Former Uvalde mayor's police training bill heads to Gov. Abbott's desk
The Brief
A bill aimed at improving police training after the Uvalde school shooting has passed the Texas Senate.
"The Uvalde Strong Act" would mandate annual active shooter response planning and enhanced school-specific officer training.
The bill seeks to address issues identified in the delayed law enforcement response to the 2022 Robb Elementary attack.
AUSTIN - A bill intended to fix some issues in police training that may have contributed to the 2022 Uvalde school shooting now awaits Gov. Greg Abbott's approval.
HB 33, also called "The Uvalde Strong Act," filed by former Uvalde mayor and freshman Rep. Don McLaughlin Jr. (R-Uvalde), aims to better train officers and enhance agency coordination in hopes of preventing comparable shootings in the future.
McLaughlin, who was mayor of Uvalde at the time of the attack and has been actively seeking change to law enforcement policy since, says the bill would correct problems with training that led to police hesitancy in the shooting.
The bill would require officers and school officials to meet annually for active shooter response plan development. It also increases officer training specifically for school shooter responses at primary and secondary school campuses.
The delayed law enforcement response to the May 24, 2022, shooting has been widely condemned as a massive failure: Nearly 400 officers waited more than 70 minutes before confronting the gunman in a classroom filled with dead and wounded children and teachers in the South Texas city of about 15,000 people, 80 miles west of San Antonio.
What they're saying
In a statement quoted by the Associated Press, McLaughlin said the following:
"The Uvalde Strong Act is aimed at fixing the breakdowns in communication and coordination that were exposed in the Robb Elementary shooting," McLaughlin said. "This is about keeping our schools safer. ... We owe it to the families to take action that really matters."
What's next
The bill passed the Texas Senate on Monday. Abbott's signature is the last hurdle before the proposal becomes law.
Two of the responding officers face multiple criminal charges of abandonment and endangerment. Former Uvalde school Police Chief Pete Arredondo and former school officer Adrian Gonzales have pleaded not guilty. According to the Associated Press, they are due for trial in October.
The Source
Information in this article came from the Associated Press, Texas Legislature Online, and previous Fox 7 reporting.
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Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Testimony against Sean Combs was shocking and graphic. But was it enough to convict?
One of the most sensational celebrity trials in decades is expected early this week to go to jurors, who must decide whether music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs is responsible for a shocking series of alleged sex crimes and conspiracies dating back years. The trial in New York has been marked by graphic testimony from inside Combs' music empire, alleging a pattern of violence, threats and cover-ups that prosecutors have likened to a mob-like criminal enterprise. A key question posed in the case is whether Combs — who was once worth more than $1 billion — used his power and money to conceal alleged crimes, often with the help of his sprawling organization. Prosecutors hammered home this alleged conspiracy in closing arguments. Assistant U.S. Atty. Christy Slavik told jurors Combs 'counted on silence and shame' to enable and prolong his abuse and used a 'small army' of employees to harm women and cover it up, according to the Associated Press. Combs 'doesn't take no for an answer,' she added. But legal experts have said the case may not be quite the slam-dunk that the tabloid headlines suggest. Combs' defense has freely acknowledged that the mogul behaved badly. They claim, however, that the charges against him are overblown and pointed out that some key witnesses did not report Combs' misdeeds at the time. 'The theory of the defense seems to be that Diddy did really horrible things, but they don't meet the elements of the crimes charged," said legal expert Jeff Chemerinsky, a former federal prosecutor. Read more: Inside Diddy's Bad Boy empire of threats, violence and bribes. What court revelations expose On Friday, Combs' attorney labeled the prosecution's case "exaggerated" and hammered some of his accusers. Marc Agnifilo claimed Combs enjoyed a "swinger" lifestyle and was addled by drugs. He admitted Combs committed domestic violence, but that the racketeering and sex trafficking charges were trumped up. "He is not a racketeer," he said. 'He is innocent. He sits there innocent.' There is no question the trial painted a damning portrait of Combs, the hip-hop star who built a massive music, fashion and lifestyle empire and mingled with the elites of American society and power. But Dmitry Gorin, a former L.A. County sex crimes prosecutor, said jurors will have to determine whether the sheer volume and seriousness of federal charges match the evidence. Gorin questioned whether federal prosecutors overcharged in the high-profile case. The federal indictment alleges that Combs and his associates lured female victims, often under the pretense of a romantic relationship. Combs then allegedly used force, threats of force, coercion and controlled substances to get women to engage in sex acts with male prostitutes while he occasionally watched in gatherings that Combs referred to as 'freak-offs.' Combs gave the women ketamine, ecstasy and GHB to 'keep them obedient and compliant' during the performances, prosecutors say. Combs' alleged 'criminal enterprise' threatened and abused women and used members of his enterprise to engage in sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution, coercion and enticement to engage in prostitution, narcotics offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice, prosecutors said. In bringing so-called RICO charges, prosecutors in opening statements said Combs was helped by a cadre of company employees, security staff and aides. They allegedly helped organize the freak-offs and then covered up the incidents. Combs is charged with one count of racketeering conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison; two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison; and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Read more: 'Horrible and disgusting': Cassie's graphic testimony of abuse leaves Sean 'Diddy' Combs' fate hanging in balance Jurors heard from 34 witnesses, who provided six weeks of brutal and graphic testimony. At the heart of the case are three women who described graphic sexual assaults, including Combs' onetime lover Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura, who the defense acknowledged was a key witness for prosecutors. It was Ventura's lawsuit in 2023 that set off the unraveling of Combs' enterprise with its details of sex, violence and freak-offs. Witnesses testified that Combs gave the women ketamine, ecstasy and GHB to keep them compliant during the performances. His last former girlfriend, referred to only as Jane in court, described how the freak-offs and coerced sex continued even after the lawsuit and a raid by Homeland Security Investigations in 2023 until his arrest last year. A former employee, testifying under the pseudonym Mia, also testified that she was sexually assaulted. The federal indictment alleges that Combs and his associates lured two of the women under the pretense of a romantic relationship. Combs then allegedly used force, threats of force, coercion and controlled substances to get women to engage in sex acts with male prostitutes. R&B singer Ventura, who had a long relationship with Combs, testified early in the trial. Ventura told jurors she felt 'trapped' in a cycle of physical and sexual abuse, and that the relationship involved 11 years of beatings, sexual blackmail and a rape. She said Combs threatened to leak videos of her sexual encounters with numerous male sex workers while drug-intoxicated and covered in baby oil as he watched and orchestrated the freak-offs. Read more: Rapper Kid Cudi says his car was set on fire after Sean 'Diddy' Combs broke into his Hollywood Hills home One of those alleged freak-offs led to an infamous hotel beating, Ventura testified. Video from that March 2016 night shows Combs punching and kicking Ventura as she cowers and tries to protect herself in front of an L.A. hotel elevator bank. He then drags her down the hall by her hooded sweatshirt toward their hotel room. A second angle from another camera captures Combs throwing a vase toward her. She suffered bruising to her eye, a fat lip and a bruise that prosecutors showed was still visible during a movie premiere two days later, where she donned sunglasses and heavy makeup on the red carpet. A cover-up then ensued, according to prosecutors. Ventura stated that the police visited her apartment. She answered a few of their questions, but told the jury she still wanted to protect Combs at the time. 'I would not say who I was talking about,' she told the jury. 'In that moment, I did not want to hurt him in that way. There was too much going on. It was a lot.' Eddie Garcia, the InterContinental Hotel security guard, testified that Combs gave him a brown paper bag containing $100,000 in cash for the video. Garcia said that after his supervisor agreed to sell the video recording, he met with Combs, Combs' chief of staff, Kristina Khorram, and a bodyguard. After Garcia raised concerns about the police, he said Combs called Ventura on FaceTime, handed him the phone and told Ventura to tell Garcia that she also wanted the video 'to go away.' After that, Garcia said he took the money and split it with co-workers, according to reporting from inside the courtroom. Prosecutors allege this shows the conspiracy. In her closing argument, Slavik said racketeering law applies when someone commits crimes as part of a group, and in Combs' case, 'the defendant was a powerful man, but he became more powerful and dangerous because of his inner circle, his businesses — the enterprise,' she told jurors, according to AP. Under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO, there are 35 specific offenses, including murder, bribery and extortion, and federal prosecutors need to show a pattern involving at least two overt acts as part of a criminal enterprise. People typically think of the mob, street gangs or drug cartels. But any loose association of two or more people is enough, like Combs' entourage, said Neama Rahami, a former federal prosecutor and defense attorney. While the testimony against Combs was graphic and detailed, Rahami said the defense hopes jurors will question why those on the stand did not report the behavior to authorities at the time and in some cases stayed in Combs' orbit. Rahami said she found parts of the prosecution's case underwhelming, especially given the complex and serious charges they filed. "I still think Combs is guilty, but the defense has a good chance of securing not guilty verdicts, especially on the sex trafficking counts," she said. The defense was aggressive in cross-examination, hammering witnesses about why they did not report Combs at the time or simply leave him. They also presented text messages of support and love after the alleged attacks. The defense also focused on the money and other things they got from Combs. 'This isn't about a crime. This is about money. It's about money,' Agnifilo said, according to the AP. But the level of graphic testimony might be hard for jurors to ignore. Bryana Bongolan, a friend of Ventura, testified that Combs dangled her over a 17-story balcony and tossed her onto balcony furniture in September 2016. Capricorn Clark, a former assistant to Combs, told jurors Combs forced her from her apartment at gunpoint to go with him to musician Kid Cudi's home in December 2011. Once there, Combs and Clark entered the empty house, and then Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, showed up. To avoid getting law enforcement involved, Clark testified, Combs ordered her to call Ventura, who was at that time Combs' ex-girlfriend, and said they needed to convince Cudi not to snitch to the cops. 'If you guys don't convince him of that, I'll kill all you m—,' Clark quoted Combs saying. Cudi testified that his Porsche was later firebombed in his driveway with a Molotov cocktail. Prosecutors got the last word Friday before the jury went home for the weekend, reminding them of the Cudi car explosion. "He delegated and his inner circle handled the dirty work for him," prosecutor Maurene Comey said, according to CNN. "He said he was going to blow up the car, and lo and behold, it blew up. 'For 20 years, the defendant got away with his crimes. That ends in this courtroom,' Comey added. 'The defendant is not a god. He is a person." Associated Press contributed to this report. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
5 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Testimony against Sean Combs was shocking and graphic. But was it enough to convict?
One of the most sensational celebrity trials in decades is expected early this week to go to jurors, who must decide whether music mogul Sean 'Diddy' Combs is responsible for a shocking series of alleged sex crimes and conspiracies dating back years. The trial in New York has been marked by graphic testimony from inside Combs' music empire, alleging a pattern of violence, threats and cover-ups that prosecutors have likened to a mob-like criminal enterprise. A key question posed in the case is whether Combs — who was once worth more than $1 billion — used his power and money to conceal alleged crimes, often with the help of his sprawling organization. Prosecutors hammered home this alleged conspiracy in closing arguments. Assistant U.S. Atty. Christy Slavik told jurors Combs 'counted on silence and shame' to enable and prolong his abuse and used a 'small army' of employees to harm women and cover it up, according to the Associated Press. Combs 'doesn't take no for an answer,' she added. But legal experts have said the case may not be quite the slam-dunk that the tabloid headlines suggest. Combs' defense has freely acknowledged that the mogul behaved badly. They claim, however, that the charges against him are overblown and pointed out that some key witnesses did not report Combs' misdeeds at the time. 'The theory of the defense seems to be that Diddy did really horrible things, but they don't meet the elements of the crimes charged,' said legal expert Jeff Chemerinsky, a former federal prosecutor. On Friday, Combs' attorney labeled the prosecution's case 'exaggerated' and hammered some of his accusers. Marc Agnifilo claimed Combs enjoyed a 'swinger' lifestyle and was addled by drugs. He admitted Combs committed domestic violence, but that the racketeering and sex trafficking charges were trumped up. 'He is not a racketeer,' he said. 'He is innocent. He sits there innocent.' There is no question the trial painted a damning portrait of Combs, the hip-hop star who built a massive music, fashion and lifestyle empire and mingled with the elites of American society and power. But Dmitry Gorin, a former L.A. County sex crimes prosecutor, said jurors will have to determine whether the sheer volume and seriousness of federal charges match the evidence. Gorin questioned whether federal prosecutors overcharged in the high-profile case. The federal indictment alleges that Combs and his associates lured female victims, often under the pretense of a romantic relationship. Combs then allegedly used force, threats of force, coercion and controlled substances to get women to engage in sex acts with male prostitutes while he occasionally watched in gatherings that Combs referred to as 'freak-offs.' Combs gave the women ketamine, ecstasy and GHB to 'keep them obedient and compliant' during the performances, prosecutors say. Combs' alleged 'criminal enterprise' threatened and abused women and used members of his enterprise to engage in sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution, coercion and enticement to engage in prostitution, narcotics offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice, prosecutors said. In bringing so-called RICO charges, prosecutors in opening statements said Combs was helped by a cadre of company employees, security staff and aides. They allegedly helped organize the freak-offs and then covered up the incidents. Combs is charged with one count of racketeering conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison; two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison; and two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Jurors heard from 34 witnesses, who provided six weeks of brutal and graphic testimony. At the heart of the case are three women who described graphic sexual assaults, including Combs' onetime lover Casandra 'Cassie' Ventura, who the defense acknowledged was a key witness for prosecutors. It was Ventura's lawsuit in 2023 that set off the unraveling of Combs' enterprise with its details of sex, violence and freak-offs. Witnesses testified that Combs gave the women ketamine, ecstasy and GHB to keep them compliant during the performances. His last former girlfriend, referred to only as Jane in court, described how the freak-offs and coerced sex continued even after the lawsuit and a raid by Homeland Security Investigations in 2023 until his arrest last year. A former employee, testifying under the pseudonym Mia, also testified that she was sexually assaulted. The federal indictment alleges that Combs and his associates lured two of the women under the pretense of a romantic relationship. Combs then allegedly used force, threats of force, coercion and controlled substances to get women to engage in sex acts with male prostitutes. R&B singer Ventura, who had a long relationship with Combs, testified early in the trial. Ventura told jurors she felt 'trapped' in a cycle of physical and sexual abuse, and that the relationship involved 11 years of beatings, sexual blackmail and a rape. She said Combs threatened to leak videos of her sexual encounters with numerous male sex workers while drug-intoxicated and covered in baby oil as he watched and orchestrated the freak-offs. One of those alleged freak-offs led to an infamous hotel beating, Ventura testified. Video from that March 2016 night shows Combs punching and kicking Ventura as she cowers and tries to protect herself in front of an L.A. hotel elevator bank. He then drags her down the hall by her hooded sweatshirt toward their hotel room. A second angle from another camera captures Combs throwing a vase toward her. She suffered bruising to her eye, a fat lip and a bruise that prosecutors showed was still visible during a movie premiere two days later, where she donned sunglasses and heavy makeup on the red carpet. A cover-up then ensued, according to prosecutors. Ventura stated that the police visited her apartment. She answered a few of their questions, but told the jury she still wanted to protect Combs at the time. 'I would not say who I was talking about,' she told the jury. 'In that moment, I did not want to hurt him in that way. There was too much going on. It was a lot.' Eddie Garcia, the InterContinental Hotel security guard, testified that Combs gave him a brown paper bag containing $100,000 in cash for the video. Garcia said that after his supervisor agreed to sell the video recording, he met with Combs, Combs' chief of staff, Kristina Khorram, and a bodyguard. After Garcia raised concerns about the police, he said Combs called Ventura on FaceTime, handed him the phone and told Ventura to tell Garcia that she also wanted the video 'to go away.' After that, Garcia said he took the money and split it with co-workers, according to reporting from inside the courtroom. Prosecutors allege this shows the conspiracy. In her closing argument, Slavik said racketeering law applies when someone commits crimes as part of a group, and in Combs' case, 'the defendant was a powerful man, but he became more powerful and dangerous because of his inner circle, his businesses — the enterprise,' she told jurors, according to AP. Under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO, there are 35 specific offenses, including murder, bribery and extortion, and federal prosecutors need to show a pattern involving at least two overt acts as part of a criminal enterprise. People typically think of the mob, street gangs or drug cartels. But any loose association of two or more people is enough, like Combs' entourage, said Neama Rahami, a former federal prosecutor and defense attorney. While the testimony against Combs was graphic and detailed, Rahami said the defense hopes jurors will question why those on the stand did not report the behavior to authorities at the time and in some cases stayed in Combs' orbit. Rahami said she found parts of the prosecution's case underwhelming, especially given the complex and serious charges they filed. 'I still think Combs is guilty, but the defense has a good chance of securing not guilty verdicts, especially on the sex trafficking counts,' she said. The defense was aggressive in cross-examination, hammering witnesses about why they did not report Combs at the time or simply leave him. They also presented text messages of support and love after the alleged attacks. The defense also focused on the money and other things they got from Combs. 'This isn't about a crime. This is about money. It's about money,' Agnifilo said, according to the AP. But the level of graphic testimony might be hard for jurors to ignore. Bryana Bongolan, a friend of Ventura, testified that Combs dangled her over a 17-story balcony and tossed her onto balcony furniture in September 2016. Capricorn Clark, a former assistant to Combs, told jurors Combs forced her from her apartment at gunpoint to go with him to musician Kid Cudi's home in December 2011. Once there, Combs and Clark entered the empty house, and then Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi, showed up. To avoid getting law enforcement involved, Clark testified, Combs ordered her to call Ventura, who was at that time Combs' ex-girlfriend, and said they needed to convince Cudi not to snitch to the cops. 'If you guys don't convince him of that, I'll kill all you m—,' Clark quoted Combs saying. Cudi testified that his Porsche was later firebombed in his driveway with a Molotov cocktail. Prosecutors got the last word Friday before the jury went home for the weekend, reminding them of the Cudi car explosion. 'He delegated and his inner circle handled the dirty work for him,' prosecutor Maurene Comey said, according to CNN. 'He said he was going to blow up the car, and lo and behold, it blew up. 'For 20 years, the defendant got away with his crimes. That ends in this courtroom,' Comey added. 'The defendant is not a god. He is a person.' Associated Press contributed to this report.
Time Magazine
5 hours ago
- Time Magazine
After Iran, Trump Aims to End War in Gaza
After brokering a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran, Donald Trump is urging Israel and Hamas to make a deal that would stop the 20-month-long war in Gaza that has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians and over a thousand Israelis. 'MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!!' the U.S. President posted on Truth Social early Sunday. [time-brightcove not-tgx='true'] Trump told reporters on Friday that an agreement could be reached within the next week. On Saturday evening Trump said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is 'right now in the process of negotiating a Deal with Hamas, which will include getting the Hostages back,' in a post slamming the corruption proceedings against Netanyahu. An Israeli court on Monday postponed this week's hearings in Netanyahu's trial after he made a request based on classified diplomatic and security reasons. 'How is it possible that the Prime Minister of Israel can be forced to sit in a Courtroom all day long, over NOTHING (Cigars, Bugs Bunny Doll, etc.). It is a POLITICAL WITCH HUNT, very similar to the Witch Hunt that I was forced to endure,' Trump wrote. 'This travesty of 'Justice' will interfere with both Iran and Hamas negotiations.' Read More: Trump Tries to 'Save' Netanyahu as Israeli PM Faces Challenges at Home An Israeli official told the Associated Press that Ron Dermer, a top adviser to Netanyahu, will visit Washington this week for ceasefire talks. Netanyahu met with his security Cabinet on Sunday evening and plans are being made for him to visit Washington in coming weeks, the official said. Trump's shift in focus towards Gaza comes after Iran and Israel agreed to a tenuous ceasefire on June 23, ending the so-called '12 Day War' ignited by Israel's attack on Iran's nuclear program. Arab mediators, Egypt and Qatar, renewed a ceasefire push for Gaza after the U.S. and Israel bombed Iran's nuclear facilities. Hamas has told mediators that it is ready to resume talks but reiterated that any deal must include an end to the war and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, a Hamas official told Reuters. Call for ceasefire comes as Israel escalates war At the same time that Trump called for a deal, Israel continued to escalate its military bombardment of Gaza. The Israeli military ordered a mass evacuation of Palestinians in northern Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people live in eastern and northern Gaza City and the Jabaliya refugee camp. The Israeli Defense Forces' attacks will expand westward to Gaza City center, the order said. People are ordered to evacuate to Mawasi in southern Gaza, which Israel has designated as a humanitarian area. Uprooting their lives at a moment's notice has become routine for Palestinians in Gaza over the last nearly two years of war. Humanitarian organizations have criticized Israel's sweeping evacuation orders in the past as being unpredictable and having short deadlines that are virtually impossible for many, including the sick and disabled. On Sunday, Palestinians in Gaza City were yet again forced to load their children and essentials onto donkey carts before the military's attacks, the AP reported. United Nations officials have said that nowhere in Gaza is safe. At least five people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a tent encampment in Khan Younis near Mawasi, the designated safe area, over the weekend, medics said. 'A month ago, they told us to go to Al-Mawasi and we stayed there for a month, it is a safe zone,' Palestinian Zeyad Abu Marouf told Reuters. Three of his children were killed and a fourth wounded in the airstrike, he said. 'Families have been displaced again and again—and are now confined to less than one-fifth of Gaza's land,' U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said on Friday. 'Even these shrinking spaces are under threat. Bombs are falling—on tents, on families, on those with nowhere left to run.' Roadblocks remain over a deal In spite of Trump's optimism, skepticism over a deal remains. Hamas has accused Israeli leaders of purposely delaying a deal. Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi reportedly said on Telegram on Sunday that Netanyahu set 'impossible conditions aimed at thwarting the possibility of reaching a ceasefire agreement and a deal on the hostages.' Hamas has reportedly offered Israel a deal that includes the release of all hostages in exchange for a full withdrawal of Israel's military from Gaza and an end to the war. But Mardawi said Netanyahu has insisted on a temporary agreement that releases only 10 hostages. 'Netanyahu lies when he claims he is not involved in choosing the names of the hostages,' Mardawi wrote. 'He does not want a deal.' Netanyahu spokesperson Omer Dostri did not address Mardawi's claims but said, 'Hamas was the only obstacle to ending the war,' according to the AP. Israel has said it will only agree to end the war in exchange for the full dismantlement and exile of Hamas. While Trump has repeatedly urged a ceasefire in Gaza, he's also suggested a U.S. takeover that turns the territory into 'a freedom zone' and proposed that Jordan and Egypt take in Palestinians as part of a 'clean out' of the Gaza Strip. In February, Trump said the U.S. could take a 'long-term ownership position' over Gaza, 'level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area.' That month, he also shared an AI-generated video on Truth Social of 'Trump Gaza,' showing a reconstructed Gaza Strip with skyscrapers, luxury cars, and Trump drinking by a pool with Netanyahu. Even if a deal is reached, it's unclear whether it will last. Israel and Hamas reached a multi-phase ceasefire agreement in January, just as Trump was taking office. But Israel broke the ceasefire in March when it launched surprise airstrikes on Gaza before declaring that it was resuming the war. Since then, pressure has been mounting on Netanyahu to agree to a ceasefire, both from within and outside Israel. Pro-Palestinian protesters around the world turned out over the weekend to call for an end to the war. And earlier this month, the U.N. adopted a resolution demanding an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire, with Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya saying that it is the international community's responsibility to stop the 'slaughter' in Gaza. Protests in Israel also resumed after a two-week pause during the Israel-Iran war, with demonstrators demanding a deal that would free the hostages still in Gaza. 'There's a deal on the table and what prevents it is Netanyahu's refusal to end the war,' said Einav Zangauker, the mother of one of the hostages, at the rally. Earlier this month, former Prime Minister of Israel Ehud Barak wrote in a TIME essay calling for Netanyahu to back a Trump-brokered ceasefire: 'In the coming few days, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will face a defining choice between a politically motivated 'war of deception' in Gaza and a deal to release all hostages while ending the war. He must choose between his extreme-right ministers—Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich—or aligning with Donald Trump.' Netanyahu said at the Sunday security meeting that 'many opportunities have opened up' after Israel's 'victory' in Iran, and for one of the first times he appeared to prioritize hostage exchange over the defeat of Hamas, potentially signaling appetite for a ceasefire deal: 'Firstly, to rescue the hostages,' he said. 'Of course, we will also need to solve the Gaza issue, defeat Hamas, but I believe we will achieve both tasks.'
