Daniel Estrin
@DanielEstrin
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@NPR International Correspondent, usually around Jerusalem. Got a tip? DM me for my Signal.
Joined March 2009
1/ So proud of our NPR team for winning the National Press Club breaking news award for "nuanced reporting of the 1st days of the Israel-Hamas war." Memories flooding back of a nightmare that's still ongoing. The 5 winning stories in a thread below.
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Please spare a thought for the 100 people at @npr, 10% of the workforce, being laid off today, Thurs and Fri due to a $30 million advertising shortfall. The people I've met at NPR are passionate, sharp and warm. We all stand on each other's shoulders.
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An alum of my high school lives in #Kyiv. He sent these photos and a note: "Hi, Daniel. We're doing well, not planning on leaving at all. We're prepared, stocked up on food, diesel for the generator, guns and bullets for the bandits who come to rob houses. And how are you doing?"
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1/ What I saw in Gaza on the first day of the ceasefire with Israel:
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Among those I met at Israel’s Soroka hospital was an old professor of mine from #Brandeis University, Ilan Troen. His daughter and her husband were killed in their home by Gaza gunmen. He says they flung themselves over their teenage son, saving him.
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1/ @NPR interviewed @MarkRegev, senior advisor to @netanyahu, about why Israeli warplanes destroyed the @AP bureau's building in Gaza. Israel said it Hamas military intelligence used the building, but provided no evidence to back the claim. Partial transcript below:.
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1/ The Biden administration is concerned Israel is making a "major strategic error" by denying "major, possibly generational damage" to Israel's reputation worldwide over its war in Gaza, according to a State Department memo obtained by NPR.
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What I saw today in Syria: Grandpa Issam kissed his grandson goodbye. The little one has the papers to escape the fighting - and cross into Iraq. “Separation has killed the people. It has destroyed a generation,” Issam says through through tears. On @NPR:
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Photojournalist Heidi Levine said she brought a ladder to cover Pence's Western Wall visit, knowing she'd be blocked by male journalists.
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1/ In an interview with @NPR, the brother of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh called for a US investigation to provide answers on how his sister was killed while covering an Israeli army raid in May.
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Quite a packed flight from Tel Aviv to Abu Dhabi. Jared Kushner and other US and Israeli officials seen several times on plane without face masks. I asked Kushner: where are your masks? Kushner: “we have our masks.” Took folded mask out of his pocket and put it back in pocket.
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3/ "The Israelis seemed oblivious to the fact that they are facing major, possibly generational damage to their reputation not just in the region but elsewhere in the world,” the State Department memo says.
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“The twins share everything but a toothbrush and US citizenship.” Israeli-American gay couple sues after 1 twin's US citizenship is denied (from @AP)
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2/ Assistant Secretary of State Bill Russo @GPA_AS told Israeli foreign ministry officials in a call on March 13 that both the U.S. and Israel face a "major credibility problem" as a result of the "unpopular" Israeli military offensive in Gaza, according to the U.S. memo.
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4/ "We are concerned that the Israelis are missing the forest for the trees and are making a major strategic error in writing off their reputation damage,” the State Department memo says. The memo recommended pressing Israeli officials on the matter "at the highest levels.".
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The @WFP got the Nobel Peace Prize. The US is the WFP’s biggest donor. But there's one WFP program that Trump Admin stopped funding: food to Palestinians. WFP stopped giving food aid to 26,000 people in the West Bank. “Their lives have deteriorated,” WFP local director tells NPR.
BREAKING NEWS: .The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize to the World Food Programme (WFP). #NobelPrize #NobelPeacePrize
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5/ The memo says @EmmanuelNahshon disagreed with the U.S. assessment. He said public opinion polls found a "silent majority" of people in the U.S. and Europe continue to support Israel, and blamed TikTok for turning young people against Israel, according to the memo.
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4/ NPR: Why did Israel never tell AP before an hour?. REGEV: We gave them enough time to ensure that none of their people would be hurt in our operation. NPR: How long has Israel known that Hamas has been using that building? . REGEV: I can't share that information.
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2/ NPR: Why did Israel never tell AP or any media there that Hamas was allegedly in the building? . REGEV: We ensured there would not be innocent people being caught up in the crossfire, by giving adequate warning.
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1/ As Biden takes over, the US Ambassador to Israel's Twitter account quickly changed to include Palestinian territories. From "Ambassador to Israel" to "Ambassador to Israel, the West Bank and Gaza." No immediate comment yet from US Embassy or State Dept to clarify the change.
Signing off now, moving to @DavidM_Friedman. Thank you President Trump for the honor of a lifetime. Thank you @Mike_Pence, @MikePompeo, @SteveMnuchin1, Jared Kushner, @AviBerkow45, @Robertcobrien and @LightstoneA. And eternal thanks to my beloved Tammy.
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The Israeli military made improper use of a U.S.-made bomb in a deadly airstrike Thursday on a UN school compound in Gaza, current and former U.S. defense officials told me. They analyzed an image of bomb remnants documented by NPR at the site.
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Breaking: Israel's defense minister has called to halt the government's judicial overhaul, the first serving senior government minister to call to stop the legislation @netanyahu vowed to bring to a vote next week.
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5/ NPR: I still don't have an answer to why Israel never informed AP in the past previously, more than an hour before an attack, so that they could not put themselves in grave danger. REGEV: We made every effort that they weren't in grave danger.
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That’s a wrap! It was a thrill guest co-hosting @npr All Things Considered these last 2 weeks, lifted up by a tireless team of journalists & radio professionals. We interviewed senior US officials live and considered many things:.
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Very honored to receive an Edward R. Murrow award, one of the most respected awards in journalism, for this important @NPR story with @lalarian:. Edited by @larrykaplow, web edit by @alexleff. Aired on @npratc with @ailsachang.
So honored to be recognized for this award with @DanielEstrin. a piece that challenged the US military’s account that no civilians died during raid against ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al baghdadi in #Syria. Almost a year on there’s been no semblance of justice for the victims.
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More on news that US is cutting #Palestinian medical aid: Augusta Victoria hospital director tells me the US didn't notify east Jerusalem hospitals. The hospitals give cancer/other treatments unavailable in West Bank & Gaza. The US used to pay 25% of the hospital's bills. 1/3
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loud explosions boomed over the port city of Odessa and jets roared overhead just after 5 a.m after Putin declared war on Ukraine. By 6 am there were already lines at gas stations and traffic was building up as people began to head out of town (1/2).
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thread: The US is slated to close its Jerusalem Consulate on Monday, ending a 175-year diplomatic mission and further downgrading US ties with the Palestinians — by closing the de facto US representative office to the Palestinians. @USCGJerusalem.
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3/ REGEV: In doing so, we're also paying a price, because we're giving Hamas the warning as well. But what we're trying to find the right balance here between protecting innocent life and accomplishing our tactical goals in this military operation.
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Statement from State Dept to Congress on cutting $200 million in aid to West Bank/Gaza:
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A house near Prague was being torn down when paintings tumbled out of the walls. A Jewish painter hid 700 paintings & sketches there before she was killed at a Nazi camp. Now photojournalist Amos Chapple has connected the paintings to her descendants.
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I found Sesame Street in #Gaza. Bright colors and smiles and Ramadan decorations in Gaza’s oldest quarter. I saw a lot of bleakness in Gaza today, but I also saw this.
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I spent a week in #Gaza a couple weeks ago. What I saw: an exodus of young Palestinians. After years that Gaza has been mostly sealed off, Egypt opened its border, and reportedly 35,000 Palestinians have left to find a better life in the Gulf, Europe, Canada. Like these guys.
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Morning! I'm delighted to be guest hosting @NPR Weekend Edition live this Sat morning. Listen on the NPR app or your good ol’ radio. Lots to cover: top secret documents, Salman Rushdie attacked, @diaahadid in Kabul, @tanisNPR in Gaza, Aubrey Plaza @evilhag has a new film & more.
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First look on a night of anticipatipn: ICRC vehicles carrying elderly and others across Rafah border crossing. Filmed by NPR producer in Gaza, Anas Baba.
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a message in a bottle reached the shores of Gaza this week! And the story gets better from there. An @NPR exclusive:
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In a briefing, senior Israeli army officials said most Palestinians killed in recent weeks on Gaza border were unarmed —demonstrators trying to breach/damage the border fence. Death toll per the army: 26 unarmed ppl threatening border, 6 armed w/ weapons or explosives, 1 “other.”.
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"The rift growing in society is penetrating the Israeli military and the security agencies. It is a clear, immediate and tangible danger to national security. I will not lend a hand to this," said @yoavgallant in a speech. "We must stop at this moment the legislative process".
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The director says he walked the halls of his hospital today. A nurse asked how US funding cuts would affect a bone marrow transplant program. A doctor asked how it would affect the supply of chemo medicine - half of hospital's budget. (photos: Ben Gray/@lutheranworld) 3/3
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1/ NPR has sued the US Defense Department to compel it to release documents about possible civilian casualties during the 2019 US military raid in Syria that resulted in the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
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Thrilled to be guest hosting @npr @MorningEdition and @UpFirst this morning with the fabulous @LeilaFadel! I’m joining you live from Jerusalem, wave hello!
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The family of reporter #Shireen_Abu_Akleh tells @NPR it’s concerned after Palestinian officials gave the U.S. the fatal bullet for a probe. Abu Akleh’s brother Anton says no officials updated them. “We have serious doubts that this process will lead to accountability.” Statement:
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It's like the perfect reality TV show for our time. 180 people sick with coronavirus & stuck in a Jerusalem hotel until they get better. They call it the Hotel Corona. It's quite the guest list. Check out our podcast here, or wherever you get podcasts.
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1/ When @POTUS visits this East Jerusalem hospital Friday to announce a US donation, he’ll see a century-old building with angels carved into the arched entrance. If he had the time, he could wander the grounds and see a microcosm of Palestinian life and its daily limitations:
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After investigating (and obsessing) for 5 years, I am very pleased to present:
In 1995, two medieval manuscripts disappeared from a West Bank synagogue. In this @NPR #longread, @danielestrin shadows the international hunt to bring them home.
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Safaa Odah is a cartoonist in Gaza. You don’t need to know Arabic to relate to her caricatures about the coronavirus. Here’s her take on the virus and the conflicts of the Mideast. Gaza now has its first reported virus cases. She’s on Instagram @
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Gaza used to attract tourists. Now it’s one of the most isolated spots on earth. @abubakrbashir4 and I retraced the old tourist route through Gaza. Hear what we found - today on @npratc.
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Before the US cut the $ this week, it held it up for months. Augusta Victoria hospital took loans from banks & medical suppliers. "We reached our maximum with loans," director Walid Nammour says. He's hoping for $13 million from EU, says Palestinian minister has vowed help. 2/3
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Palestinians held unprecedented protests against conditions in Gaza. Hamas responded harshly. @abubakrbashir4 and I spoke to an eyewitness who watched a 70-yr-old leader of his family get beaten, & @amnesty’s @Hind_Gaza who was detained. On @npratc :
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Story I heard today in #Kyiv from a mother: Six year old daughter comes home from school and says: “Putin is a smelly sock.”.
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1/ Want to get married on Zoom? Utah offers that option. 100s of couples have Zoomed in from Israel, where civil marriage is banned. Israel refused to recognize the marriages, but now an Israeli court has ruled them to be valid. What I reported on @npr @MorningEdition:.
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What a ride! With the most gracious guide. Thank you @ailsachang.
There are some people at @npr I have secretly fantasized co-hosting @npratc with. @DanielEstrin is one of them!! He hosts our show for the very first time these next two weeks and I am so thrilled my dream came true. Welcome, Daniel. You already sound amazing.
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6:15 am @NPR studio selfie with @rachelnpr and @NPRinskeep live on @MorningEdition 🎙 - there’s even a Red Phone in there ☎️
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Journalists on the flight - and presumably others on the flight - took rapid COVID tests and had to test negative in order to board.
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Jesus’ tomb, seen from roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. We’re waiting for the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem to enter the tomb & emerge with the Holy Fire, to be flown to capitals of Orthodox Christianity. Church says usually 12,000 attend. This year 2,500.
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1/ As world attention focused on U.S. elections Tuesday, Israel took the rare step of demolishing a Palestinian hamlet, including structures donated by the UK, Sweden and other EU countries, @btselem says. (photo: Btselem)
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Many Palestinian Americans spend their summers visiting the West Bank and connecting to their homeland. This week some were the targets of a violent rampage by settlers. What happened, through the eyes of Palestinian Americans:.
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Update: the Pentagon says it'll review additional info from NPR and others regarding claims that US forces killed & wounded civilians in the 2019 raid against the founder of ISIS. New details from my reporting, today on Up First @NPRWeekend @ayesharascoe.
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long time coming, but I finally became a supporting member of my hometown @NPR station, @stlpublicradio. Three minutes after clicking the donate button, station manager @timjeby sent me a personal thank you note. I'm very moved. Appreciative of public radio today and every day.
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Our @NPR interview with @RonanFarrow on his @NewYorker investigation into Israeli spyware company @NSOgroup: an inside look at NSO’s office, the employees who quit after Khashoggi’s killing, and if Ronan thinks he was hacked.
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I am honored and thrilled to be joining @NPR next week as Jerusalem correspondent. Stay tuned!.
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Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking reelection on Tuesday. He has ruled Israel for 10 years. During that time, Israeli attitudes have shifted further to the right. Some examples:.
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What does it take to flee Gaza today? $5000 per adult & $2500 per child. For most Gazans, it's the only way to leave the war zone. On March 1, around 400 travelers paid an estimated $1.3 million total, according to an NPR analysis of the traveler lists.
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“There’s no imminent famine. I think that’s a complete lie and fabrication,” said Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister @AmbDermer on @npr to @LeilaFadel about the recent Gaza assessment by the world’s leading experts on hunger.
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Dion, @WSJ reporter in #Beirut, is still pulling glass from his head. His wife @SeemaJilani saved their 4-yr-old daughter’s life. His computer and sofa were tossed into the street. Listen to @DionNissenbaum on @NPR with @NoelKing:.
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1/ Israel is advising its tourism and business sectors to avoid promoting democracy or discussing sensitive political topics with residents of the United Arab Emirates, its new peace partner.
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@lourdesgnavarro St. Louis, MO is:.-home to America’s oldest and largest outdoor musical theater, @TheMuny (102 years old today).-Brigham Young says Joseph Smith told him the Garden of Eden was in Jackson County, MO.-hometown to gregmyre1 @jruwitch @Yukinoguchi and yours truly.
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Tune in today and Sunday - I’m filling in as guest host of All Things Considered from NPR in Washington, giving @scottdetrow a well deserved break. From Maui to the moon, we’ll consider all things.
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Hi from @NPR headquarters in Washington! I’m honored to guest host All Things Considered today. Coming up: the Senate debates a bill on climate change & inflation, Palestinian pop singer Bashar Murad is on a mission, and comedian Abbi Jacobson of BROAD CITY on her newest show!
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An Israeli army official tells reporters 300-400 Israeli settlers took part in Sunday’s unprecedented riot, torching Palestinian homes and leaving a man dead. Police tell me only 8 Israelis were arrested and all have been freed, except for 2 under house arrest. More on @npratc.
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Acting like a celebrity in LA whooooo!.
12+ years I’ve worked here and I still get to put new faces to familiar voices. @DanielEstrin, International Correspondent, Jerusalem, here, at NPR West!
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NPR's only podcast dedicated to international storytelling, @roughly, has been cancelled and its host @radiogrego has been laid off due to budget cuts. No one does cinematic audio stories from around the world like they do. Now they're looking for a new home.
I've been getting notes like this and they mean so much to me (and to the many others who make the show). I still believe in the mission of the show and would love to find rough translation a new home. Now's the time to tell a friend to subscribe!.
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My story on the Trump Admin closing the US Jerusalem Consulate is here:. With input from former Consul General Ed Abington, @SenatorLeahy’s office and veteran Mideast experts @scottlasensky @aarondmiller2. Help from colleagues @michelekelemen @alexleff.
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Ukraine-Russia family update: . Cousin Sergey in Kyiv was drafted. He’s on his way to his army unit. Cousin Eugene in Moscow texted this, below. more on the cousins here…
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Under orders from the Trump administration, #USAID is preparing to lay off most of its #Palestinian aid workers in its West Bank & Gaza mission, according to U.S. government communications reviewed by @NPR. 1/.
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1/ Israeli health officials urge their country's leaders to help vaccinate the whole Palestinian population, outgoing top health official Itamar Grotto told @NPR: “This is really important to vaccinate the entire Palestinian Authority population & I believe it will go this way.”.
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my little scoop for @NPR. Jerusalem antiquities dealers arrested on suspicion of tax evasion and money laundering with sales to @HobbyLobby
The arrests could have a chilling effect on Jerusalem's antiquities market
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A suspected Chinese spy in the Kiwi parliament. A break in. A publisher afraid to pick up a book on China’s influence. @rob_schmitz has Part 1 of a new @NPR series on how China’s shaping things around the world to its liking. An intriguing listen: .
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1/ "It's not rumors. Something is cooking" -- #Gaza political analyst @MkhaimarA. Diplomats are trying to mediate a big truce deal between #Israel and #Hamas: a prisoner swap, a long-term ceasefire, and rehabilitation of Gaza. In the meantime, Israel is offering some sweeteners.
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"I think Anne Frank is like, as a friend for me.". Reading Anne Frank's diary in secret, in Afghanistan. Classic @diaahadid storytelling: . @NPR.
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Jerusalem’s Great Synagogue will be closed on the Sabbath for the first time in its history. #coronavirus.
לראשונה בתולדותיו בית הכנסת הגדול בירושלים יסגור שעריו (צייצתי השבוע על חשיבות הפיקוח על התפילות, והיו שלא אהבו, אבל הנה, הגענו לשלב הזה כצפוי - וטוב שיש אחריות קהילתית)
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It appears that more Israelis rallied in one spot against Netanyahu in Tel Aviv tonight than did Palestinians against Trump’s declaration on Jerusalem.
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As part of the effort to stop the war, Ukraine has set up a hotline for Russian women concerned about their sons/husbands/boyfriends etc. It’s the “Come Back from Ukraine Alive” hotline, said an advisor to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.
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Not just Jamal Khashoggi - Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is accused of trying to track down dissidents in other countries, @jackienortham reports. Gripping report:.
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The US says it protected noncombatants during the raid on ISIS leader Baghdadi, but #NPR has learned that helicopter strikes killed 2 civilians & maimed a 3rd, according to the wounded man & shrapnel image analysis by @marcgarlasco. @lalarian and I report:
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1/ Do Palestinians In the Israeli-Occupied West Bank Live Under Apartheid?. That word is taboo in Israel, but Israelis debated the question when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to annex parts of the territory this summer. Radio story on @npratc:.
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Hotel Corona!.
.@IndieWire has named @Roughly’s episode “Hotel Corona” one of the best of the year (so far).
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A U.S. official told me that at least one dissent cable opposing the consulate closure had been sent to senior @StateDept officials in Washington. The diplomatic practice of sending dissent memos is used in rare cases to discreetly protest major policy decisions.
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NPR’s Baghdadi raid investigation prompted Congress members @RepSaraJacobs @RoKhanna @RepJasonCrow to introduce a bill requiring @DeptofDefense to reinvestigate civilian casualty claims from US military operations since 2011.
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2/ Anton Abu Akleh, 58, works with the United Nations in Mogadishu, Somalia. Now he’s back in his childhood home, where he grew up with his sister Shireen.
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I'm filling in for @ayesharascoe as guest host of @NPRWeekend this Christmas & Hanukkah morning! On the show: @FadiKattan in Bethlehem, @HadagNahash in Jerusalem, a cranky weatherman, dinosaurs, @joannakakissis @cwmiii3 @ElBeardsley @Bob_Mondello & more.
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“Advocate” won a best documentary Emmy. It’s about a lawyer who has faced death threats for representing Palestinians facing terrorism charges in Israeli courts. Here’s my profile of her & the surprising turn her story takes just before the credits roll:.
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