April 21, 2025

MIDDLE EAST | Updates from regional conflicts:

• Israeli authorities say in an investigation into the killing of 15 Palestinian medics in the southern Gaza city of Rafah last month by Israeli forces has found a series of "professional failures" in the incident and that a deputy commander has been fired in connection with the findings. [more]
• At least 12 people were killed, and 30 others were wounded, overnight in U.S. airstrikes on the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, according to the Houthi rebel group, which has been the target of U.S. operations in the country. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 1152 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here is your update:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday unilaterally announced a temporary cease-fire in Ukraine for Easter, but both sides in the conflict have accused the other of violating the pause in fighting. [more]

U.S. DEPORTATIONS | In a late-night ruling on an emergency appeal from the American Civil Liberties Union, the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday temporarily blocked the deportation of suspected Venezuelan gang members under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented from the ruling and the Trump administration has urged the court to reconsider its findings. [more]

U.S. COVID INFORMATION | The Trump administration has redirected the covid.gov coronavirus information website to a White House web page that supports the theory that COVID-19 originated from a Chinese laboratory leak and that criticizes the pandemic responses of former President Joe Biden, Dr. Anthony Fauci,  former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the World Health Organization, and former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. Reports note that the covid.gov website previously housed information on COVID testing, vaccinations, and prevalence, and that over the past four weeks, an average of 325 people in the U.S. have died from the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [more]

U.S. FEDERAL WORKFORCE | According to a White House fact sheet, the federal government's Office of Personnel Management has taken initial steps to implement an executive order from President Donald Trump to reclassify some 50,000 federal civil servants as political appointees or other at-will workers. The White House says the so-called "Schedule F" reclassification "empowers federal agencies to swiftly remove employees in policy-influencing roles for poor performance, misconduct, corruption, or subversion of presidential directives, without lengthy procedural hurdles.” [White House fact sheet] [more]

U.S. DEFENSE COMMUNICATIONS | The New York Times cites unnamed sources as saying that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared detailed information about forthcoming military strikes in Yemen on March 15 in a private Signal group chat that included his wife, brother, and personal lawyer. The alleged communication is reported to have taken place the same day that similar operational details were shared in a different Signal chat in which the editor of The Atlantic was mistakenly included. [more]

U.S. SEVERE WEATHER | At least three people are reported to have died in Oklahoma over the weekend amidst a slow-moving storm system that brought heavy rain, large hail, and tornadoes to portions of north-central Texas and south-central Oklahoma. [more]

U.S. AND CHINA | Amidst ongoing trade tensions between China and the U.S., China today warned other countries against making new trade deals with the United States that are unfavorable to Beijing and threatened economic countermeasures in the event of such deals. [more]

GLOBAL HEALTH FUNDING | Amidst ongoing U.S. cuts to foreign aid, global health programs, and the U.S. Agency for International Development, researchers suggest that roughly 25 million more deaths from tuberculosis, HIV, and family planning and maternal and child health issues could take place over the next 15 years if the United States does not renew its roughly $12 billion in annual global health initiative funding. [preprint report] [nature article] [more]

GLOBAL SHIPMENTS | International parcel company DHL Express has announced that, effective today, it has suspended global business-to-consumer shipments worth over $800 to individuals in the United States. The company says the move, which is intended to be temporary, is the result of new U.S. customs rules that require formal entry processing on all shipments worth over $800 instead of the previous threshold of $2,500. [more]

EL SALVADOR AND VENEZUELA | In a social media post yesterday, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele proposed a prisoner exchange with Venezuela, saying he would swap the 252 Venezuelans deported to his country from the U.S. for an equal number of what he termed 'political prisoners' held by Venezuela. [more]

GERMANY | Police continue to search for suspects this morning following a shooting in the resort town of Bad Nauheim, Germany, yesterday in which two Turkish men were killed. Authorities say the shooting appeared to have been motivated by personal reasons. [more]

HAITI | Authorities say three Haitian soldiers were killed yesterday in an apparent gang ambush in the Port-au-Prince suburb of Kenscoff. Reports note that the area has seen increased violence in recent days as government forces clashed with the Viv Ansanm gang. [more]

PAKISTAN | Health officials began a second weeklong polio vaccination campaign in Pakistan today as part of efforts to protect some 45 million children from the disease. The World Health Organization notes that Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world in which polio is not considered to have been eradicated. [more]

INDONESIA AND CHINA | Despite long-standing tensions over control of waters surrounding the Natuna island group, Chinese and Indonesian officials announced today that their countries have reached a maritime cooperation agreement to promote safety and security in the South China Sea. [more]

CONGO | The Democratic Republic of Congo yesterday suspended former President Joseph Kabila's political party and ordered his assets seized over accusations of supporting Rwandan-backed M23 rebels in the country's eastern regions. [more]

WEEKEND MOVIES | "Sinners" topped the North American box office over the weekend with an estimated $45.6 million in receipts, followed by "A Minecraft Movie" and "The King of Kings." [more]

R.I.P. | Pope Francis, who was elevated to the papacy in 2013 and who was the first Latin American head of the Catholic Church, died this morning at the age of 88. Francis had only recently returned to the Vatican after an extended hospitalization for double pneumonia, and his death came just one day after a short meeting with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and a brief appearance in celebration of Easter. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1836, an army of Texans, led by General Sam Houston, defeated the Mexican Army, led by General Antonio López de Santa Anna, in the Battle of San Jacinto, the last major battle of the Texas Revolution. [more history]