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MIDDLE EAST | Updates from regional conflicts:

• Palestinian health officials say at least 24 people were killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza yesterday amidst the tenuous Israel-Hamas cease-fire. Israel says three militant leaders were among those killed in the strikes, including Hamas platoon commander Bilal Abu Assi, who led an attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz during the 2023 assault that started the war. [more]
• Reports cite both Iranian and U.S. officials as saying talks centering on Iran's nuclear program are scheduled to take place tomorrow in Oman. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,440 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Ukrainian, Russian, and U.S. negotiators are holding a second straight day of talks today in Abu Dhabi aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine War. [more]
• As part of the ongoing trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi, Ukraine and Russia have reportedly agreed to exchange 314 prisoners of war. [more]

CALIFORNIA | Amidst ongoing efforts in multiple states to redraw congressional maps for political advantage, the U.S. Supreme Court yesterday let stand a lower court ruling that allowed California to use a new voter-approved congressional district map that is favorable to Democrats in the upcoming mid-term elections. [more]

U.S. IMMIGRATION | In a preliminary injunction issued yesterday, U.S. District Judge Mustafa Kasubhai said that, while related court proceedings play out, federal immigration agents in Oregon must stop arresting migrants without warrants unless there is a likelihood of escape before a warrant can be obtained. [more]

MINNESOTA | Amidst the ongoing surge of federal immigration enforcement in the state, two Minnesota school districts and a teachers union filed a lawsuit yesterday seeking to bar federal authorities from conducting immigration enforcement at or around schools, saying such enforcement has disrupted classes, endangered students, and caused attendance drops. [more]

U.S. WILDFIRE POLLUTION | A new study published in the journal Science Advances concludes that long-term exposure to airborne particulates from wildfire smoke contributed to about 24,000 deaths annually in the U.S.' lower 48 states from 2006 to 2020. [full study] [more]

U.S. MEDIA | The Washington Post cut about one-third of its staff yesterday, with executive editor Matt Murray calling the move painful but necessary amidst revenue concerns and changes in technology and user habits. Among the cuts announced were the elimination of the newspaper's sports section, as well as several foreign bureaus. [more]

ARIZONA | Police investigations continue into the disappearance, and suspected kidnapping, of NBC "Today" show host Savannah Guthrie's mother, Nancy Guthrie, who went missing earlier this week from her Arizona home. [more]

ASSASSINATION SENTENCING | Ryan Routh, who was convicted in September of plotting to assassinate President Donald Trump on a Florida golf course in 2024, was sentenced to life in prison yesterday. [more]

U.S. AND RUSSIA | The 2010 New START treaty – the last remaining nuclear arms pact between Russia and the United States – expires today, eliminating caps on the world's two largest nuclear arsenals for the first time in more than 50 years. Addressing the expiration, Russia's Foreign Ministry said yesterday that "we assume that the parties to the New START Treaty are no longer bound by any obligations or symmetrical declarations within the context of the Treaty, including its core provisions, and are fundamentally free to choose their next steps." [more]

U.S. AND CHINA | U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke by phone yesterday with Taiwan, the Russia-Ukraine war, Iran, and China's purchase of oil and gas from the U.S. among the main topics of discussion. Reports cite Xi as saying in the call that Taiwan was "the most important issue" in China-U.S. relations and that the U.S. should be "prudent" when supplying weapons to the island territory. [more]

NIGERIA | Local authorities and rights groups say at least 162 people were killed earlier this week when gunmen attacked the villages of Woro and Nuku in western Nigeria's Kwara state. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but lawmakers have suggested they were carried out by Islamic State-affiliated militants. [more]

INTERNATIONAL MEASLES | The Pan American Health Organization called for urgent vaccination campaigns and issued a new alert yesterday amidst a surge of measles cases across the Americas. The organization says 1,031 new measles cases were reported in seven countries in the first three weeks of this year, led by 740 in Mexico, 171 in the U.S., and 67 in Canada. [more]

ARGENTINA AND VENEZUELA | An Argentine judge yesterday requested that former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who was captured by the U.S. military last month and now faces charges of narco-terrorism in the U.S., be extradited to Argentina to face charges of crimes against humanity related to crackdowns on protesters and political opponents while serving as president. Reports cite analysts as saying the U.S. is very unlikely to agree to the extradition. [more]

CANADA | Reports say at least nine Toronto, Canada, police officers have been arrested in connection with an organized crime and corruption investigation. Additional details are expected to be released at a news conference later this morning. [more]

MALAYSIA | Saying that Malaysia would not become a "dumping ground" for the world's waste, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday announced an immediate and full ban on the importation of electronic waste products. [more]

WORLD FACTBOOK | The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency announced yesterday that it has ceased publishing its popular World Factbook reference manual, which the agency has provided publicly since 1971. [full announcement] [more]

R.I.P. | LaMonte McLemore, a founding member of vocal group The 5th Dimension – best known for their 1960s and '70s hits that included "Up, Up and Away" and "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In" – died earlier this week at the age of 90. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1918, during World War I, more than 200 people were killed when the Cunard liner SS Tuscania, which was transporting over 2,000 American troops to Europe, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in the Irish Sea. [more history]