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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the weekend. Here’s today’s news:
U.S. ELECTIONS
Republicans are inching closer to regaining the House majority, with 19 races remaining to be called. Marianna Sotomayor and Maegan Vazquez report for the Washington Post.
U.S. PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION
Trump has yet to submit a legally-required ethics pledge stating that he will avoid conflicts of interest while in office, raising concerns about his smooth transition to power. Ken Bensinger reports for the New York Times.
Trump and his allies signaled yesterday they will try to call the shots in the Republican-led Senate, demanding that the GOP allows Trump to make administration appointments without Senate approval. Mariana Alfaro reports for the Washington Post.
Trump picked former acting ICE Director Thomas Homan to serve as a “border czar” in the incoming administration, a White House staff position not subject to Senate confirmation. Trump previously appointed Homan as ICE’s director in 2017, but the Senate never acted on the nomination. Josh Gerstein reports for POLITICO.
Pentagon officials are holding informal discussions on how to respond if Trump issues orders to deploy active-duty troops domestically and fire apolitical staffers, defense officials say. Natasha Bertrand and Haley Britzky report for CNN.
Trump’s transition team is preparing to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement and reverse a number of environmental domestic policies, sources say. Coral Davenport and Lisa Friedman report for the New York Times.
TRUMP LEGAL MATTERS
House Republicans are taking initial steps to investigate Special Counsel Jack Smith, setting up an early test of Trump’s calls for retribution against the prosecutor. Isaac Arnsdorf, Perry Stein, Josh Dawsey, and Spencer S. Hsu report for the Washington Post.
A New York judge is scheduled to decide tomorrow whether to overturn Trump’s hush money criminal conviction in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity. Luc Cohen reports for Reuters.
OTHER U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
The Justice Department on Friday announced charges in a thwarted Iranian plot to kill Trump, with the suspect at large in Iran. Hannah Rabinowitz reports for CNN.
FEMA fired an employee who reportedly told relief workers in Florida to pass over houses with signs supporting Trump, the agency said Saturday. Rachel Nostrant and Christopher Flavelle report for the New York Times.
A federal jury on Thursday convicted two militia founders who plotted to shoot at immigrants and federal agents at the U.S.-Mexico border, prosecutors said. Adeel Hassan reports for the New York Times.
The Pentagon announced on Friday it will appeal a military judge’s ruling that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin did not have the power to throw out plea deals in a case against the accused planners of 9/11 attacks. Missy Ryan reports for the Washington Post.
Elon Musk chose a Texas federal court district considered a hub for conservative judges to resolve all lawsuits against X, a move critics say will make it easier for the platform to shield itself from litigation and punish critics. Tobi Raji reports for the Washington Post.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Qatar on Saturday said it is pausing its Gaza ceasefire mediation efforts over a failure by Israel and Hamas to make progress. Jared Malsin, Summer Said, and Alexander Ward report for the Wall Street Journal.
Israeli strikes on north Gaza killed at least 40 people yesterday, Palestinian health officials and a human rights group said. Nidal Al-Mughrabi reports for Reuters.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the September pager attacks, a spokesperson said today, the first confirmation of Israel’s role in the operation. Eugenia Yousef reports for CNN.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. RESPONSE
The United States this week will assess Israel’s progress on the Gaza aid crisis and decide how to respond, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said yesterday. Michelle Nichols and Brendan O’Brien report for Reuters.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
A U.N.-affiliated expert panel on Friday warned in a rare alert that famine is already present or “imminent” in northern Gaza. The Israeli military rejected the statement, saying the researchers relied on “partial, biased data and superficial sources with vested interests.” The Washington Post reports; Emily Rose reports for Reuters.
The U.N. Human Rights office said on Friday that nearly 70 percent of the people killed in attacks in Gaza whose details could be verified were women and children, “indicating a systematic violation of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.” Tim Lister, Ibrahim Dahman, and Tamar Michaelis report for CNN.
ISRAEL-HEZBOLLAH WAR
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said yesterday that his country has defeated Hezbollah and must “continue to put pressure in order to bring about the fruits of that victory.” Steven Scheer reports for Reuters.
An Israeli strike killed at least 23 people in Lebanon’s Mount Lebanon province, the country’s health ministry said yesterday. In an earlier update, Lebanese authorities said Israel’s bombardment of southern Beirut suburbs killed at least 40 people on Friday. Adam Makary and Menna Alaa report for Reuters.
HOUTHI DEVELOPMENTS
The United States and the United Kingdom launched raids on the Yemeni capital Sanaa, Houthi-run media reported on Sunday. Separately, the United States on Saturday carried out a series of strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen. Ahmed Tolba and Mohammed Ghobari report for Reuters; Oren Liebermann reports for CNN.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
Russia has assembled a force of 50,000 soldiers in preparation for a Russian-North Korean offensive intended to reclaim territory seized by Ukraine in the Kursk region, U.S. and Ukrainian officials say. Julian E. Barnes, Eric Schmitt, and Michael Schwirtz report for the New York Times.
Russia and Ukraine carried out their largest drone attacks against each other since the start of the war over the weekend, with drones targeting Moscow forcing flights to be diverted from the capital’s airports. Alex Boyd reports for BBC News.
A Russian court on Friday sentenced two Russian soldiers to life in prison for killing a Ukrainian family after breaking into their home, in a rare prosecution over atrocities committed by Moscow’s soldiers. Ivan Nechepurenko reports for the New York Times.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law a mutual defense partnership treaty with North Korea, according to a decree published Saturday. Reuters reports.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR — U.S. RESPONSE
Trump reportedly spoke with Putin on Thursday and advised him to not escalate the war in Ukraine, several sources say. Ellen Nakashima, John Hudson, and Josh Dawsey report for the Washington Post.
Update: On Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied the call took place. Mary Ilyushina and Catherine Belton report for the Washington Post.
The incoming Trump administration will focus on achieving peace in Ukraine rather than enabling the country to gain back territory, a former Trump adviser told BBC News. Sofia Ferreira Santos reports.
The Biden administration will allow American defense contractors to deploy to Ukraine to help the country’s military fix U.S.-provided weapons systems for the first time since the 2022 invasion. Natasha Bertrand, Haley Britzky, and Oren Liebermann report for CNN.
The Pentagon is sending more than 500 interceptor missiles to Ukraine in a bid to secure Ukraine’s air defense needs for the rest of this year, Biden administration officials said. Lara Seligman, Nancy A. Youssef, and Gordon Lubold report for the Wall Street Journal.
GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
The Haitian prime minister was ousted yesterday by a transitional council tasked with restoring order, deepening the country’s constitutional crisis. Amanda Coletta reports for the Washington Post.
The Japanese Parliament today voted for Shigeru Ishiba to stay on as the country’s Prime Minister despite the Liberal Democratic Party’s loss of majority last month. Motoko Rich reports for the New York Times.
The U.N. Security Council on Friday imposed sanctions on two para Rapid Support Forces generals over their key roles in the war against the country’s military. Edith M. Lederer reports for AP News.
Taliban officials will attend this week’s U.N. COP29 climate conference, the Afghan Foreign Ministry said yesterday, in one of the administration’s highest-profile engagements to date. Mohammad Yunus Yawar, Charlotte Greenfield, and Gloria Dickie report for Reuters.
The International Criminal Court will launch an external investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against chief prosecutor Karim Khan, sources said Friday. Stephanie van den Berg and Anthony Deutsch report for Reuters.
At least 25 people died on Saturday in a suicide bombing attack at a train station in southwestern Pakistan, local officials said. A separatist militant group operating in the region claimed responsibility for the attack. Sophia Saifi and Asim Khan report for CNN.
At least 15 people were killed by a new insurgent group in a Friday attack on a rural community in northwestern Nigeria, residents said. Ahmed Kingimi reports for Reuters.
At least three people were killed and 66 injured in clashes between the Mozambican police and opposition protesters, the country’s largest hospital said on Friday. Manuel Mucari reports for Reuters.