10 things you need to know today: November 1, 2023

1. Israel bombs refugee camp to kill a Hamas leader

Israeli airstrikes hit the densely populated Jabaliya refugee camp in Gaza on Tuesday. Israel said the attack killed a Hamas commander and "dozens" of other fighters, and destroyed a command center in a "vast underground tunnel complex" under flattened buildings. Gaza's health ministry said "hundreds" of people were killed or wounded in the strike. An Israeli military spokesperson, Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, said the Hamas militants were "hiding, as they do, behind civilians." Israel said the commander it targeted helped plan the Oct. 7 Hamas surprise attack in southern Israel. Hamas denied that the commander, Ibrahim Biari, was at the refugee camp. Video of the strike's aftermath showed people digging through rubble around a giant crater amid crumbling buildings. Reuters, The New York Times

2. Cornell student charged with threats against Jewish students

Police arrested a Cornell University student, Patrick Dai, on Tuesday and charged him with posting threats against Jewish students. Dai, a junior at the Ivy League school in upstate New York, allegedly posted messages in the Cornell section of an unaffiliated online forum for fraternities and sororities, saying he would "stab" and "slit the throat" of any Jewish males on campus, and rape and throw Jewish females off a cliff. The post included a threat to behead Jewish babies and "bring an assault rifle to campus and shoot all you pig jews." The messages prompted police and the FBI to increase security on campus, including outside a building with a dining hall that caters to kosher diets. The Associated Press, NBC News

3. Senate confirms Jack Lew as ambassador to Israel

The Senate on Tuesday confirmed Jack Lew as the new U.S. ambassador to Israel in a 53-43 vote. Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) were the only Republicans to vote with Democrats to confirm Lew, who served as Treasury secretary under former President Barack Obama and director of the Office of Management and Budget under former President Bill Clinton. Democrats pushed to get Lew on the job as the Israel-Hamas war escalates. During a contentious confirmation hearing, Lew faced opposition from Republicans over his work in the previous Democratic administrations, including his role backing the Obama administration's Iran nuclear deal. The ambassador's job has been vacant since Thomas Nides left during the summer. USA Today

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4. FBI director tells senators US faces growing terrorism threats

FBI Director Christopher Wray said Tuesday that the Israel-Hamas war has led to an increase in terrorist threats against the U.S., a key Israel ally. "The terrorism threat has been elevated throughout 2023," Wray testified to the Senate Homeland Security Committee. "But the ongoing war in the Middle East has raised the threat of an attack against Americans in the United States to a whole other level." International terrorist groups are not the only source of threats. Reports of domestic antisemitism are rising. A Nevada man, John Anthony Miller, was arrested last week and jailed on charges of threatening Sen. Jacky Rosen (Nev.), a Jewish Democrat, with multiple antisemitic phone messages after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel. NPR, Las Vegas Review-Journal

5. Biden to meet with Xi for 'constructive' talks

President Biden will meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping for what the White House said it hopes will be "constructive" talks on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco next month. The confirmation of the meeting followed a rare visit to Washington by China's foreign minister, who said over the weekend that preparations for the talks were "not smooth." The leaders of the world's two biggest economies have not had direct contact since a 2022 meeting in Bali. Since then, U.S.-China tensions have been running high over a variety of issues, including trade, technology, the South China Sea and Beijing's close ties to Russia despite Moscow's war in Ukraine. Bloomberg, The Guardian

6. Michigan prosecutors end Flint water crisis criminal cases

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's (D) office said Tuesday that the criminal investigation of the Flint water crisis had "closed" after seven years with no convictions. Prosecutors said the Michigan Supreme Court's rejection Tuesday of an effort to revive charges against the state's former Republican governor, Rick Snyder, was the "nail in the coffin" for their efforts. Nessel's Flint prosecution team said it was disappointed in the court's decision. "To deny the opportunity to present the evidence and to let the victims tell their story is truly heartbreaking," the prosecution team said. Snyder said he would work to prevent "political persecutions" by electing prosecutors with "a moral compass." The Detroit News, The Hill

7. Tuberville pushes No. 2 Marine's confirmation after commandant collapses

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), who is blocking hundreds of military promotions in a fight against Pentagon abortion policy, moved Tuesday to force a vote on confirming the U.S. Marine Corps' second-in-command, Lt. Gen. Christopher Mahoney, after Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith collapsed while jogging two days earlier and was hospitalized. Mahoney was nominated in July, but his promotion is among hundreds held up by Tuberville. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) pushed to schedule votes on the promotions of Mahoney and the stalled nominees to run the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force, Adm. Lisa Franchetti and Gen. David Allvin. Schumer said Tuberville "should drop his blanket holds at once." The Wall Street Journal

8. Bankman-Fried denies telling staff to take FTX customers' money

Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of the failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, denied knowing his company had siphoned away billions from customers during a second day of questioning by a federal prosecutor in his criminal fraud trial. The prosecutor, Danielle Sassoon, asked the 31-year-old former crypto tycoon whether he told underlings to use customers' money to buy real estate and make investments. "I don't recall giving any direction," he replied. Bankman-Fried is accused of orchestrating the theft of up to $10 billion from FTX customers, and using the money on luxury real estate and goods, as well as propping up his crypto trading firm, Alameda Research. The New York Times

9. Experts say sickle cell treatment safe

A panel of experts said Tuesday that a groundbreaking sickle cell disease treatment, known as exa-cel, is safe for clinical use. The decision cleared the path for the Food and Drug Administration's likely approval by Dec. 8. The potential cure was developed jointly by Vertex Pharmaceuticals of Boston and CRISPR Therapeutics of Switzerland. The FDA previously found it effective against the illness, which afflicts more than 100,000 Americans, most of whom have African ancestry. The FDA also will decide by Dec. 20 on a second potential sickle cell cure, a gene therapy devised by Bluebird Bio. Sickle cell disease is caused by a gene mutation that makes blood cells misshapen and can cause strokes, organ damage and agonizing pain. The New York Times, NBC News

10. Report: Homeschooling now fastest-growing US education strategy

Homeschooling is by far the fastest-growing form of education in the United States, The Washington Post reported Tuesday, citing an analysis the newspaper conducted of data from thousands of school districts. The number of families educating their children outside of conventional academic settings jumped 51% in the last six years, compared to 7% for private school enrollment and a 4% decline for public schools, in states with accurate statistics for all three groups. Homeschooling increased sharply after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, and held steady through the 2022-23 school year, despite predictions that it would fade as schools ended mask mandates and remote instruction. The Washington Post