The U.S. conducts airstrikes on militant groups in Iraq

Up First Briefing: U.S. conducts airstrikes on militants in Iraq-2023-u-s-union-wi

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed in a speech yesterday that Israel will keep fighting the war against Hamas. His statement came after he spoke with President Biden over the weekend. Biden didn’t asked for a cease-fire, but the U.S. wants Israel to do more things that would be more precise. “That’s not happening — at least not yet,” NPR’s Tom Bowman reports on Up First.

Source: Up First briefing: U.S. conducts airstrikes on militants in Iraq; 2023 U.S. union wins

Do you wanna invite me to social gatherings? A study by Jaishankar in Russia, and Rachel Martin in India, an old friend from Enlighten Me

India’s foreign minister, S. Jaishankar, is on the second day of a five-day visit to Russia. He’s expected to discuss trade and other issues with Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov. Russia is India’s top arms supplier, and India has been a big buyer of Russian oil since the invasion of Ukraine. But Russia and India’s decades-long close relationship is complicated by India’s growing relationship with the U.S.

After Rachel Martin’s parents died, she says she felt an “existential void.” They led rich spiritual lives, and their absence made her reflect on how she could lead a more meaningful and happy life. This conversation with her siblings is one of the first Martin recorded for Enlighten Me. They talked about how losing their parents made them reckon with their own faith, and they also talked about the interview they did.

Christmas party season may be over, but New Year’s Eve celebrations are right around the corner. Don’t be upset if you don’t get invited to some social gatherings because your social battery is low. A new study finds that people underestimate how much an invite means to them. Here’s some advice on how to say no:

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