BOSTON (Reuters) — A federal judge on Wednesday ruled U.S. President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration unlawfully terminated about $2.2 billion in grants awarded to Harvard University and can no longer cut off research funding to the prestigious Ivy League school.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, in Boston marked a major legal victory for Harvard as it seeks to cut a deal that could bring an end to the White House&#8217;s multi-front conflict with the nation&#8217;s oldest and richest university.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based school became a central focus of the administration&#8217;s broad campaign to leverage federal funding to force change at U.S. universities, which Trump says are gripped by antisemitic and &#8220;radical Left&#8221; ideologies. Burroughs, however, said that the Trump administration used allegations of antisemitism on campuses as “a smokescreen for a targeted, ideologically-motivated assault on this country’s premier universities.”
Three other Ivy League schools stuck deals with the administration, including Columbia University, which in July agreed to pay $220 million to restore federal research money that had been nixed because of allegations the university allowed antisemitism to fester on campus.
As with Columbia, the Trump administration took actions against Harvard related to the anti-Israel protests that roiled its campus and other universities in the wake of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.
Trump during an August 26 Cabinet meeting demanded Harvard pay &#8220;nothing less than $500 million&#8221; as part of a settlement. &#8220;They’ve been very bad,&#8221; he told Education Secretary Linda McMahon. &#8220;Don&#8217;t negotiate.&#8221;
Among the earliest actions the administration took against Harvard was the cancellation of hundreds of grants awarded to researchers on the grounds that the school failed to do enough to address harassment of Jewish students on its campus.
The Trump administration has since sought to bar international students from attending the school; threatened Harvard&#8217;s accreditation status; and opened the door to cutting off more funds by finding it violated federal civil rights law.
Harvard has said it has taken steps to ensure its campus is welcoming to Jewish and Israeli students, who it acknowledges experienced &#8220;vicious and reprehensible&#8221; treatment following the onset of Israel&#8217;s war in Gaza.
But Harvard President Alan Garber has said the administration&#8217;s demands went far beyond addressing antisemitism and unlawfully sought to regulate the &#8220;intellectual conditions&#8221; on its campus by controlling who it hires and who it teaches.
Those demands, which came in an April 11 letter from an administration task force, included calls for the private university to restructure its governance, alter its hiring and admissions practices to ensure an ideological balance of viewpoints and end certain academic programs.
After Harvard rejected those demands, it accused the Trump administration of retaliating against it in violation of First Amendment free speech protections by abruptly cutting funding the school says is vital to supporting scientific and medical research.
Burroughs in a separate case has already barred the administration from halting its ability to host international students, who comprise about a quarter of Harvard&#8217;s student body.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; editing by Amy Stevens and Lincoln Feast)

Harvard

Obama-Appointed Judge Blocks Trump’s Freeze On Harvard’s Federal Funding

antisemitism

Donald Trump

Ivy League

Trump Administration

WASHINGTON/NAIROBI — Rwanda received seven migrants deported from the United States earlier this month, the government spokesperson said in a statement on Thursday, weeks after the two countries reached an agreement for the transfer of up to 250 people.
&#8220;The first group of seven vetted migrants arrived in Rwanda in mid-August,&#8221; Rwandan government spokesperson Yolande Makolo said in a statement.
&#8220;Three of the individuals have expressed a desire to return to their home countries, while four wish to stay and build lives in Rwanda. Regardless of their specific needs, all of these individuals will receive appropriate support and protection from the Rwandan government.&#8221;
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
U.S. President Donald Trump has taken a strong approach toward immigration, aiming to deport millions of immigrants in the U.S. illegally and seeking to ramp up removals to third countries.
In early August, Rwanda and the United States entered an agreement for Rwanda to take in up to 250 migrants, with Washington sending to Rwanda an initial list of 10 people to be vetted.
Rwanda has, in recent years, positioned itself as a destination country for migrants that Western nations would like to remove, despite concerns by rights groups that Kigali does not respect basic human rights.
The Trump administration says that third-country deportations help quickly remove some migrants, including those with criminal convictions. Supporters of the Trump administration&#8217;s immigration policies see third-country removals as a way to deal with offenders who cannot easily be deported and could pose a threat to the public.
Critics argue that the deportations are dangerous and cruel, since people could be sent to countries where they could face violence, have no ties, and do not speak the language.
Makolo said earlier this month that under the agreement reached with Washington, migrants deported to Rwanda would be provided with workforce training, healthcare, and accommodation.
On Thursday, Makolo said that those deported to Rwanda were accompanied by an international organization and receiving visits by the International Organization for Migration and Rwandan social services.
(Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis and George Obulutsa; Additional reporting by Nairobi Newsroom; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

FILE PHOTO: Rwanda government spokesperson to hold press briefing in Kigali

Rwanda Received Migrants Deported From the U.S. Earlier This Month

(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that billionaire financier and major Democratic donor George Soros and his son, Alex, should be charged under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO.
Trump has embarked on a campaign of threats and lawsuits against political adversaries, news organizations, and law firms, using a mix of litigation, executive power, and his influence in what allies describe as an effort to hold the powerful accountable and opponents call a chilling assault on dissent.
Soros, 95, has long been considered a villain by Trump and his base. His philanthropic organization, Open Society Foundations, is one of the world&#8217;s largest funders of leftist causes.
&#8220;George Soros, and his wonderful Radical Left son, should be charged with RICO because of their support of Violent Protests, and much more, all throughout the United States of America,&#8221; Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. &#8220;That includes his Crazy, West Coast friends. Be careful, we’re watching you!&#8221;
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A spokesperson for Open Society Foundations denounced Trump&#8217;s comments.
&#8220;These accusations are outrageous and false. The Open Society Foundations do not support or fund Violent Protests,&#8221; the spokesperson said. &#8220;Our mission is to advance human rights, justice, and democratic principles at home and around the world.&#8221;
Trump has also called for investigations into former national security adviser John Bolton, who broke with Trump after leaving the White House and has been a persistent opponent.
FBI agents searched Bolton&#8217;s home on Friday as part of a national security probe, according to a source familiar with the matter.
(Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw and Katharine JacksonEditing by Colleen Jenkins and Rod Nickel)

Billionaire investor George Soros is awarded the Schumpeter Prize in Vienna

Trump Calls For Corruption Charges Against Left-Wing Megadonor George Soros And Son

Alex Soros

Executive

George Soros

Politics

The Trump administration on Tuesday said it was targeting more imports of Chinese goods, including steel, copper and lithium, for high-priority enforcement over alleged human-rights abuses involving the Uyghurs.
The Department of Homeland Security, in a post on X, said it was also designating caustic soda and red dates for high-priority enforcement under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
&#8220;The use of slave labor is repulsive and we will hold Chinese companies accountable for abuses and eliminate threats its forced labor practices pose to our prosperity,&#8221; U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said separately on X.
The Uyghur-related law restricts the import of goods tied to what the U.S. describes as China&#8217;s human-rights abuses and ongoing genocide in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
U.S. authorities say Chinese authorities have established internment camps for Uyghurs and other religious and ethnic minority groups in China’s western Xinjiang region. Beijing has denied any abuses.
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The Chinese Communist Party has faced considerable backlash for nearly a decade over their efforts to detain the ethnic and religious minority Uyghurs.
&#8220;Treatment in the centers reportedly included food deprivation, psychological pressure, sexual abuse, medical neglect, torture, and forced labor,&#8221; notes <a href="https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF10281">Congress.gov</a>. &#8220;Leaked Xinjiang police files, which included thousands of detainee records and images, important party directives, and police protocols, revealed the prison-like nature of the reeducation centers.&#8221;
Some detainees are forced to work in various industries, some of which are part of the global market.
In 2020, Disney was <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/08/media/mulan-controversy-xinjiang-credits-intl-hnk">heavily criticized</a> for filming part of the live-action &#8220;Mulan&#8221; movie in Xinjiang province, near where detainment facilities are reportedly located. The company even thanked the &#8220;publicity department of CPC Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Committee&#8221; and the &#8220;publicity department of CPC Turpan Municipal Committee&#8221; in the credits of the film.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

0B166219-362D-4233-AD7A-B30075843200_1_201_a

U.S. Targets Steel, Copper, Lithium Imports Under Uyghur Forced Labor Law

Communist China

Global Politics

Steel industry

Uyghur

World

OTTAWA (Reuters) — The leader of Canada&#8217;s official opposition Conservatives, Pierre Poilievre, secured a return to Parliament and a chance to grill Prime Minister Mark Carney over U.S. tariffs, staging a comeback after unexpectedly losing his seat in an April election.
Unofficial results from Elections Canada on Tuesday showed Poilievre had easily won a special election on Monday in the parliamentary constituency of Battle River-Crowfoot in the western Canadian province of Alberta, a Conservative stronghold. Poilievre secured about 80% of the vote, according to Elections Canada.
Poilievre, who accuses the Liberal government of botching its handling of U.S. relations, will be able to confront Carney when the House of Commons returns on September 15.
Carney, who took over as prime minister in March, secured a strong minority government in April&#8217;s federal election, while Poilievre lost the Ottawa-area seat he had held for 21 years.
Carney won on a promise to stand up to U.S. President Donald Trump but has since moderated his approach even as Washington imposed more tariffs.
&#8220;Mark Carney has been failing. He&#8217;s failed, he&#8217;s backed down, he&#8217;s made concession after concession vis-a-vis the Americans,&#8221; Poilievre told a press conference last Thursday.
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Carney, however, is in no immediate danger politically. Although the Liberals fell three seats short of a majority in April, they should be able to rely on the support of smaller parties to survive confidence votes.
A Nanos Research poll earlier this month put the Liberals at 44% popular support compared with 33% for the Conservatives.
Carney has pulled the Liberals more to the center, and Poilievre will find it harder to draw a sharp contrast, said pollster Nik Nanos, CEO of Nanos Research.
&#8220;Poilievre needs to articulate what he learned from the last federal election and how his government would be different than a Carney government,&#8221; he said via email.
At the start of the year, the Conservatives looked set for a crushing election victory over the Liberals of then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who were far behind in polls after more than nine years in power.
But Liberal fortunes soared after Trudeau announced he was stepping down and Trump began threatening Canada with tariffs and annexation.
(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Caroline Stauffer and Edmund Klamann)

By-election in Alberta’s Battle River-Crowfoot riding

Canada Opposition Leader Poilievre Secures Return To Parliament After Shocking Defeat In April

Canada

Election

Mark Carney

Pierre Poilievre

Two Republican U.S. senators called for a congressional investigation into Meta Platforms on Thursday after Reuters exclusively reported on an internal policy document that permitted the company’s chatbots to “engage a child in conversations that are romantic or sensual.”
Meta confirmed the document’s authenticity, but said that after receiving questions earlier this month from Reuters, the company removed portions that stated it is permissible for chatbots to flirt and engage in romantic roleplay with children. The standards described in the Meta document don’t necessarily reflect “ideal or even preferable” generative AI outputs, the document states. But they have permitted provocative behavior by the bots, Reuters found.
In one example, the document notes that it would be acceptable for a bot to tell a shirtless eight-year-old that “every inch of you is a masterpiece – a treasure I cherish deeply.”
&#8220;So, only after Meta got CAUGHT did it retract portions of its company doc,&#8221; Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, said in a post on social media site X. &#8220;This is grounds for an immediate congressional investigation,&#8221; Hawley said.
A spokesperson for Senator Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee, said she supports an investigation into the social media company.
A spokesperson for Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
Blackburn also added that the report illustrates the need to pass reforms to better protect children online, such as the Kids Online Safety Act, a bill she co-sponsored that the Senate passed last year but which failed in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“When it comes to protecting precious children online, Meta has failed miserably by every possible measure. Even worse, the company has turned a blind eye to the devastating consequences of how its platforms are designed,&#8221; Blackburn said.
The Kids Online Safety Act would make explicit a &#8220;duty of care&#8221; that social media companies have when it comes to minors using their products, focusing on the design of the platforms and the regulation of the companies.
Senator Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon, called the policies &#8220;deeply disturbing and wrong,&#8221; adding that Section 230, a law that shields internet companies from liability for the content posted to their platforms, should not protect companies&#8217; generative AI chatbots.
&#8220;Meta and Zuckerberg should be held fully responsible for any harm these bots cause,” he said.
Senator Peter Welch, a Democrat of Vermont, said the report &#8220;shows how critical safeguards are for AI — especially when the health and safety of kids is at risk.&#8221;
The Senate voted 99-1 in July to remove a provision in President Donald Trump&#8217;s sweeping tax-cut and spending bill that would have effectively barred states from passing AI regulation.
In the absence of federal laws regulating AI, states have passed legislation, including bans on using the technology to create child sexual abuse material.
(Reporting by Jody Godoy in New York; Additional Reporting by Alexandra Alper in Washington; Editing by Aurora Ellis)

FILE PHOTO: Illustration shows Meta logo

GOP Senators Push For Probe Into Meta’s AI Chatbot Engaging In ‘Sensual’ Discussions With Children

Artificial Intelligence

Children

Josh Hawley

Mark Zuckerberg

Marsha Blackburn

FILE PHOTO: India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during a joint press statement with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in New Delhi

Modi Says He Won’t Back Down After Trump Slaps 50% Tariff On Indian Goods

Economy

India

Tariffs

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will skip a Group of 20 finance officials meeting in South Africa next week, sources familiar with his plans told Reuters, but will attend the World Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan, according to a Treasury spokesperson.
Bessent&#8217;s decision to miss the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting marks the second time this year he has opted against attending a G20 meeting in South Africa, which is serving as the group&#8217;s president this year.
A Treasury official confirmed that Michael Kaplan, acting undersecretary for international affairs, will represent the department at the July 17-18 meeting near Durban, South Africa instead of Bessent. The United States is due to head the G20 group, which it helped found in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, next year.
Bessent, a key figure in President Donald Trump&#8217;s trade negotiations, will represent the United States at the U.S. national day at the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, a Treasury spokesperson said. The national day will be marked on July 19.
It was not immediately clear if he would engage in bilateral meetings during the visit.
The White House said Bessent would lead the U.S. delegation, which will also include Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer and Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau.
News of Bessent&#8217;s trip comes a day after Trump sent a letter to Japan raising tariffs on Japanese imports to 25%, starting August 1. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he would continue negotiations with the U.S. to seek a mutually beneficial deal.
Bessent skipped South Africa&#8217;s first G20 finance meeting in February to attend Trump&#8217;s first cabinet meeting in Washington. Finance ministers from China, Japan, India, and Canada also skipped the meeting in Cape Town focused on tackling global poverty, as did the European Union&#8217;s top economic official.
Bessent&#8217;s February decision came amid rising tensions between Washington and Pretoria as Trump threatened to cut off funding for South Africa, accusing President Cyril Ramaphosa&#8217;s government of confiscating land from white South Africans and turning a blind eye to the targeted killings of white farmers. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also skipped a February G20 foreign ministers meeting in South Africa.
In May, Trump declined to say whether he would attend a G20 leaders summit in South Africa in November, after blasting Ramaphosa at the White House over reports of white genocide and land seizures in Africa&#8217;s largest economy.
On Monday, Trump sent Ramaphosa a letter informing him that imports from South Africa would be subject to a 30% tariff starting next month, unless the country agrees to reduce its trade barriers to U.S. goods &#8211; one of more than a dozen countries to get similar letters.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Writing by David Lawder; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Christopher Cushing)

Scott Bessent

Scott Bessent To Skip South Africa G20 Meeting Again, Travel To Japan Instead

G20 summit

Japan

South Africa

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way on Tuesday for President Donald Trump to resume his plans to cut the federal workforce and restructure agencies, a key promise he made on the campaign trail to hack away at the size of the federal government.
The justices lifted San Francisco-based U.S. District Judge Susan Illston&#8217;s May 22 order that had blocked large-scale federal layoffs called &#8220;reductions in force&#8221; affecting potentially hundreds of thousands of jobs, while litigation in the case proceeds.
Trump in February announced &#8220;a critical transformation of the federal bureaucracy&#8221; in an executive order directing agencies to prepare for a government overhaul aimed at significantly reducing the federal workforce and gutting offices and programs opposed by the administration.
Workforce reductions were planned at the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Health and Human Services, State, Treasury, Veterans Affairs, and more than a dozen other agencies.
The Supreme Court, in a brief unsigned order, said Trump&#8217;s administration was &#8220;likely to succeed on its argument that the executive order&#8221; and a memorandum implementing his order were lawful. The court said it was not assessing the legality of any specific plans for layoffs at federal agencies.
Liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the sole member of the nine-person court to publicly dissent from the decision. Jackson wrote that Illston&#8217;s &#8220;temporary, practical, harm-reducing preservation of the status quo was no match for this court&#8217;s demonstrated enthusiasm for greenlighting this president’s legally dubious actions in an emergency posture.&#8221;
Illston wrote in her ruling that Trump had exceeded his authority in ordering the downsizing, siding with a group of unions, non-profits, and local governments that challenged the administration.
&#8220;As history demonstrates, the president may broadly restructure federal agencies only when authorized by Congress,&#8221; Illston wrote.
The judge blocked the agencies from carrying out mass layoffs and limited their ability to cut or overhaul federal programs. Illston also ordered the reinstatement of workers who had lost their jobs, though she delayed implementing this portion of her ruling while the appeals process plays out.
Illston&#8217;s ruling was the broadest of its kind against the government overhaul being pursued by Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency, a key player in the Republican president&#8217;s drive to slash the federal workforce.
Formerly spearheaded by Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, DOGE has sought to eliminate federal jobs, shrink and reshape the U.S. government, and root out wasteful spending and fraud. Musk formally ended his government work on May 30 and subsequently had a public falling out with Trump.
The Left-leaning San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 2-1 ruling on May 30, denied the administration&#8217;s request to halt the judge&#8217;s ruling.
The 9th Circuit said the administration had not shown that it would suffer an irreparable injury if the judge&#8217;s order remained in place and that the plaintiffs were likely to prevail in their lawsuit.
&#8220;The executive order at issue here far exceeds the president&#8217;s supervisory powers under the Constitution,&#8221; the 9th Circuit wrote, calling the administration&#8217;s actions &#8220;an unprecedented attempted restructuring of the federal government and its operations.&#8221;
The 9th Circuit&#8217;s ruling prompted the Justice Department&#8217;s June 2 emergency request to the Supreme Court to halt Illston&#8217;s order.
Controlling the personnel of federal agencies &#8220;lies at the heartland&#8221; of the president&#8217;s executive branch authority, the Justice Department said in its filing to the Supreme Court.
&#8220;The Constitution does not erect a presumption against presidential control of agency staffing, and the president does not need special permission from Congress to exercise core Article II powers,&#8221; the filing said, referring to the constitution&#8217;s section delineating presidential authority.
The plaintiffs urged the Supreme Court to deny the Justice Department&#8217;s request. Allowing the Trump administration to move forward with its &#8220;breakneck reorganization,&#8221; they wrote, would mean that &#8220;programs, offices and functions across the federal government will be abolished, agencies will be radically downsized from what Congress authorized, critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lose their jobs.&#8221;
The Supreme Court in recent months has sided with Trump in some major cases that were acted upon on an emergency basis since he returned to office in January.
It cleared the way for Trump&#8217;s administration to resume deporting migrants to countries other than their own. In two cases, it let the administration end temporary legal status previously granted on humanitarian grounds to hundreds of thousands of migrants.
It also allowed Trump to implement his ban on trans-identifying people in the U.S. military, blocked a judge&#8217;s order for the administration to rehire thousands of fired employees, and twice sided with his Department of Government Efficiency.
In addition, the court curbed the power of federal judges to impose nationwide rulings impeding presidential policies.
(Reporting by John Kruzel; Additional reporting by Andrew Chung; Editing by Will Dunham)

Trump Wins At SCOTUS Again: Court Says Admin Can Resume Mass Layoffs Of Federal Workers

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)

Federal Government

Supreme Court

Two people were killed and at least 14 wounded when a Russian drone smashed into a residential high-rise in Ukraine&#8217;s Black Sea city of Odesa, authorities said on Saturday.
Three children were among the wounded in the overnight attack, with one in critical condition, said regional Governor Oleh Kiper.
Footage posted by the State Emergency Service showed firefighters battling a blaze and rushing residents down a dark stairwell in the 21-storey building.
Russia has stepped up drone and missile strikes on Ukrainian cities in recent weeks as diplomatic efforts to end the nearly three-and-a-half-year-old war have stalled.
<div id="attachment_940751" style="width: 2570px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-940751" class="size-full wp-image-940751" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-scaled.jpeg" alt="Residents walk in front of an apartment building hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Odesa, Ukraine June 28, 2025." width="2560" height="1707" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-864x576.jpeg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-1800x1200.jpeg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R027_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-1200x800.jpeg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px" />REUTERS/Nina Liashonok</div>
This is only the latest use of more advanced war tech. Several weeks ago, Russia launched a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/russia-launches-massive-drone-attack-on-ukraine-as-war-intensifies?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Russia+Launches+Massive+Drone+Attack+On+Ukraine+As+War+Intensifies">massive attack</a>, firing nearly 500 drones and 20 missiles into Ukraine in response to Ukraine’s major drone offensive on Russian airfields earlier this month.
According to Ukraine, slightly more than half of the drones were intercepted, as were almost all of the missiles.
“Russia is escalating the war and has no intention of stopping it. Any escalation can only be stopped by force,” said Andriy Yermak, a top adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
<div id="attachment_940753" style="width: 2570px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-940753" class="size-full wp-image-940753" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-scaled.jpeg" alt="A resident walks inside his apartment building hit by a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Odesa, Ukraine June 28, 2025." width="2560" height="1707" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-864x576.jpeg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-1800x1200.jpeg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/2025-06-28T074002Z_1_LYNXMPEL5R028_RTROPTP_4_UKRAINE-CRISIS-ATTACK-ODESA-1200x800.jpeg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px" />REUTERS/Nina Liashonok</div>
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These attacks come as President Donald Trump continues his attempt to broker peace between the warring nations. The president <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-tells-russian-leader-to-stop-using-the-n-word-after-nuclear-threats">scolded</a> Russian Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev on June 23 after Medvedev discussed other nations supplying Iran with “nuclear warheads.”
“Did I hear Former President Medvedev, from Russia, casually throwing around the ‘N word’ (Nuclear!), and saying that he and other Countries would supply Nuclear Warheads to Iran? Did he really say that or, is it just a figment of my imagination?” Trump said on Truth Social.
“If he did say that, and, if confirmed, please let me know, IMMEDIATELY. The ‘N word’ should not be treated so casually,&#8221; Trump added.
(Reporting by Dan Peleschuk; Editing by William Mallard)

Ukrainian Building

Russian Drone Strike Kills 2, Wounds 14 In Ukraine’s Odesa, Authorities Say

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Ukraine

Ukraine-Russia War

NEW YORK (Reuters) — Wall Street advanced on Tuesday as investors welcomed a fragile truce with Israel and Iran while parsing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell&#8217;s congressional <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jerome-powell-suggests-delaying-rate-cuts-beyond-july-meeting-while-fed-studies-tariff-impact">testimony</a> for clues regarding the U.S. central bank&#8217;s path forward.
All three major U.S. stock indexes were on track for their second straight session of solid gains following U.S. missile strikes on Iran&#8217;s uranium enrichment assets.
The benchmark S&amp;P 500 was less than 1% below its all-time closing high reached on February 19.
Late Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire agreement, but then on Tuesday, the president <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-holds-ceasefire-after-israel-refrains-from-major-retaliation-for-irans-strike-on-civilians">stepped in</a> to urge Israel to stand down on a retaliatory attack on Iran after Iran killed at least four people in an attack in southern Israel targeting civilians just before the ceasefire went into effect.
Still, investors viewed the ceasefire as a sign of de-escalating tensions.
&#8220;The market has learned very precisely over the last generation that any time there’s a geopolitical flare-up in the Middle East that affects U.S. financial markets, those effects will be short-lived,&#8221; said Scott Ladner, chief investment officer at Horizon in Charlotte, North Carolina.
&#8220;The ceasefire is just cementing that view,&#8221; Ladner added.
Crude prices slid on waning supply concerns related to the conflict, dragging energy shares lower.
Powell, speaking before the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee, reiterated his view that rate cuts can wait until the economic effects of tariff increases are better known, adding &#8220;we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policy stance.&#8221;
Financial markets have been pricing in a more than 20% likelihood that the Fed will lower its key interest rate at the conclusion of its upcoming July policy meeting, and a near 70% probability that its first rate cut will land in September.
&#8220;We think September&#8217;s very likely and we think while July is not a zero probability event, it&#8217;s definitely a long shot,&#8221; Ladner said.
On the economic front, Consumer Confidence deteriorated this month, with pessimism toward the jobs market falling to its lowest level since March 2021.
The Commerce Department is expected to release its final take on first-quarter GDP on Thursday, and on Friday its closely watched Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) report will shed light on inflation, consumer spending and income growth.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 513.96 points, or 1.21%, to 43,095.74, the S&amp;P 500 gained 71.64 points, or 1.19%, to 6,096.94, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 305.28 points, or 1.56%, to 19,936.25.
Among the 11 major sectors of the S&amp;P 500, Tech shares led the gainers, while energy stocks were the sole decliners.
Among megacap stocks, Tesla shares shed 2.0%.
Airline stocks gained altitude amid cooling Middle East tensions. The S&amp;P 1500 Airlines index advanced 2.3%.
But defense stocks lost ground, with Lockheed Martin and RTX Corp both off about 2.9%.
Shares of crypto companies rose after bitcoin hit a one-week high. Coinbase Global and Strategy advanced 11.7% and 3.8% respectively.
Broadcom touched a record high, after HSBC raised the semiconductor manufacturer to &#8220;buy&#8221; from &#8220;hold&#8221;. The stock was last up 3.4%.
Package delivery firm FedEx is expected to report quarterly results after the closing bell.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.38-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 195 new highs and 49 new lows on the NYSE.
On the Nasdaq, 3,430 stocks rose and 1,007 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.41-to-1 ratio.
The S&amp;P 500 posted 18 new 52-week highs and no new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 109 new highs and 49 new lows.
(Reporting by Stephen Culp; Additional reporting by Kanchana Chakravarty in Bengaluru; Editing by David Gregorio)

Traders work on the floor of the NYSE in New York

Wall Street Rallies, S&P 500 Nears Record High As Middle East Tensions Cool

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Israel

Middle East

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Wall Street

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The Pentagon has successfully tested a long-range radar in Alaska that can detect missile threats from Russia or China, and could someday serve as a sensor in the Golden Dome missile defense shield.
The Long Range Discrimination Radar successfully acquired, tracked, and reported missile target data, the Pentagon said on Tuesday. These are key tasks for Golden Dome, a $175 billion program aimed at protecting the U.S. and possibly allies from ballistic missiles.
The U.S. Defense Department&#8217;s long-range radar in Central Alaska was built by Lockheed Martin as part of the existing Ground-Based Midcourse Defense missile defense system. The system is designed to increase the effectiveness of interceptors based in Alaska and California that are currently on standby to knock down incoming missiles launched by Iran or North Korea.
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency, alongside the U.S. Space Force and U.S. Northern Command, conducted the flight test at Clear Space Force Station, Alaska, on Monday.
During this test, a target developed by MDA was air-launched over the Northern Pacific Ocean and flew over 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) off the southern coast of Alaska where it was tracked by LRDR.
The Golden Dome missile defense shield aims to create a network of satellites to detect, track, and intercept incoming missiles.
Inspired by Israel&#8217;s Iron Dome, the Golden Dome program faces political scrutiny and funding uncertainty due to its projected cost. The shield is expected to be operational by January 2029, though experts question the timeline and budget feasibility.
The Golden Dome project was announced by President Donald Trump in May and is included in the &#8220;One, Big, Beautiful Bill.&#8221; Trump said the Golden Dome is a continuation of former President Ronald Reagan&#8217;s &#8220;Strategic Defense Initiative&#8221; that was launched in 1983 and sought to build a space-based missile defense system.
&#8220;Our enemies, our adversaries are going to pay a lot of attention to this,&#8221; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last month.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="The Golden Dome Missile Defense Shield" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-xWxN_qObfI?start=56&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
(Reporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks about Golden Dome in the White House

U.S. Successfully Tests Radar That Could Link To Trump’s ‘Golden Dome’ To Detect Missile Threats

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