Daily Briefing: One more hostage swap planned

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Israel says it will maintain its wartime truce if Hamas keeps freeing hostages. Also in the news: Former first lady Rosalynn Carter will be laid to rest Wednesday in her hometown of Plains, Georgia, and the House is set to vote on Rep. George Santos' expulsion as soon as this afternoon.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. There's a new theory about what happened to the dinosaurs.

Here is the news to know Wednesday.

One more hostage swap planned on final day of truce

Another exchange of civilian hostages and Israeli-held Palestinian prisoners is expected on the sixth day of truce in the Israel-Hamas war. International negotiators are working to extend the cease-fire, which only lasts through Wednesday, and Israel has signaled it is open to continuing the truce as long as Hamas releases 10 hostages a day.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will return to the Middle East this week as the U.S. hopes to find a way to continue the cease-fire. Blinken will "discuss Israel’s right to defend itself" as well as protecting civilian lives and ideals for a post-war Gaza.

Related: A GOP-led committee will ask three college presidents what they're doing about antisemitism.

Newly released Palestinian prisoner Rouba Assi is carried by supporters in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on November 28, 2023.
Newly released Palestinian prisoner Rouba Assi is carried by supporters in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on November 28, 2023.

Former first lady Rosalynn Carter to be laid to rest

Former first lady Rosalynn Carter will be honored by her loved ones and laid to rest on Wednesday in her longtime home of Plains, Georgia. She will be honored in a service at Maranatha Baptist Church, where Jimmy Carter and the former first lady worshipped. The funeral comes a day after Carter’s tribute service in Atlanta, which was attended by President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as well as other former first ladies: Laura Bush, Michelle Obama and Melania Trump. Read more

Former first lady Rosalynn Carter's casket is carried into Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church for a tribute service on November 28, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Former first lady Rosalynn Carter's casket is carried into Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church for a tribute service on November 28, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia.

More news to know now

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House to vote on expelling Santos

Momentum is surging among House lawmakers to expel indicted Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., with the lower chamber voting on whether to boot him as early as Wednesday afternoon − a rare sight in Congress. Santos all but accepted his fate: The Long Island Republican has said he will take his expulsion in stride and “wear it like a badge of honor.” Efforts to expel Santos quickly picked up steam after the House Ethics Committee released a scathing report earlier this month finding substantial evidence Santos broke federal laws and misused his campaign for his personal benefit. Read more

Texas Supreme Court hears case against state's near-total abortion ban

The Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Tuesday for Zurawski v. Texas in Austin, a high-stakes case that will decide whether the state’s abortion ban laws clearly outline the medical exceptions which allow patients to terminate a pregnancy to save their life. The case now has 20 patient and two physician plaintiffs demanding that the state clarify medical exceptions to its near-total abortion ban after they were denied abortions despite severe and dangerous pregnancy complications. Read more

Center for Reproductive Rights attorney Molly Duane and plaintiffs stand outside the Texas Capitol after the Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments for Zurawski v. State of Texas Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023.
Center for Reproductive Rights attorney Molly Duane and plaintiffs stand outside the Texas Capitol after the Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments for Zurawski v. State of Texas Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023.

Keep scrolling

Contradictions in the backdrop of key UN climate talks

This year's United Nations Climate Change Conference known as COP 28 kicks off this Thursday, hosted by the United Arab Emirates. Climate activists have long pointed out the irony of having one of the world's top 10 oil producers host a conference dedicated to reducing carbon emissions, but perceptions of intent matter on the global stage. And on this point, the UAE may have already received a failing grade. According to leaked documents obtained by the Center for Climate Reporting, a nonprofit investigative journalism organization, the UAE is planning to use official meetings at the high profile event to secure up to 15 new fossil fuel deals.

Photo of the day: Workers rescued from collapsed tunnel in India

India’s transportation minister said Tuesday that all 41 construction workers who were trapped in a collapsed mountain tunnel in the country’s north for more than two weeks have been pulled out after rescuers reached them earlier in the day.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com or follow along with her musings on Twitter. Support journalism like this – subscribe to USA TODAY here.

Associated Press contributed reporting.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Israel-Hamas war, Rosalynn Carter, George Santos, abortion, COP28, Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce: Daily Briefing