News Wrap: Dozens killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza

In our news wrap Wednesday, Palestinian officials say dozens died after an Israeli airstrike hit a hospital and refugee camp in Gaza, talks between Boeing and striking workers stalled after the company withdrew its latest contract offer and the Nobel Prize in chemistry went to three scientists, whose work ushered in a better understanding of proteins, the building blocks of life.

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Amna Nawaz: We begin the day’s other headlines in Gaza, where Israeli strikes on the center and north of the territory have killed dozens of people.

One of the attacks struck a hospital in Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp, where Palestinian officials say at least nine people were killed, including women and children. Today, President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone for the first time in seven weeks. Vice President Harris also took part.

The White House called that 30-minute call productive and direct, and said the U.S. remains supportive of Israel as it weighs how to respond to a recent missile attack from Iran.

Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary: I think what you have seen from this administration is the continued support for Israel’s security. You saw that over the past couple of days, obviously, since the past couple of weeks, when Iran attacked Israel.The president directed his military to protect Israel. He was very proud to be able to do that, and that support continues.

Amna Nawaz: On that Iran attack, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said today that the country’s retaliation against Iran would be — quote — “lethal, precise, and, above all, surprising.”

Iran launched nearly 200 projectiles at Israel last week, increasing tensions between the two nations.

Here in the U.S., talks between Boeing and striking workers have stalled after the plane maker withdrew its latest contract offer. It reportedly included a 30 percent raise over four years, along with other benefits. The union says it’s surveyed its members, who overwhelmingly rejected the proposal.

Boeing said the union’s demands are — quote — “far in excess of what can be accepted if we are to remain competitive as a business.” The strike by some 33,000 factory workers is nearing its fourth week. No new negotiations are planned.

The Nobel Prize in chemistry went to three scientists whose work ushered in a better understanding of proteins, the building blocks of life. A committee in Sweden recognized David Baker of the University of Washington in Seattle. He created a computer program to design proteins that don’t exist in nature.

The award is also shared by Demis Hassabis and John Jumper of Google DeepMind. Their artificial intelligence model can predict the structure of previously discovered proteins, all 200 million of them. At Google’s A.I. Lab in London, where the pair is based, Jumper explained just how powerful the technology can be.

John Jumper, Director, Google DeepMind: This is something done all the time by research biologists, and it takes them a year or more to get a single answer. And we have a program that gives an answer that’s reasonably close in quality and does it in five or 10 minutes.

Amna Nawaz: Their work holds the potential to transform how medicine and vaccines are made. It’s also the second Nobel this week honoring advancements in A.I. Tomorrow, the Nobel Prize in literature will be announced.

Las Vegas said goodbye to the legendary Tropicana today in an early morning extravaganza. The hotel and casino went out with a boom in a controlled implosion. Its towers tumbled to the ground as drones lit up the sky. The farewell was just as flashy as the Tropicana’s early days. It opened in 1957 and was the most expensive hotel built in Las Vegas at the time.

The Tropicana was once known as the Tiffany of the strip for its opulence and was a regular hangout for the legendary Rat Pack. It was also known for its mob ties. The Tropicana closed in April to make way for a new baseball stadium for the relocating Oakland Athletics.

On Wall Street today, the major markets bounded higher thanks largely to gains in tech stocks. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped more than 400 points, or about 1 percent. The Nasdaq added about 100 points and the S&P 500 closed at a new all-time high.

And, finally, we have a passing of notes. Lily Ebert, a Holocaust survivor, author, and later in life a prolific educator through social media, has died. Ebert’s mother and two siblings were killed at the Auschwitz Nazi concentration camp and she vowed to make her tale of survival a lesson for millions. Her memoir, “Lily’s Promise,” was a New York Times bestseller.

And she took her message online through a TikTok account, she shared with her great-grandson reaching two million followers. For her contributions to Holocaust awareness, she was honored by Britain’s then-Prince Charles and last year was made a member of the Order of the British Empire. Lily Ebert was 100 years old.