10 things you need to know today: October 16, 2023

1. Israel-Hamas war fuels fear of regional conflict

Diplomats from the United States and other nations scrambled Sunday to prevent the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip from broadening into a regional conflict. Israel is preparing to launch a ground offensive into the Palestinian territory, aiming to crush Hamas in response to last week's bloody surprise attacks in southern Israel by Hamas fighters. Iran warned that the battle could turn into a regional conflict if Israel's attacks in Gaza continue. Fighting intensified on Israel's border with Lebanon, where Israeli jets started bombing after Hezbollah anti-tank rockets killed one person in northern Israel. Israel warned it would "destroy" Lebanon's Hezbollah if it entered the war. The New York Times, Aljazeera

2. Relief groups plead for humanitarian corridor in Gaza

Relief groups on Sunday called for establishing an emergency corridor to allow aid into Gaza to ease a humanitarian crisis as the Israel-Hamas war escalates. Egypt said Israel agreed to a temporary ceasefire to let aid in, but Israel denied it, Haaretz reported. Gaza health officials warned that thousands of civilians could die in the Palestinian territory if hospitals run out of generator fuel, as expected, in two days. The Gaza Health Ministry said 2,670 Palestinians had been killed and 9,600 wounded in Israeli bombing. More than 1,400 Israelis, mostly civilians, were killed in Hamas' initial attacks, making this the deadliest of the five Gaza wars for both sides. An estimated 500,000 Palestinians have fled south seeking safety. The Associated Press, Haaretz

3. House Republicans prepare for vote on Jim Jordan's speaker bid

The House plans to try again to elect a speaker to replace ousted Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Tuesday, the No. 2 Democrat, Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), said Sunday. Republicans last week chose Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the far-right chair of the House Judiciary Committee endorsed by former President Donald Trump, as their second nominee in a split vote. The party conference's first choice, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), had backed out, saying he didn't have the votes to be elected. Democrats are urging members of their caucus to vote for Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). Jeffries said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that "there have been informal discussions" about forming "a bipartisan governing coalition." Reuters, CBS News

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4. Russia agrees to return 4 Ukrainian children to families

Russia has agreed to let four Ukrainian children, age 2 to 17, return to their families in Ukraine after talks mediated by Qatar, The Washington Post reported Monday, citing a government official. Two of the children have been reunited with relatives. The two others will rejoin their families within days. The children passed through Qatar's Embassy in Moscow, then took different routes home. Russia has faced intense pressure to return children taken out of Ukraine since Russia invaded last year. The International Criminal Court in The Hague issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia's commissioner for children's rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, in March, accusing them of war crimes for the "unlawful deportation" of an estimated 16,000 Ukrainian children. The Washington Post

5. 6-year-old killed in alleged anti-Muslim attack outside Chicago

Illinois authorities have charged a Chicago-area man with fatally stabbing a 6-year-old boy and seriously injuring his 32-year-old mother, allegedly because they were Muslim and he was angry over Hamas' attack in Israel last week. The suspect, Joseph Czuba, faces charges including first-degree murder, first-degree attempted murder and two hate crimes. Police received a 911 call on Saturday from a woman who said she was in the bathroom trying to defend herself as her landlord attacked her with a knife. Deputies found the woman and the boy in the bathroom. The boy, who had been stabbed 26 times, was rushed in critical condition to a hospital, where he died. The woman suffered a dozen stab wounds but was expected to survive. Chicago Tribune

6. Poland's opposition claims election win

Opposition leader Donald Tusk, a former European Council president and Polish prime minister, claimed victory in Poland's Sunday parliamentary elections, which appeared likely to deny the ruling nationalist Law and Justice party a third term. Law and Justice — which has turned public television into a propaganda tool and demonized refugees and LGBTQ+ people — got the most votes, about 37%, so it will have the first shot at forming a government, but it lacks the allies to form a ruling coalition. Tusk's Civic Coalition won 32% of the vote, according exit polls, giving it enough seats to form a government with the center-right Third Way and the left-wing Lewica. "This is the end of the bad times, the end of Law and Justice rule," Tusk said. Bloomberg, The Guardian

7. Ecuador elects banana-empire heir as its youngest president

Daniel Noboa, a 35-year-old center-right businessman and scion of one of Latin America's wealthiest families, won Ecuador's presidential election on Sunday, beating leftist opponent Luisa González 52% to 48%, according to near-complete results. González, a protégé of exiled former President Rafael Correa, conceded Sunday night. Noboa, whose father built a business empire based on banana exports and unsuccessfully ran for president five times, will serve only until May 2025, completing the truncated term of outgoing President Guillermo Lasso. Noboa, Ecuador's youngest president ever, will face pressure to halt a surge of violence tied to international drug trafficking. During the campaign he suggested turning ships into floating jails for the most violent criminals. Los Angeles Times, BBC News

8. Rite Aid files for bankruptcy

Rite Aid said Sunday it had filed for bankruptcy after failing to come up with the money to settle hundreds of federal, state and private lawsuits accusing the pharmacy chain of filling illegal painkiller prescriptions, helping to fuel the nation's opioid crisis. Rite Aid, hobbled by years of losses, said it obtained $3.45 billion in financing to keep operating through bankruptcy. The company appointed a new chief executive, Jeffrey Stein, to lead the restructuring, which will include the closing of more of the chain's 2,100 stores. Rite Aid is one of many pharmacy chains facing lawsuits over their alleged roles in the opioid crisis. The Justice Department in March accused the company of filling painkiller prescriptions despite obvious "red flags indicating misuse." The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times

9. Taylor Swift's concert movie breaks records

Taylor Swift's Eras Tour concert film led the box office in its debut weekend, bringing in an estimated $95 million to $97 million. It instantly became the biggest concert film of all time, surpassing Justin Bieber's 2011 concert movie "Never Say Never," which grossed $73 million over its entire theater run, Rolling Stone reported. The film on Swift's tour — likely to be the biggest-grossing concert tour ever — also broke the record for the widest-released concert film in history, appearing on more than 3,850 domestic screens. If the weekend's final tally comes in on the high end of estimates, Swift's Eras Tour concert movie could even break the record for the biggest October opening, now held by 2019's "The Joker" ($96.2 million). Rolling Stone, CNBC

10. 'Three's Company' star Suzanne Somers dies

Former TV star Suzanne Somers, best known for her roles in the sitcoms "Three's Company" and "Step by Step," died Sunday at her home, 23 years after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She announced this summer that the cancer had returned. She would have turned 77 on Monday. Somers' family was with her — her husband Alan, her son Bruce, and other relatives had gathered to celebrate her birthday. Somers got her first small acting roles in the late 1960s and early '70s. She earned her first credit in the Steve McQueen film "Bullitt," and was the "Blonde in the white Thunderbird" in George Lucas' 1973 coming-of-age classic "American Graffiti." People, USA Today