What happened

President Donald Trump has approved a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia that could open the door to uranium enrichment inside the kingdom, The Wall Street Journal first reported Tuesday night. The 30-year agreement is “designed to give American companies a central role” in developing Saudi Arabia’s civilian nuclear infrastructure, the Journal said. But it’s “certain to prove controversial” among U.S. allies and lawmakers opposed to the “spread of nuclear technology in the volatile Middle East.”

Who said what

The nuclear cooperation agreement “has been under discussion for years,” The New York Times said. Trump dropped a Biden administration stipulation that the Saudis first normalize relations with Israel, and to “get the deal done with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman,” he “had to agree to terms that may limit international inspectors” from visiting sites “they think could be a pathway to diverting fuel to weapons projects.” Bin Salman has vowed to build nuclear weapons if Iran does.

The White House argues that the U.S. role “would ensure enrichment remains peaceful,” the Journal said. But if the Saudis can enrich uranium, so “goes the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Egypt,” Henry Sokolski of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center told the Journal. “The idea that this will have a happy ending is delusional.”

What next?

U.S. and Saudi officials are expected to sign the accord on Wednesday.

What happened

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told a Senate committee on Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s Iran war had cost an estimated $37.5 billion so far, and that the $67 billion in supplemental war funding he was requesting is an “urgent, necessary” stopgap as Congress debates Trump’s $1.5 trillion annual Pentagon budget request. Hegseth faced “fiery questions” during the “combative Senate Appropriations Committee hearing,” The Associated Press said. And the scrutiny was “bipartisan,” The Washington Post said, as “frustrated lawmakers” pressed him to “explain the Trump administration’s strategy for the war” amid “renewed hostilities.”

Who said what

Hegseth’s appearance “represented an attempt by the administration to sell the unpopular conflict as a necessary expense,” Politico said. But Senate Democrats “questioned both the success of the war so far and the need for more military money, citing $75 billion in unused funds” from last year’s huge GOP-only spending package. “The problem is not a lack of money, but poor planning,” Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) told Hegseth. “This war is now spiraling out of control again,” and Trump is “asking for $70 billion more — and for us to just trust him it’ll all work out fine.”

What next?

The House plans to quit Washington on Thursday “for a month-long recess,” the Post said, “leaving any deal on military funding weeks away at the earliest.”

What happened

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday dismissed the country’s top military commander, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, and replaced him with Maj. Gen. Mykhailo Drapatyi. The switch “comes amid ongoing mass protests” that erupted across Ukraine after Zelenskyy’s ouster last week of “popular reformist” Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who had clashed with Syrskyi, The Kyiv Independent said.

Demonstrators said Zelenskyy should have sacked Syrskyi instead when he picked sides in the dispute. Drapatyi, the widely respected commander of day-to-day combat operations, had publicly backed Fedorov.

Who said what

Fedorov had “emphasized the strategic importance of new military technology, particularly drones,” CNN said, and his “six-month tenure as defense minister coincided with Ukraine’s recent success on the battlefield” and in damaging Russia. Syrskyi, by contrast, was widely seen as a “Soviet-school commander reluctant to implement radical changes in the army,” the BBC said.

As the protests swelled, “it became clear” that for many Ukrainians, Fedorov “embodied a tech-driven path to victory that might spare lives,” while “Syrskyi had come to represent the darkest, most punishing realities” of the war, The New York Times said. The clash of visions fueled “concerns that the national unity that had helped the country survive nearly five years of war was in danger of fracturing.”

What next?

After meeting with Fedorov on Tuesday, Zelenskyy “offered him what he called a respected position in the government,” The Associated Press said. It “wasn’t clear if Fedorov accepted,” but he congratulated Drapatyi, calling his promotion a “new hope in the fight of free people for freedom and justice.”

What happened

Former Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham took office Monday as the United Kingdom’s seventh prime minister in 10 years, vowing that his government would be a “circuit breaker” after a series of “wrong turns” by successive leaders since the 1980s. “I know people at home are fed up with politics,” Burnham said in a speech outside No. 10 Downing Street shortly after King Charles III officially appointed him prime minister following Keir Starmer’s resignation. “We need to be better. We will be.”

Who said what

Burnham “wasted no time” showing there’s “much more to him than the friendly, folksy image he’s cultivated in public by swiftly banishing Keir Starmer’s closest allies from the Cabinet,” Politico said. The “biggest surprise” was Burnham’s appointment of former defense secretary John Healey as chancellor of the exchequer, putting the U.K. Treasury in a “safe pair of hands” as he moves to decentralize power from London, re-industrialize the country and unwind the privatization of key utilities. The new prime minister also named Ed Miliband as foreign secretary and kept Shabana Mahmood as home secretary, signaling he’s “largely backing her efforts to crack down on legal and illegal migration,” The New York Times said.

What next?

Burnham said he was working on a 10-year plan for Britain and on Tuesday would unveil some initial measures “to give people some breathing space now, some help with the cost of living.” He also pledged to end “rough sleeping,” or homelessness.

What happened

A federal judge in California on Monday paused Paramount’s $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, agreeing with 12 states that the merger of two of Hollywood’s remaining five major movie studios could run afoul of antitrust laws. The combined company would also amalgamate CBS, CNN, HBO Max, Paramount+ and dozens of cable channels. The “pause will last only 14 days,” said The New York Times. But in her ruling, U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín “raised the prospect of a much longer delay.”

Who said what

California Attorney General Rob Bonta, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, hailed the ruling as a “critical first win in our case to ensure this megamerger never sees the light of day,” he said in a statement. Paramount said the lawsuit’s “antitrust arguments are without merit” and it would “vigorously defend” its “lawful, pro-competitive” merger. Along with the dozen states, the merger is being challenged in court by a group of consumers, the Writers Guild of America and Paramount shareholders.

What next?

Martínez-Olguín said in her order she would consider issuing a longer injunction at an Aug. 3 hearing. Any lengthy delay in the merger, which had been set to be completed as soon as Tuesday, would “have huge financial costs for Paramount,” NPR said. Starting Oct. 1, it has to pay Warner shareholders “roughly $650 million for every 90 days the deal is set back.”

What happened

President Donald Trump on Monday signed proclamations imposing 50% tariffs on a wide range of Canadian imports, claiming that America’s second-largest trading partner has unfairly discriminated against U.S. cars, alcohol and dairy products. The tariffs, set to take effect in 30 days, rely on Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which has never been used to levy import duties and is untested in court. Some products, like energy, would be exempt, but the new tax will apply to goods that comply with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement, the White House said in a fact sheet.

Who said what

The new tariffs “could unleash a new wave of economic chaos, with risks of higher inflation and further fraying of relations” with Canada, The Associated Press said. A senior administration official “said that Canada was one of the only nations other than China that retaliated against Trump’s previous tariffs and must be held accountable.” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that “Canada, as is its right,” had “merely matched” Trump’s tariffs, but his country “stands ready to engage intensively” to address a “trade dispute” that “has raised costs for families, particularly in the U.S.”

What next?

The new tariffs would apply to nearly $20 billion of Canadian goods, the White House said, or roughly 5.2% of Canadian imports last year. But Trump’s “invocation of 338 is the nuclear option,” threatening all U.S. trading partners and injecting “massive uncertainty” into the global economy, Cato Institute economist Scott Lincicome said to the AP. “We crossed the Rubicon.”

What happened

U.S. Marshals arrested controversial “manosphere” influencers Andrew and Tristan Tate in Florida on Saturday after British prosecutors said they had filed 38 new criminal charges against the brothers. Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service said the Tates, who are dual U.S.-British citizens, now face a total of 59 charges, including rape, assault, sex trafficking and offenses relating to “indecent images of a child.” They were arrested “pursuant to extradition proceedings,” a U.S. Marshals Service spokesperson told NPR.

Who said what

The arrest of the Tate brothers, whose “social media empire” promotes “wealth, male dominance and misogyny,” puts the U.S. “at the center of an international legal saga,” The Associated Press said. In 2024, British police “secured European arrest warrants for the pair to have them returned from Romania, where they are based and are under criminal investigation,” the BBC said. But after what Romania said was intervention from the Trump administration, the Tates were allowed to fly to Florida last year.

What next?

The brothers are expected to appear before a magistrate judge in Miami on Monday. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will make the “ultimate decision” about whether to order their extradition, the AP said, but the State Department has “granted nearly every British request since ratifying a strengthened extradition treaty in 2007.”

What happened

Spain beat defending champions Argentina 1-0 on Sunday to win its second World Cup title, with Ferran Torres scoring the decisive goal in the 106th minute. Spanish captain Rodri was crowned the Golden Ball winner as best player, while goalkeeper Unai Simón won the Golden Glove after conceding just one goal during Spain’s eight games. The Golden Boot went to France’s Kylian Mbappé, whose 10 goals in the tournament edged out the eight scored by Argentinian star Lionel Messi.

Who said what

Spain was so good, not even an “absolute icon” like Messi “had any answers” amid its “airtight defense,” The Associated Press said. Messi “has put in some of the great World Cup performances,” The Athletic said, but his final international match “was not even within a million miles of being one of them,” and “Argentina had nothing else.” Only a “near-perfect game” by Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez “kept this from being a laugher,” Nancy Armour said at USA Today.

What next?

President Donald Trump, who was “loudly booed as he entered the field after the match” to hand out medals, is “already seeking an opportunity to host” the next World Cup, The Washington Post said. But the 2030 men’s tournament “will be primarily co-hosted by Morocco, Portugal and Spain, and Saudi Arabia is widely expected to host the 2034 competition.” Next year’s Women’s World Cup is in Brazil.

What happened

The U.S. military early Monday morning completed a ninth consecutive night of airstrikes on Iranian targets, and Iran again fired missiles and drones at Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. The Pentagon said a U.S. service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday during the “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone, and human remains were found at a military base in Jordan hit by Iranian strikes last week. That attack killed two U.S. troops, and if the remains are confirmed to be a soldier missing since the strikes, the U.S. death toll from the Iran war will be 18. Iran said U.S. strikes had killed at least 50 people since a ceasefire collapsed this month.

Who said what

The U.S. hit Iran “very hard again” throughout the night “in honor of” the “great patriots” killed, Trump told reporters. “We feel very badly,” but “those great people” were “fighting that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.” Iran has been “stepping up” its strikes on Jordan “as it seeks to produce American casualties and deter Washington from escalating its test of wills with Tehran,” The Wall Street Journal said.

What next?

“Even larger American attacks may be coming” as “more U.S. warplanes head to the Middle East,” the Journal said. “The U.S. is planning for a wider war,” a U.S. official told The Washington Post, but with dwindling munitions stockpiles and growing battle damage, “we do not have enough to safely sustain operations, and I don’t think the White House is aware of that.”

What happened

U.S. health officials have linked an ongoing cyclosporiasis outbreak to iceberg lettuce from Mexico that was sent to Taco Bell locations across five states. The supplier has not been officially named, but “two individuals familiar with the inquiry” told The Washington Post the company is Taylor Farms. At least 1,645 cases of the parasitic infection, which can cause explosive diarrhea, have been confirmed as of Friday, most of them in Michigan.

Who said what

“Do not eat shredded iceberg lettuce from Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia,” the CDC said in a statement. Taco Bell itself has “taken immediate action” to “indefinitely” remove the lettuce from its nationwide supply chain, the company said in a press release.

What next?

The FDA said it had “increased screening at the border” for the “implicated” products and is working with the supplier to figure out if any contaminated lettuce remains on the market. Taylor Farms is “one of the largest producers of fresh lettuce and vegetables in the country,” serving many leading restaurant chains, The New York Times said. “Additional implicated brands, restaurants, retailers, or distribution channels” may yet emerge, the FDA warned.

What happened

President Donald Trump repeated his longstanding grievances about the security of the American voting system in a primetime speech Thursday. The president claimed, without evidence, that mail-in ballots are “inherently corrupt”; voting machines are “easily compromised”; China interfered with the 2020 elections; and 278,000 non-citizens registered to vote. He called on Congress to pass the SAVE America Act, a bill that would severely tighten ID rules for voters.

Who said what

These “unsubstantiated claims” are based on “incomplete” data with “no underlying evidence,” Bloomberg said. “All we got is more rehashed, debunked conspiracy theories,” David Becker of The Center for Election Innovation & Research told CBS News. The speech comes as Republicans are “facing the prospect of losing one or both chambers of Congress in ​November,” Reuters said.

What next?

The SAVE America Act “lacks the necessary support” to clear the Senate, NBC News said, but House Republicans want to “force the bill through” without Democratic support by weaving parts of it into a new reconciliation bill. It’s “far from clear” this legislation “will have enough support to pass,” The New York Times said.

What happened

Canadian wildfires have sent “massive plumes” of smoke “pouring over the border” into the U.S., CNN said. The combination of wildfires in Ontario and a “heat dome in the central U.S. spells smoky trouble,” with dangerous air quality for “more than 120 million people in the Midwest and Northeast.”

Who said what

In cities including Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Minneapolis and Toronto, air quality readings “surged to levels so dangerous” that one public health expert warned “nobody should spend time outside,” The New York Times said. Sensors across the upper Midwest on Thursday recorded the “worst air quality in North America,” with Chicago reportedly having the worst in the world.

The smoke “arrived in force,” National Weather Service Meteorologist Steven Freitag told The Associated Press. “It’s really pretty extreme levels.” And air in coastal cities like New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., was also at “unhealthy levels,” said the Times.

What next?

The Midwest could “face weeks to months of continued smoke and flare-ups,” depending on wind patterns, said Brent Williams, the head of the University of Minnesota’s Soil, Water and Climate Department, to the AP. Republican lawmakers have meanwhile “threatened punitive action against Canada,” accusing its government of “mismanaging the wildfires,” said the Times. “I will be introducing a bill next week to sanction Canada and the responsible Canadian government officials for this atrocity,” said Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) on X.

What happened

More than 100 wildfires are burning out of control in Canada this week, sending plumes of smoke south across the border to blanket parts of the Northeast and Midwest and turning skies orange. Poor air quality triggered health warnings across multiple states including New York, Michigan and Massachusetts. In Canada, Toronto’s air quality briefly registered as the worst of any city in the world.

Who said what

The “primary health concern” with wildfire smoke is fine particulate matter, which can “bypass the body’s defenses” when inhaled, Canadian physician Dr. Farhan M. Asrar said at The Conversation. The “best thing to do” is to keep a close eye on the air quality in your area, Heatmap News said. This summer’s wildfire activity in Canada is “nowhere near the hyperactivity of 2023,” CNN said, but “planet-heating fossil fuel pollution is increasing the chance of prolonged smoke seasons.”

What next?

Forecasters expect air quality to remain poor across the Midwest and Northeast on Thursday and possibly Friday. It’s “too early to determine the weekend outlook,” The Wall Street Journal said.

What happened

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Wednesday that the Pentagon will introduce testosterone screenings for soldiers over the age of 30. The screenings will be available to troops under 30 by request, and any soldier found to have lower testosterone levels will have the option to undergo hormone treatment. The new policy is designed so soldiers “have the right testosterone levels to operate at” their “absolute best,” Hegseth said in a video on X captioned “The High-T Department of War.”

Who said what

The secretary’s messaging “blends known science” on testosterone with “broader and less substantiated claims,” The Associated Press said. The new policy shows the secretary “takes direction from the far corners of the manosphere,” Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.), an Air Force veteran, told the AP. Hegseth “did not address” whether the “thousands” of women who “serve in frontline combat roles” would also be “subjected to hormone testing,” Politico said.

What next?

The screenings will be “conducted annually as part of service members’ periodic health assessments,” said Task & Purpose. But Hegseth has not disclosed when the screenings will begin.

What happened

Todd Blanche, President Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general, faced five hours of intense questioning on Wednesday from both Democratic and Republican lawmakers during his confirmation hearing. GOP Sen. John Cornyn of Texas “raised serious questions” about Blanche’s involvement in creating a now-defunct $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund for Trump’s allies, The New York Times said. Democrats “seized on” his oversight of the Justice Department’s “sloppy redactions” in its release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, The Washington Post said. At one point Blanche, currently the acting attorney general, accidentally said he was the president’s lawyer, a “job he had earlier in his career,” Politico said.

Who said what

“President Trump trusts me to give him counsel,” Blanche told Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.). “Counsel does not mean I’m a yes man.” Democrats on ⁠the Judiciary Committee are united in their opposition to Blanche’s appointment, so “even one Republican committee vote against him would be enough to sink the nomination,” the Post said. “I continue to have some concerns,” Cornyn told reporters afterwards. Blanche’s gaffe about still being Trump’s lawyer “could haunt him,” Politico said.

What next?

Several witnesses are expected to testify Thursday about Blanche’s character, including Epstein accuser Liz Oyer, whom Blanche fired from her post as DOJ pardon attorney. The Senate Judiciary Committee could vote on Blanche’s confirmation as early as July 30. Committee chair Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said “he’ll be confirmed probably the last week before we go on August recess.”

What happened

China on Tuesday reported “one of its lowest quarterly growth rates in decades,” the Financial Times said. From April to June, the world’s second-largest economy grew just 4.3% compared to the same period last year — below economists’ projections of 4.5% and down from 5% growth in the first quarter.

Who said what

This is a “rare admission of economic weakness for China,” CNN said. Despite “surging exports buoyed by the AI boom,” the country still faces a “weak domestic economy and sluggish consumer spending,” The Wall Street Journal said. “Tensions with trade partners, including the U.S. and the European Union,” also remain, CNBC said. Focusing heavily on exports while domestic demand falters is “really quite unsustainable, to be frank,” Alicia Garcia-Herrero, an economist with financial firm Natixis, told CNN.

What next?

Such “disappointing growth” is likely to fuel calls for government stimulus measures, “including a policy rate cut,” CNBC said. The ruling Communist Party’s policymaking body meets later this month and the “extent of the slowdown will likely dominate the agenda,” said Bloomberg.

What happened

Health officials are investigating whether restaurant chain Taco Bell “played a role” in the ongoing multistate outbreak of cyclosporiasis, The Washington Post said Tuesday. The foodborne parasitic infection can cause explosive diarrhea and is suspected to have sickened nearly 7,000 people across at least 34 states.

Who said what

Salad greens could be a “potential source for this outbreak,” Michigan’s health department said in a statement. But no “specific food item” has yet been confirmed as the culprit, said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The public is “largely flying blind” about what foods to avoid, CBS News said. Taco Bell said it has started “voluntarily and temporarily” removing some ingredients from select restaurants “as a precautionary measure.”

What next?

Taco Bell said it will continue to “closely monitor the situation and follow the guidance of public health authorities.” The CDC is analyzing lab data “to find a signal connecting the cases,” said Gwen Biggerstaff, deputy director of the CDC’s division of foodborne, waterborne and environmental diseases. Reports of new cyclosporiasis infections will likely continue through August, she added.

What happened

The Trump administration on Tuesday ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to suspend most vehicle stops after two fatal shootings by federal officers in the past week. The deaths of Johan Sebastian Duran Guerrero in Maine and Lorenzo Salgado ⁠Araujo in Texas “brought to at least seven the number of people shot dead” during ICE enforcement operations since January 2025, Reuters said. An unnamed 28-year-old Mexican national also died Tuesday in Florida after being struck by a tractor-trailer while reportedly fleeing ICE agents.

Who said what

“In the United States, in 2026, whether someone runs or complies with ICE, death is a very real possible outcome,” Florida Immigrant Coalition spokesperson Adriana Rivera said. Pausing vehicle stops “could hamper the agency’s ability to increase arrests,” said The New York Times, at a time when ICE faces “increasing pressure to deliver on the president’s promise of mass deportations.” The pause applies solely to ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations and “not Homeland Security Investigations, which primarily handles criminal investigations,” CBS News said.

What next?

The stoppage is expected to be temporary while ERO officers “receive additional training on vehicle-stop tactics,” CBS News said. President Donald Trump also contradicted the stoppage, saying the stops should continue. “We CANNOT give up one of ICE’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!” he wrote on social media.

Counter-terrorism police are investigating whether left-wing, anarchist and single-issue terrorism (LASIT) was behind the killing of former Conservative minister and Reform UK spokesperson Ann Widdecombe. Detectives are examining whether hostility towards Widdecombe’s outspoken views or a general opposition to Reform may have motivated the attack. The ​inquiry is also looking into the​ suspect’s mental health history.

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, the head of counter-terrorism policing, said investigators were seeking to understand “the planning and preparation, and the motivation that sits behind the attack”. He added: “I don’t want to rule out anything,” when asked whether Reform had been targeted. Taylor confirmed that police had been granted an extra seven days in which to question the suspect.

This is a “complex investigation” with “multiple lines of inquiry”, said Rozina Sabur and Martin Evans in The Telegraph. Specialist counter-terrorism teams are reportedly working through leads “at pace”.

Yesterday John Woodcock, a former government adviser on political violence, echoed Nigel Farage’s call for greater protection for politicians, urging Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to establish security buffers around MPs’ constituency offices and surgeries.

He has a point, said The Times’s editorial board. “In this increasingly perilous time, criteria for granting protection to politicians, inside and outside parliament, must be more flexible. More bodyguards, more cameras: these cost money. But if that is the price of democracy, then so be it.”

What happened

The price of oil has jumped nearly 10% following renewed violence in the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude futures climbed to $83 a barrel Monday, marking the “largest daily percentage gain since May 2020,” The Wall Street Journal said. The U.S. military launched its third straight night of attacks against Iran Monday night; Iran responded by striking two United Arab Emirates tankers.

Who said what

The new attacks “signaled a return to open conflict” in the region less than a month after the two nations agreed to a ceasefire, The New York Times said. They follow President Donald Trump’s social media declaration that the U.S. is “reinstating THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE,” and will take over the strait, charging a 20% fee for secure passage. That would “be a major new tax on global energy flows and would drive up the cost of the world’s oil and gas,” The Washington Post said.

What next?

The blockade goes into effect Tuesday at 4 p.m. Eastern time. Oil markets are facing a new reality, the Journal said, as the Strait of Hormuz is “no longer expected to return to a prewar norm.”

What happened

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) on Monday appointed Darline Graham Nordone, the younger sister of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R), to serve the rest of her late brother’s term in the Senate following his unexpected death this weekend. Her appointment “comes with the support of President Donald Trump,” who had “recommended Graham’s sister to the Republican governor,” said CNN.

Who said what

“Lindsey has always been there for me,” said Graham Nordone at a press conference with McMaster. “Now I will be there for him.” She has “largely kept out of the public eye” and has “not previously held elected office,” said Fox News.

Her appointment comes after “several prominent South Carolina Republicans” have “expressed interest in running for the seat,” said The Washington Post. That group includes Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, as well as Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, “all of whom lost the competitive gubernatorial primary last month.”

What next?

Graham’s death launches a “sprint primary election to replace him on the November ballot,” said CNN. “At this point,” said Fox, it’s “unclear” if his sister will run for the full term.

What happened

A federal judge on Monday accused President Donald Trump of attempting to “manipulate the judicial process” when he sued the IRS for $10 billion in January over his leaked tax returns. Trump eventually struck a deal with the Justice Department that granted him immunity from tax audits and created the now-defunct $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund for his allies. But Monday’s ruling from U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams bars him, his family and his lawyers from citing the deal in future legal proceedings, potentially voiding Trump’s tax immunity. Williams also suggested that Trump’s legal team in the case, including Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, should be sanctioned.

Who said what

Trump’s lawsuit was clearly “an attempt to use the court to provide some legitimacy to an agreement to confer immunity to people and entities affiliated with the president,” Williams wrote in her ruling. A group of 35 former judges who pushed Williams to examine the case called her ruling a “resounding victory for the rule of law.”

But it’s “unclear” whether the ruling’s restrictions “could practically limit the tax protections it laid out for Trump and his family,” The Washington Post said. A Justice Department spokesperson accused Williams of being a “partisan judge,” and insisted Trump and his family were “victims of admitted violations of law.”

What next?

Although its “practical impacts” may be limited, the decision still “amounts to a scathing rebuke,” The Associated Press said. It also “tees up a politically uncomfortable line of questioning” for Blanche, who faces the Senate Judiciary Committee for his confirmation hearing this week.

Counter Terrorism Policing is now in charge of the probe into the death of Ann Widdecombe after detectives said fresh evidence had emerged. A 28-year-old man from Rotherham, already in custody on suspicion of murder, has now also been arrested in relation to possible terrorism offences.

The investigation’s change of direction has prompted criticism of Devon and Cornwall Police, which had previously said there was no indication that the killing was politically motivated or terrorism related. Among new details now being reported is the fact that a video tour of Widdecombe’s remote home in Devon had aired on television a week before she was found dead there.

Jonathan Hall KC, the government’s independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, has questioned the force’s earlier public statements, saying police should have kept “an open mind” and that they had potentially “broken one of the golden rules of investigations”.

Reform UK figures, including Nigel Farage and Richard Tice, have accused critics of dismissing concerns too quickly.

“Emotions over this appalling event have been exacerbated by a dearth of clear information and the rapidly changing story surrounding Miss Widdecombe’s killing,” said The Telegraph. “Conspiracy theorists thrive on obfuscation.”

Detectives are continuing to investigate the suspect’s alleged movements and possible motive. The Home Office has also offered to speak with Farage about security arrangements for political figures.

What happened

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) revealed Sunday that a fall at his Washington home last month led to a hospital stay. His announcement ends a “weekslong silence” that had “spurred speculation about his condition,” The Wall Street Journal said.

The 84-year-old senator said he briefly lost consciousness after the incident but did not break any bones or suffer a concussion, stroke, heart attack or other serious injury. He was later diagnosed with a mild case of pneumonia.

Who said what

McConnell acknowledged the delay in explaining his condition, saying in a statement that “folks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes with growing older.” McConnell’s injuries were “minor” and he “responded rapidly” to pneumonia treatment, his attending physician said. The Kentucky senator “has faced a string of health concerns in recent years that have caused some to question his ability to serve in the legislature,” The Hill said.

What next?

McConnell said he remains focused on completing his Senate work before retiring when his current term ends in January.

What happened

The U.S. military on Sunday night conducted a fresh wave of airstrikes against Iranian targets as retaliatory attacks between the two nations increase. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed responsibility for attacks on a U.S. refueling facility at the Omani port of Duqm, as well as attacks on American bases in Qatar and Jordan. Tehran also said it had shut the Strait of Hormuz and struck commercial vessels transiting the strategic waterway. The latest exchange follows fresh U.S. airstrikes on 140 Iranian military targets.

Who said what

Iran accused the U.S. of undermining diplomatic efforts, saying American attacks had “rendered futile” recent negotiations. The two nations have “traded fire and recriminations,” said The New York Times. Both have accused the other of violating the terms of the ceasefire and “leaving the region suspended between war and peace.” As the war “heats up” again, CNN said, U.S. weapon stocks “remain significantly depleted,” risking the military’s “ability to fight” any “future war.”

What next?

In a televised statement, Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not been seen since the Feb. 28 death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said that “vengeance” for his father’s killing “is the will of our nation and must certainly be carried out”.

What happened

The death of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Saturday has triggered uncertainty over the future of his South Carolina seat and created fresh challenges for a party with a narrow Senate majority. Graham died at age 71, following a “brief and sudden illness,” according to his office, with preliminary findings from the Washington, D.C., medical examiner indicating a ruptured aorta.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) is expected to appoint a temporary replacement, while the state prepares for a special Republican primary to choose a new candidate for November’s midterm election. The winner will face Democratic nominee Annie Andrews.

Who said what

President Donald Trump already has someone in mind as a temporary replacement, but “I don’t want to say it now because it just, you know, it’s too soon with Lindsey,” he told “Meet the Press.” Graham’s death might not have any “short-term impact on the overall balance of power in the Senate,” CNN said, but he was a “key player on major issues in the chamber.” He would have been an “outspoken advocate for additional defense funding amid the Iran war.”

Without Graham, the president is deprived of “one of his most effective Capitol Hill operators,” Politico said. And his death leaves Senate Republicans “without one of their strongest links to the White House.”

What next?

The special Republican primary is slated for Aug. 11. South Carolina “leans heavily conservative,” so the next nominee “would have a strong chance of becoming the state’s next senator,” The New York Times said.

Detectives investigating the killing of politician Ann Widdecombe say they have not reached any conclusions about why she was attacked despite the arrest of a 28-year-old in South Yorkshire.

The suspect, a white British man, was detained in Rotherham on Saturday evening. Police say they are not currently seeking any other suspects.

Officers believe that the 78-year-old former Conservative MP, and later Reform UK spokesperson, suffered fatal injuries during an assault at her Dartmoor home at about 12.30pm last Wednesday. The suspect is believed to have driven nearly 300 miles to her home with a “wooden pole” on the morning of her death, said The Telegraph.

“We are aware of online and public speculation, particularly with regards to motive,” said Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman. “I urge people not to share or engage with that speculation. It’s unhelpful.”

An earlier police statement suggesting that there was no political motivation followed an intervention by Nigel Farage, who travelled to Widdecombe’s address when news of her death broke and told reporters that “from what I make out, this was premeditated murder”. The Reform UK leader “has been accused of exploiting the murder” for “political propaganda”, said The Times.

Police said the investigation remained at an early stage and that more than 120 pieces of information had already been submitted by the public. Detectives are continuing to appeal for anyone with relevant details to come forward.

What happened

The Bayeux Tapestry, a wool-on-linen depiction of the Norman conquest of Anglo-Saxon England in 1066, arrived in London this morning after a secret journey from France. It’s the first time the Medieval artwork has returned to Britain since its creation nearly 1,000 years ago.

The high-security, “dead of night” delivery to the British Museum was “like a heist movie in reverse,” The Associated Press said.

Who said what

The Bayeux Tapestry is an “epic depiction” of the defeat of King Harold II at the Battle of Hastings, the BBC said. It was the last successful conquest of England and it “changed everything, reshaping the country entirely.” When French President Emmanuel Macron “offered us the tapestry, I think he understood that it would have far more impact in the U.K.,” Peter Ricketts, the retired British diplomat who helped secure the loan, told the AP. Everybody in Britain “knows 1066.” The 230-foot tapestry’s 58 scenes brim with “vivid and sometimes gory detail,” the AP said, including “mutilated bodies and the unlucky Harold, felled by an arrow through his eye.”

What next?

Before going on public display in September, the AP said, the tapestry “will spend several days acclimatizing before it is carefully unpacked and unfolded” for the exhibition, which the British Museum “expects to be one of the most popular in its history.”

What happened

President Donald Trump Wednesday ended the two-day NATO summit in Turkey with warm words for U.S. allies, a promise to let Ukraine produce Patriot air-defense missiles and renewed fighting with Iran. After declaring the ceasefire “over,” Trump ordered a second night of strikes on Iran, which again fired at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar. Iran’s leaders are “scum” and “sick people,” Trump told reporters. If Iran keeps bombing ships in the Strait of Hormuz, he said on social media, the “retribution” will “get much worse!”

Who said what

Trump began the NATO summit “publicly bashing the alliance and reciting a list of grievances,” Politico said, but “behind closed doors” he “was far more positive” with fellow leaders. “There was a lot of love in that room,” Trump told reporters. “A lot of unity.” The Ankara summit “amounted to a master class in how to manage a mercurial president and minimize damage,” CNN said. “It’s a lesson clearly not absorbed by, or of much interest to, Iran.”

What next?

The reignited battle over the Strait of Hormuz reflects a “divide among Iran’s leadership” between “hard-liners seeking lasting control of the waterway” and “pragmatists” seeking sanctions relief, The Associated Press said. It also leaves Trump back “mired in an unpopular war that he cannot seem to end,” The Washington Post said, “with midterm elections less than four months away.”

What happened

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen Tuesday announced she will run for president in 2027, hours after an appeals court cut short her five-year ban on seeking public office.

The court upheld the 2025 embezzlement conviction that prompted the ban, handing Le Pen a three-year prison sentence for her National Rally party’s misuse of $3.2 million in European Union funds. But the judges suspended two years of her sentence and said she could serve the third wearing an electronic monitor.

Who said what

Tuesday’s “stunning turnaround” in Le Pen’s fortunes makes her the “front-runner” to replace term-limited President Emmanuel Macron, The New York Times said. But running with a criminal conviction is a “remarkable political gamble,” the BBC said.

“As recently as last week,” Politico said, Le Pen “said she would not run for president if wearing an ankle monitor and would cede the role” to 30-year-old protégé Jordan Bardella, who is “slightly more popular” with voters. But Le Pen also announced she was appealing the ruling to France’s highest court, a process that “will suspend her requirement to wear an electronic bracelet” until a decision arrives, likely in January, The Wall Street Journal said.

What next?

If the high court upholds Tuesday’s ruling, the Journal said, “Le Pen would be required to wear the bracelet” while campaigning, limiting her movement before April’s election.

What happened

President Donald Trump arrived in Turkey Tuesday for a two-day NATO summit, and “within hours of landing” he “revived a host of grievances” against America’s closest allies, Politico said. Trump criticized Europe for not helping with his Iran war and threatened to pull U.S. troops from NATO countries if he didn’t gain control of Greenland. His “sour mood” tempered hopes for a “low-key,” constructive summit focused on collective defense.

Who said what

Greenland “should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark,” Trump said during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Being refused control of the semiautonomous island is “what hurt my relationship with NATO.” Denmark’s prime minister and other European leaders once more firmly rejected Trump’s demand, but he returned to the idea this morning. “Greenland is very important to the United States,” he said. “We need it for protection of the world.”

NATO “sought to demonstrate that its European members were heeding Trump’s ​calls to spend more on their own defense,” Reuters said. “Announcing billions in arms deals” was “an attempt to appease the mercurial U.S. leader,” The Associated Press said.

What next?

Trump “surprised NATO leaders” by launching airstrikes on Iran Tuesday night, soon after a dinner hosted by Erdogan, the AP said. This morning he told reporters that the ceasefire with Tehran was “over.” Talks can continue, he said, “but I think they’re wasting their time.”

What happened

Two bombs exploded Tuesday morning near the Damascus hotel where French President Emmanuel Macron is staying during his historic stopover in Syria. Macron, who arrived in Damascus last night, is the first major Western leader to visit the country since Bashar al-Assad’s ouster in 2024.

At least 18 people were wounded in the explosions, including four police officers, Syria’s Interior Ministry said. But Macron had already left the Four Seasons, Reuters said, and the “blasts were not audible from the presidential motorcade” as he headed toward his meeting with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa.

Who said what

The explosions “are a blow for al-Sharaa,” who has “pushed to assert full control and bring stability in war-torn Syria” after his Islamist-led insurgency toppled Assad, The Associated Press said. Macron “played a major role in pushing Europe and the United States to drop most sanctions on Syria” after al-Sharaa took over, and he is “scheduled to sign memorandums of understanding” as the “battered country tries to lure investors to help it rebuild after 14 years of war.”

“I have come to express France’s commitment to the Syrian people,” Macron said on social media. “Together, let us open a new chapter of stability and peace.”

What next?

France said Macron “intended to stick to his planned schedule for the day” before heading to Turkey for a NATO summit, Reuters said.

What happened

FIFA Sunday lifted U.S. striker Folarin Balogun’s one-game suspension from a red card he drew during last week’s 2-0 World Cup win over Bosnia-Herzegovina. The unusual decision means that Balogun, the top U.S. scorer in this tournament, can play in today’s knockout round-of-16 match against Belgium. Shortly after FIFA announced its decision, news organizations reported that President Donald Trump had called FIFA President Gianni Infantino following the match and asked him to review Balogun’s suspension. “Thank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice!” Trump said on social media Sunday.

Who said what

Balogun’s red card was one of the World Cup’s “most controversial and consequential decisions,” The Associated Press said. But FIFA’s “extraordinary” decision to reverse it was the “first time since 1962 that a red card during a World Cup did not result in a suspension.” It is “highly unusual for a head of state to intervene in a soccer disciplinary matter with FIFA’s top official,” The Washington Post said. FIFA “insists that the decision was an independent one made by its 18-person disciplinary committee,” Politico said, though it didn’t say if there was a vote.

What next?

Belgium’s soccer federation said it was “astonished” by FIFA’s apparent violation of its own rules and was “investigating all potential options” to “protect the fundamental principles of fair play in our sport.”

What happened

Slain Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s funeral procession began advancing through the streets of Tehran this morning after Sunday’s prayers at the capital’s sprawling Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla complex. Three of Khamenei’s sons appeared publicly Sunday for the first time since their father and other family members were killed in the opening U.S.-Israeli strikes of the Iran war, but Mojtaba Khamenei, the son who succeeded him as supreme leader, has still not made any public appearances.

Who said what

The funeral procession route was “packed to capacity” with black-clad mourners “hoping to gain a glimpse of the passing cortège,” CNN said. Some mourners said they were disappointed at the absence of Mojtaba Khamenei, whose face was reportedly “disfigured” and “one or ​both legs” significantly injured in U.S.-Israeli strikes, Reuters said. He is believed to be in hiding “due to the dangers of Israeli threats to his life,” Al Jazeera said.

The “increasingly” common “threats from mourners to avenge Khamenei’s death” included chants of “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” and signs calling for the “killing of both U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,” The Associated Press said. As the poet Mohammad Rasouli asked why “the biggest bastard in the world” was “still alive” to cheering mourners at the Mosalla complex, Trump was boasting he “wiped out” Iran’s military during “a speech at the same time across the world” to celebrate America’s 250th birthday.

What next?

After a 12-hour procession through Tehran, Khamenei’s body will be transported to Qom, then to important Shiite shrines in the Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala, and finally to Thursday’s burial in his hometown of Mashhad.

What happened

Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group “committed crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing” during its 2024-25 campaign to capture the city of el-Fasher in North Darfur, Amnesty International said in a report Wednesday. “The RSF’s crimes included murder, forcible transfer, imprisonment, torture, rape, sexual slavery, other forms of sexual violence, enslavement, extermination and persecution.”

Who said what

Amnesty analyzed video and documentary evidence and interviewed 246 people for its report, including 208 survivors, 39 of whom were children. The report “accused the RSF of deliberately targeting children,” The Guardian said.

The public was “warned of the horrors that civilians in el-Fasher confronted as the RSF laid siege to the city,” said Amnesty International Secretary-General Agnès Callamard. The resulting atrocities are a “stain on the conscience of humanity.” A United Nations fact-finding mission said in February the RSF’s el-Fasher siege bore the “hallmarks of genocide” against non-Arab communities.

What next?

Sudan’s “ongoing civil war” between the army and RSF has “killed hundreds of thousands of people” and displaced more than 14 million, the BBC said. A “nationwide ceasefire” is “immediately needed” in Sudan, said Amnesty. There must also be an “independent and adequately resourced international force” assigned to “protect civilians against crimes by all parties to the conflict.”

What happened

Scientists at the University of Minnesota Wednesday announced that they created synthetic cells from non-living chemicals that can perform many of the functions of living cells, like feeding, growing, dividing and replicating their genetic material. Lead researcher Kate Adamala said she named them SpudCells after Sputnik but also “because I’m mostly made of potatoes.” Her team said they are the “first synthetic cell with a complete cell cycle.”

Who said what

The SpudCell is a “major step” toward “discovering the alchemy by which chemicals can be turned into life,” The New York Times said. With just 36 genes, it’s a “limited and fragile prototype,” CNN said, “but it could help scientists better understand the origins of life” and potentially solve “human problems” like “new cancer treatments and novel ways to capture carbon or manufacture chemicals.” The SpudCell could also “challenge our preconceived notions of what’s considered ‘life,’” said Futurism.

“We’re going to remember this moment,” said computational cell biologist Roseanna Zia, who wasn’t involved in the research, per the Times. The “shake-the-ground accomplishment here” was the ability of SpudCells to compete with each other, leading to more sophisticated progeny.

What next?

While Adamala’s research undergoes peer review, she and three colleagues created a public-benefit institution to disseminate the SpudCell “recipe” and collaborate with scientists worldwide to improve and utilize the breakthrough.

What happened

The European Union’s prosecutor’s office Tuesday said it was conducting raids “in France and other European countries” as part of an “investigation into the use of EU funds by a former political group of the European Parliament.”

France’s Le Monde said the raids in France, Belgium, Spain and Italy were a significant advance in a “judicial investigation into possible embezzlement” of $5 million in EU funds by Identity and Democracy (ID), a bloc of right-wing parties that was disbanded in 2024 and replaced by the Patriots for Europe group.

Who said what

Jordan Bardella, the president of France’s far-right National Rally party and head of the Patriots group, said on social media Tuesday night that “searches have been underway at the offices and private homes” of contractors who “have worked with us.” When the European Public Prosecutor’s Office announced the investigation into ID last July, Bardella had called it a “new harassment operation by the European Parliament.” Along with National Rally, ID and its successor group include Italy’s League (Lega) and Germany’s AfD.

What next?

Bardella’s party is “eyeing its best chance yet of winning the presidency in France next year,” Euronews said. Polls suggest the far-right party “will have a commanding lead in the first round of voting.”

What happened

A federal judge in Manhattan Monday sentenced self-exiled Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui to 30 years in prison for financial fraud. Guo was convicted in 2024 after transforming himself from wealthy Beijing insider to U.S.-based anti-Communist crusader with prominent conservative allies and a luxury lifestyle.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres said he had “preyed on people seeking to bring democracy to China,” causing more than 1,000 supporters “substantial financial and emotional harm.”

Who said what

“The reason I came to the U.S. is to destroy” the Chinese Communist Party, Guo said in court Monday. “Guo did not lead a movement; he led a criminal enterprise,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Finkel countered.

Guo fled China in 2015 amid an anti-corruption crackdown. “By 2017, he was a member of Mar-a-Lago” and quickly “built political and business connections with some powerful people” in President Donald Trump’s orbit, notably Steve Bannon, The New York Times said. Bannon was arrested aboard Guo’s yacht in 2020 for allegedly defrauding investors, though “Trump eventually pardoned him.” Bannon “has repeatedly called for Guo’s freedom,” The Wall Street Journal said.

What next?

Trump faces “calls from Guo’s supporters to pardon him” but also “Beijing’s long-running demand to hand him over,” the Journal said. Despite “Guo’s political alliances, a presidential pardon appears unlikely,” the Times said.

What happened

The U.S. attacked Iranian targets twice over the weekend while Iran struck an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz and fired drones and missiles at U.S. military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain. The “renewed fighting was sparked by competing interpretations of the memorandum of understanding” to end the war, Axios said, especially regarding the strait.

Who said what

Hours after Saturday’s oil tanker strike, President Donald Trump warned on social media that if Iran kept violating the ceasefire, the U.S. might be “forced to militarily complete the job” in Iran, which would then “no longer exist!” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday said the MOU gave Tehran sole responsibility for “the management and full restoration of maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Attacking ships transiting the economically “pivotal” waterway “through Omani waters” was a risky but “necessary gambit” for Tehran, The New York Times said. Its “newfound power to disrupt traffic” in the strait is “critical leverage it cannot afford to lose — either at the negotiating table or back at war.”

What next?

After the weekend’s fighting, “both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely,” a Trump administration official told news organizations. “Iran has yet to confirm an agreement,” the Times said. U.S. officials said talks with Iran will resume tomorrow in Qatar.

What happened

Europe’s record-shattering heat wave began shifting eastward on Sunday as Public Health France estimated that more than 1,000 people died due to the heat and humidity. The number of excess deaths since the heat dome descended over France on June 20 is expected to rise as more death certificates come in from homes and eldercare facilities, the agency said. More than 80% of the heat-related deaths so far were among people 65 and older.

Who said what

“Right now, 150 million people ​are living under extreme heat, hundreds have died, schools are shut, grids are buckling,” World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media. “The ‘once-in-a-generation’ heat wave is now occurring nearly annually.” Scientists with World Weather Attribution said last week that Europe’s record temperatures would have been “virtually impossible” without human-caused climate change. “I’m getting hundreds of calls,” Paris mortician Zouhaeir Hertelli told The Associated Press, but “we’re really full, full, full.”

What next?

Europe’s heat wave has already “disrupted power generation, damaged infrastructure and overwhelmed healthcare systems,” Reuters said. On Sunday it started moving toward Austria, the Czech ​Republic, Germany and Poland. A “dangerous and prolonged heat wave” could also “reach record-breaking levels” in the U.S. Midwest and East Coast this week, The New York Times said. But about 90% of U.S. homes have air conditioning, versus only 20% in Europe.

What happened

Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged publicly on Sunday that his country was experiencing a “certain deficit” of gas and other fuels after Ukrainian drone strikes, but he insisted the “problems” aren’t “critical.” Ukraine “kept up its heavy drone assault on Russia,” setting fire to two more oil refineries over the weekend, The Associated Press said. Kyiv’s drone campaign has “choked Russian fuel supplies,” forcing rationing, “long lines at gas stations across the country,” and export halts.

Who said what

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last week he had approved a “40-day influence operation” to compel Moscow “to end the war.” Ukraine’s “long-range sanctions,” he said Sunday, reduce the “resources that fuel the Russian war machine,” moving the conflict “another step toward peace.” The “strikes against critical infrastructure in general, and energy infrastructure in particular,” do “create problems, that’s obvious,” Putin said in an interview, but the Kremlin would fix them by ramping up the production of air defenses and importing fuel to ease the shortages.

“Behind the scenes,” there’s “growing panic” in Moscow, The Washington Post said. Over the past week, “swarms of Ukrainian drones hit” semiconductor plants, munitions factories, a satellite communications center and “oil facilities across Russia,” including a “dramatic onslaught on Moscow” that “spread plumes of black smoke over the capital as its main oil refinery went up in flames, halting production possibly until next year.”

What next?

Putin said Ukraine’s drone strikes were meant to “cause a split in Russian society and force Russia to halt” its invasion and enter negotiations, but “we will not give them that chance.”

What happened

The International Maritime Organization on Thursday paused a nascent effort to evacuate ships stranded in the Persian Gulf after Iran struck a cargo vessel, causing damage but no casualties, according to the ship’s owner. The IMO, a United Nations body, earlier this week began shepherding ships through the Strait of Hormuz along a route hugging Oman’s coast. Hundreds of ships and more than 11,000 seafarers have been stranded in the Gulf since the Iran war broke out, and Iran’s drone strike demonstrated its “continued ability to restrict the critical waterway, despite the agreement reached last week with the United States,” CNN said.

Who said what

The attacked vessel did “not transit under IMO’s evacuation framework,” IMO chief Arsenio Dominguez said in a press release, but “the evacuation plan will be paused until further clarity is obtained” on “necessary safety guarantees.” Hours before the strike, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned that transiting the strait outside routes “authorized” by Iran was “unacceptable and completely dangerous.” The opening of an alternate passage “would relieve pressure on the world economy,” The Associated Press said, but also “remove Iran’s main source of leverage in ongoing peace talks.”

What next?

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday during a “visit to the Gulf to reassure American allies” that “Washington was committed to the new route” and free passage through the strait, the AP said.

What happened

Acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez on Friday morning raised the official death toll from Wednesday’s powerful back-to-back earthquakes to 589, with at least 4,300 injured and hundreds more missing or trapped under collapsed buildings. With international aid beginning to arrive, “rescue crews and residents dug through rubble in an increasingly desperate search for survivors,” The New York Times said. The “first 48 to 72 hours after a quake are widely regarded as the ‘golden’ window to reach people buried alive,” CNN said.

Who said what

The magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes “hit a country already weakened by years of economic turmoil” that “left much of its infrastructure fragile and complicated rescue efforts as aftershocks rattled the capital and surrounding coastal areas,” Reuters said. “Affected residents have nowhere to go,” CNN said, and many Venezuelans “are enduring a second night out on the streets” near damaged and collapsed apartment buildings. “They’ve pulled out a lot of dead people,” La Guaira resident Yorliana Colmenares told the Times. “Injured people, children, animals.”

What next?

The “number of dead and injured” is “virtually certain to rise,” the Times said. A website created to track the missing “listed more than 46,000 people as unaccounted for” on Thursday night, Reuters said.

What happened

The Supreme Court, in a pair of 6-3 decisions written by conservative Justice Samuel Alito, ruled Thursday that President Donald Trump has judicially unreviewable power to end temporary humanitarian protections for more than a million legal immigrants and can bar migrants from crossing into the U.S. from Mexico to request asylum. “Taken together,” the “two rulings expand Trump’s authority to implement his crackdown on immigration,” The Wall Street Journal said.

Who said what

The first decision cleared the way for Trump to end Temporary Protected Status for about 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians, many of whom “have lived and worked in the United States for decades and have American children,” The Associated Press said. The ruling is “expected to reverberate beyond those two communities, affecting approximately 1.3 million immigrants from 17 countries” who also hold TPS status, The Washington Post said.

Alito said the relevant 1990 law barred the courts from reviewing an administration’s decisions to revoke TPS, and he dismissed arguments that Trump’s many racially derogatory statements illegally tainted the decision. “Notably, Alito did not say what Trump’s statements were,” CNN said, an “omission liberal Justice Elena Kagan was quick to point out in her dissent.” Trump’s comments, including that Haitians eat dogs and cats, come from a “shithole” country and “probably have AIDS,” are “so repellent and racially inflected,” she wrote, “that the majority declines to put them in print.”

What next?

The justices have “one other signature Trump policy on immigration” to rule on this term, the Journal said: his “bid to end birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants.” That’s likely to come down next week.

What happened

The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Wednesday that Michigan was not obligated to turn over confidential voter information to the Trump administration, siding with lower court judges in Michigan and eight other states where similar requests were blocked. In Boston, U.S. District Judge Denise Casper also permanently barred President Donald Trump from implementing most of an executive order seeking to overhaul how states run elections. The Constitution “does not grant the president any specific powers over elections,” she wrote in her ruling.

Who said what

Wednesday’s appellate decision was the “biggest setback yet” in the Trump administration’s effort to create its own nationwide voter roll, CNN said. That endeavor is part of a so-far unsuccessful “administration-wide push” by “Trump and his allies to find evidence of voter fraud,” The New York Times said. But they’ve run into “significant headwinds — and stern rebukes” — from “judges appointed by presidents of both parties,” including five Trump appointees.

What next?

A second election-related executive order Trump issued to create a national voter list and limit mail ballot “also faces multiple legal challenges,” The Associated Press said. Postmaster General David Steiner told a Senate panel on Wednesday that under a proposed Trump-ordered rule, the U.S. Postal Service would not deliver mail-in ballots to states that declined to turn over private voter data.

What happened

Powerful back-to-back earthquakes in Venezuela on Wednesday evening collapsed buildings in Caracas and other cities, sending people rushing out to the streets. At least 164 people are confirmed dead and nearly 1,000 more are injured, the Venezuelan government said, with hundreds more still missing.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the initial magnitude 7.2 quake was followed less than a minute later by a magnitude 7.5 temblor, the biggest to hit Venezuela since 1900. “High casualties and damage are probable,” USGS said, with the final death toll likely in the thousands.

Who said what

“We urge our population to remain calm,” Acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez said in a televised address. “We urge unity.” Simón Bolívar International Airport outside Caracas sustained heavy damage and was closed, Rodríguez said, and train, subway and residential gas services were suspended. School was also canceled for the rest of the week. Traveling through Caracas on Thursday morning, there were “neighborhoods with no lights on and streets flooded by burst water pipes,” said The New York Times correspondent María Victoria Fermín.

What next?

The U.S. was among several countries that promised aid, search-and-rescue help and rebuilding assistance. “We will be there for our new and great friends,” President Donald Trump said on social media. “Early reports are not good!!!”

What happened

President Donald Trump on Wednesday abruptly scrapped a signing ceremony for a newly passed bipartisan housing bill, citing the Senate’s failure to clear the “desperately needed” SAVE America Act voting overhaul. His announcement on social media “caught lawmakers and some staff by surprise,” said The Washington Post. Republican leaders were “touting the housing bill at a news conference” and a flag-festooned stage was ready for him in the Capitol. Trump later fumed about the stalled voting bill during a contentious lunch with Senate Republicans.

Who said what

Trump was supposed to “spike the football,” but “instead, he fumbled,” Politico said. The signing ceremony “would have been a boon to Republicans desperate for campaign trail affordability wins,” and even “his own staff spent the morning taking a very public victory lap.” Trump is fixated on the voting bill, but rarely has one of his “late curveballs seemed as ill-advised,” said CNN.

It “makes no sense” that Trump would hold the housing bill “hostage” for legislation that “will never pass in this Congress,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) told reporters. But “there is a huge group of people who really appreciate what the president’s doing right now, and it’s the Democrat Party.”

What next?

Trump “does not need to sign” the housing bill, which will “become law” 10 days after he officially receives it unless he issues a veto, Politico said. But such low-key enactment would “deny Republicans a chance to crow at a signing ceremony.”

What happened

The Senate on Tuesday voted 50-48 to adopt a resolution instructing President Donald Trump to end the Iran war or obtain congressional authorization. Four Republicans joined all but one Democrat to pass the resolution, and two Republicans were absent. The House approved the measure 215-208 on June 3, and Trump cannot veto it.

Who said what

The resolution’s adoption is a “significant rebuke” to Trump, CNN said. It reflects “growing concerns” among GOP lawmakers “over both the war and the deal Trump struck with Iran to end it,” The Associated Press said. Trump called the vote “poorly timed and meaningless.”

This is the “first time since the enactment of the War Powers Resolution of 1973” that both chambers “approved a concurrent resolution directing a president to end a military conflict,” The New York Times said. Whether it’s legally binding without a president’s signature “has never been definitively tested before the Supreme Court.”

What next?

The White House is expected to request $80 billion this week to pay for the war. Trump will “meet with restless GOP senators” on Wednesday on Capitol Hill, where his preference that lawmakers just “pony up, and don’t ask too many questions” about the war, is “grating on many congressional Republicans,” Politico said.

What happened

Two federal judges in Texas on Tuesday sentenced seven anti-ICE protesters to 50 to 100 years in prison over a demonstration last July outside the Prairieland Detention Center during which one of the defendants, Benjamin Song, shot and wounded a police officer. Prosecutors won terrorism convictions after portraying the group as part of antifa, the decentralized movement of antifascist activists. An eighth defendant who wasn’t at the protest received 30 years behind bars.

Who said what

Prosecutors “described the case as the first domestic terrorism trial” that convicted “alleged antifa cell members,” the Fort Worth Star-Telegram said. “The defendants denied having connections to antifa.” President Donald Trump last year “issued an executive order declaring antifa a ‘domestic terrorist organization’ — a designation that does not actually exist under U.S. law,” The New York Times said. The “remarkably stiff penalties” handed down by the “staunchly conservative” judges signaled that, at least “in Texas, the courts would deal aggressively with ICE protesters,” especially those accused of antifa ties.

What next?

Lawyers for the eight defendants said they would appeal the sentences, as critics warned the convictions “could have wide-reaching impact on protests and First Amendment free-speech rights,” The Associated Press said. Eight other Prairieland defendants will be sentenced July 1.

What happened

All three leftist congressional candidates backed by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani won their New York City primaries on Tuesday, with two unseating incumbents. More moderate Democrats won elsewhere: Army veteran Cait Conley in New York’s competitive 17th District, former Rep. Ben McAdams in Utah’s newly redrawn 1st District and state legislator Adrian Boafo in retiring Rep. Steny Hoyer’s 5th District seat in Maryland.

President Donald Trump’s candidates won in two upstate New York Republican primaries. In South Carolina’s GOP gubernatorial runoff, his original pick, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, lost to Attorney General Alan Wilson, who Trump co-endorsed last week.

Who said what

Mamdani “made a big bet and emerged victorious,” becoming an “undeniable power broker in New York politics,” The New York Times said. Doctoral student Darializa Avila Chevalier toppled Rep. Adriano Espaillat in New York’s 13th District, while another democratic socialist, state assembly member Claire Valdez, trounced outgoing Rep. Nydia Velázquez’s pick to succeed her in the 7th District. In the 10th District, Brad Lander unseated Rep. Dan Goldman.

In two of Tuesday’s most expensive races, Micah Lasher defeated fellow state assembly member Alex Bores, Kennedy scion Jack Schlossberg and anti-Trump pundit George Conway to succeed Rep. Jerry Nadler (D) in New York’s 12th District, and millionaire Rep. April McClain Delaney (D) beat billionaire former Rep. David Trone (D) to represent Maryland’s 6th District.

What next?

The doubling of democratic socialists in the House, to four, will likely push the Democratic caucus to the left, the Times said, also “creating headaches” for Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) as he seeks to become House speaker.