Top World News
'Art of the Deal' writer rocked by WSJ for poorly-worded clause that disintegrated pact
President Donald Trump may call himself the master of making a deal, but four Wall Street Journal writers think he stinks at writing them. The Journal on Thursday published a stern rebuke of Trump's memorandum of understanding with Iran, arguing a single "poorly worded clause" resulted in the battle for the Strait of Hormuz. "The root of the dispute is Paragraph 5, which says Iran will make arrangements to restore shipping through the strategic waterway and then work with Oman to determine how to administer it in the future," the report states. "But it also includes an Iranian pledge to ensure safe passage and remove military obstacles such as mines." The pledge became a problem because it was open to different interpretations by both sides as the war ramps up again, the Wall Street Journal reporters argued."Trump administration officials saw that clause as unlocking the strait, the main accomplishment of the president’s deal." they wrote. "Iranian hard-liners, however, have used it to push a maximalist interpretation that gives the Islamic Republic exclusive control over the waterway as a key source of leverage."Geopolitical analyst Michael Horowitz agreed with their assessment. "Washington has tried to convince Tehran that compliance would be more profitable, but this framing misses the point," he reportedly said. "Iran's behavior isn't driven by financial motives but by security concerns and bargaining leverage. It's a power dynamic."Now the U.S. faces tough times ahead in the struggle, according to the analysis"Tehran has also repeatedly asserted that it will work out arrangements for future management of the strait with its weaker neighbor across the waterway, Oman," the Journal report stated. "The difficulty coming to terms on opening the Strait of Hormuz points to rough negotiations ahead."
Mexico investigates whether US lied about role in capture of drug lord
Reporting suggests FBI involved in seizure of Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada García from Mexican territory in 2024Mexico has launched an investigation into whether the US lied about its involvement in the capture and secretive transfer of a top Sinaloa cartel member in 2024, in what would be a potential violation of the country’s sovereignty.The US has long denied it played any role in the operation to detain the drug lord Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García, a founder of the Sinaloa cartel, inside Mexico. Recent reporting by the local media outlet Pie de Nota, however, suggested that the FBI was involved in his capture. Continue reading...
IDF accused of ‘field execution’ of Palestinian driver bringing aid into Gaza
Local truckers’ association says it may suspend operations, after several eyewitnesses decried Ahmad Esleem’s murderA Palestinian driver bringing food aid from the World Central Kitchen (WCK) into Gaza has been killed by an Israeli soldier “in a field execution”, according to witnesses and the local truckers’ association, which said it may suspend operations in protest.Ahmad Esleem was shot in the head on Wednesday when an aid convoy stopped because of a breakdown to one truck soon after entering Gaza, according to three accounts. Israeli soldiers ordered the drivers to dismount and one of them shot Esleem in the head when his hands were raised. Continue reading...
Furore in Nigeria over fake federal agency set up in government HQ
President orders investigation after fictitious body given funding, triggering renewed scrutiny of alleged corruptionA fictitious federal entity that was allocated 1.3bn naira (£700,000) in Nigeria’s 2026 budget has precipitated a political storm in Africa’s largest democracy in the run-up to a general election set for January.The fake agency came to light last October when Femi Gbajabiamila, the president’s chief of staff, wrote to the police alleging that his signature, along with official seals and reference numbers, had been forged by Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, who was claiming to have been appointed by the presidency to head the presidential foreign intervention promotion council (PFIPC). Continue reading...
LGBTQ+ cruise ship refused entry to Egypt days after Turkey turned it away
Scarlet Lady’s 2,000 passengers told of change as one of those onboard says they will ‘sparkle and spend elsewhere’An LGBTQ+ cruise ship blocked from Turkish waters this week has been refused entry into Egypt.The Scarlet Lady’s 2,000 passengers, including the Broadway performer Patti LuPone, woke on Thursday morning to find a note placed under their cabin doors informing them that the ship was urgently looking for alternative ports. Continue reading...
'Oh my God': MS NOW floats 25th Amendment after 'rambling' Trump speech
Donald Trump’s final appearances at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, raised questions about his mental state after he fumbled world leaders' names, misidentified countries and went off on odd tangents that left reporters scratching their heads. Admitting he is is sympathetic to the rigors of overseas travel and sleep disruptions due to changing time zones when involved in continuous meetings, MS NOW host Joe Scarborough suggested there is a strong case for the Trump Cabinet to remove him from office via the 25th Amendment.After showing clips of the president stumbling about when speaking, the “Morning Joe” Scarborough pointed to similar worries about President Joe Biden whose own verbal miscues led to his decision to not seek re-election. “If Joe Biden had said that, oh my God, the world would come to an end,” Brzezinski continued. “We would be like, they would say, put electrodes up to his brain right now, because obviously, the 25th Amendment must be put into effect at once.”Scarborough continued to chastise commentators who asked how Biden was able to remain in office amid concerns about his mental state. Co-host Willie Geist agreed with Scarborough that there was a strong comparison to be drawn. “If you listen to the remarks of the president gives, the long speeches, he gives the rants, he goes on the rambling, you know, a slip of the tongue," Geist said. "Japan/Iran. He called President Zelenskyy, ‘President Putin’ yesterday. You know, it happens in the course of a day, I guess, but you're right. The side-by-side, the comparison and the moniker of ‘Sleepy Joe’ for the president, who often falls asleep in public. You can do this all day if you want to.” - YouTube youtu.be
'Sir, we love you': Trump goes off script with meandering self-praise at NATO conference
Amid reports that diplomats and world leaders are beside themselves over Donald Trump’s threats at the NATO conference in Turkey, the president attempted Wednesday to spin the meeting as a lovefest.Sound raspy and looking tired, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, looking over his shoulder, the president, as is his custom, departed from his prepared notes to claim that he is quite the popular guy with his counterparts.“They respect us as a country," Trump said. "They didn't respect us two years ago. They laughed at us. NATO laughed at us, everybody laughed at us. They don't laugh anymore.” Trump then added an odd remark.“And they're, you know, just again, if you could have seen the respect and the love in the room and it's love really for the country, for our country," Trump said. "I don't want to say me because you'll say, oh, he's so conceited. He's such a conceited person. But they do.”“I mean, you know, they, like the job I'm doing,” he continued. “They said, ‘We love, sir, we love you.’ These are grown people saying that. Isn't that nice?”“Maybe, I don't know, maybe they're trying to get to me. And, in a way they did, because there was tremendous unity in that room,” he asserted. - YouTube youtu.be
Trump ditches Qatari jet as experts raise equipment concerns
President Donald Trump will fly his aging Air Force One out of Turkey, ditching the Qatari-gifted jet he calls "the world's most luxurious plane," a decision experts suggest was made based on security equipment concerns. Trump wrote on Truth Social Wednesday that he'd fly the old plane from Turkey to the UK — sending the new jet ahead separately so U.S. troops could tour it. "For old time's sake," he wrote.Andrew Feinberg, White House correspondent for The Independent, wrote on X, posited another reason for the switch. "The most likely reason for this is that the 'new' ex-Qatari jet doesn't have the self-defense capabilities needed when flying from Turkey while in a shooting war with Iran," Feinberg wrote. "The actual VC-25 aircraft does have those capabilities."Frank Kendall, who served as Air Force secretary under President Joe Biden, according to MS NOW, also raised concerns about safety."The biggest thing — and I can't say a lot about it because of classification — will be the degree to which it has command and control capability on the aircraft," Kendall said.The post went live hours after Trump declared the Iran ceasefire was "over" at the NATO summit in Ankara, where he also told reporters the U.S. would "very probably hit" Iran again that night. According to US Central Command, the two countries had been trading live fire since Tuesday, when Iran attacked three commercial tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. hit more than 80 Iranian targets in response.The War Zone has confirmed the old plane — in service since 1990 — carries missile defense systems, radar jammers, and shielding against the electromagnetic pulse of a nuclear blast. Whether the new Qatari jet has any of that remains classified and unconfirmed, the outlet reported.The Air Force said only that its team "made trades on some of the less commonly used mission sets."When The War Zone asked Jason Lambert, president of L3Harris's Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance division — the contractor that built the new plane — whether it was hardened against a nuclear blast and had full command-and-control capability, he said: "That's one I'll have to direct you back to the Air Force.""Americans deserve answers on how the administration has decided to spend their taxpayer dollars, and ignore real national security concerns, in the rushed VC-25B Bridge aircraft retrofit program … all in service of delivering President Trump a pretty, fancy plane for his personal enjoyment," Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) and 12 Senate Democratic colleagues wrote in a letter Tuesday demanding answers and calling the program a national security risk."Spitballing here, but perhaps one reason it doesn't have those capabilities is because Trump wants to keep it if he leaves office," conservative attorney George Conway wrote on X, quoting Feinberg. Trump has said he plans to donate the jet to his presidential library.To fund the conversion, the Air Force diverted money from the Sentinel nuclear missile program, according to the senators' letter.
Pakistan locates wreckage of Boeing 737 cargo plane that went missing off coast
Early flight data shows K2 Airways plane crashed into sea with five crew on board south-west of KarachiPakistan has located the wreckage of a Boeing cargo plane, the country’s airports authority said, adding that rescuers were searching for the five crew members on board when the aircraft went missing.The plane was approaching Karachi from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates when radar showed it “rapidly descending” on Tuesday evening after reporting a “navigational system issue”, according to the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA). Continue reading...
US allies sent reeling by commentary 'coming out of President Trump': analyst
World leaders and diplomats attending the NATO meetings were correct in worrying that an “angry and exhausted” Donald Trump would disrupt the proceedings and their fears came true after an outburst from the president about the Iran war, combined with new complaints, creating fresh concerns.Reporting from the meetings in Turkey, reporter Ines de La Cuerta told the "Morning Joe" panel that the American president has everyone on edge.Co-host Jonathan Lemire prompted her with, “There are so many headlines to sift through out of NATO. President Trump again, demanding that the U.S. be given Greenland, reigniting a trade war with Spain. But obviously, the major headline is the sound we played at the top of this hour: him suggesting that he believes the ceasefire could be over. He suggested negotiations could continue. But we're seeing hostilities, our biggest set of hostilities in the region in weeks. Give us the latest as to what's happening.”“Yeah, that's right, John,” she replied. “And I think NATO allies are frankly shocked by what they're hearing coming out of President Trump. We knew this was going to be a tense summit, but it is, you know, a lot more tense, I think, than we expected.”“So, on Iran, you heard President Trump there talking about how the Iranians are sick, how they're scum. He was asked if the MOU is dead, if the ceasefire is over. And he said as far as he's concerned, it is over. He did say that he would speak to his negotiators,” she added. - YouTube youtu.be
UK judges begin hearing appeal over Trinidad and Tobago anti-gay law
Activist is challenging ruling last year that restored colonial-era homophobic law against same-sex intimacySome of the UK’s top judges are hearing arguments over whether a Trinidad and Tobago court had the legal right to overturn a 2018 ruling to remove colonial-era homophobic laws that criminalise anal sex between consenting men.The country’s “buggery law”, often referred to as its “sodomy” law, was created in 1925 and was written into Trinidad and Tobago’s 1986 Sexual Offences Act. In 2017 a Trinidadian LGBTQ+ rights activist, Jason Jones, challenged the law, and in 2018 a high court ruled that it infringed upon his constitutional right to privacy and equality. Continue reading...
Trump's strange Putin glitch spurs uproar: 'Dude is gonzo'
President Donald Trump repeatedly erred while talking to reporters at his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the NATO summit in Turkey on Wednesday, referring to him as "Putin" — then trying to reword things to make it sound intentional."Do you have a question for President Putin?" asked Trump, as the reporters buzzed. "Do you have a question for President Putin?" he pointed at Zelensky.A second later, he added, "What would you like to ask him, because I'm going to ask him that question," as though referring to a separate meeting at a later date.The whole exchange went viral on X, with commenters drowning the president in ridicule."Dude is gonzo," wrote Democratic political commentator Joanne "JoJoFromJerz" Carducci."What is incredibly disturbing is how Trump literally thought Zelensky was Putin and once he caught his dementia slip he tried to rebound doubling down on the slip up," wrote YouTuber Vince Wilson."First, the 'Islamic Republic of Japan.' Now, 'President Putin,'" wrote criminal defense lawyer and Simple Justice blogger Scott Greenfield. "Something is seriously awry."
Jul 12, 2026