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A curated guide to major news and developments over the weekend. Here’s today’s news:
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
The Israeli military yesterday announced it had struck multiple high-rise buildings in Gaza City, in what appeared to be an accelerating assault on the metropolitan area. Hospital officials in Gaza say Israeli strikes have killed more than 130 Palestinians since Saturday. According to Israeli officials, the military ground operation into Gaza City could begin as early as today. Ibrahim Dahman, Eugenia Yosef, Tim Lister, Eyad Kourdi, Oren Liebermann, and Mostafa Salem report for CNN.
Israel gave the United States notice of last week’s strike on Qatar minutes before the attack, “so close to actual launching of missiles that there was no way to reverse or halt the order,” a senior U.S. defense official tells the Wall Street Journal. Israel launched the long-range missiles on a high trajectory that avoided Saudi Arabia’s airspace, U.S. officials add. Shelby Holliday, Michael R. Gordon, Lara Seligman, and Summer Said report.
Prior to the Doha strike, Israel’s external intelligence agency, the Mossad, had declined to carry out a plan for ground operatives to kill senior Hamas leaders in Qatar, in part due to concerns the attack could rupture the agency’s relationship with the Qataris, Israeli sources said. The Mossad’s refusal to conduct a ground operation influenced how the strike was carried out, the sources add. Gerry Shih, Shira Rubin, Karen DeYoung, and Souad Mekhennet report for the Washington Post.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — REGIONAL RESPONSE
Qatar will today host an emergency summit of Arab and Islamic heads of state in response to Israel’s attack on Hamas officials in Doha. A draft resolution reviewed by Reuters condemns what it describes as Israel’s “genocide, ethnic cleansing, starvation, siege, and colonizing activities and expansion policies.” Arab foreign ministers met in Doha yesterday to lay the groundwork for today’s summit, the New York Times reports. Hugo Bachega and Jaroslav Lukiv report for BBC News; Jana Choukeir and Andrew Mills report; Vivian Nereim and Aaron Boxerman report.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. AND INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
The U.N. General Assembly on Friday voted 142-10 to endorse a declaration outlining “tangible, timebound, and irreversible steps” toward a two-state solution between Palestine and Israel ahead of the Sept. 22 meeting during which the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Australia, and Belgium are expected to formally recognize a Palestinian state. Reuters reports.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
Romania intercepted a Russian drone within Romanian airspace on Saturday, Romania’s defense ministry announced in a statement “firmly condemnin[ing] the irresponsible actions” of Russia. The pilots of fighter jets that intercepted the drone decided not to shoot it down after assessing the potential collateral risk, and the drone eventually headed back towards Ukraine, the ministry added. Daria Tarasova-Markina, Cristiana Moisescu, and Sophie Tanno report for CNN.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR — U.S. AND INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
President Trump on Saturday said he will only impose new sanctions on Russia if all NATO members do the same, stop buying Russian oil, and collectively impose tariffs of 50% to 100% on China. On Friday, Trump also suggested his patience with Russian President Vladimir Putin is “running out fast.” Maggie Haberman reports for the New York Times; Lauren Kent and Darya Tarasova report for CNN.
The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, yesterday accused Moscow of “reckless escalation,” describing a Russian drone’s incursion into Romania’s airspace as “yet another unacceptable breach of an E.U. member state’s sovereignty.” Jin Yu Young and Anton Troianovski report for the New York Times.
The Group of Seven states’ finance ministers on Friday discussed further sanctions on Russia and potential tariffs on countries “enabling” Moscow’s war in Ukraine, according to a statement from Canada. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that during the call, he had invited the ministers to join the United States in imposing tariffs on countries that purchase Russian oil. David Lawder reports for Reuters.
NATO has launched a new mission to bolster the alliance’s eastern defenses following Russia’s incursion into Polish airspace, Secretary-General Mark Rutte has announced. The new operation, named Eastern Sentry, will draw on resources France, Germany, Denmark, and the United Kingdom provided in recent days, Rutte added. Laurence Norman and Michael R. Gordon report for the Wall Street Journal.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
Nepalese protesters succeeded in discussions presided over by Nepalese President Ram Chandra Paudel to install Sushila Karki, the country’s first female Chief Justice, as the interim Prime Minister on Friday. Following Karki’s appointment, Paudel announced that elections had been set for 5 March 2026. Krishna Pokharel reports for the Wall Street Journal; Aftab Ahmed reports for Reuters; Bhadra Sharma and Alex Travelli report for New York Times.
Between 30-40 severely malnourished children arrive at the last functioning hospital in the besieged city of El Fasher, Sudan, each day, according to local medics. A medic at the hospital said that “there’s nothing else” to give them to eat but animal feed. Declan Walsh reports for the New York Times.
Billionaire Elon Musk called for “revolutionary government change” in the United Kingdom while speaking to a far-right anti-immigration protest of over 110,000 people in London on Saturday. Musk told the crowd, via live-stream, “violence is coming to you. You either fight back or you die.” Catherine Nicholls reports for CNN.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
U.S. Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, and his Chinese counterpart, Vice Premier He Lifeng, met in Madrid on Sunday to begin a fourth round of talks focusing on trade and TikTok. The Treasury Department said the talks will focus on “national security, economic and trade issues of mutual interest, including TikTok and cooperating on money-laundering networks.” Lingling Wei reports for the Wall Street Journal; Alan Rappeport reports for the New York Times
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Israeli government are expected to discuss the possibility of Israeli annexation of parts of the occupied West Bank in response to the planned Western recognitions of a Palestinian state during Rubio’s trip to Israel this week, Israeli and U.S. officials say. Barak Ravid reports for Axios.
The United States and the United Kingdom plan to announce agreements on technology and civil nuclear energy during Trump’s second state visit to Britain this week, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Keir Starmer said. Andrew Macaskill reports for Reuters.
Rubio has privately reassured a top Australian official that a Biden-era deal to provide Australia with nuclear submarines will not be terminated despite currently being under review by the Pentagon, sources say. Noah Robertson and Ellen Nakashima report for the Washington Post.
U.S officials on Saturday held talks with the authorities in Kabul over U.S. citizens held in Afghanistan, the Taliban administration said. According to a source, there is frustration in Washington with the Taliban’s slow progress on living up to international commitments on rights and hostages. Mohammad Yusuf Yawar and Saeed Shah report for Reuters.
A stockpile of U.S.-funded contraceptives worth almost £10m has not been destroyed yet, according to Belgian officials who conducted a site visit at the warehouse where the supplies are stored on Friday. The Trump administration previously told the New York Times it had destroyed the supplies, and amended its statement after the Belgian authorities’ announcement. Jeanna Smialek, Stephanie Nolen, and Edward Wong report.
The Venezuelan government on Friday claimed that a U.S. destroyer intercepted, boarded, and occupied a “harmless” Venezuelan tuna fishing vessel for eight hours inside Venezuela’s Special Economic Zone. Separately, a contract photographer working for Reuters on Saturday saw five F-35 aircraft landing at a U.S. military base in Puerto Rico. Reuters reports.
FEDERALIZATION OF DOMESTIC POLICING
The Trump administration is planning to activate 1,000 Louisiana National Guard troops to take part in a potentially year-long law enforcement mission focused on the state’s “urban centers,” according to a draft proposal seen by the Washington Post. Trump on Friday also announced that he plans to send the Guard into Memphis, Tennessee. Alex Horton and Tara Copp report; Myah Ward reports for POLITICO.
The 1,273 arrests made during the first month of Trump’s D.C. crime crackdown were concentrated in “the city’s poorest, least White and most high-crime neighborhoods,” according to the Washington Post’s analysis of the charging documents. Olivia George, Meghan Hoyer, Steve Thompson, and Emma Uber report.
U.S. POLITICAL VIOLENCE
The man accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk is not cooperating with authorities, but those close to him are, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) said yesterday. Prosecutors are expected to file formal charges against Tyler Robinson tomorrow, following his arrest late last Thursday. Alyssa Lukpat and Joe Barrett report for the Wall Street Journal; Christal Hayes and Regan Morris report for BBC News.
The Trump administration last week asked Congress to approve $58 million in emergency funding for Supreme Court security, citing a surge in threats to public officials that followed Kirk’s killing, according to the New York Times. Robert Jimison reports.
TECH DEVELOPMENTS
Penske Media, the owner of Rolling Stone, Billboard, and Variety, sued Google on Friday over AI-generated summaries that appear on top of its search results. Penske Media alleges the summaries use its journalism without consent and reduce traffic to its websites. This is the first time a major U.S. publisher has taken Google to court over its AI summaries. Aditya Soni reports for Reuters.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has to decide whether to sign landmark AI safety legislation following the passing of the bill in the California state legislature on Saturday morning. This bill would require AI companies to disclose their safety testing regimes and certify that they are following them. In a 58-0 vote, the state legislature also approved a bill which would require device makers and app stores to verify user ages. The age verification measure is supported by Google, Meta, and Snap. Chase Difeliciantonio reports for POLITICO; Tyler Katzenberger reports for POLITICO.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
Trump administration health officials plan to link Covid-19 vaccines to the deaths of 25 children, sources say. The findings appear to be based on information submitted to the federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), which contains unverified reports of side effects or bad experiences with vaccines. The officials plan to include the claim in a presentation to influential Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisers this week, a source adds. Lena H. Sun, Rachel Roubein, and Dan Diamond report for the Washington Post.
The Treasury Department will share financial documents linked to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein and his former girlfriend and co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell, with the the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, the Committee’s chair, Rep. James Comer (R-KY), said on Friday. Aaron Pellish reports for POLITICO.
The University of California, Berkeley, on Friday announced it had provided the names of approximately 160 students, faculty, and staff linked to cases of alleged antisemitism to the federal government earlier this month. Francesca Regalado reports for the New York Times.
The Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin on Friday proposed ending the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, a long-standing requirement for refineries, power plants, oil wells, and landfills to report their emissions without risk of penalty. Zeldin described the program as “bureaucratic red tape.” Matthew Daly reports for AP News.
Federal investigators had grounds to believe they would find classified records while searching former national security adviser John Bolton’s home due to what they learned about a foreign adversary hacking his email years ago, a search warrant affidavit released on Friday shows. Katelyn Polantz, Zachary Cohen, and Kristen Holmes report for CNN.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION
The Trump administration’s mass firing of probationary employees earlier this year was illegal, a federal judge ruled on Friday, finding that the terminations came at the direction of the personnel office and not the agencies with the authority to fire employees. The judge did not order the administration to reinstate the fired employees to their jobs, however, as “too much water has now passed under the bridge.” Eileen Sullivan reports for the New York Times.
A federal judge on Friday issued an order temporarily restraining the Department of Housing and Urban Development from changing the rules of a program providing funding to build houses for homeless families and individuals. The nonprofit organizations behind the lawsuit allege the rules change is intended to advance partisan goals. Michael Casey reports for AP News.
The Trump administration’s deportation of a group of African nationals to Ghana “with a wink and a nod” appears to be “truly disingenuous,” a federal judge said during a Friday hearing. The lawyers for the immigrants, who filed a lawsuit challenging the deportations earlier in the day, allege the U.S. officials deported their clients to Ghana only for Ghana to prepare to re-deport them to their countries of origin. The judge ordered the Trump administration to produce any written agreement it has with Ghana to determine what assurances ensuring the people are not redirected to places where they may face torture it has secured. Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein report for POLITICO; Chris Cameron reports for the New York Times.
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