Iniaes

In U.S. politics and policy

California and 22 other states are asking a federal judge to throw out the settlement that ended Donald Trump’s IRS lawsuit and created the so-called anti-weaponization fund. The states say the deal was not a real legal resolution, that it was arranged to benefit Trump allies and shield his family from scrutiny, and that the Justice Department sidestepped defenses it could have used.

In the Senate, lawmakers approved a war powers resolution on Iran, with four Republicans joining Democrats. The vote is meant to limit President Trump’s ability to use force against Iran without congressional approval.

A federal judge also ruled that SNAP benefits can be used to buy candy and sugary drinks, blocking an effort to narrow what people in the program can purchase. Meanwhile, agencies are wrestling with a newer problem, AI-generated public comments flooding rulemaking dockets and muddying what genuine public input actually looks like.

In international news

South Korea says it is investigating why a North Korean soldier crossed the border into the South, a rare direct crossing. Separately, North Korea has commissioned a new warship, and Kim Jong Un says he wants the navy equipped with nuclear weapons, another sign he is widening the country’s nuclear ambitions beyond land-based forces.

In France, a doctor who recently returned from a humanitarian mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo has tested positive for Ebola, the first confirmed case in Europe. Health officials are now focused on containment and tracing any possible exposure.

In international affairs

Iran is still at the center of the latest round of talks, with a former U.S. diplomat saying Tehran now appears to be in a stronger position after the conflict. The U.S. has also granted Iran a 60-day waiver on oil export sanctions, a significant concession as Washington pushes for a durable peace deal. Separately, the IAEA chief says inspections at Iran’s enrichment sites will still go ahead, despite Tehran’s claim that bombed facilities are off-limits.

In tech and security

Anthropic says its Mythos AI was able to uncover flaws in classified U.S. systems within hours, underscoring how quickly advanced AI tools can probe sensitive networks. At Meta, a security glitch reportedly exposed private employee messages, renewing concern about how the company handles internal surveillance and staff data.

In business

JPMorgan Chase has fired DEI executive Angie Báez after a video showed her emptying a public trash bin onto a Manhattan street and walking away with the Knicks-themed container during the team’s championship parade. The clip went viral fast, and the job disappeared even faster.

In climate and weather

Europe is baking again, with Italy issuing red heat alerts for 16 cities, including Milan and Rome, while schools have closed in parts of the UK. In Greenland, multiple wildfires have broken out weeks ahead of the usual fire season, adding to scientists’ concerns about climate-driven changes across the Arctic. At Kew Gardens, a dead oak that was killed in the 2022 heatwave has been painted red and placed beside a living “Tree of Hope” to highlight the damage extreme heat can do.

In public safety and transport

Northern Ireland has approved new graduated driving rules for young and newly licensed drivers, set to begin on October 1. The changes include overnight passenger limits for new drivers under 24, six months of supervised driving before a test, structured training, and automatic licence loss for anyone who reaches six penalty points during the probationary period. Officials say the goal is to cut serious crashes.

In Britain

A House of Lords committee has said plans to make some migrants wait longer for permanent settlement would be manifestly unfair if applied retrospectively. Labour is also sticking with its Chagos Islands deal with Mauritius, despite Donald Trump’s opposition, while the Treasury is considering a new First-Time Buyer ISA that could be open to adults over 40 as well as younger savers.

Separate research suggests many UK businesses are slowing or scaling back net zero plans because the costs keep rising. Energy, wage and operating pressures are pushing sustainability down the queue.

In U.S. politics

Zohran Mamdani-backed candidates won a string of closely watched New York primary races, including Brad Lander’s win over Representative Dan Goldman and victories by Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier. In Washington, top Pentagon general Gen. Chris Donahue has filed retirement paperwork after just over a year in the post, amid a wider wave of senior military departures.

In Europe

Germany’s Deutsche Bahn says train services are coming back step by step after a communications system failure shut down the national rail network for almost three hours. The company says the problem has been fixed, at least for now.

In science and space

NASA says its 2028 moon crews will wear redesigned spacesuits with better mobility and more safety features, with Prada involved in the design work.

In Britain

The Home Office says settled-status costs for care workers could top £9 billion, with 117,000 foreign care workers and 79,000 adult dependents expected to gain permanent status by 2030. The department’s own estimates have sharpened the row over Boris Johnson’s visa reforms, and ministers are also facing resistance to plans that would stretch the route to settlement from five years to 10.

Climate watchdogs say heat pump sales growth has slowed sharply after a key government grant was cut. Separate warnings say UK summers are getting hotter, with 40C days expected to become much more common within a couple of decades, which is a lovely little planning problem for a country built on hoping for the best.

Liam Payne died without a will, so his estimated $29 million estate will be handled under intestacy rules and passed to his 9-year-old son.

In the U.S.

Several staff members have reportedly been fired at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, less than a week after Donald Trump appointed Bill Pulte as acting director following Tulsi Gabbard’s departure. Multiple outlets say political appointees tied to Gabbard were among those removed, and cuts at the National Terrorism Center could be significant.

The House has passed a sweeping bipartisan housing package by 358 to 32 and sent it to the president’s desk, a rare bit of legislative movement.

Police in Chico, California, have identified victims in the attempted mass shooting at a library, including a 74-year-old. That case remains a serious public safety investigation.

Civil liberties advocates are also warning about a case tied to a protest outside the Prairieland Detention Center, where protesters received decades-long prison sentences over alleged antifa links.

In Europe and the Middle East

Germany’s rail network was halted nationwide for more than two and a half hours after an IT failure disrupted Deutsche Bahn services. The outage stopped trains across the country before service resumed.

The UN’s maritime agency has launched an evacuation operation for more than 11,000 sailors stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, as the shipping risk in the area continues to spill into other parts of the world.

In U.S. news

A federal judge has blocked Trump administration and state bans that would have kept SNAP recipients from buying soda, candy, and other foods labeled unhealthy. The ruling stops a push that had been championed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, who were trying to steer benefit rules toward their idea of better eating. The law, inconveniently, still has to do the deciding.

Also in Washington, Justice Clarence Thomas used a concurrence in United States v. Hemani to argue that the Commerce Clause does not justify federal bans on gun possession simply because a firearm once crossed state lines. He said the Court’s earlier decisions in Lopez and Morrison support real limits on Congress’s power, and that the same logic should apply to broader federal gun bans.

In politics and the courts

A New York man accused of threatening to kill President Trump is seeking dismissal of the charges. Prosecutors say Joshua Alexander repeatedly posted threats against Trump and his family on X and in messages to the White House, and that he later admitted he wanted to murder the president. His public defender argues the case does not meet the legal standard for a terroristic threat.

ABC, meanwhile, has started running ads urging viewers to contact the FCC as the agency moves against the network on two fronts, including an equal-time dispute involving The View and an early renewal review of several affiliate licenses. The broadcaster is telling the public the regulator is not exactly being subtle.

In science and technology

Researchers at Caltech say they have developed 3D-printed cobalt-free electrodes that could make lithium-ion batteries safer, more powerful, and less environmentally damaging. The goal is to improve performance without relying on cobalt, which has long been a problem for cost, supply, and ethics.

A separate report says Anthropic’s flagship Mythos AI model reportedly breached nearly all of the NSA’s classified systems during an authorized red-team test, though the details are still based on a cybersecurity publication’s account. If that sounds alarming, that is because it is.

In the world

Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako received a ceremonial welcome at the Royal Palace in Brussels as they began a state visit to Belgium.

In sports

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Portugal beat Uzbekistan, and with those goals he became the first player to score in six World Cups. At this point he is not so much breaking records as filing paperwork for new ones.

In U.S. courts and civil rights

A federal judge has blocked restrictions that would have kept SNAP benefits from being used to buy candy, soda, and other sugary drinks in 23 states. Judge Amy Berman Jackson said policymakers cannot push healthier choices by ignoring the law and their own regulations.

Separately, the Supreme Court ruled that a Rastafarian prisoner cannot sue guards who cut off his dreadlocks, narrowing his path to relief after he said prison officials violated his religious rights.

And federal judges, including 11 appointed by Trump, have been openly rebuking the White House over what they describe as repeated failures to follow the law. That is not usually the tone judges use when they are feeling serene.

In immigration policy

New figures show the Trump administration has driven U.S. humanitarian admissions to a 50-year low, while admitting mostly white South Africans. The cut has drawn sharp criticism in Washington over who gets access to a system that has been reduced to a trickle.

In Brussels, EU officials held quiet technical talks with Taliban representatives about returning Afghan nationals who no longer have the right to stay in Europe. The focus was on speeding up repatriations, which is a polite phrase for a very difficult issue.

In public safety and local news

In California, deputies used a drone and a magnet during a standoff with a known felon and parolee-at-large who was armed with a gun. They eventually helped disarm the suspect after surrounding the home.

In Scotland, former River City actor Iain Robertson has been found guilty of rape and of assaulting two other women.

In Washington

President Trump is standing by his claims of vandalism at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, even as reports say the new base covering is peeling and the water has turned green from an algae bloom. The renovation has not exactly aged like a national monument should.

In tech and entertainment

Netflix says its anime audience has surged from 1 billion views in 2023 to 1.5 billion in 2025, and says anime is now watched in 150 million households across more than 190 countries. The company also unveiled Fool Night and new details on The One Piece.

In China, robotics firm Agibot is livestreaming humanoid robots working on an active factory line, where the machines are inspecting and sorting tablets in a real production test. The humans, for now, still get to share the floor.

In Europe

A dangerous heat wave is sweeping across the continent, with temperatures expected to top 100 degrees in parts of Europe and red threat-to-life alerts already in place in France, Spain, and the U.K. June temperature records are falling, which is not the kind of milestone anyone was hoping for.

Separate from the heat, fishermen and marine experts say poisonous pufferfish are spreading across Mediterranean beaches, raising risks for swimmers, coastal ecosystems, and fishing gear.

In U.S. law enforcement

A DEA whistleblower says federal agents allowed large numbers of fentanyl pills to move through New Mexico during the height of the crisis in an effort to build a bigger case against higher-level traffickers. If true, it leaves a lot of questions.

In a separate case, Nancy Guthrie’s family is facing fresh uncertainty after contradictory ransom notes emerged in the aftermath of her February disappearance, with one note saying she was dead and another saying she was alive.

Meanwhile, public workers fired over posts about Charlie Kirk’s assassination are winning six-figure settlements, with one award reaching £657,000, as First Amendment claims continue to hold up in court.

In science and technology

Researchers in Germany have built Floaty, a shape-shifting drone that can ride updrafts instead of relying on propellers to hover. In tests, it stayed stable in strong airflow and used about a tenth of the power of comparable thruster-based systems, with possible uses in smokestack inspections and weather research.

Western intelligence agencies in the Five Eyes alliance warn that an AI-driven cyber threat could emerge within months, not years, after the U.S. moved to tighten controls around Anthropic’s models.

In business and infrastructure

Johannesburg has secured a R3.8 billion concessional loan from Germany’s KfW to help repair its troubled power utility, City Power. The money is meant to shore up failing infrastructure and billing systems, but officials say the fixes will take time.

In tech and business

Meta has paused its Model Capability Initiative after discovering that sensitive employee data collected for AI training was accessible across the company. The program had recorded keystrokes, mouse activity, and sometimes screen content from U.S.-based workers.

In the UK, StubHub has been fined nearly £900,000 and ordered to refund more than 50,000 fans after regulators said it failed to show the full ticket price at booking. Rival reseller Viagogo is still under investigation.

In Europe

Spain is bracing for a heatwave, with five provinces under red alert as temperatures near 40 degrees Celsius. Dozens of councils have cancelled San Juan bonfires over wildfire fears.

A separate climate analysis warns the UK could face longer and more frequent extreme summer heatwaves by 2052 if current warming trends continue.

The European Union is also preparing to meet Taliban officials in Brussels to discuss migration, with deportations of Afghans who do not have the right to stay in Europe expected to be on the table.

In public safety

Montreal police say officer Mohamed Lamine Benredouane, 34, was killed in a shooting along with a civilian.

In court

Barrie Drewitt-Barlow and his husband Scott appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court facing expanded charges that now include rape, child sex offences, sexual assault, and modern slavery trafficking for sexual exploitation. Essex Police have brought 18 charges in total. Both men remain in custody, and the Football Association has suspended them from football-related activity while the case continues.

In cyber and security

Researchers say the AryStinger botnet is exploiting decade-old flaws in unsupported D-Link routers, turning roughly 4,300 end-of-life devices into a proxy network for scanning targets and hiding attacker activity.

In a separate campaign, Microsoft says the North Korean-linked group BlueNoroff compromised a Mastra npm maintainer account and pushed more than 140 malicious packages into AI development environments, including tools for stealing credentials and installing backdoors.

President Trump also signed executive orders aimed at speeding the federal shift to post-quantum cryptography by 2030, expanding investment and counterintelligence efforts around future cryptographic threats.

US road safety regulators have opened a probe after a Tesla Model 3 reportedly operating in self-driving mode crashed into a Texas home and killed a woman.

In U.S. news

Philadelphia police say three women were found dead in a home in what investigators are treating as an apparent murder-suicide. Authorities said one woman shot the other two before turning the gun on herself, and the homicide unit is still investigating.

Authorities in Arizona have withheld key details for months in the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC Today anchor Savannah Guthrie. She has now been missing for more than 20 weeks after what investigators describe as a suspected armed abduction from her home.

Police in North Coventry Township say a man was shot by officers Monday evening, and the incident is under investigation.

In diplomacy and politics

Lower-level US and Iranian officials are continuing technical talks in Switzerland after senior figures departed, with both sides trying to turn the discussion into a concrete agreement.

In the U.K.

South Yorkshire Police has launched an investigation after video appeared to show an officer punching girls during a street scuffle in Rotherham. The force says it is reviewing all available footage, including body-worn video, to determine what happened before, during, and after the incident.

In business and markets

Former Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan has died at 100. He was one of the most influential economic policymakers of the modern era.

In AI and cybersecurity

Samsung Electronics is rolling out ChatGPT Enterprise and Codex across its South Korean workforce and its global Device eXperience division. OpenAI is also launching its new Daybreak Cyber Partner Program, letting 29 cybersecurity vendors build GPT-5.5 into customer-facing products for faster detection, response, and remediation.

Elsewhere in the sector, Sakana AI is pitching an orchestration system that combines multiple agents and models instead of leaning on one giant proprietary platform. On the security side, experts say the push to post-quantum cryptography is still moving too slowly, even as governments start setting firmer deadlines and governance expectations.

In Romania, a cyberattack forced dozens of hospitals offline for four days and pushed staff back to pen and paper while systems were restored.

In crime and courts

A police officer, the suspect, and another person were killed in a shootout Monday in Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges borough. Police say the investigation is ongoing.

In Utah, a judge rejected a defense request to make Tyler Robinson’s former roommate testify in person at the preliminary hearing in the Charlie Kirk killing case. The judge said credibility challenges can be addressed later if the case reaches trial.

In Washington, David Hearn was arrested and charged with misdemeanor destruction of government property after police said he interfered with work at the Reflecting Pool. Hearn denies damaging the pool, and the Trump administration says more arrests have been made and repairs will start immediately.

Weather and local disruptions

In Bristol, a lightning strike set a detached family home on fire in Emersons Green during Monday evening storms. Everyone inside got out safely, and firefighters brought the blaze under control by 10 p.m. The same storm also forced Bristol Airport to suspend flights after lightning damaged radar and air traffic control systems.

In rural Texas, a semitrailer carrying about 400 hives overturned and spilled millions of honeybees into a neighborhood. Officials say the bees escaped after the crash.

In politics

Sen. Rick Scott is circulating a plan among Senate Republicans to avoid another government shutdown later this year, and he wants to discuss it when President Trump meets with GOP senators on Wednesday. Scott says Democrats are unlikely to help.