October 25, 2023

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR | Updates from day 19 of the conflict:

• The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry says at least 5,791 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the October 7 attacks on Israel. Israeli officials report that more than 1,400 Israelis have been killed in the same period and that 222 hostages are still being held by Hamas. [more]
• Senior leaders of three anti-Israel militant groups – Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah – met in Beirut today. According to a statement released following the meeting, the goals of the groups in the aftermath of Hamas’ October 7 attacks is to achieve “a real victory for the resistance in Gaza and Palestine” and to end Israel’s “treacherous and brutal aggression against our oppressed and steadfast people in Gaza and the West Bank.” [more]
• Israeli airstrikes struck military facilities in southern Syria early this morning in response to rocket launches from Syria toward Israel yesterday, according to Israeli officials. [more]
• Citing the possible expansion of violence into a wider regional conflict, credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s changed its outlook on Israel’s credit rating from “stable” to “negative” yesterday, but left the country’s actual credit rating unchanged. [more]
• The World Health Organization called yesterday for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza to facilitate the delivery of food, water, health supplies, and fuel to medical facilities in the territory. [more]
• Breaking with most fellow NATO nation and other Western leaders, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said today that the Palestinian militant group Hamas is not a terrorist organization, but rather a liberation group that fights to protect Palestinian lands and people. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 608 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Ukrainian military officials say heavy Russian losses in the area around the city of Avdiivka have forced Russian forces to reduce its ground attacks and rely more heavily on air attacks. [more]
• Ukraine’s Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said today that at least eight people were wounded in overnight Russian airstrikes and artillery shelling of the southern Kherson and northeast Kharkiv regions. [more]
• Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Russian troops in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region today. Reports say Shoigu’s comments to regional commanders today included assertions that Russia is giving Ukrainian forces “fewer and fewer opportunities” to pursue a counteroffensive and orders to ensure that Russian troops are well equipped for winter’s colder weather. [more]

U.S. CONGRESS | Rep. Tom Emmer withdrew his bid to be House Speaker yesterday, just hours after being nominated by members of the GOP House majority. Emmer withdrew following social media posts by former President Donald Trump opposing Emmer's potential speakership. Later in the evening, the Republican conference nominated Louisiana Rep. Mike Johnson, historically a strong supporter of Trump, to be its Speaker designee and a floor vote on his nomination is expected as early as today. [more]

TRUMP FEDERAL ELECTION TRIAL | In a pair of developments in the federal election subversion trial against former President Donald Trump: lawyers for Trump filed a motion yesterday seeking to dismiss the indictment against him, saying that it violates the former president’s right to free speech. Also yesterday, ABC News reported that, according to unnamed sources, former Trump White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows made multiple previously unreported appearances before federal prosecutors and a grand jury this year after having been granted immunity to testify under oath in the case. [more]

TRUMP GEORGIA ELECTION TRIAL | A fourth co-defendant in the Georgia election interference case against former President Donald Trump pleaded guilty to reduced charges yesterday. Former Trump attorney Jenna Ellis will serve five years’ probation, pay $5,000 in restitution, and be required to testify in trials related to the case after pleading guilty to one felony count of aiding and abetting false statements and writings. [more]

U.S. LABOR | In a second expansion this week of the United Auto Workers’ ongoing strike against the Big 3 U.S. automakers, about 5,000 UAW workers at General Motors’ factory in Arlington, Texas, joined picket lines, bringing to about 46,000 the number of UAW members taking part in strikes across the country. [more]

TEXAS | The state of Texas filed a lawsuit yesterday seeking to stop federal agents from cutting razor wire installed by the state along portions of the Rio Grande River on the U.S.-Mexico border. Texas officials say cutting the razor wire, which federal agents have done multiple times over safety and health concerns, damages “Texas’s ability to effectively deter illegal entry into its territory.” [more]

NEW JERSEY | Two large flood control projects conceived following extensive damage from Superstorm Sandy in 2012 get underway today in New Jersey. The projects, one in Hoboken and one in the Meadowlands region, are projected to cost about $298 million. [more]

U.S. AND CHINA | Responding to an annual report on Chinese military and security developments released last week by the U.S. Department of Defense, Chinese officials said today that the U.S. is the world’s “biggest disruptor of regional peace and stability” and criticized the U.S.' military support to both Ukraine and Israel. The annual Pentagon report noted the expansion of China’s nuclear arsenal and warned of Chinese intensification of military, diplomatic and economic pressure on Taiwan. [more]

MEXICO | Hurricane Otis made landfall as a Category 5 storm on Mexico’s southern Pacific coast early this morning. The storm strengthened from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane with winds of 165 mph over a period of only 12 hours before making landfall near Acapulco, according to reports. [more]

SERBIA AND KOSOVO | Reports say discussions on the normalization of relations between Serbia and Kosovo, which have been especially strained following September border clashes, are expected to take place this week on the sidelines of the European Union leaders’ summit in Brussels, which begins tomorrow. [more]

JAPAN | The Japanese Supreme Court ruled unanimously yesterday that a 2003 law requiring transgender people to have their reproductive organs surgically removed in order to officially change their gender is unconstitutional. [more]

SOCIAL MEDIA | Thirty-three U.S. states joined together yesterday to file a lawsuit against tech giant Meta, owner of social media platforms Facebook and Instagram, claiming the company harms young people and contributes to youth mental health crises by illegally collecting data on children under the age of 13 and knowingly and deliberately building addictive features into its platforms. Responding to the lawsuit, Meta said it is committed to providing young users with a safe and positive experience on its platforms and that it was “disappointed” in the filing of the lawsuit. [more]

BASEBALL | The Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-2, last night in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series. The Diamondbacks will now face the Texas Rangers in the World Series, which begins on Friday. [more]

FOOTBALL | Indianapolis Colts rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson underwent season-ending surgery on his throwing shoulder yesterday, according to team management. [more]

R.I.P. | Actor Richard Roundtree, best known for his lead role in several “Shaft” movies beginning in the 1970s, died yesterday at the age of 81. Roundtree was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1993 and with pancreatic cancer earlier this year. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1415, the English army, led by Henry V, scored a decisive victory over the French at the Battle of Agincourt during the Hundred Years' War. [more history]