Famine is officially declared in the governorate that includes Gaza City. No additional detainees will be allowed in “Alligator Alcatraz” after a judge’s ruling. And Serena Williams opens up about her decision to take a GLP-1 medication after struggling to lose weight with diet and exercise.
Here’s what to know today.
Famine officially declared in Gaza City by U.N.-backed body
Famine was officially declared Friday in an area of northern Gaza that includes Gaza City, as Israel vowed to raze the area if Hamas doesn’t agree to its terms.
The declaration by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, comes as deaths from starvation rise across the Palestinian enclave in a spiraling crisis under Israel’s military assault and aid restrictions.
This is Morning Rundown, a weekday newsletter to start your day. Sign up here to get it in your inbox.
Israel’s military is preparing to push ahead with a new operation to seize Gaza City that could displace hundreds of thousands of people and worsen the dire situation there.
“After 22 months of relentless conflict, over half a million people in the Gaza Strip are facing catastrophic conditions … characterized by starvation, destitution and death,” the IPC said.
The United Nations-backed body had up until now only declared famine on four other occasions since it was first established in 2004, most recently in Sudan last year.
It said that famine was projected to expand to the Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis Governorates further south by the end of September if the humanitarian situation does not change.
Mike Huckabee, the United States’ ambassador to Israel, attacked the IPC’s famine declaration before it was officially announced.
“You know who IS starving? The hostages kidnapped and tortured by uncivilized Hamas savages,” he said in a post on X early Friday. “Maybe the over fed terrorists could share some of their warehouse full they stole with hungry people especially the hostages.”
Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz vowed Friday morning to open the “gates of hell” on Gaza City until Hamas agreed to Israel’s conditions for ending the war.
Read the full story here.
The tennis GOAT on a GLP-1
In the latest episode of NBC News’ Here’s the Scoop, Serena Williams shares her struggle with weight loss after pregnancy — and how medication helped her with what athleticism couldn’t. Listen to the podcast.
(Keep scrolling to see our Staff Pick for more about Williams’ latest venture.)
No further detainees allowed at ‘Alligator Alcatraz’
No additional detainees can be brought into “Alligator Alcatraz,” the contested ICE detention facility in the Florida Everglades, a federal judge ruled late Thursday.
The ruling also ordered the removal of generators and gas and sewage receptacles within 60 days, bringing into question how the facility, which is part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, would remain operational if those resources are removed.
The ruling allowed the injunction that was requested over National Environmental Policy Act violations. Environmental groups and Native Americans had protested construction of the site because of the Everglades’ delicate and unique ecosystem, which is home to endangered and threatened species
The groups that sued demanding an injunction celebrated the ruling in a joint statement as “a major victory for Florida’s imperiled wildlife and fragile ecosystems which are threatened by the detention center.”
The defense has appealed the ruling, court records show. Read the full story here.
More politics news:
- California voters are set to decide whether to approve a plan by Democrats to gerrymander the state congressional map that could net the party up to five more seats after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation to approve a special election vote.
- Alina Habba’s appointment as U.S. attorney for New Jersey was “unlawful,” a federal judge ruled, leaving open the possibility that her actions since July may be declared void.
- President Donald Trump thanked law enforcement personnel and National Guard troops for what he said was a successful start to his administration’s efforts to reduce crime in Washington, D.C.
- A New York appeals court dismissed a $500 million civil fraud penalty against Trump and his companies.
Lyle Menendez faces parole board after his brother was denied
Lyle Menendez will hope for a different outcome than his brother, Erik, when he faces California’s parole board today to plead for his release from prison.
The upcoming hearing comes just a day after Erik Menendez’s bid for parole was denied for three years — a stunning decision after a Los Angeles judge previously ruled that the brothers do not pose an “unreasonable risk.”
Family members said they “remain cautiously optimistic and hopeful” that the parole board could decide differently for Lyle Menendez.
The brothers were convicted in the 1989 murders of their parents, José and Kitty Menendez, who they claimed to have killed in self-defense after years of abuse at their father’s hands. Prosecutors have disputed the claims of self-defense. The case was catapulted back to the spotlight after a two-season TV series about their case and advocacy from some high-profile figures. Read the full story here.
Read All About It
- Twenty-nine people were taken into custody in an immigration raid at a package distribution warehouse in New Jersey, marking one of the largest federal immigration actions in the region to date.
- Rapper Lil Nas X was arrested and taken to the hospital after he was spotted walking naked down a street in Los Angeles. Officers were unsure whether he was on any substances or in mental distress.
- Cracker Barrel shares plummeted after the company received pushback on a new logo that the company says was inspired by scrambled eggs and biscuits.
- A rainbow crosswalk memorializing the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, was removed by the state.
- Ukraine has said that it expects rapid progress on the security guarantees its allies could provide in a peace deal with Russia but that one of the possible summit sites the United States is pursuing would be “challenging.”
Staff Pick: Serena Williams says weight loss drugs aren’t a shortcut
I spoke to tennis champion-turned-entrepreneur Serena Williams about her newest venture: a campaign to normalize weight loss medication. While getting glammed for The TODAY Show, Williams was candid about her struggle to lose weight after the birth of her daughters. Even while training as a professional athlete, she told me, her weight would plateau and she worried it was exacerbating knee issues.
Williams said that she has been taking a GLP-1 medication for nearly a year (on and off at first, but consistently since April) and is now down 31 pounds. The announcement was part of her new partnership with Ro, a company that prescribes GLP-1 medications through telehealth. (Williams’ husband is an investor.)
One thing Williams made clear in our conversation: She tried all she could before she cautiously proceeded with medication. “Believe me, I don’t take shortcuts,” she said. Having followed her career since I was a young tennis player myself, I had no doubt. — Aria Bendix, health reporter
NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified
Experts say shoe racks can make a big difference in keeping a space organized. Professional organizers gave the NBC Select team their seven favorite shoe racks to save space. The NBC Select team also learned that sunscreen mousse may be dangerous — here’s what to know.
Sign up to The Selection newsletter for hands-on product reviews, expert shopping tips and a look at the best deals and sales each week.
Thanks for reading today’s Morning Rundown. Today’s newsletter was curated for you by Elizabeth Robinson. If you’re a fan, please send a link to your family and friends. They can sign up here.
