JERUSALEM (AP) — Hamas released 16 hostages late Wednesday in the last swap for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel under the current&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Gaza truce,</a>&nbsp;as international mediators raced to seal another extension to allow further exchanges and prolong the halt of Israel’s air and ground offensive.

The Israeli military said a group of 10 Israeli women and children and four Thai nationals had been freed by Hamas and exited Gaza. Earlier, two Russian-Israeli women were freed by Hamas in a separate release. Israel was set to free 30 Palestinian prisoners in return.

Among the hostages exchanged for the Palestinian prisoners was 49-year-old Liat Atzili, an American-Israeli dual national.

Negotiators were working down to the wire to hammer out details for a further extension of the truce beyond its deadline of early Thursday. The talks appear to be growing tougher as most of the women and children held by Hamas are freed, and the militants are expected to seek greater releases in return for freeing men and soldiers.

International pressure has mounted for the cease-fire to continue as long as possible after nearly eight weeks of Israeli bombardment and a ground campaign in Gaza that has killed thousands of Palestinians, uprooted three quarters of the population of 2.3 million and led to a humanitarian crisis. Israel has welcomed the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hostage-gaza-freed-israel-captive-408f65fcc1b8f016f3735cd5022163eb">release of dozens of hostages</a>&nbsp;in recent days and says it will maintain the truce if Hamas keeps freeing captives.

Still, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underscored on Wednesday that Israel will resume its campaign to eliminate Hamas, which has ruled Gaza for 16 years and orchestrated the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-war-hamas-attack-border-wall-aa0b0f5f3613b6c6882cf37168e8e8ed">deadly attack on Israel that triggered the war</a>

“After this phase of returning our abductees is exhausted, will Israel return to fighting? So my answer is an unequivocal yes,” he said. “There is no way we are not going back to fighting until the end.”

He spoke ahead of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-nato-ukraine-russia-balkans-blinken-69ecd14aed1962e1283965cc80879234">a visit to the region planned this week</a>&nbsp;by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to press for further extensions of the truce and hostage releases.

In the West Bank, Israeli troops killed two Palestinian boys — an 8-year-old an a 15-year-old — during a raid on the town of Jenin, Palestinian health officials said. Security footage showed a group of boys in the street who start to run, except for one who falls to the ground, bleeding.

The Israeli military said its troops fired on people who threw explosives at them but did not specify it was referring to the boys, who are not seen throwing anything. Separately, the military said its troops killed two Islamic Jihad militants during the raid.

So far, the Israeli onslaught in Gaza seems to have had little effect on Hamas’ rule, evidenced by its ability to conduct complex negotiations, enforce the cease-fire among other armed groups, and orchestrate the release of hostages. Hamas leaders, including&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-leader-gaza-war-sinwar-7359ae98217aa11aa7c20c2780d5d350">Yehya Sinwar,</a>&nbsp;have likely relocated to the south.

With Israeli troops holding much of northern Gaza, a ground invasion south will likely bring an escalating cost in Palestinian lives and destruction.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-airstrikes-gaza-hamas-war-702f447ff7e52b03476555ec2513008b">Most of Gaza’s population is now crammed into the south.</a>&nbsp;The truce has brought them relief from bombardment, but the days of calm have been taken up in a frenzied rush to obtain supplies to feed their families as aid enters in greater, but still insufficient, amounts.

United States, Israel’s main ally, has shown greater reticence over the impact of the war in Gaza. The Biden administration has told Israel that if it launches an offensive in the south,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-gaza-displacement-south-operation-biden-788b05c51b5582b39aeb2466b7825525">it must operate with far greater precision</a>.

The plight of the captives and shock from the Oct. 7 attack have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-gaza-hamas-palestinians-war-mood-0cebcbcf0550ee08c0d757334f69851d">galvanized Israeli support for the war</a>. But Netanyahu is under pressure to bring the hostages home and could find it difficult to resume the offensive if there’s a prospect for more releases.

Since the initial truce began on Friday, both sides have been releasing women and children in their exchanges. After Friday’s releases, Gaza militants still hold around 20 women, according to Israeli officials. IF the truce continues at the current rate, they would be out in a few days.

After that, keeping the truce going depends on tougher negotiations over the release of around 126 men Israel says are held captive – including several dozen soldiers.

For men — and especially soldiers — Hamas is expected to push for comparable releases of Palestinian men or prominent detainees, a deal Israel may resist.

An Israeli official involved in hostage negotiations said talks on a further extension for release of civilian males and soldiers were still preliminary, and a deal would not be considered until all the women and children are out. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because negotiations were ongoing.

With Wednesday's releases, a total of 73 Israelis, including dual nationals, have been freed during the six-day truce, most of whom&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hostage-gaza-freed-israel-captive-408f65fcc1b8f016f3735cd5022163eb">appear physically well but shaken</a>. Another 24 hostages — 23 Thais and one Filipino — have also been released. Before the cease-fire, Hamas released four hostages, and the Israeli army rescued one. Two others were found dead in Gaza.

So far, most of the 180 Palestinians freed from Israeli prisons have been teenagers accused of throwing stones and firebombs during confrontations with Israeli forces. Several were women convicted by Israeli military courts of attempting to attack soldiers.

Palestinians have celebrated the release of people they see as having resisted Israel’s decades-long military occupation of lands they want for a future state.

The war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack into southern Israel, in which it killed over 1,200 people, mostly civilians. The militants kidnapped some 240 people back into Gaza, including babies, children, women, soldiers, older adults and Thai farm laborers.

Israel’s bombardment and ground invasion in Gaza have killed more than 13,300 Palestinians, roughly two-thirds of them women and minors, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza</a>, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.

The toll is likely much higher, as officials have only sporadically updated the count since Nov. 11 due to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-health-ministry-gaza-hamas-fe30cbc76479fa437d5f5a0e96c36e52">the breakdown of services in the north</a>. The ministry says thousands more people are missing and feared dead under the rubble.

Israel says 77 of its soldiers have been killed in the ground offensive. It claims to have killed thousands of militants, without providing evidence.

For Palestinians in Gaza, the truce’s calm has been overwhelmed by the search for aid and by horror as they see the extent of destruction.

In the north, residents described entire residential blocks leveled to the ground in Gaza City and surrounding areas. The smell of decomposing bodies trapped under collapsed buildings fills the air, said Mohmmed Mattar, a 29-year-old resident of Gaza City who along with other volunteers searches for the dead under rubble or left in the streets.

They have found and buried 46 so far during the truce, he said. Most were unidentified. More bodies remain inside rubble but can’t be reached without heavy equipment, or are left on streets that are unapproachable because of Israeli troops nearby, Mattar said.

In the south, the truce has allowed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-palestinians-truce-red-cross-crescent-14cd8cae0f6e064484167c66bbcecf8f">more aid to be delivered</a>&nbsp;from Egypt, up to 200 trucks a day. But aid officials say it is not enough, given that most now depend on outside aid. Overwhelmed U.N.-run shelters house more than 1 million displaced people, with many sleeping outside in cold, rainy weather.

At a distribution center in Rafah, large crowds line daily up for newly arrived bags of flour. But supplies run out quickly before many can get their share.

“We’ve been searching for bread for our children,” said one woman in line, Nawal Abu Namous. “Every day, we come here … we spend money on transportation to get here, just to go home with nothing.”

Some markets and shops have reopened, but prices for the few items in stock have skyrocketed. Winter clothes are unavailable. One clothes shop owner in Deir al-Balah told The Associated Press that he hates opening his doors in the morning, knowing he’ll spend most of the day apologizing to customers for not having winter items.

The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said some 111,000 people have respiratory infections and 75,000 have diarrhea, more than half of them under 5 years old. “More people could die from disease than bombings.”

“We are fed up,” said Omar al-Darawi, who works at the overwhelmed Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in central Gaza. “We want this war to stop.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701295331170.png" alt="49-year-old&nbsp; Liat Atzili Beinin photo courtesy Hostages and Missing Families Forum" />
 <figcaption>49-year-old&nbsp; Liat Atzili Beinin photo courtesy Hostages and Missing Families Forum</figcaption>
 </figure>JERUSALEM (AP) — Hamas released 16 hostages late Wednesday in the last swap for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel under the current&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war">Gaza truce,</a>&nbsp;as international mediators raced to seal another extension to allow further exchanges and prolong the halt of Israel’s air and ground offensive.The Israeli military said a group of 10 Israeli women and children and four Thai nationals had been freed by Hamas and exited Gaza. Earlier, two Russian-Israeli women were freed by Hamas in a separate release. Israel was set to free 30 Palestinian prisoners in return.Among the hostages exchanged for the Palestinian prisoners was 49-year-old Liat Atzili, an American-Israeli dual national.Negotiators were working down to the wire to hammer out details for a further extension of the truce beyond its deadline of early Thursday. The talks appear to be growing tougher as most of the women and children held by Hamas are freed, and the militants are expected to seek greater releases in return for freeing men and soldiers.International pressure has mounted for the cease-fire to continue as long as possible after nearly eight weeks of Israeli bombardment and a ground campaign in Gaza that has killed thousands of Palestinians, uprooted three quarters of the population of 2.3 million and led to a humanitarian crisis. Israel has welcomed the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hostage-gaza-freed-israel-captive-408f65fcc1b8f016f3735cd5022163eb">release of dozens of hostages</a>&nbsp;in recent days and says it will maintain the truce if Hamas keeps freeing captives.Still, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underscored on Wednesday that Israel will resume its campaign to eliminate Hamas, which has ruled Gaza for 16 years and orchestrated the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-war-hamas-attack-border-wall-aa0b0f5f3613b6c6882cf37168e8e8ed">deadly attack on Israel that triggered the war</a>“After this phase of returning our abductees is exhausted, will Israel return to fighting? So my answer is an unequivocal yes,” he said. “There is no way we are not going back to fighting until the end.”He spoke ahead of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-nato-ukraine-russia-balkans-blinken-69ecd14aed1962e1283965cc80879234">a visit to the region planned this week</a>&nbsp;by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to press for further extensions of the truce and hostage releases.In the West Bank, Israeli troops killed two Palestinian boys — an 8-year-old an a 15-year-old — during a raid on the town of Jenin, Palestinian health officials said. Security footage showed a group of boys in the street who start to run, except for one who falls to the ground, bleeding.The Israeli military said its troops fired on people who threw explosives at them but did not specify it was referring to the boys, who are not seen throwing anything. Separately, the military said its troops killed two Islamic Jihad militants during the raid.So far, the Israeli onslaught in Gaza seems to have had little effect on Hamas’ rule, evidenced by its ability to conduct complex negotiations, enforce the cease-fire among other armed groups, and orchestrate the release of hostages. Hamas leaders, including&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-leader-gaza-war-sinwar-7359ae98217aa11aa7c20c2780d5d350">Yehya Sinwar,</a>&nbsp;have likely relocated to the south.With Israeli troops holding much of northern Gaza, a ground invasion south will likely bring an escalating cost in Palestinian lives and destruction.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-airstrikes-gaza-hamas-war-702f447ff7e52b03476555ec2513008b">Most of Gaza’s population is now crammed into the south.</a>&nbsp;The truce has brought them relief from bombardment, but the days of calm have been taken up in a frenzied rush to obtain supplies to feed their families as aid enters in greater, but still insufficient, amounts.United States, Israel’s main ally, has shown greater reticence over the impact of the war in Gaza. The Biden administration has told Israel that if it launches an offensive in the south,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-gaza-displacement-south-operation-biden-788b05c51b5582b39aeb2466b7825525">it must operate with far greater precision</a>.ISRAEL’S HOSTAGE DILEMMAThe plight of the captives and shock from the Oct. 7 attack have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-gaza-hamas-palestinians-war-mood-0cebcbcf0550ee08c0d757334f69851d">galvanized Israeli support for the war</a>. But Netanyahu is under pressure to bring the hostages home and could find it difficult to resume the offensive if there’s a prospect for more releases.Since the initial truce began on Friday, both sides have been releasing women and children in their exchanges. After Friday’s releases, Gaza militants still hold around 20 women, according to Israeli officials. IF the truce continues at the current rate, they would be out in a few days.After that, keeping the truce going depends on tougher negotiations over the release of around 126 men Israel says are held captive – including several dozen soldiers.For men — and especially soldiers — Hamas is expected to push for comparable releases of Palestinian men or prominent detainees, a deal Israel may resist.An Israeli official involved in hostage negotiations said talks on a further extension for release of civilian males and soldiers were still preliminary, and a deal would not be considered until all the women and children are out. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because negotiations were ongoing.With Wednesday's releases, a total of 73 Israelis, including dual nationals, have been freed during the six-day truce, most of whom&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/hostage-gaza-freed-israel-captive-408f65fcc1b8f016f3735cd5022163eb">appear physically well but shaken</a>. Another 24 hostages — 23 Thais and one Filipino — have also been released. Before the cease-fire, Hamas released four hostages, and the Israeli army rescued one. Two others were found dead in Gaza.So far, most of the 180 Palestinians freed from Israeli prisons have been teenagers accused of throwing stones and firebombs during confrontations with Israeli forces. Several were women convicted by Israeli military courts of attempting to attack soldiers.Palestinians have celebrated the release of people they see as having resisted Israel’s decades-long military occupation of lands they want for a future state.The war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack into southern Israel, in which it killed over 1,200 people, mostly civilians. The militants kidnapped some 240 people back into Gaza, including babies, children, women, soldiers, older adults and Thai farm laborers.Israel’s bombardment and ground invasion in Gaza have killed more than 13,300 Palestinians, roughly two-thirds of them women and minors, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza</a>, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.The toll is likely much higher, as officials have only sporadically updated the count since Nov. 11 due to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-health-ministry-gaza-hamas-fe30cbc76479fa437d5f5a0e96c36e52">the breakdown of services in the north</a>. The ministry says thousands more people are missing and feared dead under the rubble.Israel says 77 of its soldiers have been killed in the ground offensive. It claims to have killed thousands of militants, without providing evidence.TENSE CALM IN GAZAFor Palestinians in Gaza, the truce’s calm has been overwhelmed by the search for aid and by horror as they see the extent of destruction.In the north, residents described entire residential blocks leveled to the ground in Gaza City and surrounding areas. The smell of decomposing bodies trapped under collapsed buildings fills the air, said Mohmmed Mattar, a 29-year-old resident of Gaza City who along with other volunteers searches for the dead under rubble or left in the streets.They have found and buried 46 so far during the truce, he said. Most were unidentified. More bodies remain inside rubble but can’t be reached without heavy equipment, or are left on streets that are unapproachable because of Israeli troops nearby, Mattar said.In the south, the truce has allowed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-palestinians-truce-red-cross-crescent-14cd8cae0f6e064484167c66bbcecf8f">more aid to be delivered</a>&nbsp;from Egypt, up to 200 trucks a day. But aid officials say it is not enough, given that most now depend on outside aid. Overwhelmed U.N.-run shelters house more than 1 million displaced people, with many sleeping outside in cold, rainy weather.At a distribution center in Rafah, large crowds line daily up for newly arrived bags of flour. But supplies run out quickly before many can get their share.“We’ve been searching for bread for our children,” said one woman in line, Nawal Abu Namous. “Every day, we come here … we spend money on transportation to get here, just to go home with nothing.”Some markets and shops have reopened, but prices for the few items in stock have skyrocketed. Winter clothes are unavailable. One clothes shop owner in Deir al-Balah told The Associated Press that he hates opening his doors in the morning, knowing he’ll spend most of the day apologizing to customers for not having winter items.The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said some 111,000 people have respiratory infections and 75,000 have diarrhea, more than half of them under 5 years old. “More people could die from disease than bombings.”“We are fed up,” said Omar al-Darawi, who works at the overwhelmed Al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in central Gaza. “We want this war to stop.”______

Sixth hostage release includes American woman

WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Christmas Tree in front of the White House fell down during high winds but later was hoisted back upright, and its lighting ceremony will go ahead as scheduled.

The tree, a 40-foot-tall&nbsp; Norway spruce from West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest, had been&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nps.gov/whho/learn/news/national-christmas-tree-replaced-in-president-s-park-in-time-for-this-year-s-lighting.htm">planted just two weeks ago</a>&nbsp;on the White House Ellipse, an area known as President's Park. According to the National Park Service, it fell over around 1 p.m. Tuesday during heavy wind gusts that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nps.gov/whho/planyourvisit/conditions.htm">reached as high at 46 mph</a>&nbsp;at nearby Reagan National Airport.

NPS spokeswoman Jasmine Shanti said in an email that after “replacing a snapped cable,” the tree was back upright by 6 p.m. Tuesday.

The lighting of the tree is an annual White House holiday tradition with a countdown and musical performances. This year's tree is a new one, replacing an older tree that, according to the NPS, developed a fungal disease known as needle cast, which caused its needles to turn brown and fall off.

None of the 58 smaller trees that surround the National Christmas Tree was damaged. About 20 ornaments fell from the tree but did not break. The NPS announced Wednesday that crews are “installing concrete blocks and additional cables to further secure the tree.”

The annual tree-lighting ceremony will take place as scheduled Thursday at 6 p.m., the NPS said, with musical performances featuring Dionne Warwick and St. Vincent.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701293648285.png" alt="In this image made from video, the National Christmas Tree hangs from a crane in front of the White House as a crew works to lift it back up after it fell, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, amid high winter winds. (AP Video)" />
 <figcaption>In this image made from video, the National Christmas Tree hangs from a crane in front of the White House as a crew works to lift it back up after it fell, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, amid high winter winds. (AP Video)</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Christmas Tree in front of the White House fell down during high winds but later was hoisted back upright, and its lighting ceremony will go ahead as scheduled.The tree, a 40-foot-tall&nbsp; Norway spruce from West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest, had been&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nps.gov/whho/learn/news/national-christmas-tree-replaced-in-president-s-park-in-time-for-this-year-s-lighting.htm">planted just two weeks ago</a>&nbsp;on the White House Ellipse, an area known as President's Park. According to the National Park Service, it fell over around 1 p.m. Tuesday during heavy wind gusts that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nps.gov/whho/planyourvisit/conditions.htm">reached as high at 46 mph</a>&nbsp;at nearby Reagan National Airport.NPS spokeswoman Jasmine Shanti said in an email that after “replacing a snapped cable,” the tree was back upright by 6 p.m. Tuesday.The lighting of the tree is an annual White House holiday tradition with a countdown and musical performances. This year's tree is a new one, replacing an older tree that, according to the NPS, developed a fungal disease known as needle cast, which caused its needles to turn brown and fall off.None of the 58 smaller trees that surround the National Christmas Tree was damaged. About 20 ornaments fell from the tree but did not break. The NPS announced Wednesday that crews are “installing concrete blocks and additional cables to further secure the tree.”The annual tree-lighting ceremony will take place as scheduled Thursday at 6 p.m., the NPS said, with musical performances featuring Dionne Warwick and St. Vincent.___

National Christmas tree secured after it blew down in the wind

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jennifer-shutt/">JENNIFER SHUTT</a>

WASHINGTON — Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley moved one step closer Tuesday to becoming the next Social Security commissioner, a role that would become increasingly difficult as the program inches closer to insolvency during the next decade.

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee voted 17-10 to send O’Malley’s nomination to the floor, though it’s not clear how soon the entire chamber will vote on confirmation. All the panel’s Democrats and Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Thom Tillis of North Carolina voted to advance his nomination.

Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, said he was backing O’Malley because he’s the “right person for the job at the right time.”

“I base my support for Martin O’Malley on the fact that every single time we have talked, he has emphasized one matter and one matter only, and that is service above politics,” Wyden said.

Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo, the panel’s top Republican, opposed O’Malley’s nomination, citing President Joe Biden’s decision to remove former Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul before his term was set to expire in January 2025.

The Senate confirmed Saul, nominated by former President Donald Trump, in June 2019 following a 77-16 vote.

“When the Biden administration removed the last Senate confirmed commissioner prior to the completion of his six-year term, I expressed strong concern that this decision politicized the SSA to the detriment of Social Security beneficiaries,” Crapo said.

Future administrations could follow that precedent, Crapo said, limiting how long a Social Security commissioner has to implement change.

“Although I will not be voting in favor of Gov. O’Malley’s nomination today, we do share the goal of getting the Social Security Administration back on track so that it can provide the public with the level of service they expect and deserve,” Crapo said.

The White House said in a statement about the firing released in July 2021 that “Since taking office, Commissioner Saul has undermined and politicized Social Security disability benefits, terminated the agency’s telework policy that was utilized by up to 25 percent of the agency’s workforce, not repaired SSA’s relationships with relevant Federal employee unions including in the context of COVID-19 workplace safety planning, reduced due process protections for benefits appeals hearings, and taken other actions that run contrary to the mission of the agency and the President’s policy agenda,”&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/andrew-saul-social-security-/2021/07/09/c18a34fa-df99-11eb-a501-0e69b5d012e5_story.html">according to</a>&nbsp;the Washington Post.

Tillis supported O’Malley’s nomination in committee, saying he believes the former governor has “a very systematic method” of using data and analytics that “will serve him well in the Social Security Administration.”

Tillis noted that Congress will have to address the structure of the program within the next decade and that O’Malley would be in a good position to inform lawmakers as they draft legislation.

“We have a moral obligation to make sure the Social Security safety net exists. We have a moral obligation to recognize that at current course and speed, we’re going to break our promise seven to 10 years from now if we don’t figure out how to fix it,” Tillis said.

O’Malley: ‘urgent crisis’ in customer service

The latest Social Security trustees report,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/social-security-trustees-predict-benefit-cuts-2033-without-congressional-action">released in March</a>, said the program would be able to pay 100% of retirement benefits from the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund until 2033. After that, the program would be able to pay 77% of those benefits.

The date was one year earlier than previously expected.

While O’Malley would not be in “a position to change the structure of the Social Security system,” Tillis said he believes the former governor “will have the insight once he gets in there to understand that Congress needs to act.”

“And we need an expert there to help advise us on the best way to actually make sure that that promise gets fulfilled,” Tillis said.

O’Malley said during his confirmation hearing in early November that Social Security faces an “urgent crisis” addressing shortcomings in customer service and another problem on “the horizon with regard to solvency.”

But, he noted that Congress is in charge of setting the policy that determines how Social Security is structured and providing the funding to ensure a sufficient number of employees available to help people having issues with their Social Security.

“The truth is, today the Social Security Administration is serving 50% more customers and beneficiaries on the same staffing it had 20 years ago in 1995,” O’Malley said.

City councilman, mayor, governor, banjo player

O’Malley was a member of the Baltimore City Council from 1991 through December 1999, when he became the city’s mayor.

He would hold that job until January 2007, when he was sworn in as Maryland’s governor, a role he held for the maximum two four-year terms.

O’Malley would often play with his band,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.omalleysmarch.com/">O’Malley’s March</a>, during his time as governor and once&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/MartinOMalley/status/471103802607538177">played the banjo</a>&nbsp;outside the Maryland State House in Annapolis.

“I love that as governor of MD I can still play street music in Annapolis,” he posted on Twitter with a photo of himself playing the instrument in a t-shirt, cargo shorts and flip-flops.

O’Malley ran for the Democratic nomination for president in the 2016 primary, though he withdrew from the race after the Iowa caucuses.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701257420445.png" alt=" Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, nominee for Social Security commissioner, July 19, 2023 (Photo courtesy of the Executive Office of the Governor of Maryland)." />
 <figcaption> Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, nominee for Social Security commissioner, July 19, 2023 (Photo courtesy of the Executive Office of the Governor of Maryland).</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jennifer-shutt/">JENNIFER SHUTT</a>WASHINGTON — Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley moved one step closer Tuesday to becoming the next Social Security commissioner, a role that would become increasingly difficult as the program inches closer to insolvency during the next decade.The U.S. Senate Finance Committee voted 17-10 to send O’Malley’s nomination to the floor, though it’s not clear how soon the entire chamber will vote on confirmation. All the panel’s Democrats and Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Thom Tillis of North Carolina voted to advance his nomination.Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, said he was backing O’Malley because he’s the “right person for the job at the right time.”“I base my support for Martin O’Malley on the fact that every single time we have talked, he has emphasized one matter and one matter only, and that is service above politics,” Wyden said.Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo, the panel’s top Republican, opposed O’Malley’s nomination, citing President Joe Biden’s decision to remove former Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul before his term was set to expire in January 2025.The Senate confirmed Saul, nominated by former President Donald Trump, in June 2019 following a 77-16 vote.“When the Biden administration removed the last Senate confirmed commissioner prior to the completion of his six-year term, I expressed strong concern that this decision politicized the SSA to the detriment of Social Security beneficiaries,” Crapo said.Future administrations could follow that precedent, Crapo said, limiting how long a Social Security commissioner has to implement change.“Although I will not be voting in favor of Gov. O’Malley’s nomination today, we do share the goal of getting the Social Security Administration back on track so that it can provide the public with the level of service they expect and deserve,” Crapo said.The White House said in a statement about the firing released in July 2021 that “Since taking office, Commissioner Saul has undermined and politicized Social Security disability benefits, terminated the agency’s telework policy that was utilized by up to 25 percent of the agency’s workforce, not repaired SSA’s relationships with relevant Federal employee unions including in the context of COVID-19 workplace safety planning, reduced due process protections for benefits appeals hearings, and taken other actions that run contrary to the mission of the agency and the President’s policy agenda,”&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/andrew-saul-social-security-/2021/07/09/c18a34fa-df99-11eb-a501-0e69b5d012e5_story.html">according to</a>&nbsp;the Washington Post.Tillis supported O’Malley’s nomination in committee, saying he believes the former governor has “a very systematic method” of using data and analytics that “will serve him well in the Social Security Administration.”Tillis noted that Congress will have to address the structure of the program within the next decade and that O’Malley would be in a good position to inform lawmakers as they draft legislation.“We have a moral obligation to make sure the Social Security safety net exists. We have a moral obligation to recognize that at current course and speed, we’re going to break our promise seven to 10 years from now if we don’t figure out how to fix it,” Tillis said.<h2>O’Malley: ‘urgent crisis’ in customer service</h2>The latest Social Security trustees report,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/social-security-trustees-predict-benefit-cuts-2033-without-congressional-action">released in March</a>, said the program would be able to pay 100% of retirement benefits from the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund until 2033. After that, the program would be able to pay 77% of those benefits.The date was one year earlier than previously expected.While O’Malley would not be in “a position to change the structure of the Social Security system,” Tillis said he believes the former governor “will have the insight once he gets in there to understand that Congress needs to act.”“And we need an expert there to help advise us on the best way to actually make sure that that promise gets fulfilled,” Tillis said.O’Malley said during his confirmation hearing in early November that Social Security faces an “urgent crisis” addressing shortcomings in customer service and another problem on “the horizon with regard to solvency.”But, he noted that Congress is in charge of setting the policy that determines how Social Security is structured and providing the funding to ensure a sufficient number of employees available to help people having issues with their Social Security.“The truth is, today the Social Security Administration is serving 50% more customers and beneficiaries on the same staffing it had 20 years ago in 1995,” O’Malley said.<h2>City councilman, mayor, governor, banjo player</h2>O’Malley was a member of the Baltimore City Council from 1991 through December 1999, when he became the city’s mayor.He would hold that job until January 2007, when he was sworn in as Maryland’s governor, a role he held for the maximum two four-year terms.O’Malley would often play with his band,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.omalleysmarch.com/">O’Malley’s March</a>, during his time as governor and once&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/MartinOMalley/status/471103802607538177">played the banjo</a>&nbsp;outside the Maryland State House in Annapolis.“I love that as governor of MD I can still play street music in Annapolis,” he posted on Twitter with a photo of himself playing the instrument in a t-shirt, cargo shorts and flip-flops.O’Malley ran for the Democratic nomination for president in the 2016 primary, though he withdrew from the race after the Iowa caucuses.

U.S. Senate panel advances nominee to lead Social Security

<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/11/28/nebraskans-testify-largely-against-gender-care-regulations-ask-for-looser-restrictions/">Nebraska Examiner</a>

LINCOLN — Nebraskans weighed in Tuesday on the state’s proposed gender care regulations, with testifiers seeking fewer regulations outnumbered those supporting a full ban on such care, 25 to one.

By 2 p.m. — seven hours into the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services’&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/10/17/final-draft-regulations-for-nebraska-gender-care-law-released-ahead-of-november-hearing/">12-hour hearing</a>&nbsp;—&nbsp;the first supporter of stricter regulations spoke, following testimony from 49 others who included health care providers, clergy, transgender youths and parents.&nbsp;

<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/10/17/final-draft-regulations-for-nebraska-gender-care-law-released-ahead-of-november-hearing/">The regulations</a>, required under Legislative Bill 574 approved by the Legislature last spring, address puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones. LB 574, when it took effect Oct. 1, also prohibited transition surgeries.&nbsp;

These guidelines set a new baseline for&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/07/05/you-need-to-know-us-trans-youths-describe-life-in-nebraska/">youths</a>&nbsp;seeking care, including 40 hours of gender-identity-focused therapy and a seven-day waiting period between informed patient consent and the dispersal of medications.

With the state’s current shortage of mental health providers, a requirement that youths cannot bank more than two hours of therapy in a week, combined with other financial or travel barriers, multiple testifiers said the regulations —&nbsp;as written —&nbsp;could act as a de facto ban for youths or prevent care for at least five to 10 months (with therapy once or twice a week) and possibly for several years.

“Would you want to be told that you could not get a life-saving medication because you had not had enough therapeutic sessions to meet the government’s requirements?” Jill Dibbern Manhart, an Omaha mother, testified. One of her children is trans.

LaDonna Hart and Amy Arndt, nurse practitioners who co-own Hart &amp; Arndt Family Health in Lincoln, testified that a requirement that youths receive hormone injections in the doctor’s office differs from all other types of care.&nbsp;

“Parents and guardians are partners in health care,” Arndt testified, noting they can be trained to give the medications at home, similar to Type 1 diabetes.

Dr. Alex Dworak, a physician with OneWorld Community Health Centers, said no medical literature, including the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, includes a minimum requirement for therapy.

“It impugns the expertise of Nebraska mental health professionals and the commitment of loving parents of trans youth,” Dworak said.

Leslie Dvorak, a nurse practitioner from Omaha, said her most memorable patients have been trans youths and their families and said she was often told by parents, “thank you for giving me back my child.”

Dana Maaske, whose teenage child is trans, testified in tears about the toll LB 574 and regulations have had on her and the experiences she had with state lawmakers this year.

“I hope all the supporters of this bill will be remembered in history as the terrorizers of trans children and their families that they truly are,” Maaske said.

LB 574 sets the following base level for regulations, with no additional guidance:

Dr. Timothy Tesmer, the state’s chief medical officer, wrote the guidelines and will finalize the regulations if any changes are needed. Substantive changes would require another hearing.

Tesmer did not attend Tuesday’s hearing. Jeff Powell, a DHHS spokesperson, said Tesmer had a previously scheduled surgery and said that all comments, written or spoken, will be “equally reviewed.”&nbsp;

The state’s temporary regulations will expire in December and could be extended once more, for a 90-day period, at which time DHHS anticipates final regulations to be approved by Attorney General Mike Hilgers and Gov. Jim Pillen.

The number of individuals who submitted written comments was not immediately available. Written comments were being&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="http://dhhs.regulations@nebraska.gov/">accepted</a>&nbsp;through the end of the day Tuesday.

In total, 77 people had testified, according to a count by the Examiner. Three advocated for a full ban, more in line with how LB 574 was initially introduced in January.

Marilyn Asher of Omaha, a former state prison staff member and president of Nebraskans for Founders Values, equated the regulations to the story of a young prison inmate who had a lot of potential but had the numbers “1” and “8” tattooed on his face to show solidarity with his gang.&nbsp;

“The change will be much more than cosmetic,” Asher said of puberty blockers, hormones or surgeries.

Also in support of a full ban was Sherry Jones of Grand Island, a member of the State Board of Education and a retired teacher of 35 years.

In her experience, Jones testified, youths need counseling, not gender care, and said that if they were given therapy, they would not pursue a gender treatments as adults. Medical professionals have testified this is not the case and have said youths know who they are. No medical providers testified in favor of the regulations.

Asher and Jones told the Nebraska Examiner that the medical care in question requires an adult decision and said that while they may not agree with the care, people would be free to seek it after the age of 19.

Those youths who testified Tuesday said they know who they are.

Levi White said they grew up feeling like a “two-hearted creature” trying to blend in before they found the word “transgender” to describe their feelings.

Aiden Whalen, a senior and student body president of Omaha Central High School, who is trans, testified with a request to those in favor of the regulations: “I want you to look me in the eyes, deep in my soul, and tell me why you are threatened by my joy.”

“I want you to look into the eyes of 13-year-old me, curled up in his bedroom corner with a stomach full of pills because you wanted death to take him from from a state that did not, does not want him,” Whalen testified.

“And I want you to tell him that the bill is ‘Let Them Grow’ —&nbsp;growing roots into the ground from inside a coffin … growing used to the lack of respect of basic human decency because your transgender identity means that while you are the child they claim to protect, claim to help grow, you are nothing more than a monster,” Whalen continued.

Charlie Yale, also a senior at Omaha Central, shared a letter signed earlier this year by more than 400 K-12 and college students, health care providers and parents. According to a list of names provided to the Examiner, signatories ranged from 13- to 76-year-olds.

The letter cites walkouts by hundreds of students in March and April in support of trans youths and calls for Gov. Jim Pillen to listen to trans voices when they say legislation will harm them.

“Our message was simple then, and our message remains simple now: transgender youth deserve respect and dignity,” the letter states.

Nebraska Examiner Senior Reporter Paul Hammel contributed to this report.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701272346612.jpeg" alt="Isabella Manhart of Omaha, who is nonbinary, testifies on the state’s proposed gender care regulations Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, in Lincoln. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)" />
 <figcaption>Isabella Manhart of Omaha, who is nonbinary, testifies on the state’s proposed gender care regulations Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, in Lincoln. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner)</figcaption>
 </figure>Zach Wendling<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/11/28/nebraskans-testify-largely-against-gender-care-regulations-ask-for-looser-restrictions/">Nebraska Examiner</a>LINCOLN — Nebraskans weighed in Tuesday on the state’s proposed gender care regulations, with testifiers seeking fewer regulations outnumbered those supporting a full ban on such care, 25 to one.By 2 p.m. — seven hours into the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services’&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/10/17/final-draft-regulations-for-nebraska-gender-care-law-released-ahead-of-november-hearing/">12-hour hearing</a>&nbsp;—&nbsp;the first supporter of stricter regulations spoke, following testimony from 49 others who included health care providers, clergy, transgender youths and parents.&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/10/17/final-draft-regulations-for-nebraska-gender-care-law-released-ahead-of-november-hearing/">The regulations</a>, required under Legislative Bill 574 approved by the Legislature last spring, address puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones. LB 574, when it took effect Oct. 1, also prohibited transition surgeries.&nbsp;These guidelines set a new baseline for&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/07/05/you-need-to-know-us-trans-youths-describe-life-in-nebraska/">youths</a>&nbsp;seeking care, including 40 hours of gender-identity-focused therapy and a seven-day waiting period between informed patient consent and the dispersal of medications.With the state’s current shortage of mental health providers, a requirement that youths cannot bank more than two hours of therapy in a week, combined with other financial or travel barriers, multiple testifiers said the regulations —&nbsp;as written —&nbsp;could act as a de facto ban for youths or prevent care for at least five to 10 months (with therapy once or twice a week) and possibly for several years.“Would you want to be told that you could not get a life-saving medication because you had not had enough therapeutic sessions to meet the government’s requirements?” Jill Dibbern Manhart, an Omaha mother, testified. One of her children is trans.<h2>‘Impugns the expertise’ of providers</h2>LaDonna Hart and Amy Arndt, nurse practitioners who co-own Hart &amp; Arndt Family Health in Lincoln, testified that a requirement that youths receive hormone injections in the doctor’s office differs from all other types of care.&nbsp;“Parents and guardians are partners in health care,” Arndt testified, noting they can be trained to give the medications at home, similar to Type 1 diabetes.Dr. Alex Dworak, a physician with OneWorld Community Health Centers, said no medical literature, including the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, includes a minimum requirement for therapy.“It impugns the expertise of Nebraska mental health professionals and the commitment of loving parents of trans youth,” Dworak said.Leslie Dvorak, a nurse practitioner from Omaha, said her most memorable patients have been trans youths and their families and said she was often told by parents, “thank you for giving me back my child.”Dana Maaske, whose teenage child is trans, testified in tears about the toll LB 574 and regulations have had on her and the experiences she had with state lawmakers this year.“I hope all the supporters of this bill will be remembered in history as the terrorizers of trans children and their families that they truly are,” Maaske said.<h2>Minimum regulations requirement</h2>LB 574 sets the following base level for regulations, with no additional guidance:<ul>
 <li>A minimum number of gender-identity-focused therapy hours.</li><li>A waiting period between consent and the administration, prescription and delivery of blockers or hormones.</li><li>Steps to obtain informed patient consent and to document patient medical records.</li>
 </ul>Dr. Timothy Tesmer, the state’s chief medical officer, wrote the guidelines and will finalize the regulations if any changes are needed. Substantive changes would require another hearing.Tesmer did not attend Tuesday’s hearing. Jeff Powell, a DHHS spokesperson, said Tesmer had a previously scheduled surgery and said that all comments, written or spoken, will be “equally reviewed.”&nbsp;The state’s temporary regulations will expire in December and could be extended once more, for a 90-day period, at which time DHHS anticipates final regulations to be approved by Attorney General Mike Hilgers and Gov. Jim Pillen.The number of individuals who submitted written comments was not immediately available. Written comments were being&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="http://dhhs.regulations@nebraska.gov/">accepted</a>&nbsp;through the end of the day Tuesday.<h2>Three speak in favor of a full ban</h2>In total, 77 people had testified, according to a count by the Examiner. Three advocated for a full ban, more in line with how LB 574 was initially introduced in January.Marilyn Asher of Omaha, a former state prison staff member and president of Nebraskans for Founders Values, equated the regulations to the story of a young prison inmate who had a lot of potential but had the numbers “1” and “8” tattooed on his face to show solidarity with his gang.&nbsp;“The change will be much more than cosmetic,” Asher said of puberty blockers, hormones or surgeries.Also in support of a full ban was Sherry Jones of Grand Island, a member of the State Board of Education and a retired teacher of 35 years.In her experience, Jones testified, youths need counseling, not gender care, and said that if they were given therapy, they would not pursue a gender treatments as adults. Medical professionals have testified this is not the case and have said youths know who they are. No medical providers testified in favor of the regulations.Asher and Jones told the Nebraska Examiner that the medical care in question requires an adult decision and said that while they may not agree with the care, people would be free to seek it after the age of 19.<h2>‘Our message remains simple’</h2>Those youths who testified Tuesday said they know who they are.Levi White said they grew up feeling like a “two-hearted creature” trying to blend in before they found the word “transgender” to describe their feelings.Aiden Whalen, a senior and student body president of Omaha Central High School, who is trans, testified with a request to those in favor of the regulations: “I want you to look me in the eyes, deep in my soul, and tell me why you are threatened by my joy.”“I want you to look into the eyes of 13-year-old me, curled up in his bedroom corner with a stomach full of pills because you wanted death to take him from from a state that did not, does not want him,” Whalen testified.“And I want you to tell him that the bill is ‘Let Them Grow’ —&nbsp;growing roots into the ground from inside a coffin … growing used to the lack of respect of basic human decency because your transgender identity means that while you are the child they claim to protect, claim to help grow, you are nothing more than a monster,” Whalen continued.Charlie Yale, also a senior at Omaha Central, shared a letter signed earlier this year by more than 400 K-12 and college students, health care providers and parents. According to a list of names provided to the Examiner, signatories ranged from 13- to 76-year-olds.The letter cites walkouts by hundreds of students in March and April in support of trans youths and calls for Gov. Jim Pillen to listen to trans voices when they say legislation will harm them.“Our message was simple then, and our message remains simple now: transgender youth deserve respect and dignity,” the letter states.Nebraska Examiner Senior Reporter Paul Hammel contributed to this report.

Nebraskans testify largely against gender care regulations, ask for looser restrictions

Press release by Nebraska Department of Agriculture

LINCOLN – The Nebraska Department of Agriculture (NDA) is reminding poultry owners to continue to monitor for and protect their birds against Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). Recently, NDA in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, confirmed a case of HPAI in Nebraska in a small backyard flock in Colfax County.

“While Nebraska hasn’t had any reported cases of HPAI for a few months, we are disappointed but not surprised, to see another case, as there have been several confirmed HPAI cases in surrounding states,” said State Veterinarian Dr. Roger Dudley. “Poultry producers need to continue to be vigilant in protecting their flocks. It’s important for producers to know the signs and symptoms of HPAI and to continue to practice good biosecurity measures to help prevent the spread of this disease into their flocks.”

HPAI is a highly contagious virus that spreads easily among birds through nasal and eye secretions, as well as manure. The virus can be spread in various ways from flock to flock, including by wild birds, through contact with infected poultry, by equipment, and on the clothing and shoes of caretakers. Wild birds can carry the virus without becoming sick, while domesticated birds can become very sick and die.

Symptoms of HPAI in poultry include: a decrease in water consumption; lack of energy and appetite; decreased egg production or soft-shelled, misshapen eggs; nasal discharge, coughing, sneezing; incoordination; and diarrhea. HPAI can also cause sudden death in birds even if they aren’t showing any other symptoms. HPAI can survive for weeks in contaminated environments.

Press release by Nebraska Department of AgricultureLINCOLN – The Nebraska Department of Agriculture (NDA) is reminding poultry owners to continue to monitor for and protect their birds against Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). Recently, NDA in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, confirmed a case of HPAI in Nebraska in a small backyard flock in Colfax County.“While Nebraska hasn’t had any reported cases of HPAI for a few months, we are disappointed but not surprised, to see another case, as there have been several confirmed HPAI cases in surrounding states,” said State Veterinarian Dr. Roger Dudley. “Poultry producers need to continue to be vigilant in protecting their flocks. It’s important for producers to know the signs and symptoms of HPAI and to continue to practice good biosecurity measures to help prevent the spread of this disease into their flocks.”HPAI is a highly contagious virus that spreads easily among birds through nasal and eye secretions, as well as manure. The virus can be spread in various ways from flock to flock, including by wild birds, through contact with infected poultry, by equipment, and on the clothing and shoes of caretakers. Wild birds can carry the virus without becoming sick, while domesticated birds can become very sick and die.Symptoms of HPAI in poultry include: a decrease in water consumption; lack of energy and appetite; decreased egg production or soft-shelled, misshapen eggs; nasal discharge, coughing, sneezing; incoordination; and diarrhea. HPAI can also cause sudden death in birds even if they aren’t showing any other symptoms. HPAI can survive for weeks in contaminated environments.

  NDA Reports case of HPAI, reminds poultry producers to remain vigilant 

TOKYO (AP) — A U.S. Air Force Osprey based in Japan crashed during a training mission Wednesday off of the country's southern coast, killing at least one of the eight crew members, the Japanese coast guard said.

The cause of the crash and the status of the seven others on board were not immediately known, Japanese coast guard spokesperson Kazuo Ogawa said.

U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command said in a statement that the CV-22B Osprey belonged to the 353rd Special Operations Wing assigned to Yokota Air Base. The crash occurred “while performing a routine training mission off the shore of Yakushima Island,” the command said.

While the U.S. Marine Corps flies most of the Ospreys based in Japan, the Air Force also has some deployed there.

Air Force Special Operations Command said search and rescue operations were underway. A U.S. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the crash could not provide further information on the crew's condition pending notification of next of kin.

The Osprey is a hybrid aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter, but during flight can rotate its propellers forward and cruise much faster like an airplane.

Ospreys have had a number of accidents in the past, including in Japan, where they are deployed at U.S. and Japanese military bases. In Okinawa, where about half of the 50,000 American troops are based, Gov. Denny Tamaki told reporters Wednesday that he would ask the U.S. military to suspend all Osprey flights in Japan.

Ogawa said the coast guard received an emergency call Wednesday afternoon from a fishing boat near the crash site off Yakushima, an island south of Kagoshima on the southern main island of Kyushu.

Coast guard aircraft and patrol boats found one person, identified only as male, who was later pronounced dead by a doctor at a nearby port, Ogawa said. They also found gray debris believed to be from the aircraft and an empty inflatable life raft in an area about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) off the eastern coast of Yakushima, he said.

The coast guard said it planned to continue searching through the night.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said the Osprey disappeared from radar a few minutes before the coast guard received the emergency call. The aircraft requested an emergency landing at the Yakushima airport about five minutes before it was lost from radar, NHK public television and other news outlets reported.

NHK quoted a Yakushima resident as saying he saw the aircraft turned upside down, with fire coming from one of its engines, and then an explosion before it fell to the sea.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he planned to seek a further explanation from the U.S. military, but he declined to say whether he would seek a temporary suspension of Osprey operations in Japan.

Ogawa said the aircraft had departed from the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Yamaguchi prefecture and crashed on its way to Kadena Air Base on Okinawa.

Japanese Vice Defense Minister Hiroyuki Miyazawa said it had attempted an emergency sea landing and quoted the U.S. military as saying its pilot “did everything possible until the last minute."

Yokota Air Base is home to U.S. Forces Japan and the Fifth Air Force. Six CV-22 Ospreys have been deployed at Yokota, including the one that crashed.

In December 2016, a U.S. Marine Corps Osprey&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/b5db3444ee9a4ef48387c4bc029f1ea0">crashed off the Okinawa coast</a>, injuring two of the five crew members and triggering complaints from local residents about the U.S. bases in Okinawa and the Osprey's safety record.

TOKYO (AP) — A U.S. Air Force Osprey based in Japan crashed during a training mission Wednesday off of the country's southern coast, killing at least one of the eight crew members, the Japanese coast guard said.The cause of the crash and the status of the seven others on board were not immediately known, Japanese coast guard spokesperson Kazuo Ogawa said.U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command said in a statement that the CV-22B Osprey belonged to the 353rd Special Operations Wing assigned to Yokota Air Base. The crash occurred “while performing a routine training mission off the shore of Yakushima Island,” the command said.While the U.S. Marine Corps flies most of the Ospreys based in Japan, the Air Force also has some deployed there.Air Force Special Operations Command said search and rescue operations were underway. A U.S. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the crash could not provide further information on the crew's condition pending notification of next of kin.The Osprey is a hybrid aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter, but during flight can rotate its propellers forward and cruise much faster like an airplane.Ospreys have had a number of accidents in the past, including in Japan, where they are deployed at U.S. and Japanese military bases. In Okinawa, where about half of the 50,000 American troops are based, Gov. Denny Tamaki told reporters Wednesday that he would ask the U.S. military to suspend all Osprey flights in Japan.Ogawa said the coast guard received an emergency call Wednesday afternoon from a fishing boat near the crash site off Yakushima, an island south of Kagoshima on the southern main island of Kyushu.Coast guard aircraft and patrol boats found one person, identified only as male, who was later pronounced dead by a doctor at a nearby port, Ogawa said. They also found gray debris believed to be from the aircraft and an empty inflatable life raft in an area about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) off the eastern coast of Yakushima, he said.The coast guard said it planned to continue searching through the night.Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said the Osprey disappeared from radar a few minutes before the coast guard received the emergency call. The aircraft requested an emergency landing at the Yakushima airport about five minutes before it was lost from radar, NHK public television and other news outlets reported.NHK quoted a Yakushima resident as saying he saw the aircraft turned upside down, with fire coming from one of its engines, and then an explosion before it fell to the sea.Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he planned to seek a further explanation from the U.S. military, but he declined to say whether he would seek a temporary suspension of Osprey operations in Japan.Ogawa said the aircraft had departed from the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Yamaguchi prefecture and crashed on its way to Kadena Air Base on Okinawa.Japanese Vice Defense Minister Hiroyuki Miyazawa said it had attempted an emergency sea landing and quoted the U.S. military as saying its pilot “did everything possible until the last minute."Yokota Air Base is home to U.S. Forces Japan and the Fifth Air Force. Six CV-22 Ospreys have been deployed at Yokota, including the one that crashed.In December 2016, a U.S. Marine Corps Osprey&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/b5db3444ee9a4ef48387c4bc029f1ea0">crashed off the Okinawa coast</a>, injuring two of the five crew members and triggering complaints from local residents about the U.S. bases in Okinawa and the Osprey's safety record.

U.S. Air Force investigating deadly Osprey crash off Japan

TEL AVIV — Four-year-old Abigail Edan was discharged from the hospital late Tuesday night, following her release after more than 50 days as a hostage in Gaza, a spokesperson for Schneider Children’s Medical Center in Petah Tikvah said.

The Israeli-American dual citizen was the first U.S. hostage to be released under the cease-fire. Abigail marked her fourth birthday in captivity.

Both of her parents were killed in the Hamas attack that started the war&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-11fb98655c256d54ecb5329284fc37d2">on Oct. 7</a>. During the rampage, she ran to a neighbor’s home for shelter, and the Brodutch family took her in before militants took the family to Gaza.

Hagar Brodutch and her three children were also released on Sunday. President Joe Biden celebrated her release, telling reporters, “I wish I were there to hold her.”

Meanwhile,&nbsp;With hours left to go before a truce in Gaza expires, international mediators worked to extend it to facilitate the release of militant-held hostages and Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. The cease-fire has paused the deadliest fighting between Israel and Palestinians in decades.

Israel has agreed to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-11-29-2023-57e73a26c647ecd97e77afe19c08e077">extend the truce</a>, which was originally set to expire on Monday, by one day for every 10 hostages freed, and Hamas is expected to release another group of hostages later Wednesday. Twelve hostages, including 10 Israelis, were released Tuesday, bringing the total number of people freed during the truce to 81.

Israel has vowed to resume the war in an effort to end Hamas' 16-year rule of Gaza, but it's facing mounting international pressure to extend the truce and spare south Gaza a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-humanitarian-shifa-29388314e3286b2b0f1152f7d15e2d7b">devastating ground offensive</a>&nbsp;like the one that has demolished much of the north.

Hamas' ability to negotiate and implement the cease-fire suggests that Israel's air and ground campaigns have not seriously challenged the group's control of Gaza, despite killing thousands of Palestinians and driving three out of four people in the territory from their homes.

Roughly 240 hostages were captured by Hamas in its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-war-hamas-attack-border-wall-aa0b0f5f3613b6c6882cf37168e8e8ed">Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel</a>&nbsp;that ignited the war. More than 13,300 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Hamas-controlled Health Ministry</a>&nbsp;in Gaza. About 1,200 people have been killed in Israel, mostly during the initial incursion by Hamas.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701012372596.png" alt="Abigail Edan in family hand out photo TAL EDAN VIA AP" />
 <figcaption>Abigail Edan in family hand out photo TAL EDAN VIA AP</figcaption>
 </figure>TEL AVIV — Four-year-old Abigail Edan was discharged from the hospital late Tuesday night, following her release after more than 50 days as a hostage in Gaza, a spokesperson for Schneider Children’s Medical Center in Petah Tikvah said.The Israeli-American dual citizen was the first U.S. hostage to be released under the cease-fire. Abigail marked her fourth birthday in captivity.Both of her parents were killed in the Hamas attack that started the war&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-hamas-rockets-airstrikes-tel-aviv-11fb98655c256d54ecb5329284fc37d2">on Oct. 7</a>. During the rampage, she ran to a neighbor’s home for shelter, and the Brodutch family took her in before militants took the family to Gaza.Hagar Brodutch and her three children were also released on Sunday. President Joe Biden celebrated her release, telling reporters, “I wish I were there to hold her.”Meanwhile,&nbsp;With hours left to go before a truce in Gaza expires, international mediators worked to extend it to facilitate the release of militant-held hostages and Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. The cease-fire has paused the deadliest fighting between Israel and Palestinians in decades.Israel has agreed to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-11-29-2023-57e73a26c647ecd97e77afe19c08e077">extend the truce</a>, which was originally set to expire on Monday, by one day for every 10 hostages freed, and Hamas is expected to release another group of hostages later Wednesday. Twelve hostages, including 10 Israelis, were released Tuesday, bringing the total number of people freed during the truce to 81.Israel has vowed to resume the war in an effort to end Hamas' 16-year rule of Gaza, but it's facing mounting international pressure to extend the truce and spare south Gaza a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-humanitarian-shifa-29388314e3286b2b0f1152f7d15e2d7b">devastating ground offensive</a>&nbsp;like the one that has demolished much of the north.Hamas' ability to negotiate and implement the cease-fire suggests that Israel's air and ground campaigns have not seriously challenged the group's control of Gaza, despite killing thousands of Palestinians and driving three out of four people in the territory from their homes.Roughly 240 hostages were captured by Hamas in its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-war-hamas-attack-border-wall-aa0b0f5f3613b6c6882cf37168e8e8ed">Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel</a>&nbsp;that ignited the war. More than 13,300 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Hamas-controlled Health Ministry</a>&nbsp;in Gaza. About 1,200 people have been killed in Israel, mostly during the initial incursion by Hamas.

4-year-old American out of hospital after 50 days as hostage  

By&nbsp;<a href="http://www.defense.gov/News/Author/71410/david-vergun/">David Vergun</a>&nbsp;, Department of Defense

The United States airlifted more than 54,000 pounds of United Nations humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza on Tuesday, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a Pentagon news conference.

The aid includes vitally needed medical supplies, warm clothing, food and nutrition assistance. At the request of U.S. Agency for International Development, the supplies were transported via Air Force C-17 Globemaster aircraft and arrived in Al-Arish, Egypt, where they will be transported via ground transportation to Gaza and distributed by U.N. agencies, Ryder said.

Additional flights are expected in the coming days, he added.

This aid is in addition to the more than 500,000 pounds of food assistance delivered by the United States last week by USAID-contracted aircraft to Al-Arish, for onward travel to Gaza, he said.

"With 1.7 million people internally displaced and 2.2 million in need of humanitarian assistance [in Gaza], increased humanitarian supplies are essential to saving lives and alleviating suffering for the most vulnerable," according to a USAID news release.

The United States has mobilized $100 million in humanitarian assistance to help civilians affected by the conflict. The aid is meant to help thousands of people during a humanitarian pause in hostilities intended to further a surge of lifesaving assistance to Palestinian civilians, said a USAID statement.

The United States will continue to lead the humanitarian response in Gaza to further support those in desperate need. The United States is by far the largest donor to the U.N.'s humanitarian efforts in Gaza, according to USAID.

"We are grateful for the additional contributions from a number of donor partners who have already pledged significant funding, and we continue to advocate for others to do the same.

"The U.N.'s global appeal in response to the crisis remains woefully underfunded with only 21% funded, and we call on the international community to urgently step-up their support and deliver on commitments pledged," said the USAID statement.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701211889159.png" alt="A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III carries more than 54,000 pounds of vitally needed medical supplies, warm clothing, food and nutrition assistance to the people of Gaza from undisclosed locations throughout the Middle East, Nov. 28, 2023." />
 <figcaption>A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III carries more than 54,000 pounds of vitally needed medical supplies, warm clothing, food and nutrition assistance to the people of Gaza from undisclosed locations throughout the Middle East, Nov. 28, 2023.</figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;<a href="http://www.defense.gov/News/Author/71410/david-vergun/">David Vergun</a>&nbsp;, Department of DefenseThe United States airlifted more than 54,000 pounds of United Nations humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza on Tuesday, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a Pentagon news conference.The aid includes vitally needed medical supplies, warm clothing, food and nutrition assistance. At the request of U.S. Agency for International Development, the supplies were transported via Air Force C-17 Globemaster aircraft and arrived in Al-Arish, Egypt, where they will be transported via ground transportation to Gaza and distributed by U.N. agencies, Ryder said.Additional flights are expected in the coming days, he added.This aid is in addition to the more than 500,000 pounds of food assistance delivered by the United States last week by USAID-contracted aircraft to Al-Arish, for onward travel to Gaza, he said."With 1.7 million people internally displaced and 2.2 million in need of humanitarian assistance [in Gaza], increased humanitarian supplies are essential to saving lives and alleviating suffering for the most vulnerable," according to a USAID news release.The United States has mobilized $100 million in humanitarian assistance to help civilians affected by the conflict. The aid is meant to help thousands of people during a humanitarian pause in hostilities intended to further a surge of lifesaving assistance to Palestinian civilians, said a USAID statement.The United States will continue to lead the humanitarian response in Gaza to further support those in desperate need. The United States is by far the largest donor to the U.N.'s humanitarian efforts in Gaza, according to USAID.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701211967412.png" alt="ir Force Staff Sgt. Jeanne Caron, an 89th Airlift Squadron loadmaster, coordinates the movement of humanitarian aid aboard a C-17 Globemaster III for the people of Gaza, Nov. 28, 2023. U.S. government partners will distribute these supplies to meet humanitarian needs in Gaza." />
 <figcaption>ir Force Staff Sgt. Jeanne Caron, an 89th Airlift Squadron loadmaster, coordinates the movement of humanitarian aid aboard a C-17 Globemaster III for the people of Gaza, Nov. 28, 2023. U.S. government partners will distribute these supplies to meet humanitarian needs in Gaza.</figcaption>
 </figure>"We are grateful for the additional contributions from a number of donor partners who have already pledged significant funding, and we continue to advocate for others to do the same."The U.N.'s global appeal in response to the crisis remains woefully underfunded with only 21% funded, and we call on the international community to urgently step-up their support and deliver on commitments pledged," said the USAID statement.

U.S. ships tons of medical items, food for residents of Gaza 

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The latest swap of Hamas militant-held hostages for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel took place Tuesday evening as part of an ongoing cease-fire agreement between the warring sides.

Ten Israeli hostages — nine women and a 17-year-old girl — as well as two Thais were handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza and were back in Israeli territory, the military said. About an hour later, Israel released 30 Palestinian prisoners.

Israel and Hamas have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-11-28-2023-a909a0a0c9c76ce80d1ff3e94bbe2ec4">agreed to extend their cease-fire</a>&nbsp;until Wednesday, raising the prospect of further exchanges and a longer halt to their deadliest and most destructive war. Since last Friday, Hamas has released 81 hostages, mostly Israeli nationals, while Israel has freed 180 Palestinian prisoner.

An extended case-fire would also allow more aid into Gaza, which has been battered by weeks of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-gaza-israel-bombing-destruction-hamas-reconstruction-f299a28410b70ee05dd764df97d8d3a0">Israeli siege and bombardment</a>&nbsp;and a ground offensive that has driven three out of every four people in Gaza from their homes. The territory is home to 2.3 million people.

But Israel says it remains committed to crushing Hamas’ military capabilities and ending the group's 16-year rule over Gaza. That would likely mean&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-humanitarian-shifa-29388314e3286b2b0f1152f7d15e2d7b">expanding a ground offensive</a>&nbsp;from devastated northern Gaza into the south.

The cease-fire has allowed residents who remained in Gaza City and other parts of the north to venture out to survey the destruction and try to locate and bury relatives.

In northern Gaza's Jabaliya refugee camp, which Israel bombarded heavily for weeks and which troops surrounded in heavy fighting with militants, “you come across whole city blocks that have been demolished, just a pancake of concrete layered as buildings have collapsed,” said Thomas White, the Gaza director for the U.N. agency caring for Palestinian refugees.

The agency delivered six trucks of aid to the camp, including supplies for a medical center. Footage of White’s visit showed streets lined with destroyed buildings, cars, and piles of rubble.

<a href="https://sheltercluster.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/public/docs/SC-PC%20Joint%20advocacy%20note_241123-1.pdf?VersionId=kPEn3lsQx.2lA5.f5YXzNV3vuWmntrxi">A U.N.-led aid consortium</a>&nbsp;estimates that, across Gaza, over 234,000 homes have been damaged and 46,000 completely destroyed, amounting to around 60% of the territory’s housing stock. In the north, the destruction “severely compromises the ability to meet basic requirements to sustain life,” it said.

More than 13,300 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, roughly two-thirds of them women and minors, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza</a>, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. More than 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mostly civilians killed in the initial attack.

At least 77 soldiers have been killed in Israel’s ground offensive. Israel says it has killed thousands of militants, without providing evidence.

Authorities were able to reopen the dialysis department at Gaza City’s Shifa hospital after medical teams brought a small generator. Around 20 patients there had gone two or three weeks without dialysis, Dr. Mutasim Salah told Al-Jazeera TV from the hospital.

Two weeks ago, Israeli forces seized the hospital, which Israel had contended was used as a major base by Hamas, an accusation that the group and hospital staff deny.

Israel’s bombardment and ground offensive have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-airstrikes-gaza-hamas-war-702f447ff7e52b03476555ec2513008b">displaced more than 1.8 million people</a>, nearly 80% of Gaza’s population, with most having sought refuge in the south, according to the U.N. Hundreds of thousands of people have packed into U.N.-run schools and other facilities, with many forced to sleep on the streets outside because of overcrowding.

Though, rain and cold winds sweeping across Gaza have made conditions even more miserable.

On Tuesday, Hanan Tayeh returned to her destroyed home in the central town of Johor al-Deek, scouring for any belongings in the wreckage.

“I came to get anything for my daughters. Winter has come, and I have nothing for them to wear,” she said. “It is cold, we are homeless.”

The cease-fire has allowed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-palestinians-truce-red-cross-crescent-14cd8cae0f6e064484167c66bbcecf8f">increased aid of 160 to 200 trucks a day into Gaza</a>, bringing desperately needed food, water and medicine, as well as fuel for homes, hospitals and water treatment plants. Still, it is less than half what Gaza was importing before the fighting, even as humanitarian needs have soared.

Juliette Toma, a spokesperson for the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, said people come to shelters asking for heavy clothes, mattresses and blankets, and that some are sleeping in damaged vehicles.

“The needs are overwhelming,” she told The Associated Press. “They lost everything, and they need everything.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1701204582165.png" alt="Israeli soldiers look at photos of people killed and taken captive by Hamas militants during their violent rampage through the Nova music festival in southern Israel, which are displayed at the site of the event, as Israeli DJs spun music, to commemorate the October 7, massacre, near Kibbutz Re'im, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)" />
 <figcaption>Israeli soldiers look at photos of people killed and taken captive by Hamas militants during their violent rampage through the Nova music festival in southern Israel, which are displayed at the site of the event, as Israeli DJs spun music, to commemorate the October 7, massacre, near Kibbutz Re'im, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)</figcaption>
 </figure>DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The latest swap of Hamas militant-held hostages for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel took place Tuesday evening as part of an ongoing cease-fire agreement between the warring sides.Ten Israeli hostages — nine women and a 17-year-old girl — as well as two Thais were handed over to the Red Cross in Gaza and were back in Israeli territory, the military said. About an hour later, Israel released 30 Palestinian prisoners.Israel and Hamas have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-11-28-2023-a909a0a0c9c76ce80d1ff3e94bbe2ec4">agreed to extend their cease-fire</a>&nbsp;until Wednesday, raising the prospect of further exchanges and a longer halt to their deadliest and most destructive war. Since last Friday, Hamas has released 81 hostages, mostly Israeli nationals, while Israel has freed 180 Palestinian prisoner.An extended case-fire would also allow more aid into Gaza, which has been battered by weeks of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-gaza-israel-bombing-destruction-hamas-reconstruction-f299a28410b70ee05dd764df97d8d3a0">Israeli siege and bombardment</a>&nbsp;and a ground offensive that has driven three out of every four people in Gaza from their homes. The territory is home to 2.3 million people.But Israel says it remains committed to crushing Hamas’ military capabilities and ending the group's 16-year rule over Gaza. That would likely mean&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-humanitarian-shifa-29388314e3286b2b0f1152f7d15e2d7b">expanding a ground offensive</a>&nbsp;from devastated northern Gaza into the south.Roughly 240 hostages were captured by Hamas in its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinian-war-hamas-attack-border-wall-aa0b0f5f3613b6c6882cf37168e8e8ed">Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel</a>&nbsp;that ignited the war. More than 13,300 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Hamas-controlled Health Ministry</a>&nbsp;in Gaza. About 1,200 people have been killed in Israel, mostly during the initial incursion by Hamas.NORTHERN GAZA IN RUINSThe cease-fire has allowed residents who remained in Gaza City and other parts of the north to venture out to survey the destruction and try to locate and bury relatives.In northern Gaza's Jabaliya refugee camp, which Israel bombarded heavily for weeks and which troops surrounded in heavy fighting with militants, “you come across whole city blocks that have been demolished, just a pancake of concrete layered as buildings have collapsed,” said Thomas White, the Gaza director for the U.N. agency caring for Palestinian refugees.The agency delivered six trucks of aid to the camp, including supplies for a medical center. Footage of White’s visit showed streets lined with destroyed buildings, cars, and piles of rubble.<a href="https://sheltercluster.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/public/docs/SC-PC%20Joint%20advocacy%20note_241123-1.pdf?VersionId=kPEn3lsQx.2lA5.f5YXzNV3vuWmntrxi">A U.N.-led aid consortium</a>&nbsp;estimates that, across Gaza, over 234,000 homes have been damaged and 46,000 completely destroyed, amounting to around 60% of the territory’s housing stock. In the north, the destruction “severely compromises the ability to meet basic requirements to sustain life,” it said.More than 13,300 Palestinians have been killed since the war began, roughly two-thirds of them women and minors, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza</a>, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. More than 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mostly civilians killed in the initial attack.At least 77 soldiers have been killed in Israel’s ground offensive. Israel says it has killed thousands of militants, without providing evidence.Authorities were able to reopen the dialysis department at Gaza City’s Shifa hospital after medical teams brought a small generator. Around 20 patients there had gone two or three weeks without dialysis, Dr. Mutasim Salah told Al-Jazeera TV from the hospital.Two weeks ago, Israeli forces seized the hospital, which Israel had contended was used as a major base by Hamas, an accusation that the group and hospital staff deny.FEARS FOR THE SOUTHIsrael’s bombardment and ground offensive have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/palestinians-israel-airstrikes-gaza-hamas-war-702f447ff7e52b03476555ec2513008b">displaced more than 1.8 million people</a>, nearly 80% of Gaza’s population, with most having sought refuge in the south, according to the U.N. Hundreds of thousands of people have packed into U.N.-run schools and other facilities, with many forced to sleep on the streets outside because of overcrowding.Though, rain and cold winds sweeping across Gaza have made conditions even more miserable.On Tuesday, Hanan Tayeh returned to her destroyed home in the central town of Johor al-Deek, scouring for any belongings in the wreckage.“I came to get anything for my daughters. Winter has come, and I have nothing for them to wear,” she said. “It is cold, we are homeless.”The cease-fire has allowed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-palestinians-truce-red-cross-crescent-14cd8cae0f6e064484167c66bbcecf8f">increased aid of 160 to 200 trucks a day into Gaza</a>, bringing desperately needed food, water and medicine, as well as fuel for homes, hospitals and water treatment plants. Still, it is less than half what Gaza was importing before the fighting, even as humanitarian needs have soared.Juliette Toma, a spokesperson for the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, said people come to shelters asking for heavy clothes, mattresses and blankets, and that some are sleeping in damaged vehicles.“The needs are overwhelming,” she told The Associated Press. “They lost everything, and they need everything.”___

5th hostage release: 9 women, teenager and no Americans 

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Charlie Munger, who helped Warren Buffett build Berkshire Hathaway into an investment powerhouse, has died at a California hospital. He was 99.

Berkshire Hathaway said in a statement that Munger’s family told the company that he died Tuesday morning at the hospital just over a month before his 100th birthday.

“Berkshire Hathaway could not have been built to its present status without Charlie’s inspiration, wisdom and participation,” Buffett said in a statement.

Munger served as Buffett’s sounding board on investments and business decisions and helped lead Berkshire for more than five decades and served as its longtime vice chairman.

Munger had been using a wheelchair to get around for several years but he had remained mentally sharp. That was on display while he fielded hours of questions at the annual meetings of Berkshire and the Daily Journal Corp. earlier this year, and in recent interviews on an investing&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/charlie-munger/id1050462261?i=1000633030747">podcast</a>&nbsp;with The Wall Street Journal.

Munger preferred to stay in the background and let Buffett be the face of Berkshire, and he often downplayed his contributions to the company’s remarkable success.

But Buffett always credited Munger with pushing him beyond his early value investing strategies to buy great businesses at good prices like See’s Candy.

“Charlie has taught me a lot about valuing businesses and about human nature,” Buffett said in 2008.

Buffett’s early successes were based on what he learned from former Columbia University professor Ben Graham. He would buy stock in companies that were selling cheaply for less than their assets were worth, and then, when the market price improved, sell the shares.

Munger and Buffett began buying Berkshire Hathaway shares in 1962 for $7 and $8 per share, and they took control of the New England textile mill in 1965. Over time, the two men reshaped Berkshire into the conglomerate it is today by using proceeds from its businesses to buy other companies like Geico insurance and BNSF railroad, while also maintaining a high-profile stock portfolio with major investments in Apple and Coca-Cola. The shares have grown to $546,869 Tuesday, and many investors became wealthy by holding onto the stock.

During the entire time they worked together, Buffett and Munger lived more than 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) apart, but Buffett said he would call Munger in Los Angeles or Pasadena to consult on every major decision he made.

Munger grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, about five blocks away from Buffett’s current home, but because Munger is seven years older the two men didn’t meet as children, even though both worked at the grocery store Buffett’s grandfather and uncle ran.

When the two men met in 1959 at an Omaha dinner party, Munger was practicing law in Southern California and Buffett was running an investment partnership in Omaha.

Buffett and Munger hit it off at that initial meeting and then kept in touch through frequent telephone calls and lengthy letters, according to the biography in the definitive book on Munger called “Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger.”

The two men shared investment ideas and occasionally bought into the same companies during the 1960s and ’70s. They became the two biggest shareholders in one of their common investments, trading stamp maker Blue Chip Stamp Co., and through that acquired See’s Candy, the Buffalo News and Wesco. Munger became Berkshire’s vice chairman in 1978, and chairman and president of Wesco Financial in 1984.

Berkshire’s legions of devoted shareholders who regularly packed an Omaha arena to listen to the two men will remember the curmudgeonly quips Munger offered while answering questions alongside Buffett at the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-shareholders-meeting-munger-125f7fd2fc2830d74fb8f246727fedcd">annual meetings</a>.

Munger was known for repeating “I have nothing to add” after many of Buffett’s expansive answers at the Berkshire meetings. But Munger also often offered sharp answers that cut straight to the heart of an issue, such as the advice he offered in 2012 on spotting a good investment.

“If it’s got a really high commission on it, don’t bother looking at it,” he said.

Munger was known as a voracious reader and a student of human behavior. He employed a variety of different models borrowed from disciplines like psychology, physics and mathematics to evaluate potential investments.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1696601036200.jpeg" alt=" Berkshire Hathaway Vice Chairman Charlie Munger listens to a question during an interview on May 7, 2018, in Omaha, Neb. Berkshire Hathaway says Munger, who helped Warren Buffett build an investment powerhouse, has died. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik, File)" />
 <figcaption> Berkshire Hathaway Vice Chairman Charlie Munger listens to a question during an interview on May 7, 2018, in Omaha, Neb. Berkshire Hathaway says Munger, who helped Warren Buffett build an investment powerhouse, has died. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik, File)</figcaption>
 </figure>OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Charlie Munger, who helped Warren Buffett build Berkshire Hathaway into an investment powerhouse, has died at a California hospital. He was 99.Berkshire Hathaway said in a statement that Munger’s family told the company that he died Tuesday morning at the hospital just over a month before his 100th birthday.“Berkshire Hathaway could not have been built to its present status without Charlie’s inspiration, wisdom and participation,” Buffett said in a statement.Munger served as Buffett’s sounding board on investments and business decisions and helped lead Berkshire for more than five decades and served as its longtime vice chairman.Munger had been using a wheelchair to get around for several years but he had remained mentally sharp. That was on display while he fielded hours of questions at the annual meetings of Berkshire and the Daily Journal Corp. earlier this year, and in recent interviews on an investing&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/charlie-munger/id1050462261?i=1000633030747">podcast</a>&nbsp;with The Wall Street Journal.Munger preferred to stay in the background and let Buffett be the face of Berkshire, and he often downplayed his contributions to the company’s remarkable success.But Buffett always credited Munger with pushing him beyond his early value investing strategies to buy great businesses at good prices like See’s Candy.“Charlie has taught me a lot about valuing businesses and about human nature,” Buffett said in 2008.Buffett’s early successes were based on what he learned from former Columbia University professor Ben Graham. He would buy stock in companies that were selling cheaply for less than their assets were worth, and then, when the market price improved, sell the shares.Munger and Buffett began buying Berkshire Hathaway shares in 1962 for $7 and $8 per share, and they took control of the New England textile mill in 1965. Over time, the two men reshaped Berkshire into the conglomerate it is today by using proceeds from its businesses to buy other companies like Geico insurance and BNSF railroad, while also maintaining a high-profile stock portfolio with major investments in Apple and Coca-Cola. The shares have grown to $546,869 Tuesday, and many investors became wealthy by holding onto the stock.During the entire time they worked together, Buffett and Munger lived more than 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) apart, but Buffett said he would call Munger in Los Angeles or Pasadena to consult on every major decision he made.Munger grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, about five blocks away from Buffett’s current home, but because Munger is seven years older the two men didn’t meet as children, even though both worked at the grocery store Buffett’s grandfather and uncle ran.When the two men met in 1959 at an Omaha dinner party, Munger was practicing law in Southern California and Buffett was running an investment partnership in Omaha.Buffett and Munger hit it off at that initial meeting and then kept in touch through frequent telephone calls and lengthy letters, according to the biography in the definitive book on Munger called “Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger.”The two men shared investment ideas and occasionally bought into the same companies during the 1960s and ’70s. They became the two biggest shareholders in one of their common investments, trading stamp maker Blue Chip Stamp Co., and through that acquired See’s Candy, the Buffalo News and Wesco. Munger became Berkshire’s vice chairman in 1978, and chairman and president of Wesco Financial in 1984.Berkshire’s legions of devoted shareholders who regularly packed an Omaha arena to listen to the two men will remember the curmudgeonly quips Munger offered while answering questions alongside Buffett at the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-shareholders-meeting-munger-125f7fd2fc2830d74fb8f246727fedcd">annual meetings</a>.Munger was known for repeating “I have nothing to add” after many of Buffett’s expansive answers at the Berkshire meetings. But Munger also often offered sharp answers that cut straight to the heart of an issue, such as the advice he offered in 2012 on spotting a good investment.“If it’s got a really high commission on it, don’t bother looking at it,” he said.Munger was known as a voracious reader and a student of human behavior. He employed a variety of different models borrowed from disciplines like psychology, physics and mathematics to evaluate potential investments.Munger studied mathematics at the University of Michigan in the 1940s, but dropped out of college to serve as a meteorologist in the Army Air Corps during World War II.Then he went on to earn a law degree from Harvard University in 1948 even though he hadn’t finished a bachelor’s degree.Munger built a fortune worth more than $2 billion at one point and earned a spot on the list of the richest Americans. Munger’s wealth decreased over time as he&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/charlie-munger-berkshire-hathaway-donation-huntington-library-c71d80110e356665ffbe8135b36daa08">gave more of his fortune away</a>, but the ever increasing value of Berkshire’s stock kept him wealthy.Munger has given significant gifts to Harvard-Westlake, Stanford University Law School, the University of Michigan and the Huntington Library as well as other charities. He also gave a significant portion of his Berkshire stock to his eight children after his wife died in 2010.Munger also served on the boards of Good Samaritan Hospital and the private Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles. And Munger served on the board of Costco Wholesale Corp. and for years as chairman of the Daily Journal Corp.