Morning Digest | U.S. Secretary of State to travel to Israel; ISRO to conduct first test flight of Gaganyaan mission on October 21, and more

The Hindu’s Morning Digest brings readers a select list of stories to start the day

Israel-Hamas war day 4 LIVE updates 

President Joe Biden is dispatching his top diplomat to Israel on an urgent mission to show U.S. support after major terrorist attacks by Hamas militants, the State Department said on Tuesday.

Over 1,900 lives have already been claimed on both sides, and perhaps hundreds more. Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza hold more than 150 soldiers and civilians hostage, according to Israel.

ISRO to conduct first test flight of Gaganyaan mission on October 21

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will execute the first of multiple test flights ahead of the Gaganyaan mission — India’s first manned mission to space — on October 21, Jitendra Singh, Minister of State for Space, Science and Technology, said on Tuesday.

Israel pounds Gaza neighborhoods, as people scramble for safety in sealed-off territory

Israeli warplanes hammered the Gaza Strip neighborhood by neighborhood on October 10, reducing buildings to rubble and sending people scrambling to find safety in the tiny, sealed-off territory as Israel vowed a retaliation for Hamas’ surprise weekend attack that would “reverberate ... for generations.”