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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
In a call with President Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday did not consent to a proposed 30-day halt in fighting and agreed to a more limited ceasefire that would cover strikes on energy infrastructure in Ukraine and Russia, the Kremlin said. Putin insisted that a long-lasting peace was dependent on a complete cessation of foreign military and intelligence assistance to Ukraine, the Kremlin statement added. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was open to a truce on strikes targeting energy infrastructure, but underlined that any suspension of attacks would have to be mutual. David E. Sanger and Paul Sonne report for the New York Times.
Russian drones attacked two hospitals in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region early today, Ukrainian officials said, adding that while the buildings sustained significant damage, patients and staff avoided injury because they were in a shelter. Vitaliy Shevchenko reports for BBC News.
Russia has significantly stepped up its sabotage campaign over the past two years in a bid to pressure Europe and the United States to halt support for Ukraine, according to a report released yesterday by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Julian E. Barnes reports for the New York Times.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR — U.S. AND INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
Several U.S. national security agencies have halted their National Security Council-led efforts to coordinate responses to Russian sabotage, including efforts to coordinate with their European counterparts, current and former officials say. Erin Banco and Mari Saito report for Reuters.
The Trump administration has ended funding for a Yale program tracking thousands of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, and U.S. officials or contractors may have deleted the program’s database, according to a letter Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH) and other lawmakers plan to send Secretary of State Marco Rubio today. Edward Wong and Robert Jimison report for the New York Times.
Fresh talks on the war in Ukraine will begin in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff said yesterday. Witkoff did not specify whether Ukrainian or Russian delegations would be present. BBC News reports.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Negotiations with Hamas “will take place only under fire,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday, adding that the renewed Israeli strikes that killed more than 400 and wounded over 500 Palestinians in Gaza yesterday were “just the beginning.” Israeli air strikes killed at least 13 additional people overnight, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported today, citing Red Crescent medics. Lior Soroka reports for the Washington Post; Aleks Phillips reports for BBC News.
Health workers in Gaza say they are overwhelmed by casualties from Israel’s strikes, with the situation further worsened by Israel’s ongoing restrictions on medical aid and other humanitarian supplies, including food and fuel. Adam Taylor and Mohamad El Chamaa report for the Washington Post; Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Olivia Le Poidevin report for Reuters.
An Israeli airstrike yesterday killed the spokesperson of the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad group, his wife, and several family members, according to sources affiliated with the group. Reuters reports.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. RESPONSE
Responsibility for the resumption of hostilities in Gaza “lies solely with Hamas,” acting U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Dorothy Shea said yesterday. The United States supports Israel in its next steps, Shea added. Reuters reports.
The hostilities in Gaza must cease and humanitarian aid and commercial essentials must be allowed into the territory, U.N. Under-Secretary-General and emergency relief coordinator Tom Fletcher said yesterday. Reuters reports.
SYRIA
The Syrian foreign ministry yesterday condemned Israeli strikes on the southwestern city of Daraa, which the White Helmets Syrian civil defense group said killed at least three people and injured 19 others. Separately, sources said that Israeli jets bombed former Syrian army outposts in the central Homs province yesterday. Reuters reports.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
Trump yesterday ousted the Democratic members of the Federal Trade Commission, Commissioners Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, who said they would challenge the move in court. Marcia Brown reports for POLITICO.
Attorney General Pam Bondi yesterday labelled attacks on Tesla dealerships across the country as acts of “domestic terrorism,” adding that the DOJ will “continue investigations that impose severe consequences” on those involved in and funding the attacks. Minho Kim and Glenn Thrush report for the New York Times.
The federal government will no longer unequivocally prohibit contractors from providing segregated facilities, according to a General Services Administration memo published last month. Selena Simmons-Duffin reports for NPR.
Two IRS whistleblowers who testified to Congress about investigations into Hunter Biden’s taxes have been promoted to new roles as senior Treasury Department advisers and will “investigate the wrongdoing” at the IRS, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said yesterday. Fatima Hussein reports for AP News; Bernie Becker reports for POLITICO.
The Trump administration is working to reinstate more than 24,000 probationary workers it fired, according to court documents filed Monday. Gary Grumbach, Jacob Soboroff, and Megan Lebowitz report for NBC News.
OTHER U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
Chief Justice John Roberts yesterday rebuked Trump’s call for the impeachment of a federal judge who had ruled against him in a rare public statement, saying that “impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” with the “normal appellate process” fulfilling that purpose. Justin Jouvenal, Ann E. Marimow, Paul Kane, and Natalie Allison report for the Washington Post.
Trump’s Monday announcement that he would release files related to the assassination of President Kennedy forced officials into a scramble to assess the possible security hazards in 80,000 pages of documents at a day’s notice, officials say. CIA Director John Ratcliffe had emphasized that some of the documents had nothing to do with the assassination to senior administration officials, the sources added. Tyler Pager and Maggie Haberman report for the New York Times.
The Trump administration yesterday threatened to withhold federal funding from New York’s transport network if the Metropolitan Transportation Authority did not provide a list of details about crime in the transit system. Stefanos Chen reports for the New York Times.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
The Trump administration will announce the “numbers” representing the White House’s estimate of the cost of each country’s tariffs on the United States on April 2, Treasury Secretary Bessent announced yesterday. Ana Swanson reports for the New York Times.
Venezuela will face “severe and escalating” new sanctions if it does not accept citizens repatriated from the United States, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said yesterday. Ali Bianco reports for POLITICO.
The son of Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro yesterday said he would seek political asylum in the United States, drawing a parallel between his father and Trump’s legal troubles. Ana Ionova reports for the New York Times.
The United States launched overnight strikes on multiple targets across Yemen, Houthi media reported today. Reuters reports.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
The Turkish police today arrested the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, one of Turkey’s most prominent opposition politicians, on charges related to corruption and terrorism, the city’s prosecutor’s office said. Human Rights Watch Turkey Director Emma Sinclair-Webb condemned Imamoglu’s detention, describing it as a “flagrant abuse of the justice system.” Ben Hubbard and Safak Timur report for the New York Times; Reuters reports.
Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame yesterday called for an “immediate and unconditional” ceasefire in eastern Congo. It is unclear whether the M23 insurgents, controlling swathes of DRC’s territory, will heed the call. Andrew Mills and Aaron Ross report for Reuters.
Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia yesterday announced they are planning to withdraw from the 1997 Ottawa convention banning the use of anti-personnel landmines, citing the military threat posed by Russia. The International Committee of the Red Cross said it was “gravely concerned” by the move. Andrius Sytas and Barbara Erling report for Reuters.
Israel last year expanded and consolidated settlements in the occupied West Bank in breach of international law, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said, citing a report released by the UN Human Rights Office yesterday. Reuters reports.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION
Musk-led DOGE’s efforts to shutter USAID likely violated the Constitution “in multiple ways” and sidelined Congressional oversight of the agency, with Musk acting as a U.S. officer without being properly appointed, a federal judge found yesterday. The ruling, which prohibits Musk and his team from any further actions related to shutting down the agency, appears to be the first court order issued directly against DOGE and Musk. Zach Montague reports for the New York Times.
A federal judge yesterday indefinitely blocked Trump’s ban on transgender service members, ruling that the move was “soaked in animus and dripping with pretext.” Devan Cole reports for CNN.
A federal judge yesterday ordered the Education Department to restore some federal grants terminated during the purge of diversity, equity and inclusion programs, ruling that the Department’s move to slash $600 million in grants to place teachers in underserved schools was arbitrary and illegal. Zach Montague reports for the New York Times.
The Justice Department has until noon today to provide more information under seal about the deportations carried out under the Alien Enemies Act, a federal judge ruled yesterday. Devan Cole reports for CNN.
The Trump administration is temporarily barred from clawing back $20 billion in grants issued by the Biden administration for climate and clean-energy projects after a federal judge yesterday ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency had not shown “credible evidence” of fraud or abuse of the “green bank” funds. Zack Colman reports for POLITICO.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty sued the Trump administration yesterday over its attempt to dismantle the outlet and several other U.S.-funded international networks, with the news organizations’ leaders instructing their employees to ignore Trump’s shutdown order and continue broadcasting while proceedings are pending. Brian Stelter and Christian Edwards report for CNN.
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