For now, links to reports from the Associated Press and Reuters, followed by commentary from the Moscow Times; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE and AMERICAS entries for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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In Israel, the U.S. defense secretary is expected to press for a more targeted approach in Gaza, by Melanie Lidman, Tara Copp and Samy Magdy | AP  TEL AVIV —U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin discussed with Israeli leaders today ways to scale back major combat operations in Gaza but said Washington was not imposing a timetable despite international calls for a cease-fire. He and other U.S. officials have repeatedly expressed concern about the large number of civilian deaths in Gaza, even while . . . READ MORE . . .

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U.S. defence chief in Israel in push to ease intensity of Gaza offensive, by Nidal al-Mughrabi, Bassam Masoud and Henriette Chacar | Reuters  CAIRO / GAZA — Israel faced pressure from the visiting U.S. defence chief and censure from a global rights group today over the intensity of its war with Hamas in Gaza due to spiraling civilian deaths and hunger among Palestinians. With no let-up in the more than two-month-old bombardment and siege. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was the latest U.S. official to head to Israel to . . . READ MORE . . .

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The Gaza war has convinced Russia it was right all along, by Nikita Smagin | The Moscow Times  The conflict in the Middle East is the perfect crisis for Russia, which is reaping a whole host of political benefits. The confrontation between Israel and Hamas has not only . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY. BE CONTINUED