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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. CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC OPERATIONS
Before the strikes on purported drug vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific began in September, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth approved contingency plans for what to do if an initial strike left survivors, according to several U.S. officials. The plans said that the military would attempt to rescue survivors unless they took what the United States deemed to be a hostile action. The officials said that after the first strike on Sept. 2, one of the two survivors radioed for help, adding that Adm. Frank M. Bradley ordered a follow-up strike in which both were killed. Helene Cooper, Julian E. Barnes, Charlie Savage, and Eric Schmitt report for the New York Times.
Adm. Frank M. Bradley is expected to tell lawmakers today in a classified briefing that the two survivors of the initial Sept. 2 strike were legitimate military targets because their vessel was still believed to contain narcotics and they were perceived as capable of continuing drug trafficking, a U.S. official told Reuters. Bradley will be joined by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen Dan Caine, to answer questions about the attack. Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart report.
President Trump said yesterday that he is open to releasing video footage of the second strike on Sept. 2. “I don’t know what they have, but whatever they have, we’d certainly release, no problem,” Trump told reporters. Jacob Wendler reports for POLITICO.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR – INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
The U.N. General Assembly yesterday adopted a resolution calling for the immediate return of Ukrainian children who were deported to Russia. The Ukrainian government accuses Russia of abducting tens of thousands of its children without the consent of family or guardians. Michelle Nichols reports for Reuters.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen yesterday unveiled the latest details of plans to use billions of euros in frozen Russian assets as collateral to back a reparations loan for Ukraine, which would fund two-thirds of Ukraine’s financial and military needs. Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot rejected the scheme, insisting that it poses major financial and legal risks. Prévot instead urged the EU to borrow the money for Ukraine on international markets without involving Russian assets. Lorne Cook and Sam McNeil report for AP News.
“Hopefully, this horrible war will end. But as of today, we say to all the parties – Russia and Ukraine – to keep the energy infrastructure out of this war,” Turkish Energy Minister told reporters yesterday. Ankara called the attacks on Russia-linked vessels in the Black Sea over the last week unacceptable. Can Sezer reports for Reuters.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR – CEASEFIRE
Israeli strikes yesterday killed at least five Palestinians near Khan Younis in Gaza, including two children, and injured 32 others, according to medics at the Kuwait Field Hospital. Rescue workers told BBC News that they recovered the bodies from al-Najaat camp, a cluster of tents that houses hundreds of displaced people. The Israeli military said yesterday it had “struck a Hamas terrorist” after five of its soldiers were wounded. Rushdi Abualouf and Patrick Jackson report.
Hamas yesterday handed over the remains of Thai agricultural worker Sudthisak Rinthalak to Israel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said today. The body of Israeli police officer Ran Gvili, the last of the hostages to be returned, is still in Gaza. Hatem Maher reports for Reuters.
“I think there was something fundamentally wrong in the way this operation was conducted with total neglect in relation to the deaths of civilians and to the destruction of Gaza,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told Reuters yesterday. Michelle Nichols reports.
SUDANESE CIVIL WAR
The Sudanese Rapid Support Forces paramilitary is systematically holding trapped residents in El Fasher for ransom, killing or beating those whose families cannot pay, according to witnesses, aid workers and researchers. Reuters could not determine exactly how many people the RSF and allied militias have detained. The accounts suggest that large groups are being held in villages around El Fasher, while others have been brought back to the city as the RSF demands payments worth thousands of dollars for their release. Nafisa Eltahir and Reade Levinson report.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
The Southern Transitional Council (STC), a separatist group in Yemen, yesterday seized control of much of Hadramout, a province in eastern Yemen and was battling to secure the region’s oil fields, according to local residents and STC officials. An STC statement described the operation as a battle to “liberate all the soil of our homeland, South Arabia, and build a modern federal state.” Saeed Al-Batati and Vivian Nereim report for the New York Times.
Israeli and Lebanese diplomats met yesterday in Naqoura, Lebanon, for talks convened by U.S. Ambassador Michel Issa. A source said that the parties discussed economic cooperation in southern Lebanon, adding that the meeting was mostly about the officials getting to know each other. Netanyahu said in a statement that Israel would send an envoy to talks with Lebanese officials, which he described as an “initial attempt to create a basis for relations and economic cooperation.” Lebanese Prime Minister Nwaaf Salam yesterday told reporters that Lebanon is far from diplomatic normalization or economic relations with Israel. Abby Sewell reports for AP News; Barak Ravid reports for Axios.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
U.S. troops in the Middle East have been equipped with Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) drones, which resemble Iranian Shahed drones, U.S. Central Command announced yesterday. Hegseth said on Tuesday, “We now find ourselves in a new era: an era of cheap, disposable battlefield drones,” and “we cannot be left behind.” Colin Demarest reports for Axios.
The United States halted plans to impose sanctions on China’s Ministry of State Security over a cyber espionage campaign, conducted by Salt Typhoon, in order to avoid derailing the trade-truce between Washington and Beijing agreed in October, according to U.S. officials. Demetri Sevastopulo reports for the Financial Times.
U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS
The Trump administration yesterday launched new immigration enforcement operations in New Orleans and Minneapolis. The Homeland Security Department said in a statement that the New Orleans operation is “targeting criminal aliens roaming free thanks to sanctuary policies that force local authorities to ignore [ICE] arrest detainers.” Gregory Bovino, a senior Border Patrol official, confirmed on social media that he and his agents had arrived in New Orleans. On Tuesday, Trump said that National Guard troops would soon be sent to New Orleans, but he did not say how many or when they would arrive. Suzanne Gamboa, Julia Ainsley, and Priscilla Thompson report for NBC News; Eduardo Medina, Hamed Aleaziz, and Shannon Sims report for the New York Times.
ICE is using Palantir’s bespoke software, Immigration OS, to track undocumented immigrants and deport them faster, according to federal procurement filings and anonymous sources. Palantir CEO Alex Karp, formerly an outspoken democrat, has staunchly defended Trump’s immigration policies in his second term. Eva Dou reports for the Washington Post.
The Trump administration yesterday announced increased vetting for applicants for H-1B visas, with an internal State Department memo saying that anyone involved in censorship of free speech should be considered for rejection. “If you uncover evidence an applicant was responsible for, or complicit in, censorship or attempted censorship of protected expression in the United States, you should pursue a finding that the applicant is ineligible,” the cable sent to U.S. embassies and consulates, dated Dec. 2. Humeyra Pamuk reports for Reuters.
U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
The House Judiciary Committee issued a subpoena to former special counsel Jack Smith, ordering him to provide documents by Dec. 12 and sit for a deposition with the panel on Dec. 17. Smith’s lawyer Peter Koski said in a statement that his client looked forward to meeting with the panel later this month but that he regretted he could not appear in a public setting. Hailey Fuchs reports for POLITICO.
Trump asserted executive privilege to block access to White House records sought in a lawsuit by police officers injured during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, the Justice Department disclosed yesterday in a hearing. Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
The State Department yesterday announced that it has renamed the U.S. Institute of Peace to the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace to “reflect the greatest dealmaker in our nation’s history.” The building is expected to be the backdrop for the signing of a peace agreement today between Congo’s President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame. Trump is also widely expected on Friday to receive FIFA’s inaugural Peace Prize, a new award created to honor individuals who have “helped to unite people all over the world in peace,” at the nearby Kennedy Center. Michelle L. Price and Gary Fields report for AP News; Dan Diamond and Alec Dent report for the Washington Post.
The National Security Strategy and National Defense Strategy documents have been delayed for weeks, partly because Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent demanded changes related to China, three sources told POLITICO. Two sources said that Bessent wanted to soften some of the language concerning Chinese activities, but did not provide further details. One source said the documents are almost finished and will likely be released this month. Paul McLeary and Nahal Toosi report.
A report by the acting Inspector General for the Department of Defense, Steven A. Stebbins, concluded that Hegseth’s use of the private messaging app Signal to discuss upcoming airstrikes by U.S. forces in Yemen earlier this year risked endangering U.S. troops, according to two sources. The report, scheduled for public release today, also said that Hegseth refused to sit for an interview with the inspector general on the matter and instead provided a written statement. Robert Jimison, Megan Mineiro, and John Ismay report for the New York Times.
Hegseth asked Adm. Alvin Holsey to step down rather than Holsey simply retiring, as Hegseth previously announced in mid-October, according to two Pentagon officials. The officials said that the de facto ouster was a culmination of months of discord between Hegseth and Holsey, which intensified when Holsey voiced concerns about the legality of the strikes on alleged drugs boats in the Caribbean. Lara Seligman, Vera Bergengruen, and Alexander Ward report for the Wall Street Journal.
FBI headquarters is pushing for its domestic terrorism team to open a seditious conspiracy investigation into the six Democratic lawmakers who advised military service members to defy unlawful orders, according to three sources. Career leaders at the FBI’s Washington Field office have pushed back on the request, citing a lack of legal and factual basis to initiate criminal proceedings, the sources said. For now, a final FBI decision on whether to launch a formal criminal investigation has not been made. Ben Penn reports for Bloomberg Law.
Trump yesterday pardoned Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX), who was charged last year with bribery, money laundering, and conspiracy. Mariana Alfaro, Kadia Goba, and Marianna Sotomayor report for the Washington Post.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION
The New York Times today filed a lawsuit against the Pentagon, arguing that the Defense Department infringed on the constitutional rights of its journalists by imposing a new set of restrictions on reporting about the military. The Times is asking the court to issue an order stopping the Pentagon from enforcing the press policy, along with a declaration that the provisions relating to the exercise of First Amendment rights are unlawful. Erik Wemple reports for the New York Times.
Four former federal employees yesterday filed a lawsuit on behalf of a proposed call of similarly-suited federal workers, alleging that the Trump administration carried out an unlawful, targeted purge of career civil servants based on perceived political affiliation, race or gender, or advocacy for protected groups. Daniel Wiessner reports for Reuters.
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