Graham says there will be ‘a change in tactics' by Israeli military in Gaza
'I think Israel's come to conclude that they can't achieve a goal of ending the war with Hamas that would be satisfactory to the safety of Israel and that they're going to do in Gaza what we did in Tokyo and Berlin, take the place by force then start over again, presenting a better future for the Palestinians, hopefully having the Arabs take over the West Bank and Gaza,' Graham told NBC News's Kristen Welker on 'Meet the Press.'
'But I think going forward, Kristen, you're going to see a change in tactics, a full military effort by Israel to take Gaza down, like we did in Tokyo and Berlin,' he added.
Israel has started a 'tactical pause' in fighting in Gaza amid mass starvation concerns, according to the military.
'In accordance with directives from the political echelon, and as part of the IDF's ongoing effort, led by COGAT, to increase the scale of humanitarian aid entering Gaza, a local tactical pause in military activity will take place for humanitarian purposes from 10:00 to 20:00, starting today (Sunday),' the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a post on the social platform X Sunday.
According to The Associated Press, there have been warnings in recent months from food experts about Gaza facing famine, with aid being limited by the Israelis.
'People in #Gaza are dying from lack of humanitarian assistance – food, clean water, and other essential lifelines,' the World Food Programme said in a post on X last week. 'A ceasefire is long overdue and humanitarians should be able to reach all those in need, wherever they are.'
The fighting has killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants, and injured more than 130,000. The Israeli government said 895 soldiers have been killed over the course of the war, which began after a Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, that left around 1,200 Israelis dead, with nearly 250 taken hostage.
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Chicago Tribune
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an hour ago
Murdered Congressional intern's mom says Trump should take over Washington, DC
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Washington, D.C., residents can expect to see an increase in federal law enforcement around the city starting as early as this week, a White House official told ABC News. The official stressed that operational details have yet to be finalized, but the White House is working with multiple agencies to use federal and local enforcement to monitor crime in the city. "Washington, D.C., is an amazing city, but it has sadly been plagued by petty and violent crime for far too long. President Trump is committed to making our Nation's capital safer and even more beautiful for its residents, lawmakers, and visitors from all around the world," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to ABC News. Despite Trump's claims that violent crime in the city has gotten out of hand, police statistics show that in the past two years violent crime in Washington, D.C., has fallen dramatically. "Compared to where it was two years ago, when it really peaked in 2023, it's down 50%," Jeff Asher, a national crime analyst, told ABC News on Thursday. Asher said that, statistically, violent crime in Washington, D.C., is back down to levels not seen since before the start of the pandemic in 2020. Overall, violent crime in Washington, D.C., and across the country skyrocketed during the pandemic as criminal courts shut down and jail populations were dramatically reduced in an effort to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Homicides in Washington, D.C., rose from 166 in 2019 to 226 in 2021 and climbed to 274 in 2023, according to crime stats from the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department. In the first seven months of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024, overall violent crime has dropped 26%, homicides have fallen 12%, sexual assaults are down nearly 50%, assaults with a dangerous weapon have tumbled 20%, and robberies are down nearly 30%. Asher, a former crime analyst at the CIA and the New Orleans Police Department, said there has also been a 68% decline in carjackings in Washington, D.C., since 2023. Compared to the first seven months of 2024, carjackings in the city are down 37% this year, Asher said. "That doesn't disprove that crime is an issue, just like it's an issue in a lot of cities where it's coming down, " Asher said. "But it's certainly not something that's getting worse; it's a problem that's improving." Despite the improving crime statistics, Trump told reporters on Wednesday that White House lawyers are looking into how to go about federalizing Washington, D.C. He said his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, was working with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. A spokesperson for the mayor told ABC News they had no comment on Trump's threat to take over the city. "We're considering it, yeah, because the crime is ridiculous," Trump said. "I could show you a chart comparing D.C. to other locations, and you're not going to want to see what it looks like. We want to have a great safe capital, and we're going to have it, and that includes cleanliness and includes other things. We have a capital that's very unsafe." The district has some autonomy under the 1973 Home Rule Act, which grants residents the ability to manage affairs by electing a mayor and city council members. But final oversight of the district's laws and budget is left to Congress. In 2023, for example, the U.S. House of Representatives blocked two local bills from going into effect, including one that would have updated the district's criminal code. Trump does appear to have some legal power to direct the Metropolitan Police Department under the Home Rule Act, "whenever [he] determines that special conditions of an emergency nature exist…" When asked about the falling crime statistics, Tamara Tarpinian-Jachym told ABC News, "I don't believe in statistics because statistics can be skewed in any way." Tamara Tarpinian-Jachym noted that when her son was killed, Bowser said at a news conference that her son was the city's 84th homicide of the year. As of Thursday, homicides in the city had risen to 99.
