OT subject but worth a main-stream read- OT News Feeds...

lousubcap

Friday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed Israel can “stand alone” after President Biden warned he would halt arm shipments if Israel launched a full-scale invasion of Rafah. “If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone. If we need to, we will fight with our fingernails,” Netanyahu said. Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant also dismissed Biden’s warnings, saying Israel’s “enemies as well as … best of friends” should understand his country “cannot be subdued.” Mike Wendling reports for BBC News; Julian Borger and Jason Burke report for the Guardian.

Israel’s operation in Rafah has forced a “pause” in ceasefire talks, U.S. officials say. The discussions that have been taking place in Cairo over recent days have largely broken up with the departures of the Hamas and Israeli delegations, as well as CIA Director Bill Burns. 

Israeli tanks today captured the main road dividing the eastern and western halves of Rafah, effectively encircling the entire eastern side of the city. Residents described near constant explosions and gunfire east and northeast of the city today, with intense fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants. 

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to submit to Congress as soon as today a “highly critical” report about Israel’s conduct in Gaza that stops short of concluding Israel has violated the terms for its use of U.S. weapons. The report assesses whether Israel complied with international law in the Gaza war and restricted humanitarian aid. Three U.S. officials said the report will list a series of incidents in the war which raised serious concerns about breaches of international law, and will state that the State Department is investigating several of those incidents. However, the report certifies Israel isn’t currently violating the national security memorandum in respect of facilitating the delivery of U.S.-supported humanitarian aid to Gaza. Barak Ravid reports for Axios.

Israel has to make “a choice” on whether it will escalate its current operations in Rafah, White House spokesperson John Kirby said yesterday. “We’re going to be watching what the Israelis do here, what their decision-making looks like going forward,” Kirby said. If Israel opts to “smash” into Rafah, he said, Biden would have to make decisions about withholding military aid. Erica L. Green reports for the New York Times; Karen DeYoung and Missy Ryan report for the Washington Post."

lousubcap

Friday Russia-Ukraine update:
"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sacked the head of his personal protection unit after two of its top officials were detained over an alleged assassination plot. Paul Kirby reports for BBC News.
Ukrainian drones struck two oil depots and a refinery in Russia over the past day, including one deep in Russian territory, officials on both sides said yesterday.  Unnamed intelligence sources in Kyiv told the Reuters and AFP news agencies that a Ukrainian drone struck a major oil refinery in Russia’s Bashkortostan region on Thursday from some 1,500km (932 miles) away in the longest-range attack since the start of Moscow’s full-scale invasion.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s army was facing “a really difficult situation” against Russian forces on the eastern front, but that the US’s $61bn military aid package was coming and would turn the tide.

Ukraine’s state energy company Ukrhydroenergo said two hydropower plants were no longer operating after Russian attacks earlier this week caused “devastating damage”."

lousubcap

This just in on Russia-Ukraine:

"Russia is pushing into Ukraine’s Kharkiv border region, creating a new front in the invasion it launched 27 months ago. Reuters: “Russian forces launched an armoured ground attack on Friday near Ukraine's second city of Kharkiv in the northeast of the country and made small inroads, opening a new front in a war that has long been waged in the east and south.”

"At approximately 5 a.m. [Friday], there was an attempt by the enemy to break through our defensive line under the cover of armoured vehicles," Defense Ministry officials said in a statement.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy “has said Russia could be preparing a big offensive push this spring or summer. Kyiv's forces were prepared to meet Friday's assault, but Moscow could send more troops to the area, he told reporters in Kyiv,” writes Reuters.

Zelenskiy: "As of now, these attacks have been repulsed; battles of varying intensity continue." More, here.

US to announce $400M aid package to Ukraine today, Politico reports: “The package, which will involve transferring weapons already in U.S. stocks, includes new Patriot missiles, Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, Bradley fighting vehicles, mine-protected vehicles, Javelin anti-armor systems and other munitions”—all according to officials granted anonymity to speak ahead of the official announcement. More, here."

lousubcap

Monday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israeli forces continued to advance on Rafah yesterday and launched another operation against Hamas in northern Gaza. IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari described the Rafah operation as “precise” and “limited in scope,” saying the military was avoiding the city’s “densely populated areas.” The Israel military claimed yesterday it had killed 10 Hamas militants in Rafah and dismantled a series of tunnel shafts. The military also said its troops had operated overnight in Jabalia refugee camp after airstrikes on around 30 Hamas targets. 

Israeli forces should “get out of Gaza,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken told CBS Face the Nation yesterday. Delivering some of the Biden administration’s strongest criticism of Israel’s conduct in the Gaza war, Blinken said that while Washington has worked with Arab countries to develop “credible plans for security, for governance, for rebuilding” Gaza, “We haven’t seen that come from Israel.” Blinken’s comments follow the State Department issuing a report to Congress on Friday raising “substantial questions” regarding Israel’s efforts to protect civilians in Gaza. Readers may be interested in John Ramming Chappell’s analysis of the report for Just Security. Josh Boak reports for AP News; Barak Ravid reports for Axios. 

Halting arms exports to Israel is “not a wise path” and would only help Hamas, British foreign secretary David Cameron said yesterday. Asked whether the United Kingdom would follow the United States in threatening to cut weapons supply to Israel if it launched a major attack on Rafah, Cameron said the countries cannot be compared because unlike Washington, Britain supplies a small amount of Israel’s weapons. AP News reports; Sam Francis reports for BBC News."

lousubcap

Monday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Thousands more civilians have fled Russia’s renewed ground offensive in Ukraine’s northeast, Ukrainian officials said yesterday. The intense fighting has forced at least one Ukrainian unit to withdraw from the Kharkiv region, capitulating more land to Moscow in the contested “gray zone” along the Russian border. NBC News reports. 

The Russian defense ministry said today its air defense systems destroyed 16 missiles and 31 drones Ukraine launched overnight. Five houses were damaged in the city of Belgorod, but preliminary information suggests there were no injuries, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram. Reuters reports.

Ukraine’s General Staff said fighting was raging around Vovchansk, a town about 4km (2.5 miles) from the border and 45km (28 miles) from Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-biggest city and the capital of the Kharkiv region. The Ukrainian military said Russia had deployed “significant forces for its attack on the town” but “taking no account of their own losses”, with at least 100 soldiers reported dead.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said “defensive battles” were taking place along large sections of the border near Kharkiv and that fighting was “no less acute” in some areas of the Donetsk region further to the east. Zelenskyy said 30 armed clashes had occurred in the past 24 hours in the Pokrovsk sector, northwest of the Russian-held town of Avdiivka, and there was also fighting in sectors including Lyman, Kupiansk and Kramatorsk."

lousubcap

Tuesday Israel-Hamas update:

"A U.N. staff member was killed in Rafah yesterday, the first time an international U.N. employee has been killed in Gaza since the war began last October. The U.N. said an employee was killed when one of its marked convoys came under fire yesterday as it was traveling to the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis. 

Israeli tanks moved deeper into eastern Rafah overnight, reaching some residential districts. Separately, an Israeli airstrike on a residential building in Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza killed at least 13 Palestinians and left families buried in the rubble, according to a spokesperson for Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. 

A right-wing Israeli group blocked and vandalized a convoy of aid trucks bound for Gaza yesterday. The group, Tzav 9, said it planned the blockage, which occurred at the Tarqumiya checkpoint between the West Bank and Israel. Tzav 9 has led previous attempts to obstruct humanitarian aid shipments to Gaza. 

The Rafah border closure has left international medical workers stranded, including at least 10 U.S. doctors. Medical personnel say they were due to leave Gaza yesterday after a two-week rotation in Khan Younis, but the doctors say it is now uncertain if and how they can leave Gaza safely, or how they can help provide medical care without further supplies coming in. Daniel Wu reports for the Washington Post.

Israel still has not provided the White House a plan to protect civilians in Rafah, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said yesterday. Speaking at a news briefing, Sullivan also said Israel had yet to “connect their military operations” to a political plan for the future governance of Gaza. He reiterated U.S. opposition to a major assault in Rafah, but said Israel has not yet crossed a red line in its military operation there, adding that determining a red line will be based on a “totality of factors.” David E. Sanger and Zach Montague report for the New York Times; Sammy Westfall reports for the Washington Post. 

The United States has assessed that Israel has amassed enough troops in Rafah to launch a full-scale offensive in the coming days, according to two senior Biden administration officials."

lousubcap

Tuesday Russia-Ukraine update:

"U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Kyiv today, the first visit by a Biden administration official to Ukraine after the passage of U.S. supplemental funding. During his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Blinken said U.S. military aid is “now on its way.” Blinken will also deliver a speech later today to highlight Washington’s continued support for Ukraine, according to a senior U.S. official. Kylie Atwood and Jack Forrest report for CNN; BBC News reports.

Russia has widened its ground assault on Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, attacking new areas to try and expand the front and “stretch” Ukraine’s forces, according to regional governor Oleh Syniehubov. He said about 5,700 people had been evacuated from in and around Vovchansk and urged the town’s remaining residents, about 300 people, to leave. The DeepState Telegram channel, which is close to the Ukrainian army, said Russia had taken territory of about 100sq km (39sq miles).

Ukraine’s Security Council chief Oleksandr Lytvynenko told the AFP news agency that there was no imminent risk of a ground assault on Kharkiv, the country’s second-biggest city, despite the latest Russian offensive. Lytvynenko said there were “a lot” of Russians at the border and “more than 30,000” involved in the current attack, which began on Friday.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said its army had improved its tactical position near four settlements in the Kharkiv region – Vesele, Neskuchne, Vovchansk and Lyptsi.

Russia said its air defence systems destroyed 16 missiles and 31 drones that Ukraine launched at Russian territory, including 12 missiles over the border region of Belgorod. "

lousubcap

Israel-Hamas Wednesday update:

"Israel’s military said it has pulled some troops out of the Zeitoun area in northern Gaza, but that it continues to operate there. The military also said it has intensified its operations in Jabaliya refugee camp, as well as carrying out what it described as “targeted operations in specific areas of eastern Rafah.” The Guardian reports. 

Israeli forces have conducted at least eight strikes on aid worker convoys and premises since October, even after aid workers provided Israeli authorities with their coordinates, Human Rights Watch reported yesterday.

President Biden warned he would veto the GOP-led bill that would compel the delivery of defensive weapons to Israel. The bill, which is set to be voted on tomorrow in the House, comes amid pushback on Capitol Hill following Biden’s decision to withhold at least one arms shipment to Israel over concerns about an extensive military operation in Rafah. Sam Fossum reports for CNN. 

The Biden administration has told lawmakers it would send more than $1 billion in additional arms and ammunition to Israel, three congressional aides said yesterday. It is the first arms shipment to Israel to be revealed since the administration paused another arms transfer earlier this month, though there was no immediate indication when it would be sent. Two congressional aides told the Associated Press that  the shipment is not part of the long-delayed foreign aid package President Biden signed last month. “It wasn’t known if the shipment was the latest tranche from an existing arms sale or something new,” Seung Min Jim, Ellen Knickeyer, and Zeke Miller report for AP News; Nancy. A Youssef and Jared Malsin report for the Wall Street Journal. 

National security adviser Jake Sullivan plans to travel to Saudi Arabia and Israel this weekend amid rising tensions over Israel’s operation in Rafah, three U.S. and Israeli officials told Axios. "

lousubcap

Wednesday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview published today he supported China’s plan for a peaceful settlement of the Ukraine war, saying Beijing had a full understanding of what lay behind the crisis. Speaking to China’s Xinhua news agency ahead of his visit to Beijing this week, Putin said Moscow remained open to dialogue to solve the conflict. Reuters reports. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy yesterday told U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that Kyiv urgently needs more air defenses. The call was later echoed by German Chancellor Olaf Scholtz, who urged Europe to do more to help Ukraine access air defense systems. CNN reports.

Ukraine’s military said its forces pulled back to new positions in two areas of the Kharkiv region and warned of a Russian force buildup to the north near its Sumy region. Russia said it had made further inroads and taken a 10th border village, Buhruvatka.

Ukraine’s Air Force said defence systems destroyed all 18 attack drones that Russia launched over several regions, including the Kyiv region and the front line."

lousubcap

Baltimore Bridge Collapse: Deep Draft Channel Reopens

(video of the controlled demolition here:)
https://twitter.com/USACEBaltimore/status/1790189598091497525

lousubcap

Thursday Israel-Hamas update:

"The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is holding hearings today and tomorrow on South Africa’s request that the court order Israel to halt its offensive in Rafah and do more to protect civilians in Gaza. Emily Rauhala reports for the Washington Post; Molly Quell reports for AP News.

Five Israeli soldiers were killed in Gaza, Israel’s military said. Israeli media report that the troops were killed when they were mistakenly hit by Israeli tank fire yesterday in Jabalia, one of the deadliest incidents of its kind since the outset of the war. Raffi Berg reports for BBC News. 

Israeli evacuation orders are further stressing Gaza’s healthcare system, the U.N. says.  “Access to critical health services continues to shrink and displacement is on the rise as additional evacuation orders are issued and military operations intensify,” the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said, adding that the IDF has placed around 78% of the Strip under evacuation orders. Meanwhile, Doctors Without Borders said this week it was forced to withdraw from Rafah due to the “intensification” of fighting by Israeli forces. Frances Vinall reports for the Washington Post.

Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant warned Israel could slide toward establishing military rule over Gaza unless an alternative government is set up. Israel has yet to settle on an appropriate civilian alternative to Hamas’s administration, Gallant told reporters, adding that he has been raising “this issue consistently” since October, but has “received no response.” Paul Adams and Ali Abbas Ahmadi report for BBC News; the New York Times reports. 

Israel will “significantly increase” its quota of foreign workers to address a labor shortage due to the Gaza war, Netanyahu’s office said yesterday. Over 300,000 workers, up to 3.3% of Israel’s population, will be allowed to work in the country under new measures, Netanyahu said. 

The U.S.-built floating pier that will allow the delivery of aid to Palestinian civilians has been anchored in Gaza, U.S. Central Command said today. Trucks are expected to begin moving the humanitarian aid ashore in the coming days, with the U.N. coordinating the distribution of aid within the enclave, CENTCOM said, adding that no U.S. troops had entered Gaza. 

Egypt may consider downgrading relations with Israel if it presses ahead with a military operation in Rafah, an Egyptian official said. “Everything is possible and is on the table, including the downgrade of relations. But we are not there yet. "

lousubcap

Thursday Russia-Ukraine update:

"The United States is “rushing ammunition, armored vehicles, missiles [and] air defenses” to Ukraine’s front line, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said yesterday. During his trip to Kyiv, Blinken announced that $2 billion would be spent to expedite delivery. His comments come as Ukrainian forces retreat from several villages in the Kharkiv region following Russian advances. Tiffany Wertheimer reports for BBC News; Ivana Saric reports for Axios.

Russian forces are preparing to attempt to capture the village of Lyptsi, located about 19 miles north of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, according to a Russian-installed official quoted by Russia’s RIA state news agency. Russia last week opened a new front in the Ukraine war by pushing over the border into the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine. Reuters reports. 

The Russian Defence Ministry said its air force destroyed 10 long-range Ukrainian missiles launched at Sevastopol in Crimea, which Moscow invaded and annexed from Ukraine in 2014. It did not say whether there was any damage."

Botch

 
I'm not understanding the famine relief pier the US began building in Gaza, what, a month ago??   They announced its completion this morning, and that's it in the photo above; the forklifts, personnel and ISO containers give it a sense of scale, and it looks like something the Marines could've thrown up in 6 hours or so.  I don't get it.  

HeavyG

@Botch - that's not a good pix. Here's a graphic that shows the process (couldn't quickly find a pix of the whole setup)...

Botch

Thx.  PBS Newshour had better video of the entire thing tonight, matching the graphics above.  
Curious if that portion of the Mediterranian always has winds from the same direction; I would think that wind/waves from either side direction wouldn't tear that floating pier loose...  
My next issue of Time may explain, it usually gets a bit more into the weeds than the TV programs.  

lousubcap

Friday Israel-Hamas update:

"South Africa yesterday asked the International Court of Justice to order Israel to halt all military operations in Gaza, arguing its assault on Rafah and the closure of key border crossings are aimed at destroying “the essential foundations of Palestinian life” there. South Africa’s legal team asked the court to issue urgent “provisional measures” to stem the violence, including ordering a ceasefire. Israel is arguing against the request today. Erin Cunningham and Emily Rauhala report for the Washington Post; Molly Quell reports for AP News.

Israel said yesterday it would send more troops to Rafah. The announcement signals Israel's plans to press deeper into Rafah, despite international concerns about the threat posed to civilians there. “Hundreds of targets have already been attacked,” Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant said after meeting with commanders in Rafah, adding, “This operation will continue.” Raja Abdulrahim, Adam Rasgon, Bilal Shbair, and Thomas Fuller report for the New York Times.

The House of Representatives yesterday passed a bill that would force President Biden to send weapons to Israel, seeking to rebuke him for delaying arms shipment. The Israel Security Assistance Support Act was approved 224-187. The act is not expected to become law, but its passage underscores the deep divide over U.S. policy toward Israel. Patricia Zengerle reports for Reuters."

lousubcap

Friday Russia-Ukraine update:

"NATO is considering sending trainers into Ukraine. As Ukraine’s manpower shortage has reached a critical point in recent weeks, Ukrainian officials have asked their U.S. and NATO counterparts to help train 150,000 new recruits closer to the front line. Washington has so far said no, but the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of NATO Staff said yesterday that a deployment of NATO trainers seemed inevitable, adding, “We’ll get there eventually, over time.” Helene Cooper, Julian E. Barnes, Eric Schmitt and Lara Jakes report for the New York Times.

A massive Ukrainian drone attack on Crimea early today caused power outages in the city of Sevastopol and set a refinery on fire in southern Russia, Russian authorities said. The attack marked Kyiv’s attempt to strike back during Moscow’s offensive in northeastern Ukraine.Ukraine has not commented on the attack or claimed responsibility for it at the time of writing. AP News reports.

Visiting Kharkiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the situation in the northeast was “extremely difficult” but “under control” after the military partially halted a Russian advance, most notably thwarting an invasion of Vovchansk, 5km (3 miles) from the border with Russia.

General Christopher Cavoli, NATO’s supreme allied commander in Europe, said he did not believe Russia’s military had the troop numbers to make a strategic breakthrough in the Kharkiv region and he was confident Ukrainian forces would hold their lines there.

Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia was directing its most intense assaults on the front line near the cities of Pokrovsk and Kramatorsk in the eastern Donetsk region, where Russia’s offensive has been unrelenting for months.

An air raid alert in the northeastern Kharkiv region remained in place for more than 16 and a half hours amid Russian drone and missile attacks. Officials said five drones hit parts of the city of Kharkiv, starting a fire. There were no reports of casualties. The alert was lifted in the early hours of Friday."

lousubcap

Monday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israel intends to broaden its military operation in Rafah, defense minister Yoav Gallant told U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan today. A statement from Gallant’s office said he “presented to (National Security) Adviser Sullivan the provisions Israel implemented for evacuating the population from the Rafah area and for setting up the appropriate humanitarian response.” Reuters reports. 

President Biden called for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza while delivering a commencement address yesterday at Morehouse College in Atlanta. “It’s a humanitarian crisis in Gaza. That’s why I’ve called for an immediate ceasefire — an immediate ceasefire to stop the fighting and bring the hostages home,” Biden said. Michael Williams reports for CNN.

Netanyahu has banned his intelligence and security chiefs from meeting with U.S. officials several times since the Gaza war erupted, three U.S. and Israeli officials told Axios. Netanyahu seems to be trying to control what U.S. politicians and diplomats hear from Israel, at a time when his government is deeply divided over his war strategy, the officials said. Barak Ravid reports. 

Jake Sullivan yesterday urged Netanyahu to connect the war in Gaza to a “political strategy” to ensure a lasting defeat of Hamas, a complete hostage release, and a better future for the enclave. Meeting with Netanyahu in Israel after holding talks in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, Sullivan also proposed “a series of concrete measures” to ensure more aid enters Gaza. BBC News reports; The Washington Post reports."

lousubcap

Monday Russia-Ukraine update:

"The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said Russian attacks in the Kharkiv area “slowed down a bit” but that forces “continue their attempts to break through our defences near Vovchansk, Starytsya and Lyptsi”. Russia’s Ministry of Defence, which claimed earlier to have seized Starytsya, said its units “continued to advance into the depth of the enemy’s defences”.

Officials said Russia shot down at least 103 Ukrainian drones, including 62 over Russian regions, as well as missiles that targeted Crimea, which Moscow seized and annexed from Ukraine in 2014. An oil refinery in southern Russia’s Krasnodar region was forced to halt operations after six drones crashed into the site.

Ukraine’s military said its forces sank the Russian minesweeper Kovrovets in the attack on Crimea.

Ukraine’s Air Force chief said air defences brought down all 37 Shahed attack drones launched by Russia. The weapons were shot down in the Kyiv, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Cherkasy and Kherson regions. There were no reports of damage or casualties."

Botch

One thing that I wasn't expecting was a chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has asked for arrest warrants for both the top three Hamas leaders and netanyahu and one of his lieutenants.  Israel is not a signatory for the ICC, but supposedly Gaza is; it probably doesn't carry any weight.  

lousubcap

An alert for any readers here-Tuesday's updates will be later in the day as I am working the KY Primary election Tuesday.  Polls open 6A-6P. 
Vote early and vote often...

lousubcap

Not yet Tuesday and here's a good read about where we are in politics in the USA from The Atlantic-

Tom Nichols STAFF WRITER

"For years, leading Republicans have chosen to let their memory lapse about things they once said about Donald Trump. It’s a disingenuous forgetting that has deepened since Trump went on trial in New York. Winston Smith, the protagonist of George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984, works for the totalitarian Ministry of Truth, where his assignment is to produce lies. He rewrites history so that whatever the regime says todaycannot be contradicted by something it might have said yesterday. (He ensures, for example, that Big Brother’s “Order for the Day” announcements about the regime’s achievements match up with everything the leader predicted in previous statements, and he excises any untidy references in the state media to people who have been arrested and disappeared.) Once history is fixed, Winston drops contradictory materials into “the memory hole,” a small opening near every desk that leads to a furnace, where the inconvenient past is quickly incinerated.

Leaders of the current GOP presumably do not have such memory holes in their offices, but they’re doing their best to replicate the effect. Republicans who once claimed to be against Donald Trump, and ridiculed him, are now expending kilocalories of political energy to convince their constituents and the rest of the American public that they have always been faithful to Trump.

Some of them, including Senators Lindsey Graham and J. D. Vance, have admitted to dramatic conversions, and like good members of any authoritarian party, they have come forward and sought mercy for their mistakes. “If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed.......and we will deserve it,” Graham tweeted in May 2016 (after calling Trump a “kook,”among other things), and on the night of January 6, 2021, he declared himself to be done with Trump: “Count me out.”

Less than a month later, he was back in.

Vance, for his part, once described Trump as “cultural heroin” in this magazine—a wonderful phrase that I will never tire of repeating here. When Vance decided to run for the Senate, however, he apparently felt that it was time to see the light. “I’m not just a flip-flopper, I’m a flip-flop-flipper on Trump,” he told Time in the summer of 2021. Trump, he said, is “the leader of this movement, and if I actually care about these people and the things I say I care about, I need to just suck it up and support him.”

After this stirring statement of principle, Vance went all in. Last week, at the New York courthouse where Trump is on trial, he showed up in the required blue suit and red tie not only to affirm his allegiance (obligatory for anyone who hopes to be Trump’s vice-presidential pick) but also as part of his continual smearing of the entire American justice system. If Vance once had any reservations, they have gone into the memory hole.

Few Trump sycophants play this game better than New York Representative Elise Stefanik, who this weekend got a smidge tetchy with the Fox News anchor Shannon Bream after Bream had the temerity to snatch back some of Stefanik’s history from the furnace. Bream quoted from a lengthy 2022 New York Times profile in which Stefanik’s friends noted the representative’s transformation from Republican moderate to Trumpian conspiracy theorist. Stefanik immediately snapped at Bream for quoting unnamed sources from the hated Times.

But Bream was having none of it: “Folks can go read that article for themselves,” she countered. “There are plenty of names, people who went on the record. And we’ll leave it there.” The article is more devastating than Bream let on; as an opportunist, Stefanik leaves even a dedicated newcomer like Vance in the dust. But her approach worked. “In the beginning,” one of her voters told my Atlantic colleague Russell Bermanafter Trump lost in 2020, Stefanik wasn’t a big Trump backer. “But I’ll tell you, she’s come around.”

Indeed she has. “To say that Stefanik displays the zeal of a convert,” Russell wrote in a follow-up profile earlier this year, “doesn’t do justice to the phrase.” She is now a reliable voice echoing almost anything Trump says, including his attacks on the rule of law and the American election system.

I am an adult, and I have worked for politicians. I know hypocrisy is endemic to politics. I know that liberals and conservatives both have made excuses for their preferred candidates. I know that, yes, everyone does it. And people are allowed to change their mind when facts change. But nothing about Trump has changed. This GOP embrace of Trump’s nihilism is not some standard-issue, “my guy, right or wrong” defense of the party leader. What Republicans are doing now is a deeper and more stomach-churning abandonment of dignity, a rejection of moral agency in the name of ambition.

The defense of Trump and the memory-holing of any vestige of past adherence to principle is, of course, rooted in expediency and fear, but it also reflects a deep-seated resentment among people such as Vance and Stefanik.

The fear is obvious: Republicans are afraid of their own voters, sometimes even with a direct concern for their personal security. As my colleague McKay Coppins reported in his biography of Mitt Romney, “One Republican congressman confided to Romney that he wanted to vote for Trump’s second impeachment, but chose not to out of fear for his family’s safety.” Likewise, the crackling-static cloud of opportunism that surrounds so many Republicans—especially the hyper-ambitious gadfly Vivek Ramaswamy—generates a political version of ozone so strong that its metallic odor practically seeps through the screens of TVs and smartphones.

But do not underestimate the power of resentment among Stefanik, Vance, and the others now circling Trump like the cold fragments of a destroyed planet. They resent the people who stuck to their principles and did not take the deal that required trading decency for power. Stefanik and Vance, of course, still have jobs in Congress, but they now must pretend to be tribunes of an electorate with whom they have almost nothing in common and among whom they seem to have no interest in living. (Vance once argued that people in depressed rural areas should move out, and he himself did not have a primary residence in Ohio until 2018.)

The cognitive dissonance produced by this self-knowing resentment encourages extremism, not moderation. The shame of signing on with Trump again means that any memento of an earlier political life must be shoved into the memory hole. The only way to prove loyalty is to take the new line, and to repeat Big Brother’s new Order for the Day more energetically than all of the other comrades. Each time, they will shout louder—to rise above the din of the mob, and to silence the fading voice of conscience that tells them that this self-abasement is terribly, inexcusably wrong."

lousubcap

Tuesday Israel-Hamas update:

"More than 900,000 people, approximately 40% of Gaza’s population, have been displaced in the past two weeks, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said yesterday. He said that of those displaced, 812,000 are from Rafah and over 100,000 are from northern Gaza. Richard Roth and Hamdi Alkhshali report for CNN; Chao Deng and Fatima Abdulkarim report for the Wall Street Journal. 

President Biden has criticized the ICC’s decision to seek arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant for alleged atrocity crimes in Gaza. In a statement, Biden called the move “outrageous,” adding, “Let me be clear: whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence – none – between Israel and Hamas. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security.” Speaking yesterday at a Jewish American Heritage Month event at the White House, Biden also said, “What’s happening in Gaza is not genocide. We reject that.” Barak Ravid reports for Axios; Elena Schneider, Jennifer Haberkorn, and Eli Stokols report for POLITICO. 

Secretary of State Antony Blinken also denounced the ICC arrest warrants, saying, “This decision does nothing to help, and could jeopardize, ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement.” 

National security adviser Jake Sullivan met with Israeli leaders yesterday. Yoav Gallant said he briefed Sullivan “on developments in the war” against Hamas and hostage release efforts, adding in a statement that humanitarian plans for Gaza were also presented to Sullivan “that complement operational activities on the ground.” Rachel Pannett and Adela Suliman report for the Washington Post.

European leaders are divided on the ICC’s decision to seek arrest warrants for top Israeli officials. France, Belgium, and Slovenia said they support the decision, while Germany said the ICC has “created the incorrect impression of an equation” between Israel and Hamas."

lousubcap

Tuesday Russia-Ukraine update: (slim info on this front.)

Ukraine for the first time yesterday ordered nationwide rolling blackouts to conserve energy. The blackouts ran from 6pm to midnight. The move comes as Ukrainian officials say they are once again struggling to keep electricity flowing as Russian forces increasingly strike power plants. Maria Varenikova, Constant Méheut, and Nataliia Novosolova report for the New York Times.

lousubcap

Wednesday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israeli tanks advanced to the edge of a crowded district in central Rafah today, in one of the most intense nights of bombardment of the city since Israel launched its offensive there this month. Nidal Al-Mughrabi reports for Reuters.

The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees has halted food distribution in Rafah due to supply shortages and ongoing hostilities, the agency said yesterday. UNRWA warned that its distribution center and a World Food Programme warehouse were now inaccessible because of Israel’s ongoing military operation in eastern Rafah. David Gritten reports for BBC News; the New York Times reports. 

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken suggested he will cooperate with lawmakers on potential sanctions against the ICC as its prosecutor seeks arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials. Sam Cabral reports for BBC News.

None of the food and supplies that have entered Gaza through the U.S.-built temporary pier in its first five days of operation have been distributed to Palestinians,Pentagon spokesperson Gen. Patrick Ryder said yesterday. Ryder said while that 569 metric tons of aid had made it to shore, none of those supplies had yet to be parceled out by humanitarian organizations. Gaya Gupta reports for the New York Times."

lousubcap

Wednesday Russia-Ukraine update:
"Ukrainian President Volodymy Zelenskyy said his country’s troops are achieving “tangible” results against Russian forces in the northeastern Kharkiv region but the situation on the eastern front near the cities of Pokrovsk, Kramatorsk and Kurakhove was “extremely difficult”.

A Russian official said Moscow’s forces controlled “about 40 percent” of Vovchansk, a town near the border with Russia and at the epicentre of fighting.

The Ukrainian military said it destroyed the Russian navy’s Tsiklon, a cruise missile carrier, in Sevastopol in Russian-occupied Crimea on the night of May 19.

Moscow began nuclear weapons drills close to Ukraine in exercises the Ministry of Defence said were to test the “readiness” of its “non-strategic nuclear weapons… to ensure the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Russian state”."

lousubcap

Thursday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israel’s war cabinet has instructed its negotiating team to resume talks on a hostage release deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said early today. The statement came after the families of five female Israeli soldiers released a video of their capture by Hamas on Oct. 7, in the hopes it would push Israeli leaders to restart negotiations. The Washington Post reports.

Israel will withhold funds from the Palestinian Authority following the decision by Spain, Norway, and Ireland to recognize a Palestinian state, the country’s finance minister said yesterday. The decision by far-right minister Bezalel Smotrich threatens to push the Palestinian government into a deeper fiscal crisis. Aaron Boxerman reports for the New York Times.

Israeli forces extended a military raid into the city of Jenin in the occupied West Bank into a second day.

The Biden administration is in talks with an E.U. organization to potentially take control of the Rafah border crossing, according to a senior administration official and another source. Washington is proposing bringing in the European Union Border Assistance Mission to the Rafah Crossing Point as a neutral third party to help open and run the crossing. Erin Banco reports for POLITICO.

Humanitarian aid finally started to flow into Gaza through the U.S.-built pier after days of delays due to logistical and other problems, U.S. officials said yesterday."

lousubcap

Thursday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Russia is deploying banned toxic gas across the front line, according to U.S. and Ukrainian officials. “We assessed Russian forces used the chemical weapon chloropicrin and riot control agents as a method of warfare to dislodge Ukrainian forces from fortified positions,” U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Robert Wood said Monday. A Kremlin spokesperson called the accusations “baseless.” Jane Lytvynenko reports for the Wall Street Journal.

Russian news agencies, quoting the Ministry of Defence, said Moscow’s forces had seized control of the village of Klishchiivka in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, close to the city of Bakhmut. Ukraine’s military said it had been repelling attacks in the village but the situation was under control. Ukraine reclaimed Klishchiivka from the Russians in September last year.

Russian drones struck energy facilities in Ukraine cutting power to more than 500,000 people in the northern Sumy region, according to regional authorities. The attacks targeted the cities of Shostka and Konotop, northeast of Kyiv and near the Russian border.

Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Russia’s Chechnya region, said he had met President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin and offered to send more fighters to Ukraine. Kadyrov said tens of thousands of “well-trained and equipped fighters from the reserves” were prepared to fight for Russia in Ukraine if such an order were given. A total of 43,500 soldiers had already served there, including 18,000 volunteers, he said."

lousubcap

Friday Israel-Hamas update:

"Israeli forces are conducting operations in Rafah “in a targeted and precise way” with “accurate intelligence,” IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said. He described the operation as a “critical mission” to bring back all hostages and to ensure “an enduring defeat of Hamas.” Mohammed Tawfeeq reports for CNN; Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Aaron Boxerman report for the New York Times.

CIA Director Bill Burns will meet with Israeli intelligence chief David Barnea in Europe this weekend to try to revive stalled ceasefire and hostage release talks, according to a U.S. official and another person briefed on the negotiations. It is unclear if Egyptian and Qatari negotiators will join them. Julian E. Barnes and Edward Wong report for the New York Times; Alex Marquardt reports for CNN.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) announced yesterday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address a joint session of Congress. Johnson told reporters he was working with Netanyahu to finalize a date and would send the formal invitation this week. Megan Lebowitz and Syedah Asghar report for NBC News.

Over 1 million pounds of humanitarian assistance has entered Gaza through the new U.S.-built temporary pier, the Pentagon said yesterday. Two-thirds of the total aid transferred has been distributed by the U.N. further into Gaza, CENTCOM’s deputy commander said. Sareen Habeshian reports for Axios."

lousubcap

Friday Russia-Ukraine update:

"A wave of Russian missile strikes hit several locations in Ukraine’s city of Kharkiv yesterday, killing seven civilians. Russian troops have advanced towards Kharkiv over the past two weeks, taking advantage of a weakened front line. Olga Voitovych, Sharon Braithwaite, and Sana Noor Haq report for CNN.

The United States is expected to announce an additional $275 million in military aid for Ukraine today as Kyiv struggles to hold off advances by Russian troops in the Kharkiv region, according to two U.S. officials. It would mark the fourth installment of military aid for Ukraine since Congress passed the foreign aid bill last month. Tara Copp and Matthew Lee report for AP News.

The Russian Ministry of Defence said 35 Ukrainian rockets and three drones had been shot down over the Belgorod region, which lies across the border from Kharkiv.

Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed its forces had recaptured the small village of Andriivka in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. The Ukrainian General Staff said later that its troops were repelling three Russian assaults in the area of Andriivka and nearby Novyi. Andriivka was liberated by Ukrainian soldiers in an offensive last September.

Russia said it brought down a Ukrainian drone in its central Tatarstan region, hundreds of kilometres from the two countries’ border."