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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
Israel’s military said yesterday it carried out new airstrikes and ground raids around Bureij in central Gaza, hitting multiple targets including a U.N. school building where it claimed Hamas was “embedded.” Palestinian news outlets reported at least five had been killed in the strikes in Bureij, and three others died in nearby Maghazi. The New York Times reports.
Israel is phasing out its use of a desert detention camp, a state attorney told Israel’s Supreme Court today during the first-ever hearing about the facility. The hearing comes in response to a petition by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and other human rights groups, which drew on a CNN investigation detailing abuses there. Abeer Salman, Tamara Qiblawi, Allegra Goodwin, and Barbara Arvanitidis report for CNN.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. RESPONSE
President Biden said he was “uncertain” whether Israel was committing war crimes in Gaza. In an interview published yesterday with Time magazine, Biden said “a lot of innocent people have been killed” and that Israel was investigating alleged crimes itself. Biden also suggested Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was prolonging the war for his own political purposes, but later appeared to walk back those remarks. Sarah Dadouch, Lousia Loveluck, and Byran Pietsch report for the Washington Post.
The House voted 247-155 yesterday to impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court over efforts by the court’s top prosecutor to charge Israeli officials with war crimes. The Republican-written bill passed mostly along party lines. In a statement, the Biden administration said it “strongly opposed” the measure, which is unlikely to become law after lawmakers failed to reach a bipartisan deal on penalizing measures. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), the minority leader, told reporters, “We all know [the bill] is dead on arrival in the United States Senate.” Robert Jimison reports for the New York Times.
CIA director Bill Burns and Biden’s top Middle East adviser Brett McGurk are traveling to the Middle East to push for a ceasefire deal, according to a U.S. official and two other sources. It follows Biden’s speech last Friday in which he laid out Israel’s latest ceasefire and hostage release proposal. Barak Ravid reports for Axios.
Israel’s Defense Ministry yesterday officially signed a $3 billion deal with the United States to procure a third F-35 fighter jet squadron. The ministry said the planes would be delivered starting in 2028, financed by U.S. military aid to Israel. Emanuel Fabian reports for The Times of Israel.
U.S. lawmakers are drafting legislation to prevent the Maldives from banning Israeli passport holders from entering the country. A source familiar with the matter said Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) is creating legislation that could condition U.S. aid to the Maldives on allowing Israeli passport holders into the country. Andrew Solender reports for Axios.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — REGIONAL RESPONSE
Qatar said yesterday it delivered an Israeli ceasefire proposal to Hamas that reflected the positions stated by Biden. A spokesperson for the Qatari foreign ministry said the proposal is now much closer to the positions of both sides, but that it was still waiting to reach language that was agreed by both parties. Reuters reports.
Israel’s “widespread use of white phosphorus in south Lebanon is putting civilians at grave risk,” Human Rights Watch said today. The organization said it verified the use of white phosphorus munitions by Israeli forces in “least 17 municipalities across south Lebanon since October 2023.” Israel has said it uses white phosphorus only as a smokescreen and not to target civilians.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
Netanyahu spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron yesterday. Macron told Netanyahu that France supported the latest Israeli ceasefire proposal advanced by Biden, adding that Hamas has an “overwhelming” responsibility to accept the proposal. The New York Times reports.
Slovenia’s parliament yesterday approved 52-0 the recognition of an independent Palestinian state, rebuking a proposal by conservative opposition to call a referendum. Šejla Ahmatović reports for POLITICO.
IRAN-BACKED MILITANTS
Israel is “prepared for an extremely powerful action in the north,” Netanyahu said during a visit to Kiryat Shmona on the border with Lebanon. His comments come as fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah has escalated significantly in recent days. The IDF’s chief of staff said yesterday that Israel is close to making a decision on whether to launch a war against Hezbollah. Lazar Berman reports for The Times of Israel; Lucy Williamson reports for BBC News.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE DEVELOPMENTS
The United States and its G7 partners may be able to provide funds to Ukraine by tapping the value of profits earned on frozen Russian assets, a senior U.S. Treasury official said yesterday. Andrea Shalal reports for Reuters.
GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
India’s prime minister Narendra Modi is set to retain power for a third term, but his BJP party lost its outright parliamentary majority for the first time in 10 years. Modi’s NDA bloc secured 293 seats, above the 272 mark needed to form a government. The opposition coalition, INDIA, performed far better than expected, securing 232 seats. The INDIA alliance has not accepted defeat and said it will meet today to decide next steps. BBC News reports.
Biden arrived in France today to join world leaders in commemorating the 80th anniversary of D-Day. He will join over two dozen heads of state to honor U.S., Canadian, and British troops who fought in the offensive, which laid the groundwork to defeat the Nazis. Cleve R. Wootson Jr., Toluse Olorunnipa, and Annabelle Timsit report for the Washington Post.
A gunman opened fire on the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon early today and was injured before being arrested, the Lebanese Army said. The embassy said a security guard was wounded in the attack, and that all its staff members were safe. Euan Ward reports for the New York Times; Kareem Chehayeb reports for AP News.
The woman mayor of a town in western Mexico was shot dead Monday, authorities said, just hours after the country elected its first female president. Omar Fajardo, Mitchell McCluskey, and Kathleen Magramo report for CNN.
DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
Biden issued an executive order yesterday that prevents migrants from seeking asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border when crossings surge. The measure is the most restrictive border policy imposed by Biden, or any other modern Democrat. Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Hamed Aleaziz report for the New York Times; Gabe Gutierrez and Monica Alba report for NBC News.
Testimony began yesterday in the gun trial of Hunter Biden, who told jurors how he spent years battling “nonstop” drug addiction. Prosecutors and defense counsel sparred about whether Hunter Biden “knowingly” lied on a federal gun form about his drug use to procure a firearm in 2018, the act underpinning the three felony counts he now faces. Lucien Bruggeman reports for ABC News.
TRUMP-LEGAL MATTERS
Former President Trump’s legal team has asked the judge who presided over his New York hush money trial to lift a gag order, according to a letter made public yesterday. Trump’s attorney, Todd Blanche, argued that Trump’s “constitutional mandate for unrestrained campaign advocacy” is greater now because of Biden’s comments on his guilty verdict. Sareen Habeshian reports for Axios.