Gaza faces heightened famine risk amid talk of aid. United Nations aid officials said a quarter of Gaza’s population is at risk of famine and blasted Israel for “deliberately and unashamedly” imposing inhumane conditions. On Wednesday, a new U.S.-backed humanitarian organization that calls itself the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it expects to begin aid operations in Gaza by the end of the month. It claimed agreements with Israeli officials. – The Associated Press
Related Monitor story: Our Gaza reporter looked at the blockade’s effect on children.
A detained Georgetown student was released. A federal judge on Wednesday ordered that Khan Suri be released from immigration detention. The student was arrested March 17 near his Arlington, Virginia, apartment. Officials said his visa was revoked because of his social media posts and his wife’s connection to Gaza as a Palestinian American. They accused him of supporting Hamas. U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles said she was releasing Mr. Suri because he had substantial constitutional claims. – AP
Gavin Newsom retreats on immigrant benefits. Under the California governor’s budget proposal, low-income, unauthorized adults will not be able to apply for health benefits starting next year. If approved, it would mark a significant reversal in California’s embrace of immigrants without legal status. It would also align the Democrat, a potential presidential candidate, with the president. The plan contradicts the view that health care for all poor people is moral and cost-effective. Still, the state’s facing a budget crunch, so he’s pausing this provision of California’s version of Medicaid. – Staff
Narco-terrorism charges were filed against a Mexican duo. They were the first since the Trump administration designated six Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations earlier this year. Pedro Inzunza Noriega and his son Pedro Inzunza Coronel, linked to Mexico’s powerful Sinaloa Cartel, are accused of offering material support for terrorism through a smuggling operation that allegedly moves fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin into the United States.
Labeling cartels as terrorist organizations allows federal prosecutors to bring charges with tougher penalties against traffickers. It is unclear what evidence there is to support the charges in court. – Staff
Drug overdose deaths in the U.S. continue to drop. There were 30,000 fewer in 2024 than the year before, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Wednesday. An estimated 80,000 people died from overdoses last year, a 27% drop from 110,000 in 2023. – AP
Related Monitor story: We looked at the decline, and at some caveats, last month.
Carla Hayden was named 2025 PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion. Dr. Hayden was fired by President Donald Trump as librarian of Congress with a year left in her 10-year term. The White House cited “concerning things” she had done “in pursuit of DEI.” The library called Capitol Police after an acting librarian was named, and refused entry to the president’s appointees until Congress acts. Dr. Hayden was chosen for the award last year for her lifetime of literary advocacy; a ceremony is set for Thursday. “She has been a devoted advocate to making sure that all of us get to enjoy the fruits of a literary life,” says Gwydion Suilebhan, executive director of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation. – Staff