Ukraine launched a drone strike against a Russian airfield some 700km behind the front line. Ukrainian officials said that the base hosts strategic bombers that Russia uses to target Ukraine. Meanwhile Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s president, said that Russia was preventing a full ceasefire by making “unnecessary demands that only prolong the war”. On Thursday Ukraine and Russia agreed to halt attacks on energy infrastructure.
At least 85 people were killed in Israeli air strikes on Gaza, according to health officials in the enclave. Hamas responded by launching three rockets at Israel, all of which were intercepted or landed off target. The exchange followed Israel’s resumption of ground operations in Gaza, particularly around the Netzarim corridor, which separates the north and south of the territory.
Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the education secretary to begin dismantling America’s Department of Education. The order stops short of abolishing it, which would require Congressional approval, and the White House said that it will still administer loans and enforce civil-rights laws. The department has already been halved under the Trump administration.
Authorities in Turkey arrested nearly 40 people for social-media posts in support of Ekrem Imamoglu, Istanbul’s mayor, who was arrested on Wednesday. The government said it was searching for more than 200 others suspected of making similar posts. Mr Imamoglu was set to be named as the main opposition candidate to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the authoritarian president.
The Trump administration imposed sanctions on two Chinese firms that it accused of buying Iranian oil. The measures target an oil terminal and an independent refinery that allegedly received shipments of oil from vessels linked to the Houthis, a Yemeni militia, and Iran’s army. It is the first time America has hit one of China’s “teapot refineries” with sanctions.
M23 rebels captured the town of Walikale, a tin and gold mining hub in eastern Congo, according to the Congolese army. The town is the furthest west that the Rwanda-backed group has reached since it began a big offensive in January. On Tuesday Félix Tshisekedi, president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Paul Kagame, his Rwandan counterpart, called for a ceasefire.
Tesla recalled more than 46,000 of its Cybertrucks in America—nearly all models on the road—to replace a faulty exterior panel. It is the eighth Cybertruck recall since Tesla began delivering the electric vehicles to customers in November 2023. The carmaker said it was “not aware” of any collisions caused by the defect, which it claims has only affected 1% of its models.
Figure of the day: $1.34bn, the value of cryptocurrencies stolen by North Korean hackers in 2024, according to Chainalysis, an industry analyst. Read the full story.
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