Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday defended his country's conduct in the devastating Gaza war, urged the U.S. to support the fight against Hamas and ridiculed protesters during a scathing address to Congress.

But he also cited an unverified intelligence report and ignored much of the criticism in a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and devastated Gaza.

The U.S. military's pier to get humanitarian aid into Gaza has come to an end after a series of problems.

The pier was pulled from the Gaza shore on June 28 due to rough seas, and bad weather prevented troops from reinstalling it. Now, it's being dismantled and brought home.

Israel's deadly strike on Al-Mawasi, one of the bloodiest attacks in more than nine months of war in Gaza, used massive payload bombs provided by the United States, according to weapons experts.

The bombing of the Israeli-declared "safe zone" transformed the tent city on the Mediterranean coast into a charred wasteland, with nearby hospitals overrun with casualties.

In 1948, the Republican and Democratic parties did something unthinkable in today's climate of ferocious political animosity: They not only held their national conventions in the same city but also shared some of the props.

Both gathered in Philadelphia, largely because its Municipal Auditorium had already been fitted with the wiring needed for then-groundbreaking live convention coverage on national television.

Internal drama. Leaks. Second-guessing. The pressure and chaos swirling since Joe Biden's disastrous debate performance is causing cracks in a White House that until now had been marked by discipline and loyalty.

For three-plus years, the Biden administration has been mostly a restrained and staid operation, defined more by an insistence on showcasing policy and an avoidance of palace intrigue. Aides generally kept any criticism of their boss or their jobs out of the public eye. Not lately, though.

Qatari and Egyptian mediators are cajoling Israel and Hamas towards negotiations on a plan to end their war, which has left tens of thousands dead.

U.S. President Joe Biden first outlined in late May what he called an Israeli initiative for a truce and hostage release deal. Mediators are now embroiled in secret contacts with both sides, who have launched diplomatic barbs ahead of this week's talks.

Several officials in the Middle East and the U.S. believe the level of devastation in the Gaza Strip caused by a nine-month Israeli offensive likely has helped push Hamas to soften its demands for a cease-fire agreement.

Hamas over the weekend appeared to drop its longstanding demand that Israel promise to end the war as part of any cease-fire deal. The sudden shift has raised new hopes for progress in internationally brokered negotiations.

The Labour Party has won Britain's general election, bringing a new party to power for the first time in 14 years. But Labour leader Keir Starmer won't actually become prime minister until a carefully choreographed ceremony on Friday during which King Charles III will formally ask him to form a new government.

It's a moment that embodies the fact that, technically at least, the right to govern in the United Kingdom is still derived from royal authority, centuries after real political power was transferred to elected members of Parliament.

By Asher Kaufman, University of Notre Dame

Months of relentless exchanges between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah have seen mass civilian evacuations and widespread death, injury and destruction.

After more than eight months of low-scale conflict, Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah are threatening all-out war.

The United States and the international community are lobbying for calm and hopeful for a diplomatic solution. They have not been successful so far and time for a political settlement could be expiring.