Friday morning news: August 22, 2025

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Israel offensive » Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will immediately renew ceasefire negotiations with Hamas.

NETANYAHU: [Speaking Hebrew]

He says the objectives are to secure the release of all Israeli hostages still held in Gaza and to end the war with the terror group on Israel's terms.

But the prime minister also said he has approved plans to expand a military campaign to capture Gaza City and defeat Hamas.

SOUND: [Demonstrators in Israel]

Thousands took to the streets in Israel calling for a ceasefire and the release of all Israeli hostages. Lawerence Sargent was one of those demonstrators.

SARGENT: I think the world doesn't understand that Hamas has the key, has the key of the end of the war. If you want to end the war, the simple thing is to free the hostages and public. Israeli public won't let Netanyahu continue to make war. I'm sure about that.

Negotiators from Egypt and Qatar are now working to broker a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza.

US-EU trade deal outline » American and European Union officials have released new details about a major trade deal that President Trump and European leaders announced last month.

Senior trade advisor the president, Peter Navarro, told reporters

NAVARRO:  We get Europe reducing all their tariff bear, uh, tariffs to zero. We continue our global tariff to fight the trade deficit at 15%.

That’s a 15% tariff on most imports from Europe.

The US says it will cut its 27.5% tariff on European autos and auto parts to 15% if the EU takes steps to lower tariffs on American imports.

EU also agrees to spend $750 billion on US energy and another $600 billion in other US investments.

House Biden probe » Members of the House Oversight Committee grilled another former Biden White House official Thursday.

They questioned Ian Sams amid an investigation surrounding former President Joe Biden’s mental fitness while in office.

Sams served as spokesman for the Biden White House Counsel’s Office. And committee Republican Chairman James Comer described Sams’ testimony as among the most revealing yet.

COMER:  This was a huge interview today, and I think it contradicts, uh, everything that, uh, the, the former Biden people are saying with respect to the president's mental fitness.

Comer stated that Sams, despite his key position, had only met President Biden in person twice.

Republicans on the committee say the investigation aims to find out if any former White House officials covered up Biden’s mental decline and if anyone other than the president was making presidential decisions.

Appeals court reverses Trump civil penalities » An appeals court in New York has ruled that the penalty in a civil fraud case against President Donald Trump was unconstitutional. WORLD’s Benjamin Eicher reports.

BENJAMIN EICHER: A five judge panel ruled on Thursday that the penalty imposed on Trump of nearly half a billion dollars was over the top.

And the panel found that it violated the Eighth Amendment protections against cruel and unusual punishment.

The panel narrowly upheld a finding that Trump engaged in fraud by exaggerating his wealth for decades.

As such, the president and his two sons will still be barred from serving in corporate leadership in New York for a few years.

Nevertheless, Trump praised the ruling as courageous and remains adamant that he did nothing wrong.

For WORLD, I’m Benjamin Eicher.

Pew report on illegal immigration » Illegal immigration in the US hit a record high in 2023 of more than 14 million.

That’s according to a new report from the Pew Research Center.

It reported that the number of people in the country illegally was up sharply from just under 12 million in 2022.

And Pew said the increase was driven by some 6 million who were in the country with some form of legal protection under President Joe Biden.

Texas House passes camp safety legislation in wake of flood » The Texas House of Representatives passed a bill aimed at increasing safety measures at summer camps following last month's deadly flooding in Central Texas.

Gov. Greg Abbott:

ABBOTT:  There's an, an attempt, uh, to meet both goals. One is to, to meet the, the needs, uh, and the expectations, uh, of the families who lost a child while at the very same time, uh, not putting these camps outta business.

The bill would require camps to develop detailed emergency response plans.

It also bars state licensing for camps that place cabins in designated floodplains.

Additionally, the measure directs millions toward warning systems and emergency training.

The state senate will now take up the bill.

At least 137 people were killed during the July 4th flooding, including 27 children and counselors at an all-girls summer camp.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: our weekly conversation with John Stonestreet on Culture Friday. Plus, remembering Dr. James Dobson.

This is The World and Everything in It.

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