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A curated guide to major news and developments over the weekend. Here’s today’s news:
MEXICO
Mexican security forces yesterday killed Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Mexican defense officials said. Oseguera’s killing set off waves of violence across the country, with reports of burning cars blocking the roads. In Guadalajara, the capital of Jalisco, businesses were shut down, and residents were warned to stay inside. The New Generation cartel is known as one of the most powerful and violent organizations in Mexico, trafficking large quantities of fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine into the United States. Samantha Schmidt and Dan Lamothe report for the Washington Post.
A U.S. defense official said yesterday that the operation was carried out by the Mexican military but included participation from a joint U.S.-Mexico task force known as “Joint Interagency Task Force-Counter Cartel.” Both U.S. Northern Command and the Pentagon told Axios on Sunday that they “had no information to provide on the matter,” adding “this was a Mexican military operation.” The White House said that U.S. intelligence had “provided support to the Mexican government” to assist with the operation. Samantha Schmidt and Dan Lamothe report for the Washington Post; Phil Stewart and Laura Gottesdiener report for Reuters; Rebecca Falconer reports.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau yesterday congratulated Mexican forces on social media, saying, “This is a great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America, and the world,” he posted online. The State Department had offered up to $15 million for information leading to Oseguera’s arrest or conviction. He was one of Washington’s most sought-after targets. Jack Nicas reports for the New York Times.
U.S. CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC OPERATIONS
The U.S. military on Friday killed three people in a strike against an alleged drug trafficking vessel in the eastern Pacific, U.S. Southern Command said on social media. Eric Schmitt reports for the New York Times.
Cuban security advisers and doctors have been leaving Venezuela as Interim President Delcy Rodriguez is under pressure from the United States to end the long-lasting alliance between Venezuela and Cuba, according to 11 sources. Some sources said that it was not clear whether Delcy was forcing Cubans to leave, they were departing of their own accord, or they were being summoned home by Havana. Sarah Kinosian, Julia Symmes Cobb, and Laura Gottesdiener report for Reuters.
Venezuela has received more than 1,550 release requests from prisoners under its new amnesty law since it was passed last Thursday, National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said on Saturday. Leila Miller reports for Reuters.
IRAN
U.S. and Iranian negotiators are set to meet in Geneva on Thursday, and the United States is expecting to receive a draft proposal on Tuesday before the meeting, according to a senior U.S. official. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS yesterday that he is still working on the proposal and political leadership in Tehran has yet to sign off. Araghchi said on Friday during an interview that the U.S. side had not asked for zero enrichment of uranium during negotiations so far. A White House official contested this, saying President Trump had been clear that Iran could not have the capacity to enrich uranium. Barak Ravid reports for Axios; Pranav Baskar reports for the New York Times.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters that both sides remain sharply divided following the first two rounds of talks. However, the official said that Iran has offered concessions since last week, including possibly sending half of its enriched uranium abroad, diluting the rest, and taking part in creating a regional enrichment consortium. Iran would do this in return for U.S. recognition of Iran’s right to “peaceful nuclear enrichment” under a deal that would also lift economic sanctions. Parisa Hafezi reports.
Trump is leaning towards conducting an initial strike in the coming days, intended to show Iran that they must agree to give up the ability to make nuclear weapons, U.S. officials said. Possible targets include Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps headquarters, the country’s nuclear sites, and the ballistic missile program. Trump told his advisers that if this failed to sway Tehran, he would leave open the possibility of a military assault later this year intended to topple Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Julian E. Barnes, David E. Sanger, Tyler Pager, and Eric Schmitt report for the New York Times.
Satellite imagery captured on Friday shows more than 60 attack aircraft parked at U.S. military base Muwaffaq Salti in Jordan, roughly tripling the number of jets that are normally there. The images also show more modern aircraft, including F-35 jets, than normally seen there. At least 68 cargo planes have landed at the base since Sunday, according to flight tracking data. Riley Mellen, Christoph Koettl, and Eric Schmitt report for the New York Times.
U.S. and other Western security officials say they are monitoring signs that Iran could direct proxies to conduct retaliatory attacks against U.S. targets in Europe and the Middle East. The officials said that they have not detected specific plots, but they say an increase in intercepted “chatter” indicates some level of attack planning. Eric Schmitt reports for the New York Times.
Iran agreed to a €500 million arms deal with Russia to acquire thousands of advanced shoulder-fired missiles in December. The agreement commits Russia to deliver 500 man-portable “Verba” launch units and 2,500 “9M336” missiles over three years, according to documents seen by the Financial Times. Miles Johnson, Charles Clover, and Max Seddon report.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR – INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
Hungary on Friday objected to the EU’s plan to loan €90 billion ($106 billion) to Ukraine during a meeting of ambassadors. “We are blocking [the loan] until oil transit to Hungary via the Druzha pipeline resumes,” Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Peter Szijjarto said on social media, adding “Ukraine is blackmailing Hungary by halting oil transit in coordination with Brussels.” Two diplomats said it was not clear yet whether Hungarian opposition would delay or stop the deal. Jeanna Smialek reports for the New York Times; Paola Tamma and Alice Hancock report for the Financial Times.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
EU top diplomats, including EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, are set to meet with Nikolay Mladenov, the director of Trump’s “Board of Peace” in Brussels today. “We want to be part of the peace process in Gaza and also contribute with what we have,” Kallas said. Only Hungary and Bulgaria are full members of the board. 12 other EU nations sent observers to the inaugural meeting in Washington last week. Sam McNeil reports for AP News.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said on Friday in an interview with Tucker Carlson that Israel has a right to much of the Middle East according to Genesis Chapter 15 in the Bible. When asked if it would be ok for Israel to take this land, Huckabee said, “It would be fine if they took it all.” Following Huckabee’s interview, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain, UAE, Qatar, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, and the Palestinian Authority issued a joint statement calling Huckabee’s remarks “dangerous and inflammatory.” A U.S. embassy spokesperson said yesterday that Huckabee’s comments were taken out of context and that there is no change to U.S. policies on Israel. Melanie Lidman and Samy Magdy report for AP News.
ISRAEL-HEZBOLLAH WAR – CEASEFIRE
Israeli strikes on Saturday killed 10 people in the Baalbek area of the Bekaa valley, Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s public health ministry. Hezbollah said eight of its members were among those killed in the attacks. Abdi Latif Dahir and Hwaida Saad report for the New York Times.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
Pakistan’s military yesterday killed at least 70 militants in strikes along the border with Afghanistan, Pakistani Deputy Interior Minister Talal Chaudhry said yesterday. Afghanistan’s Taliban government said that several civilian areas were hit by the strikes, including a religious madrassa and multiple homes, adding that the attacks killed and wounded women and children. Reuters reports; NPR reports.
The Islamic State group on Saturday claimed responsibility for two attacks targeting Syrian army personnel in northern and eastern Syria. The group also said it had begun a new phase of operations in Syria, describing Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa as a Western “puppet without a soul.” Bassem Mroue reports for AP News; Feras Dalatey reports for Reuters.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
The State Department will soon end all of the humanitarian funding it is currently providing as part of a “responsible exit” from seven African nations, and redirect funding in nine others, according to an internal State Department email obtained by The Atlantic. The email, dated Feb. 12, said Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Somalia, and Zimbabwe will lose all U.S. aid because “there is no nexus between the humanitarian response and U.S. national interest.” Hana Kiros reports.
Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said yesterday that his government had not been made aware of Trump’s plan to send a “great hospital boat” to Greenland to “take care of the many people who are sick, and are not being taken care of there.” Trump said on Saturday on social media that the boat was “on the way! ! !” Poulsen said there was “no need for special health care efforts in Greenland. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said, “I’m happy to live in a country where there is free and equal access to health care for everyone. The same approach exists in Greenland.” Ali Watkins and Amelia Nierenberg report for the New York Times.
U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS
An ICE officer shot and killed a U.S. citizen in his car in South Texas in March 2025, according to internal reports made public last week. Local reports at the time said a shooting was carried out by a law enforcement officer; it was not clear which agency was involved until the internal documents were published. The victim, Ruben Ray Martinez, was shot multiple times after he did not follow commands to exit his vehicle, the documents show. Pooja Salhotra and Edgar Sandoval report for the New York Times.
TARIFFS
The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that Trump exceeded his authority when he imposed sweeping tariffs on imported goods from more than 100 countries. Trump was the first president to invoke the International Economic Powers Act of 1977 to set these tariffs. In the court’s 6-3 decision, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said, “The president asserts the extraordinary power to unilaterally impose tariffs of unlimited amount, duration, and scope. In light of the breadth, history, and constitutional context of that asserted authority, he must identify clear congressional authorization to exercise it.” Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Brett M. Kavanaugh dissented. Ann. E. Marimow reports for the New York Times.
“Based on a thorough, detailed, and complete review of the ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily anti-American decision on Tariffs issued yesterday”, Trump announced on Saturday that he was increasing the new global tariff rate to 15 per cent. On Friday, less than 24 hours before, Trump signed an executive order imposing a temporary 10 per cent global tariff following the Supreme Court’s decision. Trump invoked Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the president to impose tariffs up to 15 per cent to address a “large and serious balance-of-payment deficit,” which can remain in effect for no more than 150 days unless Congress authorizes an extension. Ana Swanson reports for the New York Times; Ben Johansen reports for POLITICO.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency said today that it will halt collections of tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act at 12:01 a.m. EST on Tuesday. David Lawder reports for Reuters.
U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
U.S. Secret Service agents yesterday shot and killed a man after he entered the secure perimeter at Mar-a-Lago. Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said that law enforcement ordered the man to drop his shotgun and a gas canister after he “raised the shotgun to a shooting position,” and was then shot. Jacob Wendler reports for POLITICO.
The Justice Department fired the interim U.S. Attorney for the East District of Virginia, James Hundley, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Friday. Blanche’s move to dismiss Hundley came just hours after he was appointed to the role by a panel of federal judges. This came just over a week after the DOJ took similar action against Donald Kinsella in New York. Gregory Svirnovskiy reports for POLITICO.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
The CIA announced yesterday that it was retracting 17 reports and revising two others that were written over the past decade. Most of the reports focused on issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, a senior CIA official said. Three reports have been declassified and released. CIA Director John Ratcliffe said the declassified documents fell short of the agency’s “high standards of impartiality.” Former officials said that the documents were not examples of bias but simply reflected policy priorities of past administrations. Julian E. Barnes reports for the New York Times.
The Federal Communications Commission issued a statement on Friday urging broadcasters to air more “patriotic, pro-America” content in honor of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Chloe Veltman reports for NPR.
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