NOTE: TO FIND THIS SITE IN A SEARCH ENGINE, XMAWALKER WORKS.

For today, links to ten reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, Tass, National Public Radio, and Agence France-Presse, and to pieces of commentary from Common Dreams and World BEYOND War, both via Consortium News; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (GAZA and MEDIA entries for this date are HERE and HERE.) —  MCM

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U.S. says Ukraine is on an ‘irreversible’ path to NATO membership. But only after war with Russia ends, by Ellen Knickmeyer | AP  WASHINGTON — Ukraine is on an “irreversible” path to NATO membership, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today, advancing American assurances that the country will be allowed to join the Western military alliance but only after its war with Russia ends. A joint communique . . . READ MORE . . .

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Poland must prepare army for full-scale conflict, army chief says, by Karl Badohal | Reuters  WARSAW — Poland needs to prepare its soldiers for all-out conflict, its armed forces chief of staff said today, as the country boosts the number of troops on its border with Russia and Belarus. Poland’s relations with Russia and its ally Belarus . . . READ MORE . . .

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NATO sees no imminent military threat from Russia – Stoltenberg. From Tass. WASHINGTON — NATO does not see any imminent military threat from Russia at this moment, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said upon arrival to the Alliance’s summit in Washington. READ MORE . . .

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World leaders condemn Russia’s strike on Kyiv hospital as NATO takes up Ukraine. Reported by Ashley Westerman and Sacha Pfeiffer | NPR  Ukrainians want the world to know that Russia will stop at nothing in its campaign to take over Ukraine — even if it means hurting children. Russia launched strikes on a children’s hospital in Kyiv. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Russian strikes kill 3 in Ukraine. From AFP.  Russian strikes killed three people in southern Ukraine, including at the Black Sea port of Odesa, authorities said today. “The aggressor . . . READ MORE . . .

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At NATO summit Biden aims to reassure leaders the alliance with the U.S. is strong. Reported by Mara Liasson and Steve Inskeep | NPR  President Biden spoke to NATO leaders Tuesdays night, marking the alliance’s 75th anniversary. The speech came as questions continue to swirl about his reelection bid. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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What did NATO members take away from President Biden’s speech? Reported by Sacha Pfeiffer of NPR talks with Rachel Rizzo of the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center, about whether Biden’s speech reassured allies that the U.S. will continue to support Ukraine. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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FROM JULY 9  Russia defense ministry says destroyed 38 Ukrainian drones. From AFP.  Russian forces destroyed 38 Ukrainian drones overnight in regions near the border, Moscow’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday.. “Air defense systems . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 9  As NATO summit kicks off in D.C., Nordic-Baltic states point to Ukraine. Reported by Mary Louise Kelly, Patrick Jarenwattananon and Megan Lim | NPR The NATO summit in Washington kicked off Tuesday morning. NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly sat down with the top diplomats from eight Nordic and Baltic nations for a discussion hosted by the Atlantic Council. Click HERE to listen and read.

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FROM JULY 9  Biden kicks off NATO summit with highly scrutinized speech. Reported by Asma Khalid and Mary Louise Kelly | NPR  President Biden kicks off a NATO summit with a speech. It will be scrutinized because of questions about whether he’s still up to the job. Click HERE to listen and read.

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FROM JULY 9  NATO alliance’s endgame appears to be nuclear war, by Chris Wright | Common Dreams / Consortium News  It is easily imaginable that nuclear war could break out between Russia (and perhaps China) and the West, yet politicians continue to escalate tensions, place hundreds of thousands of troops at “high readiness,” and attack military targets inside Russia, even while . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 6  75 years of NATO = 75 years of denial, by Sevim Dagdelen | World BEYOND War / Consortium News  Just in time for its 75th anniversary, NATO has dropped its mask. And the NATO summit beginning Tuesday in Washington is one particularly illuminating moment in this revelation.  The history of the Enlightenment . . . READ MORE . . .

NOTE: TO FIND THIS SITE IN A SEARCH ENGINE, XMAWALKER WORKS.

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

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Israeli strikes in central Gaza kill 20 Palestinians as mediators make new push on cease-fire deal, by Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli airstrikes early today killed 20 Palestinians in central Gaza, including six children and three women, some of them inside a purported “safe zone” declared by the Israeli military, hospital authorities said. This second straight night . . . READ MORE . . .

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Gaza airstrike hit as displaced gathered for soccer match, witnesses say, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Hatem Khaled | Reuters  CAIRO / GAZA  An Israeli missile slammed into a tent encampment in southern Gaza on Tuesday just as displaced people had gathered to watch a football match at a school, eyewitnesses said today. Palestinian officials said at least 29 people, mostly women and children, were killed . . . READ MORE . . .

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The Pentagon plans to reinstall the floating pier off the Gaza coast. Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi and Sacha Pfeiffer | NPR  The pier will be used to deliver long-stalled humanitarian aid. Will it finally live up to the Biden administration’s hopes? Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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FROM JULY 8  Netanyahu goes for broke, by Patrick Lawrence | Special to Consortium News / Popular Resistance  It is a matter of record that the Zionist project has had extensive territorial designs on the lands known as Palestine since at least the early 20th century. As others have argued, the Israelis’ . . . READ MORE . . .

Links to commentary from ScheerPost and Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking on their names below. (GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date, so far, are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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U.S. elections 2024: An ageing Biden and the crisis of liberal imperialism, by Hamid Dabashi | Middle East Eye  U.S. President Joe Biden is 81 years old. After his televised debate witH former U.S. President Donald Trump on 27 June 2024, he has been perceived as frail, ageing and not in full command of his faculties. In the words of . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 7  Power for the sake of power, by Patrick Lawrence | Original to ScheerPost  When I awoke Saturday morning, I found my thoughts wandering back a decade, when my siblings and I plotted to get our father’s car keys out of his frail, unsteady hands. Watching Joe Biden in a television interview will do this to you. READ MORE . . .

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

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Heavy Israeli bombardment in Gaza City forces medical facilities to close as thousands flee, by Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Heavy Israeli bombardment shook Gaza City today as thousands of fleeing Palestinians searched for shelter and medical facilities were forced to shut down in the latest offensive in the territory’s north. Israel’s new . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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Egypt, U.S., Israel spy chiefs to attend Gaza truce talks in Doha. From Reuters. CAIRO — Negotiations to secure a ceasefire in the Gaza war will resume in Doha on Wednesday, with the intelligence chiefs of Egypt, the United States, and Israel in attendance, Egypt’s state-affiliated Al-Qahera News TV and sources said today. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 8  Hamas chief says latest Israeli attack on Gaza could jeopardise ceasefire talks, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  CAIRO — A new Israeli assault on Gaza on Monday threatened ceasefire talks at a crucial moment, the head of Hamas said, as Israeli tanks pressed into the heart of Gaza City and ordered residents out after a night of massive bombardment. Residents said . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from AP.

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FROM JULY 8  Stranded aid trucks in Egypt deepen Gaza’s humanitarian crisis, by Abdelhadi Ramahi, Amr Alfiky and Alexander Cornwell | Reuters  AL-ARISH, Egypt — Hundreds of trucks loaded with food and water have been stranded on a scorching Egyptian road, some for nearly two months, awaiting permission to deliver the much needed humanitarian supplies to war-torn Gaza. About 50 kilometres from the Gaza border . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 8  Israeli airstrikes have hit at least 3 UN schools sheltering people in Gaza in 6 days. Reported by Kat Lonsdorf | NPR  At least three UN schools housing displaced people have been hit directly by Israeli airstrikes in less than a week. A fourth suffered damage after an airstrike hit a building next to it. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

For today, links to nine reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, the Kyiv Post, the Kyiv Independent, the Moscow Times, Agence France-Presse, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (GAZA and BIDEN entries for this date, are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Kyiv mourns as rescuers sift piles of rubble at a children’s hospital hit by a Russian missile, by Samya Kullab and Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — Rescuers searched the rubble at a children’s hospital today for more dead and wounded, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, a day after Russian missiles slammed into the facilityand cities across the country in a massive daytime barrage. The death toll from the strikes rose to 42, officials said.  READ MORE . . .

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Kyiv hospital took direct hit from Russian missile, UN analysis suggests, by Olena Harmash and Tom Balmforth | Reuters — A U.N. rights mission said today there was a “high likelihood” that Kyiv’s main children’s hospital took a direct hit from a Russian missile during a series of airstrikes on Ukrainian cities, as the Kremlin continued to deny involvement. READ MORE . . .

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Shock, fury at the site of children’s hospital attack, by Chris York and Kateryna Denisova | The Kyiv Independent  Nurse Olesia Filonenko was preparing for the first operation of the day at the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital in Kyiv. Russian forces had just launched a massive missile strike on cities across Ukraine, with Kyiv coming under . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainian kamikaze drones attack five Russian regions — oil refinery, power grid stations set afire, by Stefan Korshak | Kyiv Post  Explosives-toting Ukrainian drones in an ambitious wave of overnight and dawn raids targeted oil refineries and power grid infrastructure targets across five of Russia’s western regions, setting a fuel processing plant and transformer stations ablaze in two of them, today news reports said. READ MORE . . .

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‘War not the solution,’ India’s Modi tells Putin. From the Moscow Times. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Russian President Vladimir Putin in televised remarks at the Kremlin today that waging war instead of engaging in dialogue is “not the solution.” India, which is . . . READ MORE . . .

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EARLIER  Modi, Putin hold talks amid outrage over Ukraine strikes. From AFP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was set to hold talks with President Vladimir Putin today, a day after the Indian leader arrived in Moscow amid global outcry over Russian strikes in Ukraine. Modi, visiting Moscow for the first time since . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia-Ukraine war is expected to dominate the agenda at NATO summit. Reported by Teri Schultz and Leila Fadel | NPR  NATO allies are gathering for a summit in Washington on the alliance’s 75th anniversary. It faces some of its biggest challenges yet as it looks ahead to political uncertainty in some countries. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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The U.S. won’t lift restrictions on strikes deep into Russia, Kirby says. From Kyiv Post Russia’s attack on the Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv will not lead to the U.S. lifting its restrictions on the Ukrainian military using American weapons to strike deep into Russian territory, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said during a briefing on Monday. On the other hand, it will also . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 8  West condemns Russian strike on Kyiv children’s hospital. From the Moscow Times. Western leaders and diplomats expressed outrage after Russian missiles destroyed a children’s hospital in Kyiv, amid a rare daytime attack on Ukrainian cities which killed at least 20 on Monday. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to reports from the Anadolu Agency, Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, the Kyiv Post, the Kyiv Independent, 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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NEWER  UN Security Council to meet over Ukraine’s accusations of Russian strike on Kyiv children’s hospital, by Merve Gül Aydoğan Ağlarcı | Anadolu Agency  HAMILTON, Canada — The UN Security Council will convene Tuesday morning in New York to discuss Ukraine’s claims of a strike on a children’s hospital in the capital KyiV, Britain’s UN ambassador said today. “We will call out the cowardly . . . READ MORE . . .

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A major Russian missile attack on Ukraine kills at least 20 people and hits a children’s hospital, by Hanna Arhirova and Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — A major Russian missile attack across Ukraine killed at least 28 people and injured almost 100 today, officials said, with one missile striking a large children’s hospital in the capital, Kyiv, where emergency crews searched the rubble for casualties. READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for reports from Reuters and AFP, and HERE and HERE for reports from the Kyiv Post and the Kyiv Independent.

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Russian forces wipe out three U.S.-made HIMARS rocket launchers in Ukraine operation. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian forces destroyed three U.S.-made HIMARS multiple rocket launchers and up to 10 foreign specialists responsible for their use over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry said today in a broader statement. READ MORE . . .

 

For today, links to ninereports from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio, Agence France-Presse, the Times of Israel, Middle East Eye, and Middle East Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Israel deepens its operations in Gaza City, as pockets of militancy confront the military, by Samy Magdy and Wafaa Shurafa | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli forces deepened an operation in the Gaza Strip’s largest city in what the military said was meant to weed out militants, sending thousands of Palestinians fleeing today from an area already ravaged in the early weeks of the nine-month-long war. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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Cease-fire talks expected to resume this week as Hamas appears to soften demands. From AP.  Talks on a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip are expected to resume this week, with several officials saying the devastation caused by Israel’s nine-month offensive likely helped push Hamas to soften its demands. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from NPR.

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Israeli minister: stopping Gaza war now would be folly. From Reuters. JERUSALEM — Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said today it would be a huge mistake to stop Israel’s military offensive in Gaza now. Smotrich, who heads a pro-settler party which is part of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s governing coalition . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JUNE 6 Health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says 16 killed in strike on school. From AFP. The Hamas authorities in Gaza said an Israeli strike on Saturday on a UN-run school where thousands of displaced were sheltering killed 16 people. Israel’s military said its aircraft had targeted “terrorists” operating around the Al-Jawni school in Nuseirat, central Gaza. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Times of Israel.

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Death toll from Israeli assault since last October could exceed 186,000, Lancet warns. From Middle East Eye. A letter written by experts and published in the British medical journal, the Lancet, estimates that the actual death toll of Palestinians killed in Gaza could exceed 186,000. The official death toll of Palestinians killed since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October is 38,153, according to Gaza’s health ministry. READ MORE . . .

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Israel army launches ground offensive in Gaza City, targets UN office again. From Middle East Monitor. The Israeli army said early today it had launched a “ground operation” in Gaza City, against targets including headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, claiming it housed weapons and investigation and detention rooms, the Anadolu Agency reported. READ MORE . . .

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

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Israeli protesters block highways, call for cease-fire to return hostages 9 months into ongoing war, by Melanie Lidman and Samy Magdy | AP  TEL AVIV — Marking nine months since the war in Gaza started, Israeli protesters blocked highways across the country today, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down and pushing for a cease-fire to bring back scores of hostages held by Hamas. READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for reports from Reuters and the Anadolu Agency. 

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Hamas says it’s waiting for Israeli response on Gaza ceasefire proposal, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  CAIRO — Hamas is waiting for a response from Israel on its ceasefire proposal, two officials from the militant Islamist group said today, five days after it accepted a key part of a U.S. plan aimed at ending the nine-month-old war in Gaza. READ MORE . . .

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Israeli delegation headed to Qatar for Gaza cease-fire talks, by Said Amori | Anadolu Agency  JERUSALEM — An Israeli negotiating team will leave Monday for Qatar to continue talks on a hostage swap deal and cease-fire in the Gaza Strip with Palestinian factions, according to Israeli media, citing informed sources. Reportedly . . . READ MORE . . .

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Gaza children spend 8 hours per day carrying food, water: UN, by Rania R.a. Abushamala | Anadolu Agency  ISTANBUL — The UN Agency for Palestine Refugees said Saturday that children in the Gaza Strip spend eight hours a day carrying food and water, forcing families to resort to using seawater for daily tasks. READ MORE . . .

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How Hamas lured Israel into a lethal trap, by David Hearst | Middle East Eye  One of the main questions about Hamas’ 7 October attacks remains unanswered to this day. What did Hamas think would happen if it struck Israel on this scale? READ MORE . . .

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

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NEWER  Russia claims strikes on two Ukrainian Patriot systems that Kyiv says were decoys. From Reuters. Russia said today it struck two Patriot air defence launch systems, but Ukraine said Moscow had hit decoy targets designed to squander expensive enemy missiles. READ MORE . . .

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Iskander crew strike destroys two launchers of Patriot air defense system near Odessa. From Tass. MOSCOW — The crew of the Iskander complex destroyed two launchers of Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems and a Giraffe radar in the Odessa region, the Russian Defense Ministry reported. READ MORE . . .

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NATO leaders will vow to pour weapons into Ukraine for another year, but membership is off the table, by Lorne Cook | AP  BRUSSELS — NATO leaders plan to pledge this week to keep pouring arms and ammunition into Ukraine at current levels for at least another year, hoping to reassure the war-ravaged country of their ongoing support and show Russian President Vladimir Putin that they will not walk away. READ MORE . . .

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Russian munitions depot ablaze from Ukraine drone strike. From AFP. An overnight Ukrainian drone attack set a Russian munitions depot ablaze in the region of Voronezh near the border between the two neighbors, local authorities said today. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Kyiv Independent.

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Russia says captured another village in east Ukraine. From AFP. Russia said today its forces had captured another village in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, the latest modest territorial gain for its advancing forces. The defense ministry said Russian troops had “liberated the village of Chigari.” READ MORE . . .

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U.S. mass media pretended not knowing about Kiev’s abuse in Donbass. From Tass. MOSCOW — Facts about the abuse committed by the Kiev regime in the Donbass were provided by the Russian side, but the U.S. mass media did everything not to see this truth, official spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said today regarding an article in The New York Times about . . . READ MORE . . .

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Up to 728,000 Russian soldiers killed or wounded in Ukraine War — The Economist. Kyiv Post. The Economist estimates that between 462,000 and 728,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in the war against Ukraine. These figures are based on . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Kyiv Independent.

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From Cold War to Russia’s war against Ukraine: NATO at 75. From AFP.  In April the NATO military alliance marked 75 years since the signing of its founding treaty in Washington — where its members gather for an anniversary summit this week. Here are some facts and figures . . . READ MORE . . .

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

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Hamas clears the way for a possible cease-fire after dropping key demand, officials say, by Samy Magdy and Wafaa Shurafa | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza — Hamas has given initial approval for a U.S.-backed proposal for a phased cease-fire deal in Gaza, dropping a key demand that Israel give an up-front commitment for a complete end to the war, a Hamas and an Egyptian official said today. The apparent compromise . . . READ MORE . . .

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Hamas accepts U.S. proposal on talks over Israeli hostages, Hamas source says, by Samia Nakhoul, Muhammad Al Gebaly and Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  DUBAI / CAIRO — Hamas has accepted a U.S. proposal to begin talks on releasing Israeli hostages, including soldiers and men, 16 days after the first phase of an agreement aimed at ending the Gaza war, a senior Hamas source told Reuters today. The militant Islamist group . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 5  Hamas says it rejects any statements about foreign forces entering Gaza. From Reuters. Hamas says that it rejects any statements and positions that support plans for foreign forces to enter the Gaza Strip under any name or justification. The terror group says . . . READ MORE . . .

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Gazans constantly being in ‘survival mode,’ despair must stop: Head of UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees, by Merve Berker | Anadolu Agency  ANKARA — The continuous cycle of displacement, constantly being in “survival mode” and despair must stoP, the head of the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees said Friday about atrocities in the Gaza Strip committed by Israel. READ MORE . . .

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EU turning blind eye to members’ arms trade with Tel Aviv: expert. From Middle East Monitor.  The EU lacks a provision prohibiting arms trade with Israel that is being tried at the International Court of Justice for genocide in the Gaza Strip, Anadolu Agency reports. It allows member states to continue exports to and imports from Israel. READ MORE . . .

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How 7 October forever destroyed the myth of Israeli military invincibility, by Sami Al-Arian | Middle East Eye  On 22 September 2023, two weeks before the 7 October al-Aqsa Flood attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the UN General Assembly about “a new Middle East”. He . . . READ MORE . . .