News Wrap: Israel orders Palestinians to leave Gaza City as it ramps up strikes

Geoff Bennett:

Israel is ordering all Palestinians to leave Gaza City in the north as Israel's military steps up airstrikes.

Dozens have died in a wave of Israeli attacks, even as U.S., Egyptian and Qatari negotiators meet with Israeli officials in Qatar for cease-fire talks.

John Yang has the story.

John Yang:

Across Gaza today, mourning for loved ones. Community members pray, and a father, Nael Hussein, weeps and trembles while holding the lifeless body of his son, Odai.

"How many have gone?" he says. "How many have died?" Odai was killed yesterday in an Israeli airstrike on the Bureij refugee camp, just one of several during a deadly 24-hours in Gaza. Caught on eyewitness video, another attack late yesterday outside of a school near Khan Yunis where displaced people were sheltering.

One moment, boys play are playing soccer in the school yard. The next, they're running for their lives. At the scene today, witness Ghazal Nasser said the attack came without warning.

Ghazal Nasser, Witness (through interpreter):

Everything was normal. People were playing. Suddenly, a rocket fell over there. Everyone started running. I witnessed this, people thrown around and body parts were scattered, blood.

John Yang:

Hospital officials say at least 29 people were killed, most of them women and children. The IDF says they were targeting a member of Hamas who took part in the October 7 attacks on Israel.

It comes amid the ongoing push for a cease-fire deal. Today in Jerusalem, U.S. Mideast envoy Brett McGurk met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And in Doha, Qatar, CIA Director Bill Burns met with Egyptian, Qatari, and Israeli negotiators.

But on the ground in Gaza, fighting goes on. Today, Israel ordered all Palestinians in Gaza City to move south, perhaps in preparation for a renewed offensive there against Hamas. It all adds uncertainty to the prospect of reaching a cease-fire agreement.

Earlier this week, Hamas said that new Israeli escalations could have disastrous repercussions on negotiations.

For the PBS "NewsHour," I'm John Yang.

Geoff Bennett:

Also today, what's left of Hurricane Beryl is pushing farther north, bringing severe thunderstorms across the Midwest, and at least one tornado.

The storm tore down trees and ripped off roofs in Indiana, and drenched places like East Lansing, Michigan, with heavy rains and flash floods. In Texas, where Beryl made landfall on Monday, nearly 1.7 million homes and businesses are still without electricity. No power means no air conditioning and no refrigeration.

And with the heat and humidity near Houston hitting up to 106 degrees, some residents there are growing desperate.

Erica Robinson, Houston, Texas, Resident:

I'm about to lose the resources that I have and I'm about to lose all the energy that I have trying to survive.

Geoff Bennett:

Dangerous heat spans the country, coast to coast, but especially out West. the high temperatures are in responsible for at least eight deaths in Oregon. And in Las Vegas, temperatures have posted a record fifth straight day above 115 degrees.

Lawyers in Alec Baldwin's involuntary manslaughter trial delivered their opening arguments today. The 66-year-old actor sat at the defense table, as prosecutors argued that he — quote — "violated the cardinal rules of firearm safety" when a gun he was holding went off during rehearsals for the film "Rust."

The movie's cinematographer was killed. Baldwin's lawyers countered that the film's safety experts were to blame, saying he — quote — "committed no crime. He was an actor acting." If convicted, Baldwin faces up to 18 months in prison. He has pleaded not guilty.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today that F-16 jets will be flying in the skies of Ukraine this summer. That comes after a joint statement from the U.S., Dutch, and Danish governments saying that the transfer of jets to Kyiv is finally under way.

Meantime, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been making the rounds on Capitol Hill, drumming up support for his country's military effort. He's in town for the ongoing NATO summit. Earlier, he used his daily video address to say more deals are on the way.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President (through interpreter):

There will also be two new security agreements. These agreements include support for sanctions against Russia, support for our accession to the E.U. and NATO, support for our defense, our soldiers, all our people, and reconstruction. All of this is taken into account in the security agreements exactly as needed.

Geoff Bennett:

As NATO leaders gathered in Washington to mark the 75th anniversary of the alliance, U.S. and European officials said today that Ukraine is on a — quote — "irreversible path to membership." But Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg added that its too early to say exactly when that will happen.

The House of Representatives today passed a bill that would ban noncitizens from voting in federal elections. That's already illegal. Today's measure would make states require that people present documents in person to prove they are a U.S. citizen during voter registration. It also calls for states to remove noncitizens from voter rolls.

The bill passed with almost entirely Republican support. It comes amid unsubstantiated claims from former President Donald Trump that people who crossed the border illegally could cast ballots. It'll likely hit a dead end in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

On Wall Street today, markets rose across the board. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped more than 400 points to close within sight of that 40,000-point level. The Nasdaq posted its seventh straight record close, adding more than 200 points, and the S&P 500 ended above 5600 for the first time ever.

And an update now on a longer-than-expected trip to space. Two astronauts who should have returned to Earth weeks ago expressed optimism today that Boeing and NASA will bring them back safely. Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore were the first to ride Boeing's Starliner capsule to the International Space Station early last month.

Their test flight was supposed to last eight days, but a number of leaks and thruster issues delayed their trip back home. Engineers are still testing the spacecraft, but the pair remains optimistic.

Suni Williams, Starliner Test Flight Astronaut:

I feel confident that, if we had to, if there was a problem with the International Space Station, we can get in our spacecraft and we can undock, talk to our team, and figure out the best way to come home. Yes, we've — like I said, we have practiced a lot, so I have a feeling, I have a real good feeling in my heart that the spacecraft will bring us home, no problem.

Geoff Bennett:

Boeing hopes this test mission will lead to regular astronaut flights following the recent success of its competitor, SpaceX.