June 25, 2026
VENEZUELA | U.S., ISRAEL, IRAN WAR | UKRAINE | U.S. ECONOMY | U.S. WAR POWERS | U.S. HOUSING | U.S. ELECTIONS | U.S. BANKING | U.S. FOOD ASSISTANCE | U.S. EDUCATION | U.S. AND TAIWAN | CHINA AND TAIWAN | FRANCE | KENYA | U.K. | COLOMBIA | ZIMBABWE | TODAY IN HISTORY
VENEZUELA | A state of emergency has been declared in Venezuela after two earthquakes, magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, struck the South American nation yesterday evening. Search and rescue and damage assessment efforts continue today. Authorities say at least 164 people were killed, and more than 1000 others were injured, in the quakes and that the death toll is expected to rise. [more]
U.S., ISRAEL, IRAN WAR | Day 118.
- Reports say at least two ships transited the southern passage of the Strait of Hormuz near Oman's shore today despite renewed warnings from the naval arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guard that "the only authorized route for passing through the Strait of Hormuz is the one declared by the Islamic Republic of Iran" and that "violators will be dealt with." [more]
UKRAINE | Today is day 1,580 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:
- Authorities in Ukraine's northern Chernihiv region have ordered the mandatory evacuation of 12 settlements near the border with Belarus starting July 1 following recent suggestions by Ukrainian intelligence services that Russia intends to draw Belarus deeper into the war and possibly launch new offensives from Belarusian territory. [more]
- Ukrainian military officials say their forces struck a major Russian natural gas processing plant and two key satellite communications centers deep within Russia overnight. [more]
U.S. ECONOMY | According to Commerce Department data released today, the personal consumption expenditures price index – a measure of changes in the prices of goods and services purchased by consumers in the US and which is the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation – rose 0.4% from April to May and 4.1% from May 2025 to May 2026. Reports note that the last time the annual PCE rate rose above 4% was in April 2023. [full report] [more]
U.S. WAR POWERS | Just a day after approving a war powers resolution aimed at blocking further military action in Iran without Congressional approval, the Senate voted late last night to reject a nearly identical resolution, with multiple Republican senators changing their vote following meetings with President Donald Trump and Iran-related briefings by other officials. [more]
U.S. HOUSING | President Donald Trump yesterday unexpectedly announced he would not sign a major bipartisan housing regulation reform bill passed by veto-proof majorities in both the House and Senate until, and unless, Congress passes voting-related legislation that, among other things, would require documentary proof of citizenship in order to register to vote. [more]
U.S. ELECTIONS | Boston-based U.S. District Court Judge Denise Casper yesterday made permanent her earlier preliminary injunction barring implementation of President Donald Trump's March 2025 executive order on elections that sought to require documentary proof-of-citizenship to register to vote, mandate that states provide detailed voter information to the federal government, bar states from counting mail-in ballots received after election day, and withhold some federal grant funding from states that failed to comply with the new requirements. Casper said in her ruling that the Constitution gives states and Congress the authority to regulate elections and that Trump’s requirements violated the separation of powers. [more]
U.S. BANKING | According to the Federal Reserve, all 32 of the United States' largest banks passed the Fed's most recent annual "stress test," which measures whether banks' capital holdings would remain at healthy levels in the event o major economic contraction. [press release] [more]
U.S. FOOD ASSISTANCE | According to Agriculture Department data released yesterday, several dozen U.S. states could be at risk of having to pay for a larger portion of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits due to high payment error rates. The Department says its annual assessment for 2025 showed a national payment error rate of 10.62%, "far surpassing the congressional threshold of 6%." [press release] [payment error rate by state] [more]
U.S. EDUCATION | A federal judge yesterday blocked implementation of new Trump administration and Education Department rules that would have imposed lower federal student loan limits for people pursuing graduate degrees in nursing and other healthcare-related fields. The rules were due to take effect July 1. [more]
U.S. AND TAIWAN | Amidst a Trump administration review of a proposed $14 billion arms sales package to Taiwan and Chinese assertions of control over the island territory, members of the House of Representatives met with Han Kuo-yu, president of Taiwan’s legislature, yesterday, signaling their support for close relations, the arms package, and deterrence against "growing coercion from the People’s Republic of China." [more]
CHINA AND TAIWAN | A day after the U.K., France, and Germany expressed concern over regional stability amidst "novel" Chinese naval activity off the east coast of Taiwan, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said today that China deployed coast guard ships in the region in response to an announcement by Japan and the Philippines that they would discuss their maritime boundaries in waters that Beijing views as its own. [more]
FRANCE | French health authorities confirmed a positive case of Ebola yesterday in a doctor who recently returned from a humanitarian mission in one of the virus transmission zones in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The French Ministry of Health says the patient is in stable condition and that tracing efforts are underway to identify individuals who may have been in contact with the patient. [more]
KENYA | Police erected roadblocks on all major highways around the Kenyan capital Nairobi today as part of efforts to limit access to the city ahead of planned demonstrations marking the two-year anniversary of anti-government protests in which at least 60 people died. [more]
U.K. | Amidst a record-setting heatwave affecting large portions of Europe, the U.K. recorded its hottest-ever June temperature yesterday, with readings as high as 36.1 C (96.98 F) in southern England. [more]
COLOMBIA | Following a recount, national electoral authorities yesterday declared conservative Abelardo de la Espriella the winner of Colombia's runoff presidential election. De la Espriella will begin a four-year term on August 7. [more]
ZIMBABWE | In a move seen as supporting President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who has been in power since 2017, Zimbabwe's senate approved constitutional amendments yesterday that would replace direct popular elections for president with selection by lawmakers, extend Mnangagwa's current term in office by two years, and postpone elections scheduled for 2028 to 2030. [more]
TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1950, North Korea launched an attack on South Korea across the 38th parallel, sparking the three-year Korean War. Active fighting in the war was ended through an armistice agreement in July 1953, but a formal peace treaty between the belligerents was never implemented. [more history]