USA

14 May 2021; MEMO: The UN Security Council will meet this weekend to discuss the situation in Israel and the Gaza Strip, the US announced Thursday, Anadolu Agency reported.

In announcing the Sunday meeting, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US's UN envoy, said the Biden administration "will continue to actively engage in diplomacy at the highest levels to try to de-escalate tensions."

14 May 2021; MEMO: White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki avoided a reporter's question whether US President Joe Biden believes Palestinians have a right to self-defense amid Israeli airstrikes, Anadolu Agency reported.

14 May 2021; MEMO: Israel has not over-reacted in its response to rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, US President Joe Biden said on Thursday as the violence continued to escalate.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Nine people were wounded Thursday evening in Rhode Island’s capital in what police there believe to be the largest shooting in city history.

Of the nine, three had serious injuries and were “maybe critical,” Providence Police Chief Col. Hugh T. Clements told reporters at the scene.

WASHINGTON (AP) — After meeting at the White House, President Joe Biden and a group of Republican senators agreed to talk again early next week as negotiations intensified over a potentially bipartisan infrastructure package that could become one piece of the administration’s ambitious $4 trillion public investment plan.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans are ready to vault Rep. Elise Stefanik into the ranks of House leadership, with the party hoping to turn the page from its searing civil war over the deposed Rep. Liz Cheney and refocus on winning control of the chamber in next year’s elections.

Stefanik, R-N.Y., a moderate turned avid defender of former President Donald Trump and his unfounded claims of 2020 election fraud, was widely expected to be elected Friday as the No. 3 House GOP leader.

WASHINGTON (AP) — What insurrection?

Flouting all evidence and their own first-hand experience, a small but growing number of Republican lawmakers are propagating a false portrayal of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, brazenly arguing that the rioters who used flagpoles as weapons, brutally beat police officers and chanted that they wanted to hang Vice President Mike Pence were somehow acting peacefully in their violent bid to overturn Joe Biden’s election.

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a major step toward returning to pre-pandemic life, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eased mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people on Thursday, allowing them to stop wearing masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings.

UNITED NATIONS, May 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The UN envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, who has been in line for a senior role at the UN since April, is expected to leave his current post, sources said.

Houthi rebels recently refused to meet with the 69-year-old British diplomat, who has held the position since 2018, raising doubts as to whether he could effectively continue his work as Yemen’s mediator.

On Friday, the US State Department blasted the Houthi rebels for skipping the opportunity for talks with Griffiths to discuss a possible resolution to the conflict in Yemen.

13 May 2021; MEMO: A star of the multi-million dollar Avengers movie franchise said it is time for sanctions to be imposed on Israel to free Palestinians.

"Sanctions on South Africa helped free its black people – it's time for sanctions on Israel to free Palestinians. Join the call," Mark Ruffalo wrote on Twitter late Tuesday.