For now, links to 10 reports: from the Cradle, Reuters, the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, Middle East Eye, Middle East Monitor, and CBS News; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA 5-25-25 is HERE, or scroll down.  UKRAINE and MEDIA entries for this date, so far, are HERE and HERE, or scroll down.) — MCM

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Israel rejects ceasefire proposal as troops expand occupation of Gaza. From the Cradle. The Israeli army says it is planning to capture 75 percent of Gaza’s territory and move ahead with plans to displace the strip’s population to a small percentage of land, coinciding with Tel Aviv’s rejection of a new proposal for a ceasefire. READ MORE . . .

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Hamas agrees to U.S. proposal on Gaza ceasefire, Palestinian official says, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  CAIRO — Hamas has agreed to a proposal by U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff for a Gaza ceasefire, a Palestinian official close to the group said today, paving the way for a possible end to the war. READ MORE . . .

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Israeli strikes pound Gaza as a U.S.-backed group plans to start aid operations. From AP. Israeli strikes pounded the Gaza Strip early today, killing dozens, including people sleeping in a school-turned-shelter, local health officials said. The Israeli military said it targeted militants operating from the school. READ MORE . . .   Click HERE for report from AFP.

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Head of Gaza aid organisation resigns hours before controversial plan set to launch. From Middle East Eye. Jake Wood, the executive director of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which says it is ready to start delivering food into Gaza, has resigned saying he does not believe it is possible for the organisation to operate independently or adhere . . . READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from the Cradle. 

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FROM MAY 25  Israel’s deadly aid plan for Gaza delayed due to ‘logistical issues.’ From the Cradle. The Israeli and U.S.-led aid distribution mechanism, which was meant to be launched on Sunday, has been delayed, as UN agencies continue to reject participation in the controversial plan. READ MORE . . .

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UN official: No proof that Hamas is seizing humanitarian aid. From Middle East Monitor. The head of the World Food Programme, Cindy McCain, has said that Israel’s allegations of Hamas stealing humanitarian aid in Gaza are unsubstantiated. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for May 25 report from CBS News including video of interview.

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German chancellor says Gaza genocide ‘no longer justified.’  From the Cradle. “Harming the civilian population to such an extent, as has increasingly been the case in recent days,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said today, “can no longer be justified as a fight against Hamas terrorism,” adding that he “no longer understands” the Israeli military’s objective in Gaza. READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

For today, links to nine reports: from Kyiv Post, the Kyiv Independent, Tass, the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Reuters, and Agence France-Presse, and to commentary from Indian Punchline; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their initials or names below. (UKRAINE 5-25-25 is HERE, or scroll down.  GAZA and MEDIA entries for today are HERE and HERE, or scroll up or down.) — MCM

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NEWER  Ukraine cleared to strike inside Russia using Western arms, Merz says, by Leo Chiu | Kyiv Post  German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said today there are no more restrictions on Kyiv using Western long-range weaponry against targets inside Russia — this after Russia launched large-scale aerial strikes across Ukraine three nights in a row. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE and HERE for reports from the Kyiv Independent and Tass.

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Russia sent a record number of drones into Ukraine as Trump says Putin has ‘gone crazy,’ by Illia Novikov and Voloymyr Yurchuk | AP  KYIV — Russia overnight launched the biggest drone attack on Ukraine in the more than three-year war, a Ukrainian official said today. President Donald Trump said Russian leader Vladimir Putin has gone “crazy” by stepping up the bombing of Ukraine just as . . . READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from NPR.

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Kremlin says it’s still working on draft peace memorandum. From Reuters. The Kremlin said today that “serious” work is underway on a proposed Russian peace plan for the war in Ukraine, but a draft memorandum has not yet been submitted. READ MORE . . .

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FROM MAY 25  Zelensky calls for ‘truly strong pressure’ on Russia to halt strikes. From AFP. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged international leaders Sunday to increase their pressure on Russia, after a second straight night of major air strikes killed 12 people in Ukraine. READ MORE . . .

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Russian troops liberate two communities in Sumy Region over past day. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian troops liberated two communities in the Sumy Region over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry said today in a broader statement. READ MORE . . .

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FROM MAY 25  Inside Ukraine’s last maternity ward in a region surrounded by Russian forces. Reported by Eleanor Beardsley | NPR  SLOVIANSK, Ukraine — With Russian forces now occupying two-thirds of this province, the industrial town of Sloviansk has the last working maternity ward in Ukrainian controlled Donetsk. Many residents say . . . Click HERE to listen and read.

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FROM MAY 25  Putin succeeds in engaging with Trump, by M.K.. Bhadrakumar | Indian Punchline  If Trump tactfully ensured through the past three-month period that the shift in the tectonic plates got a soft landing at home, in Europe and internationally, Putin’s monumental patience contributed to that effort immeasurably. READ MORE . . .

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Three links: to a public exchange from the Chris Hedges Report, to commentary from Tom Dispatch, and to an interview from Useful Idiots, all via ScheerPost; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names just above or below. NOTE: Here four authors place current events in the Middle East and their depiction in the context of others decades or centuries ago in the Americas, East Asia, and Europe. (MEDIA 5-23-25 is HERE, or scroll down.  GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and HERE, or scroll up.) — MCM

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FROM MAY 5  The moral issue of our time. Chris Hedges of the Chris Hedges Report and physician Gabor Maté speak and then answer questions at a fundraiser for the Middle East Children’s Alliance about the genocide in Gaza, about decisions facing individuals about what to do about it, and about what others have done in analogous situations in history. Click HERE for intro and video but, as yet, no transcript.

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FROM MAY 22  The horrors inflicted for 500 years, by Greg Grandin | Tom Dispatch / SheerPost  Consider the Spanish conquest of the Americas alongside Israel’s assault on Gaza. There are uncanny parallels between the two conflicts, including that each began in the wake of a communications revolution: the printing press then, social media now. READ MORE . . .

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Norman Finkelstein reacts to Israeli Embassy staffers shooting. Katie Halper and Aaron Maté of Useful Idiots speak with author Norman Finkelstein about, among other things, the murders of two employees of Israel’s consulate in Washington — Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim — and U.S. media coverage of the murders and of the current genocide in Gaza. Click HERE for video of part of the interview. 

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For today, links to seven reports: from the Associated Press, Reuters, Anadolu Agency, Agence France-Presse, Middle East Monitor, and Middle East Eye; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA 5-24-25 is HERE, or scroll down. WEST BANK, UKRAINE, IRAN and SYRIA entries for this date are HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE, or scroll down.) — MCM

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Israel’s latest strikes in Gaza kill 38 people including children, by Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli strikes over the past 24 hours killed at least 38 people in Gaza, including a mother and her two children sheltering in a tent, local health officials said today, with no data available for a second straight day from now-inaccessible hospitals in the north. READ MORE . . .   Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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Israel deploys regular infantry, armored brigades to Gaza amid escalating genocide: report, by Said Amori and Rania Abu Shamala | Anadolu Agency  JERUSALEM / ISTANBUL — Israel’s public broadcaster KAN reports that within the last 24 hours the Israeli army has deployed regular infantry and armored brigades to the Gaza Strip as part of a military buildup following its decision to expand a ground offensive in the enclave that is facing genocidal attacks. READ MORE . . .

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ICRC says two Red Cross workers killed in Gaza strike, pleads for ceasefire. From AFP. Two Red Cross workers were killed Saturday in a strike on their home in the Gaza city of Khan Younis, the ICRC said today as it made an “urgent” appeal for a ceasefire in the conflict. READ MORE . . .

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Israel’s Netanyahu chooses ‘obscure’ U.S. firm for Gaza aid distribution ‘behind back of security agencies,’ by Betul Yilmaz | Anadolu Agency  ISTANBUL — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu selected an “obscure” and “inexperienced” U.S. company called SRS to distribute aid in the Gaza Strip behind the back of security agencies, Israeli media said today. READ MORE . . .

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UNRWA calls for allowing more aid to ease starvation in Gaza. From Middle East Monitor. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) today called for the entry of hundreds of aid trucks into the Gaza Strip to ease starvation in the war-torn enclave, Anadolu reports. READ MORE . . .

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Aid NGOs distance themselves from Gaza Humanitarian Foundation after leaked letter, by Dania Akkad | Middle East Eye  Aid organisations named in a letter from a newly formed foundation bidding to deliver food aid in Gaza have sought to distance themselves from the controversial plan, which is expected to launch this week. READ MORE . . .

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For today, links to two: reports: from the Cradle and Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (WEST BANK 5-24-25 is HERE, or scroll down. GAZA, UKRAINE, IRAN and SYRIA entries for this date are HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE, or scroll down.) — MCM

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Israeli settlers escalate violence, forced displacement across occupied West Bank. From the Cradle. The last few days have witnessed a dangerous escalation of violence, theft, and vandalism against Palestinians by illegal Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank. Settlers today attacked . . . READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from Middle East Eye.

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For today, links to six reports: from Reuters, Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press, the Kyiv Independent, the Moscow Times, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (UKRAINE 5-24-25 is HERE, or scroll down.  WEST BANK, GAZA, IRAN and SYRIA entries for this date are HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE, or scroll down.) — MCM

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NEWER   Russia launches war’s largest air attack on Ukraine, by Max Hunder | Reuters  Russian forces launched a barrage of 367 drones and missiles at Ukrainian cities overnight, including the capital Kyiv, in the largest aerial attack of the war so far, killing at least 12 people including three children and injuring dozens more, officials said. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE and HERE for reports from the Kyiv Independent, and AP, and HERE for AP photos.

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EU top diplomat calls for ‘strongest’ pressure on Russia over Ukraine. From AFP. The European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, today called for “the strongest international pressure” on Russia, after a new night of air strikes on Ukraine killed 12 people. READ MORE . . .

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Russia, Ukraine complete record prisoner swap – Moscow. From the Moscow Times. Russia said today it had exchanged another 303 Ukrainian prisoners of war for the same number of Russian soldiers held by Kyiv — the last phase of the largest-ever such swap between the warring countries. READ MORE . . .

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Russian army creating security zone along border after liberating Kursk Region. From Tass. MOSCOW — The units of Russia’s battlegroup are accomplishing the mission of creation a security zone along the state border of the Russian Federation, according to Battlegroup North spokesman Yaroslav Yakimkin. READ MORE . . .

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For today, links to four reports: from the the Cradle and Reuters; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names below. (IRAN 5-15-25 is HERE, or scroll down.  WEST BANK, GAZA, UKRAINE and SYRIA entries for this date are HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE, or scroll up or down.) — MCM

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FROM MAY 23  Uranium enrichment dispute hangs over fifth round of US, Iran nuclear talks. From the Cradle. Iran and the U.S. concluded a fifth round of negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program on Friday in Rome, with Iran’s ability to enrich uranium domestically emerging as the key point of difference. READ MORE . . .   Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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FROM MAY 18  Leaders from 53 countries attend Tehran Dialogue Forum to tackle regional, global challenges. From the Cradle. The fourth Tehran Dialogue Forum officially opened on May 18 at the Institute for Political and International Studies of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, bringing together 200 delegations and high-level officials from 53 countries to discuss regional cooperation, diplomacy, and global peace. READ MORE . . .

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FROM MAY 16  Iran ‘exchanges views’ with European powers during nuclear summit in Turkiye. From the Cradle. Iranian diplomats held talks with representatives of the British, French, and German governments on May 16, marking the first such discussions since the start of nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to three reports: from the Cradle and Anadolu Agency, and to commentary from the Cradle; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names below. (SYRIA 5-17-25 is HERE, or scroll down.  WEST BANK, GAZA, UKRAINE and IRAN entries for this date are HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE, or scroll up.) — MCM

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FROM MAY 24  Syrian, Turkish presidents hold first meeting in Istanbul. From the Cradle. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held talks with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa for the first time in Istanbul on Saturday, Turkish and foreign media reported — the same day the U.S. Treasury Department issued a general license authorizing . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM MAY 24  Türkiye-Syria cooperation will grow in all areas: Turkish President Erdogan tells Syrian counterpart, by Asiye Latife Yılmaz | Anadolu Agency  ISTANBUL — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday emphasized the strengthening of Türkiye-Syria bilateral ties and cooperation in all areas, especially energy, defense, and transportation, during his meeting with his Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa. READ MORE . . .

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FROM MAY 21  The World Bank and the path to devouring Syria’s assets. From the Cradle. At record speed, and despite Syria’s crushing political, security, and economic instability under western sanctions, the World Bank has reinitiated intensive contacts with the country’s new Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)-led administration. The World Bank’s sudden openness to cooperation coincided . . . READ MORE . . .

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For today, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, Middle East Eye, Middle East Monitor, and the Cradle; to an interview from Democracy Now! via ScheerPost; and to commentary from Z Network via Consortium News; others are accessible by clicking on their names below or as highlighted. (GAZA 5-23-25 is HERE, or scroll down.  WEST BANK and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and HERE, or scroll down.) — MCM

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Israeli use of human shields in Gaza was systematic, soldiers and former detainees say, by Sam Mednick and Samy Magdy | AP  TEL AVIV — Several Palestinians and soldiers told the AP that Israeli troops are systematically forcing Palestinians to act as human shields in Gaza, sending them into buildings and tunnels to check for explosives or militants, saying the practice has become ubiquitous. Israel’s military,, however, says . . . READ MORE . . .

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Israel may change tack to allow aid groups in Gaza to stay in charge of non-food aid, by Sam Mednick | AP   TEL AVIV — As pressure mounts to get more aid into Gaza, Israel appears to be changing tack and may let aid groups operating in the battered enclave remain in charge of non-food assistance while leaving food distribution to a newly established U.S.-backed group, according to a letter obtained by The Associated Press. READ MORE . . .

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Gaza doctor, pediatrician Alaa al-Najjer, receives charred bodies of her nine children while on duty at hospital, by Maha Hussaini | Middle East Eye  GAZA CITY, occupied Palestine  The nine are dead, a tenth was wounded but survived, and her husband sustained serious injuries and is in intensive care. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from Middle East Monitor.

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FROM MAY 23  UN says more food needed in Gaza as looting hampers deliveries, by Nidal al-Mughrabi and James Mackenzie | Reuters  CAIRO / JERUSALEM — Getting the supplies to people sheltering in tents and other makeshift accommodation has been fitful and UN officials say at least 500 to 600 trucks of aid are needed every day. So far, an umbrella network of Palestinian aid groups said, 119 aid trucks . . . READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for related May 24 report from Reuters.

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FROM MAY 22  U.S.-Israeli aid scheme for Gaza hits roadblock as bidders say ‘nobody able to fill demand.’ From the Cradle. Israeli suppliers say “nobody” is able to fulfill the “huge” requirements of a U.S.-Israeli aid mechanismset to begin operations before the end of the month in the south of Gaza. READ MORE . . .

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FROM MAY 23  UK MP Jeremy Corbyn & EU MP Lynn Boylan on Europe pressuring Israel to halt atrocities in Gaza. Amy Goodman and Nermeen Shaikh of Democracy Now!  talk with Corbin and Boylan, independent members, respectively, of the British Parliament and of the European Parliament, about some recent changes in British government and European Union policies toward Israel, what caused them, and what they recommend. Click HERE for an intro, video of interview, and transcript.

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FROM MAY 21  Israel’s final solution for Gaza, by Vijay Prashad | Z Network / Consortium News  In early May, the security cabinet of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met and agreed that Israel would “capture” Gaza and remove its Palestinian population “to protect it.” To achieve this . . . READ MORE . . .

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First, a report from Anadolu Agency; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (WEST BANK 5-23-25 entry is HERE, or scroll down.  GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date, so far, are HERE and HERE, or scroll up or down.) — MCM

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Israeli army conducts raids as settlers ramp up attacks across occupied West Bank, by Aysar Al-Ayas and Ahmed Asmar | Anadolu Agency  RAMALLAH, Palestine / ANKARA  Israeli forces detained multiple Palestinians during military raids today, while settlers escalated attacks on Palestinian properties in separate incidents across the occupied West Bank. READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED