Cambridge, MA - As the crisis continues in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia, one aid group with Massachusetts connections is already providing relief. Mercy Corps had been preparing to launch a program aimed at increasing interaction between ethnic Ossetian and Georgian youth, when the conflict began between Georgia and Russia.
Now, spokesperson Helen Thompson says, they've turned their attention to helping the thousands who have been driven from their homes by fighting.
"We are delivering packages of food, including rice, buckwheat, sugar and baby food. We're working with camps close to Tbilisi, and further south into Georgia."
Since Russia invaded Georgia a week ago, the Georgian evacuees number at least 50,000, according to government reports. They need many forms of aid, but Thompson says for people who want to help, the best way is to give money.
"When we are in an emergency state of operation, financial donations are the most efficient way to get essential items to people in need, quickly and efficiently."
Mercy Corps is an international humanitarian aid organization with offices in Cambridge. Thompson says they've been active in Georgia since the year 2000, mostly helping small farms become more productive and profitable, so the group was able to provide emergency aid almost as soon as the fighting began.
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President-elect Donald Trump has named Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., as his nominee for Secretary of State, prompting experts to assess Rubio's credentials and potential effect on U.S. relations with Latin America.
While some see his experience on the Senate Intelligence Committee as an asset, others are skeptical of his shifting positions and limited focus on the region.
Susan MacManus, distinguished professor emerita of political science at the University of South Florida, said Rubio is very experienced at international politics and able to articulate it in an understandable way when engaging with the press.
"Rubio makes a lot of sense as an appointment for Trump because of his appearance and his insight into foreign policy as a consequence of sitting on the Senate Intelligence Committee for quite a while," MacManus pointed out. "He is very experienced at international politics."
Rubio is a one-time critic of Trump turned fierce advocate. He is known for being a hawk on China, Cuba and Iran. Rubio's knowledge of South American politics could address what some see as a long-standing oversight in that region. However, some experts said the area is far more complex than Rubio's narrow focus on issues in Cuba and Venezuela.
Adriana Novoa, professor of Latin American history at the University of South Florida, questioned Rubio's consistency and depth on foreign policy while noting his anti-China positions.
"The reality is that the biggest presence economically in Latin America are China, Russia and South Africa, so they are moving away From the U.S.," Novoa explained. "Foreign policy only focused on the problems of Venezuela and Cuba will not cut it."
Novoa expects Rubio will have a difficult time on the job if he fails to address larger regional economic and political shifts.
Meanwhile, MacManus expects with Rubio at the helm, the U.S. will pay increased attention to South America, particularly to counter China's growing influence.
"For years now, people have complained that continent has been ignored," MacManus observed. "Meanwhile, there's been a lot of influx and money rolling into South American countries from Iran, Russia, China, for example, all of whom are becoming part of a growing coalition that's sort of counter to the American and European coalition."
Novoa thinks navigating such issues requires more skills, as she does not think Rubio is gifted or consistent enough on foreign policy issues.
"Not because he doesn't have the capacity but he switched so much his positions since when I first started following him," Novoa noted. "He was kind of a hawkish, classic Republican, and since then he has switched a lot to adjust to the political balance of the party, so I don't know, really."
With Rubio expected to leave his coveted Senate seat for a role in the Trump administration, all eyes are on Gov. Ron DeSantis to see whom he will choose as a replacement or placeholder, as many anticipate DeSantis's own eventual transition to the Senate at the end of his term.
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As college anti-war protests enter a second school year, students are maintaining pressure on administrators to cut all financial ties with the Israeli government.
Students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an end to all weapons research funded by Israeli defense contractor, Elbit.
Recent MIT graduate Andrew Feldman, who is Jewish and is a member of MIT Jews for Collective Liberation, said it's important for people of conscience to speak out against the war.
"We're going to keep working," said Feldman, "and we hope that institutions will start to recognize this terrible genocide, and war crimes that Israel is committing on the Palestinians."
Feldman said MIT should also end partnerships with Maersk, a shipping and logistics company critical to the Israeli war effort.
MIT students celebrated the recent closure of an industry-backed fund for weapons research as a win, but MIT officials maintain the fund was already due to expire.
Some have criticized the campus pro-Palestinian protests as anti-Semitic, and said Israel has the right to defend itself as it sees fit.
The White House has expressed frustration that the right-wing Israeli government and the leadership of Hamas have refused to reach a ceasefire. But protest groups argue U.S. arms are enabling the war.
Continued student protests at Brown University in neighboring Rhode Island convinced administrators to bring a divestment proposal to a vote at Brown Corporation Board's meeting next month.
Students aim to cut school ties with at least ten companies providing Israel with weapons and surveillance systems.
Mica Maltzman is a senior and member of the campus group, BrownU Jews for Ceasefire Now. She said students are busy compiling testimony and preparing to make their case.
"It's both an urgent issue and it feels like a morally pertinent issue on our campus right now," said Maltzman, "letting the corporation know that this isn't just like some group of radical students pushing for divestment, but like a large majority."
Maltzman said Brown has a long history of student protest, including a student-led divestment campaign against the former apartheid government in South Africa - but that administrators have been less supportive of dissent against Israel.
She said knowing thousands of students in Gaza can no longer attend college there, it's hard not to wake up and think about it everyday.
Israel began its war against Hamas after the militant group attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 Israelis while another 250 people were taken hostage.
Since then, more than 40,000 Palestinians, have been killed by the Israeli military, according to health authorities.
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Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, now the GOP's vice-presidential candidate, cited campaign commitments as his reason for not attending Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address to Congress on Wednesday. Many lawmakers of both parties also boycotted the speech because of their stance on Netanyahu's leadership.
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., said in a post on X that "I don't feel like being a prop so I won't be attending," arguing that the speech is an attempt to boost the prime minister's domestic political standing.
Kent State student Yaseen Shaikh traveled to protest the visit, calling it a charade and noting the visit comes at a unique time for Americans, too.
"The timing of the elections in relation to this visit couldn't be more interesting. It's become a lot about kissing up to Netanyahu and the Israeli lobby to influence this election as well as to influence Netanyahu's PR in Israel. We know the theatrics," Shaikh said.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris also missed the address but have a planned meeting to discuss cease-fire operations in the Middle East today. And Netanyahu plans to meet GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Friday.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson invited the P.M. to come to Congress in light of student demonstrations around the country, but some student groups participated in counter events at the Capitol on Wednesday.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., spoke at an event called "Peace is Possible: An Alternative Vision for Israel and Palestine" as Netanyahu delivered his speech.
Ohio Student Association member Aimee Flores said funds should go toward student debt relief and affordable education rather than on weapons for Israel.
"There is absolutely no reason that Ohio citizens should be living below the poverty line, having to worry about predatory student loans, or issues of homelessness or unhousing, when we are able to invest thousands or millions of dollars overseas into funding a genocide," Flores said.
As the political tension surrounding the speech continues, the impact of these events on upcoming elections remains to be seen. Palestinian activist Aziz Abu Sarah and Israeli peace activist Maoz Inon gave a message of hope at the counter event. Both lost family members since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
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