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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the last 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Climate change is the “greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world” and “stupid people” created the scientific consensus on global warming, President Trump told the U.N. General Assembly yesterday. In a meandering speech, Trump also told the attendees of the summit that their countries “are going to hell,” accused the United Nations of “funding an assault on Western countries and their borders,” and questioned the global body’s purpose. Following his speech, Trump told the U.N. Secretary-General, António Guterres, that the United States is “behind the United Nations 100%.”Somini Sengupta and Lisa Friedman report for the New York Times; Franco Ordoñez reports for NPR; UN News reports.
Trump yesterday suggested he plans to meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva next week, stating that the two leaders had “excellent chemistry” when they briefly met during the ongoing U.N. summit. The Brazilian presidency has since confirmed the two leaders may meet. Ana Ionova reports for the New York Times; Reuters reports.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa yesterday said that South Africa is in talks with a U.S. trade representative, seeking to reduce tariffs levied by Trump on the African country. In remarks delivered at the U.N. General Assembly earlier in the day, Ramaphosa said that “trade is now being used as a weapon against a number of countries.” Doyinsola Oladipo reports for Reuters.
The U.S. military’s attacks on drug trafficking vessels are “only for television” and will not stop the world’s drug trade, Colombian President Gustavo Petro had told the Washington Post. The Trump administration should be targeting powerful Mexican and European drug cartels to effectively counter narcotics trafficking, Petro added. Samantha Schmidt reports.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR — INTERNATIONAL RESPONSES
In a shift in rhetoric, Trump posted yesterday on social media that Kyiv can “win all of Ukraine back in its original form,” elaborating that “Putin and Russia are in BIG economic trouble, and this is the time for Ukraine to act.” Earlier on, Trump confirmed in a press conference alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that NATO countries should shoot down Russian aircraft that enter their airspace. Ruth Comerford and Anthony Zurcher report for BBC News; Eli Stokols reports for POLITICO.
Zelenskyy said yesterday evening that he was surprised by Trump’s social media post but supported the “big shift” in Trump’s position. Zelenskyy said he believed that he and Trump will have a “better relation than before” and suggested that “the fact that Putin was lying to President Trump so many times also made a difference between us.” Pranav Baskar reports for the New York Times.
A Kremlin spokesperson responded today to Trump’s remarks by stating that Russia’s economy is stable and that the Russian army is advancing in Ukraine. The spokesperson said in an interview that “of course, President Trump heard Zelenskyy’s version of events. And […] this is the reason for the assessment we heard.” Anastasia Lyrchikova and Gleb Stolyarov report for Reuters.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Gaza City’s al-Shifa hospital, one of the last functioning hospitals in the city, is overwhelmed with casualties from Israeli strikes, according to healthcare workers. A medic told BBC News that the hospital staff are operating on severely wounded patients in filthy conditions and with “minimal to hardly no anaesthesia.” Separately, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said that Israeli gunfire also rendered a key oxygen station at the Al-Quds Hospital unusable, and that Israeli military vehicles are preventing anyone inside the hospital from leaving. Jon Donnison and Rushdi Abualouf report; Abeer Salman, Ibrahim Dahman, Khader Al Zaanoun, Tareq Al Hilou, Oren Liebermann, and Tim Lister report for CNN.
Israeli tanks have moved into multiple neighbourhoods in Gaza City in the past day, according to geolocated images. Journalists working for CNN report heavy shelling and drone presence, explosions, and the sounds of gunfire in the city. Abeer Salman, Ibrahim Dahman, Khader Al Zaanoun, Tareq Al Hilou, Oren Liebermann, and Tim Lister report.
Starting today, Israel will indefinitely close the only crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan “at the direction of the political leadership,” a spokesperson for the Israeli authority overseeing the crossing said. Reuters report.
A group protesting Israel’s siege of Gaza by sailing to the territory on a flotilla carrying humanitarian aid early today said that it was attacked by drones, had its communications jammed, and that explosions were heard from some boats. The group suggested Israel could be behind the attack. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the incident. Ephrat Livni reports for the New York Times.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
U.N. Secretary General António Guterres said yesterday in his opening speech at the U.N. General Assembly that “the principles of the United Nations that you have established are under siege” as “we have entered an age of reckless disruption and relentless human suffering.” Guterres addressed the wars in Gaza, Ukraine, and Sudan, while adding that “the scale of death and destruction [in Gaza] are beyond any other conflict in my years as secretary general.” Farnaz Fassihi reports for the New York Times.
U.N. Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory reported yesterday that the Israeli government has shown clear intent to establish permanent control over Gaza and to annex the entire West Bank. The Israeli mission in Geneva dismissed the report’s findings, stating “Hamas has genocidal intent towards Israel, the report has everything backwards.” Olivia Le Poidevin reports for Reuters.
The U.S. Special Envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack, said yesterday that Syria and Israel are close to agreeing a “de-escalation” deal, wherein Israel will cease attacks on Syria and Syria will agree not to move machinery near the Israeli border. Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa yesterday expressed concern that Israel might be stalling talks, saying “we are scared of Israel. We are worried about Israel. It’s not the other way around.” Humeyra Pamuk reports for Reuters.
On 5 October, Syrian electoral colleges selected by regional committees will elect two-thirds of the 210-member People’s Assembly, in the first election since the overthrow of the Assad government earlier this year. The remaining third of the Assembly will be selected by al-Sharaa. Tom Perry, Suleiman al-Khalidi, Timour Azhari, Firas Makdesi, and Orhan Qereman report for Reuters.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang announced yesterday that China will no longer seek new special treatment for developing countries in World Trade Organization negotiations. Qiang presented the decision as coming from “a responsible major developing country,” signalling that Beijing will continue to claim status as a developing nation. The Wall Street Journal reports.
U.S. TECH DEVELOPMENTS
OpenAI announced yesterday that it will work with Oracle and SoftBank to open five new data centers in the United States as part of the Stargate Project. The announcement makes up 80% of the $500 billion that the companies pledged to spend on AI building facilities under a plan they unveiled in January at the White House. Cade Metz reports for the New York Times; Megan Morrone reports for Axios.
Chinese tech company Alibaba announced today that it is integrating Nvidia’s AI tools for so-called physical AI into its Cloud Intelligence software platform. Alibaba’s announcement came after its CEO Eddie Wu revealed plans to increase Alibaba’s investment in AI infrastructure in excess of the $50 billion pledged in February. Luz Ding reports for Bloomberg; Tracy Qu and Sherry Qin report for the Wall Street Journal.
Alphabet’s subsidiary, YouTube, said yesterday that it will allow accounts previously banned for spreading Covid-19 and election-related misinformation to apply for reinstatement, overriding its previous policy of treating the violations as permanent. Alphabet’s lawyer Daniel Donovan wrote to the House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) yesterday, stating that the Biden administration had sought to influence the actions of platforms like YouTube and that “it is unacceptable and wrong when any government […] attempts to dictate how the Company moderates content.” Zach Vallese reports for CNBC.
U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
The Secret Service yesterday announced that it had seized and dismantled a cache of sophisticated equipment that was capable of shutting down the cellular network in the New York region. Officials said the network included more than 100,000 SIM cards and 300 servers and could be used for encrypted communication or to interfere with emergency response services. That there was no specific information that it posed a threat to the ongoing U.N. General Assembly, the officials said, adding that initial analysis of the data on some of the SIM cards identified ties to at least one foreign nation, as well as to criminals known to U.S. law enforcement. Eileen Sullivan reports for the New York Times.
A Florida jury yesterday found Ryan Routh guilty of attempting to assassinate Trump, assaulting a Secret Service agent, and three federal gun charges in connection with an incident on a golf course last year. Routh tried to stab himself in the neck with a pen after the verdict was handed down, and was restrained by court bailiffs. He is set to be sentenced in December. Juliette Arcodia, Carmen Gonzalez, and Corky Siemaszko report for NBC News.
Former FBI agent Peter Strzok yesterday lost a long-running lawsuit in which he alleged the first Trump administration violated his First Amendment rights by dismissing him over text messages critical of Trump. In her ruling, the judge overseeing the case said that the evidence in the case had failed to prove his constitutional rights were violated. The judge stressed that she was not ruling on whether Strzok’s firing “was the appropriate sanction” for his conduct. Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
FBI agents found documents marked as classified while executing a search warrant at former national security adviser John Bolton’s office last month, according to a court filing released yesterday. The filing suggests the documents included materials that referenced weapons of mass destruction, the U.S. mission to the U.N., and records related to the federal government’s strategic communications. Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has disbanded the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, a long-standing committee that provided recommendations concerning women serving in the military. A Pentagon spokesperson said Hegseth decided to terminate the advisory panel as it “focused on advancing a divisive feminist agenda that hurts combat readiness.” Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart report for Reuters.
Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Chief of Staff, Chad Mizelle, is set to leave the Department of Justice, Axios reports. He currently oversees the DOJ’s Civil Division and Civil Rights Division. Mizelle said that he would continue “exposing the left-wing groups responsible for violence” across the United States and supporting the Trump administration’s work. Mike Allen reports.
The General Services Administration is seeking to rehire hundreds of federal employees responsible for managing government workspaces who were fired during Elon Musk’s downsizing effort earlier this year, according to an internal memo obtained by AP News. Joshua Goodman and Ryan J. Foley report.
The Trump administration has launched an internal investigation into FEMA employees who signed a letter to Congress warning that FEMA’s present leadership threatens effective emergency management and endangers the public. According to internal emails seen by CNN, FEMA has ordered the employees to sign non-disclosure agreements and schedule interviews with investigators as part of the probe. The disaster relief agency has placed several of the staffers who signed the letter on paid administrative leave in August. Gabe Cohen reports.
U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS
Government officials in Eswatini and Jamaica said this week that a Jamaican citizen who was deported from the United States to a prison in Eswatini, a country to which he has no ties, has now been repatriated to Jamaica. Orville Etoria’s deportation to a prison in Eswatini generated alarm among rights groups, who argued that he had been unlawfully detained as he faced no criminal charges. John Eligon reports for the New York Times.
14 immigration judges were fired last Friday, adding to over 80 judges already let go by the Trump administration this year, sources told NPR. “The dismissal of more immigration judges is an illogical and costly setback for the nation’s immigration courts,” Matt Biggs, the president of a union that represents immigration judges, said. Ximeno Bustillo reports.
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