Hamas official who sought endless war after Oct. 7 says it could put down arms for 2-state deal

A senior member of Hamas’s Qatar-based politburo said in an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday that the terrorist group is willing to agree to a truce of five years or more with Israel and that it would lay down its weapons and convert into a political party if an independent Palestinian state is established along pre-1967 borders.

However, in separate comments published by the London-based Arabic paper Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, the same official, Khalil al-Hayya, indicated this would only be a temporary stance and that the Palestinians retain their “historic right to all Palestinian lands.”

Al-Hayya also specified in the AP interview that the envisaged Palestinian state would necessitate “the return of Palestinian refugees” to today’s Israel. The Palestinian demand for a so-called “right of return” provides for up to six million descendants of refugees entering Israel — a demand dismissed by Israel as seeking to destroy it as a Jewish majority state.

Al-Hayya’s comments came amid a stalemate in months of talks for a truce and a hostage release. The suggestion that Hamas could disarm appeared to mark a potential departure by the terror group, which is officially committed to Israel’s destruction.

New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein’s sex crimes convictions and orders a new trial

The New York Court of Appeals on Thursday overturned the sex crimes conviction against Harvey Weinstein, the powerful Hollywood producer whose downfall stood as a symbol of the #MeToo movement.

The court, by a 4-3 vote, ordered a new trial.

“We conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes because that testimony served no material non-propensity purpose,” the ruling, written by Judge Jenny Rivera, states.

“The court compounded that error when it ruled that defendant, who had no criminal history, could be cross examined about those allegations as well as numerous allegations of misconduct that portrayed defendant in a highly prejudicial light. The synergistic effect of these errors was not harmless.”

Still, Weinstein is not a free man. Last year, he was sentenced in Los Angeles to 16 years in prison for charges of rape and sexual assault.

Legendary Minnesota hockey broadcaster Al Shaver dies

The legendary “voice of hockey” in Minnesota has died.

KSTP Sports confirmed Wednesday that Al Shaver has died. He was 96.

Shaver worked in many roles during his 48-year broadcasting career but is most commonly known as the voice of the Minnesota North Stars.

He came to the Twin Cities in 1967 to call North Stars games, which he did for 26 years until the team moved to Dallas in 1993. He then broadcast Gophers hockey games until his retirement in 1996. His son, Wally, is now the voice of Gophers hockey.

Shaver is a 10-time Minnesota Sportscaster of the Year and received numerous awards over his career. He’s also in the Minnesota Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

Biden’s planned commencement speech sparks concern at Morehouse College


A commencement speech that President Joe Biden is expected to deliver at Morehouse College next month has sparked some concern among the school’s faculty amid heightened tensions on college campuses across the country over the US’ continued support for Israel in its war in Gaza.

The White House on Tuesday formally announced that Biden will deliver the May 19 commencement at Morehouse, but faculty at the school – one of the nation’s preeminent historically Black colleges – expressed concerns about Biden’s presence on campus after hearing rumors that he would deliver the commencement earlier this week, according to an email from Morehouse Provost and Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs Kendrick Brown, which was obtained by CNN.

In the email, Brown writes that the concerns “prompted me to consult with elected faculty leaders” and those leaders “expressed clearly that providing such a forum for discussion would be valued by many faculty.”

The forum is scheduled for April 25, according to the email and will just be for faculty, though Brown notes “students also will engage” with college President David Thomas on the issue.

U of M pro-Palestinian encampment dispersed by police, 9 arrested

Nine people were arrested Tuesday morning after a group of students set up a pro-Palestinian encampment on the University of Minnesota campus.

Social media posts showed several tents were set up outside Walter Library, located on the East Bank campus. Police arrived at the scene and appeared to start taking down signs as students were chanting. The protesters later dispersed after authorities arrived, and the tents were taken down just before 8 a.m.

A University of Minnesota spokesperson said the group was asked to disperse by 7 a.m., but nine people chose to stay and were arrested.

The protest is similar to what has been seen at college campuses across the country. At campuses like NYU and Yale, protests have led to arrests or canceled classes. U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar's daughter was one of more than 100 demonstrators who were arrested on Thursday at Columbia University during a pro-Palestinian protest encampment.

The City Without Jews (German: Die Stadt ohne Juden) is a 1924 Austrian Expressionist film by Hans Karl Breslauer, based on the novel of the same title by Hugo Bettauer. The film is one of the few surviving Expressionist films from Austria and has therefore been well researched.[2] The film was first shown on 25 July 1924 in Vienna.[