Netanyahu vows to invade Rafah ‘with or without a deal’

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to launch an incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering from the almost 7-month-long war. Netanyahu’s comments came hours before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Israel to advance the truce talks that appear to be one of the most serious rounds of negotiations between Israel and Hamas since the war began. The deal is meant to free hostages, bring some relief to the population and avert an Israeli offensive into Rafah and the potential harm to civilians there.

Sword-wielding man attacks passersby in London, killing a 14-year-old boy

LONDON (AP) — A 14-year-old boy has been killed and four others have been injured by a man wielding a sword who attacked members of the public and police officers in a northeast London suburb. Police said that a 36-year-old man was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. Chief Supt. Stuart Bell said the violence wasn’t being treated as terror-related or a “targeted attack.” Two police officers were hospitalized for stab wounds. Two other people were also injured. The Metropolitan Police said they were called early Tuesday to reports of a vehicle being driven into a house and people being stabbed close to the Hainault subway station.

Chinese scientist who first published COVID sequence stages protest

SHANGHAI (AP) — The first scientist to publish a sequence of the COVID-19 virus in China staged a sit-in protest outside his lab after authorities locked him out of the facility. It’s a sign of the Beijing’s continuing pressure on scientists conducting research on the coronavirus. Zhang Yongzhen wrote in an online post Monday that he and his team had been suddenly notified they were being evicted from their lab. It was the latest in a series of setbacks, demotions and ousters since the virologist published the sequence in January 2020 without state approval. Guards barred Zhang from entering his lab over the weekend. In protest, he sat outside on flattened cardboard in drizzling rain.

Mexico is taking Ecuador to the top UN court

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Mexico has accused Ecuador of a violation of international law before the top U.N. court, asserting that there was no legal defense for storming the Mexican Embassy in Quito to arrest a former vice president who had just been granted asylum in Mexico. The April 5 raid, hours after Mexico granted asylum to former Vice President Jorge Glas, spiked tensions between the two countries that had been brewing since Glas, a convicted criminal and fugitive, took refuge at the embassy in December. Leaders across Latin America condemned the raid as a violation of international conventions. Ecuador says Glas was wanted for corruption and not for political reasons, and that Mexico’s granting of asylum was a violation of international accords.