AP-Newswatch

Truce in Gaza is extended as Israel faces pressure to spare civilians when it resumes offensive

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A truce between Israel and Hamas has entered its fifth day, with the militant group promising to release more civilian hostages to delay the expected resumption of the war. Israel is under growing pressure to spare Palestinian civilians when it renews its offensive. The sides agreed to extend their truce through Wednesday, with another two planned exchanges of militant-held hostages for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Hamas and other militant groups are believed to be holding enough captives to extend the truce potentially for two weeks. Israel has repeatedly vowed to resume the war with “full force” to destroy Hamas once it’s clear no more hostages will be freed.

US tells Israel any ground campaign in southern Gaza must limit further civilian displacement

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has told Israel that it must operate with far greater precision in southern Gaza if it renews a ground campaign aimed at eradicating the Hamas militant group. That’s according to senior administration officials who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House. The officials said President Joe Biden and other administration officials have underscored to the Israelis that it is critical that the expected military campaign to eradicate Hamas in the south must be done in a way that does not cause “significant further displacement” of Palestinian civilians. One official said Israelis have been receptive when U.S. officials have raised these concerns.

Suspect in shooting of 3 men of Palestinian descent near the University of Vermont pleads not guilty

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — A man pleaded not guilty to attempted murder Monday in the weekend shooting of three college students of Palestinian descent in Vermont. The attack is being investigated as a possible hate crime. The three young men were shot and injured Saturday while walking near the University of Vermont campus. Forty-eight-year-old Jason Eaton was arrested Sunday and made a brief court appearance from jail Monday. He’s charged with three counts of attempted murder. The U.S. Justice Department and state officials are also investigating whether the shooting was a hate crime. Protests have been widespread and tensions have escalated in the U.S. as the death toll rises in the Israel-Hamas war.

Cities crack down on homeless encampments. Advocates say that’s not the answer

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — More cities across the U.S. are cracking down on homeless tent encampments that have grown more visible and become unsafe. Records obtained by The Associated Press show attempts to clear or to mitigate encampments increased in cities from Los Angeles to New York as public pressure grew on officials. Homeless people and their advocates say encampment sweeps are cruel and costly, and there aren’t enough shelter beds or treatment for everyone. But government officials say it’s unacceptable to let encampments fester and people need to accept offers of shelter or treatment, if they have a severe mental illness or addiction.

Tensions are bubbling up at thirsty Arizona alfalfa farms as foreign firms exploit unregulated water

WENDEN, Ariz. (AP) — Worries about future water supplies from ancient aquifers are bubbling up in western rural Arizona. Some neighbors complain that their backyard wells have dried up since an Emirati agribusiness began farming alfalfa nearby. One farmer worries that state officials someday may try to divert the area’s groundwater for Phoenix’s future needs. Experts say tensions are inevitable as companies in climate-challenged countries such as the United Arab Emirates look to faraway places like rural Arizona for water and land they need to cultivate forage material and commodities.

Nikki Haley argues Donald Trump is always followed by ‘chaos’ before a large South Carolina crowd

BLUFFTON, S.C. (AP) — Nikki Haley says former President Donald Trump causes too much chaos to be successful in a second White House term. She reiterated her argument about the GOP front-runner at a large town hall Monday in her home state of South Carolina. The former governor and United Nations ambassador drew the largest crowd of her primary campaign so far as she tries to close the gap with Trump just weeks before the Iowa caucuses kick off the Republican nominating calendar. Haley says the time is now right for a new generation in U.S. leadership. Officials at a satellite campus of the University of South Carolina said around 2,500 people gathered for the event.

Indian rescuers just feet away from reaching 41 workers trapped in collapsed tunnel for over 2 weeks

UTTARKASHI, India (AP) — Officials say they’re on the verge of rescuing 41 construction workers trapped in a collapsed mountain tunnel for over two weeks in northern India, after rescuers drilled their way through debris to reach them. The workers are to be pulled out through a passageway made of welded pipes, which rescuers pushed through dirt and rocks. Kirti Panwar, a state government spokesperson, said on Tuesday that about a dozen men had worked overnight to manually dig through rocks and debris, in what he said was the final stretch of the rescue operation. The workers have been trapped since Nov. 12 when a landslide in Uttarakhand state caused a portion of the 2.8-mile tunnel they were building to collapse.

Germany’s leader vows fixes for a budget crisis as the economy struggles. But he offers few details

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has vowed that his government will work “as fast as possible” to solve a budget crisis. But in a speech to parliament Tuesday, he offered few details on how he would achieve his goals of promoting clean energy and modernizing the struggling economy after a court decision struck down billions in planned spending. Scholz and his governing coalition must decide what to cut next year after Germany’s top court ruled that some 60 billion euros in spending violated debt limits set out in the constitution. The budget slashing could further slow down what is already the world’s worst-performing major economy.

Jimmy Carter set to lead presidents, first ladies in mourning and celebrating Rosalynn Carter

ATLANTA (AP) — Rosalynn Carter will be memorialized with classical music and beloved hymns, some of her favorite Biblical passages, and a rare gathering of all living U.S. first ladies and multiple presidents, including her 99-year-old husband Jimmy Carter. Tuesday’s tribute service at Glenn Memorial Church in Atlanta falls on the second of a three-day schedule of public events celebrating the former first lady and global humanitarian. She died Nov. 19 at home in Plains, Georgia, at the age of 96. Jimmy Carter’s participation in his wife’s memorials has been a day-to-day decision because of his own frail health. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will attend. They are longtime friends of the Carters. Country music stars Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood will sing.

Celebrities, politicians among those named in sex abuse suits filed under NY’s Adult Survivors Act

NEW YORK (AP) — For a year, New York’s Adult Survivors Act gave adults claiming they had been sexually assaulted a chance to file civil lawsuits, no matter how long ago the assaults occurred. It did that by suspending legal deadlines that otherwise would have made it impossible. When the one-year law expired last week, more than 3,700 filings had been made in state courts as well as an undetermined number in federal courts. Many named institutions like hospitals and the state’s prisons and jails. But several made headlines for suing well-known celebrities and politicians.