November 25, 2025

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,368 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Amidst sometimes-conflicting statements on the status of ongoing cease-fire talks, at least six people were killed in Russian airstrikes overnight that hit residential buildings and energy infrastructure in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. [more]
• European Union Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius proposed to E.U. lawmakers today that Ukraine be allowed to participate in the bloc's Defense Investment Program, which aims to boost development of E.U.-based arms industries and which Kubilius says would make it possible to "procure defense equipment in, with and for Ukraine." [more]

U.S. PROSECUTIONS | U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie yesterday dismissed the criminal cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, saying that Lindsey Halligan, the federal prosecutor who brought the charges at President Donald Trump's urging, was illegally appointed. The cases were dismissed "without prejudice," meaning the government can choose to re-file the charges. [more]

U.S. HEALTH INSURANCE | Ahead of the expiration of federal health insurance subsidies at the end of 2025, reports say the White House is circulating a draft proposal to extend the Affordable Care Act subsidies for two years, with eligibility capped at 700% of the federal poverty level. [more]

U.S. MILITARY | Citing the federal law that prohibits such actions, the Defense Department said yesterday that it is investigating Senator Mark Kelly, a former Navy pilot, for interfering with the “loyalty, morale, or good order and discipline of the armed forces" through taking part in a video posted by six members of Congress last week calling for members of the U.S. military to uphold the Constitution and refuse illegal orders. Reports note that military service members have a specific legal duty to reject unlawful orders but that they can also face criminal charges for failing to follow an order later determined to be lawful. [more]

U.S. RESEARCH | In an executive order issued yesterday, President Donald Trump launched the "Genesis Mission" – an AI‑accelerated innovation and discovery framework aimed at using Federal scientific datasets to "train scientific foundation models and create AI agents to test new hypotheses, automate research workflows, and accelerate scientific breakthroughs." [full executive order] [more]

U.S. IMMIGRATION | Reports cite a recent memo from the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Joseph Edlow, as indicating that the Trump administration plans to review all of the nearly 200,000 refugee admissions into the U.S. carried out during the Biden administration. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | In a shutdown-delayed report released today, the Commerce Department says retail sales in the U.S. grew a lower-than-expected 0.2% in September – down from a 0.6% increase in August. [full report] [more]

TEXAS | Local authorities say more than 100 homes were damaged yesterday when a tornado touched down in the Memorial Northwest neighborhood outside Houston, Texas. [more]

OREGON | Gov. Tina Kotek declared a state of emergency for Oregon yesterday to ensure adequate fuel supplies to her state while the BP-owned Olympic Pipeline, which supplies more than 90% of the state's fuel, remains shut down due to a leak. [more]

NATO | Both Germany and Romania scrambled fighter jets today after two Russian drones crossed into Romanian airspace from Ukraine, with one drone traveling more than 100 km into NATO airspace, according to Romanian officials. [more]

E.U. MARRIAGE EQUALITY | Saying Poland was wrong in not recognizing the same-sex marriage between two of its citizens that took place in Germany, the European Union Court of Justice ruled today that while E.U. member states do not have to allow same-sex marriage, they cannot be allowed to discriminate against same-sex couples in the way they recognize foreign marriages. [more]

AFGHANISTAN AND PAKISTAN | Zabihullah Mujahid, the chief spokesperson for Afghanistan's Taliban government, said today that at least 10 people, mostly children, were killed, and four others were wounded, in overnight airstrikes by Pakistan in three eastern Afghan provinces. The accusations, on which Pakistan has not commented, come amidst a tenuous cease-fire brokered by Qatar and Turkey. [more]

SUDAN | In a new report, rights group Amnesty International accuses the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces of committing war crimes when taking control of the city of el-Fashar late last month. According to Amnesty and other groups, including the United Nations, RSF actions in taking the city included the killing of more than 400 people at a local hospital, the execution of dozens of unarmed men, and the raping of women and girls. [more]

MALAYSIA | Joining a growing number of countries taking steps to limit social media use by children, Malaysia's Cabinet has approved plans to ban social media accounts for people under the age of 16 starting in 2026. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1783, following the conclusion of the American Revolutionary War, the last remaining British troops in the United States were evacuated from New York City. [more history]