Early Edition: November 18, 2025

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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the last 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR – CEASEFIRE 

The U.N. Security Council yesterday approved the U.S. resolution on Gaza in a vote of 13-0, with both China and Russia abstaining. The U.S. resolution contained President Trump’s 20-point cease-fire plan, including an International Stabilization Force in Gaza and a “Board of Peace” to oversee the peace plan, though it does not clarify the composition of either. Farnaz Fassihi reports for the New York Times.

At least 98 Palestinians have died in Israeli detention since the start of the war in Gaza, according to a report by Physicians for Human Rights. The group says that systematic violence and denial of medical care at prisons and detention centers contributed to many of the deaths it examined. A former guard at an Israeli military prison told AP News that detainees were routinely shackled with chains and hit with batons, adding that the facility was called a “graveyard” because so many prisoners were dying there. Sam Mednick reports.

Germany yesterday announced that it will restart exporting weapons to Israel from November 24, following the ceasefire in Gaza. Germany suspended sales of military equipment that could be used in Gaza in August. A spokesperson for the German government said, “We expect everyone to stick to the agreements that have been made… this means that the ceasefire holds, that humanitarian aid is provided on a large scale and that the process continues in an orderly manner as agreed.” Dearbail Jordan reports for BBC News.

UNICEF estimates that over 630,000 Palestinian children have missed out on school during the war, adding that so far only about 100,000 children have been able to return. A UNICEF spokesperson said that since the war started, school items such as pencils and erasers have not been allowed into Gaza as Israel considers them “non-critical, non-life saving.” Wafaa Shurafa and Kareem Chehayeb report for AP News.

WEST BANK VIOLENCE

Israeli settlers yesterday torched homes and cars in al-Jab’a, a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian cabinet yesterday said that such attacks are carried out with the protection and support of the Israeli government, and called on the international community to act swiftly to stop the attacks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he will urgently convene cabinet ministers to respond to the latest settler attacks in the occupied West Bank, adding “I view with great severity the violent disturbances and the attempt to take the law into their own hands by a small, extremist group.” Melanie Lidman reports for AP News; Howard Goller and Ali Sawafta report for Reuters.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR 

Ukraine and France yesterday announced that Kyiv will obtain up to 100 French-made Rafale warplanes over the next 10 years. Air defense systems, munitions, and drones were also included in the letter of intent signed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron. Michael Rose and Alessandro Parodi report for Reuters.

U.S. CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC OPERATIONS

Trump yesterday told reporters that he would support military strikes in Mexico to stem drug trafficking, saying it’s “OK with me, whatever we have to do to stop the drugs.” Trump later raised the prospect of targeting Colombia. “Would I knock out those [cocaine] factories? I would be proud to do it personally… I didn’t say I’m doing it, but I would be proud to do it because we’re going to save millions of lives.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week that there would be no U.S. military intervention in Mexico and that cooperation between the two countries was at an “all-time high.” Andrea Shalal and Jarrett Renshaw report for Reuters.

Several months before the military strikes began, former acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove told employees that the government should just “sink the boats” rather than prosecute people on board suspected drug vessels, three witnesses told Reuters. Bove made similar remarks on at least three separate occasions between November 2024 and February 2025, according to the sources, who added that they now view Bove’s remarks as a precursor to the militaristic approach adopted by the Trump administration. Sarah N. Lynch reports.

OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS

The U.N. World Food Programme warned today that the world is facing a deepening hunger crisis with resources falling far short of need. The WFP’s 2026 Global Outlook estimates that 318 million people are expected to face crisis levels of hunger, more than double the number in 2019. The WFP says it can only assist about 110 million of the most vulnerable people in 2026 due to reduced humanitarian funding. Current forecasts suggest that, in fact, it may only receive about half the amount of funding required to reach that target. Crispian Balmer reports for Reuters.

Aid cuts from the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and France, could cause up to 22.6 million additional deaths in developing countries by 2030, including 5.4 million children under 5, according to a new study by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. Andrea Shalal reports for Reuters.

The Japanese Embassy yesterday issued a warning to its citizens in China to avoid crowded places and step up safety precautions, amid ongoing diplomatic tensions between Tokyo and Beijing. The notice advised citizens not to travel alone, adding “if you see a person or group that looks even slightly suspicious, do not approach them and leave the area immediately.” Liz Lee and John Geddie report for Reuters.

Pakistani security forces killed 15 militants in two intelligence-led raids on hideouts near the Afghan border, targeting Pakistani Taliban fighters, the military said in a statement today. AP News reports.

TECH DEVELOPMENTS

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai told BBC News that an AI bubble might be forming, warning that “no company is going to be immune, including us” if it bursts. Pichai said that AI investment has been an “extraordinary moment” but there is some “irrationality” in the current boom. Google’s unique model of owning its one “full stack” of technologies – from chips to Youtube data, to models and frontier science – means it is better paced to ride out any market turbulence, Pichai noted. Faisal Islam and Rachel Clun report.

U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS

“We will be doing that, we’ll be selling F-35s,” Trump told reporters yesterday, explaining that Saudi Arabia “want[s] to buy them, they’ve been a great ally.” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is set to meet Trump at the White House today to discuss the purchase of 48 F-35s and a potential mutual defense agreement. Karoun Demirjian reports for the New York Times.

Trump is willing to sign legislation that would impose sanctions on countries doing business with Russia but will insist on specific language ensuring Trump retains control over the sanctions, according to a senior White House official. “It’s always been important to the White House and the president that there’s a carve-out in the sanctions package that ensures the president has ultimate decision-making authority,” the official said. Gram Slattery, Andrea Shalal, and Steve Holland report for Reuters.

Chinese financial institutions have lent more than $200 billion to U.S. tech and infrastructure projects from 2000 to 2023, including a high-voltage transmission line from Canada to New York and a data center in Northern Virginia, according to research published by AidData today. The report says China’s global lending has increasingly targeted high-income countries to secure strategic assets, supporting both corporate operations and Beijing’s broader efforts to pull ahead in AI, clean-energy technology, and advanced robotics. Christian Shepherd reports for the Washington Post.

U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS

“We have been made aware that Customs and Border Protection are coming to Raleigh [N.C.],” Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell said yesterday, adding that Raleigh police will be doing their regular jobs and will not be coordinating with Border Control agents. Over the weekend, 130 people were taken into custody in Charlotte, N.C., by federal agents, 81 of whom were arrested in the first five hours of operation “Charlotte’s Web” on Saturday. Jon Haworth reports for ABC News.

U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS 

“The court is finding that the government’s actions in this case – whether purposeful, reckless, or negligent – raise genuine issues of misconduct,” a federal magistrate judge said yesterday in the criminal case against former FBI director James Comey. The judge pointed towards at least two “fundamental and highly prejudicial misstatements of the law” made by acting U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan in front of the grand jury. The judge ordered Halligan to give Comey’s lawyers all of the grand jury materials she used to obtain the indictment. Alan Feuer reports for the New York Times.

New York Attorney General Letitia James’ attorneys yesterday cited internal communication from Fannie Mae showing that its top fraud investigators believed the mortgage fraud case against James to be weak. Fannie Mae’s director of mortgage and fraud investigations Sean Soward told the company’s vice president of financial crimes that “the LJ case is certainly not clear and convincing evidence” of fraud, according to documents filed in the case. Hassan Ali Kanu and Cassandra Dumay report for POLITICO

Eight Senate Democrats are demanding a probe into Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte for potentially misusing his authority to make criminal referrals against people perceived as Trump’s “political enemies.” Rebecca Falconer and Julianna Bragg report for Axios

A whistleblower has accused Ed Martin of “concealing and destroying” communications related to his work as head of the Weaponization Working Group. In a letter to Martin yesterday, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) wrote that his staff had received credible allegations that Martin is violating federal law and demanded that he provide a complete inventory of all work-related devices, accounts, and messages, and certify that he has preserved all records. Rebecca Beitsch reports for the Hill.

DOMESTIC DEPLOYMENT OF U.S. MILITARY 

A Tennessee judge yesterday temporarily blocked the deployment of the National Guard in Memphis, finding that the “power committed to the governor as commander in chief of the Army and militia is not unfettered.” The judge said in her ruling that the “case raises important questions concerning the use of the state’s military forces for domestic law enforcement purposes.” Emily Cochrane and Jamie McGree report for the New York Times.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS

Trump said yesterday that he would sign a bill to release documents from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. “Sure I would. Let the Senate look at it. Let anyone look at it, but don’t talk about it too much,” Trump told reporters, adding that Epstein is a “a Democrat problem. The Democrats were Epstein’s friends, all of them. And it’s a hoax. The whole thing is a hoax.” Andrew Childers reports for Axios.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has assigned Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg to oversee the USS Cole bombing case, giving him the authority to decide whether to negotiate a plea deal for Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who is accused of orchestrating the 2000 attack that killed 17 U.S. sailors. Carol Rosenberg reports for the New York Times.

Federal Emergency Management Agency Interim Director David Richardson has resigned, sources confirmed yesterday afternoon. A DHS spokesperson issued a statement thanking Richardson for his service and wishing him success in the private sector. Richardson had told E&E News yesterday morning, “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” when asked about reports that he had resigned. Daniel Lippman and Thomas Frank report for POLITICO.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

A federal judge yesterday dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit that sought to block a 2020 New York state law that prevents immigration officials from arresting individuals at, or near, state courthouses. The judge rejected the DOJ’s argument that the state law violated the supremacy clause, “a constitutional provision by which federal law supersedes conflicting state laws,” adding that New York was “protect[ing] its sovereign interests in the face of undue federal interference.” Jan Wolfe reports for Reuters.

The Justice Department yesterday filed a lawsuit against California, contending that two state laws signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) in September violated the supremacy clause by attempting to regulate the activities of federal officials. One of the laws forbids federal law enforcement officers from wearing masks as they work, and the other requires federal agents who are not in uniform to wear visible identification during operations. Josh Gerstein reports for POLITICO.

The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether federal law allows immigration officials to turn away individuals who present themselves at the border crossing and request asylum in the United States. Josh Gerstein reports for POLITICO.