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White House unaware of timeline for Israel’s shift to less-intense Gaza operations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

The White House doesn’t know when Israel plans to shift to a less-intense phase of its retaliation against Hamas, a senior administration official told analysts Thursday evening, adding that the war could last deep into 2024.Brett McGurk, the National Security Council’s top Middle East official, held a Zoom briefing with a handful of experts on Thursday, during which he discussed the Biden administration’s thinking on the roiling conflict. Three people familiar with the 45-minute conversation, granted anonymity to speak freely about the private chat, said McGurk was candid about what the U.S. knows and doesn’t.“We don’t know when the downshift is going to happen,” McGurk said, per one of the people, though the senior aide noted they’ve seen encouraging signs Israel is moving toward lower-intensity operations, namely the announced withdrawal of five brigades from Gaza.The administration in recent days has breathed a small sigh of relief that Israel will no longer conduct la...

Blinken opens latest urgent Mideast tour in Turkey as fears grow that Gaza war may engulf region

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

ISTANBUL (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has kicked off his latest urgent Middle East diplomatic mission in Turkey, as fears mount that Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza may explode into a broader conflict. Blinken’s fourth visit in three months comes amid worrying developments outside of Gaza, including in Lebanon, northern Israel, the Red Sea and Iraq, that have put intense strains on what had been a modestly successful U.S. push to prevent a regional conflagration in the weeks after the war began, and growing international criticism of Israel’s military operation.Blinken was meeting Saturday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to discuss what Turkey and others can do to exert influence, particularly on Iran and its proxies, to ease soaring tensions, speed up humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza and begin in earnest to plan for reconstruction and governance of postwar Gaza, much of which has been reduced to rubble by three mon...

Word Game: Jan. 6, 2024

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — HARROWED (HARROWED: HAR-oed: Tormented; distressed.)Average mark 40 wordsTime limit 50 minutesCan you find 54 or more words in HARROWED? The list will be published Monday.YESTERDAY’S WORD — REGALLY rage rale rally real really regal relay rely earl early gale gall gallery galley gayer gear glare glary gley gray grey gyral gyre aery ager allergy alley ally argyle lager large largely layer legal lyre year yellTo purchase the Word Game book, visit WordGameBooks.com. Order it now for just $5 while supplies last!RULES OF THE GAME:1. Words must be of four or more letters.2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible.4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.Contact Word Game creator Ka...

Bridge: Jan. 6, 2024

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

“If you never hit a bad shot … you’ll be the first person who didn’t.” — a noted golf instructor.We all make errors. Many are avoidable — just lapses born of a loss of focus. When West led a heart against today’s slam, South discarded a diamond on the ace, thereby (he thought) avoiding a guess for the queen. He drew trumps and took the A-K of clubs, expecting a normal 3-2 break.When West discarded, South tried for a 12th trick by leading a diamond to his jack(!). But West won, and East got a club trick.LAST DIAMONDSouth could have succeeded after he took the top clubs. He could take the A-K of diamonds, ruff a diamond, lead a trump to dummy and pitch a club — a loser on a loser — on the last diamond. When West won, he would have to concede a ruff-sluff.But South’s big mistake came earlier: He had a blind spot at Trick One. South should discard a club on the ace of hearts. He is sure of three diamond tricks — 12 ...

Ask Amy: I can’t abide the family dinners anymore. Should I tell them why?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

Dear Amy: I have three sisters. Our parents are elderly.Related ArticlesAdvice | Ask Amy: I’m the bride, and I don’t want any baby to change my wedding plan Advice | Ask Amy: I couldn’t bring myself to do my boyfriend’s ‘favorite thing’ Advice | Ask Amy: My boyfriend says it’s over because of the surprise visitor Advice | Ask Amy: This is when I realized I had waited too long to leave my girlfriend Advice | Ask Amy: I worry about affording vacations if I move out of my parents’ house We have been getting together for a potluck dinner at my parents’ house to celebrate birthdays and other occasions, usually once a month.This makes it easier for our folks so they do not have to leave their home.The issue is that my parents and three sisters are very negative people.The conversation is always about how inadequate our current politicians are. They constantly spr...

Harriette Cole: I’m 21 and a barista. Did I make a mistake?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

DEAR HARRIETTE: I’m a 21-year-old woman who made the decision not to go to college.Related ArticlesAdvice | Harriette Cole: How should I address this awkward situation with my friends? Advice | Harriette Cole: I tried to avert this friend drama, and it had the opposite effect Advice | Harriette Cole: My boyfriend lied about work to get time to himself. How do I deal with that? Advice | Harriette Cole: I was shocked to learn what my son does at school Advice | Harriette Cole: Find the right life story to make your new year better I have found myself working as a Starbucks barista, stuck in the same town I grew up in. My friends from high school are about to graduate and secure positions at Fortune 500 companies.I find myself overwhelmed with regret after hearing of their success. I’m questioning my choices and wondering if I made a mistake by not pursuing a traditional education.I am consideri...

Let’s Seize This Opportunity to Destroy Harvard! 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

The entrance to Harvard Yard in Cambridge, Mass., on Jan. 2, 2024.Photo: David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty ImagesShould Claudine Gay have resigned as president of Harvard? Are conservatives right that a rabidly pro-Hamas left has captured Harvard? Are liberals correct that the fascistic right has launched an all-out assault on academic freedom, at Harvard? The New York Times has explored these questions (about Harvard) over the course of almost 17,000 articles.These are indeed fascinating topics. However, they ignore a key issue: That for anyone with a progressive perspective, Harvard should not be either reformed (to eliminate its wokeness) or protected (from the forces of reaction). Rather, it should be razed to the ground.Then, after Harvard has been razed, we must salt the earth, Carthage-style, so a new Harvard does not grow in its place. Next we have to destroy the rest of the Ivy League. Finally, anyone with enough energy left over should sail an emissions-free ship t...

In a second Trump or Biden term, who’d be the next defense chief?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

The presidential election is still 10 months away, but that hasn’t stopped water cooler speculation about who might lead the Pentagon in a potential second term for President Joe Biden or Donald Trump.Biden made history when he announced that he would tap retired Gen. Lloyd Austin as the first Black defense secretary, a pick POLITICO first reported in December 2020. If he wins a second term, Biden may want to break another barrier: putting a woman atop the Pentagon for the first time.While Austin isn’t expected to leave his post early — and a senior administration official told POLITICO there are no conversations underway about replacing him — a number of women’s names are circulating in national security circles.POLITICO took a look at some of the top contenders, which emerged out of conversations with DOD and White House insiders, as well as former officials in Trump’s circle. They all were granted anonymity to speak candidly about decisions still very early in the makin...

Which young arms could Red Sox target in trade?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

Every time he’s spoken publicly this offseason, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has extolled the importance of bolstering the club’s starting rotation. And not just for this season, but for many years to come.Translation, he’s not looking for a one-year rental, but an up-and-comer who offers multiple years of team control.Trading for that kind of young standout would be the biggest move the franchise could possibly make, but getting a deal done won’t be easy. Acquiring anyone like that would be costly, likely necessitating at least one of Boston’s top young players — Triston Casas, Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, Kyle Teel — plus a lot more on top of that.But if Breslow were to swing a franchise-altering blockbuster, who could he actually get? There aren’t that many young, controllable starting pitchers out there who’d really move the needle, but if the Red Sox were to take the plunge, here are a few arms who might be worth the pr...

A timeline of key moments leading to Japan planes colliding. Human error is seen as a possible cause

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:06 GMT

It only took 18 minutes to evacuate the 379 passengers of Japan Airlines Flight 516 after their plane burst into flames just after touchdown at Tokyo’s Haneda airport Tuesday evening. A smaller coast guard Bombardier Dash-8 aircraft, preparing to take off to deliver urgent aid to quake-hit central Japan, was using the same runway when the two collided. The captain of the coast guard craft escaped with burns but his five crew members died.The Associated Press collected accounts from officials and transcripts of traffic control communication. Here is a look at key moments leading to the collision. TRAFFIC CONTROLSTranscripts of the recorded communication, released by the transport ministry Wednesday, at 5:43 p.m., show airport traffic control and the JAL Airbus A350 establish communications four minutes before landing. Two minutes later, traffic control tells the JAL plane it’s allowed to land on the designated runway, 34R, with the pilot saying “cleared to land.”Just 10 seconds...