Airstrike kills Hamas leader’s wife and child; Israel demands the rocket fire stop
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Hamas’ shadowy military chief escaped an apparent Israeli assassination attempt that killed his wife and infant son, the militant group said Wednesday as Israel’s prime minister warned that the bombardment of Gaza will continue until rocket fire out of the Palestinian territory stops.
The airstrike on a home where Mohammed Deif’s family members were staying — and the tough talk from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — came after the collapse of cease-fire talks in Cairo on Tuesday.
In a nationally televised address, Netanyahu showed little willingness to return to the negotiating table after six weeks of war with Hamas.
“We are determined to continue the campaign with all means and as is needed,” he said, his defense minister by his side. “We will not stop until we guarantee full security and quiet for the residents of the south and all citizens of Israel.”
More than 2,000 Palestinians have been killed in the fighting, most of them civilians, according to U.N. and Palestinian medical officials. Sixty-seven people have died on the Israeli side, all but three of them soldiers.
Obama meets with business, tech leaders, weighs broader executive move on immigration
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is considering key changes in the nation’s immigration system requested by tech, industry and powerful interest groups, in a move that could blunt Republicans’ election-year criticism of the president’s go-it-alone approach to immigration.
Administration officials and advocates said the steps would go beyond the expected relief from deportations for some immigrants in the U.S. illegally that Obama signaled he’d adopt after immigration efforts in Congress collapsed. Following a bevy of recent White House meetings, top officials have compiled specific recommendations from business groups and other advocates whose support could undercut GOP claims that Obama is exceeding his authority to help people who have already violated immigration laws.
“The president has not made a decision regarding next steps, but he believes it’s important to understand and consider the full range of perspectives on potential solutions,” said White House spokesman Shawn Turner.
One of the more popular requests among business and family groups is a change in the way green cards are counted that would essentially free up some 800,000 additional visas the first year, advocates say.
The result would be threefold: It would lessen the visa bottleneck for business seeking global talent; shorten the green card line for those being sponsored by relatives, a wait that can stretch nearly 25 years; and potentially reduce the incentive for illegal immigration by creating more legal avenues for those wanting to come, as well as those already here.
Ukraine takes over large part of Luhansk from rebels; 52 reported killed near Donetsk
DONETSK, Ukraine — After days of street battles and weeks of shelling, Ukrainian troops made a significant push Wednesday into rebel-held territory, claiming control over a large part of the separatist stronghold of Luhansk and nearly encircling Donetsk, the largest rebel-held city.
The advance of the Ukrainian army against pro-Russian separatists comes as the civilian death toll is mounting from sustained artillery strikes and rebel cities are slipping into a humanitarian disaster. At least 52 deaths were reported Wednesday, along with 64 wounded — and because of the dangers of the war zone in eastern Ukraine, no deaths were reported from Luhansk, meaning the actual toll could be even higher.
Ukrainian troops have been trying for weeks to drive the rebels out of Luhansk and cut off Donetsk, a city of 1 million that has shrunk by a third as frightened residents fled. In the last few days, several neighborhoods in Donetsk have been hit with sustained artillery fire and fighting on the city’s outskirts has become more intense.
The death toll mounted quickly on Wednesday. In the Donetsk region, 43 locals were killed and 42 wounded in less than two days, including in two deadly artillery attacks Wednesday afternoon in the capital of Donetsk, local authorities said. In addition, nine troops died and 22 were wounded in fighting in a town outside Donetsk.
Luhansk city authorities reported running battles between the two sides. By early evening, government forces took control of “significant parts” of Luhansk, an eastern city just 12 miles from the Russian border, said Andriy Lysenko, a spokesman for Ukraine’s National Security Council.
By wire sources