Key Rafah Border Crossing Between Gaza and Egypt Reopens
The Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a crucial point of entry and exit, reopened on Monday, allowing the movement of people after being largely closed since May 2024, when Israeli forces captured the Gazan side, according to BBC World. The reopening was initially slated to occur during the first phase of US President Donald Trump's ceasefire plan between Israel and Hamas, which began in October, but was delayed by Israel until the return of the body of the last Israeli hostage in Gaza, which happened last week.
Sick and wounded Palestinians from Gaza were among the first to arrive in Egypt after the reopening, BBC World reported. The reopening is expected to provide relief to many Palestinians.
In other news, a federal judge in Washington blocked the Trump administration from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians, according to Fox News. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes granted an emergency request Monday to pause the termination of TPS for Haitians while a lawsuit challenging the decision proceeds. TPS allows eligible immigrants from countries facing unsafe conditions to live and work legally in the U.S. The program currently protects approximately 350,000 Haitians.
Meanwhile, former US President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton agreed to testify in the congressional investigation into late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, BBC World reported. This development comes days before a vote on whether to hold the couple in criminal contempt for refusing to appear before the House Oversight Committee after a months-long standoff. Bill Clinton was acquainted with Epstein, who died in prison in 2019, but has denied knowledge of his sex offending and says he cut off contact two decades ago. The timing of the depositions remains unclear.
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, federal immigration agents will soon be equipped with body cameras, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced, according to BBC World. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X on Monday, "Effective immediately we are deploying body cameras to every officer in the field in Minneapolis." The announcement follows a backlash over the deaths last month of two US citizens, Alex Pretti and Renee Good, after a surge of federal immigration officers into the Minneapolis area as part of an immigration crackdown. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner ruled Pretti's 24 January death a homicide.
In a separate development, President Trump called for the Republican Party to "nationalize" voting in the United States during an interview on a podcast released on Monday by Dan Bongino, his former deputy F.B.I. director, according to the New York Times. Trump called for Republican officials to take over voting procedures in 15 states, though he did not name them. "The Republicans should say, We want to take over," he said. "We should take over the voting, the voting in at least many 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting."
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