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Today’s edition of quick hits.
* In Gaza: “An Israeli airstrike on a crowded tent camp in a Gaza humanitarian zone Tuesday killed at least 19 people and injured 60 others, officials in the Palestinian enclave said. ... The Israeli military said it targeted ‘senior’ Hamas militants and disputed the death toll.”
* In related news: “The Israeli military said Tuesday it was ‘highly likely’ that its forces killed an American woman during a protest in the occupied West Bank last week. The United States said the shooting was ‘unprovoked and unjustified’ and called for ‘fundamental changes’ to Israel’s conduct, a rare direct rebuke of its close ally.”
* New sanctions will follow this escalation: “Iran has sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia for its war against Ukraine in a ‘dramatic escalation’ that will let Moscow strike deeper inside Ukrainian territory, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday.”
* In related news: “Ukraine struck Russia with one of its largest drone attacks of the war on Tuesday, killing a woman in the Moscow area, setting off fires in high-rise buildings and forcing the closure of major airports near the capital, Kremlin officials said.”
* It doesn’t generate front-page headlines, but the Biden administration continues to take worthwhile policy steps: “The Biden Administration said on Monday it had finalized a regulation to help ensure that the 175 million Americans with private health insurance have access to affordable mental health services. The 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act already requires insurers and corporate-backed health plans to provide access and payment structures for mental health care services on par with other medical services.”
* Income levels: “The inflation-adjusted median income of U.S. households rebounded last year to roughly its 2019 level, overcoming the biggest price spike in four decades to restore most Americans’ purchasing power.”
* The latest on the Airport Fire: “The latest in a spate of dangerous wildfires plaguing Southern California spread quickly after sparking Monday afternoon, within hours emitting ominous plumes of black smoke. The Airport Fire in Orange County had grown to 9,300 acres by midday Tuesday, forcing thousands of people to evacuate amid a punishing heat wave hovering for nearly a week.”
* Grocery prices: “US consumers may finally be getting some relief from their grocery bills — especially if they shop for food online. Data by Adobe Inc. shows that online grocery prices fell 3.7% in August from a month earlier, the largest decline since the firm began tracking the numbers in 2014.”
* Thomas will ignore Durbin, but the effort is worthwhile anyway: "Justice Clarence Thomas faces yet another call to recuse himself, following reporting that his wife, Ginni Thomas, praised a conservative religious group’s opposition to Supreme Court reform. Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin, D-Ill., called on the justice to recuse himself from cases involving that group, the First Liberty Institute."
See you tomorrow.