In a decision that could reshape federal identification standards, the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the Trump administration to enforce its policy requiring Americans to list their biological sex–male or female–on passports, rather than self-identified gender.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R–S.D.) told Republican senators Thursday to prepare for a critical Friday vote aimed at ending the nation’s longest-ever government shutdown — now in its sixth week — as lawmakers scramble to reach a deal amid growing economic strain and partisan stalemate.

The Senate on Thursday narrowly rejected a Democratic resolution that would have required President Donald Trump to seek congressional approval before taking military action against Venezuela, marking the second failed attempt in as many months to rein in the administration’s campaign targeting Venezuelan drug-trafficking vessels.

Kazakhstan has officially joined the Abraham Accords, becoming the first country to do so during U.S. President Donald Trump’s second term, the White House confirmed Thursday evening.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Thursday carried out a sweeping wave of airstrikes targeting Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force and its terror infrastructure across southern Lebanon, marking one of the largest military operations since the November 2024 ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested 1,505 criminal foreign nationals in the Houston area during a roughly 10-day operation ending Oct.31.

Growing outrage over Amsterdam’s Royal Concert Hall (Het Koninklijk Concertgebouw) decision to cancel a Hanukkah concert featuring Jewish-Israeli cantor Shai Abramson has prompted an open letter from the heirs of Holocaust survivor and musician Lex van Weren, urging sponsors to withdraw support until the venue reverses course.

Hungary’s right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will meet U.S. President Donald J. Trump at the White House on Friday amid growing signs that their long-time political bromance may be cooling.

The death toll from Tuesday’s crash of a United Parcel Service (UPS) cargo plane near Louisville, in the U.S. state of Kentucky, has risen to 13, officials said Thursday, as investigators confirmed the aircraft had been grounded for more than a month for structural repairs before it burst into flames shortly after take-off.

Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk, widow of slain Christian leader Charlie Kirk, accepted the inaugural “Charlie Kirk Legacy Award” Thursday at the 2025 Fox Nation Patriot Awards, pledging to continue her late husband’s mission of faith, family, and free speech.