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A curated guide to major news and developments over the weekend. Here’s today’s news:
IRAN WAR
The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, issued a statement on Saturday laying out multiple requirements for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. He called for the United States to lift its naval blockade and sanctions on Iran, withdraw the U.S. military from around Iran, pay war reparations, and release frozen Iranian assets. A spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said earlier on Saturday that the reopening of the strait was not imminent, adding that it was not contingent on the Iran-Oman negotiations and would depend on the United States fully accepting Iran’s conditions. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said yesterday that the Iran-Oman agreement was in its “final stages” but reiterated that Tehran would not reopen the strait unless the United States met its demands. Yeganeh Torbati, Leily Nikounazar, and Aaron Boxerman report for the New York Times; Nayera Abdallah, Steve Holland, and Enas Alashray report for Reuters.
The United Arab Emirates on Saturday condemned what it said was an Iranian attack on a carrier linked to its state oil company as it passed through the Strait of Hormuz. Reuters reports.
“We are low-keying it,” President Trump told Axios yesterday regarding Washington’s current approach to Iran, adding, “we are only semi-negotiating with [Iran]. We are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money.” Trump did not express any anger or frustration about Iran’s delay in announcing a deal with Oman, or about Iran’s new list of demands. Barak Ravid reports.
The Iran campaign has forced the Pentagon to rush ships, aircraft, and air-defense units from across Europe and Asia to the Middle East as U.S. stockpiles have been depleted, U.S. officials said. The officials added that this effort has had cascading consequences for equipment maintenance and troop morale, and has caused concern in the military and intelligence communities. Anton Troianovski, Jonathan Swan, Eric Schmitt, and Julian E. Barnes report for the New York Times.
The Pentagon is asking the U.S defense industry to rapidly escalate the production and delivery of weapons, including munitions that are in extreme shortage due to the war with Iran, according to a Defense Department memo dated July 5. In the memo, Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg told industry leaders that they had no more than 21 days to submit plans to “drive significantly faster, more aggressive delivery schedules and/or increased production for critical capabilities.” Pranshu Verma reports for the Washington Post.
IRAN WAR – LEBANON
Lebanon and Israel have agreed on a shortlist of countries that could send troops to verify the disarmament of Hezbollah under a U.S.-brokered agreement, a Lebanese official said on Friday. The official added that the United States is due to pick countries from that list. The official declined to identify the countries. Maya Gebeily reports for Reuters.
YEMEN
A Houthi attack on Yemen’s port city of Mocha yesterday killed three civilians, four military personnel, and wounded 30 others, the Yemeni military said today. Footage shown by Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV showed the launch of several ballistic missiles and drones, which Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said on social media targeted Saudi troop concentrations and weapons depots. Reuters reports.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
Ukraine and Russia accused each other of lethal attacks yesterday. Three people were killed and 37 wounded in Kharkiv, Ukraine, where a multi-storey apartment block was hit, while authorities in Russia’s Belgorod said a Ukrainian drone attack killed 5 people and wounded 25 others. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also criticized Moscow for targeting global food security following a strike on Odesa’s seaport. Reuters reports.
A Ukrainian drone attack on industrial and civilian targets in the city of Nizhnekamsk killed at least 13 people, including a child, and wounded 39 others, Russian authorities said today. Ukraine’s military said it had hit Tatneft’s TANECO oil refinery in the Tatarstan region, about 800 km (497 miles) east of Moscow, adding that a fire was recorded at the facility. Reuters reports.
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Israel will not accept the 15-point plan for Gaza set out by Trump’s “Board of Peace,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday. “I want to clarify this: Israel rejects the 15-point document. I have heard people saying, ‘You didn’t say that.’ So here I am saying it again,” he told a Cabinet meeting. “The IDF will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is disarmed,” he added. Mithil Aggarwal reports for NBC News.
The New York Times interviewed 24 activists from a May flotilla intercepted by Israel on its way to Gaza, with most alleging beatings, tasering, sexual humiliation, and other abuse in Israeli custody. Twenty-two said they were subjected to varying kinds of physical assault. The 23rd said she had witnessed such violence, and the 24th, a doctor, said she had treated injuries caused by it. Seven people said they were hospitalized after Israel released them. Six provided medical records that showed they had variously suffered fractured ribs, a fractured vertebra, a broken coccyx, a firearm wound, and a collapsed lung. Catherine Porer, Elisabetta Povoledo, and Nimet Kirac report.
WEST BANK VIOLENCE
The Israeli military yesterday closed the village of Taybeh, in the occupied West Bank, to non-residents, saying it aimed to prevent growing attacks on Palestinians by Israeli settlers. Reuters reports.
OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said yesterday that the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, signed on Friday by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, was “purely defensive in nature” and that other countries could join if they were willing to uphold its principles. The agreement stipulates “that any armed attack against any one of the three states shall be regarded as an attack against them all.” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan similarly said the agreement was not aimed at Iran or any other country. Munir Ahmed reports for AP News.
Syria and Russia have reached a deal after 18 months of negotiations over Russia’s military bases at Tartous and Hmeimim, the Syrian foreign ministry said yesterday. The ministry said the Syrian state would take over management of civilian facilities, including Hmeimim airport, while military facilities would be repurposed as joint training and qualification centers under new arrangements preserving the interests of both sides, with the transition to be completed within three months. Reuters reports.
U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
The Trump administration has been looking for a current or former Cuban official who could be persuaded to take over the government in Havana, according to current and former U.S. officials. However, multiple officials said that there are very few pragmatic officials who would be poised to take over if U.S. forces captured Raúl Castro or forced out the current leadership. Tyler Pager, Julian E. Barnes, and Frances Robles report for the New York Times.
The State Department on Friday pledged $1 billion in security assistance to Colombia, just hours after Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as president. In his first speech, de la Espriella promised an all-out war on drug cartels, stronger military partnership with the United States, and participation in Trump’s “Shield of the Americas” security initiative. Ian Aikman and Mimi Swaby report for BBC News.
U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS
The Trump administration last week deported a group of Mexican nationals who had been barred from removal to their home country after proving to an immigration court that they would likely face torture, according to two sources. ICE reversed the protections, citing diplomatic assurances from the government of Mexico that the deportees would not be harmed, the sources added. Hamed Aleaziz reports for the New York Times.
The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office on Friday announced a civil rights investigation into the state’s largest immigration detention facility, Delaney Hall. Daniel Han reports for POLITICO.
Two federal judges on Friday allowed the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status for South Sudan and Myanmar. The Department of Homeland Security issued two alerts on its website confirming that, effective Aug. 7, Temporary Protected Status designation had been halted for both countries. Nate Raymond reports for Reuters; Mira Bhakta reports for The Hill.
U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS
The Senate passed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia Act on Friday in an 86-to-11 vote. Stef W. Kight reports for Axios.
The Senate on Saturday confirmed Todd Blanche to be attorney general in a 50-to-49 vote, with Sens Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) joining with Democrats in opposition. Riley Rogerson and Jordain Carney report for POLITICO.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS
Trump yesterday announced that White House Staff Secretary Will Scharf would replace David Warrington as White House counsel on Sept. 1. Maggie Haberman reports for the New York Times.
The Trump administration has launched a new effort to remove Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook, notifying her that Trump is considering her removal and giving her 21 days to respond to mortgage fraud allegations, according to a letter obtained by Axios. The Supreme Court earlier this year blocked Trump’s first attempt to remove Cook for failing to give her notice or an opportunity to respond, while his new letter seeks to satisfy those requirements. Courtenay Brown reports.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION
A federal appeals court ruled on Friday that Trump cannot continue building the White House ballroom without explicit approval from Congress. The decision does not mean construction will halt immediately. The judges paused their ruling for 14 days to give the administration a chance to appeal. Zach Montague and Mattathias Schwartz report for the New York Times.
A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to shift $4 billion in homelessness funding from permanent housing toward temporary housing and services, ruling that the Department of Housing and Urban Development had failed to follow the required administrative procedures. Katharine Hapgood reports for POLITICO.
A former federal prosecutor, Will Rosenzweig, filed a lawsuit on Friday against the Justice Department, alleging he was fired after a right-wing influencer publicly demanded his dismissal over past criticism of Trump. Alan Feuer reports for the New York Times.
Did you miss this? Stay up-to-date with our Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions.
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