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MIDDLE EAST | Update from regional conflicts:

• The Associated Press cites unnamed U.S. defense sources as saying that Houthi rebels in Yemen have shot down at least seven U.S. Reaper drones in less than six weeks, a loss of aircraft worth more than $200 million, with three of the aircraft losses occurring in the last week. Related reports note that the U.S. has struck more than 800 Houthi targets in Yemen over recent weeks, according to U.S. officials. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 1156 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Reuters reports that a new framework of proposals for a cease-fire in the Russia-Ukraine war developed by Ukrainian and European officials in London this week have been sent to U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The news agency has also published the full text of the proposals, which are marked "Official-Sensitive," and includes a commitment to a "full and unconditional ceasefire in the sky, on land and at sea." [read the full proposed framework] [more]
• Regional authorities say at least three people were killed, and 10 others were wounded, in an overnight Russian drone attack on the southeastern Ukraine city of Pavlohrad. The attack came a day after U.S. President Donald Trump rebuked Russian President Vladimir Putin for a deadly missile and drone attack on the capital Kyiv. [more]
• U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow today at what President Trump characterized as a key moment in diplomacy to end the war in Ukraine. [more]

U.S. POLITICS | In an executive order yesterday, President Donald Trump directed the Justice Department to investigate Republican allegations that online fundraising platforms, and specifically the Democratic Party’s top fundraising platform, ActBlue, allow illegal campaign donations. Responding to the order, ActBlue called it a "brazen attack on democracy" and part of a "campaign to stamp out all political, electoral, and ideological opposition." [full executive order] [more]

U.S. COURT RULINGS | Multiple federal court rulings have taken place over the past two days on Trump administration policies and orders, including:

• Ahead of today's deadline for states to certify that they would not use "“illegal DEI practices," two federal judges issued rulings yesterday blocking the administration's enforcement of its diversity, equity and inclusion crackdown in education. [more]
• Portions of an executive order on federal election regulations were blocked by a federal judge yesterday. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said that, for now, adding a proof-of-citizenship requirement to the federal voter registration form could not be implemented, but she allowed a directive to tighten mail ballot deadlines to proceed. [more]
• U.S. District Judge William Orrick ruled that a Trump executive order seeking to deny federal funds to so-called "sanctuary cities" that limit immigration enforcement cooperation is unconstitutional. [more]

U.S. DEFENSE COMMUNICATIONS | Amidst ongoing concerns over his use of the commercial messaging app Signal to relay details of then-pending U.S. military strikes on Yemen, new reports say Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had a non-secure internet connection set up in his Pentagon office for using Signal on a personal computer. Analysts say such a connection could expose users to hacking and surveillance and may lack the record-keeping compliance required by federal law. [more]

U.S. FOOD SAFETY | Citing "significant financial and operational burdens on American businesses and consumers," the Agriculture Department announced yesterday that it is withdrawing a rule proposed during the Biden administration that would have required poultry companies to keep levels of salmonella bacteria in their raw products under a certain threshold and test for the presence of the six salmonella strains most associated with illness. [more]

U.S. INDIGENOUS PEOPLES | The annual Gathering of Nations, billed by organizers as the largest gathering of Native American and Indigenous peoples in North America, begins today in New Mexico. [more]

TEXAS | A $1 billion education bill passed by Texas lawmakers yesterday allows families to use public money to pay for private school tuition, homeschooling, or virtual learning programs, with up to $10,000 each year available per student in the program. Gov. Greg Abbott supported the measure and is expected to quickly sign it into law. [more]

U.S. AND IRAN | Negotiations between the United States and Iran over Tehran's advancing nuclear program are set to resume tomorrow in Oman. Reports say these latest negotiations are expected to include technical detail proposals for any potential deal to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some U.S. economic sanctions. [more]

U.S. AND CHINA | Chinese foreign ministry officials denied yesterday that any active trade and tariff negotiations with the U.S. were taking place, despite U.S. claims to the contrary. Asked about the issue later in the day, U.S. President Donald Trump said there had been a meeting earlier in the day, but did not provide further details. [more]

INDIA AND PAKISTAN | Amidst ongoing tensions sparked by the killing of 26 people near the resort town of Pahalgam in India-controlled Kashmir earlier this week, Indian officials say their forces briefly exchanged gunfire with Pakistani soldiers in Kashmir late yesterday. No casualties were reported in the incident. [more]

SYRIA | In one of the first high-profile international forays by a member of Syria's new government, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani is scheduled to raise his country's new flag today at the United Nations headquarters in New York City and to attend a U.N. Security Council briefing. [more]

AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND | Ceremonies are taking place across Australia and New Zealand today to mark Anzac Day, which originally commemorated the nations' role in an ultimately unsuccessful campaign to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey during World War One, but is recognized today as a public holiday commemorating all military service members who fought and died during wartime. [more]

TECH INDUSTRY | In the wake of U.S.-China trade tensions and tariffs, the Financial Times reports that Apple plans to shift the assembly of all U.S.-sold iPhones to India as soon as next year. [more]

FOOTBALL | The Tennessee Titans selected Miami quarterback Cam Ward with the first pick in last night's first round of the 2025 NFL draft. Colorado's Travis Hunter and Penn State's Abdul Carter were taken at No. 2 and No. 3 by the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Giants, respectively. [full draft tracker] [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1859, construction of the Suez Canal officially began. Completed 10 years later, the 120-mile waterway offered vessels a direct route between the North Atlantic and northern Indian oceans via the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, avoiding the South Atlantic and southern Indian oceans and reducing the journey distance from the Arabian Sea to London by about 5,500 miles. [more history]