Three Iranianswere charged in connection with a hack targeting former President Trump's 2024 campaign allegedly meant to shape the outcome of the November election, according to an indictment unsealed Friday.
The big picture: Masoud Jalili, Yaser Balaghi and Seyyed Ali Aghamiri were charged with conspiracy to obtain information from a protected computer, fraud and several instances of aggravated identity theft, among other counts.
Israel conducted an airstrike on Friday targeting Hezbollah's central headquarters in Beirut in an attempt to kill the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah, Israeli officials said.
Why it matters: The attack, which also hit residential buildings in the southern suburbs of Beirut, was the largest Israeli strike in Beirut since the 2006 war in Lebanon. At least six people were killed and 91 wounded, Lebanon's health ministry said on Friday, adding it is a preliminary assessment of the casualties.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office said in a statement on Thursday night that "Israel shares the aims" of the U.S.-led initiative for a 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon.
Why it matters: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's previous remarks denying he had a private understanding with the U.S. about the ceasefire proposal created tension with the White House.
Three important nameswere missing from Thursday's Senate huddle with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
GOP leader hopefuls Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) weren't there. Neither was Sen. John Barrasso, the presumptive next Senate GOP No. 2.
Why it matters: This was likely the last time Sen. Mitch McConnell will be GOP leader for a Zelensky huddle on Capitol Hill.
1. Puerto Rican authorities said yesterday they'd reached a deal to cancel the student debt of thousands of people on the island.
The agreement came through a lawsuit from the Puerto Rico Department of Justice against loan provider Navient (formerly called Sallie Mae) for alleged fraudulent practices.
About 20,000 students will benefit, authorities said, with the estimated cancellation of about $7 million in debt.
2. Guatemala's Congress started the process this week of confirming hundreds of nominees to the Supreme Court and appeals courts, even as some of the suggested names are people accused of corruption.
Ecuadorians are the least likely in the world to feel safe in their country, according to new polling data from Gallup.
Why it matters: Ecuador's long-time status as one of the safest nations in Latin America and the Caribbean is no more as the nation has been hit by the same systemic violence as nearby countries.
A decade after 43 students were abducted in Guerrero, Mexico, their families say the government has largely abandoned the investigation.
Why it matters: The students from Ayotzinapa rural school are part of the largest mass disappearance in modern Mexican history, and they are among the more than 110,000 people who have been reported missing or disappeared in the last 50 years.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday walked back from a private understanding with the Biden administration and distanced himself from the proposal for 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon presented by the U.S., France and other allies.
Why it matters: U.S. officials said Netanyahu and his close confidants were directly involved in the formulation of the temporary ceasefire.
Russia and Iran are close partners in Ukraine and in the Middle East, but they're intervening on opposite sides in the U.S. election.
Why it matters: An emerging axis of U.S. adversaries and rivals, including China and North Korea, has moved closer together on a number of fronts in recent years — but not when it comes to partisan U.S. politics.
The U.S., France and key allies issued a joint statement on Wednesday calling on Israel and Hezbollah to agree to a 21-day ceasefire during which negotiations could take place on a diplomatic solution to the crisis on the Israeli-Lebanese border.
Why it matters: The statement — released after 10 days of intense fighting that has killed more than 700 people in Lebanon — is aimed at stopping the escalation and particularly at preventing a possible Israeli ground invasion of southern Lebanon to push Hezbollah militants away from the border.
Hurricane Helene's threat of widespread flooding rains and high winds prompted NOAA to issue a rare alert Wednesday, warning the storm's effects "won't be limited to the Gulf Coast," with it "expected to travel hundreds of miles inland."
The big picture: NOAA warned in its special weather statement that "heavy rainfall will begin" in parts of the southeastern U.S. "well before" the "unusually large" storm's expected landfall along Florida's northwest coast as a major hurricane Thursday evening,
