Early Edition: July 31, 2025

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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday outlined a plan for Ottawa to recognise a Palestinian state at a September U.N. conference. Carney said that he discussed the conditions that would have to be met for the recognition to take place with the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, including a condition that the Authority holds elections without Hamas’ participation next year. Nadine Yousif reports for BBC News; Max Saltman and Laura Sharman report for CNN.

President Trump early today said that it would be “very hard” for the United States to strike a trade deal with Canada in light of Carney’s announcement, while Israel’s foreign ministry described the move as a “reward for Hamas.” Francesca Regalado reports for the New York Times.

In an unprecedented step, all 22 Arab League states on Tuesday for the first time issued a joint call for Hamas to disarm and relinquish power in Gaza, backing a declaration signed by several states at a U.N. conference. Nadeen Ebrahim reports for CNN.

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR — U.S. RESPONSE

The U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, has landed in Israel, Israeli media report. According to U.S. officials, Witkoff is expected to discuss the humanitarian crisis in Gaza during the trip and may also visit the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) aid centers. BBC News reports; Barak Ravid reports for Axios.

More than half of Senate Democrats yesterday supported two resolutions seeking to block U.S. weapons sales to Israel. While both resolutions ultimately failed, the vote highlights the party’s growing frustration with Israel’s handling of the war in Gaza. Theodoric Meyer reports for the Washington Post.

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR

Israeli troops yesterday killed at least 30 Palestinians waiting for humanitarian aid in northern Gaza, the territory’s Hamas-run civil defense agency said, adding that Israeli fire wounded around 300 more people. The IDF said its troops fired “warning shots” after Gazans gathered around aid trucks, and it was “not aware of any casualties.” Separately, Gaza hospital sources said that six Palestinians were killed near GHF aid centres. The GHF said no killings around its sites took place yesterday. James Chater reports for BBC News.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR

An overnight barrage of Russian missiles and drones that struck several districts of Kyiv killed at least six people and wounded more than 80, Ukrainian officials said today, adding that the death toll could rise. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia launched more than 300 drones and eight missiles and hit residential buildings in the capital. James Chater and Jonathan Beale report for BBC News; Anastasiia Malenko and Vladyslav Smilianets report for Reuters.

Ukrainian troops are struggling to contain Russia’s summer offensive, with Moscow’s drones penetrating deep into areas Kyiv’s forces once relied upon as oases of calm, according to frontline reports from CNN journalists. Nick Paton Walsh, Natalie Wright, Kosta Gak, and Brice Laine report.

U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Jim Risch (R-ID) yesterday proposed legislation laying out the most detailed outline yet of how European countries could finance donations of U.S. weapons and military equipment to Ukraine. The proposed bill would establish a fund at the U.S. Treasury to accept money from allies, which the Defense Secretary could use to replenish U.S. weapons stockpiles as the Pentagon sends weapons packages to Kyiv. Lindsay Wise and Robbie Gramer report for the Wall Street Journal.

GLOBAL AFFAIRS

The M23 rebels killed 169 people in an attack on farmers and other civilians in the Democratic Republic of Congo in early July, according to findings by the U.N. Joint Human Rights Office. Sonia Rolley reports for Reuters.

At least 22 people, including a police officer, have been killed in protests against a rise in the price of fuel in Angola that began on Monday, according to the Angolan interior minister. Israel Campos reports for BBC News.

Backed by tanks and artillery, Ugandan soldiers opened fire on South Sudanese troops in a surprise attack on Monday, according to South Sudanese officials. The violence claimed the lives of at least eight soldiers, five from South Sudan and three from Uganda, the officials added. Uganda has long provided military support to South Sudan. Eve Sampson reports for the New York Times.

At least thirteen children died last month as a result of widespread malnutrition at a displacement camp in war-torn Sudan’s East Darfur state, according to Sudan Doctors Network, whose members work inside the camp. Wedaeli Chibelushi and Will Ross report for BBC News.

The U.N. is preparing to send a convoy of humanitarian aid to Syria’s Sweida after receiving a green light to enter the province from Damascus, according to aid officials and correspondence seen by Reuters.

U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Trump yesterday imposed 50% tariffs on most of Brazil’s exports to the United States and sanctioned Alexandre de Moraes, a Brazilian Supreme Court justice overseeing the criminal case against former President Jair Bolsonaro. The sanctions, issued under the Global Magnitsky Act, are a highly unusual use of some of the gravest human rights sanctions the U.S. government has at its disposal. Ana Ionova and Jack Nicas report for the New York Times.

The United States will impose 25% tariffs on goods imported from India in addition to an “unspecified penalty” for buying Russian oil and weapons, Trump announced in a social media post yesterday. Josh Boak and Rajesh Roy report for AP News.

Trump has discussed the idea of hosting the 2026 G20 forum of the world’s largest economies at his Doral golf club in the Miami area, according to a White House official. The US is also seeking to limit participation to G20 member nations, and keep out other leaders and interest groups that have historically attended as observers, a source added. Josh Wingrove and Jorge Valero report for Bloomberg.

The United States has reached a trade deal with South Korea, Trump announced yesterday. Under the deal described by Trump, Seoul will face a 15% tariff rate, invest $350 billion in the U.S., directed by the White House, and purchase $100 billion in U.S. energy. Jacob Bogage, Michelle Ye Hee Lee, and Karishma Mehrotra report for the New York Times.

Thailand and Cambodia have also reached trade agreements with the United States, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced late yesterday. Lutnick did not specify the details of the countries’ new tariff rate. Sui-Lee Wee reports for the New York Times.

The Treasury Department yesterday announced a fresh tranche of sanctions on over 115 Iran-linked individuals, entities, and vessels. According to the Treasury, the measures are the most significant Iran-related sanctions imposed since 2018. Gram Slattery and Ryan Patrick Jones report for Reuters.

U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS

The Trump administration has authorized the deployment of National Guard units to assist in “alien processing,” according to an internal ICE memo seen by the New York Times. The memo states that ICE leadership would “direct” the troops, who, according to a Defense Department official, will be deployed to 20 states with Republican governors. Chris Cameron, Hamed Aleaziz, and Eric Schmitt report.

The United States and Argentina are working on a plan that would allow Argentine tourists to enter the United States without a visa, even though Argentina falls short of a key metric required to receive the visa exemption, according to a State Department cable obtained by the Washington Post. Teo Armus and Hannah Natanson report.

South Sudanese officials offered to accept more immigrants deported from the United States if the Trump administration lifts sanctions on one of the East African country’s top officials and walks back visa revocations for its citizens, according to sources and diplomatic correspondence seen by POLITICO. Felicia Schwartz and Myah Ward report.

TECH DEVELOPMENTS

The White House yesterday released a report calling for U.S. agencies to “adopt a pro-innovation mindset toward digital assets,” promote cryptocurrency trading, and craft new regulations for the industry. David Yaffe-Bellany reports for the New York Times.

The Cyberspace Administration of China, Beijing’s internet regulator, today announced it had summoned Nvidia to explain “backdoor security risks” associated with computing chips Nvidia sells to China. The regulator said information had been revealed by “U.S. artificial intelligence experts” that the company’s chips could be shut down remotely or used to track a user’s location. Meaghan Tobin and Xinyun Wu report for the New York Times.

China-specific national-security concerns were one of the drivers of the Justice Department’s decision to greenlight the Hewlett Packard Enterprise-Juniper Networks merger, Trump administration officials suggest. According to Axios’ sources, the U.S. intelligence community intervened in the DOJ review to argue that the merger was essential to helping U.S. business compete with China’s Huawei Technologies. Mike Allen reports.

Trump yesterday announced that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are overseeing the development of a health care records system that would allow U.S. residents to more easily share their health data with providers. According to Trump, the system would be “entirely opt-in and there will be no centralized government-run database.” Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Reed Abelson report for the New York Times.

U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS

The Senate yesterday approved Joe Kent as the National Counterterrorism Center Director in a 52-to-44, party-line vote. A former Army Green Beret, Kent has promoted conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and has been linked to far-right extremist organizations. Eric Schmitt reports for the New York Times.

The National Transportation Safety Board yesterday held a fact-finding hearing and released thousands of pages of documents related to the Jan. 29 collision of a regional passenger jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter. While the safety board is not expected to issue its final report until next year, the documents provide the clearest picture of several mistakes that led to the crash. Ian Duncan, Tara Copp, Lori Aratani, Alex Horton, and Rachel Weiner report for the Washington Post.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll yesterday ordered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point to rescind an offer of employment to Jen Easterly, who served as the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency under former President Biden. Prior to Driscoll’s rescission of the job offer, far-right activist Laura Loomer on Tuesday tagged Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in a social media post describing Easterly as a “Biden holdover who worked to silence Trump supporters.” Natasha Bertrand reports for CNN.

Federal antidiscrimination laws apply to diversity, equity, and inclusion programs since they involve “discriminatory practices,” according to new guidelines for recipients of federal funding released by the Justice Department yesterday. Russell Contreras reports for Axios.

The Defense Department on Tuesday told the New York Times it would cancel plans to discontinue a National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration program making public satellite data crucial for hurricane forecasting and sea ice monitoring. Sachi Kitajima Mulkey reports.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent yesterday described the Trump administration’s newborn savings accounts as a “back door for privatizing Social Security.” A Treasury spokesperson later said the accounts are an “additive government program” that will “broaden and increase the savings and wealth of Americans” along with Social Security benefits. Jacob Bogage reports for the Washington Post.

Trump had personally ordered the removal of the Food and Drug Administration’s former top vaccine regulator, Vinay Prasad, and overruled Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary’s objections to Prasad’s removal, according to sources. David Lim and Lauren Gardner report for POLITICO.

Brown University will commit $50 million over the next decade to workforce development organizations in Rhode Island under an agreement it reached with the Trump administration to restore the school’s federal research funding, the school’s president and the White House announced yesterday. Susan Svrluga reports for the Washington Post.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

A federal judge yesterday ordered the Trump administration to explain how it plans to restore Voice of America’s operations by August 13. “Without more explanation, the court is left to conclude that the defendants are simply trying to run out the clock on the fiscal year, without putting the money Congress appropriated toward the purposes Congress intended,” the judge wrote in the order. David Bauder reports for AP News.

A federal judge yesterday certified a challenge to the Trump administration’s attempt to suspend the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program as a class action suit. The ruling opens a route for the plaintiffs in the case to seek a nationwide injunction compelling the government to unfreeze the program. Mattathias Schwartz reports for the New York Times.

A group of House Democrats yesterday filed a complaint against what they allege are the Trump administration’s illegal attempts to limit in-person congressional oversight visits to federal immigration detention facilities. Maegan Vazquez and Michael E. Miller report for the Washington Post.

Democracy Forward and the National Women’s Law Center on Tuesday filed a complaint against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, arguing the Commission and its acting chair, Andrea Lucas, are violating federal civil rights law, the Constitution, and Supreme Court precedent by declining to process discrimination complaints raised by transgender workers. Brooke Migdon reports for the Hill.

Did you miss this? Stay up-to-date with our Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions