Negotiations for a cease-fire and the release of Israeli hostages have stalled because Hamas rejected the latest proposal put forth by Israel, Qatar and Egypt, the C.I.A. director said Thursday, putting the blame for a lack of progress in talks squarely on the group that led the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Earlier this month, William J. Burns, C.I.A. director …

Peter Murrell, the husband of Scotland’s former first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, was charged on Thursday in connection with embezzlement of funds from the Scottish National Party, which she once led and where he once held a senior position. The announcement, which follows a lengthy inquiry by the Scottish police, is another blow to the party, which controls the Scottish government …

Speaker Mike Johnson’s push to advance an aid package for Ukraine in the face of vehement opposition from his own party was never going to be easy. But it has been made even more politically perilous by a pair of concessions to the far right that he inherited from his predecessor: allowing a single lawmaker to call a snap vote …