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A curated guide to major news and developments over the weekend. Here’s today’s news:
IRAN WAR
The United States and Iran have missed their 60-day deadline to reach a deal on Iran’s nuclear program and end the conflict under the terms of the memorandum of understanding agreed to in June. The expiration of the deadline is largely symbolic as President Trump and Iranian leaders have said in recent weeks that the deal has basically collapsed. Aaron Boxerman reports for the New York Times.
Iran’s hardline leaders have been preparing for a larger conflict with the United States instead of putting faith in the MOU, Iranian and Arab officials told the Wall Street Journal. Iran’s efforts include giving the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps more control of the army, expanding domestic counterintelligence operations, and increasing missile and drone output. The IRGC used the calm created by the MOU to lay the groundwork with allied militias around the region to step up attacks if needed, sending advisers to Iran, Yemen, and Lebanon, according to officials and intelligence sources. Benoit Faucon and Summer Said report.
Iran accused Qatar on Saturday of capturing three of its bomber pilots in the early days of the war, according to a letter from the commander of the Iranian armed forces to the International Committee of the Red Cross. A spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry denied that the country had detained the Iranians, adding that Qatari search and rescue teams had searched for the pilots’ remains after two Su-24 bomber jets were shot down and turned over the remains of one of the pilots to Iran. Yeganeh Torbati and Leily Nikounazar report for the New York Times.
Frustration with Washington is growing in the Persian Gulf region, where U.S. allies are increasingly concerned that Trump is unable to manage the diplomacy necessary to secure peace with Iran, according to Arab and Western officials. A mutual defense agreement signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan last week was a “signal to the U.S.,” a senior European official said. The pact shows three powerful Sunni Muslim states “are trying to diversify their security and defense partnerships,” the official added. Susannah George reports for the Washington Post.
IRAN WAR – LEBANON
Israeli strikes on Saturday killed at least 11 people in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese health ministry said. A strike in Ansar killed seven people, including three children, and wounded two others. Hours later, Israeli warplanes carried out an airstrike on Deir al-Zahrani, killing at least four and wounding 17 others. Abdi Latif Dahir reports for the New York Times.
IRAN WAR – OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
U.S. Central Command Commander Adm. Brad Cooper yesterday acknowledged mental health challenges aboard the USS Lincoln following reports that a soldier jumped overboard amid the aircraft carrier’s long Middle East deployment. However, Cooper qualified this by saying that the Lincoln “currently has among the lowest number of cases related to mental health” of all of the U.S Navy’s 11 active aircraft carriers. Cooper’s visit also came after Trump on Friday dismissed concerns about dire conditions reported on board. Garrett Downs reports for CNBC; Erica L. Green and Maggie Haberman report for the New York Times.
Former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard called Iraqi Kurdish leader Nechirvan Barzani in May to request that he make contact with the IRGC after U.S. negotiators doubted whether Iran’s official representatives had real authority, three sources told Axios. Gabbard told him that the White House wanted to know if IRGC leadership was on board with what Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had been negotiating. Nechirvan spoke with IRGC Commander Gen. Ahmed Vahidi, who confirmed his support for the Iranian negotiators, though U.S. plans for secret talks between senior U.S. and Iranian negotiators in Erbil never materialized. Barak Ravid reports.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner yesterday held a 2-hour meeting with Hamas chief Kahlil al-Hayya in Egypt, according to a regional and Hamas official, focused on ensuring Hamas’ commitment to the 15-point plan for next steps in Gaza, particularly disarmament. The Hamas official said the group is committed and waiting for mediators to start the 14-day negotiation period to work out a timetable for implementation, while a Hamas statement called on the Board of Peace to compel Israel to meet its obligations under the latest plan. Kushner is also set to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today, alongside former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair and the Board of Peace director, Nickolay Mladenov, sources said. Samy Magdy, Julia Frankel, and Cara Anna report for AP News.
Israeli airstrikes yesterday hit two Islamic Jihad and Hamas militants in Khan Younis and Nuseirat, wounding at least five people, according to medical personnel. One of those wounded in the strike on Khan Younis died from their wounds, medics at Nasser Hospital said later. Nidal Al-Mughrabi reports for Reuters.
WEST BANK VIOLENCE
A U.S. official and an Israeli official told Reuters on Friday that the White House is pressing Netanyahu to publicly condemn Israeli settlers’ actions in Qusra in the occupied West Bank. The Israeli military said that soldiers have been deployed in Qusra since Thursday morning to protect Palestinian residents and maintain security. However, videos from earlier in the week showed several Israeli men in green military clothing joining the Israeli settlers in prayer. The Israeli military said it was taking disciplinary action against any personnel involved. Pesha Magid and Rami Ayyub report.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
Russia carried out a wave of airstrikes overnight Saturday, killing two people at a steel plant, while Ukraine launched a heavy drone attack on the Moscow region that killed one person and set fire to another Wildberries warehouse. Pavel Polityuk and Felix Light report for Reuters.
Romania said yesterday that an F-18 fighter on a NATO air policing mission had shot down a drone that breached its airspace during the latest attacks between Russia and Ukraine. It did not specify the origin of the drone, which entered from Moldova, but a NATO spokesperson said it appeared to be Russian. Reuters reports.
European diplomats are working on a format for future Ukraine-Russia negotiations to protect European interests that would be led by France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, according to five European officials. Steven Erlanger reports for the New York Times.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
Myanmar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Saturday that more than 300,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh have been verified as former residents of western Rakhine state and could return once security conditions improve. AP News reports.
A New York Times investigation describes an extensive Russian campaign to destabilize Moldova through election interference, vote-buying, cyberattacks, and training recruits in Serbia last year. Michael Schwirtz, Adam Goldman, and Aaron Krolik report.
TECH DEVELOPMENTS
China-based AI lab Z.ai said on Friday it will delay the release of GLM-5.3’s model weights for two weeks to strengthen security controls after finding the model highly capable of identifying and exploiting vulnerabilities. It scored 84.5% on CyberGym, outperforming Anthropic’s Fable 5 and OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 Sol. Sam Sabin reports for Axios.
The United States is preparing to tell dozens of countries that they must pick sides in the AI race with China, warning they will be excluded from a U.S.-led AI coalition if they also sign up to Beijing’s competing framework, according to a U.S. official and an internal draft reviewed by Reuters. The draft letter, prepared by the State Department, is addressed to the 35 signatories of a U.S. “AI Opportunity Statement” signed in June. “To be part of everything is to be part of nothing. Signature of the Pax Silica Declaration is not merely a membership subscription, but a commitment,” the draft letter says, urging countries to “choose deliberately” on AI. Michael Martina reports.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Trump said yesterday on social media that he told Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to “substantially reduce” annual joint military exercises with South Korea, citing his “very good relationship” with North Korean leader Jim Jong Un. Trump said the exercises set to start today are not only costly but “send a signal that it is totally inappropriate and hostile” to North Korea. Michael R. Gordon and Vera Bergengruen report for the Wall Street Journal; Konstantin Toropin and Alanna Durkin Richer report for AP News.
Andrés Manuel López Beltrán, the son of former Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, said last week that the United States revoked his visa, calling the move a “crude and perverse dirty trick” carried out by officials who target people like him for refusing to “submit to their authoritarian, divisive ambitions.” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Friday called such visa cancellations politically motivated and inconsistent. Jack Nicas, Annie Correal, and Emiliano Rodriguez Mega report for the New York Times.
U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS
Federal prosecutors dismissed charges against a California man who was set to go on trial for sending hostile text messages to federal agents during the immigration crackdown due to a lack of conclusive evidence, according to a Thursday court filing. Ernesto Londono reports for the New York Times.
U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
Luigi Mangione, who was arrested in connection with the killing of Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, pleaded guilty to federal charges on Friday. Erica Orden reports for POLITICO.
Attorney General Todd Blanche yesterday refused to pledge the Justice Department’s independence from the White House on NBC’s “Meet the Press”, adding that he would consider Trump’s opinion if the president believed a particular case should be pursued or reviewed. However, Blanche also said, “There is a misnomer about President Trump, which is that he wakes up in the morning, calls me up and says, ‘Todd, go prosecute this. That’s absolutely not the case.” Liset Cruz reports for POLITICO.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago has been investigating a Democratic fundraising firm formerly co-owned by Loren Merchan, daughter of the judge who presided over Trump’s hush-money trial, subpoenaing communications involving major Democratic politicians and campaigns. The investigation stemmed from Republican allegations that the judge’s family had financially benefited from Trump’s prosecution. Glenn Thrush reports for the New York Times.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
The Trump administration appeared to target Colorado after Trump criticized the state over the imprisonment of election denier Tina Peters last year, with a White House special assistant official calling for agencies to consider “immediate actions” toward Colorado, according to an email dated Dec. 15. The next day, the Department of Transportation and the Department of Energy announced they were canceling hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants for Colorado projects. Reis Thebault reports for the New York Times.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION
The Trump administration on Friday asked the Supreme Court to allow the construction of Trump’s White House ballroom to replace the demolished East Wing, arguing that it is already 65 percent complete and is important for national security. Ann E. Marimow reports for the New York Times.
The BBC is seeking to subpoena Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Jared Kushner for testimony and documents in Trump’s $10 billion defamation lawsuit over a BBC documentary about his Jan. 6, 2021 speech. Court filings indicate that the BBC tried to serve the subpoenas to Kushner and Ivanka Trump’s home in Miami in May, but police blocked the attempt. A similar attempt to serve Donald Trump Jr. in New York was also unsuccessful. Josh Gerstein reports for POLITICO.
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