It was a dramatic scene in downtown Washington on Monday evening, as members of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency entered the U.S. Institute of Peace’s offices in what the independent think tank described as an illegal break-in. USIP CEO George Moose said in a statement that “DOGE has broken into our building.”

DOGE has a different version of events, saying that “the only unlawful individual was Mr. Moose, who refused to comply.” The Washington Times’ Vaughn Cockayne has more on the dispute, including the conflicting accounts of who is actually the president of USIP right now. The White House recently removed most USIP board members, and the new board subsequently appointed Kenneth Jackson, a State Department official, as the new CEO. USIP leaders have refused to accept the firings and have vowed to take the White House to court.

On Tuesday, the White House said in a statement that “rogue bureaucrats will not be allowed to hold agencies hostage.”

As is the case with many of DOGE’s actions, we’re in uncharted territory here. The legal questions center on whether USIP, an independent, nonprofit body established by Congress in 1984, is subject to executive branch oversight. Congress provides its budget in annual spending bills.

The resumption of Israeli military operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip comes as the U.S. seems to again be deepening its own military engagement in the Middle East. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Monday night that the U.S. was consulted by Israel ahead of the Gaza strikes.

And after the U.S. resumed a massive air campaign against Yemen’s Houthi rebels, Mr. Trump on Monday night offered some of his strongest comments to date about Iran, suggesting that America is prepared to take direct military action against Tehran if it continues supporting and bankrolling the Houthi rebel forces, who control the capital of Sanaa and much of the country.

“Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN, and IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire!” the president said on Truth Social, referring to the Houthi attacks on commercial ships in and around the Red Sea. 

Over the weekend, the U.S. also carried out fresh airstrikes targeting Islamic State leaders in Iraq.

Events in Syria over the past several months have unfolded at breakneck speed. And a new pact between the country’s fledgling government and the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces is the latest in what’s been a whirlwind of developments, each with major geopolitical implications.

Correspondents Ahmed Kweidar and Gilgamesh Nabeel have an in-depth dispatch from Damascus about the recent agreement signed by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the head of the Islamist-led rebel force that overthrew President Bashar Assad’s government last year, and SDF commander Mazloum Kobane. The deal calls for the merging of SDF forces into Syrian state institutions, which could be a major step forward in healing a country torn apart by more than a decade of civil war.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed the move, and he reiterated America’s “support for a political transition that demonstrates credible, non-sectarian governance as the best path to avoid further conflict.”

The Kurdish-led SDF has been America’s key ally in the years-long fight against ISIS. The geopolitical dynamics in Syria over the past decade have been among the most complex on the planet, with numerous well-armed stakeholders — from the Assad government and the SDF to the Russians, Turks, Iranians, ISIS and others — all jockeying for power. The merger could add at least a small degree of clarity to the situation.

A ruling from South Korea’s Constitutional Court is expected this week on the fate of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, who faces insurrection charges after a short-lived attempt to declare martial law last December.

Asia Editor Andrew Salmon is tracking the latest developments in Seoul, and the fears that protests could turn violent no matter the court’s decision. Security officials seem to be preparing for the worst: Police have established barriers around the Constitutional Court, an epicenter of recent demonstrations. Police also said that the day of the ruling will be an “Emergency Level 1” event, meaning all officers’ leave will be canceled and the entire force will be ready, Mr. Salmon reports.

Last week, officials announced that 14,000 officers — more than 10% of South Korea’s national force — will be deployed to Seoul on the day a verdict is delivered, though it’s not clear what day that will be.

Mr. Salmon has much more on the situation, including why it’s taking so long for the court to announce its decision.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has come under fire from critics for his moves to replace top lawyers across military services. But some uniformed service members say it’s long past time for such a move.

Air Force Lt. Col. Christopher T. Stein, a career military lawyer, makes that case in a new piece for The Times. He argues that Mr. Hegseth’s shake-up represents a “paradigm shift” in Judge Advocate General’s Corps across the services, turning them into “leaner” operations with less bureaucracy.

Col. Stein also says that JAG lawyers in recent years had become too bogged down in controversial political and social issues inside the military. The Trump administration’s push to purge diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, programs from the military seems to have been a driving force behind the legal changes.

“When JAGs are seen as partisan collaborators or mere bureaucratic rubber stamps, it erodes faith in the corps and the military it serves,” Col. Stein writes. “A truly independent JAG Corps does not reflexively implement shifting partisan political agendas. It upholds the Constitution, applies the law with integrity and ensures commanders can execute their missions without improper interference.”

• March 17-19 — 2025 ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit, ARPA-E

• March 19 — Strategic Japan 2025: Norms in New Technological Domains, Center for Strategic and International Studies

• March 20 — What’s next for U.S. defense strategy and spending? Brookings Institution 

• March 25 — Building America’s Missile Defense Shield, The Heritage Foundation

• March 26 — Bending the Defense Cost Curve, Hudson Institute 

• March 27 — Software-defined Warfare Blueprint, Atlantic Council