Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to launch an offensive in Rafah in southern Gaza despite calls for restraint. He said Israel will destroy Hamas’ battalions there “with or without a deal” currently being discussed in talks in Cairo. Israel and Hamas are negotiating a cease-fire agreement meant to free hostages and bring some relief to the Palestinians in the besieged enclave. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to visit Israel on his latest trip to the region. He said Israel needs to do more to allow aid to enter Gaza and has warned against an offensive in Rafah.

An immigrant from Laos who has been battling cancer won an enormous $1.3 billion Powerball jackpot in Oregon earlier this month. But Cheng “Charlie” Saephan's luck hasn't just changed his life — it's also drawn attention to Iu Mien, a southeast Asian ethnic group with origins in China, many of whose members fled from Laos to Thailand and then settled in the U.S. following the Vietnam War. During a news conference Monday introducing him as one of the jackpot winners, Saephan wore a sash identifying himself as Iu Mien. Cayle Tern, president of the Iu Mien Association of Oregon, says the win is significant because so many Iu Mien refugees came to the U.S. with nothing.

A U.S. Navy ship and several Army vessels involved in an American-led effort to bring more aid into the besieged Gaza Strip are offshore from the enclave and building out a floating platform for the operation. The Pentagon said on Monday that the construction and operation of the pier and aid delivery will cost at least $320 million. U.S. officials have confirmed the ongoing construction off the Gaza coast. The U.S. and Israel have said they hope to have the mobile pier in place and operations underway by early May. Aid has been slow to get into Gaza, with long backups of trucks awaiting Israeli inspections.