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brooklynite's JournalIsrael briefs US on plan to move Gazans ahead of Rafah invasion
Source: Politico
The Israeli military has informed aid groups and the Biden administration of a plan to begin removing Gazans from Rafah ahead of an invasion, according to a U.S. official and two other people familiar with the situation.
The Israel Defense Forces recently told the U.S. government and aid groups operating on the ground that they had developed a plan to move people out of Rafah, the main humanitarian hub in the enclave, to al-Mawasi, a small strip of land on the southern Gaza coast. The IDF sent a map of the area to aid workers this week, a copy of which POLITICO obtained.
The Biden administration has repeatedly urged Israel to avoid an invasion of Rafah unless it has a plan to protect civilians sheltering there.
The IDF told aid groups the Rafah invasion will move ahead “soon” but did not give a specific date, the two people familiar said.
Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/03/israel-gazans-rafah-invasion-00156024
Just got a confirmation: I've been elected to the King's County (Brooklyn) Democratic Committee
Petitions approved and no Primary opponent. I’m part of a reform slate that will be taking on the County Committee leadership (which has been trying to know a lot of Committee and District Leader candidate. Should be fun.
Trump will speak at the Libertarian National Convention as he woos independent voters
NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump will speak at the Libertarian National Convention in Washington, D.C. later this month as he tries to woo voters beyond the Republican base and avoid losing support to independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“Libertarians are some of the most independent and thoughtful thinkers in our Country, and I am honored to join them in Washington, DC, later this month,” Trump said in a statement issued Wednesday. “We must all work together to help advance freedom and liberty for every American, and a second Trump Administration will achieve that goal.”
He went on to make the case that, “If Libertarians join me and the Republican Party, where we have many Libertarian views, the election won’t even be close. We cannot have another four years of death, destruction, and incompetence. WE WILL WORK TOGETHER AND WIN!”
The event comes as Trump’s campaign has ramped up its attacks against Kennedy, who is running as an independent against Trump and President Joe Biden after dropping his Democratic primary bid. Kennedy has appealed to disaffected Democrats and Republicans looking for an alternative to the pending rematch of the 2020 election.
https://apnews.com/article/trump-libertarian-rfk-jr-voters-gop-biden-659e6f19dec85344bfe1f93e0ea1c0a1
May 9: New York Candidates ZOOM event with Nancy Pelosi and Hakeem Jeffries
From my New York funding circle.
NY 17--18--19: Like the combination to unlock a safe or lock, these three House seats in our own Hudson Valley are the combination to unlock or unblock the House of Representative and make Hakeem Jeffries Speaker this November. Mondaire Jones needs to take back NY-17; Pat Ryan has to hold NY-18; and Josh Riley has to send Mark Molinaro packing in NY-19. And, who better to explain what is at stake than our moderator, Speaker Emerita NANCY PELOSI?
NEWS FLASH – We just learned that joining the current all-time best Speaker of the House will be the next-time Speaker of the House Hakeem Jeffries, for our discussion of where we have been, where we are, where we are going and how we will get there! You won’t want to miss this call.
Please join The NY Buddy Group and future legislators Jones, Ryan, and Riley for conversation on policy and politics with Nancy Pelosi on May 7th at 6 PM on Zoom. It won’t get more interesting than this.
There is no minimum required to join the call but we encourage everyone to contribute as much as they can afford. Here is the link to contribute and RSVP: https://oath.vote/donate?p=nybg-may-ny&ref=nybg-cv
You will receive the zoom link 48 hours before the event.
Houthis offer education to students suspended in US protest crackdown
ReutersDUBAI, May 3 (Reuters) - Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militia, which has disrupted global shipping to display its support for Palestinians in the Gaza conflict, is now offering a place for students suspended from U.S. universities after staging anti-Israeli protests.
Students have rallied or set up tents at dozens of campuses in the United States in recent days to protest against Israel's war in Gaza, now in its seventh month.
...SNIP...
"We are serious about welcoming students that have been suspended from U.S. universities for supporting Palestinians," an official at Sanaa University, which is run by the Houthis, told Reuters. "We are fighting this battle with Palestine in every way we can."
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Sanaa University had issued a statement applauding the "humanitarian" position of the students in the United States and said they could continue their studies in Yemen.
Exclusive: RFK Jr. Campaign Operative Charged With Assault For Allegedly Choking, Punching Woman
Trent Pool, who serves as a paid consultant on the long-shot independent campaign and has been leading the effort to get Kennedy on the ballot in all 50 states, was charged with assault and criminal obstruction of breathing.
According to an NYPD spokesperson, a little after 5 a.m. on Saturday morning Pool was engaged in a “verbal dispute” with a 25-year-old woman at the ritzy Soho Grand hotel in downtown Manhattan.
Police said the woman reported that Pool “wrapped his hand around her neck making it hard for her to breath and then struck her in the face with a closed fist, causing pain.”
https://www.mediaite.com/politics/exclusive-rfk-jr-campaign-operative-charged-with-assault-for-allegedly-choking-punching-woman/
Next up: Philadelphia
The Daily PennsylvanianPhiladelphia Police Department declines to disband encampment after Penn requests immediate help
Penn asked the Philadelphia Police Department for immediate help to disband the Gaza Solidarity Encampment, a source familiar told The Daily Pennsylvanian.
However, PPD declined, asking that the University provide proof that the encampment — and the rally today, which is entering its fourth hour — presents an imminent danger. News of the request for help came as Penn Public Safety issued its fourth UPenn Alert — the first alerts since the encampment started eight days ago.
In a statement, a University spokesperson said that Penn has contacted the City of Philadelphia amid the ongoing Gaza Solidarity Encampment and related demonstrations.
“The University has been managing an encampment and surrounding protests on our campus for several days,” the spokesperson wrote. “Protest activity began to escalate overnight and has steadily continued, with large crowds in and around College Green today. We have reached out to the City of Philadelphia to ensure we have the necessary resources to keep our community safe.”
Boris Johnson turned away from polling station after forgetting to bring photo ID
Boris Johnson was turned away from his local polling station when trying to cast his vote in Thursday’s elections after forgetting to bring the required photo identity.
The former prime minister was initially told by polling station staff he would not be allowed to vote in the police and crime commissioner election in South Oxfordshire without proving his identity.
The misstep was embarrassing for Johnson because the requirement to bring photo ID is a stipulation of the Elections Act he introduced in 2022 while in Downing Street.
The Electoral Commission has warned that hundreds of thousands of people could be excluded from voting because of the law, which it said could have a disproportionate effect on some groups.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/article/2024/may/02/minister-sorry-as-veterans-find-id-card-not-valid-for-english-elections
Trump trial updates: Prosecution plays Cohen's secret recording of Trump discussing payment to Karen McDougal
Source: Yahoo News
During testimony by forensic analyst Douglas Daus, prosecutors played a secret recording Cohen made of Trump in September 2016. During the conversation, Cohen is heard telling Trump, “I need to open up a company for the transfer of all of that info regarding our friend David,” in reference to then-National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, who paid McDougal $150,000 as part of an arrangement to bury negative stories about Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign. On the tape, Cohen informs Trump that he has spoken to Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg about the transaction, and refers to “financing.” In response, Trump is heard asking, “What financing?”
Recordings played for jury: Daus, who works for the Manhattan District Attorney’s office and examined the contents of Cohen’s phones, obtained photographs, calendar meetings, contact listings and recordings that were all presented as evidence on Thursday. Cohen, who often secretly recorded his conversations with others, taped one he had with Trump in September 2016. It appeared to bolster the prosecution’s claim that Trump not only knew about the deal with the Enquirer to “catch and kill” negative stories about Trump to bolster his presidential campaign, but that he had authorized it.
In another recording, Cohen is heard referencing what he said Trump told him about paying $130,000 to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. “I can’t even tell you how many times he said to me, 'I hate the fact that we did it,' and my comment to him was, 'But every person that we’ve spoken to tells you it was the right move,’" Cohen says on the recording.
‘What have we done?’: Earlier in the day, Keith Davidson, a lawyer who represented Daniels and McDougal in financial negotiations regarding their allegations of extramarital affairs with Trump, wrapped up his testimony. Prosecutors showed the jury a text message Davidson had sent National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard after Trump was declared the winner of the 2016 election. “What have we done?” Davidson texted in an apparent reference to the deal that paid McDougal $150,000 but kept her story from going public before votes were cast. Davidson testified that “there was an understanding” that their efforts “may have in some way assisted the presidential campaign of Donald Trump.”
Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-trial-updates-prosecution-plays-cohens-secret-recording-of-trump-discussing-payment-to-karen-mcdougal-211935575.html
Face of a 75,000-year-old Neanderthal woman revealed by scientists
Source: NBC News
Particularly given that her skull was smashed into 200 pieces, possibly by a rockfall, before it was meticulously pieced together by scientists over the last six years.
This is Shanidar Z, a Neanderthal woman whose face was recreated by archaeologists at England’s University of Cambridge. By reimagining her facial features, rather than just the skull itself, the university said a report published on its website Thursday, that experts have been given new insight into what our ancient cousins actually looked like.
Turns out they may have been more similar than we thought — both in terms of their facial features and their thoughts about death.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/neanderthal-woman-face-reconstructed-iraq-scientists-cave-rcna150344
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Name: Chris BastianGender: Male
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Home country: USA
Member since: 2002
Number of posts: 94,723
