The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it will give Ukraine antipersonnel mines to help it slow Russia’s battlefield advances, marking the second major shift on U.S. military support for Kyiv in days. After allowing Ukraine to use longer-range American missiles to launch strikes deeper into Russia, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the shift in Washington’s policy on antipersonnel land mines for Ukraine was needed to counter changing Russian tactics. The war, which reached its 1,000-day milestone on Tuesday, has largely been going Russia’s way. Moscow’s bigger army is slowly pushing Ukraine’s forces backward in the eastern Donetsk region, while Ukrainian civilians are being maimed and killed by Russian drones and missiles often fired from inside Russia.

Former minister Ayelet Shaked said on Thursday that Australia denied her a visa to enter the country. The reason? Shaked’s opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state, a fact that might “incite discord.” Shaked was invited to participate in a conference of  the conference of the Australia Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) for a “strategic dialogue” between Israel and Australia. The head of the AIJAC, Colin Rubenstein, called the step “disgraceful.” “It is extraordinary that a government that refuses to take any meaningful action against an Iranian ambassador who effectively calls for genocide would act so undiplomatically towards a friend,” he said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Matt Gaetz withdrew Thursday as President-elect Donald T

WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S.

Russia has sent a gift of more than 70 animals to North Korea for the Pyongyang Zoo, including bears, yaks, ducks and cockatoos. In another sign of the growing cooperation between the countries, the animals were flown to Pyongyang aboard a government plane, escorted by officials and experts from the Moscow Zoo, according to a government statement released Wednesday. “Historically, animals always have played a special role in relations between states. They have been given as a sign of support, kindness and care,” Russia’s Natural Resources Minister Alexander Kozlov, who traveled with the animals, said in televised remarks. The delivery included an African lion, two bears, two domestic yaks, 25 pheasants, 40 mandarin ducks and five white cockatoos, the statement said.

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Matt Gaetz withdrew Thursday as President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general following continued scrutiny over a federal trafficking investigation that cast doubt on the former congressman’s ability to be confirmed as the nation’s chief federal law enforcement officer. The Florida Republican’s announcement came one day after meeting with senators in an effort to win their support for his confirmation to lead the Justice Department. “While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz said in a statement announcing his decision.

The United States State Department issued a sharp condemnation after photos emerged of Israel’s National Security Minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, visiting the grave of Rabbi Meir Kahane.
In a strongly worded statement, a State Department spokesperson rebuked the visit, emphasizing the U.S.’s firm stance against the glorification of terrorism.
“As we’ve said in previous and similar occasions, celebrating the legacy of a terrorist and a terrorist organization is abhorrent. We strongly condemn any attempt to whitewash acts of terrorism,” the spokesperson declared.