For today, links to eight reports: from Reuters, the Associated Press, Middle East Monitor, the Portland Press Herald, Middle East Eye, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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FROM SEPT. 4  Netanyahu says Israel will not leave Gaza border corridor until it is secure, by James Mackenzie and Emily Rose | Reuters  JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that Israel will only agree to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza that guarantees the border area between southern Gaza and Egypt could never be used as a lifeline for the Islamist movement Hamas. He repeated . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from AP.

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Netanyahu’s insistence on military presence in Philadelphi Corridor undermining ceasefire deal: report. From Middle East Monitor. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence on maintaining a military presence in the 14-kilometre (9-mile) Philadelphi Corridor along the Gaza-Egypt border is scuttling the possibility of a cease-fire deal, according to U.S. media, Anadolu Agency reports. READ MORE . . .

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U.S. city council votes unanimously to divest from companies doing business with Israel. From Middle East Monitor.  The City Council of Portland, Maine, has voted unanimously to divest from companies doing business with Israel, as the occupation state’s near 11-month military offensive against the Palestinians in Gaza has killed 41,000 Palestinians and wounded 95,000 others. The divestment list includes . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Portland Press Herald.

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Israeli strike kills children playing in the street, by Maha Hussaini | Middle East Eye  Tala Abu Ajwa, 10, had been playing with her neighbours outside their residential building in central Gaza City. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from NPR.

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FROM SEPT. 4  U.S. negotiators racing to present new Gaza ceasefire proposal, sources say, by Steve Holland, Jonathan Landay,Andrew Mills and Ahmed Mohamed Hassan | Reuters  WASHINGTON / DOHA / CAIRO — The White House is scrambling to put forward a new proposal for a Gaza ceasefire and the release of hostages by Hamas in the coming days, two U.S. officials, according to two Egyptian security sources and an official with knowledge of the matter. The new proposal aims . . . READ MORE . . .

For today, links to seven reports: from Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press, the Kyiv Independent, Reuters, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Putin says Russia ‘ready’ for talks with Ukraine. From AFP. Russian President Vladimir Putin said today he was ready for talks with Kyiv, after having previously rebuffed the idea of negotiations while Ukraine’s offensive into the Kursk region was ongoing. He said talks should be on the basis of an aborted deal between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators reached in Istanbul in 2022, the terms of which were never made public. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine gets a new chief diplomat as the war with Russia enters a critical phase, by Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — Ukraine’s parliament approved the appointment of a new foreign minister today, two lawmakers said. Andrii Sybiha, a former ambassador to Turkey, is . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Kyiv Independent.

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Pentagon leaders head to Germany for the latest round of international talks on Ukraine military aid, by Tara Copp | AP  WASHINGTON — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. C.Q. Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will be in Germany Friday to discuss Ukraine’s wartime needs as Russia has conducted . . . READ MORE . . .

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Death toll from Russia’s Sept. 3 strike on Poltava rises to 55, by Martin Fornusek | The Kyiv Independent  The death toll from Russia’s strike against the Ukrainian city of Poltava on Sept. 3 has risen to 55, the State Emergency Service said today. Another 328 people are currently listed as wounded, while several more may still . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine says peace summit follow-up meeting tackles food security. From Reuters. KYIV — Ukraine said 75 countries and international organisations have agreed a “shared vision” of measures to ensure the uninterrupted supply of Ukrainian agricultural products and help global food security, a major concern following Russia’s 2022 invasion. READ MORE . . .

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Russian forces shoot down three ATACMS missiles in past day. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian forces liberated the settlement of Zavetnoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic and shot down three ATACMS missiles in the past day, according to a Russian Defense Ministry bulletin, which also gave details of other combat actions. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to six reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio, Common Dreams, and Middle East Monitor, and to commentary from Common Dreams, ScheerPost, and The Free Press; other articles are accessible by clicking on its name below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE,) — MCM

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U.S. charges Hamas leader, other militants in connection with Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, by Eric Tucker | AP  WASHINGTON  — The Justice Department announced criminal charges Tuesday against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other senior militants in connection with the Oct. 7, 2023, rampage in Israel, marking the first effort by American law enforcement to formally call out the masterminds of the attack. The seven-count . . . READ MORE . . .

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UN officials welcome progress in Gaza polio campaign, call for permanent ceasefire, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  CAIRO — The main United Nations agency for Palestinians said today it was making good progress in rolling out a polio vaccine to children in Gaza, but called for a permanent ceasefire in the 11-month war to ease humanitarian suffering. UNRWA said that three days into the campaign . . . READ MORE . . .

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Former Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz issues searing rebuke to PM Netanyahu. Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi and Steve Inskeep | NPR  Benny Gantz, a former Israeli war cabinet member who walked out in June, has told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a deal to secure the release of hostages held in Gaza or else step down. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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IDF attacks Gazans buying bread as Netanyahu tanks cease-fire hopes, by Jake Johnson | Common Dreams / ScheerPost  Continued Israeli military presence at the Philadelphi corridor, which Netanyahu characterized as “the oxygen of Hamas,” is among the new demands the far-right prime minister has pushed . . . READ MORE . . .

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Netanyahu once again erases Palestine during address. From Middle East Monitor. In an address Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used a map of Israel that erases the occupied West Bank, marking it as Israeli territory. He appeared standing in front of a wall-sized digital map that . . . READ MORE . . .

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Coke and Pepsi boycott over Gaza lifts Muslim countries’ local sodas, by Ariba Shahid, Jessica DiNapoli and Farah Saafan | Reuters  KARACHI / CAIRO / NEW YORK — Coca-Cola and rival PepsiCo spent hundreds of millions of dollars over decades building demand for their soft drinks in Muslim-majority countries including Egypt to Pakistan. Now, both face a challenge from local sodas in those countries due to consumer boycotts  targeting . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM SEPT. 3  While U.S. arms Israel, DOJ hits Hamas leaders with terrorism charges. From Common Dreams.  The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday unsealed terrorism and other criminal charges have been filed against half a dozen senior members of Hamas, the Palestinian resistance group that governs the Gaza Strip, and whose . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM SEPT. 3  Kamala Harris and the disgrace of denial, by Patrick Lawrence | Original to ScheerPost  Last Wednesday, the New York Times published a remarkable opinion piece under the headline, “This Is Who Kamala Harris Fails.” The 1,200–word commentary reflects what we are calling the “Abandon Harris” movement. Hala Alyan, a Palestinian–American writer, calls for voters . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM SEPT. 2  Dark tunnels and moral beacons, by Bari Weiss | The Free Press  The names of Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, and Hersh Goldberg-Polin should be seared into the minds of anyone who wishes to live in a civilized world. Instead, we read headlines . . . READ MORE . . .

 

For today, links to 10 reports: from the Associated Press, the Anadolu Agency, the Kyiv Independent, Agence France-Presse, Reuters, National Public Radio, the Moscow Times, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Kuleba resigns as Russian strikes kill 7 people in Lviv, by Illia Novikov and Emma Burrows | AP  KYIV — Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, one of Ukraine’s most recognizable faces on the international stage, submitted his resignation today ahead of an expected major government reshuffle. Russian strikes, meanwhile, killed seven people in a western Ukraine city, a day after one of the deadliest missile attacks since the war began. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Anadolu Agency.

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Casualties reported in Lviv, Kryvyi Rih as Russia launches another mass attack on Ukraine, by Olena Goncharova and Martin Fornusek | The Kyiv Independent  At least seven civilians were killed and 64 wounded in Lviv early this morning as Russia launched drones and missiles against Ukraine, regional authorities reported. Multiple casualties were reported also in Kryvyi Rih. In other cities . . . READ MORE . . .

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Deadly strike hits Ukraine’s Lviv as Moscow advances in east. From AFP. A Russian strike on west Ukraine’s Lviv, hundreds of kilometers from the front, killed seven people today, authorities said as Moscow claimed advances in the war-torn nation’s east. Russia has stepped up its aerial attacks on Ukraine since Kyiv launched an unprecedented cross-border offensive. . . READ MORE . . .

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Zelenskiy orders war’s biggest reshuffle to give Ukraine ‘new energy,’ by Olena Harmash | Reuters  KYIV — President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said today that Ukraine needed “new energy”, as he ordered a major government reshuffle at a crucial juncture in the war against Russia. A total of six ministers, including Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, submitted their resignation and parliament accepted the resignations of four. READ MORE . . .

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Kuleba resignation, reshuffle ‘expected long ago ahead of difficult times’ for Ukraine, lawmaker says, by Chris York and the news desk | The Kyiv Independent  The resignation of Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and a major government reshuffle was “expected long ago” ahead of a difficult few months for Ukraine, a senior lawmaker, Oleksandr Merezhko, Ukrainian MP and chair of the parliament’s foreign affairs committee, said today. READ MORE . . .

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Russian strike on Urkainian military academy kills dozens. Reported by Joanna Kakissis and Steve Inskeep | NPR  Ukraine is in mourning after Russian missiles tore into a military academy, killing more than 50 people and injuring more than 270. It’s one of the deadliest attacks of the two-and-a-half year war. Click HERE to listen and, later, read; and HERE for Sept. 3 NPR report.

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Ukrainian attack on Donetsk region mrket kills 3, Moscow-backed official says. From the Moscow Times. A Ukrainian attack on an open-air market in the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk killed three people and injured five others, Moscow-backed authorities said today. READ MORE . . .

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What is known about situation in Kursk Region. From Tass. MOSCOW —Russian forces have thwarted two Ukrainian attacks in the last 24 hours, having beaten back several more near three villages in the Kursk Area, the Russian Defense Ministry said. The enemy’s losses over the day . . .  READ MORE . . .

For now, links to 10 reports: from Reuters, National Public Radio, Middle East Monitor, the Associated Press, and Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date, so far, is HERE.) — MCM

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Israeli attacks in Gaza kill 33 Palestinians but pauses allow third day of polio vaccinations, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters CAIRO (Reuters) – Israeli forces killed 33 Palestinians across Gaza in the past 24 hours as they battled Hamas-led militants, Palestinian officials said today, but brief pauses in fighting allowed medics to conduct a third day of polio vaccinations for children. READ MORE . . .

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Evacuation orders force families in Gaza into perilous and overcrowded ‘safe zones.’ Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi and Anas Baba | NPR  Israel’s stepped-up evacuation orders are shrinking the safe zones in Gaza, increasing danger to constantly displaced Palestinians. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Polio vaccination targets surpassed for Gaza children, WHO says. From Reuters. GENEVA — The World Health Organization said today it had inoculated about a quarter of children under 10. The campaign, which was hastened after the discovery of the first polio case in a Gazan baby last month, relies on daily eight-hour pauses in fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in specific areas of the besieged enclave. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for Sept. 2 report from NPR.

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Israeli military says it killed Hamas militant in widely viewed Oct 7 video. From AP. The Israeli military says it has killed a Hamas militant who appeared in a widely viewed video from Oct. 7, where he was seen drinking from a bottle of cola in front of two children wounded in a grenade attack that had just killed their father. The military today . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM SEPT. 2  Thousands attend funeral of Israeli-American hostage killed by Hamas. Reported by Kat Lonsdorf | NPR  Hersh Goldberg-Polin, one of the six hostages killed by Hamas this week, was laid to rest in Israel on Sunday. Israeli’s packed his funeral in a show of support to the hostages still held in Gaza, to the family, and to express anger at the government of Prime Minister Netanyahu at not doing more to secure their release. Click HERE to listen and read.

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Hamas says there are no real negotiations for a ceasefire. From Middle East Monitor. The Hamas political bureau member responsible for the negotiations file says the movement is ready for an agreement to stop the war in Gaza and exchange prisoners with Israel if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants one. READ MORE . . .

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FROM SEPT. 2  U.K. says it’s suspending some arms exports to Israel to avoid breaking international law, by Jill Lawless | AP  LONDON —  U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government said Monday that it’s suspending exports of some weapons to Israel because they could be used to break international law — a move . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for reports from NPR and Middle East Eye.

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MAY BE CONTINUED

For now, links to seven reports: from the Kyiv Independent, the Anadolu Agency, the Moscow Times, Tass, Reuters and the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date, so far, is HERE.) — MCM

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Russia strikes Poltava with ballistic missiles, killing 41, injuring over 180, by Kateryna Hodunova | The Kyiv Independent  Russian forces launched two ballistic missiles against the city of Poltava today, killing at least 41 and injuring over 180 people, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Anadolu Agency.

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Ukrainian drone smashes into church in Russia’s Belgorod Region. From the Moscow Times. Ukrainian drone strikes targeted three towns in Russia’s Belgorod region, seriously damaging a church and hitting public and commercial buildings, local authorities said early today. READ MORE . . .

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Russian forces shoot down Ukrainian MiG-29 fighter jet, 37 drones in past day. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian forces shot down an MiG-29 fighter jet of the Ukrainian Air Force and 37 unmanned aerial vehicles in the past day, the Russian Defense Ministry said in its bulletin. READ MORE . . .

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U.S. close to agreeing on long-range missiles for Ukraine; delivery to take months, by Mike Stone, Patricia Zengerle and Gerry Doyle | Reuters  WASHINGTON  — The long-range cruise missiles could reach deep into Russia. U.S. officials say they are working through technical issues ahead of any shipment. The inclusion of Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM) in a weapons package . . . READ MORE . . .

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UN nuclear watchdog head is in Ukraine out of renewed concern over Zaporizhzhia power plant safety, by Derek Gatopoulos and Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — The head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog was holding talks with senior officials today in Ukraine over safety concerns for Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, where attacks were recently reported nearby. It’s his 10th visit since the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022. READ MORE . . .

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Conflict, creditors and a car crash: How Ukraine clinched a wartime debt restructuring, by Marc Jones and Karin Strohecker | Reuters  LONDON — Just a few months after Russia invaded Ukraine, the country’s financial adviser, Rothschild & Co, handed Kyiv’s debt chief a thick black folder detailing major sovereign debt restructurings of the past 30 years. READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

For today, links to reports from Reuters, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio, and to commentary from Middle East Monitor and Mondoweiss; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Israeli fire kills dozens in Gaza, polio vaccinations in full swing, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Ramadan Abed | Reuters  CAIRO / GAZA — Israeli forces killed at least 48 Palestinians in the past 24 hours across the Gaza Strip as they battled Hamas-led militants, Palestinian officials said today, while medics conducted a second day of polio vaccinations for children in the enclave. READ MORE . . .

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General strike in Israel over hostages found dead in Gaza reflects political divisions, by Tia Goldenberg | AP  TEL AVIV — A rare call for a general strike in Israel to protest the failure to return hostages held in Gaza led to closures and other disruptions around the country today, including at its main international airport. But it was ignored in some areas, reflecting deep political divisions. READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for reports from Reuters.

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Israelis protest Netanyahu government after bodies of 6 hostages recovered from Gaza. Reported by Kat Lonsdorf and Leila Fadel | NPR  Hours after the bodies of six hostages were recovered in Gaza. Israelis protested the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and called for a general strike. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Israelis protest against leadership after bodies of 6 hostages recovered from Gaza.Reported by Leila Fadel | NPR  Political scientist Gayil Talshir of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem talks about the protests in Israel after the recovery of the bodies of six hostages. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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FROM SEPT. 1  6 hostages in Gaza were found dead by the Israeli military. Reported by Carrie Kahn, Jane Arraf and Scott Detrow | NPR  In Gaza, the bodies of six hostages were recovered by the Israeli military. All six were kidnapped when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7. The discovery has led to large protests in Israel. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Gaza’s children are the principal victims of Israel’s genocide, by Ramzy Baroud | Middle East Monitor  The Israeli war on Gaza is a war on Palestinian children. This was as true on 7 October as it is today. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 30  Demystifying how the Hamas leadership works, by Hanna Alshaikh | Mondoweiss  After Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas Political Bureau, was assassinated in Tehran, the Movement’s senior consultative body, the Shura Council, quickly and unanimously chose Yahya Sinwar as his successor. At the time of his killing, Haniyeh had been leading the Hamas effort in the ceasefire negotiations . . . READ MORE . . .

For today, links to reports from the Kyiv Post, the Kyiv Independent, Agence France-Presse, Tass, the Associated Press and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Russia widens assaults against hard-pressed Ukraine defenses, opens new attack axis in east, by Stefan Korshak | Kyiv Post  Russian forces have opened a new attack axis in the Kremlin’s ongoing and so-far relentless Donbasoffensive, launching assaults at the industrial city of Vuhledar and hitting Ukrainian defenses there with air strikes, artillery bombardments and . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian guided bomb attack on Kharkiv injures at least 13, by Kateryna Denisova | The Kyiv Independent  Russian forces attacked the city of Kharkiv with guided aerial bombs on Sept. 2, injuring at least 13 people, local authorities reported. Mayor Igor Terekhov said the residential area in the city’s Kyivskyi district . . . READ MORE . . .

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Putin says Kursk incursion will not stop Russian advance in eastern Ukraine. From AFP. President Vladimir Putin said today that Kyiv’s incursion into southwestern Russia’s Kursk region will not halt Moscow’s advance in eastern Ukraine and vowed to deal with what he called Ukrainian “bandits” on Russian territory. READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainian attacks thwarted: developments in Kursk Region. From Tass. MOSCOW — The Ukrainian armed forces have lost more than 350 troops and 14 armored vehicles in the Kursk Region in the past day, the Russian Defense Ministry said. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine’s children return to school as Russia launches drones and ballistic missiles at Kyiv, by Illia Novikov and Vasilisa Stepanenko | AP  KYIV — Russia launched an overnight barrage of drones and cruise and ballistic missiles at Kyiv, officials said today, as children were returning to school across Ukraine. Some pupils found classes canceled because of damage . . . READ MORE . . .

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Three Ukrainian teens begin their final year of high school holding onto hopes for the future, by Hanna Arhirova | AP  UZHHOROD, Ukraine — Ukrainian teens are grappling with the realities of war. One student, still haunted by memories of his hometown in the Luhansk region . . . READ MORE . . .

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A summer camp in western Ukraine helps kids work through their trauma. Reported by Hanna Palamarenko | NPR  The war in Ukraine has left thousands of civilians dead and has traumatized countless people. A summer camp in western Ukraine is helping kids work through their trauma. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

For today, links to 10 reports: from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio, Middle East Monitor, the Anadolu Agency, and Middle East Eye, and to an interview from the Chris Hedges Report via ScheerPost and Consortium News; other news and commentary is accessible by clicking on their names. (UKRAINE entry for this date and an ECONOMY entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Israel recovers the bodies of 6 hostages in Gaza, including Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, by Josef Federman | AP  JERUSALEM — Israel said today it had recovered the bodies of six hostages in Gaza, including a young Israeli-American man who became one of the most well-known captives held by Hamas. The military said all six had been killed shortly before the arrival of Israeli forces. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for another report from AP, and HERE and HERE for reports from Reuters and NPR.

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Hamas blames Israeli airstrikes for death of six hostages in Gaza. From Middle East Monitor. A senior Hamas official, Izzat al-Rishq, said today that the six Israeli hostages recently found in Gaza were killed as a result of ongoing Israeli airstrikes, challenging the Israeli army’s claim that Hamas executed the hostages while they were in captivity, Anadolu Agency reports. READ MORE . . .

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Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport to halt all arrivals, departures on Monday amid general strike, by Rania R.a. Abushamala | Anadolu Agency  ISTANBUL — Israel’s main international airport will halt all arrivals and departures on Monday amid a general strike to pressure the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a prisoner swap deal with Palestinians. Specifically . . . READ MORE . . .

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Israel, Hamas agree to brief pauses in fighting for polio vaccinations, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Hussam Al-Masri | Reuters  CAIRO / GAZA — The United Nations, in collaboration with Palestinian health authorities, began to vaccinate 640,000 children in the Gaza Strip today, with Israel and Hamas agreeing to brief pauses in their 11-month war to allow the campaign to go ahead. READ MORE . . .

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Families accuse Netanyahu of failing to return Israeli captives alive. From Middle East Eye. The families of Israeli captives held in Gaza have accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of failing to bring their relatives home alive amid growing calls for a general strike to force a deal with Hamas. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum today . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Anadolu Agency.

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Elderly Palestinian dies ‘of systematic torture’ in Israel’s Ayalon Prison in Ramla, by Awad Rjoob | Anadolu Agency RAMALLAH, Palestine — An elderly person from the Gaza Strip died “of systematic torture” in Israel’s Ayalon Prison in Ramla, bringing the total number of Palestinian detainees killed in custody since Oct. 7 of last year to 24, rights groups said on Saturday. READ MORE . . .

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The Middle East’s roots lie in the fall of the Ottomans. Chris Hedges of the Chris Hedges Report talks with Eugene Rogan, professor of modern Middle Eastern history at the University of Oxford, about his book The Fall of the Ottomans: The Great War in the Middle East (2016) and how the modern geopolitical makeup of the region came to be. Click HERE for an introduction, the interview, and transcript.

For today, links to eight reports: from the Kyiv Post, Reuters, the Moscow Times, Tass, and the Associated Press; other articles and interviews are accessible by clicking on its name below. (GAZA entry for this date and an ECONOMY entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Ukraine shifts forces to defend Pokrovsk as Russian troops advance. From Kyiv Post. Forbes says Ukraine has urgently deployed the Kara-Dag Brigade, a key offensive unit, to reinforce defenses around Pokrovsk, a crucial logistics hub in eastern Ukraine. This deployment highlights . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia says Ukrainian drones target refinery, power plants near Moscow. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Ukraine launched waves of drone attacks targeting power plants and a refinery near Moscow, sparking fires, while more than 150 drones were destroyed across other parts of the country, Russian officials said today. Drone debris . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE for reports from AP, the Moscow Times, Kyiv Post and Tass.

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FROM AUG. 31  7 killed by Russian attacks as Moscow pushes ahead in Ukraine’s east. From AP.  Russian shelling in the town of Chasiv Yar on Saturday killed five people, as Moscow’s troops pushed ahead in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. The regional governor said the vic tims . . . READ MORE . . .

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Putin-Biden video conference on Dec. 7 made clear U.S. had no intent to continue dialogue — spokesman. From Tass. MOSCOW — The December 7 video conference conversation between Presidents of Russia and the United States was a harsh one, but it made clear that the United States have no intention to continue the dialogue, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview. READ MORE . . .