Morning Briefing: May 5, 2025

By Serdar Dincel

ISTANBUL (AA) - Here is a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Monday, including US President Donald Trump Trump saying he is considering Stephen Miller as national security adviser, ASEAN joining Japan, China and South Korea in warning of global fallout from protectionism, and Israel threatening to attack Yemen, Iran after Houthi missile strike near Ben Gurion Airport.

TOP STORIES

• US President Donald Trump said Sunday that he is considering naming his deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, as national security adviser.

  "I have a lot of people that want the job, I can tell you," he told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding he expects to fill the job within about six months.

  Trump announced Thursday that he was nominating Mike Waltz, whom he removed as national security adviser, as UN ambassador while Secretary of State Marco Rubio would take over Waltz’s duties in an interim role.

  "Stephen Miller is at the top of the totem pole," he said when asked whether he is considering him for the post.

• ASEAN joins Japan, China and South Korea in warning of global fallout from protectionism

Finance ministers and central bank governors of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plus Japan, China and South Korea warned of the potential global economic fallout from protectionist trade policies following an announcement by US President Donald Trump of higher import tariffs.

They met Sunday on the sidelines of the Asian Development Bank's annual meeting in Milan, Italy and reaffirmed their commitment to a rules-based, free, fair and “transparent multilateral trading system,” Kyodo News Agency reported.

"Escalating trade protectionism weighs on global trade, leading to economic fragmentation, affecting trade, investment and capital flows across the region," they said in a joint statement, without mentioning the US by name.

• Israel threatens to attack Yemen, Iran after Houthi missile strike near Ben Gurion Airport

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened Sunday to respond against Yemen and Iran after a Houthi missile struck the grounds of Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, disrupting air traffic.

Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting to discuss more strikes, according to the Israeli Broadcasting Authority KAN.

“(US) President (Donald) Trump is absolutely right! Attacks by the Houthis emanate from Iran. Israel will respond to the Houthi attack against our main airport AND, at a time and place of our choosing, to their Iranian terror masters,” he wrote on X following the meeting.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• Trump said he will extend the deadline for China-based ByteDance to sell the popular video-sharing app TikTok's US assets if no agreement has been reached by June 19.
  
  
• The death toll in southwest China from the capsizing of four tourist boats has risen to nine, with one person still missing, state-run media reported Monday.
  
  
• Trump said he will be an "eight-year president," ending rumors that he is considering a third term.
  
  
• Far-right candidate George Simion won the first round of Romania’s presidential election re-run Sunday by a large margin.
  
  
• Trump announced a 100% tariff on all movies produced outside the country.
  
  
• Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and several Cabinet ministers that expanding the ground offensive in Gaza could result in the loss of Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian group Hamas.
  
  
• Trump confirmed that he offered to send US troops to Mexico to help battle drug cartels.
  
  
• A ship carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza which was attacked by drones in international waters off Malta early Friday remains anchored in international waters while awaiting permission to dock, according to an aid official aboard.
  
  
• Trump said that he is directing agencies to rebuild and reopen Alcatraz prison in San Francisco Bay "to house America’s most ruthless and violent Offenders."
  
  
• The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) warned that its medical services in Gaza face a severe shortage of resources due to Israel’s blockade and ongoing genocide.
  
  
• Armed groups in Damascus began handing over heavy weapons to the Syrian Interior Ministry on Sunday, following an agreement reached between Druze community leaders and government officials.

SPORTS

• Oscar Piastri wins Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix
  
  McLaren's Australian driver Oscar Piastri won the Miami Grand Prix, the 6th round of the 2025 Formula One World Championship, on Sunday.
  
  The race was held over 57 laps at the 5.4-kilometer (3.4-mile) Miami International Autodrome in Miami Gardens, Florida.
  
  Piastri finished with a time of 1 hour 28 minutes 51.587 seconds to achieve his 4th win of the season.
  
  

• Wout Poels of the XDS Astana Team won the 60th Presidential Cycling Tour of Türkiye on Sunday.

  The 37-year-old Dutch cyclist topped the overall general classification lead with a cumulative time of 23 hours, 44 minutes, and 52 seconds, ahead of 161 riders.

  Poels' teammate Harold Martin Lopez ranked second, while Team Picnic PostNL's Guillermo Juan Martinez finished third.