Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here.
A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the last 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:
IRAN
President Trump said yesterday during the Board of Peace meeting in Washington that he would decide in the next 10 days whether to continue diplomacy with Iran or order a military strike. Several hours later, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that 10 days “would be enough time, ten, fifteen days, pretty much maximum.” U.S. officials said that the arrival of the USS Ford aircraft carrier and its strike group to the Eastern Mediterranean in the coming days will be a key factor in the timing of a possible military campaign against Iran. Barak Ravid reports for Axios.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
Hundreds of Ukrainian women and girls have reported sexual violence by Russian troops during the war in Ukraine, according to Ukrainian authorities and aid groups. The Kremlin has said that many reports by Ukrainian women of sexual violence were groundless. Ukrainian lawyers said that many women are reluctant to file cases because they want to avoid the stigma and painful memories, or because they live in territory occupied by Russia. Sara Cincurova reports for the New York Times.
1,000 Kenyans were recruited to fight for Russia in Ukraine after being misled with false jobs in Russia before being sent to the front lines, according to a new Kenyan intelligence report presented to the Kenyan parliament on Wednesday. Kenyan parliamentary leader Kimani Ichung’wah accused Russian embassy officials of colluding with work recruitment agencies to dupe Kenyans into believing they would be given skilled jobs in Russia. The Russian Embassy in Nairobi denied the allegations. AP News reports.
Gentry Beach, a Texas investor with ties to the Trump family, is considering the possibility of making deals with Russian companies even as the war in Ukraine continues. Beach said that he quietly signed an agreement with one of Russia’s biggest energy companies, Novatek, last year to develop natural gas in Alaska. Beach said the project is in its early stages and declined to disclose the financial details. Novatek confirmed it was “having negotiations on the potential use” of its technology to liquefy natural gas in Alaska. “I don’t think people would have felt as comfortable working with Russian companies during the Biden administration as they do during the Trump administration,” Beach said in an interview. Anton Troianovski reports for the New York Times.
Poland will use antipersonnel landmines to defend its eastern border from the growing threat from Russia, Poland’s deputy defense minister told AP News today. Poland has withdrawn from the 1997 Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty, also known as the Ottawa Convention, which prohibits the use of antipersonnel mines, which can last up to four years and are known for having caused widespread suffering during conflicts in Cambodia, Angola, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Claudia Ciobanu reports.
TRUMP’s “BOARD OF PEACE”
Trump yesterday announced that the United States would contribute $10 billion to the Board of Peace during the board’s first meeting in Washington. Trump did not say where the money would come from or whether Congress had been consulted. Trump also announced $7 billion in pledges from nine other member countries to rebuild Gaza. Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, and Albania said they would commit peacekeeping troops to Gaza, while Egypt and Jordan have committed troops to train police. Yesterday’s meeting provided few details about how Hamas can be disarmed or when Israel might fully withdraw from Gaza. Michael Crowley reports for the New York Times; Sophia Cai and Eli Stokols report for POLITICO.
Trump also said that in the future, “the Board of Peace is going to almost be looking over the United Nations and making sure it runs properly.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that the board was formed because the “Gaza situation was impossible to solve under orthodoxy,” while adding, “We hope that this can serve as a model for other complex and difficult situations.” Michael Crowley reports for the New York Times.
Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov was due to attend the Board of Peace meeting in Washington yesterday. “However, despite carrying out all the required procedures from our side, visas were not issued to our delegation” the foreign ministry said. Reuters reports
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
More than 75,000 Palestinians were killed in the first 15 months of the war in Gaza, a figure far higher than the 49,000 deaths announced by local health officials at the time, according to a new study by The Lancet Global Health medical journal published on Wednesday. The study is the first independent population survey of mortality in the Gaza Strip, whose research involved surveying 2,000 Palestinian households over seven days starting on Dec. 30, 2024. Rami Ayyub reports for Reuters.
A U.N. Human Rights Office report released yesterday raised concerns over ethnic cleansing by Israeli authorities in both Gaza and the West Bank. During the reporting period, from 1 November 2024 to 31 October 2025, “intensified attacks, the methodical destruction of entire neighbourhoods and the denial of humanitarian assistance appeared to aim at a permanent demographic shift in Gaza,” the report said. The report also said that Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in Gaza continued to violate international law, including by holding and mistreating hostages. Olivia Le Poidevin reports for Reuters; OHCHR reports.
WEST BANK VIOLENCE
Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank shot and killed a 19-year-old Palestinian American man during an attack on a village on Wednesday, the Palestinian Health Ministry and a witness said yesterday. Imad Isseid and Melanie Lidman report for AP News.
Israeli authorities said today that they will allow no more than 10,000 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank to visit the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem for the first Friday prayers of Ramadan. Only children under the age of 12, men over 55, and women over 50 are eligible. Al Jazeera reports.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew, was released after around 11 hours in custody, following his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office in England yesterday. Megan Specia, Michael D. Shear, and Michael Levenson report for the New York Times.
Peruvian lawmakers on Wednesday elected Jose Balcazar as Peru’s new interim president ahead of general elections in April. Lucinda Elliott and Natalia Siniawski report for Reuters.
U.S. CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC OPERATIONS
Venezuelan lawmakers yesterday passed an amnesty bill that could free hundreds of political prisoners. The law only applies to prisoners who were detained during a limited number of protests from 1999 onward. Prisoners facing some of the most serious charges, such as violent, armed actions, will not be eligible. Max Bearak, Annie Correal, Patricia Sulbaran, Isayen Herrera, and Genevieve Glatsky report for the New York Times.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Trump has told Congress that he is pursuing a civil nuclear pact with Saudi Arabia that does not include non-proliferation safeguards, according to a copy of the document sent to Congress in November. Arms control groups and congressmen have repeatedly insisted that any agreement come with guardrails, including a provision preventing Saudi Arabia from enriching uranium or reprocessing spent nuclear fuel – both potential pathways to weapons. However, the report seems to open the way to Saudi Arabia having an enrichment program as it refers to “additional safeguards and verification measures to the most sensitive areas of potential nuclear cooperation” between the United States and Saudi Arabia. Timothy Gardner and Jonathan Landay report for Reuters.
The United States has paid $160 million of the nearly $4 billion it owes to the United Nations, the U.N. said yesterday. Edith M. Lederer and Farnoush Amiri report for AP News.
U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS
The Housing and Urban Development Department yesterday released a proposed rule to prevent families with mixed immigration statuses from receiving certain federal housing assistance. The rule would also require local housing authorities to report any tenant not eligible for rental aid to the U.S.Citizenship and Immigration Services. Under current HUD regulations, mixed-status families can receive assistance on a decreased basis, calculated with the percentage of eligible family members. The proposed rule would limit that decreased assistance to a temporary, 30-day period. An analysis from the Center of Budget and Policy Priorities calculated that if the new proposal is enacted, nearly 80,000 people would face eviction, including nearly 37,000 U.S. citizen children. Jennifer Ludden reports for NPR; Cassandra Dumay reports for POLITICO.
U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
The National Governors Association has pulled out of an annual meeting at the White House today after Trump declined to invite Democratic governors Wes Moore (MD) and Jared Polis (CO). Trump is still expected to meet with governors today, but the event will not be facilitated by the NGA. Sarah Fortinsky reports for the Hill.
The National Park Service began restoring the slavery exhibits at the Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia this week. The NPS and U.S. Department of the Interior have until today to restore the exhibits in full, following an order on Wednesday from a federal judge. Mike D’Onofrio and Isaac Avilucea report for Axios.
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer’s husband has been barred from the Labor Department’s headquarters after at least two female staff members told officials that he had sexually assaulted them, according to sources and a police report obtained by the New York Times. Evan Gorelick and Rebecca Davis O’Brien report.
Jeffrey Epstein’s estate has agreed to pay $35 million to resolve a class action lawsuit that accused Epstein’s former personal lawyer and former accountant of aiding and abetting his sex trafficking of young women and teenage girls, according to a court filing yesterday. Jan Wolfe reports for Reuters.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
The Commission of Fine Arts, a panel replete with Trump’s allies, yesterday approved Trump’s $400 million White House ballroom, bypassing the normal review process and fast-tracking the vote. “This is a facility that is desperately needed for over 150 years, and it’s beautiful,” the panel’s chairman, Rodney Mims Cook Jr., said. Thomas Luebke, the panel’s secretary, said there is mass opposition to the project across the country, adding that he had received more than 2,000 messages from the public in just the last week or so. The ballroom still needs approval by the National Capital Planning Commission. Luke Broadwater reports for the New York Times.
A large banner featuring Trump’s face was hung from the exterior of the Justice Department’s headquarters yesterday. Alanna Durkin Richer reports for AP News.
Trump yesterday announced that he would direct the Defense Department and other agencies to release classified files about UFOs and extraterrestrial life. This follows an interview published on Saturday in which former President Barack Obama said aliens may be “real but I haven’t seen them,” adding “I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us.” Aaron Pellish reports for POLITICO.
The FBI is planning to make it easier for existing employees to become agents, removing the interview and writing assessment requirements, according to two sources. An FBI spokesperson did not dispute that the process would be changed but denied that the bureau is lowering standards or removing qualifications in any way. Jana Winter and Andrew Goudsward report for Reuters.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION
Three Vietnam War veterans yesterday filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration seeking to block the construction of the new 250-foot “Independence Arch” near Arlington National Cemetery. Jacob Wendler reports for POLITICO.
Did you miss this? Stay up-to-date with our Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions
If you enjoy listening, Just Security’s analytic articles are also available in audio form on the justsecurity.org website.
ICYMI: Yesterday on Just Security
