Israeli Military Targets Gaza Threat, Killing Eight Palestinians; Gaza Hosts Mass Wedding, VCU Approves Memorial Funding, Tesla Offers Free Charging

Israeli strikes killed at least eight Palestinians, including three children, in two incidents in the Gaza Strip on April 23. Medics and first responders reported the deaths. The Israeli military stated it targeted a terrorist who approached troops in the area of the Yellow Line and posed an immediate threat.

A Hamas spokesman condemned the strikes as 'the horrific massacre' and accused Israel of undermining efforts to implement their ceasefire agreement. A ceasefire has been in place in Gaza since last October. The Gaza war was triggered by a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023.

Some 251 people were taken hostage in that attack. Israel launched a military campaign against Hamas in Gaza in response.

More than 72,560 people have been killed in the Gaza military campaign, according to the territory's health ministry. Crowds gathered in Deir al-Balah, Gaza, where 300 couples got married in a joint wedding celebration. The event marked the largest mass wedding in the region to date.

The 300 couples were selected in a draw of nearly 2,000 people. The weddings were funded by the Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation.

One of the brides told the BBC how the celebration was bringing "hope for change" for displaced Gazans. 6 million on a memorial for dozens of people, most of African descent, whose bodies were stolen from their graves, dissected by medical students and then dumped in a forgotten well.

The Richmond school’s board of visitors voted Friday to fund what VCU calls the East Marshall Street Well Project, an effort to right wrongs committed more than a century ago. Construction of the memorial and burial site are expected to start in summer of 2027.

The circular memorial will feature a “unity chamber” inspired by the Toguna structures of Dogon culture in West Africa. Its design “is intended to encourage humility and thoughtful discussion by purposefully having a low roof to facilitate seated reflection,” said an official with the project.

Workers in 1994 uncovered a brick-lined well containing human bones during construction of the Kontos Medical Sciences Building on the VCU medical center campus. Sifting through mud, researchers also found hair and skin, as well as other artifacts.

In business news, Tesla announced one year of free Supercharging with new purchases of Model 3 Premium or Performance vehicles in North America. Tesla ended its free lifetime Supercharging offer in 2018.

Tesla brought back free Supercharging for Model S and X a couple of times in 2019. The free Supercharging offer is subject to change or end at any time. The free Supercharging offer starts at delivery.

The free Supercharging offer cannot be postponed or redeemed for cash. Owners must pay congestion fees if a vehicle remains plugged into a Supercharger after its battery reaches 80 percent when a site is busy.

Customers who traded in gas vehicles for a 2,000-mile Supercharging incentive can use the one-year free Supercharging first and redeem the miles after the first year of ownership.