Comprehensive coverage of the day’s news with a focus on war and peace; social, environmental and economic justice.
- A 17-year-old opened fire at a small-town Iowa high school on the first day of school after the winter break, killing a sixth-grader and wounding five others.
- Palestinian hospital officials say an Israeli strike hit a home in an area of southern Gaza that the military had declared a safe zone, killing at least 12 people, almost all children.
- Secretary of State Antony Blinken is headed back to the Middle East today. It’s part of an intense diplomatic effort to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid into the war-ravaged Gaza Strip and increase international pressure on Israel to reduce civilian casualties among Palestinians.
- Lawyers for former President Donald Trump pressed to have Special Counsel Jack Smith’s team held in contempt, saying the prosecutors had taken steps to advance the 2020 election interference case against him in violation of U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan’s order last month that temporarily put the case on hold.
- A bill that would ease the student debt burden owed directly to schools and not to third party federal or private lenders is making its way through the state legislature as the new legislative session starts this week.
- The California Department of Justice put out a new report this week that indicated police still have a long way to go in curbing racial profiling practices in the state.
- Police and protesters faced off at People’s Park in Berkeley in the early morning hour before sunrise. Park supporters assembled in the blocked-off neighborhood surrounding the park and gathered at the intersection of Telegraph and Haste. The fight comes as UC Berkeley again moves to try and develop the historic park.
Law enforcement officials walks past the Perry Middle School entrance following a shooting at the nearby Perry High School, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024, in Perry, Iowa. Multiple people were shot inside the school early Thursday as students prepared to start their first day of classes after their annual winter break, authorities said. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)