President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House, Jan. 23, 2025, in Washington.
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Ben Curtis/AP/AP
President Trump signed an executive order that seeks to end gender-affirming medical treatments for children and teenagers under the age of 19.
The directive, signed Tuesday, was the latest step the Trump administration has taken that examines social protections for the transgender community. On Monday, Trump signed an executive order that bans transgender troops from serving openly in the military. On his first day in office last week, Trump signed an order recognizing two sexes, male and female, and taking aim at what the order described as gender ideology extremism.
Tuesday’s order says the federal government will not “fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support” gender-affirming care for children, as the president claims it leaves them with costly medical bills and regret as they get older, since the procedures may affect their ability to conceive.
The medical care the president is referring to includes the use of puberty blockers, hormones and surgeries.
Somecoverage for pediatric gender-affirming care will be excluded from Medicaid, Medicare and benefits packages for federal and U.S. Postal Service employees.
Trump also condemned health care workers performing the procedures and said, “This dangerous trend will be a stain on our Nation’s history, and it must end.”
Additionally, Trump is axing or changing any laws that rely on guidance from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health. Institutions that receive federal research and education grants must stop providing gender-affirming care for children.
Though the order primarily focuses on pediatric gender-affirming care, Trump has instructed the federal and states’ attorneys general to collaborate on enforcing laws more broadly that are “against female genital mutilation across all American States and Territories.”
The secretary of Health and Human Services has 90 days to evaluate research about how to best help children experiencing discomfort with the gender assigned to them at birth.
Agency leaders have 60 days to submit progress reports in relation to the order.
CNN staffers were struck at how swift Jim Acosta’s exit from the network was, which unfolded in a matter of days.
“I think we’re just taken aback about how fast it was. It happened in a flash,” one CNN staffer told Fox News Digital.
At the end of his 10 a.m. daytime show on Tuesday, Acosta announced his departure from the network after 18 years.
“You may have seen some reports about me and this show and after giving all of this some careful consideration, and weighing an alternative timeslot CNN offered me, I have decided to move on,” Acosta told viewers.
CNN’s Jim Acosta announced he’s leaving the network during his show on Tuesday.(CNN / Screenshot)
The veteran CNN star offered a pointed message, which included a not-so-veiled swipe at President Donald Trump, who he famously feuded with during Trump’s first term.
“It is never a good time to bow down to a tyrant,” Acosta said. “I have always believed it’s the job of the press to hold power to account. I have always tried to do that here at CNN. I plan on doing all of that in the future.
“One final message – don’t give into the lies. Don’t give into the fear. Hold onto the truth, and to hope. Even if you have to get out your phone, record that message. I will not give into the lies. I will not give into the fear. Post it on your social media, so people can hear from you, too,” he added.
CNN commentator Ana Navarro took his message to heart, writing on X “I will not give in to the lies. I will not give in to the fear. I will not normalize insanity. I will not ignore cruelty” before thanking Acosta for his “integrity.”
“Jim has had a long, distinguished nearly 20-year career at CNN, with a track record of standing up to authority, for the First Amendment and for our journalistic freedoms,” a CNN spokesperson said about his exit. “We want to thank him for the dedication and commitment he’s brought to his reporting and wish him the very best in the future.”
Acosta’s announcement came after days of speculation about his future after he was left off CNN’s updated programming schedule unveiled last week. Acosta’s 10 a.m. ET program was being replaced with “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and Pamela Brown” in the network’s latest reshuffling.
CNN CEO Mark Thompson reportedly offered Acosta a two-hour slot at midnights, but Acosta ultimately decided to walk away and take on a new path outside the network instead of accepting what much of the media industry considered a significant demotion.
“Him leaving isn’t unexpected given the reporting. Him leaving so fast is what was unexpected,” the CNN staffer told Fox News Digital.
Acosta says he’s launching an independent show after turning down an offer from CNN boss Mark Thompson to move to midnights. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Despite the outcry that occurred among Acosta’s liberal fans after rumors emerged that he was being moved to midnights, the CNN insider suggested the rest of the network’s staff would ultimately “go about their days” rather than dwelling on Acosta’s exit.
“Look, I think folks liked Jim. But Cuomo went and CNN moved on. Lemon left and CNN moved on. People can be liked, and people will move on,” the network insider said, referring to the controversial exits of Chris Cuomo in 2021 and Don Lemon in 2023.
A second CNN staffer called Acosta’s sendoff message “classy,” telling Fox News Digital “People admire him.”
However, Acosta’s former colleagues are convinced this was an ideological move by Thompson over concerns he was perceived as being too anti-Trump to maintain the 10 a.m. slot during Trump’s second term.
“That is quite simply how they see it, as a fact- as opposed to there being any discussion over it,” the network insider said about what CNN staff believes.
“I think there’s room for someone like Acosta. I think personality and presence matter a lot on TV,” the insider continued. “In a 24-hour network there is room for a stronger voice. People have to want to tune in… It’s all an art, which sounds silly, but programming is art, not science.”
Acosta famously sparred with President Trump during Trump’s first term, which many believe prompted current CNN leadership to move him to midnights as Trump’s second term is underway.(REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst )
Critics on social media have accused CNN of bending the knee to Trump as his second administration is underway.
“Shame on you @CNN. Shame on you,” ex-GOP congressman and occasional CNN guest Joe Walsh reacted on X. “You abandoned your duty to hold ALL public officials accountable. You caved to the crybaby in the White House. Shame on you CNN. And if I’m ever on CNN again, I will say every word of this.”
“Acosta was a pain in Trump’s side during his first term. Looks like CNN is caving to the White House,” former Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., similarly wrote.
It was the peak moment at one of the holiest gatherings on the Hindu calendar — the Maha Kumbh Mela, a 45-day celebration that brings hundreds of millions of the faithful to bathe in the joined Ganges and Yamuna rivers, washing away their sins.
Anticipating record attendance, Indian officials said they were employing new technology to help regulate the crowds at this year’s pilgrimage. But nothing was capable of keeping up with the rush as Tuesday turned to Wednesday, when an estimated 100 million came to the waters over just a handful of hours and then suddenly dashed to leave in a deadly panic.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, faces Senate confirmation hearings today. What can we expect?
Hollywood has had a strong liberal leaning for years, but actor Kelsey Grammer is starting to see a “softening” of that stance.
“I think in terms of the industry, there’s some people who just, they decided to close their minds off, and they kept them closed. They’re going to keep it that way. That’s how it’s going to be. But others seem to be softening a little,” Grammer told Fox News Digital.
Grammer has been openly conservative, and he explained its appeal to him, saying, “Because this has never been a position based upon anything but trying to make sense and being open-minded and fair to people, and that’s the foundational thinking behind conservatism. So for me, that’s where I always wanted to be.”
And now he sees conservatism potentially becoming more “attractive” to other people.
Kelsey Grammer thinks the conservative movement is becoming more “attractive” to people in Hollywood and beyond.(Alberto Rodriguez/IndieWire via Getty Images)
“There’s a great thing in Alcoholics Anonymous where they say it’s a program of attraction. It needs to look attractive. Now, I think conservatism maybe is starting to look more attractive. But for some, it never will be,” Grammer said.
“And that’s OK,” he added, “God bless you. You’re entitled to make choices based upon what you believe and what you perceive.”
WATCH: KELSEY GRAMMER ON WHY CONSERVATISM IS BECOMING ‘MORE ATTRACTIVE’
The 69-year-old star is looking forward to changes nationally as well with the inauguration of President Donald Trump.
“I certainly hope that we just reestablish ourselves as a country that means what it says and says what it means,” Grammer said. “You know, that’s really all I really wanted in the first place.”
Grammer hopes President Donald Trump’s presidency will “reestablish” America’s integrity.(Santiago Felipe/Getty Images)
“I mean, the last four years was just loaded with misrepresentation and kind of … I don’t want to go so far as to say incompetence, but it was, it was just … insincere.
“And I think a lot of people took their eye off of what the whole meaning of service is. And it’s to look after the folks, to look after the people, and that’s certainly happened out here,” he said, referring to the outpouring of support for those affected by the massive wildfires in Los Angeles.
“I think conservatism maybe is starting to look more attractive. But for some, it never will be.”
— Kelsey Grammer
Grammer added that the “insincere” approach “took a toll around the whole country, which is why Trump probably came into office again, because at least you kind of know where you stand with him.”
The “Fraiser” star does have one complaint for Trump though regarding the president’s recent announcement of Mel Gibson, Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone as special ambassadors to Hollywood.
Grammer jokingly asked why he got skipped by President Trump for the special ambassador roles that were assigned to Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson and Jon Voight.(Getty Images)
He added that he and Voight recently had a conversation in which the “Midnight Cowboy” star felt that, as conservatives, they had been “blackballed” by the industry. Grammer admitted he didn’t fully agree, telling Fox News Digital that “he’s worked the whole time. I’ve worked all the time.”
“I certainly hope that we just reestablish ourselves as a country that means what it says and says what it means.”
— Kelsey Grammer
“But there’s a group of people that aren’t interested in working with you just because of your politics, you know? But also, those who wish to be narrow may remain narrow and enjoy their element.”
Grammer is looking forward to new projects himself, specifically his upcoming memoir about his sister, Karen, who was murdered by serial killer Freddie Glenn when she was 18 in 1975.
One of Grammer’s recent projects is his memoir about his sister, Karen, who was murdered in 1975 by a serial killer.(John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images)
“It’s turned out to be a more substantial project in my life than I had anticipated. It has been very healing for me and very inspiring. And I found I’m actually … I’m not a bad writer either, so that’s been a good discovery,” he said of the book, titled “Karen: A Memoir.”
“But it memorializes my sister in a way that I’ve never had a chance to do,” he continued. “And it introduces her to people who don’t even know about her until they’ll read this book. And I’ve had some great responses from it, from some of the people helping represent the book now. They’ve read it, and I’ve gotten calls from [them] saying, ‘I just reread the book, it’s changed my life.’”
WATCH: KELSEY GRAMMER ON THE ‘HEALING’ PROCESS OF WRITING A MEMOIR ABOUT HIS MURDERED SISTER
“Stuff like that’s important. My manager, when he first read it, said, ‘Gosh, you know, I feel like I know Karen now. And that’s why I did it.”
Grammer’s film and TV career is, of course, continuing as well, with the actor currently starring in the film “Wish You Were Here,” a romantic drama directed by Julia Stiles.
Isabelle Fuhrman and Kelsey Grammer are shown in a scene from “Wish You Were Here.”(Lionsgate)
He’s also hoping to do another sitcom but remains focused on finding a new home for his beloved character of Fraiser Crane after the reboot series, “Fraiser,” was canceled on Paramount+.
“I think we’ll find a home for Frasier somewhere,” he said. “So we’re working on that. He’s just such a wonderful character to play, and we found such a wonderful group of people to sort of surround him in this latest iteration. And I think there’s a great future for it. I mean, there’s great storytelling ahead of it.”
The reboot of “Fraiser” on Paramount+ was not renewed, but Grammer is hopeful the character will find a new home.(Getty Images)
Fatherhood is also keeping him busy thanks to his three youngest children with wife Kayte Walsh: Faith, Kelsey and Auden. Grammer is also a father to four older children, including actresses Spencer Grammer and Greer Grammer.
Hundreds of millions of Hindu pilgrims gathered in Prayagraj, India, for the Maha Kumbh Mela festival, but thousands were trampled after crowds surged toward the confluence of two rivers.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said federal immigration authorities were arresting the “worst of the worst” in raids targeting criminal illegal immigrants in the first week of the Trump administration.
Noem, who was confirmed Saturday, joined an immigration enforcement raid in New York City Tuesday morning in which officers picked up an alleged ringleader of the violent Tren de Aragua gang.
“We are picking up the worst of the worst in this country that are making our streets so dangerous,” Noem told Sean Hannity on “Hannity.” “The community is safer now. That’s the reality of it.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem joins an ICE raid in New York City Tuesday. Noem said communities will be safer because of targeted raids that go after criminal illegal immigrants. (Department of Homeland Security)
Investigators said Anderson Zambrano-Pacheco, 25, is the same man caught on camera in a video showing heavily armed men kicking down an apartment door at an apartment complex in Aurora, Colorado.
He was hiding out in New York City, authorities said.
The targeted raid against criminal illegal immigrants was “very specific,” Noem said. In an effort to combat crime, sanctuary city laws should be lifted, so authorities can better target and prosecute illegal immigrants who commit crimes, she added.
“We need mayors and governors partnering with us, but we will do our job regardless of that,” she said. “We will continue to go forward and identify those folks and get them out.
“Talking about the difference in some of these sanctuary cities, how they’re just released as soon as they come into our custody, not necessarily our custody, but the local governments’.”
A Venezuelan migrant arrested during an ICE raid early Jan. 28 was identified by the Department of Homeland Security as Anderson Zambrano-Pacheco. Zambrano-Pacheco was wanted by Aurora Police Department in Colorado and was allegedly one of the men who appeared in a viral security camera video from August 2024 who menaced an apartment building shortly before a fatal shooting.(City of Aurora, Colorado )
She added that immigration agents were happy “they finally get to do their job” and “finally get to get these dirtbags out of our country.”
Noem said she plans to accompany authorities to see what authorities need to better perform their jobs.
Noem said three times the number of criminal illegal immigrants were being arrested than under the Biden administration, and she said there were fewer encounters at the southern border.
The DEA New York Division participated in an immigration enforcement operation with other federal law enforcement partners, resulting in the arrest of one suspect on kidnapping, assault and burglary charges.(X/@DEANEWYORKDiv)
“We’ve sent a message clearly to the world: ‘Don’t come here. If you’re an illegal and if you’re dangerous, we have a target on you, and you will not be welcome and we will remove you’,” said Noem.
Liu Chunyan jumped at the opportunity four years ago when the pandemic drove up the demand for food delivery in China. The money was good, though the hours were long.
Now she is just one of more than 10 million food delivery workers in a country where the economy is contracting. She is hustling more and earning less.
Like many delivery drivers, Ms. Liu is wondering how much longer she can last in the job. The New York Times asked her to document a typical day by taking videos and recording her thoughts.
Before she became a driver, Ms. Liu, 48, spent a decade working factory jobs. In one, she glued tiny components into smartphone speakers, and in another she trimmed the edges of wooden doors.
The breadwinner of her family, she lives in a small town near Shanghai and was attracted to gig work because the pay seemed good. “I will live the life I want through my own efforts,” she writes on her social media profile.
Soon after starting as a driver, Ms. Liu scored the biggest paycheck of her life: 10,583 renminbi, about $1,500. That was almost three times what she had made in factory work. She started to believe she could one day make enough money to not only support her husband and son, but also help her parents and siblings who live in a rural village far away.
Today, however, those goals are slipping away from her.
The economics of her job have worsened considerably. Ms. Liu works for Meituan, which controls 70 percent of the market for food delivery in China. The company had two million more drivers in 2023 than in 2021, its latest data shows, and on average is paying its drivers less per order.
Drivers are under intense pressure to make deliveries, running red lights if that’s what it takes. Late orders can mean penalties and low customer ratings, which can lead to smaller paychecks.
In recent months, videos of overwhelmed drivers crying out for help have popped up on China’s internet, and the government, highly uncomfortable with public displays of discontent, has been working to regulate the industry. Under a test program, gig workers in certain cities will receive expanded social security coverage. And Meituan is trying to require mandatory breaks during long shifts.
But for now, Ms. Liu’s work life is no less arduous than ever. This is what it looks like.
8:59 a.m.
Orders delivered today: 0 Net income: -$0.41
Ms. Liu signs on to the Meituan app, which automatically takes out -$0.41 for daily accident insurance. Soon she is assigned her first batch of deliveries — she has to pick up and drop off three orders.
9:40 a.m.
Each order comes with its own deadline. Ms. Liu said she was once fined 40 percent of her earnings on one delivery because she was a minute late.
Today is off to a good start: She is on time for all three orders in the first batch, though she arrived a mere three minutes early for the last one. Close call.
She earns about $0.50 for each order.
The job can be physically taxing. This building at the start of her day has an elevator, but most don’t. Ms. Liu often has to run up stairs to make her deadline.
The streets also take a toll. She has broken at least two scooters and has had multiple traffic accidents racing to make deliveries. “It brings me to tears to talk about those experiences,” she said.
Ms. Liu comes across a group of other drivers waiting for assignments, a common scene in her town as the number of delivery workers has increased. She remembers when orders would come in nonstop. Now she feels lucky she’s not sitting and waiting.
10:15 a.m.
Orders delivered: 3 Net income: $1.18
Her next set of orders comes in. It’s five this time!
The arbiter of how much work a delivery driver gets is the Meituan algorithm. Ms. Liu has no idea how it works — but she knows she wants to stay on its good side.
She once hurt her leg while working, but didn’t take time off, not wanting to be marked as inactive. To avoid low ratings on the app, drivers comply with additional requests from customers, like picking up a pack of cigarettes and taking out their trash.
Today, for successfully delivering this second set of orders, Ms. Liu earns $2.66.
1:31 p.m.
Orders delivered: 26 Net income: $13.16
After working through the lunch rush, she decides to take a break. She eats a can of porridge she brought with her. She often packs lunch to save money. She devours it in one minute.
The demands of her job mean she rarely sits down for meals with her family, even dinner. On the eve of the last Lunar New Year, when many families were gathering to celebrate, Ms. Liu’s husband, son and in-laws had to wait for her to get off work.
2:51 p.m.
Orders delivered: 31 Net income: $16.10
Uh oh. Ms. Liu notices her scooter’s battery is running low. She finishes up a few orders and heads to a nearby charging station to exchange the battery. To use the charging stations, she pays a monthly subscription that comes out to about $1.32 a day.
Only a couple of hours later, the new battery is running low! She figures out there’s a problem with the electrical connection to it, but she has orders to deliver.
With a deadline approaching, she calls the customer to apologize that she might be late. But she manages to make the delivery one minute early. Another close call.
5:31 p.m.
Knowing the battery won’t last for another batch of deliveries, Ms. Liu goes to get her bike repaired.
The mechanic replaces the connector and charges her -$2.80, about how much she makes for five deliveries. Drivers must pay to maintain their scooters.
5:45 p.m.
Orders delivered: 42 Net income: $17.53
It’s the dinner rush, but Ms. Liu is not getting any orders. Between that and the problems with her bike, she decides to call it a day.
After nine hours of deliveries, and paying for the bike repair, she made less than $18.
Ms. Liu recently decided to cut back on the time she spends delivering food. “It’s really difficult,” she said in tears. “I am already 48. I can’t do deliveries for much longer.”
Now she is looking for other ways to make a living. She paid for an online course to learn how to produce short-form videos, which are very popular, though she knows that, too, is a hard way to make money.
Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy said President Donald Trump’s rhetoric toward Russian President Vladimir Putin about negotiating a deal to end the war or facing more economic pressure is “just and fair.”
“This is exactly what Putin is afraid of. He doesn’t want strong Trump supporting Ukraine because it would be a strong Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said through a translator in an exclusive interview Tuesday on “Hannity.”
Trump threatened Putin in a Truth Social post last week, calling on him to make a deal or face additional tariffs and sanctions.
“Settle now, and STOP this ridiculous War! IT’S ONLY GOING TO GET WORSE. If we don’t make a ‘deal,’ and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries,” Trump wrote.
Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the government via a video conference at the Kremlin in Moscow on July 19, 2023.((Photo by ALEXANDER KAZAKOV/SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images))
Zelenskyy noted that since the 2022 full-scale invasion, Ukraine has taken back 50% of the territory once held by Russian soldiers.
“We would like to achieve a fair end to this war. We are not afraid. Russia is not that strong, but we don’t want to lose more of our lives, men and women,” he told Fox News host Sean Hannity.
United Nations deputy human rights chief Nada Al-Nashif said in early January more than 12,300 civilians, including over 650 children, have been killed in Ukraine since the onset of the war.
A dog walks past a destroyed tank, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, in the village of Kolychivka, outside Chernihiv, Ukraine, April 5, 2022.(REUTERS/Marko Djurica)
Zelenskyy added that Putin doesn’t want to bring an end to the war, and Ukraine will not recognize the occupation of its lands.
He called for more international pressure on Putin, specifically from China, so an agreement can be made, as well as “broader guarantees of security.”
“I believe that guarantees from Europe alone will never be enough,” said Zelenskyy. “The Europeans understand that without guarantees of security from the United States, from President Trump, it will not be enough. Putin is not afraid of Europe. Unfortunately, that is so.”
U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy walk next to Saint Michael’s cathedral, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 20, 2023. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich(REUTERS/Gleb Garanich )
The Ukrainian president explained that prior to Russia’s invasion, he personally asked former President Joe Biden and his team to take preventative action, like putting sanctions on Russia, as its troops and tanks amassed on Ukraine’s borders.
Zelenskyy also asked for weapons, but he says he was told they would only be provided “if” Russia invaded.
A child stands near luggage as a parent disembarks with other bags, as some women and children, some of the thousands who fled Ukraine after Russia invaded, arrive from Poland, at Kyiv’s railway station on May 12, 2022. (Photo by SERGEI SUPINSKY/AFP via Getty Images)
“Parallel with that, I was asking the European Union countries, and they could not do it without [the] approval of the United States. So they always look at the leader, the United States, as the leader. So, during the big invasion, Ukrainians were left on their own, and we were fighting on our own,” he said.
“If President Trump has the will to force Putin to come to peace, he can do it,” Zelenskyy continued, arguing he hopes there’s more to a potential agreement than just a piece of paper. “We want him to be on the side of justice, on the side of Ukraine.”
Chaos and uncertainty after Trump freezes spending
A federal judge yesterday temporarily blocked an order by President Trump to freeze trillions of dollars in federal grants and loans. Separately, Democratic attorneys general in 22 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit against the order, saying Trump had gone far beyond his legal powers.
Even before 5 p.m., when the freeze was to take effect, a variety of systems and programs were disrupted, leaving millions unsure if they would lose access to jobs, services and health care. Here’s the latest.
Trump’s order, which has led to confusion and outrage, is part of an effort to remake the government in his image, following sweeping cuts to international aid that he introduced last week and an effort to scuttle any government policy or program that he and his allies might call “woke.”
His administration says the freeze would let it inspect programs to make sure they don’t conflict with its agenda, subjecting them to what my colleague Nicholas Nehamas calls “ideological litmus tests.” The White House says government money should not “advance Marxist equity, transgenderism and Green New Deal social engineering.”
Foreign aid: The Trump administration told organizations in other countries to stop distributing H.I.V. medications purchased with U.S. aid. Humanitarian organizations in Ukraine said they’d been forced to suspend operations that include the delivery of assistance to war veterans and to civilians displaced by the conflict there.
What to know: The leaders of global humanitarian organizations said they had “never seen anything as sweeping” as Trump’s suspension of aid, said Edward Wong, a diplomatic correspondent. “Many programs,” he added, “won’t be able to maintain the integrity of their projects if they stop now and then wait to restart their work later, if they are even allowed to.”
In other news:
The Trump administration gave roughly two million federal workers the option to resign but be paid through the end of September.
A deliberate effort by the president and his team to “flood the zone” with an unceasing flow of initiatives has knocked his rivals off balance.
Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s pick to oversee national intelligence, was subjected to special scrutiny last year while en route to an event organized by a European businessman who was on an F.B.I. watchlist.
Eight hostages slated for release are dead, Israel said
Eight of the 26 hostages who are expected to be returned to Israel by Hamas in the next few weeks as part of the Gaza cease-fire deal are dead, according to Israeli officials.
That information, which Hamas gave to Israel on Sunday, matched Israeli intelligence findings, according to a government spokesman, David Mencer. He said the list provided by Hamas did not specify by name which hostages had died. Eight families have been told there is a high probability that their relatives will not come back alive, Mencer said.
A brother’s grief: Speaking to the Israeli Parliament yesterday, Dani Elgarat, whose brother Itzik Elgarat is a hostage, said his family expected to receive his body, based on what they had been told. He said he believed his brother’s life could have been saved had a cease-fire deal been reached earlier.
From the region:
Protesters attacked embassies in Congo
Protesters attacked several embassies and a U.N. building yesterday in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, looting and setting fires. The French, U.S., Ugandan and Belgian embassies were among those targeted.
Anger at foreign allies has been rising in Congo over their inability to stop an assault on the key eastern city of Goma by M23, a militia that the U.N. and the U.S. say is controlled by Rwanda. Rwanda has denied the claim and blamed Congo for failing to maintain order.
Context: Western powers have yet to pressure Rwanda to rein in the rebels. Analysts say the country is seeking to occupy Congolese territory and plunder its vast mineral wealth.
The latest: The U.S. advised its citizens to leave Congo on commercial flights.
MORE TOP NEWS
Can anything stop a flood of unruly tourists? Fees and taxes aiming at limiting visitors in travel hot spots like Croatia, above, have had mixed results, as competing interests have impeded attempts to stem the tide.
“The hard truth is that once overtourism has arrived,” one expert said, “it’s exceedingly difficult to turn back the clock.”
Lives lived: François Ponchaud, a French Catholic priest who alerted the world to the atrocities being committed in Cambodia by the Khmer Rouge, died at 86.
CONVERSATION STARTERS
Mona Lisa is getting her own room
The enigmatic smile of the world’s most famous portrait will soon greet visitors from a new exhibition space at the Louvre. President Emmanuel Macron of France said yesterday that the Mona Lisa would be moved as part of a sweeping renovation of the museum to address overcrowding.
Nearly nine million people visit the Louvre every year, and an estimated 80 percent are there to see Leonardo da Vinci’s 16-century masterpiece. Macron intends to raise visitor numbers to 12 million a year, and to charge more to those from outside the E.U. to pay for the renovation.
That’s it for today’s briefing. See you tomorrow. — Natasha
P.S. Do you have questions about how we cover the Trump administration? Ask us here.
