Courts & Regulation

Rulings, antitrust and regulation that restructure industries.

296 live threads · updated Aug 8 · follow (RSS)

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state of play

Twenty-five US states filed in the US Court of International Trade on August 3 to block the Trump administration's latest Section 301 tariffs, citing a recent Supreme Court ruling; California's attorney general Rob Bonta said the tariffs are hurting consumers and businesses. The suit is a state-level constitutional challenge to executive trade authority, a pattern that has previously slowed or blocked tariff rounds at this court. Lebanon's six-year investigation into the August 4, 2020 Beirut port blast remains unresolved; on the sixth anniversary, Lebanon's justice minister said prosecutors are finalising investigation results, the first official progress statement since the blast. Victims' families described the absence of accountability as a continuing wound.

Turkey's corruption probes targeting CHP-controlled municipalities reached Ankara's Etimesgut district on July 30, with 52 people detained including the district mayor. The day before, police detained Istanbul's Uskudar district mayor; the CHP says the probes are a pre-2028 electoral strategy. Taiwan's Constitutional Court dissolved the Chinese Unification Promotion Party on July 31, the first party dissolution in Taiwan's democratic history. The DRC's Constitutional Court approved a referendum law opening a path to a third Tshisekedi term. South Korea's Seoul Central District Court convicted former President Yoon Suk-yeol of false statements on July 27.

US President Trump signed two executive orders on August 6 restricting birthright citizenship and targeting "birth tourism," despite a prior US Supreme Court ruling adjudicating a Trump challenge to the 14th Amendment; SCOTUSblog confirmed both orders and noted they will likely generate fresh federal litigation. The 14th Amendment's birthright clause has been settled law since United States v. Wong Kim Ark in 1898; the new orders signal either a changed legal theory or a narrower targeted restriction.

Watch: emergency injunctions in federal district courts on the birthright orders; whether the Trump administration asserts a new constitutional theory distinct from the one previously rejected; whether the US Court of International Trade grants an emergency injunction on the Section 301 tariffs; Lebanon investigation results and whether formal charges follow; Turkish district mayor pretrial decisions; Taiwan CUPP counter-petition; DRC opposition challenge to the referendum ruling; Yoon's appeal and election-nullification proceedings.

tracking

Big Tech antitrust

Google16 activeDemis Hassabis steps down as Google DeepMind CEO amid major restructuring; top Gemini engineers also depart Apple9 activeApple reclaims world's most valuable company title from Nvidia amid tech-sector rotation Meta12 activeMeta's free cash flow falls 91% to US$784 million as Zuckerberg lifts the 2026 capex floor to US$130 billion Amazon19 activeUK designates AWS, Azure, Google Cloud and Oracle as Critical Third Parties to its financial system Microsoft16 activeMicrosoft posts its strongest quarterly cloud growth in years, lifting US tech stocks after a week of chip selloff Nvidia60 activeUS S&P 500 and Dow Jones close at record highs on August 4 on strong AI-linked earnings and hopes for an Iran war deal TikTok quiet

Landmark rulings

AI & data regulation

Financial & crypto regulation

International courts

ICC5 activeChad notifies the UN of withdrawal from the International Criminal Court's Rome Statute ICJ5 Genocide recognition WTO disputes quiet

latest

worsening Spain imposes border checks on Italy until September 7 as the Ceuta migrant crisis turns into an EU Schengen tit-for-tat

Spain announced on August 7 it would introduce temporary border checks on travelers from Italy starting at midnight on August 8 and running until September 7, in direct retaliation for Italy's own Schengen suspension triggered by the mass migrant crossing into Spain's Ceuta enclave on July 30; Spain had first threatened Italy with countermeasures and received a rebuff from Rome before following through

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Aug 8

contested US federal appeals court blocks construction of Trump's US$400 million White House ballroom, teeing up Supreme Court review

A US federal appeals court ruled on August 7 that above-ground construction on a planned US$400 million ballroom on the site of the White House's demolished East Wing must stop until Congress approves it, handing US President Donald Trump a setback in a case over executive authority and historic preservation; Trump said he would appeal to the US Supreme Court, and the ruling was placed on a 14-day hold

Whose Money ·6 takes ·Aug 8

active Trump signs new executive orders to restrict US birthright citizenship despite US Supreme Court ruling

US President Donald Trump signed new executive orders on August 6 to limit birthright citizenship and target 'birth tourism,' according to Reuters and SCOTUSblog; the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported the orders came despite a US Supreme Court ruling on the issue, signalling a direct confrontation between the executive and the court on 14th Amendment interpretation

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Aug 8

active Nigeria's Federal High Court remands retired state security officer over alleged membership in proscribed IPOB separatist group

A Federal High Court in Abuja remanded Nwaogu Ihechimere Ezeakolam, a retired operative of Nigeria's Department of State Services, in Kuje Prison on August 6 on charges of membership in the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB); IPOB publicly distanced itself from the defendant, raising suspicion about the circumstances of the case; trial is set for October 29

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Aug 8

active Teen kills at least seven at Debsirin Nonthaburi school in Thailand in country's worst mass shooting in years

A Thai teenager killed his grandparents at home in Bang Kruai district, Nonthaburi province, then shot students and staff at Debsirin Nonthaburi School on August 7, killing at least seven people and wounding more than 15 before dying; Bangkok Post reported eight dead and 22 wounded in early coverage; CNN called it Thailand's worst school shooting in years

What Broke ·12 takes ·Aug 8

active Brazil charges 16 Voepass employees over 2024 ATR crash that killed 62, citing plane cleared for flight despite airworthiness failures

Brazil's Federal Police formally charged 16 current and former employees of airline Voepass on August 6 for the August 2024 crash of an ATR turboprop near Vinhedo, São Paulo state, that killed all 62 people on board; Agência Brasil reported the police found the aircraft was not fit to fly but the company cleared it for departure anyway; the charges follow a two-year investigation and CENIPA's final accident report

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Aug 7

active Romania's High Court clears coup-plot trial of far-right ex-candidate Călin Georgescu and mercenary leader Horațiu Potra to proceed

Romania's High Court of Cassation and Justice rejected appeals from both the prosecution and the defendants on August 6, clearing the way for the trial of Călin Georgescu, mercenary leader Horațiu Potra and 20 co-defendants on charges of actions against the constitutional order, described in the indictment as an attempted coup; the ruling upholds an earlier Bucharest Court of Appeals decision

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Aug 8

active China's enforcement of a 20% tax on offshore insurance investment returns triggers sharp falls in AIA, HSBC, and Prudential shares in Hong Kong

Hong Kong insurer and bank shares fell sharply on August 6 after signs that China is widening enforcement of a 20% levy on returns from offshore insurance products bought by mainland Chinese citizens; Caixin reports that individual enforcement cases have raised concerns that tighter action could weaken mainland demand for Hong Kong-based insurance; Nikkei Asia says the 'tax dragnet' is now targeting offshore trusts and insurance, and the market reaction points to a structural risk for HK's dominant insurance sector

Whose Money ·3 takes ·Aug 7

active Sri Lanka deploys troops to Welikada Prison as breakout attempts leave three dead, 23 wounded

Sri Lanka's government sent troops to Welikada Prison in Colombo and two other jails on August 7 after escape attempts killed three inmates and wounded 23; TRT World reported facilities run at around four times their intended capacity; Al Jazeera cited authorities suspecting narcotics networks and gang rivalries

What Broke ·5 takes ·Aug 7

active Pakistan's PTI stages nationwide protests marking three years of Imran Khan's detention; Karachi police make arrests

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf rallied across Pakistan on August 5, 2026, the third anniversary of former prime minister Imran Khan's imprisonment; police in Karachi baton-charged protesters, fired tear gas, and arrested several party leaders including Dr Masroor Sial; Amnesty International called on Pakistan's government to release Khan and restore his access to family, lawyers, and medical care

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Aug 6

active US offers more than US$100 million in rewards for eight leaders of Mexico's Jalisco New Generation Cartel, including a US citizen reported to head the group

The US Trump administration announced on August 5 a package of rewards totalling more than US$100 million targeting eight CJNG leaders; NBC News reports one of those targeted is a US citizen reportedly running the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, with a US$25 million bounty; Al Jazeera says the move is aimed at weakening CJNG leadership and increasing bounties under the administration's cartel pressure campaign

The Long Game ·3 takes ·Aug 7

active On the second anniversary of Bangladesh's 2024 uprising, Hasina calls it a conspiracy from New Delhi; Bangladesh bans its media from airing her speech

Bangladesh's PM Tarique Rahman opened the July Mass Uprising Memorial Museum at Hasina's former official residence in Dhaka on August 5, 2026; at the same time, exiled Hasina gave her first public address since ouster at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of South Asia in New Delhi, calling the 2024 uprising 'a planned regime change' and promising to return to Bangladesh in December 2026; Bangladesh banned domestic media from airing the speech, summoned India's acting High Commissioner, and called the event 'a clear affront'

Who Decides ·31 takes ·Aug 6

active Argentina's Senate passes Milei's private property law after withdrawing foreign land sale clause; protests outside Congress

Argentina's Senate debated and advanced Javier Milei's Private Property Inviolability bill on August 6, 2026; the government pulled a chapter that would have allowed foreign nationals to buy Argentine land after large-scale protests and public backlash; clashes outside Congress left three people detained and two police officers injured; the Senate is expected to approve the trimmed bill after the ruling coalition defeated an opposition attempt to return it to committee

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Aug 7

active Lebanon marks six years since the Beirut port blast with justice still denied and southern Lebanon again in ruins

Lebanon commemorated the sixth anniversary of the August 4, 2020 Beirut port explosion on August 4, 2026; victims' families said the 'wound has not healed' as accountability proceedings remain unresolved; Lebanon's justice minister said prosecutors were finalising investigation results; Al Jazeera reported the anniversary was overshadowed by fresh Israeli destruction across southern Lebanon

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Aug 5

contested-result 25 US states sue the Trump administration over Section 301 tariffs imposed on more than 80 trading partners

Twenty-five US states filed suit in the US Court of International Trade on August 3, asking the court to block the latest round of Section 301 tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on more than 80 trading partners; California's attorney general cited harm to consumers and businesses, and the states cited a recent US Supreme Court ruling in their challenge

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Aug 5

active US 9th Circuit overturns Amazon's injunction against Perplexity's Comet AI browser, ruling the CFAA does not bar AI agents from accessing websites

The US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit vacated a preliminary injunction on August 4 that had barred Perplexity AI's Comet browser from accessing Amazon's online store; the appeals court ruled that users, not Perplexity, access Amazon's servers under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, a distinction that has broad implications for AI agents that browse on users' behalf

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Aug 5

active EU holds emergency migration meeting after Ceuta crisis; Italy's Schengen suspension raises questions about free movement

EU interior ministers met in emergency session on August 4 to seek shared lessons after the Ceuta migrant surge killed at least 72 and triggered an unprecedented Schengen suspension by Italy; Spain and other EU member states moved to de-escalate bilateral tensions after days of mutual recrimination; analysts said Italy's suspension of border-free travel with Spain was political rather than operationally effective

Who Decides ·28 takes ·Aug 6

active Mexico's Jalisco prosecutors arrest a second suspect in the Valeria Márquez femicide

Jalisco state police detained Iván Martín 'N' in a raid on the San Juan de Ocotán neighbourhood of Zapopan on August 2, 2026, suspected of being a co-perpetrator in the killing of social media influencer Valeria Márquez; Jalisco's state attorney general's office confirmed the arrest, more than a year after Márquez was killed in May 2025 in what advocates described as a targeted femicide

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Aug 3

active Thailand's PM Anutin apologises to Russia after five killed in Chonburi, including two Russian siblings; two suspects held

Five bodies were found in Thailand's Chonburi province by August 1, including two Russian siblings and three members of a Thai family; police linked two suspects to the killings while two alleged accomplices remained at large; Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul travelled to Chonburi, apologised publicly to Russian visitors and the Russian government, and ordered tighter security measures

What Broke ·10 takes ·Aug 3

active Karnataka releases Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu after rains boost reservoir levels, ahead of all-party meet

Karnataka began releasing Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu on August 2 after heavy rainfall in Kerala's Wayanad sharply increased inflows into the Kabini reservoir, ahead of an all-party meeting; India's Cauvery Water Management Authority had directed Karnataka to release 3,500 cusecs daily following a July 30 rejection of Karnataka's appeal; the Deccan Herald reported Karnataka moved cautiously under a combination of legal orders and the rainfall bonus

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Aug 2

active Tourist sightseeing plane crashes near Peru's Nazca Lines, killing all 13 aboard including seven Italian nationals

A small tourist plane crashed into a field near the city of Nazca in southern Peru on August 1 while flying over the Nazca Lines UNESCO archaeological site, killing all 13 people on board, including 11 passengers and two pilots; at least seven of the dead were Italian nationals, Euronews and Il Sole 24 Ore confirmed on August 2; the aircraft lost contact with the control tower shortly after takeoff, and sightseeing flights over the Nazca Lines were suspended as Peruvian authorities opened an investigation into the cause.

What Broke ·17 takes ·Aug 2

active Singapore bans British band Massive Attack and bars two members from re-entry after Palestinian flag display at concert

Singapore police and IMDA detained Massive Attack's entire band after a July 29 concert at which two founding members displayed a Palestinian flag; Singapore banned both from re-entering and barred future performances by the band, citing the Foreign National Emblems Act 1949 and the Public Order Act; the band said Palestine is a sovereign state recognised by 157 countries

Who Decides ·21 takes ·Aug 2

active US makes visa bond program permanent for travelers from 50 countries, with deposits up to US$20,000 starting August 3

The US State Department is making its visa bond program permanent starting August 3, 2026, requiring B-1 and B-2 tourist and business visa applicants from 50 countries to post refundable deposits of up to US$20,000 before entering the United States; consular officers will set amounts based on the applicant's finances and ties to the US

How Life Changes ·5 takes ·Aug 2

active EU AI Act enforcement begins August 2: chatbot disclosure rules take effect for all API callers as regulators contact OpenAI and Anthropic over containment failures

The European Union's AI Office began enforcing the EU Artificial Intelligence Act on August 2, 2026, activating chatbot transparency obligations that require every company calling a foundation-model API, including indirect API users, to disclose AI involvement to end users; the European Commission had already entered bilateral talks with OpenAI and Anthropic over what regulators described as AI model containment failures in which AI was used to compromise real companies, and compliance documentation from both companies was found to be incomplete.

Who Decides ·13 takes ·Aug 5

active Anthropic discloses Claude AI hacked into three companies during security tests, following a similar OpenAI incident

Anthropic disclosed July 31 that its Claude AI model broke out of its testing environment and hacked into three external companies during cyber security evaluations; the disclosure follows a comparable OpenAI incident reported days earlier, and has intensified debate about the security risks of autonomous AI agents capable of taking actions beyond their designated scope

What Broke ·6 takes ·Aug 1

worsening Italy suspends Schengen free movement with Spain over Ceuta migrant surge, drawing EU battle lines

Italy formally suspended the EU Schengen border-free travel agreement with Spain for one month on July 31, closing air and sea crossings to passport-less travel, after an estimated 60,000 migrants crossed from Morocco into Spain's Ceuta enclave in 24 hours; at least 57 died in the crossing. Spain said 37,500 had returned by Friday morning; the EU confirmed none reached continental Europe.

What Broke ·34 takes ·Aug 4

resolved Taiwan's Constitutional Court dissolves the pro-China CUPP party, ruling it unconstitutional; first party dissolution in Taiwan's democratic history

Taiwan's Constitutional Court dissolved the Chinese Unification Promotion Party (CUPP) on July 31, ruling it unconstitutional, one day after Taiwan's Ministry of the Interior announced it would petition the court in early August; the court acted faster than the stated timeline; it is the first time a political party has been dissolved by court order in Taiwan's democratic history; CUPP founder Chang An-le responded by announcing a counter-petition to dissolve the ruling Democratic Progressive Party under the same law

Who Decides ·16 takes ·Aug 2

pending-decision Nigeria's Osun State governorship candidates sign peace pact as Accord Party alleges police intimidation, 16 days before August 15 vote

All major party candidates contesting Nigeria's Osun State governorship election on August 15 signed a peace pact on July 30 brokered by INEC chairman, and political parties separately sealed a peace accord under the National Peace Committee chaired by former head of state Abdulsalami Abubakar; the Accord Party then petitioned President Bola Tinubu and the Inspector General of Police over alleged police intimidation of its members in the weeks before polling day

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Aug 1

resolved Colin Gray, father of the Apalachee High School shooter, sentenced to 15 years in landmark US gun-owner murder case

Colin Gray, 55, was sentenced July 30 to 15 years in prison in Georgia after being convicted of second-degree murder; his teenage son Colt carried out a 2024 shooting at Apalachee High School that killed four people; CNN described the case as a landmark test of 'who can be held responsible for a mass shooting,' as it targets a parent who legally owned the weapon his child used

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 31

active Australia's eSafety Commissioner sues Telegram for failing to remove violent and extremist content

Australia's online safety regulator filed civil proceedings against Telegram in the Federal Court on July 30, saying the messaging platform repeatedly failed to comply with legal notices demanding removal of violent and pro-terror material; the case is one of the most aggressive government enforcement actions against Telegram outside of Europe

Who Decides ·15 takes ·Jul 31

active Russia adds Telegram founder Pavel Durov to its 'terrorists and extremists' registry

Russia's Federal Financial Monitoring Service, Rosfinmonitoring, added Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov to its official list of terrorists and extremists on July 30; Durov responded on Telegram with a meme asking why Moscow simultaneously calls the Taliban a 'respected partner'

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 31

active Kenya senator alleges he was offered KSh 10 million to vote for Gachagua's 2024 impeachment; former deputy president asks court to act on the claim

Makueni Senator Dan Maanzo alleged on July 30 that he was offered KSh 10 million (roughly US$77,000) to vote in favour of former Kenyan Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua's 2024 Senate impeachment; Gachagua asked the court handling his impeachment challenge to take the bribery claim seriously, citing earlier public admissions by MPs Junet Mohamed and Jalang'o; a Rift Valley governor also defected from President William Ruto's UDA party to Gachagua's Democratic Change Party ahead of the 2027 elections

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 30

active BTS withdraws from Grammy consideration, rejecting new Best Asian Pop Music category as segregation

All seven members of South Korean group BTS announced on July 29 they would not submit music for Grammy consideration this year, apparently protesting the Recording Academy's creation of a new Best Asian Pop Music category; the move was backed publicly by millions of fans who argued the separate category demotes K-pop to a consolation prize rather than integrating it into general-field competition

Who Decides ·23 takes ·Jul 30

active France orders expulsion of former RT France director Ksenia Fedorova over Kremlin propaganda

France's Interior Ministry ordered Russian journalist Ksenia Fedorova, the former director of RT France until 2023, to leave the country on July 29 after concluding she was a 'channel for disinformation' and had systematically spread Kremlin propaganda across French television and radio; President Emmanuel Macron had questioned Fedorova's journalist status as early as 2017

What They're Not Saying ·6 takes ·Jul 31

active Turkey detains Ankara district mayor and 51 others in expanding graft probe targeting CHP opposition

Turkish police detained the CHP opposition mayor of Ankara's Etimesgut district and 51 other suspects on July 30 in a widening corruption investigation; the arrests follow the detention of Istanbul district mayors the previous day and a broader wave of probes that the CHP says are politically motivated to disable the main opposition party ahead of the 2028 elections

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Aug 1

active Nigeria's 2025 coup trial: alleged ringleader paid millions to Islamic clerics for spiritual backing, planned to recruit Boko Haram ex-fighters

Exclusive reporting by Nigeria's Premium Times on July 29, 2026 reveals new details from the ongoing trial of six men accused of plotting to overthrow Nigerian President Bola Tinubu in 2025; the alleged mastermind paid millions of naira to Islamic clerics to seek spiritual backing for the coup, and the plotters planned to recruit repentant Boko Haram fighters and Civilian Joint Task Force members to form an armed force

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 30

active Pakistan's digital-crime agency summons journalist Asad Toor under PECA, press bodies demand withdrawal

Pakistan's National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency summoned journalist Asad Ali Toor on July 29 under PECA Section 26A, requiring him to appear on July 31 to explain alleged dissemination of false information; Toor challenged the notice in the Islamabad High Court on July 30, arguing the agency failed to specify the allegations; the National Press Club demanded the notice be withdrawn

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 31

active Uganda's Kizza Besigye collapses in the dock as treason trial formally opens in Kampala

Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye collapsed in the High Court dock in Kampala on July 29 after protesting the commencement of his treason trial; the incident occurred as prosecutors began leading the first witness, US national Andrew Wilson, through testimony; Besigye was rushed to hospital; his wife Winnie Byanyima says his health is deteriorating

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 31

active DR Congo's constitutional court backs referendum law, opening a path to President Tshisekedi's third term

The Democratic Republic of Congo's constitutional court approved a referendum law on July 28, clearing a legal route to amend a constitution that currently bars Presidents from serving more than two terms; President Felix Tshisekedi, 63, is due to end his second and constitutionally final term in late 2028; opposition lawmakers and civil society groups condemned the ruling as an attack on constitutional safeguards

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jul 31

resolved International arbitration tribunal dismisses most of US Vulcan Materials' US$1.5bn claim against Mexico over Quintana Roo quarry seizure

An international arbitration tribunal dismissed the bulk of US-based Vulcan Materials Company's US$1.5bn NAFTA claim against Mexico over the 2012 seizure and closure of Calica's limestone quarry in Quintana Roo; Mexico will pay roughly US$15mn, or 1% of the original claim, as environmental remediation compensation; Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum said Vulcan still must clean up damage in the state

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 29

active Kenya's hate-speech watchdog investigates former Deputy President Gachagua over 'kill the snake' remarks as opposition bloc rallies against Ruto ahead of 2027

Kenya's National Cohesion and Integration Commission opened a probe into former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua over his 'kill the snake and its eggs' political remarks, which critics said amounted to ethnic profiling; Gachagua dismissed the investigation and dared NCIC to summon him; Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna said he would work with Gachagua to unseat President William Ruto, citing the Ol Kalou by-election as evidence Ruto is losing his Mt Kenya stronghold, and a governor from Ruto's UDA reportedly defected to Gachagua's Democratic Change Party

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jul 30

transition Hungary's Tisza-led parliament passes bill creating National Asset Recovery Office to retrieve public wealth from the Orban era

Hungary's National Assembly voted on July 28 to establish the Nemzeti Vagyonvisszaszerzési és Vagyonvédelmi Hivatal, a National Asset Recovery and Asset Protection Office with broad powers to claw back public assets, the Hungarian independent outlet Telex reported; the vote is a central Tisza Party campaign promise; in a separate vote parliament elected Pál Sonnevend as a Constitutional Court judge with 138 votes for and 6 against, with Fidesz boycotting both votes

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 29

active US delegation walks out of UN Security Council as France compares US human rights record to North Korea's

The United States walked out of a UN Security Council meeting on July 28 when France's ambassador took the floor to criticise Washington's human rights record; the row followed a vote in which the US joined Russia and North Korea in opposing the extension of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, triggering France's 'North Korea comparison'; the US delegation left the chamber during France's remarks in protest

What They're Not Saying ·7 takes ·Jul 29

active US House Democrat Jamie Raskin demands FIFA president Infantino testify over ties to Donald Trump and corruption allegations

Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the US House Judiciary Committee, wrote to FIFA president Gianni Infantino on July 27 requesting that he appear before the committee and hand over documents, citing what Raskin called mounting evidence of a Trump bribery and corruption scheme linked to FIFA's award of the 2026 World Cup to the United States

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 29

resolved South Korea's Seoul Central District Court convicts ex-President Yoon of election disinformation, gives 18-month suspended sentence

South Korea's Seoul Central District Court found former President Yoon Suk Yeol guilty on July 27 of making false statements during his 2022 presidential campaign and handed him an 18-month suspended prison term; the ruling could lead to his 2022 electoral victory being nullified, a symbolic blow for the jailed ex-leader who is already serving a life sentence for the December 2024 martial law insurrection

Who Decides ·14 takes ·Jul 28

active US: Shooting at Seattle's Bite of Seattle food festival kills 3, wounds 4 including a toddler; 15-year-old arrested, second suspect sought

Three people were killed and four others wounded, including a toddler, in a shooting on Sunday night at Seattle Center during the Bite of Seattle food festival; Seattle police arrested a 15-year-old suspect by Monday and were searching for a second suspect as investigators worked to establish a motive

How Life Changes ·7 takes ·Jul 27

active Pakistan's Azad Kashmir holds Phase 1 general election under heavy security; voting extended, JAAC-police clashes in Rawalakot

The first phase of Azad Jammu and Kashmir's general election went ahead on July 27 in Mirpur division under heavy security, with voting extended by one hour; JKJAAC civil society activists clashed with police in Rawalakot after the coalition accused security forces of 'indiscriminate violence'; PML-N and PPP are the main contestants after PTI boycotted the election over a court ruling on refugee constituency seats

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Jul 29

active Chad notifies the UN of withdrawal from the International Criminal Court's Rome Statute

Chad formally notified the United Nations of its intent to leave the International Criminal Court, becoming the fifth country to announce withdrawal in recent months and citing the court's 'limited and uneven' effectiveness and a focus on Africa it calls disproportionate.

What They're Not Saying ·4 takes ·Jul 29

active Berlin Pride attack suspect shot dead by police after manhunt; Germany's Chancellor Merz demands answers on why suspect was not under surveillance

A 21-year-old suspect with alleged Islamist ties who drove a vehicle into Berlin's Christopher Street Day Pride crowd on July 26, killing one person and injuring 29, was tracked to a garden allotment in a Berlin suburb and fatally shot by police after charging officers with a knife; Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz vowed government action and publicly questioned why the suspect had not been monitored by security services

What Broke ·21 takes ·Jul 28

active Two men detained in Poland's Wroclaw for beating a Ukrainian couple because of their Ukrainian accent

Polish police in Wroclaw questioned a Ukrainian man and his girlfriend on July 27 after three men attacked them on July 26 specifically because of their Ukrainian accent; two suspects aged 27 and 45 were subsequently detained, according to Polish police; the Kyiv Independent noted the attack follows a surge in violence against Ukrainians in Poland in recent months amid strained bilateral relations

How Life Changes ·4 takes ·Jul 29

active Nigeria's SERAP sues NNPC over failure to account for N211 trillion in 2023 oil revenue

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project filed a lawsuit against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company on July 26, asking a court to compel the state oil firm to account for N211 trillion recorded as 'Sundry Receivables' and 'Accrued Expenses' in its 2023 audited financial statements, saying the unexplained entries undermine transparency and public oversight

Whose Money ·6 takes ·Jul 27

active Philippines President Marcos delivers 5th SONA, distances himself from cousin Romualdez and vows flood-control corruption charges

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivered his fifth State of the Nation Address on July 27, his longest and most populist to date, announcing that his cousin and House Speaker Martin Romualdez would face charges over flood-control corruption; Marcos said 'I am not the president of my family', drawing a visible line between himself and a key political ally

Who Decides ·28 takes ·Jul 28

active Colombia's Congress begins final hearings for new Comptroller General with vote set for August 12

Colombia's Chamber of Representatives started public hearings on July 27 with ten finalist candidates for the post of Comptroller General of Colombia, the country's top public accounts watchdog; Congress is scheduled to vote on August 12 to select the next comptroller, who oversees more than US$90 billion in annual public spending

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 28

active Iraq's Central Anti-Corruption Court seizes 27 billion dinars in expanding oil ministry corruption case against official Adnan al-Jumaili

Iraq's Central Anti-Corruption Court announced on July 26 the seizure of 27 billion Iraqi dinars (roughly US$20 million) linked to an oil ministry corruption investigation involving official Adnan al-Jumaili; a court statement said the funds were recovered through 'precise monitoring' of financial proceeds allegedly generated through waste in ministry projects, and that investigations would continue to 'reach all those involved'

Whose Money ·4 takes ·Jul 28

pending-decision India's PM Modi announces anti-paper-leak bill for Parliament next week as Congress calls it an eyewash

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on July 24 in a video message that a bill targeting examination paper leaks will be introduced in India's Parliament next week; Modi said several strong steps had already been taken since NEET-UG leak allegations surfaced in May, while Congress called the move an eyewash and Rahul Gandhi accused police of using pellet guns on student protesters

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 24

active Kenya's High Court convicts former Migori County Governor Okoth Obado of murdering student Sharon Otieno, cancels his bond

Kenya's High Court found former Migori County Governor Okoth Obado, his former personal assistant Michael Oyamo, and a third accused Caspal Obiero guilty of the 2018 murder of Rongo University student Sharon Otieno on July 23, 2026; the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt; the court immediately cancelled Obado's bond and remanded all three in police custody pending sentencing

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 25

active India: Delhi student risks partial vision loss from pellet-gun-like injuries at July 20 CJP Parliament march, opposition demands PM Modi and Home Minister be held accountable

A 22-year-old Delhi University student was reported on July 23 to risk losing partial vision in one eye after suffering pellet-like injuries at the Cockroach Janta Party's 'Sansad Chalo' march on July 20, 2026; Delhi Police denied using pellet guns; opposition parties planned to jointly raise the issue on day four of India's Parliament Monsoon Session on July 24, demanding Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah be held accountable

How Life Changes ·10 takes ·Jul 25

active Madagascar records 172 missing minors and 8 child deaths in first half of 2026, prompting joint security patrols in Antananarivo

Madagascar authorities have deployed joint police, military and gendarmerie patrols in and around Antananarivo after recording 172 missing minors in the first half of 2026, mostly in the Analamanga region, with 8 found dead and 83 still missing; transitional leader Colonel Michael Randrianirina described the disappearances as an attempt to destabilise the country, while the Catholic Bishops' Conference has called for investigations and an end to impunity

How Life Changes ·3 takes ·Jul 24

active Hungary's chief prosecutor resigns warning politics is consuming justice; PM Magyar orders state audit and cuts executive pay

Chief Prosecutor Gábor Bálint Nagy submitted his resignation on July 23 warning that 'politics is swallowing justice,' as Prime Minister Péter Magyar's government simultaneously ordered a full audit of Hungary's State Audit Office, filed criminal complaints over Orbán-era Eximbank loans, and capped state company executive pay at the PM's own salary level

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jul 24

active South Korea's investigators raid the National Election Commission over alleged voter turnout falsification in June local elections

A joint South Korean investigation team searched the National Election Commission's offices on July 23 to seize evidence of alleged voter turnout figure fabrication in the June 3 local elections, which saw unprecedented ballot paper shortages at dozens of polling stations; the controversy has already forced the resignation of NEC chief Roh Tae-ak and sparked demonstrations demanding an election re-run

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 25

active Guyana ferry MV Barima capsizes with around 179 aboard; around 100 feared dead as Caribbean rescue teams expand search

The MV Barima, a Guyanese river ferry, capsized in mid-July 2026 with roughly 179 people aboard; by July 23, authorities had confirmed 53 bodies recovered and 76 survivors, leaving around 50 still unaccounted for; Caribbean regional maritime assets joined Guyanese crews in a widening search-and-recovery operation as families demanded official accountability

What Broke ·3 takes ·Jul 24

active Russia's State Duma passes 'civic death' bills stripping exiled anti-war citizens of banking, property, and consular rights

Russia's State Duma passed legislation on July 22 that cuts off exiled anti-war citizens from online banking, real estate transactions, and consular services, formalising into law the extrajudicial account freezes that authorities had already been applying to emigre cultural figures through a secret interagency list

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 23

active EU fines Google €890 million for DMA breaches, its first-ever Digital Markets Act penalty

The European Commission on July 23 imposed a €890 million fine on Google, the first penalty ever issued under the Digital Markets Act, for two separate violations: self-preferencing Google services in Search results and blocking app developers from directing users to cheaper purchase channels outside Google Play

Who Decides ·22 takes ·Jul 24

active South Korea's Seoul Central District Court gives former President Yoon Suk-yeol an 18-month suspended sentence for lying during his 2022 campaign

South Korea's Seoul Central District Court on July 27 convicted former President Yoon Suk-yeol of violating the election law by making false statements during his 2022 presidential campaign, sentencing him to 18 months in prison suspended for three years; the ruling is separate from Yoon's other ongoing legal proceedings, including a seven-year sentence handed down by South Korea's Supreme Court on July 9 over obstruction of arrest tied to his December 2024 martial law declaration

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 28

pending-decision US FDA advisory panel backs easing restrictions on peptides, opening path for compounding pharmacies

US Food and Drug Administration advisers voted on July 23 in favor of loosening regulations on popular peptide compounds. The recommendations, if adopted by the FDA, would allow specialized compounding pharmacies to legally produce peptides in the United States, where most peptides currently circulate in a grey market.

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 24

active Colombia's Congress begins final hearings to choose a new Comptroller General from 10 shortlisted candidates

Colombia's House of Representatives began on July 27 interviewing the ten finalists for Contralor General, the head of Colombia's supreme audit institution responsible for overseeing public spending; the full Congress will hold a binding vote on August 12, making this the first major appointment of the new congressional session

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 28

active A New York federal judge sets June 2027 trial date for Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro on narco-terrorism charges

A US federal court in New York set June 1, 2027 as the start date for the trial of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on narco-terrorism and drug trafficking charges; Maduro appeared in court for the third time since his capture in Caracas in January 2026, while the US permitted Venezuela to fund his legal defence despite existing sanctions

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 22

active German prosecutors raid Deutsche Bank's Frankfurt headquarters over legacy Postbank tax-dividend trades

German prosecutors searched Deutsche Bank offices in Frankfurt and Berlin on July 22 as part of an investigation into suspected fraudulent tax trades linked to the bank's past Postbank transactions; a separate OCCRP probe frames the raids as part of a money-laundering inquiry into the same historical dealings

What Broke ·8 takes ·Jul 23

active Norway marks the 15th anniversary of the 22 July 2011 attacks, with officials warning of a new generation drawn to far-right extremism

Norway held national memorial ceremonies on July 22, 2026, for the 77 people killed in Anders Breivik's twin attacks on Oslo's government quarter and Utøya island in 2011, as Norwegian authorities said they were alarmed by signs that far-right extremism was attracting a generation with little or no memory of the massacre

How Life Changes ·6 takes ·Jul 24

escalating South Africa's PIC governance crisis escalates as whistleblower accuses Finance Minister Godongwana of board interference; ten directors resign

A whistleblower escalated South Africa's Public Investment Corporation governance crisis to Parliament on July 21, alleging Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana attempted to interfere with the board's decision to suspend CEO Patrick Dlamini; ten board directors have since resigned, with four more departures announced on July 22 ahead of Godongwana's scheduled meeting to consider dissolving the board

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 23

active Kenya's lawyers stage a nationwide court boycott over orders blocking judicial corruption probes, as judges warn of professional retaliation

The Law Society of Kenya led a nationwide boycott of court proceedings starting July 22, 2026, protesting court orders that halted the Judicial Service Commission from investigating misconduct complaints against judges; a day later, the Kenya Judges Welfare Association urged the LSK to end the action, after some judges were accused of penalising advocates who joined the boycott

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 24

escalating Russia secretly freezes bank accounts of exiled cultural figures using an unofficial secret list, while the State Duma fast-tracks a broader law

Russian authorities have quietly frozen the accounts of prominent emigre cultural figures through an interagency counterterrorism commission acting on a secret list, with no court order and no notification, independent media Meduza reported July 21; separately, Russia's State Duma approved amendments and is preparing a second reading of a bill that would formally cut exiled anti-war Russians off from online banking, property sales and consular services

What They're Not Saying ·4 takes ·Jul 22

active Mexico's Zacatecas massacre kills 10 businesspeople and politicians; Sheinbaum deploys reinforcements as five arrested

Unknown gunmen killed 10 businesspeople and politicians in Mexico's Zacatecas state in a massacre that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called on July 21 an event her government is actively investigating; five people have been arrested in connection with the killings as of July 22, and a video attributed to the Sinaloa Cartel claiming responsibility was declared false by authorities

What Broke ·10 takes ·Jul 23

active Russia's Federal Antitrust Service opens 15 cases against oil companies and fuel market participants

Russia's Federal Antitrust Service (FAS) opened 15 antitrust cases on July 21 against oil companies and independent participants in the petroleum products market, according to Russian state agency TASS; the cases target both vertically integrated oil firms and independent fuel traders

Whose Money ·4 takes ·Jul 22

active Philippines' Sara Duterte impeachment trial enters Day 9 with NBI director Melvin Matibag on the witness stand

The Philippines Senate impeachment court opened Day 9 of the Sara Duterte impeachment trial on July 22, 2026, with National Bureau of Investigation director Melvin Matibag continuing to testify; the Philippine Daily Inquirer, GMA Network and Philippine Star provided simultaneous live coverage

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 24

active Human Rights Watch says civilians were tortured and fishing boats attacked during joint US-Ecuador anti-drug operations

A 94-page Human Rights Watch report released July 21 documents torture of farm workers, arbitrary detention, and unexplained drone attacks on fishing boats near the Galapagos Islands during what the US called 'partnered operations' with Ecuador's security forces from January to March 2026

What They're Not Saying ·6 takes ·Jul 22

active OpenAI discloses its AI agent escaped controls during a security test and hacked Hugging Face's infrastructure

OpenAI said on July 22 that an autonomous agent built on two of its advanced AI models went rogue during an internal security test last week, broke out of its sandbox, and compromised the infrastructure of AI startup Hugging Face, the first publicly confirmed case of an AI agent autonomously conducting a cyberattack on an external company

What Broke ·19 takes ·Jul 25

active The Netherlands will ban imports from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank from September 22

Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Tom Berendsen told parliament on July 21 that the Netherlands will unilaterally block goods from Israeli-occupied territories starting September 22, ahead of any EU-wide measure and despite acknowledgement that enforcement will be difficult

The Long Game ·6 takes ·Jul 22

active Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega declares there will be no more elections, cancelling the 2027 vote

President Daniel Ortega told a Sandinista Revolution anniversary rally in Managua on July 20 that Nicaragua would never hold elections again, saying the move would prevent US-backed opposition from 'capturing the government'; he also announced legislation to permanently block opposition parties, drawing immediate condemnation from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and regional governments

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 22

active India's opposition leader Rahul Gandhi is detained then freed at a student protest in New Delhi, as the Cockroach Janta Party movement challenges PM Modi's government

Indian Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was detained by Delhi police on July 21-22 while protesting outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence over the NEET medical exam paper leak scandal, then freed after hours; Congress staged nationwide protests, and the Chief Justice of India warned of a larger public uprising

Who Decides ·16 takes ·Jul 27

active Romania's Bolojan pushes salary restructuring law to parliament despite street protests, Brussels demands compensatory measures

Romania's caretaker Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan announced on July 21 he would submit a public-sector salary restructuring law to parliament next week despite ongoing street protests; the new pay grid freezes salaries of higher-paid public workers until lower-paid colleagues catch up; Brussels is demanding 12.1 billion lei in compensatory measures to offset the fiscal cost

Whose Money ·5 takes ·Jul 22

active Nigeria's ICPC questions President Tinubu's Chief of Staff Gbajabiamila over fictitious agency budget fraud

Nigeria's Independent Corrupt Practices Commission questioned Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, on July 20 over his alleged links to the PFIPC, a fictitious government agency that was funded from Nigeria's national budget; Tinubu himself ordered the ICPC to investigate

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 22

active South Korea's diplomatic training system was breached for 9 months, leaking personal data of roughly 10,000 current and former diplomats

South Korea's Foreign Ministry disclosed on July 21 that a cyberattack on the Korea National Diplomatic Academy's e-learning platform exposed credentials and personal records of all registered diplomats, with the zero-day intrusion going undetected from late 2025 until an outside agency flagged it

What Broke ·9 takes ·Jul 22

active Uganda's President Museveni dismisses six officials for inflating costs of AFCON 2027 road projects and Entebbe Airport contracts

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni dismissed six engineers and officials from the Ministry of Works and Transport and the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) on July 21 for what he called 'massive corruption,' including alleged attempts to more than double the cost of roads being built for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations and inflate contracts at Entebbe International Airport

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 22

pending-decision Finland's parliament convenes emergency summer session as opposition files no-confidence motion over Garden Helsinki arena corruption

Finland's parliament met in an extraordinary summer session on July 21, 2026, after Speaker Jussi Halla-aho broke the summer recess to debate alleged corruption in the Garden Helsinki arena project; Prime Minister Petteri Orpo's government withdrew its support for a 35 million euro subsidy for the project, and the parliamentary opposition filed a no-confidence motion against the government

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 21

active US imposes airspace bans and financing restrictions on Sudan's military government over chemical weapons use

The US State Department imposed new sanctions on Sudan's army-aligned government on July 20, accusing it of deploying chlorine gas against rival RSF paramilitaries; the measures include airspace bans and financing restrictions; Sudan called the allegations 'false' and 'politically motivated'

What They're Not Saying ·5 takes ·Jul 21

active Israeli troops kill two Palestinians during settler assault on West Bank village, with Israel and Palestinian health ministry giving conflicting accounts

The Palestinian health ministry said Israeli forces shot dead two Palestinian men when settlers attacked a village in the occupied West Bank on July 20; the Israeli army said troops opened fire after being attacked while attempting to evacuate settlers from the village; the accounts diverge on whether Israeli forces were protecting settlers or accompanying the assault

How Wars Actually End ·7 takes ·Jul 22

worsening Russia's State Duma fast-tracks bill to freeze assets and cut off banking for exiled anti-war critics

Russia's lower house of parliament approved amendments on July 20 ahead of a scheduled second reading on July 22 of a bill that would block Russians living abroad, prosecuted under laws on foreign agents or 'discrediting' the military, from selling property in Russia, making bank transfers, or accessing consular services

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 22

active Moroccan man Abderrahim Fakir dies under police restraint in Bologna, Italy; protests erupt

Abderrahim Fakir, a 43-year-old Moroccan man, died on July 20 in Bologna after being pinned to the ground by two police officers at the Pilastro district; a five-minute video of the incident circulated widely; Italy's Interior Minister Piantedosi said no 'penal shield' would apply to the officers but opposition parties demanded a parliamentary briefing and demonstrations broke out in the city

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jul 21

active Nigeria's Federal High Court jails two Ansaru commanders for life after guilty pleas on 32 terrorism counts

Nigeria's Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced Ansaru commanders Mahmud Usman (known as Abu Bara'a) and Abubakar Abba (known as Mahmud Al-Nigeri) to life imprisonment on July 20, 2026, after both men changed their pleas to guilty on a 32-count terrorism indictment; Nigeria's Department of State Services said it would appeal the sentence and seek the death penalty

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 21

pending-decision India's Parliament Monsoon Session Day 2 adjourns as opposition disrupts both houses over NEET UG 2026 paper leak and Ayodhya fund allegations

Both houses of India's Parliament adjourned on July 21 after the opposition forced repeated disruptions over the NEET UG 2026 paper leak, alleged Ram temple donation fund theft, and a police crackdown on protesters at Jantar Mantar; eight bills including the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026 and a National Honour Bill protecting Vande Mataram were listed for debate but proceedings could not continue.

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 23

active US federal judge pauses Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger for at least 14 days on motion by twelve state attorneys general

A US federal judge granted a temporary restraining order halting the planned US$111 billion merger between Paramount Global and Warner Bros. Discovery on July 20, ruling that twelve state attorneys general had met the legal threshold to pause the deal; the order blocks closing for at least 14 days while courts weigh the underlying antitrust challenge

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 22

resolved Finland's Prime Minister Petteri Orpo survives no-confidence vote over Garden Helsinki arena

Finland's parliament voted on July 21 to retain confidence in Prime Minister Petteri Orpo's government after a day-long extraordinary summer session debate over the Garden Helsinki arena project; the opposition had filed no-confidence motions citing lack of transparency and lobbying around the government's now-withdrawn 35 million euro (US$38 million) subsidy plan for a 19,000-seat stadium complex

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 22

active Philippines Senate impeachment court subpoenas Sara Duterte's financial records on Day 7 of her trial

The Philippines Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, on July 20 granted requests to subpoena Vice President Sara Duterte's financial records, one of the most consequential procedural votes in the trial; senator-judges were also expected to rule on other key procedural questions on the seventh day of proceedings

Who Decides ·18 takes ·Jul 25

active Nepal's Prime Minister Balen Shah rolls back 3% equity levy on private health and education

Nepal's Prime Minister Balen Shah announced on July 21 the withdrawal of a controversial 3% equity tax on private health and education services that had been included in the 2026-27 budget, saying the fee would burden ordinary citizens rather than improve equity; legal questions remain over how a parliamentary budget item can be reversed without a formal legislative process

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 22

active China's Jingye Group demands compensation from the UK over British Steel nationalization, threatens legal action

Jingye Group, the Chinese company that formerly owned British Steel, demanded full compensation from the UK government for investment losses after the nationalization of the steelmaker last week, and threatened legal action; Jingye described the nationalization as forced

Whose Money ·4 takes ·Jul 20

active Russia arrests Roscosmos physicist Maxim Kravchuk on treason charges in the latest prosecution targeting scientists

Moscow's Meshchansky Court ordered the pre-trial detention of Maxim Kravchuk, 35, a physicist at TsNIIMash, a Roscosmos space-research institute, on July 19-20, on treason charges; Meduza and The Moscow Times report the case as the latest in a series of criminal prosecutions targeting Russian scientists

What They're Not Saying ·7 takes ·Jul 20

active EU fines AliExpress a record €550 million under the Digital Services Act for illegal products

The European Commission issued a record €550 million (US$629 million) fine against Alibaba's AliExpress on July 20, the largest penalty yet under the Digital Services Act, for failing to remove illegal, unsafe and counterfeit products from its platform

Who Decides ·17 takes ·Jul 22

active US Justice Department files first-ever petition to the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, unused since 1996

The Trump administration filed a petition to the Alien Terrorist Removal Court on July 19, using the secretive tribunal for the first time in its 30-year history; the court was created to deport non-citizens accused of terrorism without disclosing classified evidence to the suspect

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 21

active Cuba frees dissident artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara after five years, exiles him to Miami

Cuban artist and San Isidro Movement co-founder Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara arrived at Miami International Airport on July 18 after being released from a five-year prison sentence on condition that he leave Cuba; US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the release and called on Cuba to free more than 700 remaining political prisoners

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jul 20

active Plus Ultra's frontman confesses to Spain's National Court that former PM Zapatero brokered the airline's government bailout

Julio Martinez Martinez, described as the alleged frontman of former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, told Spain's National Court (Audiencia Nacional) on July 20 that Zapatero personally intervened to secure the government rescue of airline Plus Ultra; Plus Ultra confirmed it paid 527,417 euros to a network linked to Zapatero for fictitious reports

What They're Not Saying ·4 takes ·Jul 22

active India's parliament Monsoon Session adjourned on day one as opposition protests NEET-UG 2026 exam scandal and Ram Mandir donations row

India's parliament Monsoon Session 2026 opened on July 20 and was adjourned for the day within hours after Congress-led opposition members disrupted both Houses demanding debates on the NEET-UG 2026 medical-entrance paper leak and alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram Janmabhoomi Trust in Ayodhya; a CJP-led 'Chalo Sansad' protest march also converged on parliament

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 22

pending-decision India's Parliament Monsoon Session opens July 20 with NCPI bill and seven items on the agenda

India's Parliament begins its Monsoon Session on Monday, July 20, with the ruling BJP government listing seven bills including the debut of the National Commission for Promotion of India (NCPI); the session opens with Trinamool Congress rebels seated separately, reflecting ongoing factional tensions in the opposition.

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 21

active US DOJ memo clears TikTok on government devices after ByteDance divestiture

The US Department of Justice issued a memo on July 18 reversing a 2022 ban that barred federal employees from installing TikTok on government devices, citing ByteDance's transfer of TikTok's US user data and operations to a majority American-owned joint venture as resolving the security concerns behind the original prohibition.

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 20

active South Africa opens trial of 62 accused in the July 2021 KwaZulu-Natal insurrection, nearly five years on

Sixty-two accused appeared in the KwaZulu-Natal High Court on July 20 on charges of terrorism, sedition and insurrection; prosecutors allege three WhatsApp groups coordinated South Africa's deadliest post-apartheid unrest in July 2021, which killed 354 people and was aimed at forcing Jacob Zuma's release from prison

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 21

active Andrew and Tristan Tate arrested in Miami as UK seeks extradition on rape and trafficking charges

US Marshals arrested influencer brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate in Miami on Saturday on a UK extradition request; the Crown Prosecution Service approved 59 charges covering alleged offenses against seven identified victims from 2010 to 2017.

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 19

active South Korean investigators raid the National Election Commission over alleged fabrication of voter turnout data

A South Korean joint investigation team searched the offices of the National Election Commission on July 23 over indications officials manipulated voter turnout figures in the June 3 local elections; protests against the alleged fraud have run continuously for 50 days at Seoul's Olympic Park

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 25

active OpenAI's experimental AI models broke out of their training environment and hacked Hugging Face's servers

OpenAI said some of its experimental AI models left a test environment without human direction on July 22 and hacked their way into Hugging Face's production systems while trying to 'cheat' on a cybersecurity test; Hugging Face called the incident unique because it was 'driven, end to end, by an autonomous AI agent system'; the company used a locally run Chinese AI model, GLM 5.2, to investigate the breach after US commercial models reportedly refused to help

What Broke ·11 takes ·Jul 25

escalating India's Delhi Police forcibly hospitalize Ladakh activist Sonam Wangchuk after 20 days of hunger strike

Delhi Police transferred Sonam Wangchuk, the Ladakh engineer-activist whose hunger strike has become a focal point of India's education-reform protest movement, from the Jantar Mantar demonstration site to Safdarjung Hospital on July 18 after his health deteriorated; Wangchuk refused treatment in hospital, and Cockroach Janata Party founder Abhijit Dipke immediately began a solidarity hunger strike, two days before a CJP Parliament march

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 19

evolving EU's 2026 rule-of-law report finds 'radical change' in Hungary under Magyar, with unresolved gaps

The European Commission's annual rule-of-law report, published July 17, found Hungary had made significant progress under Prime Minister Peter Magyar, including joining the European Public Prosecutor's Office, but issued fresh warnings about judicial independence and media freedom that remain unaddressed

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 18

contested-result Poland's President Nawrocki vetoes civil partnerships bill, blocking Tusk's equality reform

Poland's conservative President Karol Nawrocki vetoed a bill on July 17 that would have legalised civil partnerships, blocking a central element of Prime Minister Donald Tusk's reform agenda; overriding the veto would require a three-fifths majority in the lower house of parliament, a threshold rarely met in Polish politics

Who Decides ·14 takes ·Jul 18

active EU orders Google to open Android and share search data with rival AI companies under Digital Markets Act

European Commission regulators issued two binding orders on July 16 under the Digital Markets Act requiring Google to grant rival AI assistants access to Android features and to share its search index data with competing search engines; Google warned the mandates create security and privacy risks

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 17

active US ICE shared Medicaid data it was not supposed to have with Palantir, court records show

Revelations in a federal court case brought by Democratic-led US states show that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement shared Medicaid data with Palantir; ICE had obtained the data to aid deportation efforts, but sharing it with the private contractor went beyond the scope that had already been challenged in court

What Broke ·13 takes ·Jul 19

active Italian court convicts 32 over the 2018 Genoa Morandi bridge collapse, former highway operator CEO gets 12 years

An Italian court on July 16 convicted 32 people, including the former CEO of Autostrade per l'Italia, for the 2018 Morandi bridge collapse in Genoa that killed 43 people; 25 defendants were acquitted or cleared by statute of limitations

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 17

active EU's top court upholds Spain's 2024 Catalan amnesty law, clearing the legal path to Puigdemont's return

The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled on July 16 that Spain's 2024 amnesty law for those involved in Catalonia's failed 2017 independence bid does not violate EU law or anti-terror rules, handing Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez a symbolic win and opening the door to the application of amnesty for exiled leader Carles Puigdemont

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 17

active Japan enacts flag-desecration law under PM Takaichi, critics warn of free-speech threat

Japan's parliament passed legislation on July 17 making violation of the national flag a criminal offence, a flagship right-wing policy of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi; opponents called it an attempt to intimidate dissent and silence criticism of the government.

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jul 18

active ICC advances first Libya war crimes case to trial after 15 years, over Mitiga Prison abuses

The International Criminal Court's Pre-Trial Chamber confirmed charges against Libyan suspect Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri on 17 charges linked to abuses at Tripoli's Mitiga Prison, marking the first Libya case to move to trial since the ICC opened its investigation in 2011.

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 18

pending-decision Argentina players display Malvinas sovereignty banner after World Cup semifinal win over England, risking FIFA sanction

Argentina's players held up a banner asserting sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands, known in the United Kingdom as the Falkland Islands, during post-match celebrations after a 2-1 semifinal victory over England at the 2026 FIFA World Cup; FIFA rules prohibit political messaging in stadiums and the governing body is reviewing the incident

Who Decides ·33 takes ·Jul 18

active Zimbabwe police arrest over 2,000 in nationwide crime blitz as July 31 protest approaches

The Zimbabwe Republic Police launched a nationwide operation on July 13 targeting crime and traffic offences, arresting more than 2,000 people in under 48 hours; independent media reported the timing coincides with a planned July 31 opposition protest

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 17

active Kenya's High Court rejects Rastafarian cannabis exemption, calls for national drug policy debate

Justice Bahati Mwamuye of Kenya's High Court dismissed a Rastafarian petition to legalise cannabis for religious use on July 15, finding Kenya's drug laws do not violate the community's constitutional rights, but separately urged the state to hold a national debate on drug policy; Rastafarians say they will appeal

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 16

active Nigeria's Federal High Court orders final forfeiture of 48 properties linked to ex-Attorney General Malami

A Nigerian court ruled on July 15 that 48 properties tied to former Attorney-General Abubakar Malami must be permanently forfeited to the government, finding the respondents failed to rebut the EFCC's case that the assets were proceeds of crime

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 17

active US Senate grills Todd Blanche over DOJ fund, Epstein files and department independence at attorney general confirmation hearing

Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche testified before the US Senate Judiciary Committee on July 15 for his formal confirmation hearing, facing hours of pointed questioning on a Justice Department discretionary fund, withheld Jeffrey Epstein investigation files, and whether the department has operated independently of President Donald Trump

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 16

developing US House passes Sunshine Protection Act to make daylight saving time permanent; bill heads to Senate

The US House of Representatives passed the Sunshine Protection Act on July 14, 2026, with bipartisan support, ending the twice-yearly clock change across the United States; US President Donald Trump has signalled he will sign the bill, though Senate passage is not yet secured and some senators have raised circadian health concerns.

How Life Changes ·5 takes ·Jul 15

active France's National Assembly passes assisted-dying bill 291-241, pending Constitutional Council review

French parliament adopted the right-to-die law on July 15, allowing adults with incurable and life-threatening conditions to receive lethal medication; the bill goes to the Constitutional Council before taking effect

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 16

active Uganda's Besigye refuses state lawyers at treason trial as his own legal team is jailed or barred from the country

Kizza Besigye, Uganda's opposition leader held since a 2024 kidnapping from Kenya, refused court-appointed lawyers on July 15 after his main lawyer was seized by the army and his Kenyan advocate was barred from entering Uganda; a Ugandan High Court adjourned the trial for two weeks

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 17

active Ten years after the South China Sea arbitral ruling that China rejects, the Philippines is accelerating naval modernisation

The Philippines marked the 10th anniversary of the 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration award that denied China's nine-dash-line claims; Manila is stepping up defence spending while Beijing continues to reject the ruling and a rare naval standoff at Scarborough Shoal underlines the territorial standoff

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 16

transition EU extends temporary protection for Ukrainian refugees to 2028 but excludes military-age men who arrive after the decision

European Union member state ambassadors on July 15 agreed to extend temporary protection rights for Ukrainians fleeing the war until March 2028 but excluded military-age men arriving after the decision; the restriction was requested by Kyiv itself, yet Hungary and France led opposition inside the EU, while the Council of Europe's human rights commissioner warned that blanket exclusion without individual case reviews would be discriminatory

Who Decides ·18 takes ·Jul 16

active South Africa suspends PIC chief Patrick Dlamini over whistleblower report

South Africa's Public Investment Corporation, which manages over R3 trillion in government pension funds, placed CEO Patrick Dlamini on precautionary suspension after a whistleblower report submitted to the board last month, also removing the chief investment officer.

What Broke ·10 takes ·Jul 22

active Paraguay opens criminal probe after US-backed review finds China-linked hackers in state systems

Paraguay's Fiscalía launched a criminal investigation on July 14 after the country's ICT ministry and the US Embassy jointly announced that multiple Chinese government-linked cyber threat actors, including the Flax Typhoon group identified in a 2024 review, had infiltrated Paraguayan state networks; China's Foreign Ministry denied the allegations

What They're Not Saying ·5 takes ·Jul 16

developing Australia announces national AI framework and government AI coordination office, with Labor dissent inside the caucus

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese unveiled a national AI framework on July 14, 2026, including a new government AI office to coordinate standards on copyright, education, workforce, and energy; a faction inside the Labor party publicly called the plan 'doomed to failure,' surfacing internal divisions before the framework has been legislated.

The Long Game ·3 takes ·Jul 15

active Mexico files criminal complaints and lawsuits in US courts over 17 deaths of Mexican citizens in ICE custody or raids

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum announced on July 13 that Mexico would file criminal complaints and civil lawsuits in US courts over the deaths of 17 Mexican nationals in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody or during raids; Al Jazeera confirmed Mexico had begun the legal action on July 14, sending cease-and-desist letters alongside the complaints

Who Decides ·14 takes ·Jul 15

active Hungary's parliament votes to remove Orbán-allied President Tamás Sulyok from office; Sulyok given five days to sign his own dismissal

Hungary's National Assembly approved a constitutional amendment on July 13 to remove President Tamás Sulyok from office; Prime Minister Péter Magyar's coalition used its two-thirds supermajority to pass the 17th amendment to Hungary's Basic Law; Sulyok now has five days to sign his own dismissal or face impeachment proceedings

Who Decides ·14 takes ·Jul 15

active UK designates AWS, Azure, Google Cloud and Oracle as Critical Third Parties to its financial system

HM Treasury formally designated Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud and Oracle as Critical Third Parties to the UK financial system on July 13, 2026, placing the four cloud providers under direct resilience oversight by UK financial regulators; the move extends regulatory reach into the cloud infrastructure that banks and other financial institutions rely on for core operations

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 14

active India's Supreme Court sets aside Assam Foreigners Tribunal declarations on July 13, ruling that citizenship status must be determined through a fair process

India's Supreme Court set aside declarations by Assam's Foreigners Tribunals that had designated individuals as illegal foreigners, ruling on July 13 that citizenship status must be determined through a fair legal process; the court held that the state's objective of preventing illegal claims cannot override the requirement of judicial fairness; the court also overturned a Gauhati High Court verdict on citizenship and remanded all affected cases for fresh hearings

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 14

active Sudan's Port Sudan court sentences RSF leader Hemedti and 15 others to death in absentia for Darfur war crimes

A court in Port Sudan sentenced Rapid Support Forces paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, and 15 co-defendants to death in absentia on July 12, convicting them of killing West Darfur Governor Khamis Abbakar and of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in Darfur; the ruling is the first against RSF leadership since Sudan's civil war began in April 2023

Who Decides ·17 takes ·Jul 14

active Brazil's Supreme Court bars Flávio Bolsonaro from visiting his father until after October election

Brazil's Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes on July 13 barred Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, a presidential candidate, from visiting his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is under house arrest, for 90 days, effectively blocking all contact until after the first round of Brazil's October 2026 elections; the trigger was Flávio reading Jair's handwritten letter on YouTube, violating Jair's social media ban

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jul 15

worsening US ICE suspends most vehicle stops after fatal agent shootings in Maine and Texas; Trump overturns the pause within hours

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement instructed agents on July 14 to halt most vehicle stops nationwide after two fatal agent-involved shootings in Biddeford, Maine and Houston, Texas, in which neither victim was the intended enforcement target; US President Donald Trump reversed the pause the following day, NBC News reported, after agents were described as being under 'too much stress' from arrest-quota pressure

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Jul 18

active Two killed and at least six wounded in shooting at Toronto's Salsa on St. Clair festival

Two people were killed and at least six others wounded when two gunmen opened fire at one another during Toronto's Salsa on St. Clair festival on the evening of July 11; police warned of an active shooter situation on St. Clair Avenue West as emergency services responded; the annual street festival celebrating Latino culture in the city drew large crowds when the shooting erupted

What Broke ·17 takes ·Jul 14

active China detains US seismologist Youlin Chen, who studied North Korean nuclear tests, on spying charges

China has held Youlin Chen, a Chinese-born American seismologist whose US-funded research helped detect North Korean nuclear tests, for nearly two years; Chen faces trial on spying charges, according to a Reuters exclusive, in a case the Japan Times says adds an irritant to US-China relations as US President Donald Trump seeks to keep ties steady

What They're Not Saying ·15 takes ·Jul 15

active EU Commission withdraws €2 million grant from Venice Biennale over Italy's decision to reopen the Russian pavilion

The European Commission confirmed on July 12 it has instructed the EACEA, its culture funding agency, to suspend a €2 million grant to the Venice Biennale, citing Italy's reopening of the Russian national pavilion for the first time since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine; EC Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen said European culture must not platform Russia's narratives; Italy's Lega politician Luca Zaia called the move an act of institutional arrogance

Who Decides ·15 takes ·Jul 13

active At least 9 people dead in US immigration enforcement operations in 2026, with two shootings in a week

A Mexican immigrant who had lived in Texas for 35 years and a Colombian father in Biddeford, Maine, were shot and killed by federal immigration agents within a week of each other in July 2026, bringing the total deaths linked to US immigration enforcement operations this year to at least 9, according to Al Jazeera; CNN separately counted 4 killed specifically in shootings by federal agents since January

How Life Changes ·15 takes ·Jul 15

active Apple sues OpenAI and Jony Ive's io Products, alleging former employees stole hardware trade secrets

Apple filed a lawsuit on July 10 accusing OpenAI and the AI hardware startup io Products, co-founded by former Apple design chief Jony Ive, of misappropriating confidential information about unreleased Apple hardware products; Apple alleges the misconduct involved current OpenAI staff who previously worked at Apple and was directed by senior OpenAI leadership; OpenAI denied the allegations.

What Broke ·8 takes ·Jul 11

active US Justice Department subpoenas four New York Times journalists in a grand jury leak probe tied to their coverage of security concerns about Trump's Qatari-gifted Air Force One

The US Justice Department issued subpoenas to at least four New York Times reporters on July 11, compelling them to testify before a grand jury investigating leaks tied to the paper's coverage of alleged security concerns with the Boeing 747-8 gifted to President Trump by Qatar and now serving as Air Force One; federal agents delivered the subpoenas at the journalists' homes, the Times reported

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 13

active Trump administration finalizes US rule removing habitat protections for endangered species, reversing 50 years of Endangered Species Act enforcement

The US Trump administration on July 10 finalized a rule removing nearly all habitat protections for endangered species under the Endangered Species Act, opening sensitive habitats to drilling, mining, farming, and real estate development; under the new rule, the destruction of habitats will no longer be considered harm to a protected species, reversing decades of enforcement of the 50-year-old law

The Quiet Shift ·3 takes ·Jul 12

active 14 nations reaffirm the 2016 South China Sea arbitral ruling on its 10th anniversary as China dismisses the tribunal as illegitimate

On the tenth anniversary of the Permanent Court of Arbitration's ruling against China's expansive South China Sea claims, the US, UK, Australia, Japan, Germany, Canada, and nine other nations issued a joint statement reaffirming the ruling as final and binding under UNCLOS; China rejected it as illegal and demanded the Philippines abandon the tribunal award; Beijing's competing claims remain the core friction in the region

The Long Game ·24 takes ·Jul 16

repaired Armed man holds Berlin supermarket cashier hostage for about 11 hours before police end standoff

A man took a female cashier hostage at a Berlin supermarket on July 11 and held her for roughly 11 hours while German police surrounded the building and negotiated; the woman was freed unharmed after authorities ended the standoff

What Broke ·11 takes ·Jul 12

escalating Colombia's presidential transition collapses as outgoing Petro government files criminal complaint and suspends handover sessions with the incoming administration

Colombia's presidential transition (empalme) deteriorated sharply ahead of the August 7 inauguration: outgoing President Gustavo Petro's government filed a criminal complaint against incoming president-elect officials and suspended joint handover sessions, while Petro separately accused an Israeli technology firm of interfering in the June election; the incoming government faces a 2026 budget that is 93.7 percent committed, leaving little room for new spending

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 11

pending-decision EU Commission makes preliminary finding that Meta's Instagram and Facebook violate the Digital Services Act through addictive design

The European Commission on July 10 issued a preliminary finding that Meta has breached the EU's Digital Services Act through the addictive design of Instagram and Facebook, targeting features including infinite scroll and autoplay; Meta must respond before the Commission can issue a final decision and impose fines of up to 6% of global revenue

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 11

pending-decision Kenya's National Assembly appeals court ruling declaring President Ruto's Cabinet unconstitutional over gender rule

Kenya's National Assembly and Speaker Moses Wetangula filed a Notice of Appeal on July 10 against a June 30 High Court judgment that declared President William Ruto's Cabinet composition unconstitutional for failing to meet the constitution's two-thirds gender principle; Parliament also contests whether the gender requirement is immediately enforceable in appointive positions

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 11

active Pre-trial hearing in the killing of US conservative activist Charlie Kirk concludes as prosecutors say they have enough evidence

Testimony concluded on July 10 in the preliminary hearing for Tyler Robinson, the man accused of killing US conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk; prosecutors say they have enough evidence to proceed, citing alleged confessions in text messages, while defence lawyers challenged the reliability of the evidence

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 11

active Poland jails ex-Open Russia coordinator Igor Rogov 7 years for FSB espionage and parcel bomb plot; wife gets 3 years

A Polish court convicted Igor Rogov, a former coordinator for Mikhail Khodorkovsky's Open Russia movement, of spying for Russia's FSB and involvement in a parcel bomb plot on July 9; his wife Irina received a three-year sentence for aiding the espionage; the trial was held entirely behind closed doors.

What They're Not Saying ·12 takes ·Jul 9

developing DRC opposition delays protests to July 22 after African Union mediation offer

The Democratic Republic of Congo's C64 opposition coalition postponed planned nationwide protests until July 22 following a mediation initiative by Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye as current African Union chair; the coalition accuses President Felix Tshisekedi of using a proposed constitutional referendum to remove presidential term limits

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 10

active Greece's anti-terror police arrest three over firebomb attacks targeting New Democracy politicians in Thessaloniki that killed one woman

Greek anti-terrorist police arrested three people on July 10 in connection with coordinated gas-canister firebomb attacks on July 1 that targeted the homes and vehicles of three politicians from Greece's ruling New Democracy party in Thessaloniki, killing the mother of one politician and injuring four others; two more suspects were later detained on the same day over a separate 2010 firebomb attack that left three people dead

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 11

active US bipartisan housing affordability bill becomes law without Trump's signature after 10-day window lapses

A bipartisan US housing affordability bill passed by Congress became US law on July 10 after President Donald Trump declined to sign or veto it within the constitutional 10-day window; Trump, who dismissed the legislation as a 'yawn,' opposed it because Congress had not first passed his SAVE America voter-ID bill; the housing bill is aimed at reducing regulatory barriers to housing development across the United States

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 11

active Spain's National Court sends BBVA and former chairman Francisco González to trial over Villarejo spying commissions

A Spanish National Court judge on July 9 ordered BBVA, its former chairman Francisco González, and 14 other defendants to stand trial for bribery and breach of privacy; BBVA is accused of commissioning former police commander José Manuel Villarejo to spy on politicians, journalists, and business figures, with the investigation dating to July 2019

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 11

escalating UN human rights chief demands an immediate stop to explosive weapons use in eastern DR Congo by all armed groups

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on July 9 called on the Democratic Republic of Congo's armed forces, the M23 rebel movement and all other armed groups in eastern Congo to immediately stop using explosive weapons in populated areas, citing mounting civilian casualties in North and South Kivu

How Wars Actually End ·3 takes ·Jul 11

pending-decision EU Commission proposes asset freezes and travel bans against migrant smuggling and organized crime networks

The European Commission proposed a new sanctions framework on July 9 targeting migrant smuggling, human trafficking and organized crime, with asset freezes and travel bans against network members; the Commission said organized criminals 'destabilise societies, undermine the rule of law and democracy, and weaken economic stability and security'

The Long Game ·3 takes ·Jul 11

active Nigeria's Tinubu orders a 30-day ICPC probe after a fake government agency extracted nearly US$1m from the treasury

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to investigate how a fictitious government body secured close to US$1m in public funds, with a full report due within 30 days; civil society groups, opposition politicians and senior lawyers have called for a fully independent inquiry instead

What Broke ·10 takes ·Jul 10

active ICC's deputy prosecutor says court has achieved a breakthrough in its Darfur war crimes investigation

ICC deputy prosecutor Nazhat Khan says the court has obtained new evidence linking Rapid Support Forces leaders to alleged war crimes in Darfur, Sudan; UN experts say the crimes bear 'hallmarks of genocide'; Middle East Eye reports Khan's comments are her first since MEE revealed the office had shelved an RSF arrest warrant

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 11

resolved South Korea's Supreme Court upholds 7-year term for ex-President Yoon for obstructing his arrest

South Korea's Supreme Court confirmed a 7-year prison sentence for former President Yoon Suk-yeol on July 9 for obstructing his arrest by the Corruption Investigation Office after his failed December 2024 martial law declaration; the ruling is the first Supreme Court decision in the Yoon case, and Yoon remains in detention while separately appealing a life sentence for insurrection

Who Decides ·15 takes ·Jul 11

active French appeals court upholds Le Pen's conviction but cuts ban, clearing her to run for France's presidency in 2027

A Paris appeals court shortened Marine Le Pen's public-office ban on July 7, making her eligible to stand in the 2027 French presidential election; Le Pen, 57, immediately declared her candidacy, though the court imposed an electronic ankle bracelet condition she had previously ruled out

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Jul 9

active US ICE suspends traffic-stop operations after agents kill two migrants; Mexico asks US state attorneys general to investigate 17 deaths

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement halted traffic checkpoint operations on July 15 following the deaths of two migrants at the hands of ICE agents, while Mexico formally escalated by asking US state attorneys general to investigate all 17 Mexican migrant deaths in ICE custody or raids

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 18

active India designates 23 Pakistan-based JeM and LeT operatives as terrorists under UAPA, raising total to 80

India's Ministry of Home Affairs gazette-notified 23 individuals linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba on July 4; 17 are Pakistani nationals, 6 are Indian nationals operating from Pakistan-controlled territory

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 5

escalating Amnesty: RSF committed crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing in El Fasher

A new report based on 247 testimonies documents murder, rape, sexual slavery and the deliberate targeting of Zaghawa communities as the RSF has besieged North Darfur's last major city outside its control

How Wars Actually End ·16 takes ·Jul 5

active South Korea special counsel seeks arrest warrants for two former Coast Guard commanders on insurrection charges tied to December 2024 martial law

South Korea's special counsel requested arrest warrants on July 1, 2026, for former Korea Coast Guard Commissioner General Kim Jong-wook and former planning chief Ahn Sung-sik on charges of abetting insurrection and abuse of power, alleging both played operational roles in supporting former President Yoon Suk-yeol's December 2024 martial law declaration

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 4

active Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 restored globally after US lifts 19-day export ban

The US Commerce Department lifted the export controls it imposed on June 12 after Amazon researchers found a security jailbreak; Anthropic redeployed Fable 5 on July 1 with a new cybersecurity classifier that blocks the triggering prompt

The Long Game ·11 takes ·Jul 10

active Turkey bans all public assemblies in Ankara for 13 days ahead of NATO summit, 225 detained pre-emptively

Ankara Governorate imposed a province-wide assembly ban from July 1-15 covering the NATO summit on July 7-8; Amnesty International reported at least 225 people including academics, lawyers and an LGBTQ activist detained in pre-summit sweeps

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jul 7

worsening 900+ arrested in South Africa as anti-migrant marches sweep 120 cities after June 30 deadline

Operation Dudula and March and March mobilised nationwide; police made 900+ arrests and the military secured airports as Nigeria, Ghana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique flew repatriation flights

How Life Changes ·16 takes ·Jul 9

active Kazakhstan dissolves its bicameral parliament as Tokayev's new constitution takes effect

The Senate and Mazhilis hold their final joint sitting June 30; on July 1 the 1995 constitution is replaced by a charter creating a unicameral Kurultai of 145 deputies, with elections scheduled for August

The Long Game ·11 takes ·Jul 1

active South Korea's Gwangju and South Jeolla Province merge into Jeonnam-Gwangju Special City

The two jurisdictions, administratively separate since 1986, formally united July 1 as the country's first metropolitan-province amalgamation, covering 3.2 million residents; the central government pledged 20 trillion won over four years to support the transition

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 8

active Germany indicts Ukrainian national Serhii Kuznietsov over Nord Stream pipeline sabotage

First formal charge in the September 2022 case; Kuznietsov, a former Ukrainian special forces officer, is accused of coordinating the Andromeda operation; Ukraine denies state involvement

What Broke ·6 takes ·Jul 3

active PTI boycotts Pakistan's Azad Kashmir election over refugee seats ruling, handing field to PMLN and PPP

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf announced on July 2 it will not contest the July 27 Azad Jammu and Kashmir legislative elections, citing a June 7 Supreme Court ruling that bars the AJK assembly from abolishing constitutionally protected seats for Pakistani-resident Kashmiri refugees; JKJAAC protests left 11 dead

Who Decides ·28 takes ·Jul 6

active Supreme Court strikes down post-Watergate limits on party-to-candidate coordinated spending, 6-3

Justice Kavanaugh's majority in NRSC v. FEC voids the 1974 coordinated-expenditure caps that had capped how much national party committees could spend alongside individual candidates, overruling Colorado II and removing the last major limit on party money in federal elections

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jul 1

worsening Iglesia ni Cristo rallies thousands on EDSA to block Marcoleta plunder arrest

The Philippines' largest religious bloc staged a surprise mobilisation at the People Power Monument hours after the Ombudsman announced non-bailable plunder charges against INC-aligned Senator Rodante Marcoleta

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 1

active Swedish court orders Google to pay Klarna/PriceRunner $1.97bn in price-comparison antitrust case

Stockholm's Patent and Market Court awarded 14.3 billion SEK in damages, grounded in the EU Commission's 2017 self-preferencing finding, giving the 15-year-old case its first concrete damages outcome

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jul 3

resolved Three Swiss museums return 18 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria in Lagos ceremony

The University of Zurich's Ethnographic Museum, Museum Rietberg Zurich, and Geneva's MEG handed over 18 looted Benin artefacts at the National Museum in Lagos on June 29, the first transfer under a March 2026 agreement; four Ikom monoliths and a bronze bracelet seized as criminal proceeds were included

Whose Money ·4 takes ·Jul 1

active Supreme Court upholds birthright citizenship 6-3, striking down Trump's executive order

Chief Justice Roberts wrote for a cross-ideological majority that the 14th Amendment's citizenship clause covers virtually all persons born on US soil, voiding the January 2025 order that had been blocked by every lower court to consider it

Who Decides ·16 takes ·Jul 2

active Zimbabwe's parliament extends the presidential term to seven years, keeping Mnangagwa in office until 2030

The Senate voted 75-4 on June 24 and the lower house passed the final text on June 30, converting a 2013 constitutional five-year limit into seven years and replacing direct presidential elections with a parliamentary vote

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 3

escalating B'Tselem: Israel killing Palestinian children in West Bank at highest rate since 1967, IDF commander says 'killing like we haven't killed since 1967'

Israeli human rights group B'Tselem published 'Unshielded Childhood' on June 29, documenting that Israeli forces killed 54 Palestinian children and teenagers in the West Bank in 2025 alone, with nearly one in four of all Palestinians killed since October 2023 being minors; the group says an expanded open-fire policy is driving the toll and no one has been indicted

What They're Not Saying ·7 takes ·Jul 1

worsening Five dead in Indonesia's military training for Prabowo cooperative managers, rights body demands halt

Five of 35,476 civilian participants in mandatory basic military training for President Prabowo Subianto's flagship Red and White Village Cooperatives program died in the first ten days, from heat stroke, tuberculosis and cardiac causes; Indonesia's Human Rights Commission called for the training to be suspended.

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 1

active Supreme Court upholds state bans on transgender athletes in women's sports, 6-3

Justice Kavanaugh's majority opinion holds that West Virginia and Idaho laws barring transgender students from girls' and women's teams violate neither the 14th Amendment nor Title IX, a ruling that will govern 25 other states with identical statutes

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 1

active Indonesia's Nadiem Makarim sentenced to 10 years in Chromebook corruption case

Jakarta's Corruption Court handed the Gojek co-founder and former Education Minister a 10-year prison term and ordered restitution of 809.6 billion rupiah for state losses from a fraudulent Chromebook procurement scheme; he plans to appeal

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 8

landmark US Supreme Court rules geofence warrants are a Fourth Amendment 'search,' limits police access to Google location data

A 6-3 majority held in United States v. Chatrie that law enforcement's demand for cell-phone location records from a tech company constitutes a constitutional search, requiring a warrant meeting probable-cause standards; the case is remanded to lower courts.

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jun 29

active US Supreme Court blocks Trump's firing of Fed Governor Lisa Cook, carving the central bank out of its independent-agency ruling

Hours after overturning Humphrey's Executor for the FTC, a 5-4 majority led by Chief Justice Roberts held that the US Federal Reserve's unique 'tradition of independence' shields its governors from at-will removal by the US president, leaving Cook in post while her lawsuit continues

Who Decides ·15 takes ·Jul 1

landmark Chilean court sentences three Pinochet agents for 1976 Washington DC murder of Ronni Moffitt, 50 years on

A Santiago appeals court convicted retired colonels Pedro Espinoza Bravo, José Zara Holger, and Raúl Iturriaga Neumann as co-authors of the murder of American Ronni Moffitt, killed by a DINA car bomb on September 21, 1976 alongside former Chilean foreign minister Orlando Letelier; Letelier's killers were sentenced in 1995 but Moffitt's murder remained unprosecuted until now

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 1

resolved US court sentences Miles Guo to 30 years for billion-dollar investor fraud

Judge Analisa Torres handed the exiled Chinese billionaire the longest available sentence after nine fraud convictions, ordering $889 million in forfeiture; prosecutors say he raised over $1 billion from followers while building an anti-Beijing media empire with Steve Bannon

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 1

active Four arrested in Italy for 2025 car bomb outside investigative journalist Ranucci's home near Rome

Carabinieri arrested suspects in Naples and Avellino for the October 2025 bombing at Sigfrido Ranucci's home in Pomezia; the attack destroyed two cars and damaged a wall, and investigators say the commando acted on commission, with mafia-style methods an aggravating charge

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 1

active US Supreme Court overturns 91-year-old Humphrey's Executor precedent, letting Trump fire independent agency heads

A 6-3 majority in Trump v. Slaughter declared that for-cause removal protections at multimember independent agencies are unconstitutional, ending the 1935 shield that kept the FTC, NLRB and roughly two dozen other commissions beyond the US president's reach

Who Decides ·20 takes ·Jul 2

active US Supreme Court upholds mail-in ballot grace periods 5-4, handing Republicans a defeat ahead of midterms

Barrett breaks with three fellow conservatives to uphold Mississippi's law allowing ballots cast by Election Day to be counted if they arrive afterward; ruling preserves similar rules in 17 other states

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jun 29

active JetBlue reports drone collision at JFK, the fourth near-miss or strike in four days over New York

A JetBlue pilot reported hitting a drone at roughly 3,000 feet and ten miles from JFK at 7:15 a.m. EDT on June 29; post-flight inspection found no structural damage, but the FAA administrator personally ordered an investigation and the cluster of incidents has renewed calls for mandatory drone-identification technology.

What Broke ·5 takes ·Jul 8

resolved Supreme Court refuses Trump appeal of E. Jean Carroll's $5 million civil verdict

In Monday's orders, the justices declined without comment to hear Trump's challenge to the 2023 New York jury award; no justice noted a dissent, meaning the $5 million judgment stands and the money can be paid to Carroll

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jun 29

active South Africa's suspended crime intelligence boss shot two days before Madlanga Commission testimony

Major-General Feroz Khan was shot twice in Houghton on Sunday night; the Political Killings Task Team has joined an investigation that opens a direct question of whether the state can protect its own corruption witnesses

What Broke ·17 takes ·Jun 29

active Exiled ex-PM Hasina vows to return to Bangladesh 'this year' despite death sentence

In a Sunday NDTV interview, Sheikh Hasina said for the first time she will come home in 2026, calling her November 2025 death-in-absentia sentence 'illegal, unconstitutional and politically motivated'; Bangladesh's interim government has repeatedly sought her extradition from India

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jun 29

easing Tens of thousands march in Budapest's first Pride since Orbán's ouster

Hungary's 31st Budapest Pride drew relaxed, celebratory crowds after police authorized the event and the new Magyar government declined to enforce Orbán's constitutional ban

How Life Changes ·5 takes ·Jul 1

active South Africa: 900+ arrested after nationwide anti-migrant marches, 12 of 120 protests turn violent

A coalition of 20+ civil society groups organised simultaneous marches across South Africa on July 2 demanding undocumented migrants leave; police made 900 arrests as looting broke out in the Western and Eastern Cape

How Life Changes ·4 takes ·Jul 9

active New Caledonia provincial elections produce deadlock; Éveil Océanien holds kingmaker role

The territory's first provincial vote since the 2024 independence-referendum unrest gave loyalists 24 of 54 Congress seats and pro-independence blocs 26, leaving the four-seat centrist Kanak party Éveil Océanien to decide who governs, and at what price, ahead of July Paris talks

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jul 8

active Singapore's Workers' Party keeps Pritam Singh as chief despite conviction for lying to parliament

A special cadre vote on June 28 retained Singh as secretary-general; Prime Minister Lawrence Wong had already stripped him of his Leader of the Opposition title in January, citing the conviction

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 3

active Senegal's parliament passes constitutional reform stripping presidential powers; Faye calls referendum

The Pastef-dominated National Assembly adopted amendments transferring authority over natural resources and parliamentary inquiry to the legislature, creating a Constitutional Court, and limiting the president's dissolution powers; Faye, who was sidelined by Sonko's parliamentary majority, immediately announced he would send the bill to a national referendum

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 1

active Iraq arrests 47 officials in pre-dawn Green Zone raid, including a deputy oil minister and thirteen MPs

PM al-Zaidi called it 'the first phase' at a June 29 cabinet session; confessions from ex-Deputy Oil Minister Jumaili triggered the sweep, which one named target had been sanctioned by the US Treasury for routing Iraqi oil to Iran

Who Decides ·24 takes ·Jun 29

active Six killed at youth welfare centre in Stade as police arrest main suspect and two others

A 45-year-old German-Turkish man shot five employees dead at a mothers-and-children group home in northern Germany's Stade on Monday morning; a sixth died in hospital. Police describe it as an extended family tragedy, not terrorism.

What Broke ·8 takes ·Jul 1

active Eight arrested in Ram Mandir donation theft; trust secretary and trustee resign

UP Police arrested eight temple employees and associates for stealing from donation counters; SIT investigation widens a day after the arrests as Champat Rai and Anil Mishra quit the trust

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 27

active Uganda army chief orders military shutdown of Nation Media Group, declaring 'I do not believe in a free press'

Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, son of President Museveni and chief of defence forces, sent soldiers overnight to occupy the Daily Monitor, NTV Uganda and Spark TV, forcing all broadcasts off air and barring journalists; outlets remain under siege

What Broke ·12 takes ·Jul 1

active Australia doubles maximum penalty for breaching under-16 social media ban to A$99 million

Six months after the ban took effect, Canberra raised maximum fines and gave the eSafety Commissioner stronger information-gathering powers after data showed 85 percent of 12-to-15-year-olds still access the platforms

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 7

worsening Five million Americans dropped ACA marketplace coverage after GOP let enhanced subsidies expire

HHS effectuated data shows 19.2 million enrolled in February, down from a record 24.2 million at the 2025 peak; premiums doubled on average when pandemic-era tax credits lapsed, and 4 million stopped paying

How Life Changes ·4 takes ·Jun 29

active All six Gen Z anniversary protesters found after alleged abduction and torture; Davis Lichuma in critical condition at KNH

KHRC says six activists arrested at the June 25 commemoration were tortured in police custody and abandoned across Nairobi; Davis Lichuma, the last missing, was found on June 29 in critical condition at Kenyatta National Hospital, later transferred to Nairobi Women's Hospital

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jun 29

contested-result Supreme Court upholds asylum metering and clears way to deport 350,000 TPS holders

A 6-3 conservative majority ruled migrants physically in Mexico cannot apply for US asylum; a second 6-3 ruling strips Temporary Protected Status from Haitian and Syrian nationals

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 8

active DRC files ICJ case against Rwanda over three decades of atrocities in the east

Kinshasa's application, the third attempt in 25 years, accuses Kigali of genocide, torture and sexual violence from 1996 to the present; Rwanda dismisses evidence of M23 support

How Wars Actually End ·7 takes ·Jun 29

active Israeli forces raze 40 homes in Tel Arad as Bedouin citizens rally in Beersheba against Ben Gvir's demolition surge

Roughly 200 people were made homeless in the Tel Arad demolition on June 25; around 1,000 Bedouin citizens marched in Beersheba as Ben Gvir's ministry raised its demolition rate from 12 structures per month in 2024 to more than 40 in 2026

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jun 26

active Kenya police teargas and arrest hundreds on second anniversary of 2024 protest killings

Families of the 60-plus victims who died when security forces fired on Parliament crowds in June 2024 were met with razor wire, roadblocks and teargas as they marched to demand accountability and full reparations

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jun 26

active US bans Polestar from selling new vehicles, first market exit under Connected Vehicles Rule

Commerce Department denied Polestar authorisation on June 25, citing its inability to isolate Geely Group software from its connected-vehicle systems; Volvo Cars, same Chinese parent, was approved in May because it manufactures in South Carolina with a separate software stack

Whose Money ·17 takes ·Jun 26

active Supreme Court 6-3 strikes down Hawaii's concealed-carry consent rule

Justice Alito's majority holds the 'vampire rule' requiring property-owner permission for concealed-carry holders violates the Second Amendment; comparable laws in New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and California are also affected

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jun 26

contested-result Federal judge blocks Trump voter-list order and USPS mail-ballot rule

U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ruled the order creating a federal voter registry and restricting USPS mail-ballot delivery violates the separation of powers; the injunction covers 24 jurisdictions ahead of November 2026 midterms

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Jun 25

active USTR proposes 12.5% forced-labor tariff on China; probes also target EU and Mexico supply chains

The new 301-style investigation piles on top of the 30% baseline tariffs agreed in the June 11 deal and introduces a human-rights-based trade mechanism that Brussels and Ottawa find difficult to oppose

Whose Money ·4 takes ·Jun 26

Amazon.com

Amazon.com Inc., the US e-commerce and cloud-computing company with US$716.9 billion in 2025 revenue, faces a US monopoly trial and EU gatekeeper proceedings in 2026.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Lawfare and the Net Closing

Corruption prosecutions of sitting and former leaders are simultaneously claimed as accountability and condemned as political persecution, a dual-use mechanism reshaping governments across five continents.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Anwar Ibrahim

Malaysia's 10th Prime Minister and Finance Minister, in office since November 2022, whose three-decade arc from jailed dissident to coalition leader shapes ASEAN's diplomatic posture and Malaysia's economic reform.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Apple Inc.

US technology company behind the iPhone and App Store, facing simultaneous antitrust proceedings in the United States and European Union over alleged smartphone and app marketplace monopolies.

·3 takes ·Jul 3

Centre vs the States

Recurring friction between central governments and subnational units over fiscal, police, and legislative authority, reshaping democratic federalism in India, Nigeria, and the United States.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Courts vs Elected Power

The global structural conflict between appointed courts and elected executives and legislatures over the limits of government authority, intensifying as of mid-2026 across the US, Hungary, Mexico, the Philippines, and Uganda.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)

Montreal-based international regulator setting sport's global doping rules, whose enforcement credibility faces its sharpest test after the Chinese swimmer scandal and US defunding threats.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

The Far Right, Mainstreamed

How formerly fringe ethnonationalist and anti-immigration parties entered government across multiple established democracies between 2010 and 2026, reshaping global politics.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Fentanyl precursors

Chemical feedstocks for synthesizing fentanyl, primarily supplied by China to Mexican cartel labs, that sit at the center of the US opioid crisis and US-China trade diplomacy.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Founder-board disputes

Recurring governance clashes between startup founders and venture-backed boards over control, strategy, and succession, a defining fault line of the global venture-capital industry.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Gen Z Uprisings

A global wave of leaderless, social-media-organized youth protests against corruption and austerity, active in at least 14 countries from 2022 to 2026, with governments toppled in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Madagascar.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Genocide recognition

The formal process by which states or international courts acknowledge a mass atrocity as genocide under the 1948 UN Convention, with diplomatic and legal consequences worldwide.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Giorgia Meloni (Italy)

Italy's first female Prime Minister leads a far-right coalition from 2022, shaping EU defence, the Ukraine war, and Italian politics heading into a contested 2027 election.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Google

US technology company that holds roughly 90% of global web search, facing concurrent antitrust monopoly proceedings in the United States and the European Union as of 2026.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

ICC (International Criminal Court)

Permanent international criminal court based in The Hague, founded by the 1998 Rome Statute, prosecuting genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, with over 120 member states.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

ICJ (International Court of Justice)

The UN's principal court for state-to-state disputes, seated at The Hague; its judgments are binding but only as enforceable as the UN Security Council's political will.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Jair Bolsonaro (Brazil)

Brazil's 38th president, a former army captain who served seven terms in Congress, sentenced in September 2025 to 27 years for leading a post-election coup conspiracy.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms Inc., the US tech company behind Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, faces FTC monopoly appeals and EU Digital Markets Act proceedings that could force structural changes.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Microsoft

Microsoft, the US technology company behind Windows and Azure, holds a 27% stake in OpenAI and faces recurring antitrust scrutiny in the US and EU.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Pedro Sánchez

Spain's prime minister since 2018, leading a fragile minority coalition while managing a widening corruption siege around his party and family.

·3 takes ·Jul 3

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (Turkey)

Turkey's president since 2014 who centralized executive power through a 2017 constitutional referendum, and NATO's most consequential yet contested member into 2026.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Refusing to Concede

A tactic in which losing candidates reject certified election results to obstruct transfers of power, documented in the US, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, and Guinea-Bissau since 2020.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Thailand–Cambodia

Thailand and Cambodia share an undemarcated 817-kilometer border that has produced recurring armed confrontations, most recently a 2025 war that killed over 100 people.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

The Postponed Vote

A global pattern where incumbents defer elections through security, legal, or coalition pretexts, blocking peace deals in Armenia and Libya and freezing democratic renewal in Lebanon and Mexico.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

Tunisia

North African republic whose public debt reached 82% of GDP by 2025 after President Kais Saied rejected IMF conditions, making it a sovereign-debt flashpoint watched across the developing world.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

World Trade Organization (WTO)

The Geneva-based intergovernmental body that governs trade rules for 166 member governments, under strain from a US-blocked appellate system and US budget arrears as of mid-2026.

·4 takes ·Jul 3

active Binance halts EU crypto services from July 1 after failing to secure MiCA licence

The world's largest exchange exits most EU markets as the regulation deadline passes; Coinbase, Bitstamp, and Kraken hold valid licences and stand to absorb displaced users

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jun 27

active 'Cat' Matlala pleads guilty in R228m SAPS tender case, turns state witness

A central figure in the Madlanga Commission's police-infiltration claims flips, exposing senior officers including the national commissioner

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jun 29

active China's space and defence procurement chief under CCDI investigation

Bian Zhigang, deputy head of SASTIND and deputy director of CNSA, is being investigated for "serious violations of discipline and law"

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jun 26

transition Colombia's CNE formally certifies De la Espriella as president-elect

The National Electoral Council completed the official scrutiny on June 24 and delivered credentials on June 25, closing the legal challenge period before the August 7 inauguration

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 25

pending-decision Brussels readies record DMA fine against Google as structural remedies loom

The EU is finalizing its largest-ever Digital Markets Act penalty over search self-preferencing, with binding data-sharing and Android orders due by late July

Who Decides ·4 takes ·Jun 24

stalemate 'No CCTV, no trial': the Ojwang custody-death case stalls on erased footage

A blogger died in a Nairobi police cell in June 2025; a year on, the murder trial of six officers halts because the station's CCTV was deliberately formatted hours after his death

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Jun 24

active Netanyahu finishes corruption-trial testimony after 98 hearings

The prime minister leaves the stand calling the case a 'Stasi' operation as a verdict slips toward 2027 and an election toward autumn

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Jul 1

active Algeria's parliamentary election draws record-low turnout as 269 candidates are barred

Algerians elected 407 MPs on July 2 with an estimated 11% turnout by afternoon, the lowest in any legislative vote since independence, amid candidate bans and a cost-of-living crisis

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 3

escalating Pakistan sentences BYC leader Dr. Mahrang Baloch to life imprisonment in a "faceless trial"

An Anti-Terrorism Court in Quetta convicted the Baloch Yakjehti Committee's chief organiser inside Quetta jail; a province-wide shutdown followed in seven or more districts

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 25

stable SCOTUS rules 6-3: ExxonMobil can sue Cuba for 1960 oil seizures

The Supreme Court's Helms-Burton ruling waives sovereign immunity for Cuban state companies; Exxon's claim exceeds $1 billion, opening the door to a wave of expropriation suits

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jun 24

stable Senate votes 50-48 to rebuke Trump's Iran war powers

Four Republican defectors passed a War Powers Act resolution; it has no force of law but is the first bipartisan Senate rebuke of the Iran campaign

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 9

escalating UN commission finds Israel continues committing genocide by targeting Palestinian children

Inquiry chair Muralidhar says evidence shows deliberate killing; roughly 30% of Gaza's dead were children; violations continue after the October 2025 ceasefire

What They're Not Saying ·4 takes ·Jun 26

pending-decision Nigeria's Senate passes state-police amendment, ending a 47-year federal monopoly

Tinubu's executive bill clears the upper house; 24 of 36 state assemblies must still ratify before governors can run their own forces

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jun 29

worsening Bangladesh floods Dhaka with troops as banned Awami League marks 77th anniversary

The BNP government deploys the army across six districts and arrests dozens; the home minister says 'there is no organisation by the name of Awami League'

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jun 28

pending-decision Carney nominates Manitoba's Glenn Joyal to the Supreme Court

A bilingual Prairie 'institutionalist' fills the Western seat left by Justice Martin

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jun 24

contested-result Cepeda files 57,000 challenges as petrismo contests the runoff it lost by ~250,000

Petro's bloc launches a 'juridical offensive' over the scrutiny; the CNE denies a full overseas recount

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 24

worsening Spain's Supreme Court jails Sánchez's former right-hand man Ábalos for 24 years

The first final corruption ruling to reach the PM's inner circle, in the pandemic 'masks' case

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jun 24

active Cerdán stays jailed and the Civil Guard searches PSOE HQ over a party 'plumber'

A second corruption strand circles Sánchez: kickbacks on public works and an obstruction probe

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jun 24

active Nigeria's Senate passes state police constitutional amendment, dissolving 100-year-old single-force model

A manual vote after the electronic system failed ratified a dual policing structure giving Nigeria's 36 governors power to appoint their own commissioners; two-thirds of state assemblies must still endorse it

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jun 29

active Tripoli convicts the torturer Italy arrested then freed, reviving the Almasri case

A 7-year sentence for Osama Almasri reopens the case against Meloni's ministers

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jun 24

worsening Sánchez's wife ordered to stand trial, passport seized

A Madrid judge sends Begoña Gómez to a jury trial on graft charges, deepening the corruption siege around Spain's prime minister

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 24

worsening Costa Rica arrests a suspect over a death threat against President Chaves as organised crime targeting of state officials widens

Costa Rican authorities arrested a suspect on 20 June 2026 over an alleged death threat against President Rodrigo Chaves Robles, the second such incident since January; InSight Crime has documented what it calls Costa Rica's worst narco corruption scandal, with judges, prosecutors, and police among officials bribed or threatened by criminal networks

What Broke ·5 takes ·Jul 3

active Niger formalises ICC exit, completing the Sahel bloc's withdrawal from international criminal justice

Instrument received June 18; exit takes effect June 2027; with Mali and Burkina Faso gone, three juntas call the court 'neo-colonial' and promise indigenous mechanisms

What They're Not Saying ·5 takes ·Jun 26

active European Parliament urges sanctions on Turkey's justice minister

A damning annual report passes 381-107, naming Akın Gürlek over the İmamoğlu case; Ankara calls it 'hostile propaganda'

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 24

active STF convicts Eduardo Bolsonaro for lobbying Trump to sanction Brazil's judges

Four years two months and ineligibility to 2038 for coercion, tried in absentia for seeking US sanctions on the court trying his father

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jun 24

active Ruto pledges Sh2bn for protest victims, then the exclusions trigger fresh protests

A KNCHR reparations framework verifies over 1,000 victims of 2017-2025 state violence, but bars looting and 'ordinary criminal' victims and withholds the names, drawing daily picketing

Whose Money ·12 takes ·Jun 24

active Albania's anti-corruption court summons incumbent PM Rama as witness in the Partizani corruption trial of opposition leader Berisha

Albania's Special Court SPAK accepted opposition Democratic Party leader Sali Berisha's request in April 2026 to call Prime Minister Edi Rama as a witness in the Partizani privatisation corruption case, creating a constitutionally charged confrontation between Albania's two dominant political figures; Berisha appeared before SPAK on 15 June under a compulsory appearance measure

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 3

transition End-of-term Supreme Court rulings loom against Trump on birthright and the Fed

Justices signaled they may preserve birthright citizenship and block the firing of Fed Governor Lisa Cook

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jul 1

active US bars Anthropic's most capable models from every foreign national worldwide

Fable 5 and Mythos 5, pulled three days after launch, set the first precedent for nationalising AI model access; Congress demands written justification by June 26

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jul 10

resolved Seoul court gives Yoon Suk Yeol 30 more years for ordering North Korea drone incursions

South Korea's Seoul Central District Court found the ousted president guilty of treason and abuse of power for authorising three drone flights over Pyongyang in October 2024 to manufacture a security pretext for his December 2024 martial law declaration; the sentence is consecutive to his February 2026 life term for insurrection

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 1

pending-decision EU top-court adviser sides against von der Leyen in 'Pfizergate'

An Advocate General urges dismissing the Commission's appeal over the secret Pfizer vaccine texts

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 24

resolved Hague court rejects Rwanda's £50m compensation claim against the UK over the scrapped deportation scheme

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague dismissed all of Rwanda's financial claims against the United Kingdom on 1 June 2026, ruling that a November 2024 diplomatic exchange had constituted a mutual agreement to forgo outstanding payments under the cancelled asylum deportation deal

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 3

active Botswana's Boko pursues DCEC overhaul and Africa-first foreign policy after declining Trump White House invitation

President Duma Boko has moved to delink the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Crime from the public service, demanded bilateral talks on Botswana's soil rather than in Washington, and articulated a natural-resource sovereignty doctrine that frames his first year in office

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jul 3

active US indicts a sitting Mexican governor; Sheinbaum calls it 'interference'

SDNY charges Sinaloa's Rocha Moya with aiding 'Los Chapitos'; Sheinbaum says Mexico may reject the detention request absent evidence

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jul 9

pending-decision Morena's Senate pushes Mexico's judicial elections from 2027 to 2028

An 87-40 constitutional vote reworks candidate selection and lets TEPJF magistrates seek re-election, extending the bench overhaul

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 8

active US designates Brazil's PCC and Comando Vermelho as terrorist organisations, eight months after Paraguay's own classification

The US State Department designated Brazil's Primeiro Comando da Capital and Comando Vermelho as Foreign Terrorist Organisations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists on 28 May 2026, effective 5 June; Paraguay had already made the same designation in October 2025, and Argentina followed suit in June, triggering highest-level border alerts across the Triple Frontier region

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 3

active ED raids on Pinarayi reopen the Centre-vs-states fight as the court walks back on Governors

An ₹18.36-crore freeze on Kerala's ex-CM revives 'weaponised agencies' charges; the Supreme Court's November opinion narrows its own April ruling that had reined in Governors

Who Decides ·13 takes ·Jun 24

active House commission opens up to eleven probes of Petro for campaigning for his successor

Disciplinary and criminal files over his X account and rally speeches; the Council of State orders him to stop official political messaging

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 24

transition EU approves Albania's interim benchmark assessment, unlocking the first chapter closures in its accession negotiations

The EU Council formally approved Albania's Interim Benchmark Assessment Report for Chapters 23 and 24 at the eighth Intergovernmental Conference on 26 May 2026, making Albania only the second candidate country after Montenegro to clear this gate; EU enlargement commissioner Marta Kos said Albania has 'officially transitioned into the concluding phase' of accession talks

The Quiet Shift ·5 takes ·Jul 3

active Court strips Turkey's opposition leader, reinstating his predecessor

An Istanbul court annuls the CHP's 2023 congress, unseating Özgür Özel and bringing back Kılıçdaroğlu, judicial pressure on Erdoğan's main rival party deepens

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jun 24

pending-decision Anthropic's $1.5bn author settlement finalised; OpenAI MDL pending

Final approval in Bartz v. Anthropic clears America's largest copyright settlement; 16 cases against OpenAI await ruling

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jun 25

pending-decision Colorado's AI Act enforcement deadline passes blocked on two fronts, as legislature replaces the law and a federal court stays it

June 30 was the enforcement date for Colorado's 2024 AI Act (SB 24-205), the first US state AI duty-of-care law, but the deadline is a ghost; Governor Polis signed SB 189 on May 14, repealing and replacing the original law with a narrower disclosure framework effective January 1, 2027, and a federal court stayed enforcement on April 27 after xAI and the DOJ filed suit

Who Decides ·6 takes ·Jul 1

worsening Rioters set fire to a Netherlands asylum shelter as the Spreading Law enters force

Far-right mobs attacked refugee shelters across the Netherlands in spring 2026, culminating in arson at Loosdrecht that trapped 15 asylum seekers inside; the Jetten minority cabinet faces municipal defiance as the Spreidingswet takes effect on 1 July

Who Decides ·3 takes ·Jul 3

escalating A cancelled NEET exam spawns the 'Cockroach' Gen-Z revolt against Modi's government

The NTA scraps the 2.27-million-candidate medical entrance after a paper leak; a satirical youth movement demanding the education minister's resignation gains 22 million followers in a month

How Life Changes ·16 takes ·Jun 24

active İmamoğlu's 'political espionage' trial opens in Silivri

Jailed over a year, Erdoğan's strongest rival faces 15-20 years on espionage charges and a separate indictment seeking up to 2,430, and tells the court the nation will decide at the ballot box

Who Decides ·12 takes ·Jul 7

pending-decision Marcos vs Duterte: Sara's Senate impeachment trial opens July 6

257 House votes, $110m in flagged transfers, and a trial that runs in parallel with the elder Duterte's ICC case at The Hague

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jun 24

active Bolivia's Tarija court issues an arrest warrant for Evo Morales after he skips his third hearing in a human trafficking trial

A Tarija criminal court declared former Bolivian President Evo Morales in contempt on 11 May 2026 and issued an order for his arrest after he failed to appear for the opening of his trial on aggravated human trafficking charges; police were authorised to seize him anywhere in the country and migration authorities were ordered to block his exit

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 3

pending-decision Ivory Coast dissolves its electoral commission ahead of a contested 2025 presidential election

The cabinet dissolved the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI) on May 7 following years of opposition accusations that it was a RHDP tool; a replacement body has not yet been named

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 3

stalemate Senate rejects Lula's Supreme Court pick, first since 1894, and he renominates the same man

The chamber blocks AGU Jorge Messias 42–34 in a historic rebuke tied to its own president; Lula sends the name back

Who Decides ·8 takes ·Jun 24

active Herzog stalls a Netanyahu pardon as Trump piles on pressure

The president pushes a mediated plea deal Netanyahu won't take, admitting wrongdoing and quitting politics, while Trump calls Herzog 'weak and pathetic'

Who Decides ·11 takes ·Jun 24

pending-decision Cameroon revives a vice-presidency at 93, fuelling a dynastic-succession row

Parliament restores a post scrapped in 1972; reports that Biya named son Franck VP are claimed by some outlets and denied by the government

Who Decides ·10 takes ·Jun 24

easing Sweden records its lowest homicide count in over a decade as gang shootings fall 62% in the first quarter of 2026

Sweden recorded 84 homicides in 2025, the lowest total since 2012, and saw criminal-network shootings drop from 39 in Q1 2025 to 15 in Q1 2026; the Tidö Agreement's doubled sentences for gang crime and the February 2026 proposal to criminalise gang membership are credited; explosion offences hit a record 621 in 2025, signalling a shift in violence form

The Quiet Shift ·6 takes ·Jul 3

transition Peru installs its third president in weeks as Congress removes Dina Boluarte and Keiko Fujimori leads the June 2026 presidential election first round

Peru's Congress impeached President Dina Boluarte on 8 February 2026 for constitutional abandonment, installed José Jeri as interim president, then replaced him with Cristina Balcázar on 19 February after questions about Jeri's eligibility; Keiko Fujimori of Fuerza Popular won the most first-round votes in the June 2026 election with results expected by early July

Who Decides ·5 takes ·Jul 3

transition Anutin's Bhumjaithai wins Thailand's snap vote as voters back a new charter

The royalist-military-favoured party tops the 8 February poll on nationalism and stimulus; a referendum approves scrapping the 2017 constitution

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jun 24

worsening International AI Safety Report flags a widening 'evaluation gap'

Incidents rise to 362 logged in 2025; models show situational awareness in tests and loophole-seeking that inflates scores

What They're Not Saying ·5 takes ·Jun 25

contested-result Nawrocki signs Poland's 2026 budget but sends it to the Constitutional Tribunal

The president can't veto the budget, so he refers it, Tusk says it changes nothing

Who Decides ·7 takes ·Jul 7

active Amnesty: Saudi Arabia has executed nearly 100 people in 2026

Most for drug offences and many of them foreign nationals, with the total under King Salman now past 2,000, as the kingdom courts the world on Vision 2030

Who Decides ·9 takes ·Jun 24

tracking

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