"The big controversy out of the UN Security Council on Wednesday is that the US vetoed adraft resolution calling for a humanitarian pause in Gaza, as Israeli airstrikes continue and ground forces are reportedly still staging for an invasion.
The draft resolution was proposed by Brazil and condemned "the terrorist attacks by Hamas," urged the release of hostages, while calling for a "humanitarian pause" or ceasefire. 12 members approved the draft Wednesday, the UK and Russia abstained, but the United States shot it down.
US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said she wanted US diplomacy to "play out" first, but also criticized the resolution text for not expressly upholding Israel's right to self-defense.
Bloomberg, meanwhile, at the conclusion of Biden's time in Tel Aviv issued the headline, Biden Fails to Calm Fears of Wider War in 7.5-Hour Visit
Now that Biden is flying out of Israel, that "imminent" ground invasion might take place after all. All eyes will also be on the northern border to see what Hezbollah does (and by extension Iran) in response." ZH
"In the past few hours, the IDF struck targets belonging to Hezbollah, along the Lebanon border.....the targeted objectives was an observation post that extends to the sea, from where anti-tank missiles were fired towards Rosh HaNikra." Ukrin
"Hamas immediately blamed Tuesday’s explosion at the Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza City on Israel and claimed more than 500 people were killed in a heinous, targeted war crime.
But after an investigation and widespread protests in the Arab world, the Israel Defense Forces determined that the terror group’s Islamic Jihad arm was actually behind the disaster and had exaggerated the death toll in its attempts to frame it as an Israeli attack.
The IDF also released an audio recording Wednesday morning of what it said were two Islamic Jihad terrorists conceding responsibility for the accidental attack.
“Is it from us?” one operative is heard asking on the recording, according to the IDF’s translation.
“It looks like it,” his cohort replies." NYP
"Biden announced $100 million in humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians.....Biden arrivedin Israel following militant group Hamas' attack on southern towns in Israel last week. Biden has also called for Egypt to open its border to allow Palestinian civilians to leave the warzone. His administration is also expected to ask Congress for $100 billion in supplemental funding for Israel and Ukraine — two wars Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently said the US can "certainly" afford to support." IB
"Russian President Vladimir Putin has been filmed in Beijing following his meeting withChinese leader Xi Jinping – escorted by officers carrying the nuclear briefcase." Pravada
"A colossal cryovolcanic comet, three times the size of Mount Everest, has burst into spaceand is now speeding towards Earth, scientists report. However, there is no cause for alarm: the comet will not collide with us. Instead, it is expected to be visible to the naked eye around its nearest point to Earth on April 21, 2024." Earth
"Razvozhayev, the Russian-installed "Governor of Sevastopol", has reported that a missile hasbeen downed near the hill of Kara-Koba and appears to have exploded in a field. "Our fleet is repelling aerial attacks in the area near Sukharna Balka." AP
"In response to escalating threats and security challenges in northern Europe, PrimeMinister Rishi Sunak has embarked on a mission to fortify the UK's presence in northern Europe by announcing a military deployment of more than 20,000 British troops, along with an array of assets, as part of an initiative to safeguard the region's interests and tackle emerging hybrid threats. The UK prime minister, who held discussions with Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) leaders on the strategically significant island of Gotland, Sweden, emphasized the urgency of addressing these challenges." AP
"The paramilitaries fighting the Sudanese army over the past six months have advanced andsought to consolidate their reach in the capital in recent weeks, eyewitnesses told Reuters.
Fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) erupted on April 15 over tensions linked to a planned transition to civilian rule. It has devastated the capital Khartoum and sparked ethnically driven attacks in Darfur." MS
"U.S. military downed three drones on Wednesday local time during separate attemptedattacks against American forces in Iraq, according to U.S. Central Command, or CENTCOM.
U.S. forces destroyed one drone and damaged another during an attack in western Iraq which ended in coalition forces receiving “minor injuries,” according to a CENTCOM statement, which did not specify whether U.S. troops were wounded." AP
"Pro-Palestine protesters stormed and occupied the Cannon House Office Building rotunda onCapitol Hill.....“There’s an insurrection happening now on Capitol Hill,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) posted on X – formerly Twitter – along with video of the scene." FOX
"The lower house of Russia's parliament gave its final approval to a bill revoking theratification of a global nuclear test ban treaty, a move Moscow described as putting it on par with the United States." MS
"Explosions rang out in Zaporizhzhia before and immediately after an air-raid warning wasissued in the city..... the Air Force reported that there was a missile threat in Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts, and later in Mykolaiv and Kherson oblasts." Pravada
"Burkina Faso's military leaders have signed a deal with Russia to build a nuclear power plantto increase electricity supplies.
It is the junta's latest move to align itself with Russia after falling out with most of its Western partners." AP
"After months of haggling, the Marshall Islands agreed to renew a strategic pact granting the US military access to its land, air and sea in exchange for economic help for decades. The renewal offers US$2.3 billion for 20 years. "MS
"Two men were arrested by the Digos security police in Milan on Tuesday in an anti-terrorism operation, prosecutors said. The pair - an Egyptian and an Italian of Egyptian origin - are accused of criminal association for terrorism and instigation to commit crime for terrorism purposes. Milan prosecutor Marcello Viola said the suspects were "extremely active in digital propaganda and proselytism on behalf of ISIS" and had allegedly "sworn an oath of belonging and loyalty" to the Islamist terror group. They are also accused of financing the causes of the so-called Islamic State." AP
