Axios

The State Department is discussing allocating $500 million for funding of the U.S. and Israel backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) that has been delivering food to Palestinians in Gaza in recent weeks, a U.S. official and a source with direct knowledge told Axios.

Why it matters: If the U.S. goes ahead with this massive funding, it will become the biggest donor to the foundation and will de facto "own" the operation.

Elon Musk's threat Thursday to decommission SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft would have left NASA reliant on Russian capsules to get its astronauts into space.

Why it matters: Musk's rift with President Trump exposes how reliant NASA has become on a single private sector partner to reach the International Space Station after ending the space shuttle program in 2011.

As the nation remembers D-Day on Friday's 81st anniversary, a dwindling number of World War II veterans remain with us.

• There were about 66,100 living WWII vets nationwide as of 2024, per U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs projections.

The Trump administration announced sanctions on four International Criminal Court judges on Thursday over what Secretary of State Marco Rubio called "illegitimate actions" that he said targeted the U.S. and Israel.

The big picture: The sanctions are in response to the ICC issuing arrest warrants in November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant and the court's investigation into alleged U.S. war crimes in Afghanistan.

A federal judge temporarily blocked President Trump's proclamation that suspended the entry of international students seeking to attend Harvard University.

Why it matters: U.S. District Court Judge Allison Burroughs' temporary restraining order marks the latest legal blow for Trump in his attempt to strip Harvard of its ability to host international students amid a weeks-long legal battle with the Ivy League school.

The Supreme Court rejected on Thursday Mexico's $10 billion lawsuit against U.S. gun makers that alleged the companies' loose controls allowed for the weapons to be illegally trafficked in the Latin American nation.

Why it matters: The unanimous ruling ends a years long legal battle in the first-of-its kind suit that saw the Mexican government try to hold U.S. gunmakers accountable for drug cartels' high rates of gun violence in parts of the country.

Israel has reassured the White House that it won't launch an attack against Iran's nuclear facilities unless President Trump signals negotiations with Iran have failed, two Israeli officials with direct knowledge tell Axios.

Why it matters: The Trump administration has been concerned in recent weeks that Israel is preparing to launch a strike despite the ongoing talks, and President Trump said he cautioned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against making his move while talks are still taking place.

President Trump compared Russia and Ukraine with "children fighting in the park" on Thursday and suggested it might be better to let them keep on fighting for a while.

Why it matters: Trump's remarks were another signal that he thinks Russia and Ukraine aren't ready to make peace, and that he's considering stepping back from his initiative to convince them to do so.

A group of Democratic lawmakers are pressing the Trump administration to clarify who is leading the government's efforts to eradicate China-backed hackers from U.S. critical infrastructure and telecom networks.

Why it matters: Roughly 1,000 people have already left the nation's top cyber agency this year through voluntary buyouts and other workforce cuts. Those cuts could create dangerous weaknesses in the nation's cyber defenses, the lawmakers argue in a letter exclusively shared with Axios.

If international trade is a game of chess, China has the U.S. in check — with few good options for the next move.

Why it matters: The trade war has exposed just how deeply the U.S. economy is at the mercy of an accident of geology — China's supply of the rare earth minerals that power our modern high-tech society.

President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke about trade issues for more than an hour Thursday, and Trump said teams from both sides would meet again soon.

Why it matters: Washington and Beijing have accused each other of violating the 90-day trade truce reached three weeks ago, under which both dramatically lowered tariffs and promised further dialogue.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday will enter President Trump's televised Oval Office stage, where world leaders before him have been ambushed, scolded and sent home without lunch.

The big picture: Under Trump 2.0, the Oval Office has become a danger zone for world leaders, who at the very least are subject to a series of on-camera spectacles — and at the worst, a full-blown attack.

The European Central Bank cut interest rates by a quarter-percentage point for the eighth time this cycle on Thursday, the latest attempt to help a euro area economy hit by the President Trump's trade war.

Why it matters: Trade negotiations between the U.S. and the European Union have been rocky, with just weeks to go before each side unleashes higher tariffs.

Israeli special forces recovered the bodies of two American hostages who were held in Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet intelligence service announced Thursday.

Why it matters: Judi Weinstein-Haggai and Gad Haggai from Kibbutz Nir Oz were murdered during the Oct. 7 attack while they were on their morning walk.

OpenAI said today it's banned ChatGPT accounts that appear to be tied to the ongoing North Korean IT worker schemes that are plaguing nearly every Fortune 500 company.

Why it matters: The new findings suggest that North Korea is advancing its use of AI tools in its yearslong pervasive scheme designed to help fund the regime's missile program.

President Trump thought Ukraine's surprise drone attack over the weekend was "strong" and "badass," sources who discussed it with him tell Axios, but he's also concerned it will make his ceasefire mission even harder.

Why it matters: The meticulously planned operation on Russia's most strategic air bases — conducted remotely from thousands of miles away — suggested Ukraine has more "cards" than Trump gave them credit for, but also effectively dared Russian President Vladimir Putin to escalate in return.

Chinese, Tagalog and Vietnamese are the three most commonly spoken languages in the U.S. other than English and Spanish, per new census data.

Why it matters: The myriad languages spoken nationwide reflect both the settlement and colonization of centuries long past, as well as more modern immigration patterns.

A federal judge halted deportation proceedings against the family of the man charged in the Boulder, Colorado, Molotov cocktail attack, per a temporary order on Wednesday.

The big picture: U.S. District Judge Gordon Gallagher's order ruled that "deportation without process could [cause] irreparable harm" to the Egyptian citizens.

President Trump issued a proclamation Wednesday restricting the entry of people from a dozen countries into the U.S., citing national security concerns.

The big picture: Trump's order states that he has decided to "fully restrict and limit" entry from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.