Israel and Syria agreed on a ceasefire after days of heightened tensions and Israeli airstrikes in Damascus and southern Syria, U.S. envoy Tom Barrack said on Friday.
Why it matters: The Trump administration that mediated the ceasefire has become extremely concerned that the crisis this week could further destabilize the region and undermine the U.S. diplomatic push in Syria.
The roughly 250 men deported from the U.S. and detained in El Salvador were returned to their native Venezuela on Friday in exchange for the release of American prisoners.
Driving the news: Ten Americans and an undisclosed number of Venezuelan political prisoners are being freed in exchange for the roughly 250 Venezuelan men who were accused of being members of Tren de Aragua and detained at CECOT, a high-security prison in El Salvador.
The director of Israel's Mossad spy agency visited Washington this week seeking U.S. help in convincing countries to take hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from Gaza, two sources with knowledge of issue tell Axios.
The spy chief, David Barnea, told White House envoy Steve Witkoff that Israel has been speaking in particular with Ethiopia, Indonesia and Libya.
Why it matters: The Israeli government's goal of removing much of Gaza's population is hugely controversial. While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government claims such a "relocation" would be "voluntary," U.S. and Israeli legal experts have labeled it a war crime.
The International Energy Agency is launching the next phase of its work to expand access to cleaner cooking in sub-Saharan Africa, where progress has been slower than in other regions.
Why it matters: Widespread use of polluting fuels like wood, charcoal and dung — and open fires or inadequate stoves — is a massive health and economic problem.
Elon Musk may be gone from the White House, but there's someone far more effective now firming up DOGE's legacy: Russell Vought.
Why it matters: The director of the Office of Management and Budget is helping make DOGE's dreams come through — by clawing back $9 billion in federal funding for the Public Broadcasting Service, National Public Radio and foreign aid.
Israel issued a rare statement of regret for a strike on the only Catholic church in Gaza, which killed three people, injured 10 and left the church seriously damaged on Thursday.
The big picture: The strike, which Israel claims was a mistake, led to backlash from world leaders, including Pope Leo XIV, and a call from President Trump to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. presented Israel and Hamas with an updated Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal proposal on Wednesday, two sources with direct knowledge tell Axios.
The mediators believe recent concessions from Israel, which are incorporated into the updated proposal, could enable the parties to reach a deal soon, the sources say.
Why it matters: The deal under negotiation involves a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza, the release of 10 live hostages and the remains of 18 deceased hostages, the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, and a massive increase in humanitarian aid into Gaza.
President Trump has set a radical new course in the U.S.-China rivalry, ceding ground to Beijing in pursuit of a far narrower vision of America's role in the world.
Why it matters: Six months into office, the Trump administration has hollowed out the machinery of American soft power and retreated from key arenas where the U.S. has sought to blunt China's rise.
A federal judge on Wednesday delayed making a ruling on whether Kilmar Ábrego García should be released from jail as he awaits trial, multiple outlets reported.
The big picture: The legal U.S. resident, who spent nearly three months in an El Salvador mega-prison before being returned to a Tennessee jail, is awaiting trial on human smuggling charges to which he has pleaded not guilty.
Expelling migrants to third-countries that are not their place of origin is becoming a cornerstone of President Trump's deportation strategy.
The big picture: The administration's increasing number of third-country deportation agreements showcases a dogged desire to pursue every possible avenue to fulfill Trump's promise to deport record numbers of noncitizens.
