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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the last 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:
IRAN WAR – RENEWED STRIKES
Iran and the United States traded strikes yesterday into this morning after Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran did not claim yesterday’s attacks in the strait, but its state broadcaster said at least one vessel had ignored warnings from Iranian forces. In retaliation, President Trump ordered a series of strikes on Iran late last night, and the Treasury Department revoked a sanctions waiver that had allowed Iran to sell oil on the world market for 60 days. U.S. Central Command said on social media that it had hit more than 80 targets with precision munitions. Jon Gambrell, Fatima Hussein, and Konstantin Toropin report for AP News; Eric Schmitt reports for the New York Times; Jenny Gross reports for the New York Times.
Iran’s central military command warned it “will respond decisively to this aggression and terrorist act.” In a statement this morning, Iran’s military said its combat drones had struck U.S. positions at Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain and targets in Kuwait, adding that “all U.S. bases in the region will be legitimate targets.” Jon Gambrell, Fatima Hussein, and Konstantin Toropin report for AP News; Hari Raj reports for the New York Times.
Hours later, Iran’s foreign ministry released a statement today saying that U.S. actions, including the revocation of Iran’s oil sales license and the new military strikes, have rendered parts of the current ceasefire “ineffective.” Iran said that interference in its arrangements for clearing passage in the Strait of Hormuz is making the interim truce deal unworkable. Tala Ramadan reports for Reuters. Christina Anagnostopoulos, Farouq Suleiman, Estelle Shirbon, and Isabella Lapadula report for Reuters.
“To me, I think it’s over. I don’t want to deal with them. They’re scum. They’re sick people. They’re led by sick people,” Trump said today when asked at the NATO summit whether the interim deal between Washington and Tehran was over. Trump added, “As far as I’m concerned, it’s just a waste of time dealing with them.” Christina Anagnostopoulos, Farouq Suleiman, Estelle Shirbon, and Isabella Lapadula report for Reuters.
World oil prices soared more than 5% today after Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was over. International benchmark Brent North Sea crude jumped 5.3 percent to $78.09 a barrel, while the main U.S. contract, West Texas Intermediate, advanced 5.4 percent to $74.23 a barrel. CBS News reports.
IRAN WAR – OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
Senior U.S. military commanders bypassed warnings in critical databases that intelligence about potential targets in Iran was severely out of date and approved some strikes – including one that hit a school, killing nearly 200 children and adults, according to three sources. The decision by senior commanders to ignore the warnings was made for “expediency,” two of the sources said, but it also directly contributed to the strike on the school. U.S. military officials “knew within days [of the strike on the school] how the mistake happened,” one of the sources added. Zachary Cohen reports for CNN.
NATO SUMMIT
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told reporters at the NATO summit this morning that the new U.S. attacks on Iran were “absolutely necessary,” adding, “when you have a ceasefire and Iran is basically violating the ceasefire, I think it is totally crucial that the U.S. forcefully react.” Reuters reports.
Rutte also emphasized this morning that NATO has been truly transformed, pointing in particular toward European and Canadian defense spending. “If you look at it from the United States’ perspective, you will have European allies which are much more capable to, with the U.S., work together in NATO to keep 1 billion people safe,” Rutte said. Lara Jakes reports for the New York Times.
Sitting alongside Rutte, Trump told reporters, “I’m not happy with NATO because of what they did with Greenland, and I’m not happy with NATO because of the fact that they didn’t want to help us with the number one state sponsor of terror.” A NATO diplomat said, “We’re all doing exactly what the Americans demanded,” but announcements on defense spending are “now overshadowed by complaints over Greenland.” Tyler Pager reports for the New York Times; Felicia Schwartz, Paul McLeary, and Jack Detsch report for POLITICO.
Trump went on to say that he wants to cut all trade ties with Spain, while calling other European allies “hopeless.” The Spanish prime minister’s office has responded that Madrid was taking Trump’s comments calmly and treating them as “business as usual.” Lili Bayer, Andrew Gray, and Humeyra Pamuk report for Reuters; Tyler Pager reports for the New York Times.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said today that Denmark is “ready to defend every inch of NATO, including our own territory” in the event of an attack and would rely on NATO allies to honor their commitment to defend each other. Frederiksen’s comments came after Trump again insisted that the United States should control Greenland, saying at the summit that the territory “is very important for the United States, but it’s not important for Denmark.” Trump added that he might pull U.S. troops from Europe if Denmark refused to relinquish the territory. Lorne Cook and Seung Min Kim report for AP News; John Vandiver reports for Stars and Stripes.
The alliance is expected to issue a short communiqué today restating its commitment to collective defense and its support for Ukraine, promising $80 billion a year this year and next from Europe and Canada, according to NATO country officials. It is also expected to restate opposition to Iran ever obtaining a nuclear weapon and will call for freedom of navigation. Steven Erlanger reports for the New York Times.
The United Kingdom has announced a new £37 billion long-range missile programme involving twelve NATO countries, called Deep Precision Strike, which aims to strengthen Europe’s defence capabilities over the next decade and deter threats, particularly from Russia. The project is due to be discussed later today at the summit. Frank Gardner and Patrick Jackson report for BBC News.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
Russia fired drones and missiles at Kyiv again overnight, officials said today. While Ukraine’s air defences intercepted 139 of the 169 drones during the strikes, they were again unable to down any of the five ballistic missiles used by Russia, air force data showed. A woman was killed and two people were wounded in the overnight attack on Kyiv, authorities said. Gleb Garanich and Valentyn Ogirenko report for Reuters.
Ukrainian drones struck three Russian oil refineries, Russian tankers on the Sea of Azov, and pipeline pumping stations overnight, Ukrainian and Russian officials said today. Reuters reports.
Russian forces are trying to counter Ukrainian “mid-strike” drone attacks by camouflaging cargoes and installing powerful jamming systems to disrupt Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet system, Ukrainian drone commanders and pilots told Reuters. Max Hunder reports.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Israeli strikes and gunfire yesterday killed at least seven Palestinians in Gaza in several different incidents, health officials said. Al-Mughrabi reports for Reuters.
The lawyer for Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, a Palestinian medic from Gaza who has been detained by Israeli authorities for over 18 months without charge, told BBC News he fears for his client’s life. Nasser Odeh said that when he visited Dr Hussam Abu Safiya last week at an interrogation facility called Rakefet, his client was so badly beaten that he could not recognise him. In a statement to the BBC, the Israel Prison Service rejected the account as false. Israel’s Supreme Court has ordered the government to respond by Tuesday to a petition calling for the release of Abu Safiya and 13 other Palestinian doctors from Gaza held without charge in Israel. Caroline Davies reports for BBC News.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
Healthcare workers at the epicenter of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Ebola outbreak told AP News that they are going on strike because they have not been paid their wages and bonuses since the outbreak was declared on May 15. In an official notice to national and provincial authorities over the weekend, front-line workers in Ituri threatened to strike if their wages were not paid in 24 hours. By Tuesday, some had already stopped working, although no official strike had been declared. Prosper Heri Ngorora reports.
Ghana has postponed bilateral meetings with South Africa planned for next month because of a surge in anti-migrant violence in South Africa, Ghana’s government spokesperson said yesterday. Ghana repatriated hundreds of its citizens ahead of a June 30 “deadline” set by a South African anti-migrant movement for undocumented foreigners to leave. Reuters reports.
Marine Le Pen, the French far-right leader, announced yesterday that she will run for president, hours after a court upheld an embezzlement conviction against her but lifted a ban on her seeking public office. The court’s decision means that she may have to wear an electronic bracelet that limits her movement, something which Le Pen previously said would make her candidacy impossible. Mark Landler and Ségolène Le Stradic report for the New York Times.
Hungary’s public television channel M1 and Kossuth radio station temporarily halted transmission yesterday afternoon, with the former displaying a message that read: “Public media should not lie. We are sorry for doing it for so long.” Reforms to the media were a key campaign promise of Hungary’s new Prime Minister Péter Magyar, who described the announcement as “the end of propaganda broadcasts.” Amy Walker reports for BBC News.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Rahm Emanuel, the former Chicago mayor and Democrat considering a 2028 presidential run, is giving a speech in Tel Aviv today, in which he will demand that Israel make major changes if it wants to retain U.S. backing. Emanuel will say that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government have isolated Israel and led it “into a dead end.” David M. Halbfinger reports for the New York Times.
U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS
An ICE officer yesterday shot and killed a man in Houston after he attempted to evade arrest in his vehicle during an operation, the agency said. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national, ignored commands and attempted to ram an agent who fired his weapon in self-defense. Jack Brook and Hallie Golden report for AP News.
The private prison company CoreCivic has sold two of the largest immigration detention facilities in California to the Department of Homeland Security in a deal worth $1.5 billion, the company announced Monday. Wendy Fry and Nigel Duara/Calmatters report for AP News.
U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
The Senate Intelligence Committee will hold a confirmation hearing on July 15 on Jay Clayton’s nomination to serve as director of national intelligence. Jordain Carney reports for POLITICO.
The Justice Department sent letters to all 50 states and the District of Columbia yesterday threatening criminal prosecution of top election officials if ballots cast by noncitizens were counted in upcoming elections. The letters asked the election officials to respond to the DOJ “within five days” with details on how their states intended to comply “with these federal laws both at the state and local level and how the Department can assist in those efforts.” It is unclear what would happen if a state does not respond in five days, as the letters are not subpoenas requiring a response. Nick Corasaniti reports for the New York Times.
The dean of Yale Law School and some members of its faculty are urging Yale’s leadership not to settle with the Trump administration over federal investigations into its admissions practices, arguing that doing so before any legal findings could undermine the university’s independence, academic freedom, and reputation, sources said. One source added that Yale’s leaders have continued to move forward with the negotiations, privately contending that they need to strike a deal to ensure federal funding. Alan Blinder and Michael S. Schmidt report for the New York Times.
TECH DEVELOPMENTS
The Department of Commerce has approved a broad public release of OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 after additional testing and discussions with government officials, Axios learned yesterday. Testing was done by the Center for AI Standards and Innovation within the Department of Commerce, with OpenAI sending technical experts who have remained in D.C. to address potential questions, the source said. Ashley Gold and Ina Fried report.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
Katherine Scarlett, a top environmental policy adviser in the White House, has departed, an official confirmed to The Hill. Scarlett chaired the White House Council on Environmental Quality, where she led a rollback of federal environmental standards for new infrastructure projects. According to Bloomberg, which first reported her exit, Scarlett is headed to consulting firm CGCN Group. The firm’s clients include companies and groups seeking to speed up permits for data centers and oil and gas pipelines. Scarlett Rachel Frazin reports.
The Treasury Department has scrapped plans for Harriet Tubman to be on the $20 bill, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday. The Biden administration attempted to speed up the release of $20 bills with the famous abolitionist after the first Trump administration shelved the move first kicked off by the Obama administration. Tara Suter reports for The Hill.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION
A federal judge yesterday ruled that the Justice Department may not subpoena the names and contact information of those who worked during the 2020 election in Georgia’s Fulton County. Cheyanne M. Daniels reports for POLITICO.
A federal judge in Florida yesterday ordered the Department of Homeland Security to restore four Republican-led states’ access to federal citizenship data to help screen their voter rolls. The ruling contradicts a recent Washington ruling that ordered DHS to withdraw such access nationally. Zach Montague and David Ovalle report for the New York Times.
The Justice Department settled a second lawsuit against the government brought by former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, agreeing to pay the conservative activist and Trump ally to resolve his claim that the U.S. Army wrongly withheld approximately $38,000 from his retirement pay several years ago. Zoe Tillman reports for Bloomberg.
The Iranian American Legal Defense Fund yesterday filed a lawsuit alleging the Trump administration has been sharing confidential information about Iranian asylum seekers with the Iranian government. Laura Romero reports for ABC News.
Did you miss this? Stay up-to-date with our Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions.
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