VOA News for Tuesday, May 18th, 2021

VOA News for Tuesday, May 18th, 2021
Thanks to gandalf.ddo.jp/ for transcribing
This is VOA News. Via remote, I'm Marissa Melton.
The White House says U.S. President Joe Biden has spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and expressed support for a cease-fire between Israeli troops and Hamas militants.
Biden had told reporters at the White House early on Monday that he planned to speak with the Israeli prime minister. He did in fact speak with Netanyahu [ff...] for the third time since violence broke out a week ago.
A White House put up a statement this evening saying the president expressed his support for a cease-fire and discussed U.S. engagement with Egypt and other partners toward that end.
Israel pummeled Gaza City with airstrikes on Monday, killing a senior Palestinian militant commander and Palestinian militant groups renewed rocket attacks on Israel as violence in the region entered its second week.
Gaza's Health Ministry says that since the fighting began on May the 10th, at least 200 Palestinians have been killed, including at least 59 children. At least 10 Israelis have been killed, including a six-year-old child.
After meeting with top defense officials Monday, Netanyahu said Israel will "continue to strike terror targets and will continue to operate as long as necessary [in turn] in order to return calm and security to all Israeli citizens.”
Meanwhile, the armed wing of Hamas promised more rocket attacks. Spokesman Abu Ubaida announced Hamas will resume rocket launches on Tel Aviv if the Israeli airstrikes don't stop. It's according to Reuters news agency.
Also Monday, an Israeli man died of his wounds after being attacked last week by a group of Arab citizens in the central city of Lod. The city has become a flash point area during the latest fighting.
More on this and all the stories we're recovering at our website voanews.com. This is VOA News.
A deadly [*cycone] cyclone made landfall on India's west coast on Monday, further exacerbating the country's crisis battling the coronavirus pandemic.
Cyclone Tauktae prompted mass evacuations and the halting of vaccination campaigns in the western state of Gujarat, where it made landfall with sustained winds of up to 165 kilometers per hour, according to the country's meteorological department.
The storm is expected to further delay India's coronavirus response, with the weather forcing some hospitals to relocate patients and some vaccination drives to be canceled.
The storm killed over a dozen people even before it made landfall. Local media report that it is the worst cyclone to hit the area in 30 years.
The United States is taking new steps to make it more difficult for the Islamic State terror group to move money, including donations from international supporters through Syria and Turkey.
The Treasury Department announced sanctions on Monday against three people and one company who were alleged to have played key roles in Islamic State's financial network.
One of the people is accused of using his Turkish-based money services company to transfer thousands of dollars to IS operatives across Syria.
The new sanctions also target the Al-Fay Company, a money services business based in Turkey, and two brothers, Idris al-Fay and Ibrahim al-Fay.
The U.S. Treasury Department said Idris al-Fay had used the company to funnel donations to IS members. The Treasury says he is currently in Iraqi custody.
Al-Fay's brother Ibrahim is accused of taking over management of the company and of continuing to send funds to what Treasury officials described as an IS element in Syria and Iraq.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider a major curb on nearly 50 years of abortion rights in the United States. It said it will decide whether states can ban abortions before a fetus can survive outside the womb.
Arguments in the case are likely to be heard in the court's term that starts in October, with the new 6-3 conservative majority possibly ready to significantly limit a woman's constitutional right to abortion, which was first spelled out in the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and reaffirmed 19 years later.
The newest abortion dispute involves a law enacted by the southern state of Mississippi. It would prohibit abortions after the 15th week of pregnancy. This is one of numerous statutes approved by conservative-majority state legislatures in recent years targeting the 1973 ruling.
More on that and all the stories we're covering at our website voanews.com. Via remote, I'm Marissa Melton, VOA News.

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