July 22, 2026 - Daily News Digest
On this day in 1992, Pablo Escobar escaped from a luxurious prison that he had built. Known as La Catedral, the prison was part of a unique deal he had reached with the Colombian government.
QotD: "The problem we're having right now is that [Iran’s] not serious about talks. If they're serious, we're serious. If they're not, then we will do what's necessary to protect our interests, and also the interests of our allies,” Secretary Rubio said at a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers in Manila.
US/IRAN/MIL – More Red Sea shipments disrupted, Rubio says Iran not serious about talks.
Four more tankers changed course in the Red Sea on Wednesday after Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen threatened the southern route out, highlighting a new risk to global oil supplies from the intensifying war between the U.S. and Iran.
The Houthis' threat on Tuesday to Saudi oil shipments heading south to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait past areas of the coast they control comes on top of Iran's near-total blockade of the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.
Oil prices rose to a near six-week high on Wednesday, with Brent crude futures up 2.45% at $93.24 a barrel at 1323 GMT, after hitting $95.47 earlier. U.S. gasoline prices, which have weighed on President Donald Trump's poll ratings ahead of midterm elections in November, have climbed back over $4 a gallon.
Trump threatened on social media to destroy a bridge or power plant in Iran any time Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. strikes have already widened from the south to western and central areas of Iran in recent days.
"The problem we're having right now is that they're not serious about talks. If they're serious, we're serious. If they're not, then we will do what's necessary to protect our interests, and also the interests of our allies," he said at a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers in Manila.
MORE/LET’S FOLLOW THAT MONEY – Iran war has cost US $37.5bn so far, Hegseth says, as Pentagon seeks billions more.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c70gek2kqyno
The war with Iran has cost the US some $37.5bn (£28bn) so far - an increase of nearly $8bn since the last estimate in May, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said.
Hegseth told the Senate Appropriations Committee it was urgent that lawmakers approve another $87bn in congressional funding for the Pentagon, with $67bn of that destined for operations in the Middle East.
The hearing was disrupted several times by anti-war protesters and ended in a shouting match between the defence secretary and a senator.
US/SAUDI/NUKES – US to announce landmark deal allowing Saudis to enrich nuclear fuel, report says.
The US plans to announce a landmark deal with Saudi Arabia on Wednesday that would help establish a civilian nuclear programme in the kingdom, according to media reports.
The move comes as Washington fights a war with Iran that began in part over US concerns with Tehran's own nuclear programme – an issue that remains a key point of contention during now-stalled talks between the two foes.
The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday reported that the Trump administration planned to formally sign and announce the deal with the Saudis on Wednesday.
President Donald Trump's administration said the agreement would provide billions of dollars for the US nuclear industry.
A provision in the 30-year deal would potentially see US companies build a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia, the Wall Street Journal reported.
However, US lawmakers from both parties and Israeli officials have voiced opposition to a civilian nuclear project for Saudi Arabia over fears it could be converted to eventually develop nuclear weapons.
UKR/MIL/LEADERSHIP – From battlefield to bureaucracy, Ukraine’s new military chief faces tests.
Ukraine's new top general faces many challenges at a pivotal moment in the war with Russia, from fixing the military's manpower shortage and reforming its command structure to securing an edge in the rapidly evolving drone war.
Mykhailo Drapatyi, who represents a younger generation of senior commanders, was tapped by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Tuesday to replace 60-year-old Oleksandr Syrskyi, blamed by some troops for a rigid style they said led to high losses.
Syrskyi, appointed in 2024, has been a target of rare protests following a government shake-up by Zelenskiy that ousted a popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov.
The protesters, angered by Syrskyi's brand of leadership, had demanded his dismissal and Fedorov's return.
Drapatyi, 43, appears well-suited to his new role: a former field commander respected by troops for both his tactical leadership and moral integrity, he has held an array of high-level posts including head of Ukraine's ground forces.
UKR/DRONES – Ukraine agrees to export drones to US for Pentagon plan, sources say.
Ukraine has agreed to export drones to the United States to participate in the Pentagon's Drone Dominance programme, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.
The agreement comes as Kyiv and Washington have been negotiating a wider drone deal for Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles, whose success in the war against Russia has driven high demand from other countries to learn from their experience and purchase models for testing.
Six Ukrainian companies have received permission to export about 100 drones each, the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
UKR/MIL – Ukrainian drones hit more sites of Russian online retailer Wildberries.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c36de9n4pxpo
Ukrainian drones have hit warehouses belonging to Russia's biggest online retailer again, injuring 15 people, according to the company's founder and regional governors.
Logistics hubs run by Wildberries in two south-west cities were impacted by overnight attacks and workers evacuated, the founder said.
It is the second time Ukraine has attacked the firm's facilities in four days, with warehouses in Tambov and Elektrostal hit over the weekend, killing eight people.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that Ukraine had hit logistics hubs in the Krasnodar and Stavropol regions "involved in providing the Russian army with drone components, navigation equipment and other gear".
TECH/AI – OpenAI says its AI model went rogue and hacked startup.
https://www.dw.com/en/openai-says-ai-model-went-rogue-and-hacked-startup-hugging-face/a-78063624
OpenAI on Tuesday said that its advanced artificial intelligence models went rogue and hacked into Hugging Face, a digital repository of AI technology.
"We had a significant security incident during evaluation of our models," OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a statement posted on social media.
The disclosure comes amid heightened concerns about the cybersecurity risks posed by powerful AI models.
In a blog post, OpenAI said the "unprecedented cyber incident" took place while it was testing the cybersecurity capabilities of its models in a "tightly controlled digital testing ground," where internet access was limited for safety.
It said the AI agent managed to escape containment, reach the internet and break into Hugging Face to try to satisfy its testing goal.
"While operating in our sandboxed testing environment, our models spent a substantial amount of (computing power) finding a way to obtain open Internet access, in pursuit of solving the evaluation problem," an OpenAI blog post about the incident said.
After connecting to the internet, the models decided to target the platform Hugging Face, a large repository of AI models, datasets and other information, to help in their quest.
NICARAGUA/POL/ELECTIONS (OR LACK THEREOF) – Nicaragua’s Ortega says ‘never again’ for elections after two decades in power.
Nicaragua's long-serving president Daniel Ortega said the Central American country will no longer hold elections, eliminating the possibility of an electoral challenge when his term ends next year and further entrenching the rule he shares with his wife.
Ortega, who has continuously held power since 2007 following an earlier presidential term in the 1980s, said the move will close off any path to the opposition, although he did not provide details about carrying out the ban.
"There won't be any more elections here for them to try to seize the government and seize power," Ortega said in a speech on Sunday evening to commemorate the 1979 Sandinista revolution, in which Ortega helped overthrow the U.S.-backed Anastasio Somoza dictatorship.
"The days when parties backed by the Yankees (United States) and the Somocistas would return to power are over - never again," he added, in the 80-year-old's first public appearance in two months.
INDIA/PROTESTS – Indian exam protests forces parliament suspension, adding pressure on PM Modi.
Opposition parties staged a protest at parliament on Wednesday demanding the resignation of India's education minister, echoing the demands of student demonstrators, before entering the chambers and forcing the suspension of proceedings.
The protests, which started last month over the leak of medical school entrance exam papers that affected some 2 million students, grew this week into the biggest youth challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi since he came to power in 2014.
Tens of thousands of young protesters took to the streets of New Delhi on Monday, clashing with police who used tear gas and batons to push them back.
Opposition lawmakers led by Rahul Gandhi gathered outside the parliament building in New Delhi on Wednesday, many dressed in black and waving placards calling on Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to quit.
"Our children's future is not for sale", "Save lives, Stop NEET", the placards read, referring to the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test, as the medical school test is called.
FRANCE/SOCIAL MEDIA – French lawmakers approve social media ban for children.
https://www.dw.com/en/french-lawmakers-approve-social-media-ban-for-children/a-78052466
French lawmakers Tuesday passed banning access to social media for children under the age of 15. The bill became law after being backed by both French legislative chambers, the Senate and National Assembly.
France's government has touted it as a major legislative step.
"France will become the first country in Europe to introduce a digital age limit to better protect our children online," France's Digital Minister Anne Le Henanff said on X.
The law would add France to a growing list of countries that have already introduced similar restrictions. The restrictions could come into force by the beginning of the new school year in September.
Comments (2)
Perhaps the Aussies and the French have got it right... even if it will be hard to enforce. Kids feel "entitled" on social media as they do not suffer the consequences of bad decisions in person. During a service outage a few years ago, a friend's young teen daughter was distraught that she could not get onto social media where she was having a argument with a friend of hers over something. The friend's Mum handed her daughter her winter parka and told her "she only lives three blocks away, go and argue with her in person". The daughter refused, saying "but she might yell at me or hit me". The mother replied "well then, don't say provocative things on social media, you would not say in person. What you type onto social media will come back to bite you eventually".
I wish the French government luck in banning social media for teenagers. One of my neighbors tried that, and the girl used her Xbox to continue to log on to read and post without them knowing. At the fireworks show this summer, all the teenagers were posting about the fireworks or taking photos of themselves with the fireworks in the background instead of, y'know, watching the fireworks. The stuff is addictive as hell.