News  The word “sowing” has been a favorite in the mainstream press since 2016, when we read daily — and of this we were to have no doubt — the Rrrrrussians were “interfering in our elections.” READ MORE . . .