President Trump announced that Hamas and other armed groups have agreed to a roadmap to disarm. On Thursday, Trump wrote, “Today the Board of Peace reached a HISTORIC agreement for the COMPLETE DISARMAMENT of Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza.” As part of the deal, Trump said Israel will also gradually withdraw from Gaza, but Israel has not publicly said it has agreed to the plan. Meanwhile, Hamas officials said that any weapon handover would only occur after Israel withdraws its forces, ceases its attacks and allows humanitarian aid into the enclave. Displaced residents in Gaza expressed doubt that Israel would withdraw its troops.

Samir Ayad: “I call on Mr. Trump, the president of the United States, to pressure Israel to withdraw completely from the Gaza Strip, so that we can live a dignified life and return to our homes, and also in the reconstruction, to speed up the reconstruction for the people, because we have been suffering for three years. We are living in tents.”

Israel has killed more than 1,200 people in Gaza since the so-called ceasefire went into effect 10 months ago. Earlier this week, Doctors Without Borders said, “This is not a ceasefire. It is a continuation of the genocide, calibrated to be violent enough to keep Palestinians suffering every day, yet silent enough to avoid stirring international outrage.”

On Capitol Hill, the Senate has voted down a war powers resolution to limit President Trump’s authority to wage war against Iran. The vote was 50 to 49. Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted with Republicans to defeat the measure. Three Republicans joined Democrats.

Saudi Arabia is forming a new military alliance with 13 other countries to protect shipping in the Red Sea. This comes after Houthi forces in Yemen have targeted Saudi vessels in the Red Sea.

Iran has denied involvement in the recent drone attack on Egypt’s Damietta Port. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Israel might have carried out a false flag operation aiming to undermine regional peace.

In business news, oil firms are reporting their highest quarterly profits in years due to rising gas prices caused by the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran. Over the past three months, ExxonMobil made over $14.5 billion, Chevron made $12 billion, and Shell made nearly $10 billion.

President Trump said Thursday he may temporarily withdraw his nomination of Todd Blanche for attorney general after two Republican senators, John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, demanded that Blanche provide written modifications to the controversial settlement reached between Trump and the IRS over Trump’s unprecedented lawsuit against the agency. One part of the settlement gave Trump and his family broad immunity from IRS audits, potentially saving the family $100 million in penalties. The settlement also created a $1.776 billion fund for Trump’s allies, including January 6 insurrectionists. Blanche has said the fund will not be formed, but has not put that in writing. Trump wrote, “I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd’s name, if they do not do the right thing, and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office.”

Parts of Europe are in the midst of another heat wave while firefighters battle blazes across the continent, including in France, Spain, Greece, Britain and Germany. Three firefighters died in Greece on Tuesday. The Guardian reports new figures show more than 1 million acres of land have burned this year — more than triple the recent historical average. A new report in the Scientific Reports journal has found climate change has sparked a “major intensification” of fires.

In Britain, a large fire broke out in Suffolk just miles from a nuclear power station. This is Jude Bayly, who was forced to evacuate due to the fires.

Jude Bayly: “The devastation of this area, which is a natural beauty, and the wildlife is just awful, and I understand that this area may take, after this fire, decades to recover. And this is obviously going to be a repeating cycle with climate change the way it is.”

In news from North Africa, at least 34 migrants died–many by drowning–while trying to cross from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. On Thursday, as many as 49,000 migrants crossed that border by land or sea. Ceuta is located on the North African coast and shares a five-mile border with Morocco. In response to the arrival of tens of thousands of migrants, Spain has deployed military units to the area. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is expected to visit the enclave today as humanitarian groups have widely condemned Spain’s lethal border crackdown on migrants in the region.

In other news from Morocco, President Trump has thanked Morocco’s king for naming a 650-mile highway after President Trump. Much of the highway runs along the coast of Western Sahara, which has been occupied by Morocco since 1975. Six years ago, Trump recognized Morocco’s unilateral annexation of Western Sahara, making the United States the first country to do so.

The U.S. State Department has apologized after the agency displayed a wildly inaccurate map of Africa at a major AIDS conference. The map showed Nigeria to be a landlocked nation in the Sahara desert. Mozambique was moved to the Horn of Africa. Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon appeared on the other side of the continent. Uganda and Malawi were also misplaced. Reuters reports the map was likely made using OpenAI technology.

In sports news, opposition is growing to a proposal by FIFA President Gianni Infantino to sell stakes in the World Cup to a private equity group run by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner, who is President Trump’s son-in-law. On Thursday, European soccer associations agreed to boycott the World Cup and other FIFA competitions if the deal goes through. Earlier today, a top FIFA adviser resigned in protest over the proposal. The FIFA plan is being pushed by Infantino, who is close to Donald Trump. Last year, Infantino created a new award, the ”FIFA Peace Prize,” and gave it to Trump.

In Georgia, the father of an accused school shooter has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for giving his teenage son an AR-15-style rifle as a Christmas gift. Colin Gray was sentenced Thursday after being convicted of second-degree murder. Colin Gray’s son, who was 14 at the time, is accused of using the gun to kill two students and two teachers at a high school in Winder, Georgia, in 2024. Prosecutors accused the father of ignoring his son’s emotional problems, including his obsession with school shooters.

In Britain, police arrested 117 protesters who had gathered outside a London court to show support for Palestine Action. Last year, the British government declared the group to be a terrorist organization, making support for the group punishable by up to 14 years in prison. In a victory for Palestine Action, Britain’s Supreme Court ruled that Palestine Action’s co-founder could challenge the ban against the group at the U.K.’s highest court.

In Washington, Senator Chuck Schumer spoke at the National Press Club on Thursday at an event focused on corruption. The journalist Sam Husseini interrupted Schumer’s remarks and called him a genocidal maniac for supporting Israel.

Sam Husseini: “You were put on notice, and you backed it. And you backed the genocide to the hilt for years on end. How dare you talk about corruption? How dare you talk about corruption?”

Sen. Chuck Schumer: “Thank you for your diatribe. Now let’s continue. Let’s continue and let the people” —

Sam Husseini: “Hypocritical [inaudible]” —

Sen. Chuck Schumer: “The people didn’t come to hear you.”

Sam Husseini: “You should be questioned about your diabolical record. It’s amazing that you can show your genocidal face in public, Mr. Senator! Mr. Senator!”