July 15, 2026

U.S., ISRAEL, IRAN WAR | Day 138.

• Iran's Revolutionary Guard threatened today to halt all energy exports from the Persian Gulf following the re-imposition of a U.S. naval blockade of Iranian shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and the intensification of U.S. airstrikes on targets across Iran. [more]
• Iranian officials say at least 30 people have been killed, and more than 260 have been wounded, in U.S. airstrikes on Iran in "recent days." Reports note that among sites targeted by the U.S. today was Iran's 388th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, which operates battle tanks and armored vehicles. [more]
• Citing requests from U.S. allies in the Middle East, U.S. President Donald Trump yesterday abandoned plans to impose a 20% fee on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for U.S. safeguarding of the strategic waterway. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,600 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• At least eight people were killed, and 17 others were injured, in overnight Russian drone and missile strikes on Ukraine, including on the cities of Odesa and Sumy. [more]
• A report issued yesterday by the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine says at least 293 civilians were killed, and 1,990 others were injured, in Russian strikes on Ukraine in June. The organization says it has verified at least 16,431 civilian deaths and 48,613 injuries in Ukraine since the Russian invasion began in February 2022. [full report] [more]
• Reports cite Ukrainian military sources as saying 20 Russian vessels, including 17 oil tankers, were struck by Ukrainian drones overnight in the Black Sea. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | According to Labor Department data released yesterday, consumer prices in the U.S. fell by 0.4% in June – down from a 0.5% increase in May and the largest one-month decrease since April 2020. On a yearly basis, consumer prices have risen 3.5% since June 2025. [full report] [more]

U.S. MILITARY FUNDING | Senate Democrats yesterday blocked the normally bipartisan-supported annual National Defense Authorization Act in protest of President Donald Trump’s war against Iran. This year's NDAA would increase the Defense Department's 2027 budget to about $1.15 trillion from about $900 billion this year and proposes to increase U.S. military pay by 3.6%. [more]

U.S. POLITICS | President Donald Trump is expected to use a primetime television address tomorrow night to reiterate his theories concerning alleged interference in the 2020 elections. Reports cite sources as saying that among Trump's allegations will be the validity of Senate elections in Georgia, both of which were won by Democrats. The speech comes amidst various administration efforts to exert increased federal control over state-run elections and ahead of November's mid-term elections. [more]

MORE U.S. POLITICS | Darline Graham Nordone, the sister of late U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, was selected by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster this week to finish the remainder of her brother's term in office. Nordone was sworn in by the Senate yesterday. [more]

U.S. IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT | The Department of Homeland Security has reportedly ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to suspend most vehicle stops following three fatal incidents in the past two weeks in which people died during ICE encounters. Two of the deaths, one each in Texas and Maine, involved fatal shootings by ICE officers, while the third death occurred in Florida yesterday when a man fleeing immigration officers was hit by a truck. President Donald Trump this morning objected to the vehicle stop suspension, calling such stops one of immigration enforcement's "most important and effective crime fighting tools." [more]

WISCONSIN | The Wisconsin Elections Commission found last week that billionaire Elon Musk likely broke state laws against election bribery when he promised to hand out $1 million checks to voters in the state's 2025 Supreme Court election. Two complaints filed by Wisconsin voters against Musk were referred by the Commission this week to the Brown County district attorney’s office for potential criminal prosecution. [more]

NEW YORK | Governor Kathy Hochul signed an executive order yesterday that imposes a statewide moratorium of up to one year on the construction of new large data centers in New York. Hochul said the measure will remain in place while rules are created to protect the environment and energy and water supplies from the high demands of such centers. [more]

U.S. DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME | The House of Representatives voted yesterday to approve a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent in the United States. Reports note that the bill allows states to opt out of the change if their legislatures do so before the bill becomes law and that the fate of the measure in the Senate is unclear. [more]

U.S. AND IRAQ | In statements yesterday, Iraqi and U.S. officials said the remaining U.S. forces in Iraq are expected to be out of the country by September 30 of this year, ending a 23-year presence that began with the 2003 invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein and ended with small-scale operations against the Islamic State militant group. [more]

U.S. AND MEXICO | Mexico's Foreign Ministry filed formal requests to U.S. state attorneys general yesterday, seeking criminal investigations into the deaths of at least 17 Mexican migrants who have died either in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody or during ICE operations. [more]

CUBA | Amidst the ongoing U.S. energy embargo of the Caribbean island nation, Cuba experienced its third island-wide electrical blackout in two weeks early yesterday. Government officials said power had been restored to about 4% of the capital Havana by yesterday afternoon. [more]

U.K. | British counterterrorism police say the killing of former conservative politician and reality TV contestant Ann Widdecombe last week was a "targeted attack" and that full understanding of what motivated the attack is still being investigated. A suspect in the killing remains in police custody. [more]

CONGO | Newly released government data indicates that the death toll in the Democratic Republic of Congo's ongoing Ebola outbreak has reached at least 754, with more than 2,000 total cases reported. [more]

CHINA | A report released today by the country's National Bureau of Statistics indicates that China's economic growth, as measured by gross domestic product, slowed to a 4.3% annualized rate in the April-June quarter – down from a 5% growth rate in the January-March period and the slowest quarterly pace in more than three years. [more]

ISRAEL | In a move analysts attribute to efforts by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling coalition to gain support ahead of elections later this year, Israel's parliament approved new laws this week aimed at formalizing the de-facto exemption of ultra-Orthodox from compulsory military service. [more]

FRANCE | After years of related debate, France's National Assembly is expected to give final approval today to a bill that would allow adults with incurable illnesses to receive lethal medication. [more]

SPAIN AND GIBRALTAR | In accordance with an E.U.-U.K. treaty signed last year, the border fence between southern Spain and the British territory of Gibraltar was removed yesterday, allowing passport-free passage between the two regions. [more]

TECH INDUSTRY | Payments company Stripe and private equity firm Advent International have reportedly made a joint offer to acquire online payment company PayPal for more than $53 billion. Reports say PayPal has not yet responded to the offer. [more]

WORLD CUP | Spain beat France, 2-0, yesterday to advance to Sunday's final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. England plays Argentina today in the second semi-final match-up. [more]

BASEBALL The American League beat the National League, 4-0, in last night's MLB All-Star Game. New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger was named the game's most valuable player. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1799, the Rosetta Stone, on which a 196 BC decree on behalf of Egypt's King Ptolemy V Epiphanes was inscribed in three ancient scripts and which became a key to deciphering ancient Egyptian writing, was found at Fort Julien in the Nile Delta during the Napoleonic campaign in Egypt. [more history]