May 5, 2025

MIDDLE EAST | Updates from regional conflicts:

• In an early morning vote today, Israel's Cabinet approved plans to capture the entirety of Gaza and to maintain military control of the Palestinian enclave for an unspecified period of time. The vote came just hours after the Israeli military announced a call-up of tens of thousands of reserve troops. [more]
• Yemen's Houthi rebel group said yesterday that it plans to impose a comprehensive aerial blockade on Israel by targeting its airports in response to Israel's ongoing and expanding military operations in Gaza. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 1166 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here is your update:

• In comments on the Ukraine war aired on Russia state media yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country has the "strength and means to bring what was started in 2022 to a logical conclusion with the outcome Russia requires." [more]

U.S. GUN VIOLENCE | Among multiple instances of large-scale gun violence in the U.S. over the weekend were:

• Sixteen people were shot, at least one of whom died, yesterday when gunfire broke out at a party at a home in Houston, Texas. Authorities say the incident appears to have occurred when an uninvited guest was asked to leave the party, and note that no suspect is currently in custody. [more]
• Three people were killed, and five others were wounded, yesterday evening in gunfire at a restaurant in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona. Police say it appears that more than one shooter was involved in the incident and that no suspect is currently in custody. [more]

U.S. FEDERAL BUDGET | A budget blueprint released by the Trump administration on Friday calls for a 13% increase in defense spending to $1 trillion, a $175 billion investment to “fully secure the border,” and a 23% cut in non-defense, so-called "discretionary spending" in various domestic programs, including education, foreign aid, environment, health,  and public assistance programs. [more]

U.S. POLITICS | Former Vice President Mike Pence received the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award at a ceremony in Boston last night for certifying the 2020 presidential election and resisting President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the results, an action the JFK Library Foundation described as "putting his life and career on the line to ensure the constitutional transfer of presidential power." [more]

U.S. FLU | Amidst declining pediatric vaccination rates, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 216 children have died during this year's ongoing flu season – the most since the 2009-2010 H1N1 global flu pandemic. [full CDC report] [more]

U.S. TARIFFS | Claiming that the "Movie Industry in America is DYING a very fast death," President Donald Trump said in a social media post yesterday that he has authorized the Department of Commerce and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to impose a 100% tariff “on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands.” [more]

TRUMP PRESIDENCY | In an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" taped Friday and aired yesterday, President Donald Trump said he is not certain whether U.S. citizens and noncitizens alike should be guaranteed due process under the Constitution, reiterated his stance that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state, and denied that he is profiting from the presidency, even as he continues to promote a series of business ventures, including cryptocurrency holdings. [more]

U.S. PRISONS | Decrying the presence of "vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders" in the U.S., President Donald Trump said in a social media post yesterday that the famous Alcatraz prison San Francisco Bay should be reopened and expanded to house dangerous criminals. [more]

U.S. VETERANS DAY | President Donald Trump proposed last week that November 11, which is currently celebrated as Veterans Day in the U.S., be renamed as "Victory Day for World War I" as part of what he suggests is a move to "start celebrating our victories again." [more]

U.S. AND MEXICO | Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and U.S. President Donald Trump both confirmed this weekend that Trump proposed recently to send U.S. troops to Mexico to help fight illegal drug trafficking – a suggestion Sheinbaum rejected, saying Mexican "sovereignty is not for sale." [more]

INDIA AND PAKISTAN | Amidst ongoing tensions sparked by last month's killing of 26 tourists in India-controlled Kashmir, which India has blamed on Pakistan-backed militants, Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi is in Islamabad today to try to mediate talks and promote de-escalation between Islamabad and New Delhi. [more]

NICARAGUA | In a letter to U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization director general Audrey Azoulay, Nicaragua says it is withdrawing from the organization in protest of UNESCO awarding its World Press Freedom Prize to the Nicaraguan newspaper La Prensa for the outlet's work in the face of "severe repression" and for keeping "the flame of press freedom alive" in Nicaragua. [more]

IRAN | In an interview with state-run media yesterday, Iranian Defense Minister Gen. Aziz Nasirzadeh says his country has unveiled a new solid-fueled ballistic missile, the "Qassem Basir," which is described as having a 1,200-kilometer range and advanced targeting capability. [more]

BANGLADESH | Reports say more than 20,000 followers of the Islamist group Hefazat-e-Islam took part in a rally in the capital Dhaka on Saturday to protest against a government commission proposal to recommend reforms that would grant equal rights to women. [more]

SUDAN | The U.N.'s International Court of Justice is expected to rule today on a request from Sudan to issue emergency measures against the United Arab Emirates, who Sudanese authorities allege has helped fund the rebel paramilitary Rapid Support Forces amidst the ongoing civil war in Sudan. [more]

ROMANIA | With results in from yesterday's first round of voting, hard-right nationalist George Simion and pro-Western reformist Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan will be the candidates in Romania's runoff presidential election in two weeks. [more]

PERU | Peruvian authorities say the bodies of 13 security guards kidnapped on April 26 from a major Peruvian gold mine were found Sunday and have blamed the deaths on criminal gangs with a history of fighting for control of the mine. [more]

BRAZIL | An estimated 2.5 million people packed Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Beach to attend a free Lady Gaga concert on Saturday. Police say two people have been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to detonate explosives at the concert. [more]

HORSE RACING | Sovereignty won the 151st Kentucky Derby on Saturday, followed by Journalism and Baeza. Reports note that all 19 horses in the race were descendants of the legendary 1973 Derby and Triple Crown winner Secretariat. [more]

GOLF | Scottie Scheffler finished with a PGA Tour record-tying 31-under-par yesterday to win the CJ Cup Byron Nelson tournament. [more]

SOCCER | With a 2-2 tie between Freiburg and second-place Bayer Leverkusen yesterday, Bayern Munich clinched the 2025 Bundesliga championship. The title mark's Bayern forward Harry Kane's first professional career major title. [more]

WEEKEND MOVIES | "Thunderbolts" topped the North American box office over the weekend with an estimated $76 million in receipts, followed by "Sinners" and "A Minecraft Movie." [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1862, Mexico repelled the French forces of Napoleon III at the Battle of Puebla, a victory that became a symbol of resistance to foreign domination and is now celebrated as a national holiday, Cinco de Mayo. [more history]