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Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Fighting resumes: “Israel renewed its assault on the Gaza Strip Friday after the end of a weeklong truce with Hamas, pummeling the Palestinian enclave from the air while warning civilians to leave parts of southern Gaza in a sign that it intends to expand its ground offensive.”
* In related news: “The White House says it is continuing efforts to renew a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. ‘We continue to work with Israel, Egypt, and Qatar on efforts to extend the humanitarian pause in Gaza,’ a National Security Council spokesperson said this morning. ‘Hamas has so far failed to produce a list of hostages that would enable a further extension of the pause,’ the spokesperson added.”
* The so-called “Jericho Wall“ document: “Israeli officials obtained Hamas’s battle plan for the Oct. 7 terrorist attack more than a year before it happened, documents, emails and interviews show. But Israeli military and intelligence officials dismissed the plan as aspirational, considering it too difficult for Hamas to carry out.”
* COP28: “With dire warnings of planetary catastrophe and urgent pleas to protect vulnerable populations, world leaders on Friday implored one another to stop burning fossil fuels and swiftly reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that are `dangerously heating the planet. At the United Nations climate conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, a parade of dignitaries invoked faith, science and economics in their calls for a rapid transition away from coal, oil and gas, and toward clean energy.”
* Jan. 6 sentencing: “A two-time Olympic gold medalist who stormed the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 attack is set to be sentenced on Friday afternoon. Klete Keller was arrested in January 2021, and pleaded guilty in September 2021 to a felony charge of obstruction of an official proceeding. His sentencing was deferred because of his cooperation.”
* On a related note: “A Florida Proud Boy who assaulted police and passed around a sledgehammer and pepper spray during the January 6 attack at the U.S Capitol is headed to prison. Zachary Johnson, a 34-year-old Tampa-area Proud Boy nicknamed #GogglesMan on social media, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard Leon to more than three years in prison and another three years of supervised release for his role in the insurrection.”
* A trailblazing jurist: “Sandra Day O’Connor, the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court and the justice who held the court’s center for more than a generation, died Friday, the court said in a statement. She was 93. Her cause of death was complications related to advanced dementia and a respiratory illness.”
Have a safe weekend.