Axios

The National Zoo's giant pandas are leaving Wednesday morning on their 19-hour journey back to China.

Why it matters: It's a surprisingly early departure — the bears were slated to leave before early December, and then mid-November — that leaves D.C. panda-less for the first time in more than two decades.

Attitudes in China have become friendlier to the U.S. this year, according to a new survey from Morning Consult. One factor could be the slowdown in China's economy.

Why it matters: After several years of spiraling bilateral relations and deepening distrust, the shift in views could help support a thaw as both U.S. and Chinese leaders work to improve dialogue and stabilize relations.

Many of the Puerto Ricans organizing or marching in support of Palestinians and calling on Israel to stop military action in Gaza are doing it because of what they see as a familiar fight against "colonialism."

Why it matters: The support illustrates the strong feelings many Puerto Ricans have about the island's status as a U.S. territory, sources tell Axios. Some Puerto Ricans have long fought for independence from the U.S.

Orcas have been taking down boats in greater numbers, which the Washington Post reported has been viewed as the stuff of "working-class heroes."

The big picture: A slew of boats off the coasts of Spain and Portugal have been subject to damage from orcas — also known as killer whales.

President Biden urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in their call on Monday to agree to a three-day pause in the fighting to allow progress in releasing some of the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, two U.S. and Israeli officials said.

The big picture: According to a proposal that is being discussed between the U.S., Israel and Qatar, Hamas would release 10-15 hostages and use the three-day pause to verify the identities of all the hostages and deliver a list of names of the people it is holding, the U.S. official said.

María Corina Machado, the elected leader of the Venezuelan opposition who is trying to unseat President Nicolás Maduro, has a long history of rattling the ruling party despite legal consequences.

State of play: Machado, a 56-year-old industrial engineer, is supposed to square off with Maduro in elections next year, but his government last week suspended the results of the primary despite an agreement this month to hold free elections, leaving her candidacy in question.

More than 400 Americans, U.S. permanent residents, and their family members have left Gaza, State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told Axios Tuesday.

Driving the news: Those who have left so far have done so through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, which was temporarily closed over the weekend but reopened Monday, NBC News reported.