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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the weekend. Here’s today’s news:
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
The Israeli raid on Nuseirat refugee camp on Saturday – which led to the rescue of four hostages – killed 274 Palestinians and injured 698, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. In contrast, the Israeli military has estimated that less than 100 people died in the rescue operation. The IDF said the operation took months of planning, and that thousands of personnel were involved. The four hostages have been returned to Israel. Thomas Mackintosh reports for BBC News; Steve Hendrix, Shira Rubin, Loveday Morris, Heba Farouk Mahfouz and Hajar Harb report for the Washington Post; Nidal Al-Mughrabi reports for Reuters.
Israeli centrist politician Benny Gantz, a key member of the country’s war cabinet, quit the government yesterday over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the Gaza war. Gantz had threatened to resign last month unless Netanyahu addressed his concerns about how the war would end and post-war plans for Gaza. While Netanyahu’s coalition won’t fall apart, it will likely be destabilized. Two other members of the war cabinet also resigned yesterday, including the commander of the Israeli military’s Gaza division. Adam Rasgon reports for the New York Times; Barak Ravid reports for Axios.
The Israeli military alleged yesterday that three of the four hostages rescued on Saturday were held captive by a journalist, without providing evidence. In a statement, the IDF claimed the hostages were held by journalist Abdallah Aljamal and his family members at their home in the Nuseirat camp. Lauren Iszo and Michael Rios report for CNN; Carrie Keller-Lynn, Eduardo Kaplan, and Michael Amon report for the Wall Street Journal.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. RESPONSE
U.S. military officers in Israel provided some of the intelligence about the hostages rescued on Saturday, according to two Israeli intelligence officials. Julian E. Barnes, Ronen Bogerman, and Michael D. Shear report for the New York Times.
National security adviser Jake Sullivan said yesterday that Washington is still working to establish how many were killed in Israel’s rescue operation in Nuseirat on Saturday. “It will take some time for us to make any kind of determination,” Sullivan said. Donica Phifer reports for Axios.
The United States asked the U.N. Security Council late yesterday to vote on its latest ceasefire resolution. The U.S.-led proposal “would bring about a full and immediate ceasefire with the release of hostages,” a spokesperson for the U.S. mission to the U.N. said, adding, “Israel has accepted this proposal, and the Security Council has an opportunity to speak with one voice and call on Hamas to do the same.” Mike Ives reports for the New York Times.
A senior Hamas official today urged the United States to pressure Israel to end the war in Gaza, ahead of Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s planned visit to Egypt and Israel. Blinken is in the region to advance ceasefire efforts and try to ensure the war does not spillover to Lebanon. Reuters reports.
The United States conducted a humanitarian assistance airdrop into northern Gaza yesterday, CENTCOM said in a post on X. Over 10 metric tons of meals were dropped, it said.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — REGIONAL RESPONSE
Qatar and Egypt told Hamas leaders in recent days that they face possible arrest, asset freezing, sanctions, and expulsion from their haven in Doha if they don’t agree to a ceasefire with Israel, officials familiar with the talks said. The threats, made at the behest of the Biden administration, had the opposite of the desired effect, with Hamas’s leader instead saying he wouldn’t agree to a deal that doesn’t meet the group’s conditions. Summer Said and Jared Malsin report for the Wall Street Journal.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres added Israel’s military to an international list of offenders that have committed violations against children, his spokesperson confirmed on Friday. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad were also added to the list, according to a diplomatic source. Richard Roth and Jonny Hallam report for CNN.
Colombian president Gustavo Petro announced on Saturday his country will halt coal exports to Israel, as bilateral relations sour between two countries that were once close military and commercial allies. Manuel Rueda reports for AP News.
ISRAEL-HEZBOLLAH TENSIONS
Lebanon’s Hezbollah launched anti-aircraft missiles at Israeli fighter jets over southern Lebanon yesterday, the Israeli military said. The IDF said it appeared to be the first use of such missiles in Lebanon against Israeli jets since the start of the Gaza war, adding that Israeli forces also struck buildings used by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Emanuel Fabian reports for The Times of Israel.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE DEVELOPMENTS
The United States is pushing for a $50 billion loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets ahead of a G7 summit in Italy this week, but seven states have yet to agree on a consensus, according to sources familiar with Washington’s plans. MJ Lee reports for CNN.
Ukraine’s military said yesterday it destroyed one of Russia’s most advanced fighter jets in a drone strike on a military base deep inside Russia. Ukraine’s defense intelligence agency (GUR) posted satellite pictures in a post on its Telegram channel to support its claim. Brad Lendon, Maria Kostenko, Darya Tarasova and Hande Atay Alam report for CNN.
GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
French president Emmanuel Macron has called a snap parliamentary election, after far-right parties advanced in the European election over the weekend. In France, the National Rally won more than double the votes of Macron’s centrist alliance. Elsewhere in Europe, far-right parties dominated provisional results, including in Germany and Spain. BBC News reports; POLITICO reports.
The Biden administration is finalizing a treaty with Saudi Arabia that would commit Washington to help defend the Gulf nation as part of a longshot Israel-Saudi normalization deal, according to U.S. and Saudi officials. Stephen Kalin and Michael R. Gordon report for the Wall Street Journal.
North Korea sent a fresh wave of trash balloons toward South Korea yesterday, after Kim Jong Un’s sister warned of further responses if the South continues waging “psychological warfare.” The new balloons come in apparent retaliation over South Korea’s decision to resume broadcasting anti-North Korean propaganda over loudspeakers in border regions. Yoongjung Seo, Mike Valerio, and Kathleen Magramo report for CNN; King Tong-Hyung reports for AP News.
Narendra Modi was sworn in yesterday as India’s prime minister for a third term. Modi’s BJP-led National Democratic Alliance won the general election with 293 seats, a much lower margin than exit polls predicted. Modi is only the second Indian leader to win a third consecutive term. BBC News reports.
Six candidates including the speaker of Parliament have been approved to contest in Iran’s election this month to succeed the country’s late president Ebrahim Raisi, state media reported yesterday. Matthew Mpoke Bigg reports for the New York Times.
A street attack on Denmark’s prime minister Mette Frederiksen is not thought to be politically motivated, authorities said. A 39-year-old Polish man reportedly struck Frederiksen in Copenhagen’s old town on Friday evening, leaving her with “minor whiplash.” The suspect was arrested and appeared in court over the weekend. Jemma Crew reports for BBC News; Gregoria Sorgi reports for POLITICO.
Google has laid off a group of workers from the team in charge of ensuring that government requests for its users’ private information are legitimate and legal, raising concerns that the company is weakening its ability to protect customer data. Gerrit De Vynck reports for the Washington Post.
TRUMP-LEGAL MATTERS
Former President Trump is scheduled to attend a probation interview today from his home at Mar-a-Lago with his attorney, Todd Blanche. The pre-sentencing probation interview will take place over a special virtual network with added security measures, according to two sources, and is a standard part of the sentencing process for felony defendants convicted in New York state court. Adam Reiss, Laura Jarrett, and Summer Concepcion report for NBC News; Zach Schonfeld reports for The Hill.