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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Negotiators from Israel and Hamas officially signed a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Doha yesterday after “11th-hour negotiations,” the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said early today. Israel’s security cabinet and coalition government still have to sign off on the deal. The Washington Post reports.
Israel’s security cabinet today approved the proposed ceasefire agreement, while the full 30-minister cabinet is set to meet later in the day and is expected to greenlight it. Despite delays, the government said the deal could go into effect on Sunday as planned, provided the full cabinet approves it. Andrew Mills, Nidal Al-Mughrabi, and James Mackenzie report for Reuters; Axios’ Barak Ravid reports; Aaron Boxerman reports for the New York Times; Johnatan Reiss reports for the New York Times.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich both threatened to withdraw their far-right parties from Netanyahu’s coalition government should the cabinet approve the ceasefire. Isabel Kershner reports for the New York Times.
More than 100 people have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire deal was announced Wednesday, with at least 20 people killed by Israeli strikes early today, according to Gaza Civil Defense. Abeer Salman, Ibrahim Dahman, and Sandi Sidhu report for CNN.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. RESPONSE
Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday said he is “confident” the ceasefire will begin on Sunday as planned despite last-minute negotiations. Michael Crowley reports for the New York Times.
In his last television interview while in office, President Biden yesterday said he urged Netanyahu to prevent civilian deaths and accommodate Palestinians’ concerns in the early days of the war, while defending his steadfast support for Israel. John Yoon and Zach Montague report for the New York Times via MSNBC.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
The World Health Organization yesterday called on the international community to help fund a scaled-up aid response in Gaza, saying that the U.N. “cannot deliver the response alone.” Jennifer Rigby and Christy Santhosh report for Reuters.
Israel has made “no real effort” to investigate war crimes allegations in Gaza and U.S. efforts to sanction the International Criminal Court are “unwanted and unwelcome,” the court’s Prosecutor Karim Khan said in an interview with Reuters. Anthony Deutsch reports.
SYRIA
Syria’s de facto leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, yesterday said he is ready to welcome U.N. forces to the Golan Heights, saying Israel’s “excuse” for advancing into the buffer zone to counter Iran-backed militias “no longer holds.” Malek Khattab and Sally Abou Aljoud report for AP News; Maya Gebeily and Clauda Tanios report for Reuters.
The French presidency announced it plans to hold a conference on Syria in Paris on Feb. 13. John Irish reports for Reuters.
The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) will leave northeastern Syria if the U.S.-allied Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) maintain a significant joint leadership role there, a PKK official said yesterday. Reuters reports.
HOUTHI DEVELOPMENTS
The Houthis will continue their attacks on vessels and Israel if the Gaza ceasefire deal is breached, the group’s leader said yesterday. Reuters reports.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
The United Kingdom will provide Ukraine with some $3.6 billion in annual military assistance “for as long as it is needed” under a deal signed yesterday by the two countries. David L. Stern reports for the Washington Post.
President-elect Trump’s budget director pick, Russel Vought, declined to fully commit to releasing congressionally approved U.S. military aid to Ukraine during his confirmation hearing on Wednesday. Josh Boak reports for AP News.
Trump’s U.S. Treasury nominee Scott Bessent yesterday called for more aggressive U.S. sanctions on Russian oil. Fatima Hussein reports for AP News.
U.S FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Sudan’s military has used chemical weapons on at least two occasions against the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group, four U.S. officials said yesterday. Separately, the Treasury Department announced sanctions against a Sudanese military chief for documented atrocities by his troops. Declan Walsh and Julian E. Barnes report for the New York Times.
Elon Musk reportedly helped secure the swap of an Italian journalist for an Iranian engineer last week, according to Iranian officials. A senior Biden administration official said the U.S. government had not been consulted or given advance notice about the deal and disapproves of it. Farnaz Fassihi, Emma Bubola, and Edward Wong report for the New York Times.
The United States “vigorously” opposed the release of a Lebanese militant jailed for attacks on American and Israeli diplomats in France more than 40 years ago at a December hearing, according to a letter seen by Reuters.
PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION AND NEW CONGRESS
China will for the first time send one of the highest-ranking Chinese Communist Party officials to Trump’s inauguration, departing from its usual practice of sending the Chinese ambassador to the United States. Separately, a Trump transition source confirmed the planned attendance of TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. Christian Shepherd reports for the Washington Post; Ivana Saric reports for Axios.
A co-leader of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany party will attend Trump’s inauguration, the party said yesterday, just a month before federal elections in Germany. Reuters reports.
Trump is expected to pick his current Secret Service detail leader, Sean Curran, to be the new director of the Secret Service, sources say. Several sources raised “significant concerns” about Curran’s lack of managerial experience. Jamie Gangel and Whitney Wild report for CNN.
OTHER U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
The outgoing Federal Communications Commission chair Jessica Rosenworcel yesterday said she is dismissing all pending petitions and complaints before the FCC that “seek to curtail the freedom of the press” by “weaponi[zing] the licensing authority of the FCC.” Brian Stelter reports for CNN.
Rudy Giuliani yesterday reached a settlement with two Georgia poll workers who won a $148 million defamation verdict against him. Erica Orden reports for POLITICO.
The Justice Department yesterday sued Georgia’s Houston County, alleging its commissioner election process violates Black voters’ rights. Kanishka Singh reports for Reuters.
Speaker Mike Johnson yesterday appointed Rep. Rick Crawford (R-AR) as the new chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, a move seen to align the panel more closely with Trump’s agenda. Luke Broadwater and Jonathan Swan report for the New York Times.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) yesterday said he would appoint Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody to replace Marco Rubio in the Senate. Moody previously backed a lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to block the 2020 election results. Hannah Knowles and Lori Rozsa report for the Washington Post.
New York City’s Mayor Eric Adams (D) will meet with Trump today in Mar-a-Lago. Adams, who is under a federal indictment, has previously said he is open to receiving a pardon from Trump. Maggie Haberman, Dana Rubinstein, and Christopher Maag report for the New York Times.
Biden announced today that he would commute the sentences of nearly 2,500 inmates serving long prison terms for nonviolent drug offenses, the broadest commutation of individual sentences ever issued by a U.S. president. Erica L. Green and Zolan Kanno-Youngs report for New York Times.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
South Korean investigators today said they will ask a court to extend the detention of the impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol. Ju-min Park and Joyce Lee report for Reuters.
A Pakistani court today sentenced the country’s already-imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife to 14 and seven years in jail respectively on corruption charges, officials and his lawyer said. Koh Ewe reports for BBC News.
A Russian court today found Alexey Navalny’s three lawyers guilty of belonging to an extremist group, sentencing each to several years in jail. Christian Edwards and Anna Chernova report for CNN.
Iraq is trying to convince Iran-backed factions in the country to lay down their weapons or join official security forces, the country’s foreign minister said. Timour Azhari reports for Reuters.
The Russia-Iran strategic cooperation pact will not include a mutual defense clause, the Russian state TASS news agency reported yesterday, citing an Iranian envoy. Moscow’s pacts with Belarus and North Korea both include such clauses. Reuters reports.