Biden is summoning congressional leaders to the White House to talk Ukraine and government funding
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will convene the top four congressional leaders at the White House on Tuesday to press lawmakers on passing an emergency aid package for Ukraine and Israel, as well as averting a looming government shutdown next month, according to a White House official. The top four leaders include House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. During the meeting, the president will discuss the “urgency” of passing the aid package, which has bipartisan support, as well as legislation to keep the federal government operating through the end of September, said the White House official, who was granted anonymity to discuss a meeting not yet publicly confirmed.
31,000 Ukrainian troops killed since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Zelenskyy says
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in action in the two years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion. Zelenskyy said that the number was far lower than estimates given by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s government. “31,000 Ukrainian military personnel have been killed in this war. Not 300,000, not 150,000, not whatever Putin and his deceitful circle have been lying about. But nevertheless, each of these losses is a great sacrifice for us”, Zelenskyy said at the “Ukraine. Year 2024” forum in Kyiv. The Ukrainian leader said that he wouldn’t disclose the number of troops that were wounded or missing.
Israel vows to target Lebanon’s Hezbollah even if cease-fire reached with Hamas in Gaza
TEL AVIV, ISRAEL (AP) — Israel’s defense minister vowed Sunday to step up attacks on Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group even if a cease-fire is reached with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Hezbollah, which has been exchanging fire with Israel throughout the war in Gaza, has said it will halt its nearly daily attacks on Israel if a cease-fire is reached in Gaza. But Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that anyone who thinks a temporary cease-fire for Gaza will also apply to the northern front is “mistaken.” “We will continue the fire, and we will do so independently from the south, until we achieve our goals,” Gallant said.
Netanyahu says a cease-fire deal would only delay ‘somewhat’ an Israeli military offensive in Rafah
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — An Israeli military offensive in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah could be “delayed somewhat” if a deal is reached for a weekslong cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday, and claimed that total victory in the territory would come within weeks once the offensive begins. Netanyahu confirmed to CBS that a deal is in the works, with no details. Talks resumed Sunday in Qatar at the specialist level, Egypt’s state-run Al Qahera TV reported, citing an Egyptian official as saying discussions would follow in Cairo with the aim of achieving the cease-fire and release of dozens of hostages held in Gaza as well as Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
Off to Michigan, Haley is staying in the race despite Trump’s easy primary win in South Carolina
TROY, Mich. (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley says it’s not “the end of our story” despite Donald Trump’s easy primary victory in South Carolina, her home state where the onetime governor had long suggested her competitiveness with the former president would show. Defying calls from South Carolina Republicans to exit the race, Haley traveled Sunday to Michigan, which holds its primary on Tuesday, speaking to a hotel ballroom packed with hundreds of supporters. In the less than 24 hours following her Saturday night loss to Trump, Haley’s campaign said that she had raised $1 million “from grassroots supporters alone,” a bump they argued “demonstrates Haley’s staying power and her appeal to broad swaths of the American public.” But with Sunday also came the end of support for Haley’s campaign from Americans for Prosperity, the political arm of the powerful Koch network.
Feleti Teo is named Tuvalu’s new prime minister after elections that ousted Taiwan supporter
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Tuvalu’s former Attorney General Feleti Teo was named prime minister of the tiny South Pacific nation Monday after elections a month ago ousted the last government leader. Teo was the only candidate nominated by his 15 lawmaker colleagues and Governor General Tofiga Vaevalu Falani declared him elected without a vote, government secretary Tufoua Panapa said in a statement. The swearing-in ceremony for Teo and his Cabinet will be held later this week. It was not immediately clear how the new government will affect China’s influence in the country of around 11,500 people halfway between Australia and Hawaii.
In water-stressed Singapore, a search for new solutions to keep the taps flowing
SINGAPORE (AP) — A crack of thunder booms as dozens of screens in a locked office flash between live video of cars splashing through wet roads, drains sapping the streets dry, and reservoirs collecting the precious rainwater across the tropical island of Singapore. A team of government employees intently monitors the water, which will be collected and purified for use by the country’s six million residents. “We make use of real-time data to manage the storm water,” Harry Seah, deputy chief executive of operations at PUB, Singapore’s National Water Agency, says with a smile while standing in front of the screens. “All of this water will go to the marina and reservoirs.”
Supporters of Brazil’s Bolsonaro stage huge demonstration to defend him amid investigations
SAO PAULO (AP) — Supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro staged a huge rally jamming a main avenue in Brazil’s biggest city Sunday to defend him against legal challenges that could put him in jail. The far-right leader said in a speech that he seeks “pacification to erase the past,” taking a more conciliatory tone than when he was in office. Bolsonaro is seeking to show his base is resilient as he is being investigated by federal police over his alleged role in the Jan. 8, 2023, attacks on government buildings by his supporters over his election loss. He wants the dozens of people still in jail for those incidents to get pardons.
Warm weather brings a taste of spring to central and western United States
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A warm front swept springlike weather across a large swath of the country Sunday in what is usually one of the coldest months of the year, sending people out of their homes to enjoy the rare winter respite but also bringing increased wildfire danger. In Omaha, Nebraska, the temperature Sunday broke 65 degrees (18.3 degrees Celsius) on a day when the average high temperature is around the freezing mark, according to the National Weather Service. “Omaha is having its second warmest February on record in its 154-year history of tracking weather,” National Weather Service meteorologist Michaela Wood said Sunday.
World Trade Organization to open biennial meeting in the United Arab Emirates as challenges loom
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The World Trade Organization will open its biennial meeting Monday in the United Arab Emirates as the bloc faces pressure from the United States and other nations ahead of a year of consequential elections around the globe. The WTO’s 164 member nations will discuss a deal to ban subsidies that contribute to overfishing, extending a pause on taxes on digital media like movies and video games, and agricultural issues. But headwinds remain for the organization and the world’s economy, particularly as the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic remains uneven across nations. Meanwhile, there are more than 50 elections affecting half the planet’s population planned for this year — perhaps none more critical for the WTO than the U.S.
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