For today, links to reports from Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Reuters, and the Berkshire Eagle, and to commentary via ScheerPost and Consortium News; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM
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Hamas chief says group studying truce proposal ‘in positive spirit.’ From AFP. Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh said today the Palestinian militant group was studying a proposal for a truce in the nearly seven-month war raging in Gaza with a “positive spirit”. Mediators have proposed a truce deal that would halt fighting for 40 days and exchange. . . READ MORE . . .
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As Hamas considers cease-fire, question hangs: Will Israel end war without the group’s destruction? by Bassem Mroue and Lee Keath | AP BEIRUT — Hamas today was considering the latest proposal for a cease-fire with Israel that the United States and other mediators hope will avert an Israeli attack on the Gaza town of Rafah. But chances for the deal are entangled with the question . . . READ MORE . . .
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Jordan demands that Israel provide better security for aid convoys. Reported by Michel Martin and Jane Arraf | NPR Secretary of State Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on Wednesday. Blinken pushed for swift and sustained aid to Gazans. A truck was attacked by Israeli settlers after it left Jordan. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.
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Police and pro-Palestinian demonstrators clash in tense scene at UCLA encampment, by Ryan Pearson, Ethan Swope, Jake Offenhartz and Joseph B. Frederick | AP LOS ANGELES — Police removed barricades and began dismantling pro-Palestinian demonstrators’ fortified encampment early today at the University of California, Los Angeles, after hundreds of protesters defied . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.
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Williams College, MCLA students protest colleges’ ties to companies supplying weapons used in Israel’s war in Gaza, by Sten Spinella | The Berkshire Eagle WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The nation’s wave of student protests over the Israel-Hamas war arrived at Williams College and the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts Wednesday. Demonstrators at the two colleges sought only to make noise with chants and the like in between classes. At Williams, divestment by the college’s endowment from weapons manufacturers supplying Israel is an aim. Click HERE to read more with paid subscription..
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FROM MAY 1 The latest on student protests in New York City and around the country. Reported by Adrian Florido and Steve Futterman | NPR Hundreds of students have been arrested as university leaders moved to break up encampments and take back buildings occupied by campus protesters angry over Israel’s war in Gaza. Click HERE to listen and read.
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FROM MAY 1 Israeli settlers try to block aid to Gaza as Blinken touts progress on trip to Israel. Reported by Michele Kelemen | NPR Israeli settlers tried to block a new aid route into Gaza. The incident was a setback for Blinken, who was trying to highlight progress in getting Palestinians food and supplies to stave off famine. Click HERE to listen and read.
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FROM MAY 1 Israel-U.S. Gaza plan stares us in the face, by Jonathan Cook | Jonathan-Cook.net / Consortium News One does not need to be a fortune-teller to understand that the Israel-U.S. game plan for Gaza runs something like this: 1. In public, Biden . . . READ MORE . . .
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FROM APRIL 28 Sermon for Gaza, by Chris Hedges | ScheerPost / Consortium News PRINCETON, N.J. — Ruling institutions — the state, the press, the church, the courts, universities — mouth the language of morality . . . READ MORE . . .