For today, links to three reports: from Reuters, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio, and to an interview from Consortium News — which does not mention Ukraine; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA, SYRIA and CARTER entries for this date are HERE, HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Ukraine’s Zelensky: Trump can be decisive in helping stop Russia’s Putin. From Reuters. KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday that US President-elect Donald Trump could be decisive in the outcome of the 34-month-old war with Russia and help stop Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from AP.

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FROM JAN 2  How Trump can end the war in Ukraine, according to a former ambassador. Reported by Tinbete Ermyas, Jordan-Marie Smith, Andrew Limbong and Mallory Yu | NPR  Michael McFaul, who was U.S. Ambassador to Russia for two years during the Obama Administration, talks about the subject of his recent piece in Foreign Affairs, “How Trump Can End the War in Ukraine.” Click HERE to listen and read.

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An ignored U.S. diplomat’s warning on Russia, by Natylie Baldwin | Special to Consortium News  The National Security Archive recently published a 1994 memo, HERE, by E. Wayne Merry, a U.S. diplomat in Moscow, assessing U.S. policies toward a Russia that was in chaos. It  represented a different view of how the U.S.-led West could have managed its relationship with and guided reforms in post-Soviet Russia. READ MORE . . .

 

Links to reporting and commentary from Playboy, via ScheerPost, and Substack; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names below. (GAZA, SYRIA and UKRAINE entries for this date, so far, are HERE,  HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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FROM NOVEMBER 1976 and DEC. 29, 2024  Jimmy, we hardly know y’all, by Robert Scheer | Playboy / ScheerPost  On one level, the man is simply preposterous. On another, he seems reasonable, sincere, and eminently sensible. It is difficult for me to believe that after four months of following him around the country, listening to the same speech five or six times a day, and after many hours of one-on-one conversation . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JAN. 2  Jimmy Carter’s mixed legacy, by Seymour M. Hersh | Substack  Carter was a weak president and more of an instinctive hawk than he let on. He named Cyrus Vance, who had been McNamara’s deputy and fellow liar about the Vietnam War, as his secretary of state. His secretary of defense was . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

For today, links to just two reports, from the Associated Press, including a map; others are accessible by clicking on its Initials below. (SYRIA and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Middle East latest: Israeli strikes kill at least 18 in Gaza, including 3 children, officials say. From AP. Israeli airstrikes killed at least 18 people in the Gaza Strip today, including three children and two high-ranking officers in the Hamas-run police force, according to Palestinian and hospital officials. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for Jan. 1 report from AP.

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TO BE CONTINUED ON JAN. 3

For today, a link to just one report, from National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and  HERE.) — MCM

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FROM JAN. 1  Syrian official makes peace overture to Israel. What’s the regional impact? Reported by Daniel Estrin, Hadeel Al-Shalchi and Leila Fadel | NPR  The governor of Damascus faced major backlash in the Arab world for his comments about making peace with Israel. But what do Israelis and Syrians want?. Click HERE to listen and read.

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TO BE CONTINUED ON JAN. 3

 

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

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FROM JAN. 1  Zelenskiy says U.S. will be alongside Ukraine’s efforts to stop Russia. From Reuters. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said late on Tuesday that no one would give peace to his country as a gift, but he believed the United States would stand alongside Kyiv as it fights to stop Russia’s 34-month invasion. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JAN. 1  Ukraine’s capital opens 2025 under a new wave of Russian drone attacks. Reported by Brian Mann and Leila Fadel | NPR  The attack began hours after Ukraine’s president addressed his nation. He acknowledged the agony of 2024 with heavy battlefield casualties and Russia’s army advancing along much of the 600-mile front. Click HERE to listen and read, and HERE and HERE for report from Reuters and AP.

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FROM DEC. 31  Europe’s Russian gas era comes to an end as Ukraine transit stops. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Russia’s once-dominant gas supply to Europe via Ukraine, which flowed for decades, is set to end on New Year’s Day with the collapse of a contract between . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for Jan. 1 report from AP.

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FROM DEC. 30  Hundreds of soldiers freed in the latest prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine. From AP. KYIV — Russia and Ukraine have exchanged prisoners of war in the latest such swap that saw the release of hundreds of captives and was brokered with the help of the United Arab Emirates, officials said Monday. READ MORE . . .

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TO. BE CONTINUED ON JAN. 3

For today, links to eight reports: from Middle East Monitor, Reuters, National Public Radio, and the Associated Press, and to commentary from Middle East Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (SYRIA and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and HERE. There was no GAZA entry for Dec. 30.) — MCM

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Heavy rain floods thousands of tents in Gaza. From Middle East Monitor. Thousands of Palestinian families in displacement camps across the Gaza Strip faced devastation last night as heavy rains and strong winds battered the area. According to Wafa news agency . . . READ MORE . . .

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UN body issues damning report on Israeli attacks on Gaza hospitals. From Reuters. The UN Human Rights Office report says Israeli attacks on hospitals in Gaza have devastated the Palestinian enclave’s health system and raise serious concerns about Israel’s compliance with international law. It concludes that the Israeli hostilities in Gaza have “destroyed” local healthcare. READ MORE . . .

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Israeli raid on a key hospital in northern Gaza forces the facility to shut down. Reported by Carrie Kahn and Aya Batrawy | NPR  Israeli forces raided the last hospital in northern Gaza able to treat children and intensive care cases. The raid followed months of intense attacks on the hospital and the area around it. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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The WHO urges Israel to stop attacks on Gaza’s medical infrastructure. Leila Fadel of NPR talks with the director-general of the World Health Organization, about medical access in Gaza. He also narrowly escaped an Israeli airstrike on an airport in Yemen. Click HERE to listen and read.

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Amid ceasefire push, Palestinians released from Israeli jails bear mential, physical scars. From Reuters. Alleged abuses and psychological harm to Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons and camps are in renewed focus amid stepped-up efforts this month by international mediators to secure a ceasefire that . . . READ MORE . . .

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Major sticking points between Israel and Hamas have made a ceasefire elusive. Reported by Emily Feng and Leila Fadel | NPR   Throughout 2024 negotiations for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas were on again and off again. There were moments of great optimism and then months of no negotiations at all. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Dozens of patients and wounded evacuated from Gaza for treatment. From AP. Dozens of patients and the wounded have been evacuated for treatment outside the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, where the United Nations says Israel’s attacks on and around hospitals have pushed health care to the brink. READ MORE . . .

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FROM DEC. 31  In Gaza’s crowded tent camps, women wrestle with a life stripped of privacy, by Wafaa Shurafa and Julia Frankel | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza City — For Gaza’s women, the hardships of life in the territory’s sprawling tent camps are compounded by the daily humiliation of never having privacy. READ MORE . . .

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Jimmy Carter: Battling against apartheid. From Middle East Monitor.  Jimmy Carter, the 39th president of the United States, a leader who dedicated his life to diplomacy, democracy and humanitarian causes, passed away Saturday at the age of 100. His  role in shaping the Middle East’s geopolitical landscape remains . . . READ MORE . . .

 

For today, links to reports from the Associated Press and Reuters, and to commentary from Middle East Eye and the Cradle; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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FROM DEC. 30  Now Syria’s long-ruling Baath party is collapsing, too, by Bassem Mroue | AP  DAMASCUS — A few days after insurgents in Syria overthrew President Bashar Assad, his ruling Baath party announced it was freezing its activities, marking a stunning change in fortunes for the political group that had ruled for more than six decades. READ MORE . . .

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In Syrian military housing, former rebel leaders take the homes of Assad’s officers. From Reuters. DAMASCUS — Families of military officers who served under Syria’s ousted Bashar al-Assad are being evicted from their subsidised housing at a compound outside Damascus to make way . . . READ MORE . . .

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Israel’s attacks on Syria threaten regional stability and will ultimately backfire, by Ali Bakir | Middle East Eye  On Dec. 10, mere days after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria, Israel launched the most extensive aerial military campaign in its history against a neighbouring country. Dubbed “Bashan Arrow,” it . . . READ MORE . . .

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Regional powers jostle for influence, by Mawadda Iskandar | The Cradle  Despite efforts by Syria’s rebel-led interim leaders to seek a fresh start focused on ‘zeroing problems,’ embracing inclusivity, and delaying decisions on critical issues, the arrangement of the country’s future that is shaped by Turkish–Qatari sponsors and U.S. allies faces daunting challenges. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to seven reports: from National Public Radio, the Associated Press, and Reuters; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (GAZA and SYRIA entry for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM   

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Biden administration to send billions more in aid to Ukraine. Reported by Jackie Northam |  NPR  The White House says it will send nearly $6 billion in military and budget aid to Ukraine. It’s likely to be the last bit of support by the Biden administration as Trump’s team is about to take over. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Ukrainian military says it hit Russian oil depot in Smolensk region. From Reuters. The Ukrainian military said today its forces had hit a Russian oil depot in the Smolensk region. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine says naval drone destroys Russian helicopter for first time. From Reuters. Ukrainian military intelligence said one of its naval drones had destroyed a Russian helicopter and damaged another one in the Black Sea in a battle today near Cape Tarkhankut on Crimea’s west coast. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for video from AP .

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Russian missile and drone attack on Ukraine hits multiple targets, including Kyiv, by Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — Russia launched an aerial attack on Ukraine today, striking the capital and other regions with multiple missiles and drones. Ukraine’s air force said . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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3 significant events in Russia’s history that stand out under Putin’s rule. Steve Inskeep of NPR talks with Russia expert Keir Giles of Chatham House about three key moments in which Vladimir Putin has exerted power in his 25 years of leadership in Russia. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to just two reports: from Reuters and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE; there was no GAZA entry.) — MCM

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Syria eyes ‘strategic’ ties with Ukraine, Kyiv vows more food aid shipments. From Reuters. DAMASCUS — Syria hopes for “strategic partnerships” with Ukraine, its new foreign minister told his Ukrainian counterpart today, as Kyiv moves to build ties with the new Islamist rulers in Damascus amid waning Russian influence. READ MORE . . .

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Shockwaves reverberate after Syrian official says he wants cordial ties with Israel. Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi and Leila Fadel | NPR  The governor of Damascus faces backlash after he tells NPR that he wants the U.S. to mediate cordial relations with Israel. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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TO BE CONTINUED