Good morning, and welcome to The Epoch Times News Brief for Thursday, March 20, 2025. I’m Bill Thomas, we have some world-changing stories to share with you right now, and here’s what’s happening both nationally and around the globe.
Israel launches a massive ground offensive in the Gaza Strip as war explodes in the Middle East; a potential limited cease-fire agreement between Russia and Ukraine is on shaky ground as each nation accuses the other of violating the terms of that agreement; and a majority of U.S. states go to court to support the Trump administration’s efforts to deport hundreds of suspected members of a violent Venezuelan gang.
Also, a federal judge issues a critical ruling concerning U.S. foreign aid, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and our nation’s Constitution; and a very popular streaming service sues a big-time Hollywood director, accusing him of swindling them out of millions of dollars—we’ll give you a front-row seat to the big Tinseltown blockbuster.
Israel Launches Ground Operations in Gaza
Israeli officials say their nation is launching a new ground operation into Gaza and that they’re aiming to retake the vital Netzarim Corridor which runs straight through the middle of the territory, all in an effort to create a buffer zone between the northern and southern portions of the strip.They say they’re taking “strong action” against Hamas in pursuit of their country’s original war goals of freeing the hostages, dismantling that terrorist organization, and removing the threat of terror attacks from the Gaza Strip once and for all.
Israel forces previously occupied the corridor until January of this year, when they pulled back as part of their recent cease-fire agreement with Hamas. However, Israel has since abandoned the deal, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that Israel could not accept a refusal by Hamas to release additional hostages taken during the terror attacks of Oct. 7, 2023.
Additionally, a spokesman from Netanyahu’s office says that Israel is renewing their attacks because Hamas rejected “two concrete mediation proposals” from U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff to continue the cease-fire. He also says Israel has knowledge that Hamas planned to carry out further terrorist attacks against their nation and that the terrorist group was using the cease-fire to rearm their forces.
Israel’s defense minister now says that his country is unleashing its latest operation with a never-before-seen intensity, and he’s warning Palestinians in the region that the army is going to soon order their evacuations from all combat zones.
Meanwhile, the Hamas-led Gaza Health Ministry is reporting that so far, the latest Israeli strikes have killed around 436 people, most of whom it says were women and children. However, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) say that only Hamas terrorists have been targeted, and they say that Hamas members are fully to blame for any casualties because they’re hiding among groups of civilians.
Hamas has spent several weeks calling for additional talks concerning a second phase of the cease-fire agreement, which would include the release of the 24 remaining living hostages in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and a long-term stop to the fighting.
Additionally, the renewed violence has been condemned by a number of nations, including Egypt, France, Germany, and Qatar, all of which recently supported a plan to rebuild Gaza, limit Hamas, and improve living conditions in the area. Meanwhile, the United States’ acting ambassador to the United Nations says that blame for the resumption of hostilities “lies solely with Hamas.”
Ukraine Agrees to Limited Cease-Fire in War With Russia
In a phone call with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump suggested that U.S. ownership of Ukrainian power plants would be the best way to protect critical infrastructure in that country.The president says that the goal of the call was to align both Ukraine and Russia in terms of their requests and needs, and he went on to say those goals are “very much on track.” Both Trump and Zelenskyy say their conversation was very constructive.
As a reminder, the call between Trump and Zelenskyy comes a day after Putin spoke with the president and agreed to call off Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid and critical infrastructure sites. The Ukrainian leader has now agreed to halt his nation’s attacks on Russia’s energy grid as well.
However, just a short time before his call with the White House, Zelenskyy alleged that Russian forces had already failed to hold up their end of the bargain. He says that only hours after the call between Putin and Trump, Russia launched 150 drone attacks against Ukrainian targets including energy sites, transportation systems, and hospitals.
Meanwhile, Russian officials say that Ukrainian forces also violated the agreement by targeting an oil transfer site within Russian territory, igniting a significant fire.
For their part, the White House says that the next round of U.S.-led negotiations between the two warring nations will begin shortly in the Middle East. They’ll deal with a cease-fire at sea, a more comprehensive halt to the fighting, and eventually, a permanent peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.
26 States File Brief Supporting Trump’s Efforts to Deport Gang Members
A coalition of 26 Republican state attorneys general have just filed what’s called an amicus brief in a federal appeals court which backs President Donald Trump’s efforts to deport alleged members of the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang using a law called the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.The filing comes only days after a federal judge issued a 14-day restraining order that directed the Trump administration to temporarily halt those deportations. He said that the Alien Enemies Act, which was originally designed to deal with times of war, does not provide a basis for the president’s actions.
The new brief filed by the attorneys general is asking the appeals court to lift the restraining order, citing concerns for both public safety and national security.
It also argues that Trump’s use of the law to speed up the deportations of the alleged gang members is constitutionally valid and that the court made a mistake by failing to defer to the president’s authority to use the act.
So you know, Trump’s proclamation pertaining to the act says that through their activities, members of the violent gang are “conducting irregular warfare” against the United States at the direction of the current Venezuelan regime.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is warning Venezuela that they will face harsh consequences if they refuse to accept the deportation flights that carry Venezuelan nationals, including members of the Tren de Aragua gang, back to their country of origin.
Judge Blocks DOGE Dismantling of USAID
A federal judge in Maryland says that Elon Musk and DOGE are likely in violation of the U.S. Constitution in their move to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).The judge says that closing USAID headquarters, laying off a majority of the USAID workforce, and terminating most of the agency’s contracts violate the separation of powers established by the Constitution.
He went on to say that Congress has outlined specific requirements regarding actions related to USAID and that Musk and the other DOGE officials did not comply with those requirements in their efforts to trim expenses at the agency.
Additionally, the judge found that despite not being confirmed to a high-level position by the Senate, Musk wields significant authority, which is a violation of another article of the Constitution. He went on to say that Musk made the decisions to shut down both USAID’s headquarters and their website, even though he “lacked the authority to make that decision.”
For their part, government officials say that the dismantling of USAID fits within the president’s constitutional authority to conduct foreign affairs. However, the judge says that DOGE’s actions relate mostly to the resources which are available to USAID, not to the direct conduct of foreign policy.
He’s now ordering both Musk and DOGE to reinstate access for USAID workers and contractors to USAID systems. He’s also directing DOGE not to take any further action relating to placing employees on leave, firing workers, or terminating contracts.
Meanwhile, the federal government is expected to appeal the judge’s ruling.
Hollywood Director Allegedly Defrauded Netflix Out of Millions
A 47-year-old filmmaker named Carl Rinsch has just been arrested on charges that he swindled $11 million from Netflix for a science fiction program that was never aired on their platform.Authorities have charged the writer-director, who’s best known for a film called “47 Ronin,” with both wire fraud and money laundering. They allege that the writer-director used the money to invest heavily in cryptocurrency, as well as make various expensive purchases, including a fleet of Rolls-Royce vehicles and a Ferrari.
According to federal prosecutors, Netflix bought an unfinished show called “White Horse” from the suspect for $44 million. Eventually, when he told them he needed more money to finish the show, they shelled out another $11 million.
However, rather than using the additional cash to complete the program, the suspect instead allegedly sank a good chunk of the money into a variety of failed personal investments along with a number of highly successful cryptocurrency moves.
He then allegedly used those profits to pay off his credit cards, hire lawyers, and buy expensive luxury items such as furniture, clothes, and watches.
The suspect was arrested in West Hollywood, California, and is now free on a $100,000 bond. His next appearance will be in a New York courtroom, where the charges were filed.
Meanwhile, Netflix has declined to comment regarding any of the allegations.
And now, it looks like our time is just about up for today, so we’re gonna call it a wrap for the Thursday edition of The Epoch Times News Brief.
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Finally, as we do each day on this program, we wrap everything up with a very notable quote and this one comes to us from Chief Justice John Roberts who said:
“Judges are like umpires. Umpires don’t make the rules. They apply them. The role of an umpire and a judge is critical. They make sure everybody plays by the rules. But it is a limited role. Nobody ever went to a ballgame to see the umpire.”
Roberts is an American jurist serving since 2005 as the 17th chief justice of the United States and he’s also a Harvard Law School graduate from 1979.
For all of us here at The Epoch Times News Brief, I’m Bill Thomas.
The Epoch Times News Brief program is written each day by David Ross.
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Enjoy the remainder of your day and we’ll see you right back here next time for another edition of The Epoch Times News Brief.
For now, it’s imperative that we all continue to watch out for one another and have an absolutely superb day today. Bye for now.
