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

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Aaron Zelin discusses the group now controlling Syria and its ‘terrorist’ designation. Leila Fadel of NPR talks with Aaron Zelin of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy about the group that now controls Syria and why it’s so hard to shed the label of “terrorists.” Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

For today, links to five reports: from Agence France-Presse, Tass, Kyiv Post, the Kyiv Independent, and the Associated Press; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA and LEBANON entries  for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM   

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Ukrainian army says it captured 27 Russian soldiers in Kursk Region. From AFP. The Ukrainian military said today its forces had captured more than two dozen Russian soldiers in the southwestern Kursk region, where it has been battling Moscow’s army since launching an incursion in August. READ MORE . . .

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Russian forces pound Ukrainian military airfields, UAV assembly, storage sites. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian forces struck Ukrainian military airfields and UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) assembly and storage sites 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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Rubio: ‘Concessions’ needed from both Kyiv, Moscow. From Kyiv Post. Marco Rubio, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee as Secretary of State, on Wednesday reiterated his view that the war in Ukraine “has to end” calling for concessions to be made by Kyiv, Washington and Moscow. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine, UK sign 100-year partnership agreement, by Martin Fornusek and news desk | The Kyiv Independent  President Volodymyr Zelensky and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed a 100-year partnership agreement during their meeting in Kyiv today. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from AP.

NOTE: ONLY TWO SHORT ENTRIES TODAY.

Links to reports from the Associated Press and Reuters, and to commentary from ScheerPost; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (LEBANON entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM   

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Russian missile attack forces Ukraine to shut down power grid, by Hanna Arhirova and Yehor Konovalov | AP  KYIV — Russia today launched a major ballistic and cruise missile attack on regions across Ukraine, targeting energy production and compelling authorities to shut down the power grid in some areas despite freezing winter weather, officials said. READ MORE . . .

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Trump advisors concede Ukraine peace deal is months away, by Gram Slattery | Reuters  WASHINGTON — Advisers to President-elect Donald Trump now concede that the Ukraine war will take months or even longer to resolve, a sharp reality check on his biggest foreign policy promise — to strike a peace deal on his first day in the White House. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JAN. 13  The nihilism of Antony Blinken, by Patrick Lawrence | Original to ScheerPost Blinken and his colleagues anticipated Russia’s invasion of Ukraine before it started in February 2022 because the Biden regime provoked it to the point Moscow had no other choice. Washington spent the autumn of 2021 arming Kiev, but . . . READ MORE . . .

NOTE: ONLY TWO SHORT ENTRIES TODAY.

Links to a Jan. 9 report from the Associated Press and to commentary from CraigMurray.org.uk via Consortium News including video and a link to a report from the Guardian; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE. LEBANON 1-14-25 entry is HERE.) — MCM

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FROM JAN. 9  Lebanon’s parliament elects army commander Joseph Aoun as president, ending a 2-year deadlock, by Sally Abou Aljoud and Abby Sewell | AP  BEIRUT — Lebanon’s parliament voted on Thursday to elect army commander Joseph Aoun as head of state, filling a more than two-year-long presidential vacuum. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JAN. 10  U.S. pet now president of Lebanon, by Craig Murray | CraigMurray.org.uk / Consortium News  Last week I did two short video reports from outside the Lebanese Parliament — inside a military cordon that totally sealed off downtown Beirut — on the appointment of Gen. Joseph Aoun, head of the Lebanese Armed Forces, as president of Lebanon. Click HERE for report including videos, and a linked Jan. 9 report from the Guardian.

For today, a link to a report from the Cradle; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (GAZA, UKRAINE and MEDIA entries for this date are HERE, HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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FROM JAN. 13  Israel escalates bombing of Lebanon ‘in accordance’ with ceasefire. From the Cradle. The Israeli army launched violent air raids on southern and eastern Lebanon late Sunday, marking a significant escalation of Israel’s ceasefire violations two weeks before the end of the 60-day implementation period. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to reports from Agence France-Presse, Reuters, and the Kyiv Independent; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA, LEBANON and MEDIA entries for this date are HERE, HERE and HERE.) — MCM   

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Ukrainian army hits Russian military, industrial sites in overnight barrage. From AFP. Ukraine fired missiles and drones at factories and energy facilities across Russia early on Tuesday, sparking fires hundreds of kilometers from the front line, a source in Ukraine’s SBU security services said. Russia’s military accused Kyiv . . . READ MORE . . .  Click HERE and HERE for report from Reuters and the Kyiv Independent.

For today, links to six reports: from Reuters, the Associated Press,, National Public Radio, Middle East Eye, and the Cradle; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE, LEBANON and MEDIA entries for this date are HERE, HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Gaza ceasefire talks resume in Doha, deal seen close after ‘breakthrough,‘ by Andrew Mills, Nidal al-Mughrabi and Maayan Lubell | Reuters  DOHA / CAIRO / JERUSALEM — Negotiators were meeting in Qatar today hoping to finalise details of a plan to end the war in Gaza, after U.S. President Joe Biden indicated a ceasefire and hostage release deal was imminent. READ MORE . . . Click HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE for reports from AP, NPR, Middle East Eye and the Cradle.

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Israeli minister Ben-Gvir threatens to quit Netanyahu cabinet over Gaza deal. From Reuters. JERUSALEM — Israeli far-right police minister Itamar Ben-Gvir threatened today to quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government if he agrees to a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal being negotiated . . . READ MORE . . .

A link to commentary from ScheerPost; other articles are accessible by clicking on its name below. (GAZA, UKRAINE and LEBANON entries  for this date are HERE, HERE and HERE. MEDIA Jan. 8 and MEDIA Jan. 9 entries are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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FROM JAN. 13  The nihilism of Antony Blinken, by Patrick Lawrence | Original to ScheerPost  We have now the case of The New York Times’s lengthy interview with Antony Blinken, published in the Sunday Magazine dated Jan. 5. Yes, I have read it. I propose others do the same. This is one of those occasions when it is important to know . . . READ MORE . . .

For now, links to six reports: from the Cradle, Anadolu Agency, Reuters, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their initials below. (SYRIA and UKRAINE entries for this date, so far, are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Israeli raids kill dozens in Gaza as enclave ‘littered with U.S.-made munitions.’ From the Cradle. Israeli strikes have killed 45 Palestinians in Gaza since dawn today, Al Jazeera reported, citing medical sources, while new footage in U.S. media shows how the ground in the besieged enclave “is littered . . . READ MORE . . .

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Israel denies receiving ‘final draft’ of prisoner swap deal with Hamas, by Abdelraouf Arnaout | Anadolu Agency  JERUSALEM — Israel denied media reports today about receiving a “final draft” of a Gaza cease-fire and prisoner exchange agreement with Hamas. Media reports said earlier that Qatar had . . . READ MORE . . .

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Final draft of Gaza truce deal presented after ‘breaktrhough.’ From Reuters. DOHA — Mediator Qatar gave Israel and Hamas a final draft of a deal today to end the war in Gaza, after a midnight “breakthrough” in talks attended by U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s envoy, according to an official briefed on the negotiations. READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for reports from AP and NPR.

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Israel plans approval of 2,749 new settlement units in Occupied West Bank within 6 weeks, by Abdelraouf Arnaout | Anadolu Agency  JERUSALEM — Israeli authorities plan to approve the construction of 2,749 new settlement units in the occupied West Bank within six weeks, an Israeli anti-settlement group said today. READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

First, a link to a report from Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking its name below. (GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date, so far, are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Ahmed al-Sharaa says new Syria will be defined by forgiveness and amnesty, by Rayhan Uddin | Middle East Eye  De-facto Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has said that the country’s future will be defined by forgiveness and amnesty, urging people to move away from a mindset of vengefulness and revolutionary agitation. He said the revolution was now over, and that . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED