For today, links to reports from Reuters and National Public Radio, and to commentary from the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Israel forces advance in south Gaza, more people displaced, residents say, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  CAIRO — Israeli forces sent tanks deeper into areas in the Gaza Strip‘s south today as fighting with Hamas-led militants raged, and Gaza health officials said Israeli military strikes had killed 66 Palestinians across the enclave in the past 24 hours. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 27  Children were main casualties in strikes in Gaza and near Israel’s Northern border. Reported by Kat Lonsdorf and Scott Detrow | NPR  An Israeli airstrike hit yet another school sheltering displaced people in Gaza. Later, a rocket strike in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights hit a soccer field where kids were playing. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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The Russia-U.S. divide was on display during Moscow’s monthlong presidency of the UN Security Council, by Edith M. Lederer | AP  UNITED NATIONS — Whether it’s Gaza, Ukraine, Syria or a new world order, it’s been Russia versus the United States and the West during Moscow’s presidency of the Security Council this month, with the growing divide on vivid display. READ MORE . . .