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MIDDLE EAST | Updates from regional conflicts:

• Today marks two years since the 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage. An estimated 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, and about 170,000 have been wounded, in Gaza in the ensuing war. A new study from the Costs of War project at Brown University’s Watson School of International and Public Affairs says the United States has provided at least $21.7 billion in military assistance to Israel since the start of the Gaza war. [more]
• United Nations officials say Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have detained nine U.N. employees in a continuation of a long-running crackdown on the international organization over what the rebel group alleges are links to a suspected espionage network. [more]

U.S. MILITARIZATION | Legal challenges to President Donald Trump's plan to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago and Portland have been filed in both locations. Trump said yesterday that while it has not yet been necessary, he is open to considering invocation of the Insurrection Act to authorize the use of active-duty military in states that are unable to control unrest. [more]

U.S. GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN | Day 7. After suggesting earlier in the day that negotiations with congressional Democrats were taking place "with regard to health care," President Donald Trump said later yesterday that the government must re-open before he is willing to undertake such negotiations. [more]

U.S. IMMIGRATION | Reports cite administration officials as saying President Trump is considering reducing refugee admissions into the U.S. from a target of 125,000 last year to as low as 7,500 this year and that white South African refugees, who Trump says are targets of increasing discrimination in their home country, could be prioritized under the reduced admission program. [more]

ALASKA | President Donald Trump yesterday ordered the approval of the proposed 211-mile Ambler Road project north of Fairbanks, Alaska, to facilitate mining of copper, cobalt, and other minerals in the region. Reports note that the project was initially approved during the first Trump administration but was blocked by the Biden administration after an analysis determined it would threaten wildlife and harm Alaska Native tribes that rely on hunting and fishing in the region. [more]

U.S. COVID-19 | The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced yesterday that it has adopted recommendations made last month by a new group of vaccine advisors and no longer recommends COVID-19 vaccinations for anyone – leaving the choice up to patients and their physicians. [more]

U.S. LGBTQ+ | The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments today on the constitutionality of bans passed by nearly half of all U.S. states on the practice of so-called conversion therapy for children. [more]

U.S. AND CANADA | Amidst ongoing trade and political tensions, and ahead of next year's review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump today at the White House. [more]

NOBEL PRIZES | John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis have been named recipients of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics for their research into quantum mechanical tunneling. [detailed info] [more]

GLOBAL ELECTRICITY GENERATION | According to a report released today by energy think tank Ember, the increase in solar- and wind-generated electrical power outpaced global electricity demand growth in the first half of 2025, with solar alone meeting 83% of increased power demands. [full report] [more]

PERU | South America's Andean Community trade bloc ruled yesterday that Peru has failed to meet its commitments to curb illegal gold mining and mercury trafficking and said Peru must urgently reform its laws, seize machinery that sucks up river sediment and other mining equipment, and end extensions of a registry for informal miners. [more]

BANGLADESH | Health officials in Bangladesh say the country's dengue outbreak is worsening rapidly, with 50,689 cases and 215 deaths associated with the mosquito-borne disease so far this year, and warn that the disease could spiral out of control if urgent and coordinated mosquito mitigation efforts are not undertaken. [more]

SUDAN | The International Criminal Court convicted former Sudanese militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-al-Rahman yesterday on charges of ordering war crimes and other atrocities in connection with his acts committed in Sudan's Darfur region some 20 years ago. [more]

TECH INDUSTRY | The U.S. Supreme Court declined yesterday to order a stay of an October 2024 court order requiring tech giant Google to undertake a restructuring of its Android app store after a jury found it to be an illegal monopoly. [more]

MUSIC | Five years after the death of drummer and lyricist Neil Peart, co-founders Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson have announced a reunion tour of the rock band Rush. The 12-date tour is scheduled for summer 2026 and will feature German composer and producer Anika Nilles on drums. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 2001, the war in Afghanistan began as the United States and Britain launched aerial attacks against military targets and Osama bin Laden’s training camps in the wake of the September 11 attacks. [more history]