May 16 PEN America, facing criticism over its response to the war in Gaza, gathers for annual gala By Hillel Italie, Associated Press The literary and human rights organization has faced ongoing criticism over its response to the Israel-Hamas War, with hundreds of writers alleging that PEN showed limited concern over the suffering of Gaza residents and the deaths of Palestinian writers. Continue reading
May 16 WATCH: UN’s highest court hears request from South Africa on Israel’s offensive in Rafah By Molly Quell, Associated Press It is the fourth time South Africa has asked the International Court of Justice for emergency measures since the nation launched proceedings alleging that Israel’s military action in its war with Hamas in Gaza amounts to genocide. Continue reading
May 16 Gaza Strip pier project is completed, U.S. military says By Lolita C. Baldor, Associated Press Officials are poised to begin ferrying badly needed humanitarian aid into the enclave besieged over seven months of intense fighting in the Israel-Hamas war. Continue reading
May 15 Watch 5:53 Israeli defense minister publicly criticizes Netanyahu’s Gaza strategy By Nick Schifrin, Dan Sagalyn, Zeba Warsi, Ethan Dodd Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back against criticism of his Gaza strategy from within his own government. Israel's defense minister accused Netanyahu of “indecision” and leading Israel down a “dangerous course.” The public infighting comes as the Biden administration… Continue watching
May 15 Palestinians mark the Nakba, the original ‘catastrophe’ of mass expulsion By Joseph Krauss, Abby Sewell, Samy Magdy, Associated Press The Nakba, Arabic for catastrophe, refers to the 700,000 Palestinians who fled or were driven out of what is today Israel before and during the war surrounding its creation in 1948. Continue reading
May 14 Palestinians mark 76 years of dispossession as yet another catastrophe unfolds in Gaza By Joseph Krauss, Associated Press Palestinians on Wednesday will mark the 76th year of their mass expulsion from what is now Israel. It's an event that is at the core of their national struggle, but in many ways pales in comparison to the calamity now… Continue reading
May 14 WATCH: Pentagon holds briefing as U.S. wraps up building a pier to bring aid to Gaza by sea By Ellen Knickmeyer, Associated Press In the coming days, the U.S. military in the eastern Mediterranean is expected to jab one end of a hulking metal dock — the length of five U.S. football fields — into a beach in northern Gaza. Continue reading
May 14 More than half a million Palestinians displaced as Israeli military fighting escalates in Gaza By Associated Press Some 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza face catastrophic levels of hunger, on the brink of starvation, and a “full-blown famine” is taking place in the north, according to the U.N. Continue reading
May 13 Watch 4:38 Israel faces diplomatic pressure to avoid assault on Rafah By Nick Schifrin, Zeba Warsi The United Nations says more than 360,000 Gazans who fled to Rafah have now been forced to flee again as Israeli troops attack sectors of the city in a bid to rout Hamas. Also in Rafah, the first foreign U.N. Continue watching
May 13 Campus protests over Israel-Hamas war scale down during graduations By Associated Press Some demonstrations extended into weekend graduation celebrations, although they were muted in comparison to the encampments and rallies that have roiled campuses. Continue reading