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☆ Opinion | Israel and Saudi Arabia Are Trading Places
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Thomas L. Friedman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

But the other part of the deal, which is seen as critical to winning support in Congress, is for Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with Israel. There are a lot of “ifs” and “provided thats” in this equation that seem most unlikely today. As a result, the U.S. and the Saudis are considering finalizing the deal and taking it to Congress with the stated proviso that Saudi Arabia will normalize relations with Israel the minute Israel has a government ready to meet the Saudi-U.S. terms. Hopefully, though, if there can be a permanent end of fighting and a return of all Israelis taken hostage, Israel will hold new elections. And then — maybe, just maybe — the choice on the table for Israelis will not be Bibi or no Bibi, but Bibi or a credible pathway to peace with Saudi Arabia and the Palestinians.

Persons: Biden, Israel, “, Netanyahu, Bibi Organizations: U.S, West Bank, Palestinian, Saudi, New York, Facebook Locations: U.S, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Taiwan, Israel, Gaza

☆ Russian forces are operating at same base as US troops in Niger
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Natasha Bertrand | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The Russians have been using a separate hangar on the base, known as Air Base 101, the sources said, and are not operating in the same space as the Americans. They also raised questions about the future of Air Base 101 and whether it would be ceded to the Russians, CNN previously reported. Reuters first reported that the Russians troops had entered Air Base 101. Russian media reported on April 11 that Russia was sending equipment and 100 military trainers to Niger, though one of the sources said Russian troops were in the country well before April. More than half of the US troops stationed at the French military base in Chad’s capital, N’Djamena, have now left the country and relocated to Germany.

Persons: Michael Langley, Celeste Wallander, Sabrina Singh Organizations: CNN, Russian, Air Base, US Africa Command, Nigerien, Pentagon, Reuters, Russia’s Defense Locations: Niger, Ukraine, Russian, Russia, Chad, N’Djamena, Germany

☆ China’s Chang’e-6 moon probe stands by for launch as space race with US heats up
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | Marc Stewart | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

China’s planned 53-day mission would see the Chang’e-6 lander touch down in a gaping crater on the moon’s far side, which never faces Earth. China became the first and only country to land on the moon’s far side during its 2019 Chang’e-4 mission. Ambitious missionThe Chang’e-6 probe will be a key test for China’s space capabilities in its effort to realize leader Xi Jinping’s “eternal dream” of building the country into a space power. This time, to communicate with Earth from the moon’s far side, Chang’e-6 must rely on the Queqiao-2 satellite, launched into lunar orbit in March. This time, China has said the Chang’e-6 mission will carry scientific instruments or payloads from France, Italy, Pakistan and the European Space Agency.

Persons: China’s, “, Ge Ping, Xi Jinping’s, James Head, Luo Yunfei, Bill Nelson, –, ” Nelson Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, China, Space Administration’s, of Lunar Exploration, Space Engineering, Brown University, China News Service, Luna, NASA, European Space Agency Locations: China, Hong Kong, Hainan, United States, Russia, Chang’e, India, Japan, Texas, France, Italy, Pakistan

She loaded her carry-ons onto the conveyor belt at the security checkpoint and prepared to walk through the metal detector. “I just felt like they were searching for something.”At first, when they flagged her bags, Griner wasn’t too concerned. This was her eighth season in Russia; she paid taxes there and was familiar with the country and its laws. As soon as she felt the cannabis-oil cartridge stowed in a zippered inner pocket in her backpack, her stomach sank. Griner was told to wait while the agent took the cartridges for testing, along with her passport.

Persons: “, ”, wasn’t, Cherelle, Griner, Lindsay Colas, Colas, Alex Boykov, Boykov, snickered, peered, “ I’ve Organizations: Moscow Locations: Moscow, Yekaterinburg, Russia, Arizona, United States, Russian

☆ Jury in Federal Lawsuit Deadlocks on Abu Ghraib Torture Allegations
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A federal jury in Virginia said on Thursday that it was unable to reach a verdict in a lawsuit filed by three Iraqi men who said they were tortured while being held by the United States at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison two decades ago. The jurors had deliberated for almost eight days, and with the panel still deadlocked the judge in the case, Leonie M. Brinkema of the U.S. District Court in Alexandria, declared a mistrial on Thursday. The three plaintiffs had sued a defense contractor, CACI Premier Technology, asserting that CACI employees working as interrogators at the prison directed U.S. military guards to abuse the men in an effort to “soften” them up. The testimony of the three men last month was the first time a civilian jury had heard allegations of post-9/11 abuses directly from detainees.

Persons: Abu, Leonie M Organizations: U.S, CACI Premier Technology Locations: Virginia, United States, Alexandria

☆ The US military killed a shepherd it mistook for a terrorist leader in a drone strike, investigation finds
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Ella Sherman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Washington Post investigation revealed US forces mistakenly killed a civilian in a drone strike. AdvertisementA Washington Post investigation revealed Thursday that US forces killed a shepherd in a drone strike after mistaking him for a top al-Qaeda official. The Washington Post began its investigation in May 2023 following the fatal strike, calling into question the identity of the al-Qaeda operative who US officials said had been slain. Related storiesCentral Command said its investigation revealed that there were "several issues" with the operation but did not explain exactly how it failed to identify its target. A defense official told The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity that the American drone strike was botched due to the decision-making and accuracy, or "confirmation bias and insufficient red teaming" issues among personnel.

Persons: —, Al, Lufti Hasan Masto Organizations: Washington Post, Central Command, Service, Post, Command, Qaeda, US, Hellfire, Department of Defense, New York Times Locations: Syria, United States, Northwest Syria, Al Qaeda, Qaeda, Syrian, Qorqanya, American, Central, Washington, Afghanistan

☆ Maryland is about to get $350 million from insurance in bridge collapse
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —The state of Maryland is about to get an insurance payment of $350 million related to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in late March, according to the broker handling its policy on the structure. The payment would come from insurer Chubb, which has a $350 million limit on the policy it had written on the bridge, according to Henry Daar, head of property claims, North America for WTW, the broker on the policy. The payment will be made soon rather than waiting for the construction of a new bridge to begin, a process that could be years away. The accident temporarily closed much of the operations of the Port of Baltimore, trapping ships in the port. The planned payment by Chubb was first reported Thursday by the Wall Street Journal.

Persons: Francis Scott Key, Chubb, Henry Daar, Dali Organizations: New, New York CNN, Francis Scott Key Bridge, WTW, Grace Ocean Private Limited, Synergy Marine PTE LTD, CNN, National Transportation, Wall Street Locations: New York, Maryland, North America, Baltimore, Port of Baltimore

Nearing the end of a whirlwind Middle East trip this week, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken finished meetings with the Israeli president and relatives of American hostages held by Hamas, left his beachside hotel in Tel Aviv and shook hands with protesters gathered outside. He looked them in the eye and said there was a new hostages-for-cease-fire deal on the table that Hamas should take. “Bringing your loved ones home is at the heart of everything we’re trying to do, and we will not rest until everyone — man, woman, soldier, civilian, young, old — is back home,” he said. That public show of empathy with frustrated protesters is something that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has avoided since the war began in October. And, lately, he has focused his recent public comments on an imminent ground offensive — an invasion of the city of Rafah in southern Gaza “with or without” a cease-fire deal, as the Israeli leader put it on Tuesday.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, ”, Benjamin Netanyahu Organizations: Hamas Locations: Tel Aviv, Rafah, Gaza

☆ Middle East Crisis Blinken Meets With Israeli Leaders as Netanyahu Promises Assault on Rafah
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Edward Wong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The talks have been stalled for months, and Israeli officials said Monday that they had agreed to lower their demands. Mr. Blinken is scheduled to meet Mr. Netanyahu later. Mr. Blinken and other U.S. officials say Hamas has a narrow window to take the deal since Mr. Netanyahu is pressing for the offensive in Rafah. U.S. officials say they would prefer that Israel do targeted operations against Hamas leaders and fighters in Rafah, where Israeli officials say Hamas still has four battalions. “We want to see in the coming days this agreement coming together.”When asked about Mr. Netanyahu’s statements on Rafah, Mr. Blinken said that U.S. efforts were focused on a hostage and cease-fire deal.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, Biden, Biden’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, Isaac Herzog of Israel, Netanyahu, Herzog, Mr, “, ” Organizations: Israel, U.S, Hamas Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Tel Aviv, U.S, Israel, Jordan

☆ Barclays says it doesn't invest in defence firms supplying Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A Palestinian flag is held by a cash machine during Dorset Palestine Solidarity Campaign's protest outside the branch of Barclays Bank, April 20, 2024 in Dorchester, United Kingdom. Barclays does not invest in companies that supply weapons used by Israel in Gaza, the British bank said on Wednesday, after one of its branches in London's financial district was targeted by pro-Palestinian activists. The bank has also faced criticism for providing financial services to defence firms that produce equipment used by the Israeli Defence Force. "We have been asked why we invest in nine defence companies supplying Israel, but this mistakes what we do," the lender said on its website. We are not making investments for Barclays and Barclays is not a 'shareholder' or 'investor' in that sense in relation to these companies," it said.

Organizations: Dorset Palestine Solidarity, Barclays Bank, Barclays, Israeli Defence Force, NATO, New York City, Columbia University campus, University of California, UCLA Locations: Dorset, Dorchester , United Kingdom, Israel, Gaza, Moorgate, London, U.S, New York, Los Angeles

Rafah CNN —An Israeli airstrike on Al-Shaboura refugee camp in southern Gaza’s Rafah city late Tuesday killed two young children and injured several other people, according to the Palestinian Civil Defense in Gaza and the Kuwait Hospital in Rafah. The Kuwait Hospital said the two infants were declared dead by medics shortly after they had arrived. Video obtained by CNN shows people in bloodied clothes being pulled out of civilian cars and rushed into the hospital. Pointing at the body bag, Um Rami told CNN they were her first and only grandchildren, calling them her “first joy”. A still from a video shows Palestinians being carried into Kuwait Hospital in Rafah, Gaza, after an Israeli airstrike on Tuesday, April 30, 2024.

Persons: Kareem Jarada, Mona Jarada, Um Rami Abu, Shalab, ”, Um Rami, “, CNN Um Rami, Maram Abu, “ We’re, Israel, ” “ Organizations: Rafah CNN, Palestinian Civil Defense, Kuwait Hospital, CNN, Palestine Red Crescent Society, Israel Defense Forces, IDF Locations: Rafah, Al, Gaza’s Rafah, Gaza, Palestine, Kuwait, ”

☆ Former Google workers fired for protesting Israel deal file complaint claiming protected speech
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Dozens of former Google workers filed a complaint with the US National Labor Relations Board on Tuesday after they were fired or placed on administrative leave last month for protesting the company’s cloud-computing contract with Israel’s government. We are confident in our position and stand by the actions we’ve taken.”Last month’s protests involved employee sit-ins inside Google’s offices in New York City and Sunnyvale, California. No Tech for Apartheid said last week that 50 Google employees were terminated in connection with the protests. The group claimed that some of the workers fired were “non-participating bystanders” and not actively involved in the workplace activism. But affected workers say they should not have been fired for protesting the company’s actions.

Persons: “, Thomas Kurian, ”, Zelda Montes, Benjamin Sachs, Kestnbaum, that’s, Sundar Pichai, Pichai, ” Pichai, Googlers, –, Catherine Thorbecke Organizations: New, New York CNN, US National Labor Relations Board, Tech, Apartheid, Google, CNN, “, Labor, Industry, Harvard Law School, Hamas Locations: New York, New York City, Sunnyvale , California, Sunnyvale, Israel, Gaza, America

☆ The US Navy wants a lot more of a missile that just recently scored its first kill to counter Pacific threats like China
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The US Navy used its SM-3 missile interceptor in combat for the first time last month. AdvertisementThe US Navy will need a lot more of its SM-3 missile, an interceptor that only recently scored its first-ever kill, to counter Pacific threats like China, the sea service's top civilian official said on Wednesday. The Missile Defense Agency's budget request for FY25 cuts procurement of SM-3 Block IB variant, which became operational a decade ago. During Wednesday's hearing, South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson referred to this variant as the Navy's "primary defense against tactical ballistic missiles for the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense" weapons system. AdvertisementThe Navy, however, is already getting a taste of what it's like to battle anti-ship ballistic missiles.

Persons: —, Navy Carlos Del Toro, Del Toro, Joe Wilson, Paul Ignatius, MCS2 Nathan T, Beard Organizations: US Navy, China, Service, Navy, House Armed, Missile Defense Agency, Combat, Missile Defense, South Carolina Rep, Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense Locations: China, Tehran, Israel, Lake Erie, Kauai, Hawaii, Washington, Beijing, American, Iran, Gulf of Aden

☆ Supreme Court rejected military chaplains' lawsuit saying their careers were ruined after refusing the COVID-19 vaccine
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Patricia Kime | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The Supreme Court denied military chaplains' lawsuit claiming retaliation for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine. The appellate court ruled that the Defense Department's decision in January 2023 to rescind the vaccine mandate rendered the chaplains' case moot. The Defense Department was later ordered to pay $1.8 million in legal fees as settlement for two lawsuits over the mandate. An aeromedical technician fills a syringe with the COVID-19 vaccine at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station in Pennsylvania. US Air Force photo by Joshua J. SeybertThe Defense Department began requiring service members to get the COVID-19 vaccine in August 2021.

Persons: —, recrimination, Mauricio Campino, Israel Alvarado, Joshua J, Johnson Organizations: Defense Department, Service, Appeals, Fourth Circuit, Defense, Airmen, Dover Air Force Base, US Air Force, Austin, Pentagon, Navy, Fifth Circuit, US, The Defense Department, Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve, Moderna, Pfizer, Johnson, Air Force, Space Force Locations: Delaware, Israel Alvarado et, Pennsylvania, COVID, China

☆ Ukraine’s ‘Harry Potter castle’ goes up in flames as Russian missile attack kills 5
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Radina Gigova | Olga Voitovych | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —At least five people were killed and more than 30 injured in a Russian missile attack on the Black Sea port city of Odesa on Monday, Ukrainian authorities say. Ukrainian authorities believe Russia used an Iskander ballistic missile and cluster munitions to carry out the attack. He added that “the investigation has grounds to believe” the Russian military used cluster munitions with the intention of inflicting large number of casualties. The use, transfer, and production of cluster munitions is prohibited by an international treaty known as the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Russia claims interceptMeanwhile, Russian officials say air defenses in Crimea succeeded in intercepting a major missile and drone attack by Ukraine.

Persons: Harry Potter, ”, Andriy Kostin, United States –, Sergey Aksyonov Organizations: CNN, Cluster Munitions, Kremlin, Army Tactical Missile Systems Locations: Russian, Odesa, Scottish, Russia, United States, Ukraine, Crimea

☆ Worker pay rose more than expected in Q1 in another sign of persistent inflation
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Employee compensation costs jumped more than expected to start the year, providing another danger sign about persistent inflation, while consumer confidence hit its lowest level in nearly two years. The employment cost index, which measures worker salaries and benefits, gained 1.2% in the first quarter, the Labor Department reported Tuesday. The Fed watches the ECI as a significant measure of underlying inflation pressures. State and local government workers saw their compensation costs rise 4.8%, down just narrowly from the same period in 2023. The Consumer Confidence Index slipped to 97, a decline of 6.1 points that was below the Wall Street estimate for 103.5.

Persons: Dow Jones, Dana Peterson, Peterson Organizations: Labor Department, Dow, Fed, Committee, Conference Locations: State

☆ Russia Strikes Civilian Center in Odesa, Killing Five
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Constant Méheut | John Ismay | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ukrainian officials said a Russian airstrike on Monday evening killed five people and wounded about 30 others in Odesa, a southern Ukrainian city that has been a regular target of Russian missiles and drones trying to destroy its port infrastructure. Videos and photos showed lifeless and bloodied bodies of civilians lying on a seafront promenade not known to be close to any strategic site like military buildings or grain storehouses. Ukrainian authorities on Tuesday accused Russia of using cluster munitions — a controversial and widely banned weapon that can often cause indiscriminate harm to civilians — in the attack. Andriy Kostin, Ukraine’s prosecutor general, said in a statement that Russia had fired an Iskander ballistic missile with a cluster warhead. “The investigators have a reason to believe that the decision to use such a weapon was taken by the Russian military officers deliberately to kill as many Ukrainian civilians as possible,” Mr. Kostin said.

Persons: Andriy Kostin, Mr, Kostin Organizations: Russian Locations: Russian, Odesa, Ukrainian, Russia

☆ Netanyahu Again Vows to Invade Rafah ‘With or Without’ Cease-Fire Deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Erika Solomon | Christopher F. Schuetze | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

A camp in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip near the border with Egypt on Sunday. One official also suggested that Israel was using the threat of an imminent military maneuver to press the armed group into a hostage deal. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain spoke to Mr. Netanyahu on Tuesday, his office said in a statement. A senior Hamas official said on social media on Monday that the group was studying a new Israeli proposal. A Hamas delegation met with officials in Egypt’s intelligence service on Monday, according to a senior Hamas official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to talk about sensitive discussions between Hamas and Egypt.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Antony J, Blinken, Netanyahu, ”, “, Netanyahu’s, Rishi Sunak, Adam Rasgon Organizations: Hamas, State Department, Mr Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Egypt, Gazan, United States, Qatar, Israel, Jordan

☆ Jim Cramer says buy Eaton if you don't own it after its puzzling post-earnings drop
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Morgan Chittum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Every weekday the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer holds a "Morning Meeting" livestream at 10:20 a.m. Jim Cramer said investors should not sell based on macroeconomic uncertainty. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB.

Persons: Jim Cramer, Jim, Eaton, Jim Cramer's Organizations: CNBC, GE Healthcare, Club, Management Locations: Eaton

☆ Columbia protesters' demands have worked before. This time may be different.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Paul Squire | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Read previewThe unrest at Columbia University isn't showing signs of slowing down. In the 1980s, student protesters at Columbia took over the same building and called for divestment of the Ivy League school's investments over a different cause: South African apartheid. Student protesters at the 1985 demonstrations at Columbia University. Protesters there locked and chained the doors to Hamilton Hall — the same building now occupied by pro-Palestinian protesters — and demanded the school completely divest from South Africa. A more fraught situationOn its website, the Columbia University Apartheid Divest group likened itself to the protests from nearly 40 years ago.

Persons: —, It's, Lockheed Martin, Alex Kent, Joe Biden, Mike Johnson, she's, Barbara Alper, didn't, Ronald Reagan, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Nemat, Shafik, Nicholas Dirks, Divesting, Christopher Marsicano, Al, Marsicano Organizations: Service, Columbia University, Columbia, Ivy League, Business, Lockheed, Boeing, NPR, Hamilton Hall, Getty, Columbia University Apartheid, White, Student, New York Times, Times, Coalition, Columbia Spectator, Spectator, The New York Times, Hamas, University, Socially, University of California, CNN, North Carolina's Davidson College Locations: Israel, Gaza, Columbia, divesting, Hamilton, South Africa, Vietnam, Rafah, Berkeley, Al Jazeera

☆ Blinken holds high-stakes meetings in Israel as he ramps up pressure on Hamas to accept ceasefire deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Jennifer Hansler | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

He is expected to meet with senior Israeli government officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. US officials have signaled some optimism about the potential of reaching an agreement to secure a ceasefire and release of the hostages held by Hamas after Israel put forward what Blinken described Monday as an “extraordinarily generous” proposal. Israel is awaiting a response from Hamas before deciding whether to send its own delegation to Cairo. Blinken’s visit is his latest since the deadly Israeli strike on a World Central Kitchen aid convoy in Gaza in early April. “We have not yet seen a plan that gives us confidence that civilians can be effectively protected,” Blinken said Monday.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Blinken, ” Israel “, ”, “, ” Blinken, Biden, Netanyahu Organizations: CNN, Israel Defense Forces Locations: Israel, Rafah, Gaza, Tel Aviv, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Cairo

☆ Student unrest ratchets up an already tense election year
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

CNN —Dramatic campus protests are injecting an inflammatory new element into an election year that is already threatening to stretch national unity to a breaking point. Republicans smell an openingGOP Rep. Elise Stefanik is a driver of the deepening political backlash against campus protests. Republicans are also using the drama of student protests as a shield and to downplay their presumptive nominee’s own extremism. The unrest is so far not comparable since there’s no student mob trying to destroy American democracy. And they are not yet in the same league as the civil rights and Vietnam War protests in the 1960s and 1970s.

Persons: they’ve, Joe Biden, Biden, Israel –, Donald Trump, Trump, “, ”, Fox, “ Biden, appeasing, who’ve, Will, Elise Stefanik, Stefanik, Mike Johnson’s, skewer Biden, ” Stefanik, Johnson, aren’t, ” Johnson, Ronald Reagan, Berkeley ”, Richard Nixon, antisemites, Trump’s, ” Trump, George Floyd, David Farber, Paula Newton, John Kennedy, Barack Obama Organizations: CNN, New York Police Department, Columbia University, –, University of California, UCLA, Brown University, Israel, The New York Republican, Harvard, Ivy League, Columbia, National Guard, GOP, Republicans, California, Berkeley, Democratic Party, crackdowns, Capitol, University of Kansas, CNN International, Harvard University Locations: Gaza, America, Texas, Columbia’s, Palestine, Los Angeles, Israel, Rafah, United States, Vietnam, Charlottesville , Virginia

☆ China's plan to be the dominant power in space is moving at breathtaking speed. The US needs to wake up, officials say.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Read previewAfter a meeting with Japanese and South Korean officials in Tokyo on Friday, US Space Force commander Gen. Stephen Whiting warned about a growing threat. China, he said, is "moving at breathtaking speed in space," and is developing a range of weapons that threaten America's space supremacy, reported Stars and Stripes. "For the first time in decades, US leadership in space and space technology is being challenged," Meink added. Chance Saltzman, Chief of Space Operations at United States Space Force, last year warned against taking US space supremacy for granted. Air Force Lieutenant General Gregory Guillot (L) and US Space Force Lieutenant General Stephen Whiting (R) on July 26, 2023.

Persons: —, Stephen Whiting, They're, Troy Meink, Space.com, Meink, Chance Saltzman, I'm, Saltzman, Whiting, Dominic Chiu, Gregory Guillot, BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI, Donald Trump, Chiu, Artemis, Frank Lucas, Anthony Mastalir, Graeme Thompson, Thompson, Tory Bruno, Arthur Herman, John F, Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, we've Organizations: Service, Korean, Space Force, Business, National Reconnaissance Office, Space Operations, United States Space Force, Eurasia Group, Air Force, US Space Force, House Science, Technology Committee, Brig, US Space Forces, Pentagon, United Launch Alliance, NBC News, Hudson Institute Locations: Tokyo, China, Colorado, Australia, Russia

☆ Images show US military building floating pier off Gaza. Pentagon says it will cost $320 million
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Helen Regan | Natasha Bertrand | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Construction of the temporary pier began at sea last week and the images show crew from several military vessels building the platform. Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said Monday the pier will cost the US about $320 million. The temporary pier is intended to help deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. Instead, the Israel Defense Forces will partner with the US military to anchor the causeway to the shore in Gaza “on day one,” the military official said. A working-level Israeli delegation of intelligence agencies and military officials is expected to travel to Cairo on Tuesday, the Israeli source and another Israeli official said.

Persons: Sabrina Singh, Joe Biden, Antony Blinken, Israel Organizations: CNN, United States Central Command, Planet Labs, Pentagon, Gaza . U.S . Central Command, U.S . Central Command, Israel Defense Forces, British Navy, Royal Navy, Food Programme, USAID, United Nations, PBC CNN, Integrated Locations: Gaza, Gaza . U.S, ”, Cardigan, Cyprus, British, Gaza’s Rafah, Rafah, Egypt, Israel, Cairo

☆ Middle East Crisis U.N. Court to Issue Decision on Arms Sales to Israel
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Marlise Simons | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Members of Germany’s delegation during hearings at the International Court of Justice in The Hague in early April. The judges are set to issue an interim decision in a case brought by Nicaragua against Germany. Germany is a staunch ally of Israel and second only to the United States in providing it with arms. Unlike Germany, which has given the court full jurisdiction, the United States has shielded itself and has to consent to a case. It has protected itself even further from the Genocide Convention, signing the convention but exempting itself from any obligations, such as intervening to stop a genocide or paying reparations if it were found to be complicit.

Persons: Israel, ” Israel Organizations: Germany’s, International Court of Justice, Court, Justice, United Nations ’, Hamas Locations: The Hague, Israel, Gaza, Nicaragua, Germany, Europe, United States, ”, South Africa, Geneva

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