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John Haltiwanger
CBP agents stand by a plane that's believed to have carried Mexican drug lord Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, who were arrested in El Paso, Texas.
Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, the leader and co-founder of the notorious Sinaloa cartel was arrested on Thursday in El Paso, Texas, along with Joaquin Guzmán Lopez, the son of imprisoned cartel boss Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
The two men are considered to be among the most powerful drug traffickers in Mexico, and this is a major victory for US law enforcement agencies that have hunted figures like Zambada for years.
Attorney General Merrick Garlandsaid the men face “multiple charges” for leading the cartel’s criminal operations, which include “its deadly fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking networks.”
The DEA has directly attributed the deadly synthetic drug crisis in the US, involving substances like fentanyl and methamphetamine, to the Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels and their associates.
“Fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat our country has ever faced, and the Justice Department will not rest until every single cartel leader, member, and associate responsible for poisoning our communities is held accountable,” Garland said.
A congressional report earlier this year pointed to fentanyl as the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-45. The opioid crisis is a major political issue in the US and has emerged as a key topic in the 2024 presidential election.
Though these arrests are a win for the Justice Department, experts doubt they will put a major dent in the drug trade — and suggest the arrests could lead to a spike in violence due to infighting that was already prevalent.President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S., July 25, 2024.
While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was visiting the US this week, Hezbollah released drone footage of an Israeli air base located roughly 31 miles south of the Lebanese border.
The drone footage once again raises questions about Israel’s air defenses, which also failed to intercept a recent Houthi drone that killed one person in Tel Aviv. But the fact that Hezbollah publicized the footage is more about sending a message on its capabilities than a warning of an impending attack; the militant group has been clear that it does not seek a wider war in the region.
Israel and Hezbollah, the powerful Iran-backed militant group in Lebanon, have repeatedly traded cross-border fire since the war in Gaza began in October. Hezbollah has said it would stop attacking Israel if a cease-fire was reached in Gaza.
Both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were expected to urge Netanyahu to work toward a truce in Gaza when they met with him at the White House on Thursday. The meetings came a day after the Israeli leader’s controversial address to Congress, which was met with criticism from Democratic lawmakers. The speech also prompted anger in Israel and protests in Tel Aviv, with demonstrators calling for Netanyahu to focus his energy on a deal that would free the remaining hostages in Gaza.
Before heading home, Netanyahu is set to meet with former President Donald Trump in Florida on Friday, and we’ll be watching to see what emerges from that.
A member of the Sudanese Armed forces walks between damaged buildings, almost one year into the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), in Omdurman, Sudan, April 7, 2024.
The US is spearheading a new effort for a cease-fire in Sudan, inviting both sides in the civil war to talks in Switzerland set to begin on Aug. 14.
“The scale of death, suffering, and destruction in Sudan is devastating. This senseless conflict must end,” Secretary of State Antony Blinkensaid this week. “We urge the parties to stop the fighting for the sake of a brighter future for Sudan.”
The 15-month-old war between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, militia has had a devastating impact on civilians, forcing over 10 million people from their homes and sparking a major humanitarian crisis. Civilians in Sudan are facing "indiscriminate and widespread" violence, according to a recent report from Doctors Without Borders.
Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, chief of the RSF, agreed to attend the talks in Switzerland. But we’ll be watching to see whether the Sudanese army, which hasn’t responded to the invitation yet, also turns up.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during his meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama at the United Nations in New York September 21, 2011. Netanyahu said Wednesday that direct negotiation was the only way to achieve a stable Middle East peace and the Palestinian effort to secure U.N. recognition of statehood ''will not succeed.''
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is addressing a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, visiting Washington at an awkward moment in US-Israel relations and amid ongoing international efforts for a cease-fire in Gaza.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, China helped facilitate an agreement between Hamas and its longtime political rival, Fatah, on Tuesday that would see the two Palestinian groups form a government together. Both Israel and the US have already thrown cold water on the deal, given their opposition to Hamas remaining in power in any capacity.
Netanyahu’s speech also comes at a chaotic time in US politics, with the country still reeling from the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump as well as President Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the 2024 race.
Tough crowd. Netanyahu’s prosecution of the war against Hamas in Gaza – and vocal opposition to a two-state solution – has made him unpopular with a number of Democratic lawmakers while also creating tensions with the Biden administration. Some Democratic lawmakers are expected to boycott his speech, and Vice President Kamala Harris, now the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, will not preside over the Senate during the address due to a campaign event in Indianapolis.
Thousands are also poised to protest in the nation’s capital against the war in Gaza during Netanyahu’s visit, though pro-Israel demonstrators are also expected to turn up in Washington.
Given these circumstances, Netanyahu is likely to strike a more bipartisan tone than in the past and will probably focus on “the historical link and strategic value of the Israel-US relationship” in his speech, says Sofia Meranto, a Middle East analyst for Eurasia Group. During an address to Congress in 2015, Netanyahu controversially ripped into the nuclear deal with Iran that was being orchestrated by the Obama administration, infuriating many Democrats.
Netanyahu wants to use his Wednesday speech to “showcase that he has a unique relationship with US leaders — an argument he leans on domestically — and try to dispel sentiment in Israel that he has damaged the relationship with Washington,” adds Meranto.
President Joe Biden walks on the South Lawn of the White House upon his return to Washington, DC from Delaware on July 25, 2021.
President Joe Biden on Sunday announced he is standing down and will no longer seek reelection in 2024.
Biden, 81, made the extraordinary decision following weeks of speculation over concerns about his age and capacity to do the job following his disastrous debate performance in late June.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden said in a statement.
“I will speak to the nation later this week in more detail about my decision,” Biden added.
Shortly after he announced that he was quitting the race, Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris.
“My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this,” Biden said.
The president’s decision to step back reflects deep divisions among Democrats and came after a number of Democratic lawmakers urged Biden to drop out, both publicly and privately. Despite being heavily critical of Biden on issues such as the war in Gaza, progressives like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stood by him as centrist Democrats like Rep. Nancy Pelosi pushed Biden to quit the race.
It’s unclear precisely who the Democratic presidential nominee will be now, though Biden's endorsement of Harris makes her the frontrunner.
By dropping out, Biden opened the door for the Democratic Party to gather behind another candidate and for the delegates pledged to him to vote as they want. But if Democrats do not coalesce behind a particular candidate before the convention in August, it could pave the way for an open convention in which prospective nominees would vie for support from delegates. This would be messy and hasn’t happened since 1968.
A lot is now up in the air, and this is a risky gamble for the Democratic Party as it fights to prevent former President Donald Trump from winning a second term – particularly as he seems to be gaining momentum following the assassination attempt a little over a week ago.Israeli police search the scene of an explosion near a branch of the US embassy in Tel Aviv early Friday.
The Houthi militia in Yemen claimed responsibility for a drone attack in Tel Aviv early Friday that killed at least one person and wounded 10 others. The drone crashed into an apartment building not far from the US Embassy in Israel’s second-largest city.
This was the first time the Iran-backed group carried out a lethal attack in Israel – and it involved an Iran-made drone. The Israeli military is investigating how the drone evaded its defense systems. The drone was detected, but it wasn’t intercepted due to an “error,” said Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari.
The war in Gaza has fueled major tensions between Israel and Tehran, as well as its proxies in the region. For months, there have been concerns that Israel could go to war in Lebanon with the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. Friday’s drone attack occurred not long after Israel announced it killed a senior Hezbollah commander in southern Lebanon, and the fatal incident will likely raise further concerns that the war in Gaza risks spiraling into a much broader, regional conflict.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is preparing to visit the US next week to address Congress. Though the US and Israel remain close allies, Netanyahu’s prosecution of the war in Gaza has made him unpopular with some Democratic lawmakers in Washington – particularly progressives – and he has frequently butted heads with the Biden administration.
The fact that the Knesset on Thursday overwhelmingly voted in favor of a resolution rejecting the establishment of a Palestinian state – a move indicative of growing Israeli opposition to a two-state solution, a goal the US has pushed for decades – could also lead to some awkward conversations for Netanyahu in Washington.
The CrowdStrike statement is being displayed on a smartphone in this photo illustration.
21: A massive Microsoft outage linked to a software update from the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike has disrupted banks, media outlets, airports, hospitals, and other businesses worldwide. Multiple major US airlines grounded flights early on Friday as a result. CrowdStrike says it has identified the issue and deployed a fix, as its shares dropped as much as 21% in the pre-trade market.
401: Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday was reelected for a second five-year term as European Commission president. The EU chief won 401 votes in a secret ballot, blasting past the 361 votes she needed. Von der Leyen, who was first elected in 2019, has led the bloc through a tumultuous period including Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which sent shock waves across Europe.
3,404: Holy rare bird eggs, Batman! A European operation into illegal bird trade led Australian authorities to seize 3,404 rare bird eggs in Tasmania. The eggs, some of which reportedly came from endangered species, are estimated to be worth up to $335,000. Authorities are investigating a 62-year-old man, but no arrests have been made.
203 million: The United States is giving an additional $203 million in humanitarian aid to help Sudanese people affected by the devastating war in their country, which has left 25 million people seeking assistance and millions displaced. “This is the worst humanitarian crisis in the world,” US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Thursday. The US has now given $1.6 billion in humanitarian assistance since the conflict began.
21: Israeli strikes in central Gaza and Gaza City reportedly killed at least 21 people on Thursday – a reminder that fighting continues across the area more than nine months into the war. The Israeli military said its strikes killed two senior Islamic Jihad commanders. This came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a surprise visit to troops in the enclave near Rafah. With the war in Gaza still raging, Netanyahu is set to visit the United States next week to address Congress.
U.S. President Joe Biden removes his face mask prior to receiving his coronavirus disease (COVID-19) booster vaccination in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building's South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington, U.S., September 27, 2021.
There are growing signs that President Joe Biden is opening up to the idea of quitting the 2024 race.
At the very least, he’s reportedly willing to hear people make the case for why he should drop out, and top Democrats privately believe Biden could step aside as early as this weekend.
Biden’s support is collapsing. Since the president’s disastrous debate performance, several prominent Democrats have questioned the viability of Biden’s campaign or publicly called on him to quit — with Reps. Adam Schiff of California and Jamie Raskin of Maryland the latest examples.
Reporting in recent days suggests that multiple leading Democrats have also privately warned Biden that he’s hurting the party’s chances and urged him to step aside, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Former President Barack Obama, who remains highly influential in the party, is reportedly worried Biden can’t win.
Biden has COVID at the moment — his diagnosis was announced late Wednesday — and is isolating in his Delaware home. We’ll be watching to see if the president ultimately buckles under the pressure, or if he’ll remain defiant in the face of the growing calls for him to exit the race. Meanwhile, the DNC rules committee is set to meet on Friday to discuss a plan to lock in Biden’s nomination early — before the convention next month.