For today, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, and Middle East Eye, and to commentary from Z-Network and Al-Shabaka, both via Consortium News, and to a discussion from ScheerPost; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (UKRAINE and MEDIA entries for this date are HERE and HERE). — MCM
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Dozens killed in strikes in southern Gaza as preparations for cease-fire talks move forward, by Samy Magdy and David Rising | AP CAIRO — At least three dozen Palestinians were killed in multiple Israeli strikes in the southern Gaza Strip, officials said today, even as preparations moved ahead for high-level cease-fire talks in the Egyptian capital. Among the dead . . . READ MORE . . .
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Hamas delegation headed to Cairo today to discuss Gaza ceasefire talks. From Reuters. CAIRO — A Hamas delegation headed by its senior official Khalil al-Hayya was to arrive in Cairo today to hear from mediators on the latest round of Gaza ceasefire talks that took place in the Egyptian capital, the Palestinian group said in a statement. READ MORE . . .
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Israeli shelling in Gaza kills 12 Palestinians, Wafa says. From Reuters. CAIRO — At least 12 Palestinians, including two children and a woman, were killed early this morning by Israeli attacks east of Gaza’s Khan Younis and in the Al-Nuseirat camp area, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa said. READ MORE . . .
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U.S. rebukes sceptics of ceasefire talks as diplomats meet in Egypt, by Sean Mathews | Middle East Eye The Biden administration rebuked sceptics of its efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza on Friday, saying a flurry of media leaks suggesting that negotiations had all but collapsed were “inaccurate”. “The process . . . READ MORE . . .
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FROM AUG. 23 The cant about Israel’s ‘right to self-defense,’ by M. Reza Behnam | Z-Network / Consortium News Despite the countless atrocities, assassinations and violations of humanitarian and international law, American politicians and the corporate media recite ad infinitum the accepted talking point that Israel has a “right to defend itself.” From their distorted perspective, only the aggressor deserves that prerogative. READ MORE . . .
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FROM AUG. 23 The U.S. push for Saudi recognition of Israel, by Tariq Dana | Al-Shabaka / Consortium News Washington has long aspired for Saudi Arabia to embrace Israel officially. The bipartisan Israel Relations Normalization Act, passed by Congress in March 2022, underscored this objective, mandating the State Department to . . . READ MORE . . .
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FROM AUG. 23 A ‘meaningful’ election where neither candidate condemns U.S.-sponsored genocide? Robert Scheer of ScheerPost “spars” with Jeff Cohen, retired professor of Journalism at Ithaca College and founder of Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting, about, among other things, “whether this year will bring actual change from the Democrats in their support for Israel’s suppression of the Palestinians.” Click HERE to watch and listen and read transcript.