February 19, 2026

MIDDLE EAST | Updates from regional tensions:

• Envoys from more than 40 countries and the European Union are expected to attend, as either members or observers, today's first meeting of the U.S.-led Board of Peace that will oversee security and reconstruction in post-war Gaza. Reports say discussions at today's summit in Washington, DC, will include the topics of creating an armed international stabilization force for the Palestinian enclave, disarming Hamas, and increasing commitments for funds needed for reconstruction. [more]
• Reuters cites an Israeli military assessment from late last month as suggesting the Hamas militant group is taking steps to preserve its influence and authority in Gaza ahead of international efforts to disarm the group and oversee post-war security and reconstruction in the Palestinian enclave. [more]
• Amidst ongoing diplomatic overtures, the U.S. is reported to be continuing its rapid buildup of military forces in the Middle East in preparation for possible operations against Iran. Various media outlets cite U.S. government sources as saying U.S. naval and air assets could be ready to strike Iran as early as this weekend, but that no final decision on such a move has yet been made. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,454 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here is your update:

• Reports say Ukrainian forces have made some of their largest battlefield gains of the past two years in recent weeks following Russian communications and coordination issues linked to newly imposed restrictions placed on their use of Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service. [more]

U.S. TARIFFS | Kevin Hassett, director of the White House’s National Economic Council, suggested in an interview yesterday that Federal Reserve economists should be "disciplined" for publishing research last week showing that about 90% of the cost of new trade tariffs imposed by the Trump administration are paid for by U.S. businesses and consumers. [more]

U.S. DRUG APPROVALS | In an article published in the New England Journal of Medicine yesterday, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary said the FDA's default policy going forward will be to require one clinical study for approval of new drugs and novel health products instead of the two studies that have long been required. Makary suggested that the new policy reflects advances that have made research more precise and that the change could well lead to a "surge in drug development." [full article] [more]

WASHINGTON, DC | Mayor Muriel Bowser declared a local emergency yesterday in connection with a leak in the District of Columbia sewage system that allowed 250 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River in mid-January. The declaration also requests that the White House issue a Presidential Emergency Disaster Declaration and seeks federal emergency funds to reimburse the city and local utilities for the cost of repairs. [more]

U.S. ENVIRONMENT | A coalition of health and environmental groups sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency yesterday, seeking to reverse the final EPA ruling issued last week that revoked the 2009 endangerment finding that declared carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to be threats to public health and welfare and which was the legal foundation for most climate regulations under the Clean Air Act. [more]

SOUTH KOREA | Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to life in prison today following his conviction on charges of rebellion related to his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024. Seoul Central District Court Judge Jee Kui Youn said he found Yoon guilty of rebellion for illegally mobilizing military and police forces in an attempt to seize the National Assembly, arrest politicians, and establish unchecked power. [more]

NORTH KOREA | Ahead of the country's Workers’ Party congress later this month, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un announced the deployment of 50 new launch vehicles for nuclear-capable short-range missiles yesterday. [more]

U.K. | Former British prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested today on suspicion of misconduct in public office in connection with allegations that he provided confidential trade reports to late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein in 2010 while serving as Britain’s special envoy for international trade. King Charles III said in a statement that the royal family would cooperate with the investigation into Mountbatten-Windsor and that "the law must take its course." [more]

NIGERIA | Authorities say 37 people were killed, and another 26 were hospitalized, following a toxic gas leak earlier this week at a mine in Nigeria's north-central Plateau state. Reports note that the Nigerian government has closed the mine and that investigations into the gas leak are ongoing. [more]

OLYMPICS | As of publication time, Norway leads the overall medal count on Day 13 of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympic Games with 34, followed by host country Italy, the United States, Japan, and Germany. [medal tracker] [competition schedule] [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1942, during World War II, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which paved the way for the internment of some 125,000 people of Japanese ancestry, including U.S.-born citizens. [more history]