CDC union says vaccine misinformation put staff at risk after Atlanta shooting

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Deadly violence not random as staff have endured ‘months of mistreatment, neglect and vilification’, says union

A union representing US Centers for Disease Control employees has demanded that the federal government condemn vaccine misinformation after a man who evidently blamed the Covid-19 vaccination for making him depressed and suicidal aimed gunfire Friday at the CDC’s headquarters in Atlanta.

The 30-year-old shooting suspect, who killed a police officer and died during the attack, had also tried to get into the CDC’s headquarters – but he was stopped by guards before driving to a pharmacy across the street and opening fire, a law enforcement official told the Associated Press on Saturday.

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Texas redistricting fight with Democrats ‘could last years’, threatens Greg Abbott

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Governor warns lawmakers who left to foil redistricting plan that he coould call special session to extend battle

Texas governor, Greg Abbott, has stepped up his war of words with Democratic lawmakers who have left the state to foil an aggressive redistricting plan aimed at giving his Republican party five additional seats in Congress, saying on Sunday that the fight “could literally last years”.

Abbott issued his new threat on Fox News Sunday, saying that he would use his powers to call a special session of the Texas legislature to extend the battle indefinitely. The special session lasts 30 days, he said, “and as soon as this one is over, I’m going to call another one, then another one, then another one, then another one”.

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Europe’s leaders raise pressure on Trump to involve Ukraine in Putin talks

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Move comes as Germany warns White House against any deal hatched ‘over heads of Europeans and Ukrainians’

Europe’s leaders have raised the pressure on Donald Trump to involve Ukraine in a planned summit with Vladimir Putin, as Germany warned the White House against any deal hatched “over the heads of Europeans and Ukrainians”.

Speaking before a bilateral meeting expected to take place between the US and Russian leaders on Friday in Alaska, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said he hoped and assumed that Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, would also be involved.

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UK’s chief rabbi criticises Labour’s Palestine pledge at march for hostages

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Sir Ephraim Mirvis joins relatives of hostages in calling for their release before any recognition of a Palestinian state

The chief rabbi has criticised Labour’s pledge to recognise a Palestinian state at a “national march for the hostages” in central London organised by a number of Jewish groups.

Family members of Israeli hostages taken on 7 October also joined the march on Downing Street to urge the release of those being held by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

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Earthquake of magnitude 6.1 strikes western Turkey, disaster authority says – Reuters

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  1. Earthquake of magnitude 6.1 strikes western Turkey, disaster authority says  Reuters
  2. Map: 6.1-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Turkey  The New York Times
  3. Magnitude 6.1 earthquake hits Turkey, felt in Istanbul  The Hill
  4. Earthquake of magnitude 6.1 strikes Turkey  Hindustan Times
  5. Magnitude 6.1 earthquake strikes Turkey, causing about a dozen buildings to collapse  AP News
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Europe urges Trump to use sanctions pressure ahead of Putin summit – Financial Times

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  1. Europe urges Trump to use sanctions pressure ahead of Putin summit  Financial Times
  2. Zelenskiy wins EU, NATO backing as he seeks place at Trump-Putin talks  Reuters
  3. Trump Live Updates: Vance Says U.S. Is Working to Set Up Meeting With Trump, Putin and Zelensky  The New York Times
  4. Alaska summit: Europe allies urge Trump not to deal with Putin without Ukraine  BBC
  5. European Leaders Want to Speak to Trump Before He Meets Putin  Bloomberg.com
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Netanyahu Doubles Down on Gaza Offensive After Global Backlash – The New York Times

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  1. Netanyahu Doubles Down on Gaza Offensive After Global Backlash  The New York Times
  2. Netanyahu defends Gaza plans as Israel heavily criticised at UN Security Council  BBC
  3. PM stands by choice to approve Gaza City takeover despite opposition from military officials  The Times of Israel
  4. Netanyahu defends planned military offensive in Gaza and lashes out at 'global campaign of lies'  AP News
  5. Hostage families call for nationwide strike as Israel prepares to escalate war  CNN
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Germany’s arms embargo signals sharp downturn in relations with Israel – The Times of Israel

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  1. Germany’s arms embargo signals sharp downturn in relations with Israel  The Times of Israel
  2. Germany's Merz defends partial weapons halt to Israel  DW
  3. Germany, long opposed to E.U. pressure on Israel, suspends arms shipments  The Washington Post
  4. Germany's arms embargo on Israel isn't a betrayal, it's a moral reckoning | Opinion  Haaretz
  5. Germany Says It Will Suspend Military Exports to Israel for Use in Gaza  The New York Times
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Prince Harry considers founding new charity after Sentebale dispute

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Duke of Sussex ‘absolutely committed’ to supporting children and young people in Lesotho and Botswana

Prince Harry is considering establishing a new charity after a dispute that led to him leaving Sentebale, a spokesperson has said.

It comes after the Duke of Sussex was criticised by the Charity Commission for allowing a row with the chair of Sentebale, which he co-founded in 2006, to “play out publicly”.

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Ukrainian drones hit oil refinery 2,000 km from border in first reported strike in Russia’s Komi Republic – The Kyiv Independent

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  1. Ukrainian drones hit oil refinery 2,000 km from border in first reported strike in Russia's Komi Republic  The Kyiv Independent
  2. Ukraine says it hit Russian oil refinery in drone exchanges; key talks loom  Al Jazeera
  3. Ukraine drone attack kills one, damages industrial facility in Saratov, Russia says  Reuters
  4. Ukrainian Drone Strike Kills One, Damages Industrial Site, Russia Says  Newsweek
  5. Ukraine Strikes ‘Industrial’ Facility in Russia’s Saratov Region  Bloomberg.com
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Confusion over the Alaska summit shows Vladimir Putin still calls the shots

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Donald Trump rewarding the Kremlin’s hardline attitude shows Russia can still sideline Ukraine from deal to end war

In the five months since Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy met at the Oval Office in late February, Ukrainian officials have worked hard to repair the damage of that day, which ended with the Ukrainian president being kicked out of the White House.

With advice from European allies, Zelenskyy recalibrated his strategy for dealing with the Trump administration, and there was a feeling it was broadly going well. “We managed to reset communications, to find a new language to work with Trump,” said one senior official in Kyiv a week ago.

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