Israel and Hamas Agree to Trump-Brokered Peace Deal
“All Americans should be proud of the role that our country has played in bringing this terrible conflict to an end.” - President Trump
GetSmart Preview: The busiest pedestrian intersection in the world is really busy
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Newsbites
Graph of the week: The erosion of the mid-range jump shot in the NBA is startling
The note passed to Trump: As negotiations between Hamas and Israel were being finalized, President Trump was in a roundtable meeting with conservatives discussing Antifa. Secretary of State Marco Rubio slipped him a handwritten note that read, “You need to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first.” Trump read the note while the meeting continued, and said, “I was just given a note by the secretary of state saying that we’re very close to a deal on the Middle East, and they’re gonna need me pretty quickly.” (video)
Super Bowl halftime show: Turning Point USA, the conservative movement founded by Charlie Kirk, will be hosting an “All American Halftime Show” as an alternative to Bad Bunny. The post on X says the performance will support “faith, family and freedom.” The Puerto Rican Grammy winning artist cancelled shows in the U.S in recent months in protest of ICE and the Trump Administration’s immigration policies. Turning Point USA said particular details of the show are “coming soon.”
Palisade Fire arrest made: A 29-year-old man, Jonathan Rinderknecht, was arrested for igniting a fire in the Palisades, killing 12 people and burning 23,000 acres of land. Authorities say he ignited a fire at 12:03 a.m. at a hiking trail in state park hillside. He then called 911 to report the fire, drove two uber passengers to their destination, and returned to film the blaze on his phone. He was charged with the “destruction of property by means of fire.” The charge carries a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years. Some of the evidence includes his ChatGPT prompts asking for specific images of a city on fire.
More: Here is the official press conference of California’s Acting U.S Attorney explaining the details.
States vs Trump: President Trump sent 200 National Guard troops to the state of Illinois on Wednesday in an effort to assist in protecting ICE agents amid protests and attempting to crack down on crime. A U.S. District Judge placed a temporary two-week hold on Trump’s national guard deployment on Thursday. In Portland, hundreds of federal agents, including Homeland Security Director Kristi Noem, are performing immigration raids and facing large anti-ICE protests in the streets. Although Trump has not sent in the national guard to Portland, there is a substantial number of federal agents assisting in the raids.
More: Read our main story below to understand what ICE has been doing across the country.
tiny-bites
Gold prices hit $4,000 per troy ounce for the first time ever, marking a 50% increase in just the last year.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, who sued Trump for $450M for inflating the assets of his company, has been indicted for mortgage fraud.
Elon Musk is building massive xAI data centers in Memphis.
Paramount has bought The Free Press, a news website, for $150M.
The government shutdown has hit 10 days as Republicans and Democrats are not able to reach a funding agreement.
Hamas and Israel Agree to Phase I of Trump’s Peace Deal
“All Americans should be proud of the role that our country has played in bringing this terrible conflict to an end.” - President Trump
What happened and how it went down
On Wednesday, Israel and Hamas agreed to phase I of President Trump’s peace plan to end the war.
“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace.”
The first sign of a finalized agreement came when President Trump was in a roundtable meeting with conservatives discussing Antifa. Secretary of State Marco Rubio slipped President Trump a handwritten note that read, “You need to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce deal first.” Trump read the note while the meeting continued, and said, “I was just given a note by the secretary of state saying that we’re very close to a deal on the Middle East, and they’re gonna need me pretty quickly.”
Video: People around the world celebrate the news of the peace deal.
The deal, which was executed in large part by President Trump’s special negotiation team that includes former real-estate developer Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, is the first step in potentially securing unprecedented peace in the region. Kushner and Witkoff were in Egypt for three days helping lead negotiations between Hamas and Israel.
Here’s what phase I includes:
Release of hostages
Hamas has agreed to release and return all of the hostages who are still alive to Israel (likely around 20). President Trump spoke to Fox News on the phone and said the hostages will likely go home on Monday.Return bodies of deceased hostages
Hamas also pledged to return the bodies of the deceased hostages (around 28) back to Israel. Reports say they will require 10 days to locate the deceased bodies. Trump said this particular part of the deal will be a “complicated process.”Israel to release Palestinian prisoners
After the hostages are returned, Israel is expected to release around 250 Palestinian prisoners as well as 1,700 Palestinians who have been detained in Gaza. Hamas is pushing for big-name controversial prisoners to be released including Marwan Barghouti, who was instrumental in starting the Palestinian uprising in the early 2000s.
Israel will withdraw troops
Although clear map lines have not been drawn yet, Israel will withdraw its troops from about 70% of Gaza.
The Rafah crossing in Egypt will be opened back up
The crossing between Egypt and Palestine’s Gaza Strip will be opened back up to facilitate aid deliveries and the entry and exit of Palestinians.
How does this work moving forward?
On Thursday, 200 U.S. troops traveled to Israel to help secure a stable ceasefire. The U.S. command force is expected to be joined by military members from Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. The command will help facilitate the flow of aid back into Gaza and begin the eventual transition of a new civilian led government in Gaza.
How was a deal finalized?
Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised President Trump for his negotiating skills in brokering the deal. “I don’t know of any American president in the modern era that could have made this possible,” he told reporters at a White House cabinet meeting on Thursday. “The president had some extraordinary phone calls and meetings that required a high degree of intensity and commitment and made this happen.” (video).
Israel was facing intense scrutiny in their own country with 66% of Israeli citizens favoring an end to the war. Hamas was also struggling militarily at the end and was forced into a corner due to Israel’s intense military operations and assassinations of some of their top leaders.
By the Numbers: ICE Raids Across the Country Grow
The deportation numbers at large
2 million illegal immigrants have been deported or have self-deported since President Trump took office, according to a new report from the Department of Homeland Security. In addition, there have been zero illegal entries into the country in the past four months.
A new study from the United Nations found that Trump’s immigration policies have led to a 97% reduction in illegal immigration heading to the U.S. from Central America. The study also found that 49% of immigrants that stopped their journey north did so because of Trump’s immigration policies believing it would be impossible to enter.
1.6 million of the deportations were voluntary. The DHS announced a program through the CBP app that gave illegal immigrants travel assistance and a $1,000 check if they voluntarily left the country. In the app, Director Kristi Noem told users, “If you are here illegally, self-deportation is the best, safest and most cost-effective way to leave the United States to avoid arrest.”
400,000 of the deportations used actual force and arrest, including ICE raids on buildings, workplaces, farms and other venues. The cost of these deportations that include arresting, detaining and deporting individuals cost about $17,000 per person.
Ramping up ICE hires
The “big beautiful bill” that was passed in July has allotted specific funding for DHS to increase its operations around the country. In the past month, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has received more than 150,000 applications to become ICE agents and has made 18,000 tentative job offers thus far. For context, the U.S. currently has around 21,000 ICE agents across all the states today.
GetSmart: The busiest pedestrian intersection in the world is really busy
Nearly 400,000 pedestrians cross the street in Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo every day. On busy days, it’s estimated to reach 500,000 people a day. Hosted in the busiest part of Tokyo, it features 5 separate cross walks that are all active at the same time.
What We’re Listening To
Harvard’s Arthur C. Brooks says letting your mind wander fuels insight and protects against depression.
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