Mary Esslinger

Retired Catholic News Service associate editor, Origins documentary service. Retweets not endorsements.

[Anton Gerashchenko @Gerashchenko_en]

Oleshky: a return of some of the Ukrainians to Ukraine-controlled territory who survived the Russian occupation and the aftermath of Russia blowing up the Kakhovka Dam, a Russian crime that flooded their land and homes.

Russia has starved them, took away their food, provided no medicine, and did not allow them to leave. Many people died - were killed - during the Russian occupation and in the aftermath of the flooding. We cannot know the exact figures, as this territory remains under Russian control.

Now Russians are trying to portray this as an act of humanism on their part. But in reality, they were pressured into letting these people go - people whose land and homes they had seized, whom they had tormented and condemned to death by starvation.

People left behind their seized and destroyed homes and fled to avoid starving to death. Almost all chose to go to Ukraine.

And I thank everyone who took part in this extremely difficult humanitarian mission, everyone who contributed and helped save Ukrainian lives.

[Suzie rizzio @Suzierizzo1]

Voter Intimidation! The FBI and The National Guard are posted across the street from the King Greenleaf recreation center in Southwest Washington D.C which is a polling location and in a primarily minority neighborhood. The poll workers say that there have also been drones and unmarked vehicles driving around regularly. It’s obvious what they’re doing here and it’s going to get worse because they’re desperate. Vote for your lives.

[Reuters @Reuters]

Residents leave Russian-occupied Oleshky by bus under truce brokered by Melania Trump https://t.co/njXmum9eYp

[CNN Breaking News @cnnbrk]

An appeals court has rejected a Trump administration lawsuit demanding that California set aside the ballots of thousands of people it claimed could be noncitizens, setting up a possible Supreme Court showdown. https://t.co/4k1OFGI3Vm

[Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum]

Kushner "told Zelensky that he should pause the strikes because he and U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff were dedicating a lot of time, energy, and jet fuel to mediating with Moscow...A 30-day pause on refineries would be a way for Ukraine to show gratitude"
https://t.co/wB2ef7ER1z

[NBC4 Washington @nbcwashington]

Tolls on the I-66 express lanes outside the Beltway in Northern Virginia have recently soared as high as $30, $60 and even $80 for one-way trips. https://t.co/5QtTyRkdT6

[The Atlantic @TheAtlantic]

Elon Musk’s views on Ukraine have shifted from generous support to outright hostility, @shustry and @isaacstanbecker report. They explore how the world’s richest man could decide the country’s fate: https://t.co/XWCpIeN8FM

[ROME REPORTS @romereports]

🕊️ Pope Leo XIV: “There is no such thing as a holy war: only peace is holy!”

In a video message marking 40 years since the historic interreligious gathering in Assisi, convened by St. John Paul II, the pope condemns the growing acceptance of war and calls for dialogue and peace

[Archdiocese of Newark @NwkArchdiocese]

Statement from the Archdiocese of Newark regarding Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin’s health diagnosis: Cardinal Tobin is scheduled to undergo surgery on Oct. 29 to remove a kidney mass.

Please join us in praying for his recovery. Read the full statement here: https://t.co/qX7F1y3Efy

[Warren Gunnels @GunnelsWarren]

Dollar General makes $1.5 billion in profits, gives its CEO $8.1 million, spends $700 million on stock buybacks & pays cashiers $8/hour. Over 5,600 Dollar General workers need food stamps & Medicaid paid by U.S. taxpayers.

It robs customers, workers & taxpayers to enrich the 1%.

[Catholic News Agency @cnalive]

U.S. bishops are opposing proposed Census Bureau rule changes for the 2030 census, arguing that excluding noncitizens without lawful permanent resident status from the apportionment count would effectively deny them recognition as persons.

https://t.co/nAwFFHZ4fN

[ABC News @ABC]

Tensions between the U.S. and Cuba were on full display at the U.N. on Tuesday as the Trump administration's envoy to the body, Ambassador Mike Waltz, and Cuba's foreign minister engaged in a shouting match on the floor of the General Assembly.

Read more: https://t.co/FPEWxqnTNn

[Filip Timotija @filip_timotija]

NEWS: Cost of Iran war is up to $47B as of Oct. 16, according to a CENTCOM estimate shared with Congress, which was obtained by @thehill

The most expansive category is munition replacement, at $29B

$6.1B to replace equipment losses

[Mary Esslinger @MaryEsslinger1]

Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates
https://t.co/nBpB0OOVtC

[Kevin Clarke🍺 @ClarkeAtAmerica]

Archbishop Gudziak: Ukraine’s only option is to fight on after Trump’s appeasement of Putin https://t.co/gEZetiJqJ4

[BBC News (World) @BBCWorld]

Serbia's Vučić concedes election defeat to student-led protest movement https://t.co/gJEKYNQbPw

[Jonathan Landay Reuters @JonathanLanday]

Brazil election live: Lula wins election after final votes tallied - https://t.co/cyJSzHnW3G

[Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський @ZelenskyyUa]

The American side proposed a ceasefire regime in the Oleshky area starting October 27. Because this cannot be just one day. It will last several days. Humanitarian missions must come there: the Americans, us, and the Russians. The Russians must clear the roads of mines, and we must see this and work on all of it there. I have given the Ombudsman the relevant instructions. We have also spoken with the Security Service and the military.

Of course, Russia will do everything to demine the roads in such a way that these people go to Russia and stay there. They are not going to simply set people free. And some people will be evacuated to Ukraine one way or another – to the part we control. The main thing is to free these people from the blockade so they can live. Ideally, they should be able to achieve their goal and evacuate here, to us, to Ukraine, which will provide them with everything they need and support them.

From an interview with Alla Mazur for TSN Week on 1+1, as part of the United News telethon. (5/5)

[The New York Times @nytimes]

Breaking News: María Corina Machado, the Nobel laureate and leader of Venezuela’s opposition, is back home after nearly a year in exile to press for new elections. https://t.co/Ox9AwUIiRH

[Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський @ZelenskyyUa]

The most important thing today is that Starlink and Starshield operations have been restored to the speeds we had before the restrictions. The speeds are now where they need to be. The restoration began overnight, and by this morning, speeds were already sufficient. This matters: for our frontline logistics, for defending Ukraine against jet-powered “shaheds.”

I thank all Americans and all our partners who took this seriously and truly helped – members of Congress, senators, all the media, the State Department, and the President. Protecting lives matters.