The Weekly Report: July 6-13
United States
The search is continuing for missing Texans, over a week after the devastating floods that ravaged Kerr county and surrounding areas. In Kerr County alone, roughly 160 are still missing with 170 still missing in total. On Friday July 11, President Trump visited Texas where he praised the response by local and federal officials to the floods. Trump said “he has never seen anything like this.”
On July 7, Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel visited President Donald Trump in the Blue Room of the White House. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the recent strikes by Israel and the U.S. on Iran, along with a potential ceasefire in Gaza in the near future, and the overall problem of instability in the Middle East. The U.S. sent a ceasefire proposal to Israel, which they support, but are now waiting on a response from Hamas, a terrorist organization that governs the Gaza Strip. Alongside discussing important issues, Netanyahu delivered the news to Trump that he has nominated him for a Nobel Peace Prize.
On Saturday July 12, President Trump announced that a tariff rate of 30 percent would be placed on goods coming from the E.U. and Mexico. What type of goods these tariffs will affect is not clear as of yet. The timing of this announcement comes at an interesting time as the U.S. and both the E.U. and Mexico have been negotiating a trade deal of some sort for quite a bit of time. For some time, many E.U. policymakers have been hoping to put an end to a large amount of economic uncertainty that has been placed on many industries from motor vehicles to fine wines that all come from Europe. Mexican officials have been locked in negotiations with the U.S. over not just tariffs but a broader deal on immigration and border security.
Asia
Many countries in Asia are hoping to avoid import tariffs while also seeking alternate trading partners besides the U.S. For many Asian countries, their main trading partner is the U.S. so finding an alternate is no easy feat. The recent announcement by President Trump comes as a surprise to many Asian countries who have been negotiating with the Administration. Trump in his letters to many of these countries, such as Thailand and Malaysia, outlined their nations’ expected tariff percentages alongside the implementation date of August 1.
A preliminary report from the investigation of the Air India flight 171, which crashed on June 12, has shown that fuel was cut off to both of the engines immediately after takeoff. The reason for the stopping of fuel to the engines is still unclear. There are many safeguards in place on the Boeing 787, the plane involved in the crash, to prevent the accidental switch off of the fuel valve.
On Tuesday July 8, The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued international arrest warrants for the leader of the Taliban government in Afghanistan, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, and the chief justice of the Taliban, Abdul Hakim Haqqani. The arrest warrants were issued for crimes against humanity on the grounds of restrictions against women and girls. Since the Taliban came back to power in August 2021, women and girls have lost more and more rights, such as the right to go to school. Since the announcement of the warrants, many women's rights activists have applauded the court.
PHOTOGRAPH: Daniel Eledut/UNSPLASH
Europe
In a turn of events, President Trump has announced a new plan, that if it goes ahead, would mean NATO countries buy American weapons and then give them to Ukraine. This new plan comes after many months of President Trump trying to negotiate a settlement to the war between Russia and Ukraine. However, in recent weeks President Trump has begun to grow frustrated with Putin's lack of interest in putting a halt to the war. President Trump, who said he could end the war in 24 hours, is finding that goal is maybe a little more difficult than he thought to achieve. Due to his frustrations with Russia and subsequently Putin he would like to help Ukraine be able to keep itself in the war.
On July 10, lawmakers in the E.U. established new AI regulations. This new set of rules applies to what is known as Generative AI, which includes Open AI, Google, and Microsoft. The rules seek to limit potential copyright violations and ensure public safety. These rules will, however, not go into effect until next year. This is the first time that the E.U. has shown how it is going to actually enforce its larger AI Act that got passed last year.
South America
President Trump announced that he would possibly impose a tariff rate of 50 percent on Brazil in part due to the treatment of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. This tariff is part of a pattern we have seen where President Trump has been using economic leverage such as tariffs to get what he wants politically. The legality of this tariff should it come into effect on August 1 would most definitely pose questions because the treatment of the former Brazilian President Bolsonaro is not a threat to the U.S. national security or economic security, which are some of the requirements to put a tariff in place.
Africa
The ICC announced on July 10 that they had “reasonable grounds” to believe that war crimes have been committed in Sudan's Darfur region. The civil war started in April 2023 in Khartoum, the capital, after a power struggle between two different factions of the military went south. The ICC did not announce who they believed committed the war crimes. Time will tell if the ICC issues international arrest warrants for individuals culpable in the conflict.
Middle East
The Houthi rebel group on July 10 attacked and sank two cargo ships in the Red Sea. These attacks come following a hiatus from the Houthis since December 2024. Only six of the 25 people onboard have been successfully rescued, with some of the others dead, and others still missing. The Houthis, after the attack, implied they may have captured some individuals.
