Here are a few news stories that caught our attention during the week of July 28 – August 4, 2024. We’re watching what’s happening in Israel, Lebanon, and the general Middle East region; we’re staying up to date on diplomacy and other foreign affairs related to China and Russia; we’re celebrating progress and achievements in the armed forces.
1. Israel’s Security Cabinet Approves Military Response to Rocket Attack From Lebanon (New York Times; July 29, 2024). Fears linger as Lebanon awaits Israeli retaliation for a strike that killed 12 children and teenagers.
“Tensions were running high on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border on Monday in anticipation of an escalation in hostilities, after Israel’s security cabinet authorized its leaders to decide on the nature and timing of an Israeli military response to a deadly rocket attack from Lebanon last weekend.”
2. The Israel-Hezbollah war that no one wants could finally blow up (CNN; July 29, 2024).
“For months now, the international community has been trying to de-escalate tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. With Iran’s strongest proxy estimated to have at least 150,000 missiles and rockets pointing south, the fear is of a war that would devastate Lebanon, and do serious damage to Israel.”
3. US must do more to counter China’s actions, No. 2 diplomat says (Reuters; July 31, 2024).
“U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said on Tuesday that Washington must do more to counter Chinese actions, including its strategy for creating military bases and its pursuit of rare-earth minerals in Africa.
Campbell told a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that competition with China was the “defining geopolitical challenge confronting modern American diplomacy” and said the U.S. Navy and Air Force needed to step up their games in the Indo-Pacific.”
4. August 1: Russia prisoner exchange news (CNN). Wonderful news!
“Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former US marine Paul Whelan and a number of Americans are expected to be released as part of a large-scale prisoner swap between the US and Russia that is under way, according to a senior administration official.”
5. Inside the deal that led to a blockbuster prisoner swap between U.S., Russia (Washington Post; August 1, 2024).
“The months of complex negotiations, near misses and high-stakes diplomacy that resulted in the largest prisoner exchange since the Cold War and freedom for a Wall Street Journal reporter.”
6. US Army captain becomes first female nurse to graduate from the Army’s elite Ranger Course (CNN; August 1, 2024). A US Army captain and pediatric ICU nurse became the first female nurse to graduate from Army Ranger School last month.
“I want to help people understand that your most difficult times are where you grow the most,” she said.