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While Russia talks peace, it expands invasion

(NYTimes) — As the United States and Russia begin talks to end the war, Moscow is pressing its advantage on the battlefield by closing in on Dnipropetrovsk, one of Ukraine’s largest regions and one with a major industrial base. Russian troops are less than 3 miles from the region’s border, and they have been pushing forward in recent days. Should the Russian army cross from the eastern Donetsk region into Dnipropetrovsk, it would deal a big blow to morale in Ukraine — marking the fifth region to face partial Russian occupation. It could complicate Ukraine’s position in territorial negotiations that might arise during peace talks.

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Hamas says it has returned another body it believes is Shiri Bibas

(NYTimes) — Hamas on Friday said it had turned over to the Red Cross the body of a woman that Hamas officials believe is Shiri Bibas, the Israeli mother whose capture with her two young sons during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack became a symbol of the country’s anguish. Bibas’ remains were initially believed to have to been repatriated to Israel on Thursday, with those of her two children, as part of a negotiated exchange for Palestinian prisoners. With a DNA test, Israeli officials then determined the body was that of another person. The Israeli military said that news reports of the repatriation were under review.

Pope is in a ‘good mood’ but ‘not out of danger,’ his doctors say

(NYTimes) — Pope Francis’ complex lung infection is not immediately life-threatening, his doctors said Friday, from the Rome hospital in which he has been treated for the past week, but they warned he is “not out of danger.” Francis, 88, who had part of a lung removed in his youth, would remain in the hospital for at least an additional week, doctors said. Francis, they said, had been prescribed “many drugs” to treat a bronchial infection that had developed into double pneumonia, but he was not on a respirator. The doctors said he was in a “good mood,” but his condition remained critical.

3 people killed in shooting outside Kentucky driver’s license office

(NYTimes) — Three people were fatally shot outside a driver’s license office in Louisville, Kentucky, on Friday, and several people fled in a vehicle, police said. The victims were found in the parking lot, the Louisville Metro Police Department said in a statement posted to social media. One man died at the scene, and two women were taken to a hospital, where they died, police said. There were “no known suspects,” police said in the statement. Maj. Donald Boeckman, a division commander, said at a news conference that aired on local television stations that officials were still investigating, collecting video surveillance and interviewing witnesses.

South Carolina death row inmate chooses to be executed by a firing squad

(NYTimes) — A South Carolina man on death row has chosen death by firing squad as his method of execution, his lawyer said Friday. If his execution is carried out, he will be the first person killed in that manner in the state’s history. Brad Sigmon, 67, who was convicted in the 2001 murder of his former girlfriend’s parents in Taylors, South Carolina, is set to be executed March 7. Sigmon — who had to choose between electrocution, lethal injection or firing squad — chose to be fatally shot because of concerns about South Carolina’s lethal injection process, his lawyer, Gerald “Bo” King, said.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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