Israel’s security cabinet has approved a plan to expand its military offensive against Hamas, which reportedly includes capturing Gaza and holding the territory.
The Israeli military has called up tens of thousands of reservists in preparation for the move, saying it is “increasing the pressure” with the aim of bringing home the remaining Israeli hostages and defeating Hamas.
Reports indicate it will only be implemented after US President Donald Trump’s visit to the region next week.
The cabinet also reportedly approved, in principle, a plan to resume deliveries of humanitarian aid through private companies, which would end a two-month blockade that the UN says has caused severe food shortages.
The UN and other aid agencies have said the proposal would be a breach of basic humanitarian principles and that they will not co-operate.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet met on Sunday evening to discuss the Gaza offensive, which resumed when Israel ended a two-month ceasefire on 18 March.
Ministers voted unanimously to approve a gradual expansion of the ground operation over a period of several months, Israeli media said.
The first stage reportedly includes the seizure of additional areas of Gaza and the expansion of the Israeli-designated “buffer zone” running along the territory’s borders with Israel and Egypt, with the aim of giving Israel additional leverage in negotiations with Hamas on a new ceasefire and hostage release deal.
An Israeli official was cited by the Haaretz newspaper as saying that Netanyahu had said the expanded offensive “differed from previous ones in that it moves from raid-based operations to the occupation of territory and a sustained Israeli presence in Gaza”.
Security cabinet member Zeev Elkin told public broadcaster Kan that there was “still a window of opportunity” for a new hostage release before the end President Trump’s 13-16 May trip to the Middle East “if Hamas understands we are serious”.
During a visit to a naval base on Sunday, the Israeli military’s Chief of Staff Lt Gen Eyal Zamir told special forces that tens of thousands of reservists were being called up “in order to strengthen and expand our operations in Gaza”.
“We are increasing the pressure with the aim of bringing our people home and defeating Hamas. We will operate in additional areas and destroy all terrorist infrastructure – above and below ground,” said.
However, critics say this is a failed strategy, as none of the 59 remaining hostages has been freed since the offensive resumed six weeks ago.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents hostages’ relatives, said the plan was an admission by the government that it was “choosing territories over the hostages” and that this was “against the will of over 70% of the people” in Israel.
Rwanda confirms talks with US over receiving deported migrants
Rwanda’s foreign minister has confirmed his country has entered discussions to receive immigrants deported from the United States, less than a year after a similar plan with Britain fell through.
“It has not yet reached a stage where we can say exactly how things will proceed, but the talks are ongoing,” Olivier Nduhungirehe told state broadcaster Rwanda TV in an interview late on Sunday. “Still in the early stages.”
Last week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he was searching for more countries to take in people as the administration of President Donald Trump steps up efforts to deport immigrants who entered the US without documents and other noncitizens.
“We are working with other countries to say, ‘We want to send you some of the most despicable human beings to your countries. Will you do that as a favour to us?’ And the farther away from America, the better, so they can’t come back across the border,” Rubio said during a televised cabinet meeting as he was seated next to Trump.
Rwanda confirmed the talks after US media quoted unnamed officials from both countries as saying they were discussing the scheme. The US is also reportedly considering Libya as another destination.
Reports said the US wants to pay Rwanda to accept migrants with criminal records who have served their sentences in the US and potentially integrate them into society with stipends and job assistance to discourage them from returning to the US.
In March, the Trump administration deported an Iraqi national to Rwanda in a transfer that could serve as a model for the future, according to multiple US outlets quoting officials and citing documents.
The efforts are in line with Trump’s crackdown on immigration, which started immediately after he took office for a second four-year term in January.
His administration has been facing legal battles as it tries to continue sending accused gang members to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador without due process.
Amid the ongoing controversy over the wrongful deportation of a Salvadoran citizen living in Maryland to El Salvador, Trump last month said he would also like to deport “homegrown criminals” to the country, meaning US citizens. He also directed the opening of a detention centre at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to hold up to 30,000 people whom he called the “worst criminal aliens”.
US politics, Canada’s multiculturalism, South America’s geopolitical rise—we bring you the stories that matter.
In an interview that aired on Sunday, Trump said he “didn’t know” whether people in the US are entitled to due process rights guaranteed by the country’s Constitution.
The Rwandan and US governments have yet to officially confirm any of the details of their talks, but if an agreement is reached, it would not be the first time Rwanda would accept migrants expelled from the West.
Russia reports Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow ahead of May 9 events
Russia has reported that it repelled a drone attack on Moscow as the capital city prepares to host a major military parade with foreign leaders in attendance.
Russia’s air defence systems intercepted “four drones flying towards Moscow”, Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Monday. The attack appears intended to unsettle Moscow’s preparations for events marking the end of the Great Patriotic War, commonly known as World War II elsewhere, on May 9.
President Vladimir Putin has called for a 72-hour ceasefire to mark the occasion starting on May 8. However, Ukraine has demanded instead a 30-day truce aimed at agreeing to a permanent ceasefire in the conflict that began when Russia invaded in February 2022.
Sobyanin said in a post on Telegram that there were no reports of injuries or damage.
However, the attack did prompt a brief halt to air traffic at Moscow’s Domodedovo airport. Aviation regulator Rosaviatsia confirmed flights were suspended for about 90 minutes overnight to ensure air safety.
Elsewhere, Russian officials said 17 drones were downed over the Bryansk region and five more over Kaluga.
The Kremlin has branded Putin’s declaration of a three-day unilateral ceasefire a humanitarian gesture.
Military operations will be paused during the truce, according to Russian authorities, as world leaders, including China’s Xi Jinping, Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Serbia’s Aleksandar Vucic and Slovakia’s Robert Fico, are expected in Moscow.
However, Russia has rejected an unconditional 30-day ceasefire proposal, accepted by the United States, which is trying to broker an end to the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has also dismissed the 72-hour truce, which came as US President Donald Trump suggested he is growing frustrated with Moscow’s failure to agree on a ceasefire, as “unserious”.
He accused Moscow of “playing games to create a pleasant atmosphere to allow for Putin’s exit from isolation on May 9”.
Zelenskyy also said Ukraine could not guarantee the safety of any foreign dignitaries, adding that Russia was responsible for its own security.
“The Russians are asking for a ceasefire on May 9 and are themselves firing at Ukraine every day. This is cynicism of the highest order,” he wrote on the Telegram messaging app on Sunday.
Putin said in his original declaration of the 72-hour pause in the fighting that Russian forces would respond if the country was fired upon.
Trump says non-US movies to be hit with 100% tariffs
US President Donald Trump says he will hit movies made in foreign countries with 100% tariffs, as he ramps up trade disputes with nations around the world.
Trump said he was authorising the US Department of Commerce and Trade Representative to start the process to impose the levy because America’s movie industry was dying “a very fast death”.
He blamed a “concerted effort” by other countries that offer incentives to attract filmmakers and studios, which he described as a “National Security threat”.
His remarks could spell a “knock-out blow” to the industry, one union warned, where filmmakers have for years left Hollywood for destinations like the UK and Canada in search of lower costs.
Trump said on his Truth Social platform: “It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda!”
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick responded to the announcement, saying “We’re on it”.
But the details of the move are unclear. Trump’s statement did not say whether the tariff would apply to American production companies producing films abroad.
Several recent major movies produced by US studios were shot outside America, including Deadpool & Wolverine, Wicked and Gladiator II.
It was also unclear if the tariffs would apply to films on streaming services, like Netflix, as well as those shown at cinemas, or how they would be calculated.
The founder of European cinema chain Vue, Timothy Richards, questioned how Trump would define a US film.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said: “Is it where the money comes from? The script, the director, the talent, where it was shot?”
Reuters Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande stand in front of a Wicked film poster on the red carpet.Reuters
It is unclear whether the proposals would affect films like Wicked, which was filmed in the UK but produced by an American studio
Mr Richards said the cost of shooting in southern California had grown significantly over the last few decades, prompting production to move elsewhere.
“But it’s not just the actual financing itself,” he added.