US News

• The National Guard remains deployed to fight wars in the Middle East. [Link]
• SkyNews Australia was banned for a week by YouTube for misinformation. [Link]

China

• The US sent Patriot missile experts to Taiwan. The US budgeted $14.15 million for the experts to travel to the island between 2019 and 2022. [Link]
• Germany will deploy a warship to the South China Sea for the first time in two decades to contest China’s claims to the waters. [Link]

Afghanistan

• The US continues to increase the pace of its airstrikes in Afghanistan. [Link]
• The US and UK are accusing the Taliban of killing dozens of civilians in a town near the Pakistani border. The Taliban denied the accusations. [Link]

Iran

• Israel’s Defense Minister Benny Gantz is calling for his country to take action against Iran right now. Israel and the US have blamed Iran for a drone attack on an Israeli tanker. [Link]
• Iran says it is giving up a prisoner swap with the US because of several American breaches. [Link]
• Iran warns it will respond to an attack. [Link]

Middle East

• The Israeli Supreme Court delays ruling on the eviction appeal of four Palestinian families in Sheikh Jarrah. A proposal to resolve the dispute was for the Palestinians to remain in their homes but begin paying rent to Israeli settler families. The Palestinians rejected the proposal. [Link]
• Saudi Arabia has executed at least 40 people this year. [Link]
• The Iraqi government is blaming ISIS for an attack on a funeral that killed 13. [Link]
• The UN names Swedish ambassador Hands Grundberg as Envoy to Yemen. [Link]

Africa

• The US bombed Somalia for the third time in two weeks. The US claimed to hit an al-Shabaab position without killing civilians. [Link]
• People in Sudan report scores of bodies from Tigray, Ethiopia are turning up in their river. [Link]