For today, links to six reports: from 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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Russia says Kyiv’s statements on peace talks contradictory. From AFP. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said today he “does not listen” to what he called Ukraine’s contradictory statements on peace talks. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine hacks ATMs across Russia in ongoing massive cyberattack, by Jeremy Dirac | Kyiv Post  ATM services were knocked out at top Russian banks today, day five of a large-scale Ukrainian cyberattack, a source working in Ukrainian intelligence told Kyiv Post. The customers . . . READ MORE . . .

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3 Russian helicopters damaged in Ukrainian sabotage operations, source says, by Dominic Culverwell | The Kyiv Independent  Three Russian helicopters were damaged over the past week as a result of sabotage operations coordinated by Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, a source in the agency said today. The operation . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine attacks 3 Russian airfields, bomber damaged, source says, by Dominic Culverwell | The Kyiv Independent Ukraine’s military intelligence agency attacked three airfields deep inside Russia overnight, damaging a Russian supersonic bomber plane, according to a source in the agency. This morning . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for a report from Kyiv Post.

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Russian forces liberate DPR’s Lozovatskoye — top brass. From Tass.  MOSCOW — Russia’s battlegroup Center has liberated the settlement of Lozovatskoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Defense Ministry said today in a broader statement. READ MORE . . .

For now, links to seven reports from Tass, Reuters, the Associated Press, the Kyiv Post, and the Kyiv Independent, 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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EC announces expropriation of first €1.5 bln worth of proceeds from Russian assets. From Tass. BRUSSELS — The EU has expropriated and transferred a €1.5 bln tranche for Ukraine to the European Commission using proceeds from the reinvestment of frozen Russian assets, the European Commission said. The next tranche . . . READ MORE . . .

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Kremlin says it will weigh how to retaliate over EU transfer of frozen asset proceeds to Ukraine. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Russia will carefully consider how to respond to the European Union’s transfer to Ukraine of 1.5 billion euros ($1.63 billion) taken from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today. READ MORE . . .

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Agreement with Russia is ‘deal with the devil,’ adviser to Ukrainian president says, by Andrew Meldrum and Samya Kullab | AP KYIV — Signing an agreement with Russia to stop the war with Ukraine would amount to signing a deal with the devil, a top adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday, as pressure mounts on the country to seek an end to more than two years of fighting. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine says missile forces hit Russian air base in Crimea. From Reuters. Ukraine said today its missile forces carried out a strike on a Russian military airfield in Crimea that has been used for long-range attacks against it, the latest in a series of blows to the Russian military on the occupied peninsula. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from Kyiv Post.

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Russia says its battlegroup North eliminated up to 235 Ukrainian troops. From Tass. MOSCOW — The Russian battlegroup North struck three enemy brigades and repelled six counterattacks over the past day, causing Ukraine to lose up to 235 troops, the Russian Defense Ministry said today in its daily bulletin of combat actions in the special military operation. READ MORE . . .

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Land on fire: Russia’s offensive in Donetsk Oblast brings destruction to new towns, text and photos by George Ivanchenko | The Kyiv Independent  Since February, Russian forces have steadily advanced across multiple sectors of the front in Donetsk Oblast. They have . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

For now, links to 11 reports from Reuters, the Independent, the Huffington Post, the Associated Press, Middle East Eye, National Public Radio, and Middle East Monitor, and to commentary from the Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date, for now, is HERE.) — MCM

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Israel seeks changes to Gaza truce plan, complicating talks, by Jonathan Landay, Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Ahmed Mohamed Hassan | Reuters  WASHINGTON / CAIRO — Israel is seeking changes to a plan for a Gaza truce and the release of hostages by Hamas, complicating a final deal to halt nine months of combat that have devastated the enclave, according to a Western official, a Palestinian and two Egyptian sources. READ MORE . . .

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Netanyahu arrest warrant: new UK government drops challenge to court. From Reuters. LONDON — Britain’s new government said today it was dropping its predecessor’s query of the International Criminal Court’s jurisdiction to issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The ICC’s chief prosecutor . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for reports from the Independent and the Huffington Post.

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FROM JULY 25  Harris tells Netanyahu ‘it is time’ to get hostage deal done and end Gaza war, by Aaner Maghani | AP  WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday said she  urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reach a cease-fire deal soon with Hamas so that dozens of hostageS held by the militants . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.  

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FROM JULY 25  Netanyahu meets with Biden as cease-fire talks face delays. From AP. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Joe Biden in Washington on Thursday, a day after Netanyahu delivered a scathing speech to Congress in which . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 25  UK likely to restrict arms sales to Israel and drop ICC objection, by Imran Mulla | Middle East Eye  The UK is likely to introduce restrictions on arms sales to Israel, Middle East Eye can reveal. It is also expected to drop its objection to the International Criminal Court’s arrest . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 25  Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu met with Biden today. Reported by Asma Khalid | NPR  President Biden met with Prime Minister Netanyahu. While Biden is trying to secure a cease-fire in Gaza before leaving office, there’s a new focus on what Harris may do differently if elected president. Click HERE later to listen and, still later, read.

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FROM JULY 24  Palestinian leader says Netanyahu’s claim about civilization is ‘degradation seen in killing of 48,000 Palestinians in Gaza.’ From Middle East Monitor.  Prominent Palestinian leader Mustafa Barghouti condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claims Wednesday of representing a civilised nation during an address to the U.S. Congress. “Netanyahu’s speech . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 25  Gaza death toll: how many Palestinians has Israel’s campaign killed? From Reuters. Palestinian health authorities say Israel’s ground and air campaign in Gaza has killed more than 39,000 people, mostly civilians, and driven most of the enclave’s 2.3 million people from their homes. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 25  What could another four years of Trump mean for the Middle East? by Mustafa Fetouri | Middle East Monitor  Right after the June U.S. presidential debate, many observers of American politics were doubtful if Joe Biden would be the Democratic nominee to . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

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

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FROM JULY 24  In fiery speech to Congress, Netanyahu vows ‘total victory’ in Gaza and denounces U.S. protesters, by Ellen Knickmeyer, Farnoush Amiri and Ashraf Khalil | AP  WASHINGTON — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged in a scathing speech to Congress on Wednesday to achieve “total victory” against Hamas and denounced American opponents of the war in Gaza as “idiots,” taking a combative stance in . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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Israeli forces advance in southern Gaza, tanks active in Rafah, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  CAIRO — Israeli forces advanced deeper into some towns on the eastern side of Khan Younis in southern Gaza today, hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told U.S. lawmakers he was actively engaged in bringing hostages home. READ MORE . . .

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Israeli forces retrieve bodies of five hostages from Gaza, military says. From the Guardian. Israeli forces on Wednesday recovered the bodies of five hostages killed in Hamas’ 7 October attack and held in Gaza since, the Israeli military said. READ MORE . . .

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In an address to Congress, Netanyahu defended his country’s war in Gaza. Reported by Steve Inskeep | NPR  When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint meeting of Congress Wednesday, his supporters in the chamber cheered him as demonstrators outside condemned Israel’s war in Gaza. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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U.S. rep ‘outraged’ Congress gave ‘genocidal war criminal’ Netanyahu a platform. From Middle East Monitor. In an article published in the Guardian, U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman said: “Netanyahu’s joint address is directly undermining the will of the overwhelming majority of Americans who want peace.” READ MORE . . . Click HERE for column in the Guardian.

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Harris looks to strike a careful balance on Israel’s war in Gaza. Reported by Asma Khalid | NPR  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is meeting today with President Biden and later — separately — with Vice President Harris as the nine-month-long war in Gaza . . . Click HERE to listen and read.

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Why won’t the Palestinian resistance agree to stop the war in Gaza? by Feras Abu-Helal | Middle East Monitor  This question is often asked by writers and activists who are on the side of Palestinian rights, including the right of the Palestinian people to resist the brutal Israeli occupation, and for this reason it needs some discussion. READ MORE . . .

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The false claims Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu made in his address to U.S. Congress, by Katherine Hearst | Middle East Eye  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to the U.S. Congress on Wednesday was riddled with misleading claims about his country’s war on Gaza. Dozens of . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 22  Israelis should abandon Netanyahu’s sinking ship. He’s lost, by David Hearst | Middle East Eye  In Joe Biden and Donald Trump, Israel has had two of the most permissive U.S. presidents in the relationship between the two states. Late Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush were stalwarts in comparison. READ MORE . . .

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Why won’t the Palestinian resistance agree to stop the war in Gaza? by Feras Abu-Helal | Middle East Monitor  This question is often asked by writers and activists who are on the side of Palestinian rights, including the right of the Palestinian people to resist the brutal Israeli occupation, and for this reason it needs some discussion. READ MORE . . .

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

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Russian drones attack Ukrainian port city for second night in a row. From AFP.  Russian drones attacked the southwestern Ukrainian port city of Izmail for a second night, authorities in Kyiv said today, claiming several Russian aircraft entered the airspace of Romania, a NATO member. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE, HERE and HERE for reports from Reuters, Kyiv Post and the Kyiv Independent.

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Moscow open for talks, needs to understand how prepared Ukraine is — Kremlin. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russia “is open for a negotiation process,” Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today, but first, we need to understand how prepared Ukraine is and whether it has permission for that from its handlers. At this point . . .” READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainian shelling of Russia’s Belgorod region kills man. From the Moscow Times.  One man was killed and two others were injured in a Ukrainian attack on the town of Shebekino in southwestern Russia’s Belgorod region, officials said today. READ MORE . . .

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An explosion killed over 50 Ukrainian POWs in 2022. Survivors and an internal UN report blame Russia, by Susie Blann and Hanna Arhirova | AP  KYIV — The former prisoners of war still puzzle over the strange events leading up to the night now seared into their memories, when an explosion ripped through the Russian-controlled Olenivka prison barracks and killed so many comrades two years ago. READ MORE . . .

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After a 3-year hiatus due to Russia’s invasion, music festival is held in Ukraine. Reported by Ashley Westerman | NPR  Ukraine’s largest music festival was held over the weekend in Kyiv for the first time since 2021. Going to the festival is about a lot more than just the music. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

 

For today, links to five reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, Tass, the Kyiv Independent, and the Kyiv Post; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date and a BIDEN ET AL entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Ukraine’s foreign minister seeking ‘common ground’ with China in talks on ending war with Russia, by Ken Moritsugu | AP  BEIJING — Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has said he is seeking “common ground” in talks this week with his Chinese counterpart on ending his country’s war with Russia. He met Wednesday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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Moscow doesn’t trust Kiev regime when it comes to potential talks — MFA. From Tass. MOSCOW, July 24. /TASS/. Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky can’t be trusted when he talks about possible negotiations with Russia along the lines of some “peace plan,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said. READ MORE . . .

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Pokrovsk situation ‘tense and difficult,’ Ukrainian military says. From the Kyiv Independent. Fighting in the direction of the Donetsk Oblast town of Pokrovsk is “tense and difficult,” Ukraine’s military said today. Russian forces are attempting . . . READ MORE . . .

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F-16s for Ukraine. Jason Jay Smart of the Kyiv Post talks with Jason Jay Smart, U.S. Air Force F-16 pilot and flight instructor (retired), about the impact the plane can have on the Russo-Ukrainian War. Click HERE for an introduction and the interview.

 

For today, links to five reports from the Associated Press and Reuters, and to commentaries from Consortium News and Common Dreams; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date and a BIDEN ET AL entry are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Netanyahu is in Washington to address Congress ahead of cease-fire talks. From AP. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington to address Congress today. He has signaled that a cease-fire deal could be taking shape after nine months of war. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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Israel launches new raids in Gaza as Netanyahu visits U.S., by Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Mohammad Salem | Reuters  CAIRO / JERUSALEM — Israeli planes and tanks pounded areas across the Gaza Strip, residents said, as White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday amid U.S. calls for a more focused military campaign. READ MORE . . .

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Netanyahu looks to boost U.S. support in speech to Congress, but faces protests and lawmaker boycotts, by Ellen Knickmeyer and Farnoush Amiri | AP  WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks before Congress today in hopes of bolstering U.S. support for continuing Israel’s fight against Hamas and other adversaries, even as the Biden administration is urging him to focus on closing a deal ending the devastating nine-month war in Gaza. READ MORE . . .

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Netanyahu visit sparks wave of protests in D.C., with all sides criticizing the Israeli PM, by Ashraf Khalil | AP  WASHINGTON — The arrival of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has touched off a flurry of protests in the nation’s capital, including a sit-in at a congressional office building that ended with multiple arrests. Some of the demonstrations have condemned Israel but others have expressed support while pressuring Netanyahu to strike a cease-fire deal and . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 22  Capitol Hill: Netanyahu’s Second Home, by Corinna G. Barnard | Special to Consortium News  A man whose arrest warrant is being sought by an international court prosecutor for war crimes is making his triumphal return to Washington. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 23  U.S. rights group urges genocide probe of Netanyahu, by Jessica Corbett | Common Dreams / Consortium News  With Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about to arrive in Washington, an American legal group, the Center for Constitutional Rights, is pressuring the U.S. Department of Justice to open a criminal investigation into Netanyahu and other officials for . . . READ MORE . . .

Links to four commentaries via ScheerPost, Patreon and Substack, Consortium News, ScheerPost, and Middle East Eye; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names below. (GAZA entry for this date, so far, is HERE.) — MCM

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FROM JULY 22  My thoughts on Biden dropping out, by Chris Hedges | ScheerPost  Joe Biden was discarded by the same billionaire class he assiduously served throughout his political career. Barely able . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 22  Only half gone, by James Howard Kunstler | Patreon / Substack  And so, all of a sudden on Sunday, the USA became an episode of Veep, after President “Joe Biden” had that fateful sit-down with God he’d hinted at a week or so ago. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 19, 2019  Kamala Harris’s distinguished career of serving injustice, by Marjorie Cohn | Original  to Consortium News five years ago | ScheerPost  Sen. Kamala Harris, who served as San Francisco district attorney from 2004 to 2011 and California attorney general from 2011 to 2017, describes herself as a “progressive prosecutor.” Harris’s prosecutorial record, however, is . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 22  Even the U.S. propaganda machine can’t whitewash Biden’s sordid record, by Ammiel Alcalay | Middle East Eye  An enfeebled president, suffering from dementia and possibly Parkinson’s, and amid an ongoing genocide, fully documented in real time, that his administration has paid for, approved and enabled — and . . . READ MORE . . .

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

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Rivals Hamas and Fatah sign a declaration to form a future government as war rages in Gaza, by Jack Jeffery, Tia Goldenberg and Huizhong Wu | AP  RAMALLAH, West Bank — Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah signed a declaration in Beijing vowing to form a government together, the groups said today, in the latest attempt at resolving their long rivalry. READ MORE . . .

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Palestinian control of Gaza ‘won’t happen,’ Israel says after Beijing talks. From the Anadolu Agency Israel today slammed an agreement between Palestinian factions aimed at maintaining control over the Gaza Strip following Israel’s ongoing war. Palestinian groups, including rival Hamas and Fatah movement, agreed . . . READ MORE . . .

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Israeli government quietly sends millions to unauthorized West Bank settler outposts, by Melanie Lidman| AP   JERUSALEM — The Israeli government has budgeted millions of dollars to protect small, unauthorized Jewish farms in the Israeli occupied West Bank, underwriting tiny outposts meant to grow into full-fledged settlements, according to the anti-settlement monitoring group Peace Now. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 22  Israel sends tanks back into Khan Younis area, 70 killed after new evacuation order, by Nidal Al-Mughrabi, Ari Rabinovitch and Hatem Khaled | Reuters  CAIRO / JERUSALEM / GAZA –Israel sent tanks back into the greater Khan Younis area after ordering evacuations of some districts it said had been used for renewed attacks by militants and at least 70 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire, Gaza medics said on Monday. READ MORE . . .

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WHO ‘extremely worried’ at prospect of polio, other outbreaks in Gaza. From AFP.  GENEVA — A top World Health Organization official said today he was “extremely worried” over possible outbreaks in war-torn Gaza after poliovirus was detected in the sewage, warning that communicable diseases could cause more deaths than injuries. READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE for reports from the Anadolu Agency and Reuters.

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FROM JULY 22  Israeli parliament passes bill to close Unrwa, labels it ‘terrorist organization. From Middle East Eye. Israel’s parliament has passed three bills, in their first readings, to close the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) and designate it a “terrorist organization”. READ MORE . . .

 

For today, links to six reports from the Moscow Times, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, the Kyiv Post, 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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Russian army says killed 50 ‘Western instructors’ in missile attack. From the Moscow Times. A Russian ballistic missile attack on northeastern Ukraine’s Kharkiv region killed dozens of Western military instructors, according tostate media today citing Russia’s Defense Ministry. READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainian drone damages ferry in Russian port, one person dead, says regional governor. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Ukrainian drone attack damaged a ferry and killed one person in Russia’s Port Kavkaz in the southern Krasnodar region, regional governor Veniamin Kondratyev said today. READ MORE . . . Click HERE and HERE reports from AFP and Kyiv Post.

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Moscow says captured small village in eastern Ukraine. From AFP. Russia’s military said today it captured another small village, the settlement of Ivano-Dariivka, in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, where its forces have been making incremental advances for the past several months. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Tass.