Iniaes

In Venezuela

Authorities say the death toll from the twin earthquakes that hit on 24 June has climbed above 1,700, with 5,034 injured and as many as 68,000 missing. UN-backed rescue work is still under way in La Guaira, while people in the hardest-hit areas are accusing the government of neglect and saying the response has been too slow and too thin.

In the U.S.

House Republicans moved ahead with a plan to tie the Pentagon funding bill to the SAVE America Act, pushing a combined package that would attach elections legislation to must-pass defense spending. The Rules Committee approved the procedural step along party lines, sending the plan toward floor debate.

President Trump said U.S. negotiators are heading to Doha for talks with Iran, calling the meeting potentially important and offering no further details.

In Philadelphia, Temple University student Bryce Wolfe was killed in a hit-and-run on Kelly Drive, with police saying the driver kept going after striking him and dragged him for more than a mile. His parents are asking for help as investigators try to identify the driver.

The San Francisco Archdiocese has agreed to a $395 million settlement with hundreds of survivors of clergy sexual abuse, according to lawyers announcing the deal.

In business and housing

Ford says it has brought back hundreds of experienced quality control workers after its push to rely more heavily on artificial intelligence failed to catch vehicle defects as well as expected. The company is restoring the human expertise it had cut, which turns out to remain useful when cars are involved.

In Britain, construction leaders are urging the government to act on what they describe as an urgent housebuilding crisis, while new research says more than half of first-time buyers now need help from family to get on the property ladder. Separately, nearly 50,000 British citizens have officially moved to Portugal, drawn by lower living costs, tax benefits, and better weather.

In Europe

Police in Monaco are searching for a suspect after a makeshift bomb exploded outside a residential building and seriously injured three people. One of the injured is reportedly a Ukrainian oligarch.

In Germany, mourners lit candles near the site of a shooting at a shelter that killed six staff members. The investigation is still ongoing.

In tech and cybersecurity

Austria is urging the EU to try to lure Anthropic to Europe after U.S. export controls hit the company’s most powerful cyber-capable models. Vienna says Europe should move fast, arguing that the bloc is being shut out of cutting-edge innovation and security tools.

In Washington, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told lawmakers that CISA has the money it needs, but needs about 600 more cybersecurity professionals under new leadership. He said the agency has to rebuild its workforce, revive public-private threat sharing, and harden defenses against nation-state cyber threats. Separately, healthcare systems are facing rising cloud-security pressure as hospital-at-home programs expand and AI adoption speeds up, with leaders warning about vendor accountability, identity management, and clinical AI risk.

In Washington

Speaker Mike Johnson says he plans to bundle the annual Pentagon policy bill with the GOP elections bill, the SAVE America Act, and send them to the Senate together. The move could deepen the fight over the elections measure, which has been stalled for months, and it risks dragging down the defense bill, which usually moves with broad bipartisan support.

President Trump has nominated Keith Sonderling to be Labor secretary permanently. Sonderling has been serving in the job on an acting basis since Lori Chavez-DeRemer left in April.

And John Yoo says he will advise an investigation into whether officials conspired against Trump, which is a choice of legal commentator that tells you a lot about the room it was pitched in.

In global markets

The yen has fallen to its weakest level against the dollar since 1986, increasing the chance that Japanese officials step in again. The drop reflects stronger dollar demand on expectations of higher U.S. rates, plus pressure from Japan’s trade deficit and heavy reliance on imported energy. A weaker yen helps exporters and lifts stocks, but it also makes imports more expensive and adds inflation pressure.

Russia has relaxed borrowing rules as war spending strains its budget. Moscow’s deficit has widened, defense costs are climbing, and analysts say the effort to fund the war while keeping inflation and growth under control is getting harder to sustain. Ukrainian strikes on energy and export infrastructure are adding more pressure, including outages in occupied Crimea.

In Gaza

An Israeli strike hit the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, killing two people and injuring several others, according to the report. The strike also set tents on fire in the humanitarian zone.

In U.S. courts

The Supreme Court agreed to hear Arizona’s case over a voting law that requires documentary proof of citizenship. In the same lane, the Colorado Supreme Court blocked Democrats’ effort to redraw congressional maps before the 2028 election, saying the off-year ballot measures that backed it ran afoul of the state constitution.

Separately, former FTC commissioner Rebecca Slaughter is pressing Congress to push back after the Supreme Court’s 6-3 ruling that let President Trump fire her, a decision that further expands presidential power over an independent agency. That separation-of-powers fight is still very much alive.

In U.S. politics

Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona is under federal investigation over possible campaign finance violations. The probe could complicate his political future if he decides to run for higher office in 2028.

In public safety

Michigan State Police say a newborn baby was found dead in a portable toilet at the Electric Forest festival in Rothbury. Investigators say there is no known threat to the public and are asking anyone with information to come forward, while urging people not to speculate online.

In the courts and criminal cases

Luigi Mangione is set to go on trial in Manhattan federal court on January 5, with jury selection first and opening statements scheduled for January 25. His state trial is set for September.

In Washington and Tehran

President Donald Trump says Iran asked for a ceasefire meeting in Qatar, while Tehran says no talks are scheduled. The White House says envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are headed to Doha for high-level meetings, after U.S. strikes on targets inside Iran and renewed Iranian attacks on U.S. military targets in the region.

Those strikes have also split Trump’s own MAGA base, with former Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene warning that he may have reopened a foreign war he once promised to avoid.

At the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court blocked Trump, for now, from removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook while she fights unproven mortgage-fraud allegations. In a separate ruling, the court made it easier for presidents to fire officials at other independent agencies by overturning a long-standing precedent on removal protections.

The justices also declined to take up Alan Dershowitz’s appeal in his defamation case against CNN, and they left in place the $5 million verdict in the E. Jean Carroll case.

In international news

Police in Germany say a sixth person has died after a shooting at a youth welfare center, where four women and one man were killed at the scene. Authorities have not released more details yet.

In Lebanon, thousands of displaced people are trying to return home, but many are finding only destruction and no real place to go back to.

In Venezuela, a 4.6-magnitude aftershock struck near the capital as rescuers freed 21-year-old Aaron Levi Cantillo Vargas after 106 hours trapped under a building in Caraballeda. At least 1,450 people are known to have died in the initial earthquakes, and the toll is expected to rise.

In business

Comcast is splitting into two companies, one focused on connectivity and the other on content. Brian Roberts says big mergers are not on the immediate menu.

In politics and sports

El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has formally registered to seek a third consecutive term.

And in golf, Viktor Hovland beat Scottie Scheffler in a playoff to win the Travelers Championship.

In Britain

Penelope Keith, the British actor best known for The Good Life and other sitcom roles, has died at 86. The BBC said her family announced she died peacefully at home after living with cancer.

Andy Burnham says he wants to set up a “No 10 North” office in Manchester as part of a wider push to shift power away from Westminster. Meanwhile, the police watchdog is broadening its review into Hampshire Police after Henry Nowak was wrongly handcuffed in Southampton, including whether nearby anti-migration protests affected officers’ decisions.

In the war in Ukraine

Ukraine’s damaged energy grid is heading into another punishing stretch, with extreme heat moving eastward and the power system still badly battered by repeated Russian drone and missile strikes since 2022. The attacks have caused tens of billions of euros in damage and left large parts of the country living with frequent outages.

In Crimea, the war is being felt more directly too. Repeated drone strikes on power and fuel sites have brought regular air-raid alerts, blackouts and a gasoline black market, with some prices reportedly reaching $25 a gallon. The peninsula’s fuel supply is now doing a convincing impression of a system held together by hope.

In business

Comcast says it plans to split into two publicly traded companies, separating NBCUniversal and Sky from its broadband and mobile business through a tax-free spin-off. If completed, shareholders would end up owning stakes in both companies, while each gets its own strategy, which is corporate-speak for “we’ve decided one giant structure is not enough of a headache.”

The European Commission is also planning to end the customs exemption on parcels worth under €150 and add a €3 fee to small shipments. The move is aimed at cheap imports from platforms such as Temu and Shein, and at protecting high streets that have already had enough trouble without being undercut by endless tiny boxes.

In South Africa

Police are investigating an apparent attempt to kill a senior South African officer just three days before he was due to testify at a corruption hearing involving allegations at the highest levels. Authorities have not publicly identified suspects or given a motive.

In Venezuela

Rescue crews are still working after twin earthquakes hit Venezuela four days ago, with officials saying 1,500 people have died and 189 buildings have collapsed. Among the few signs of relief, a father and son were pulled out alive from the rubble at Los Cocos beach.

In the Middle East

The United States and Iran have reportedly agreed to stop attacking each other after several days of escalating strikes that had pushed the truce to the edge. The details are still thin, but the immediate result is straightforward: fewer missiles in the air is usually preferable to more.

Separately, a U.S. fighter pilot rescued after being shot down over Iran reportedly told intelligence officers that a jellyfish-shaped swarm appeared around his jet moments before it went down. That account came out in a debriefing, and it will probably keep the conspiracy industry well stocked for another week.

In Europe

Portugal is heading into a severe heat spell, with inland central and southern districts under yellow alert from Monday and temperatures forecast to reach 43C in parts of the Tagus valley and Alentejo later in the week. Officials have already scaled back some July 4 fireworks plans in nearby Utah for fire safety, a reminder that flames do not care much about national holidays.

The European Union is also moving against the flood of cheap parcels from Shein, Temu, and AliExpress, saying it plans to close the tax loophole that has helped those platforms dominate online shopping. In England, an independent inquiry says the education system is failing white working-class children and needs a long-term overhaul. And in Maidstone, police are still looking into a serious stabbing after releasing CCTV images of three men they want to speak to.

In Asia

India’s Ram Temple is facing embezzlement allegations ahead of key state elections, adding fresh embarrassment to a project that sits at the center of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political brand.

Thailand is investigating Australian national Simon Peter Carman over the death of a 17-year-old girl whose body was found in a suitcase, with police saying he tried to leave the country. In North Korea, Kim Jong Un has commissioned the country’s largest destroyer and declared plans for even larger nuclear cruisers.

South Korea has announced a $1 trillion plan to invest in chips and artificial intelligence as the regional tech race keeps getting more expensive by the hour.

In the UK

The Metropolitan Police says it has identified more than 4,000 historic child sexual exploitation cases that may need to be reviewed after looking back at investigations dating to 2010. Cases once marked closed could now be reopened.

In Surrey, police say Kevin Kerjean, who is charged with murdering a two-year-old girl and also faces child rape and sexual assault charges, entered the UK legally and had leave to remain until 2031. Officers also pushed back against speculation about the case location, saying it happened within a family setting. A major police presence remains in Chertsey while the investigation continues.

In Europe and the war in Ukraine

A skydiving plane crashed in northeastern France, killing all 11 people on board.

Vladimir Putin has admitted Russia is facing problems in its war in Ukraine, citing fuel shortages, queues at petrol stations, and damage from Ukrainian strikes, which is an awkward summary for a campaign that was supposed to be going better by now. Ukraine also hit oil refineries in Krasnodar and Yaroslavl, while Russia said it intercepted 213 drones. Officials in Krasnodar said one person was killed and another injured, and power and gas infrastructure was damaged.

Putin also said Ukraine has proposed a mutual halt to long-range strikes.

In South Asia and the wider region

Pakistan says it carried out overnight airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan, targeting militants after the Karachi attack. Afghanistan’s government says the strikes killed and wounded dozens of civilians.

In business and technology

A new report from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation says China has overtaken the U.S. in several key space and military satellite sectors, including positioning, navigation, remote sensing and counterspace capabilities. U.S. firms still lead in low Earth orbit broadband, but the report says China’s state-backed space industry is moving fast enough to threaten broader U.S. leadership in space.

Separately, Yash Raj Films has invested in Rusk Media to expand into vertical entertainment, part of a wider push into short-form digital content.

In the U.S.

Sen. John Fetterman and Sen. Dave McCormick stepped in to organize Pennsylvania’s booth at the “Great American State Fair” in Washington after Gov. Josh Shapiro said state officials could not find a business sponsor. A rare bipartisan assignment, in a town where that usually needs a miracle and a donor list.

Philadelphia has issued an Extreme Heat Watch through the Fourth of July, with temperatures expected to reach near 100 degrees.

In the Middle East and Asia

Iran says it skipped technical talks with the United States after the two sides traded military strikes, while a U.S. official says negotiations to end the war are still going on. That is the diplomatic equivalent of two people insisting they are in the same conversation while standing in different rooms.

In the region, South Korea and Japan agreed to deepen defense cooperation, including AI work and joint rescue drills, while reaffirming support for a denuclearized Korean Peninsula. North Korea, meanwhile, is said to be tightening border controls and nearly cutting off outside news entirely.

South Korea also adopted its first national testing standard for counter-drone systems, setting benchmarks for protecting sites like airports and power plants.

In business and industry

South Korea is preparing to unveil a reported $649 billion investment plan for chips, AI data centers, and physical AI, with Samsung and SK Group expected to lead the push. Separately, HD Hyundai Electric says AI planning and robots have helped its factory push deliveries close to perfect while it expands output of circuit breakers.

The U.S. Navy is also seeking more repair work at South Korean shipyards, lengthening overhauls there and signaling continued confidence in the yards, along with hopes for more contracts.

And South Korea’s government says its next defense investment plan will favor drone-equipped warships over direct replacements for aging destroyers, which is a very modern way to say the old fleet is staying old a little longer.

In Britain

The National Audit Office says ministers should hold off on HS2’s revised reset until the project can be delivered credibly, warning against another round of expensive optimism.

The British Heart Foundation says obesity-linked heart deaths in England could reach 170,000 by 2035 if current trends continue, while more than 1 million children were referred to mental health services in 2024-25, nearly double the level of 2018-19. One is a slow public health disaster, the other a clear sign the system is under severe strain.

Separately, state-owned Ferguson Marine has spent £600,000 on LNG training for the delayed Glen Rosa ferry, while its sister ship is already running on diesel because of fuel-system problems. Not a great look for a project that has become a recurring lesson in what happens when “temporary delays” become a way of life.

In climate and wildfires

Utah is dealing with several wildfires at once, including the nation’s largest, while Europe’s heatwave is now linked by the World Health Organization to about 1,300 deaths. Germany also hit 41.7C.

In public health

Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak has climbed to 72 linked cases, with health officials trying to contain spread in south and central parts of the state. Several patients have been hospitalized with serious complications. In England, NHS figures suggest the risk of the most severe birth injury has risen to its highest level since records began in 2020.

In the Middle East

Israel’s government has unanimously voted to recognize the Armenian genocide, a significant diplomatic step with a long political history behind it. Separately, Israeli forces bulldozed olive trees in the West Bank village of Zububa, west of Jenin.

In international conflict

The Democratic Republic of Congo has taken Rwanda to the International Court of Justice over the war in eastern Congo. Meanwhile, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard says weekend U.S. strikes violated a framework deal and warned of a crushing response, as journalists in Doha saw U.S. refueling aircraft heading toward the Strait of Hormuz in the same formation used before the strikes.

In France

A skydiving plane crashed near Nancy in northeastern France around 11 a.m., killing all 11 people on board, according to the regional prefect. The dead included five students, five instructors, and the pilot.

In U.S. agriculture

The USDA has opened a $21 million facility to produce sterile flies, part of an effort to slow the spread of screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite that threatens livestock. Officials are moving to ramp up the supply as cases rise.

In the Middle East

Iran launched attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait after U.S. strikes, as the wider fighting raised fresh concern over the Strait of Hormuz and pushed ceasefire talks closer to collapse. Separately, one analysis says the conflict has already cost the average U.S. household between $775 and $1,300 in fuel and taxpayer costs.

In Iraq

Iraqi security forces arrested several politicians, lawmakers, and senior officials in dawn raids across Baghdad in what authorities described as an anti-corruption operation.

In Europe

Germany set a new heat record over the weekend, with the highest temperature measured in Brandenburg, the latest extreme since modern records began in the 19th century.