The state of the pandemic in the US is looking brighter with infection rates dropping to where they were in June of last year, and hospitalization rates declining, too. But vaccination rates vary widely depending on where you look on a map, with New England showing rates above average and the South showing rates below average.

The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas reportedly held over the weekend, and now the focus has shifted to addressing the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Rebuilding after the destruction will inevitably be complicated by Israel's blockade on most construction supplies entering the region.

And in headlines: Belarus intercepts an airplane to arrest a journalist, the AP fires a Jewish journalist for voicing pro-Palestine views, and the Texas legislature approves a law to ban teaching of critical race theory.

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