World

World · Presidential documents

The flags came down on Wednesday, and the proclamation that ordered it reached public inspection at a quarter past eleven this morning, five days before it lifts

Proclamation 11057, signed 25 August, orders the United States flag flown at half-staff for Dolly Parton until sunset on 1 September, at home and at every American post abroad. It reached the Federal Register this morning.

August 27, 2026 · BBC News · Presidential proclamation 11057, Honoring the Memory of Dolly Parton, filed for public inspection 27 August 2026

What it changes →

A United States flag flying at half-staff on a white pole at dusk, with a Marine Corps flag below it, both lit from below. A small shingled shelter and a lit open pavilion stand behind on a grass foreshore, with dark water and heavy blue cloud beyond. No lettering or signage is legible.

World · Trade and borders

An executive order signed this afternoon renames Lake Ontario as Lake America, gives the Interior Secretary 30 days to do it, and directs that every reference to the old name be taken out of the federal names database

An order dated 27 August directs the Interior Secretary, within 30 days and with the Board on Geographic Names, to rename Lake Ontario as Lake America and to strike the old name from the Geographic Names Information System.

August 27, 2026 · From the document · Executive order, Honoring the American History of the Great Lakes and Renaming Lake Ontario as Lake America, 27 August 2026

What it changes →

A satellite view of Lake Ontario in full, the lake a deep navy oval running west to east across the frame, with the Niagara peninsula and the eastern end of Lake Erie at lower left, the Finger Lakes as thin dark slivers at lower right, and the outlet to the St. Lawrence at upper right. Sediment shows pale turquoise along the southwestern shore.

World · Arms transfers

Ten arms sales notices reached public inspection in a single batch this morning, and the two largest of them are 800 air-to-air missiles for Qatar and 20,000 guidance sections for Saudi Arabia

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency filed ten arms sales notifications at 08:45 on Thursday. Five are new proposed sales worth $2.82bn between them and four report additions to cases already notified.

August 27, 2026 · From the document · Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Arms Sales Notification, Transmittal 26-85, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, FR Doc 2026-17566, filed 27 August 2026

What it changes →

An AIM-120 AMRAAM air to air missile displayed side on across two black metal stands on a bare concrete floor: a pale grey body with blue identification bands, cruciform mid body fins and tail fins, a clear window section behind the mid body and a white nose cone. Stencilled handling instructions reading NO LIFT and LIFT HERE run along the casing. Part of an aircraft main landing gear wheel stands on the floor behind it.

World · Sanctions

A cooking oil refinery in Burgundy is the only company Treasury wrote its own wind down licence for last week, and that licence expires on 23 October

General Licence AA, published in Thursday's Federal Register, authorises the wind down or maintenance of dealings with La Nivernaise de Raffinage SAS until 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on 23 October. Treasury blocked the French company on 24 August.

August 27, 2026 · From the document · OFAC, Publication of Iran-Related Web General Licenses AA and BB, 91 FR 55265, 27 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Sanctions

Treasury has sanctioned a British protest group, a transnational Palestinian network and the Italian collective that hosts far-left sites, and only the host was given a wind down window

OFAC designated Palestine Action, Masar Badil and the Italian hosting collective Autistici Inventati under Executive Order 13224, with two Masar Badil officials. Only Autistici Inventati got a wind down licence, to 25 September.

August 26, 2026 · From the document · OFAC, Counter Terrorism Designations and Counter Terrorism General License 36, 26 August 2026

What it changes →

A bronze circular seal fixed to a pale granite wall, its raised outer lettering reading THE DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY around a shield bearing scales, a chevron of thirteen stars and a key, with the date 1789 below.

World · Presidential determinations

The United States has approved sharing Restricted Data with Finland and Sweden, under a NATO atomic agreement that took effect in 1965

Presidential Determination 2026-22, signed on 21 August and filed on Tuesday morning, approves United States implementation of the NATO ATOMAL Agreement with respect to Finland and Sweden, and authorises the Department of War to cooperate with them.

August 25, 2026 · From the document · Presidential Determination No. 2026-22 of August 21, 2026, on Provision of Atomic Information to Finland and Sweden

What it changes →

The central atrium of the NATO headquarters building in Brussels, with a glazed tower of escalators rising through it and a few people crossing the stone floor below.

World · Sanctions

Treasury has named five more sectors of the Iranian economy under an order that reaches any foreign person operating in them, and gold and digital assets are two of the five

A determination signed by the director of OFAC on Monday applies section 1(a)(i) of Executive Order 13902 to Iran's aviation, digital asset, gold, shipping and technology sectors. It took effect the same day.

August 24, 2026 · From the document · OFAC Determination Pursuant to Section 1(a)(i) of Executive Order 13902: Aviation, Digital Asset, Gold, Shipping and Technology Sectors, 24 August 2026

What it changes →

The main deck of a product tanker seen from above the superstructure looking forward over open ocean, twin rows of cargo tank covers and pipework running the length of the deck to the bow, deep blue water on both sides and a line of small cumulus on the horizon. No vessel name, hull number, flag, company mark or legible lettering appears anywhere in the frame. Stock photograph, not a photograph of anything in this story.

World · Sanctions

The licence that lets an American send money to a relative in Iran has been suspended, and the wind down runs out at one minute past midnight on 8 September

The Office of Foreign Assets Control suspended five Iran general licences indefinitely on Monday, including the authorisation for noncommercial personal remittances at 31 CFR 560.550. A wind down licence runs to 8 September.

August 24, 2026 · From the document · Office of Foreign Assets Control, Suspension of Certain Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations General Licenses, 24 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Sanctions

Syria has come off the State Sponsor of Terrorism list after forty six years, and the licence written around the group now running the country has been revoked as unnecessary

Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded Syria's designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism on Monday and delisted Hayat Tahrir al-Sham as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist. The designation dated from December 1979.

August 24, 2026 · From the document · Press statement of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Rescission of Syria's Designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, 24 August 2026

What it changes →

The Harry S. Truman Building in Washington photographed from its lawn in spring, the pale stone facade running away to the right behind clipped hedges and a plane tree, with a plain metal sign on two posts in the foreground reading Department of State.

World · Sanctions

A wartime statute from 1917 was three weeks from lapsing against Cuba, and a one-page memorandum has carried it to September 2027

Presidential Determination 2026-21, signed 20 August and filed on Monday, continues certain Trading With the Enemy Act authorities with respect to Cuba for one year, to 14 September 2027.

August 24, 2026 · From the document · Presidential Determination No. 2026-21 of 20 August 2026, Continuation of the Exercise of Certain Authorities Under the Trading With the Enemy Act

What it changes →

The colonnaded north front of the United States Treasury Building in Washington under a blue sky, the entablature carved with the words The Treasury Department, and the bronze statue of Alexander Hamilton standing on its plinth in front of the central portico.

World · Shipping

Korea's first Arctic container voyage sailed on Saturday, and the ministry's own numbers put the ship at 30 percent of capacity

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries put the 2,758 TEU PanStar Acro on the Northeast Passage on 22 August. It carries 737 TEU of cargo and 100 empty containers, 837 boxes in all.

August 23, 2026 · The Korea Herald · Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries release on the first Northeast Passage container pilot voyage, 20 August 2026

What it changes →

An aerial view of broken sea ice, pale floes and slush separated by a channel of dark open water running through the middle of the frame.

World · Asia-Pacific

An earthquake 70 kilometres under southern Ibaraki shook Tokyo's 23 wards, and the injury figure of 37 is two numbers from two different reporting channels added together

A magnitude 5.9 quake 70 kilometres under southern Ibaraki registered shindo 5-lower in Tokyo's 23 wards. Japan's fire agency reports 22 injuries from four prefectures and 15 more in Tokyo through a separate channel.

August 23, 2026 · From the document · Fire and Disaster Management Agency, damage and fire service response report No. 5, earthquake centred in southern Ibaraki Prefecture, 23 August 2026

What it changes →

A grey government office tower in Tokyo photographed from below against a clear blue sky. The nearer wing is a dense grid of small square recessed windows running the full height of the elevation, and the taller wing beside it is faced in smooth pale stone panels with a deep vertical recess of stacked balcony bands down its centre. A dark window-cleaning gondola rail with a red edge projects from the parapet at the top. A second concrete tower stands at the right edge of the frame and the crown of a green tree enters at the bottom right corner. No people, vehicles or signs are visible.

World · Sanctions

Ten Ecuadorean fishing boats have been blocked as trafficking property, and Treasury says the work most of them did was refuelling, feeding and watching for the coastguard

OFAC designated 15 Ecuador-based targets on Thursday and blocked 10 fishing vessels working out of Manta, which it says resupplied the go-fast boats running cocaine north, using government-subsidised fuel.

August 21, 2026 · From the document · Treasury press release sb0610, OFAC designations targeting an Ecuador-based cocaine trafficking network, 20 August 2026

What it changes →

A tight overhead view of commercial fishing net: loose orange monofilament strands sweeping across the frame over a knotted panel of green and yellow mesh beneath, filling the picture edge to edge.

World · Sanctions

Hizballah's own sanctions entry has changed, and the two tags added to it say Treasury now treats the group as directed by the Qods Force

OFAC designated ten people it says carried cash for Hizballah on commercial flights between Lebanon, Turkey, the Emirates and Iran, and re-designated Hizballah itself as controlled by the Qods Force.

August 20, 2026 · From the document · OFAC recent actions, counter narcotics, counter terrorism, Cuba-related and Iran-related designations, 20 August 2026

What it changes →

The wing of a passenger aircraft in flight, seen through a cabin window, against deep blue sky above a broken deck of white cloud. The winglet is plain and carries no airline name or marking.

World · Deep seabed mining

The United States has opened public comment on an application to mine the deep seabed in international waters, and the window closes on 19 October

NOAA has found TMC USA's consolidated application for an exploration licence and a commercial recovery permit in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone fully compliant. Written comments close on 19 October and a virtual hearing is set for 13 October.

August 19, 2026 · From the document · NOAA, Federal Register notice 2026-16869, deep seabed mining application, 19 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Government bonds

Japan's 25, 30 and 40 year bond yields all set records on Tuesday, and its one, two and three year yields fell on the same day

The Ministry of Finance published a 30-year yield of 4.096 percent and a 40-year yield of 4.103 percent for 18 August, the highest daily readings in either published series. Short maturities eased.

August 19, 2026 · From the document · Japan Ministry of Finance, Interest Rate table for Japanese Government Bonds, daily series, August 2026

What it changes →

The Ministry of Finance building in Kasumigaseki, Tokyo, photographed square on from across an empty road on a clear day. A long grey stone facade of six storeys runs the width of the frame, with regular rows of small windows, a central arched entrance and low trees planted along the front. A tower block stands at the left edge and the sky above is blue with light cloud.

World · Maritime security

Nigeria comes off the Coast Guard's port security list after twelve years, and the conditions being lifted reached any ship that had called there in its last five ports

Recent assessments found Nigeria maintaining effective antiterrorism measures in its ports, the Coast Guard says, so it is removing conditions of entry imposed in June 2014. Twenty-three countries remain on the advisory.

August 18, 2026 · From the document · Coast Guard notice, removal of conditions of entry on vessels arriving from Nigeria, docket USCG-2026-0110, filed 18 August 2026

What it changes →

A plain expanse of pale grey open water filling the whole frame, covered in fine close ripples that soften towards the top of the picture. There is no horizon, no shoreline, no sky and no vessel, and no text, marking or person is in view.

World · Industrial policy

Two governments have put A$2.5bn into Australia's largest aluminium smelter, and the release the market got names the company's A$1.1bn and no public figure at all

Australia and New South Wales have jointly put A$2.5bn into the Tomago smelter. The state share is capped at A$1.225bn over ten years from 2029. Rio Tinto's own market release names no public figure.

August 13, 2026 · From the document · Prime Minister of Australia and NSW Premier, joint media release, $2.5 billion investment in the Hunter's future, 13 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Presidential determinations

The President has certified Colombia's aerial drug interdiction for another year, and the memorandum goes to the Secretary of War where last year's went to the Secretary of Defense

Presidential Determination 2026-20 was signed on 3 August and publishes on Monday. Its two findings about Colombian airspace match last year's. Only the department named at the top has changed.

August 9, 2026 · From the document · Presidential Determination No. 2026-20 of 3 August 2026, Continuation of U.S. Drug Interdiction Assistance to the Government of Colombia

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating dense pattern of small overlapping pale scales across a pine cone surface macro.

World · Maritime security

A vessel was reported struck by a projectile east of Khasab on Saturday, the sixth entry the maritime log has taken in that stretch of water in nine days

United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations logged Warning 108-26 on 8 August, 18 nautical miles east of Khasab, Oman. The strike started a fire that has been put out, and the crew are reported safe.

August 9, 2026 · From the document · United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, incident log, entry 108-26, 8 August 2026

What it changes →

A photograph of an overcast sky filling the whole frame, the underside of the cloud broken into rows of soft rounded lobes in grey and white, brighter towards the upper right and darker below. No horizon, ground, sea, vessel, text or identifiable place is in view.

World · Maritime security

A vessel was reported sunk off Yemen, and the newest Hormuz entry was downgraded from attack to advisory because the intended target could not be identified

United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations has added four numbered incidents since 3 August, two off Oman and two off Yemen. One vessel was attacked by an uncrewed surface vessel and reported sunk.

August 7, 2026 · From the document · United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, incident log, entries 104-26 to 107-26, 3 to 5 August 2026

What it changes →

A container ship crossing open water with a low coastline behind it under a pale sky. A generic illustration of maritime shipping, not a photograph of any vessel in this story.

World · Sanctions

Six Cubans and five state companies went onto the American sanctions list on Thursday, two of the people at addresses in Moscow and Beijing, and a guidance answer issued the same hour tells food and medicine suppliers they are not the target

Treasury designated six Cuban individuals and five state-owned enterprises under Executive Order 14404 on Thursday, among them the umbrella body for Cuba's military industries. A new guidance answer says food and medicine are not targets.

August 6, 2026 · From the document · Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control, Cuba-related Designations; Issuance of Cuba-related Frequently Asked Question, 6 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Sanctions

Fly Baghdad has come off the American sanctions list along with two of its Boeing 737s, and the executive listed beside it stays on, now tied directly to the Qods Force

Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control unblocked Fly Baghdad Airlines Company on Wednesday and removed two of its aircraft from the Specially Designated Nationals list. One named individual remains blocked.

August 6, 2026 · From the document · Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control, notice of sanctions actions, removals and list update dated 5 August 2026, filed 6 August 2026

What it changes →

A sheet of textured glass filling the frame, its surface broken into hundreds of overlapping facets in cool silver and pale blue.

World · Regulation

Korea's competition regulator wants to be able to order a company to sell assets in a cartel case, and to stop being the only body that can refer one for prosecution

The Korea Fair Trade Commission published its plan for the rest of 2026 on Tuesday. It would add divestiture to the remedies for cartels and abuse of dominance, and open its referral power to citizens and provincial governments.

August 5, 2026 · From the document · Korea Fair Trade Commission, major work plan for the second half of 2026, released 4 August 2026

What it changes →

A macro of a fossilised coral head lit by low sun, its surface packed edge to edge with small radiating cup shapes in pale grey and tan, with a few deeper hollows and an out of focus rock behind it.

World · Trade

Korea and Bangladesh have closed their trade negotiation in principle, and the tariff Dhaka currently charges on Korean confectionery is 85.6 percent

Korea and Bangladesh declared their economic partnership agreement settled in principle in Dhaka on Tuesday. Korea would liberalise 81.7 percent of tariff lines on provisional figures, Bangladesh 81.4 percent.

August 4, 2026 · From the document · Korean industry and trade ministry, reference release on the Korea-Bangladesh CEPA agreement in principle, dated 4 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Trade

Korea has put another 6.0 square kilometres of Saemangeum inside a comprehensive bonded area, and the release names Hyundai's 9 trillion won investment plan as the reason

Zones 3, 7 and 8 of the Saemangeum national industrial complex were designated on 4 August, taking the bonded total to 14.1 square kilometres. Duties are held in suspense from factory construction through export.

August 4, 2026 · From the document · Saemangeum Development and Investment Agency and Korea Customs Service, joint release on comprehensive bonded area designation, 4 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Sanctions

The State Department has imposed nonproliferation measures on twenty two foreign persons under the Iran, North Korea and Syria act, and eleven of them are Russian

The measures took effect on 24 July and were filed for publication on Monday. They bar federal procurement, assistance, munitions sales and new export licences for two years. Russian Ground Forces is on the list.

August 3, 2026 · From the document · State Department notice, Imposition of Nonproliferation Measures Against Foreign Persons, Including a Ban on U.S. Government Procurement, Public Notice 13090

What it changes →

World · Maritime security

A third explosion in three nights was reported off the Musandam peninsula, and the newest entry in the Hormuz incident log is classed as an advisory rather than an attack

United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations logged an advisory at 2037 UTC on Sunday after a tanker master reported hearing an explosion 20 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, Oman. The vessel and crew are safe.

August 3, 2026 · From the document · United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, Advisory 103-26, 2 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Asia-Pacific

Korea moved to a Level 2 heat emergency, and the outdoor work stoppage above 38 degrees is a strong recommendation rather than an order

The central disaster headquarters went to Level 2 at 13:00 on Sunday. The labour ministry told its inspectors to press employers to halt outdoor work above a perceived 38 degrees, and to press is the operative verb.

August 3, 2026 · From the document · Ministry of Employment and Labour of Korea, press reference material on heat and asphyxiation directives, 2 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Iran war

Iran's foreign ministry says the Strait of Hormuz will under no circumstances return to its pre-war situation, and that the talks with Oman are bilateral and concern no third party

Esmail Baghaei told Iranian state television on Sunday night that the Oman talks are about a new route and do not mean the strait reopens. Trump's Saturday post named a complete opening.

August 2, 2026 · Mehr News Agency

What it changes →

A close photograph of white marble filling the frame, fine grey veins running diagonally across the pale stone and branching away into hairline threads, with faint cloudy shading between them. No text, marking, object, person or edge is in view.

World · Middle East

A drone struck the floating unit that turns imported gas back into gas at Egypt's Damietta port, and the two accounts of what happened do not describe the same event

Egypt's cabinet said a drone caused fires on two LNG vessels at Damietta on 29 July. One is the regasification unit the port's imports run through. Corrected from an earlier version.

August 2, 2026 · Euronews · New Fortress Energy Inc., Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 June 2026, filed 6 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Energy

OPEC's monitoring committee has repeated its April wording on maritime routes and attacks on energy infrastructure word for word, and the sentence commending alternative export routes is not in it

The 67th Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee met by videoconference on 2 August and repeated verbatim the maritime language it first used on 5 April. One April sentence is absent. It next meets on 4 October.

August 2, 2026 · From the document · Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries

What it changes →

World · Shipping

The Hormuz incident log recorded its first attacks in eleven days on the night of 31 July, and GasLog broke a silence running back to 2024 to post statements on two of its ships

United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations has added warnings 101-26 and 102-26, both classed as attacks and both timed to the night of 31 July. Its list now carries 24 reports against 22 on 30 July.

August 2, 2026 · gCaptain · United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, Recent Incidents, read 2 August 2026

What it changes →

World · Oil exports

Iraq and Turkey have put a floor of 750,000 barrels a day under a pipeline to the Mediterranean, and the last federal analysis of Iraqi exports found every seaborne barrel in 2024 leaving through the Gulf

Iraq and Turkey signed a one-year transit deal on Saturday setting a minimum of 750,000 barrels a day through the Kirkuk to Ceyhan pipeline. The line currently moves under 200,000.

August 2, 2026 · The Associated Press · US Energy Information Administration, Country Analysis Brief: Iraq, US Department of Energy, Washington DC, 25 pages

What it changes →

World · Iran war

Iran's last ceasefire cleared its top security body by 12 votes to 1 and still collapsed, and one reason the Associated Press names is a release of frozen assets that never arrived

An Associated Press account of Iran's leadership finds unity on fighting the war and a split over how it should end. The April ceasefire it describes won 12 of 13 votes on Iran's top security body and failed anyway.

August 2, 2026 · The Associated Press · US Energy Information Administration, Today in Energy, 'The Strait of Hormuz is the world's most important oil transit chokepoint', published 21 November 2023

What it changes →

A photograph looking straight down at sunlit dried mud that has shrunk into interlocking plates of red brown clay, each one separated from its neighbours by a network of dark fissures. A single small green sprig sits in the top right corner. No text, structure, person or horizon is in view.

World · Iran war

Trump says he will hold American forces off new strikes on Iran, and the sentence that matters for oil names an open Strait of Hormuz as a parameter of a deal rather than a term that has been agreed

Trump said in a Saturday evening post that Mideast allies had reached the parameters of a deal to end the five month war, and that he will hold off new strikes. Iran has not responded publicly.

August 2, 2026 · The Associated Press

What it changes →

A photograph of open sea filling the frame, low sunset light catching the crests of small waves in narrow bands of pale gold while the troughs between them stay close to black. No vessel, shore, horizon, person, marking or lettering is in view.

World · Japan energy policy

Japan has written a reactor rebuild number into its nuclear guideline for the first time, and the sentence about reducing dependence on nuclear power is gone

Japan's ministerial council amended its nuclear guideline on 31 July to call for about 2 to 5 reactor rebuilds by the 2040s and 11 to 14 by the 2050s. The 2023 text carried no capacity figure at all.

August 2, 2026 · From the document · Cabinet Secretariat of Japan, 今後の原子力政策の方向性と行動指針 (Direction and Action Guidelines for Future Nuclear Policy), adopted 28 April 2023

What it changes →

World · Tariffs

The tariff on patented British medicines went to zero at one minute past midnight, and the notice announcing it was filed that afternoon

Commerce cut the tariff on patented pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical ingredients that are products of the United Kingdom from 10 percent to zero, effective 12:01 a.m. Eastern on 31 July.

July 31, 2026 · From the document · Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Strategic Industries and Economic Security, Department of Commerce

What it changes →

A plain unmarked kraft cardboard mailer box, closed, photographed at an angle on a smooth cream background, with no label, printing, tape or writing anywhere on it.

World · Immigration

The visa bond is now permanent at $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000, and the rule reports that issuance from the covered countries fell 83 percent

The State Department finalised its visa bond pilot on Friday and made the programme permanent for B-1/B-2 applicants from covered countries. About 20,000 applications drew a bond in the pilot and close to half were never paid.

July 31, 2026 · From the document · Department of State, Visas: Visa Bond Program, final rule, 22 CFR Part 41, Public Notice 13089, RIN 1400-AG33, FR document 2026-15726

What it changes →

A single United States one hundred dollar note of the older design lying face up but inverted on a plain white surface, the portrait of Benjamin Franklin at the top of the frame and the green Treasury seal and serial number across the middle.

World · Trade

Forty-three companies were added to the American forced labour import list on Friday, and the new names are gold, aluminium, copper and coal as much as cotton

The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force added 43 entities to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act list, taking it to 187 and superseding the version published in January 2025.

July 31, 2026 · From the document · Department of Homeland Security, Notice Regarding the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, FR document 2026-15628

What it changes →

A close photograph of a broken rock face filling the frame, rusty ochre and brown mineral showing through crusts of pale blue and green copper mineral, with no tool, hand, marking or lettering in the picture.

World · Sanctions

Treasury has sanctioned the travel agents that sell tickets and cargo space for Mahan Air in China, India and Russia

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control designated six entities and individuals in China, India, Russia and Iran on Thursday, most of them companies that act as general sales agents for the Iranian airline Mahan Air.

July 30, 2026 · From the document · U.S. Department of the Treasury, press release sb0582, 'Treasury Cracks Down on Global Networks Enabling Iran's Mahan Air and IRGC', dated on the page July 30

What it changes →

A close photograph of coarse brown burlap sacking filling the frame, its open jute weave lightly creased and lit evenly, carrying no printing, stencilling or markings of any kind.

World · Shipping

The maritime body that ships' masters report to has logged nothing new since 27 July, after 22 reports in the first 26 days of the month, and an empty log is not the same thing as an empty sea

United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, the Royal Navy centre that merchant masters and company security officers report incidents to, carried 22 reports on its recent incidents list when this desk read it at about 10:45 a.m. Eastern on Thursday.

July 30, 2026 · From the document · United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, Recent Incidents

What it changes →

A photograph of open sea at low sun, a single wave breaking left to right across the middle of the frame into a wide field of white foam, with dark choppy water beyond it and no boat, shore or horizon in view.

World · Middle East

US Central Command says it completed a heavy wave of strikes on dozens of Revolutionary Guard targets in Iran, and the Guard has answered that it will punish the aggressor the same day

US Central Command published a release on July 29 saying that at 10 p.m. Eastern that evening its forces completed what it called a heavy wave of strikes against Iran, in response to the attempted missile attacks on American forces the day before.

July 30, 2026 · CNBC · US Central Command public release, U.S. Strikes IRGC Targets After Attempted Iranian Attacks, dated July 29, 2026, article id 4559495, datelined TAMPA, Fla.

What it changes →

Dark grey and near black stone slabs of irregular shape set into pale grey mortar, filling the frame as an intact flat wall surface, with no text, people or landmarks in view.

World · Sanctions

Treasury has designated two Iranian marine insurers it says sell vessels cover against risks Iran creates in the Strait of Hormuz

The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated ten entities and identified eight tankers as blocked property on July 29, 2026, in an action Treasury titled Treasury Disrupts Iranian Regime's Strait of Hormuz Extortion Network, release sb0581.

July 29, 2026 · From the document · U.S. Department of the Treasury, 'Treasury Disrupts Iranian Regime's Strait of Hormuz Extortion Network', press release sb0581, July 29

What it changes →

A top-down view of rust-stained steel chequer plate meeting a band of scuffed green deck paint along a straight seam.

World · Chips

A major quake in Kumamoto emptied the TSMC, Sony and Tokyo Electron plants, and TSMC says its Japan fab is already restarting

An earthquake struck Kumamoto prefecture on Japan's southern island of Kyushu at 4:27 p.m. local time Tuesday, 3:27 a.m. Eastern.

July 29, 2026 · Reuters · US Geological Survey event page us6000tgb9, '2026 Uto, Japan Earthquake', reviewed origin: magnitude 6.8 Mww, depth 10 km

What it changes →

A tight overhead macro of a dark circuit board, with four large black memory packages ranked in a grid on the right and an array of smaller capacitors, inductors and diodes across the left, all carrying small printed part codes.

World · Europe

Czechia and Slovakia sent aircraft to fight the fires in France, and the EU crisis commissioner now says extreme conditions are looming over both

The European Commission's civil protection and humanitarian aid directorate published an account on July 27, 2026 of the assistance deployed to France and Spain under the EU civil protection mechanism.

July 29, 2026 · Euronews · European Commission, Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations

What it changes →

A close view of dry cracked earth, tan and pale brown, with deep fissures running across a crust of baked soil.

World · Middle East

The US military says it shot down an Iranian ballistic missile attack on American forces, ending a pause in a war that has kept the Strait of Hormuz closed

US Central Command said on Tuesday evening, July 28, that Iranian forces launched multiple ballistic missiles at American forces based in the Middle East and that all of them were intercepted.

July 29, 2026 · Gulf Coast News · US Central Command, Public Releases index, read in a browser on July 28

What it changes →

A cargo vessel in silhouette on calm water at sunset, with a low headland behind it and an orange sky above.

World · Nuclear energy

The determination approving the US-Saudi nuclear agreement publishes on Tuesday, and it names two side letters and a separate safeguards agreement

Presidential Determination No. 2026-18, signed July 16, 2026 and addressed to the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Energy, was filed for public inspection on July 27 at 11:15 a.m. ET and publishes in the Federal Register on July 28 as document 2026-15273.

July 28, 2026 · From the document · Presidential Determination No. 2026-18 of July 16, 2026

What it changes →

Dark navy knitted fabric photographed close up, its ribbed diagonal folds catching a low raking light against near black shadow.

World · Americas

Colombia's president-elect says he will close 14 embassies and about 15 consulates, and cut ties with Cuba and Nicaragua

Abelardo de la Espriella, who takes office as president of Colombia on August 7, said he will close 14 embassies and around 15 consulates as a first stage of what he called an optimization of the foreign service.

July 27, 2026 · La República

What it changes →

A close macro of brown wood grain filling the frame, the open grain lines running vertically and lightening towards the top.

World · Europe

France says the Gironde fire did not advance overnight, and Spain's weather agency forecasts a fourth heatwave from Wednesday

French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on July 27, 2026 that the wildfires had not progressed during the night, while cautioning that authorities had to remain concentrated and determined and ready to move at any moment.

July 27, 2026 · NPR

What it changes →

A charred log resting on a bed of pale grey wood ash, its split grain blackened and cracked, with a thin wisp of smoke rising from the surface.

World · Middle East

The US commander in the Middle East recommended stopping the Hormuz bombing before Trump paused it, and $67.1bn of munitions money is sitting in the Senate

Adm. Brad Cooper, the commander of US Central Command, recommended stopping the bombing campaign around the Strait of Hormuz on the ground that it had reached the limit of its effectiveness, Barak Ravid reported at Axios.

July 26, 2026 · Axios · Senate Committee on Appropriations, full committee hearing, A Review of the President's Supplemental Funding Request of June 24, 2026, Tuesday 21 July 2026

What it changes →

Close view of weathered steel chequer plate, its raised diamond treads worn pale grey and flecked with grit.

World · Europe

Berlin police and prosecutors have now published the document: the Christopher Street Day suspect was shot dead by specialist officers at a Spandau allotment

Polizei Berlin and the Generalstaatsanwaltschaft Berlin issued a second joint release on Sunday, numbered 0906 and filed under Mitte and Spandau.

July 26, 2026 · From the document · Polizei Berlin and Generalstaatsanwaltschaft Berlin, joint press release Nr. 0906, 26 July 2026, Anschlag im Umfeld des Christopher Street Day

What it changes →

Macro of rain beaded on a pane of glass, the droplets catching a cold green light against near black behind them.

World · Europe

The evacuation total across France and Spain has passed 360,000, and 55,000 of them left the Gironde overnight

Al Jazeera reported on Sunday that more than 360,000 people have now been evacuated across France and Spain, with 55,000 leaving the Gironde overnight and around 250,000 out of that region in total, where roughly 42,000 hectares have burned.

July 26, 2026 · Al Jazeera

What it changes →

Close macro of a charred log broken down into pale grey ash, the blackened grain still legible under a crust of white ash.

World · Europe

Berlin police and prosecutors still have a wanted appeal running over the Christopher Street Day attack, hours after German media reported the suspect had been killed

Berlin police and prosecutors published an appeal seeking a 21-year-old alleged to have injured several people with a vehicle and stabbing implements in the Grosser Tiergarten. Euronews, citing rbb and BILD, reported he was later found dead.

July 26, 2026 · Euronews · Polizei Berlin and Generalstaatsanwaltschaft Berlin, joint press release Nr. 0905, 26 July 2026, Anschlag im Umfeld des Christopher Street Day

What it changes →

Close macro of cream white chrysanthemum blooms filling the frame, their tightly curled petals lit softly from the left and falling out of focus behind.

World · Asia-Pacific

Vietnam says 45 of the 62 people aboard the Khoi Nguyen 18 have been pulled out alive, and thanks Chinese rescue forces by name

The Vietnamese cargo vessel Khoi Nguyen 18, carrying 62 people, sank while operating in severe weather, the foreign ministry spokeswoman Pham Thu Hang said on Sunday in answer to a reporter's question.

July 26, 2026 · From the document · Vietnam News Agency, Ministry of Foreign Affairs updates on rescue efforts after Khoi Nguyen 18 vessel sinks at sea, 26 July 2026, 15:57 Hanoi time

What it changes →

Grey open water under a heavy overcast, a single swell rolling in across a field of white foam, with no land or vessel in sight.

World · Shipping

Iranian state media say a tanker struck a mine in the Strait of Hormuz, and the maritime authority that logs those incidents has posted nothing

Tasnim, the Iranian news agency linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, published a four-sentence item at 16:08 Tehran time on Sunday saying an oil tanker exploded in the Strait of Hormuz after striking a naval mine, having left the navigation route Iran has designated.

July 26, 2026 · Shafaq News · Tasnim News Agency, Oil Tanker Explodes in Strait of Hormuz After Leaving Designated Route, 26 July 2026, 16:08 Tehran time

What it changes →

Close view of raised chequer plate steel, the diamond anti-slip pattern running in diagonal rows and catching a low light.

World · Asia-Pacific

A flash flood swept a Gansu scenic area where tourists were camping, killing 10 and injuring 23, and Beijing sent a work team the same evening

A flash flood triggered by sudden heavy rain hit a scenic area in Weiyuan County in China's Gansu province on Sunday, leaving 10 people dead and 23 injured, local authorities said in a report carried by Xinhua.

July 26, 2026 · Xinhua

What it changes →

Fast white water churning across the whole frame, foam surging over a dark green current, with no bank or horizon visible.

World · Middle East

Iran says a Ukrainian strike killed a sailor on a commercial ship in the Caspian, and Kyiv says it hit vessels carrying military cargo

Iran's foreign ministry condemned what it called a Ukrainian attack on an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, saying an explosion killed one sailor and injured another. Ukraine says it struck vessels carrying military cargo.

July 26, 2026 · The Kyiv Independent · Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, statement of 25 July 2026 at 19:10

What it changes →

Close macro of a heaped pile of heavy rusted chain, links overlapping in orange and brown, with no vessel or setting visible.

World · Storms

Noul came ashore at Pinghai with winds of 162kph, Hong Kong dropped to a No. 8 signal, and 350 flights were cancelled

CCTV called Noul the strongest typhoon to strike China so far in 2026, with sustained winds of 162 kilometres per hour at landfall near Pinghai in Guangdong. Hong Kong reported nine people injured and at least 350 flights cancelled.

July 26, 2026 · Agence France-Presse, carried by Hong Kong Free Press

What it changes →

Dark grey storm cloud filling the frame, dense and low, with no horizon visible.

World · Europe

Spain declared a national emergency over the Madrid and Avila fires, and the evacuation total across France and Spain passed 320,000

Nathan Rennolds at Euronews reported on Sunday that more than 320,000 people have been evacuated across France and Spain as wildfires burn in both countries.

July 26, 2026 · Euronews · Copernicus Emergency Management Service, rapid mapping activation EMSR899, Wildfire in Saumos, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France, requested 22 July 2026 at 18:00

What it changes →

Close macro of charred logs breaking into white ash, with orange flame and glowing embers in the cracks between them.

World · Europe

France moved police off the Tour de France finale to fight the Gironde fires, and cut the stage from 133km to 89km

The final stage of the Tour de France was shortened to 89 kilometres after the Interior Ministry redeployed security forces to the Gironde wildfires, where the burned area reached 42,000 hectares and 220,000 people were evacuated.

July 26, 2026 · France 24 · Tour de France, Change to the route of the final stage, joint statement of the Prefect of Police and the Director of the Tour de France, 25 July 2026, 15:53

What it changes →

Close macro of deeply cracked charred wood, grey and black across the whole frame.

World · Middle East

Iran's army says it stopped its retaliatory attacks after two nights without US strikes

An Iranian army spokesman, Amir Akraminia, said on Sunday that Iran had halted its retaliatory operations because the United States had stopped its strikes over the past two nights, in remarks carried by Iran International.

July 26, 2026 · Iran International

What it changes →

A tightly stacked wall of grey woven sandbags filling the frame, one bag torn open at the left edge.

World · Shipping

Iran says nothing has changed for shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, after two days of talks with Oman in Tehran

Iran's foreign ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baqaei, told reporters on Sunday that Iranian and Omani officials had held several rounds of talks in Tehran over the two previous days at the level of deputy foreign ministers, on arrangements for safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

July 26, 2026 · From the document · IRNA English, news ID 86219663, Tehran, Muscat hold constructive talks on safe navigation in Strait of Hormuz: Iran, 26 July 2026, 11:31 a.m. Tehran time

What it changes →

Close macro of heavy three-strand natural fibre rope filling the frame, with a few coloured tracer threads twisted through the strands.

World · Storms

Severe Typhoon Noul came ashore in Guangdong, and Hong Kong sat under a No. 9 signal with the Observatory weighing a No. 10

The Hong Kong Observatory reported that Severe Typhoon Noul made landfall over Huidong in Huizhou City and was skirting within 100 kilometres northeast of Hong Kong, with the No. 9 Increasing Gale or Storm Signal in force.

July 25, 2026 · From the document · Hong Kong Observatory, Tropical Cyclone Warning (Local), bulletin issued 4 a.m. 26 July 2026 Hong Kong time, read at 4 p.m. Eastern on July 25, 2026

What it changes →

Rainwater beaded across a dark angled surface against a grey overcast background.

World · Middle East

Houthis strike Saudi oil hubs at Jizan and Yanbu, a day after Saudi strikes on Hodeidah

Yemen's Houthi forces said Saturday they had launched dozens of ballistic missiles and drones at Saudi Aramco oil facilities in Jizan and a further barrage of ballistic and cruise missiles and drones at oil facilities in Yanbu, two of Saudi Arabia's main energy hubs.

July 25, 2026 · CNN

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating oil refinery at dusk.

World · Sanctions

Treasury sanctioned four people and nine companies tied to the Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, reaching his gold, rail, and digital-asset ventures

The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control designated four individuals and nine entities on July 24, 2026, describing them as key components of a sanctions evasion network run by the Iranian businessman Babak Zanjani.

July 24, 2026 · From the document · U.S. Department of the Treasury, press release sb0576, Treasury Further Dismantles Iranian Financier Zanjani's Network, July 24, 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating steel chain links closeup.

World · Markets

Seoul halted program selling twice before lunch as the oil shock and a US tech rout reached Asia

The Korea Exchange triggered a sell-side sidecar on KOSPI 200 futures at 11:23 a.m. local time on July 24, after the contract fell 5.04 percent to 1,070.80, a drop of 56.88 points from the previous close.

July 24, 2026 · Korea JoongAng Daily

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating red candlestick stock chart.

World · Shipping

Forty ships crossed Bab al Mandeb on the day Brent went through $100

Commercial traffic through the Bab al Mandeb Strait fell sharply after Yemen's Houthi forces declared a blockade of Saudi Arabia on July 20, then rose again this week, according to the Institute for the Study of War's daily Iran Update.

July 23, 2026 · Institute for the Study of War and the Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute · Institute for the Study of War and Critical Threats Project, Iran Update Evening Special Report, July 23, 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating ship anchor chain links macro.

World · Defense spending

Hegseth tells the Senate the war with Iran has cost $37.5bn, up from $29bn in May

Defense Secretary Peter Hegseth told the Senate Appropriations Committee on July 21 that the war with Iran has cost about $37.5bn so far, up from the $29bn the administration estimated in May.

July 21, 2026 · From the document · U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations, A Review of the President's Supplemental Funding Request of June 24, 2026, hearing held July 21, 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating US Capitol dome.

World · Security

US strikes on Iran reach a tenth night, and CENTCOM puts a number on the shipping it says it is protecting

US Central Command said it completed another round of strikes on Iran at 9 p.m. ET on July 20, the tenth consecutive night by the command's own running count, targeting Iranian military command centres, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and air defence systems.

July 20, 2026 · From the document · U.S. Central Command, U.S. Finishes Latest Strikes Against Iran, 20 July 2026

What it changes →

Aerial view of a laden crude oil tanker with a green deck and red hull under way on open deep-blue water.

World · Security

Three US service members have been killed as the strikes on Iran reach a ninth night

US Central Command said on July 19 that three American service members have been killed and one remains unaccounted for in the conflict with Iran.

July 20, 2026 · From the document · U.S. Central Command, Update on Recently Fallen U.S. Service Members, 19 July 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating american flag stars and stripes closeup.

World · Middle East

CENTCOM ties its latest strikes on Iran to commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz

US Central Command said Saturday's strikes were designed to degrade Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and to punish the Revolutionary Guard forces that attacked American service members in Jordan on July 17.

July 19, 2026 · NBC News · US Central Command, public release, U.S. Completes 8th Consecutive Night of Strikes Against Iran, July 18, 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating anchor chain links.

World · Middle East

Iraq and Syria sign up to rebuild a crude pipeline to the Mediterranean, with Chevron in the consortium

The State Department said on July 17 that the United States welcomes the intent of Iraq and Syria to rehabilitate and reconstruct the Iraq-Syria crude oil pipeline, and put initial transport capacity at 2 million barrels a day once rebuilt.

July 19, 2026 · From the document · US Department of State, Office of the Spokesperson, Media Note, July 17, 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating stacked steel pipes.

World · Trade

Jingye seeks full compensation for British Steel, and the Act leaves open whether any is payable

The UK took British Steel into public ownership on 16 July under the Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Act, which the government's own announcement says requires an independent valuer to assess whether any compensation is payable.

July 19, 2026 · BBC News · Department for Business and Trade, Government brings British Steel into public ownership to protect UK steelmaking, 16 July 2026

What it changes →

Stacked coils of steel wire rod in an outdoor storage yard, with a gantry crane behind.

World · Banking

Libya's central bank agrees to put its commercial banks on China's CIPS payment system

The Central Bank of Libya said its governor, Naji Mohammed Issa Belqasem, met People's Bank of China governor Pan Gongsheng in Beijing on July 16, and that the two sides officially agreed to facilitate the participation of Libyan banks in the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System.

July 19, 2026 · From the document · Central Bank of Libya, Central Bank of Libya and People's Bank of China Strengthen Strategic Partnership in Payments and Investment, 16 July 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating fibre optic patch panel.

World · Sanctions

OFAC moves 39 Hong Kong officials to a second list as the 2020 emergency expires

The national emergency declared in Executive Order 13936 of July 14, 2020 has expired.

July 18, 2026 · From the document · OFAC, Hong Kong-related Designations Updates and Removals, July 17, 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating paper edges macro.

World · Sanctions

Sudanese state airlines lose US landing rights under chemical weapons sanctions

The State Department imposed three additional sanctions on Sudan under section 307(b) of the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991, effective July 20.

July 18, 2026 · From the document · State Department, Public Notice 13072, 91 FR 45309 (FR Doc. 2026-14568)

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating jet turbine blades.

World · Americas

Bank of Canada holds at 2.25% as gasoline lifts inflation to 3.2%

The overnight rate stays at 2.25%. Consumer prices rose 3.2% in May, or 2.2% excluding gasoline.

July 15, 2026 · Global News · Bank of Canada rate announcement, July 15

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating ottawa parliament building.

World · Middle East

Brent settles at $84.73 after US strikes on Iran and a renewed naval blockade

WTI settled at $79.34, up 1.5 percent. Trump dropped a proposed 20 percent fee on cargo crossing Hormuz.

July 15, 2026 · CNBC

What it changes →

A flare stack burning at an oil refinery.

World · Asia-Pacific

China consumer prices rose 1% in June while producer prices rose 4.1%

Consumer inflation slowed from 1.2% in May and missed forecasts. Producer prices grew at their fastest since 2022.

July 15, 2026 · CNBC · National Bureau of Statistics consumer price release

What it changes →

World · Asia-Pacific

China's economy grew 4.3 percent in the second quarter, below Beijing's target

Growth slowed from 5 percent in the first quarter and missed the official 4.5 to 5 percent target range.

July 15, 2026 · CNBC · China National Bureau of Statistics, first half 2026 national economy release

What it changes →

The skyline of Beijing's central business district.

World · Asia-Pacific

Container freight to North Europe is up about $3,000 a box in six weeks

Asia to North Europe is near $5,800 per forty-foot container. Drewry's index hit its highest since September 2024.

July 15, 2026 · Freightos · Drewry World Container Index, 9 July

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating cargo ship port.

World · Europe

The EU side of the 15% tariff deal with Washington took effect on July 1

The EU dropped all duties on US industrial goods. The US rate on most EU goods is a 15% all-inclusive ceiling.

July 15, 2026 · From the document · European Commission, the EU-US trade deal

What it changes →

Economics

The US is paying about $24bn a week in interest on the federal debt

Interest cost $857bn in the first nine months of fiscal 2026, up 13 percent, as the deficit neared $1.4tn.

July 15, 2026 · Fortune · Monthly Treasury Statement, June 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating us treasury building.

World · Middle East

War risk cover for a Hormuz transit now runs 2% to 6% of a ship's value

Insuring a $100 million tanker through the strait can cost $6 million. Requests for quotes have dropped.

July 15, 2026 · Bloomberg

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating oil tanker sea.

Small Business

Importers have been paid about $71bn in tariff refunds, with an appeal still running

CBP has wired roughly $71 billion including interest through its CAPE system since the Supreme Court voided the IEEPA tariffs.

July 15, 2026 · Accounting Today · US Customs and Border Protection, IEEPA Duty Refunds

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating shipping containers port.

World · Asia-Pacific

India's consumer inflation accelerated to 4.38% in June

Prices rose faster than the 4.30% economists expected, up from 3.93% in May, on food and transport.

July 15, 2026 · CNBC · Ministry of Statistics consumer price release

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating delhi street market.

World

Japan set a 4% coupon on 30-year debt, up from 3.4% in January

The July 7 auction drew 2,070.0 billion yen of bids against 454.9 billion accepted, a cover ratio of 4.55.

July 15, 2026 · From the document · Japan MOF auction result, 30-year JGBs, 7 July 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating tokyo financial district.

World · Asia-Pacific

Japan reported no yen intervention in the month to June 26

The Ministry of Finance posted zero for May 28 to June 26, after 11.73 trillion yen in the previous window.

July 15, 2026 · Fortune · Japan MOF intervention operations, May 28 to June 26

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating tokyo skyline.

World · Asia-Pacific

New Zealand raises its cash rate to 2.50%, a first increase since 2023

The Monetary Policy Committee agreed on 25 basis points on July 8. Headline inflation is seen peaking at 3.9%.

July 15, 2026 · interest.co.nz · RBNZ Monetary Policy Review, 8 July

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating wellington harbour.

World · Middle East

Oil above $85 complicates the ECB rate decision due on July 23

Brent September futures traded above $85 on Wednesday, after trading closer to $70 last week.

July 15, 2026 · CNBC · ECB monetary policy decision, June 11

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating frankfurt skyline.

World · Middle East

Seven OPEC+ producers will add 188,000 barrels a day in August

Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman met by video on July 5 and agreed the increase.

July 15, 2026 · Al Jazeera · OPEC statement, 5 July 2026

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating oil pumpjack desert.

World · Middle East

US Treasury sanctions a financier it says holds assets for Iran's leader

OFAC designated Ali Ansari, a Saint Kitts holding company, and several Iranian exchange houses on July 10.

July 15, 2026 · RFE/RL · US Treasury sanctions announcement

What it changes →

A photograph illustrating dubai skyline.

World

South Korea's broadcasting regulator has cut three months off the approval terms of two news channels, and it says their largest shareholders are the reason the law is not being followed

The flags came down on Wednesday, and the proclamation that ordered it reached public inspection at a quarter past eleven this morning, five days before it lifts

An executive order signed this afternoon renames Lake Ontario as Lake America, gives the Interior Secretary 30 days to do it, and directs that every reference to the old name be taken out of the federal names database

Ten arms sales notices reached public inspection in a single batch this morning, and the two largest of them are 800 air-to-air missiles for Qatar and 20,000 guidance sections for Saudi Arabia

A cooking oil refinery in Burgundy is the only company Treasury wrote its own wind down licence for last week, and that licence expires on 23 October

Treasury has sanctioned a British protest group, a transnational Palestinian network and the Italian collective that hosts far-left sites, and only the host was given a wind down window

The United States has approved sharing Restricted Data with Finland and Sweden, under a NATO atomic agreement that took effect in 1965

Treasury has named five more sectors of the Iranian economy under an order that reaches any foreign person operating in them, and gold and digital assets are two of the five

The licence that lets an American send money to a relative in Iran has been suspended, and the wind down runs out at one minute past midnight on 8 September

Syria has come off the State Sponsor of Terrorism list after forty six years, and the licence written around the group now running the country has been revoked as unnecessary

A wartime statute from 1917 was three weeks from lapsing against Cuba, and a one-page memorandum has carried it to September 2027

Korea's first Arctic container voyage sailed on Saturday, and the ministry's own numbers put the ship at 30 percent of capacity

An earthquake 70 kilometres under southern Ibaraki shook Tokyo's 23 wards, and the injury figure of 37 is two numbers from two different reporting channels added together

Ten Ecuadorean fishing boats have been blocked as trafficking property, and Treasury says the work most of them did was refuelling, feeding and watching for the coastguard

Hizballah's own sanctions entry has changed, and the two tags added to it say Treasury now treats the group as directed by the Qods Force

The United States has opened public comment on an application to mine the deep seabed in international waters, and the window closes on 19 October

Japan's 25, 30 and 40 year bond yields all set records on Tuesday, and its one, two and three year yields fell on the same day

Nigeria comes off the Coast Guard's port security list after twelve years, and the conditions being lifted reached any ship that had called there in its last five ports

Two governments have put A$2.5bn into Australia's largest aluminium smelter, and the release the market got names the company's A$1.1bn and no public figure at all

The President has certified Colombia's aerial drug interdiction for another year, and the memorandum goes to the Secretary of War where last year's went to the Secretary of Defense

A vessel was reported struck by a projectile east of Khasab on Saturday, the sixth entry the maritime log has taken in that stretch of water in nine days

A vessel was reported sunk off Yemen, and the newest Hormuz entry was downgraded from attack to advisory because the intended target could not be identified

Six Cubans and five state companies went onto the American sanctions list on Thursday, two of the people at addresses in Moscow and Beijing, and a guidance answer issued the same hour tells food and medicine suppliers they are not the target

Fly Baghdad has come off the American sanctions list along with two of its Boeing 737s, and the executive listed beside it stays on, now tied directly to the Qods Force

Korea's competition regulator wants to be able to order a company to sell assets in a cartel case, and to stop being the only body that can refer one for prosecution

Korea and Bangladesh have closed their trade negotiation in principle, and the tariff Dhaka currently charges on Korean confectionery is 85.6 percent

Korea has put another 6.0 square kilometres of Saemangeum inside a comprehensive bonded area, and the release names Hyundai's 9 trillion won investment plan as the reason

The State Department has imposed nonproliferation measures on twenty two foreign persons under the Iran, North Korea and Syria act, and eleven of them are Russian

A third explosion in three nights was reported off the Musandam peninsula, and the newest entry in the Hormuz incident log is classed as an advisory rather than an attack

Korea moved to a Level 2 heat emergency, and the outdoor work stoppage above 38 degrees is a strong recommendation rather than an order

Iran's foreign ministry says the Strait of Hormuz will under no circumstances return to its pre-war situation, and that the talks with Oman are bilateral and concern no third party

A drone struck the floating unit that turns imported gas back into gas at Egypt's Damietta port, and the two accounts of what happened do not describe the same event

OPEC's monitoring committee has repeated its April wording on maritime routes and attacks on energy infrastructure word for word, and the sentence commending alternative export routes is not in it

The Hormuz incident log recorded its first attacks in eleven days on the night of 31 July, and GasLog broke a silence running back to 2024 to post statements on two of its ships

Iraq and Turkey have put a floor of 750,000 barrels a day under a pipeline to the Mediterranean, and the last federal analysis of Iraqi exports found every seaborne barrel in 2024 leaving through the Gulf

Iran's last ceasefire cleared its top security body by 12 votes to 1 and still collapsed, and one reason the Associated Press names is a release of frozen assets that never arrived

Trump says he will hold American forces off new strikes on Iran, and the sentence that matters for oil names an open Strait of Hormuz as a parameter of a deal rather than a term that has been agreed

Japan has written a reactor rebuild number into its nuclear guideline for the first time, and the sentence about reducing dependence on nuclear power is gone

The tariff on patented British medicines went to zero at one minute past midnight, and the notice announcing it was filed that afternoon

The visa bond is now permanent at $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000, and the rule reports that issuance from the covered countries fell 83 percent

Forty-three companies were added to the American forced labour import list on Friday, and the new names are gold, aluminium, copper and coal as much as cotton

Treasury has sanctioned the travel agents that sell tickets and cargo space for Mahan Air in China, India and Russia

The maritime body that ships' masters report to has logged nothing new since 27 July, after 22 reports in the first 26 days of the month, and an empty log is not the same thing as an empty sea

US Central Command says it completed a heavy wave of strikes on dozens of Revolutionary Guard targets in Iran, and the Guard has answered that it will punish the aggressor the same day

Treasury has designated two Iranian marine insurers it says sell vessels cover against risks Iran creates in the Strait of Hormuz

A major quake in Kumamoto emptied the TSMC, Sony and Tokyo Electron plants, and TSMC says its Japan fab is already restarting

Czechia and Slovakia sent aircraft to fight the fires in France, and the EU crisis commissioner now says extreme conditions are looming over both

The US military says it shot down an Iranian ballistic missile attack on American forces, ending a pause in a war that has kept the Strait of Hormuz closed

The determination approving the US-Saudi nuclear agreement publishes on Tuesday, and it names two side letters and a separate safeguards agreement

Colombia's president-elect says he will close 14 embassies and about 15 consulates, and cut ties with Cuba and Nicaragua

France says the Gironde fire did not advance overnight, and Spain's weather agency forecasts a fourth heatwave from Wednesday

The US commander in the Middle East recommended stopping the Hormuz bombing before Trump paused it, and $67.1bn of munitions money is sitting in the Senate

Berlin police and prosecutors have now published the document: the Christopher Street Day suspect was shot dead by specialist officers at a Spandau allotment

The evacuation total across France and Spain has passed 360,000, and 55,000 of them left the Gironde overnight

Berlin police and prosecutors still have a wanted appeal running over the Christopher Street Day attack, hours after German media reported the suspect had been killed

Vietnam says 45 of the 62 people aboard the Khoi Nguyen 18 have been pulled out alive, and thanks Chinese rescue forces by name

Iranian state media say a tanker struck a mine in the Strait of Hormuz, and the maritime authority that logs those incidents has posted nothing

A flash flood swept a Gansu scenic area where tourists were camping, killing 10 and injuring 23, and Beijing sent a work team the same evening

Iran says a Ukrainian strike killed a sailor on a commercial ship in the Caspian, and Kyiv says it hit vessels carrying military cargo

Noul came ashore at Pinghai with winds of 162kph, Hong Kong dropped to a No. 8 signal, and 350 flights were cancelled

Spain declared a national emergency over the Madrid and Avila fires, and the evacuation total across France and Spain passed 320,000

France moved police off the Tour de France finale to fight the Gironde fires, and cut the stage from 133km to 89km

Iran's army says it stopped its retaliatory attacks after two nights without US strikes

Iran says nothing has changed for shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, after two days of talks with Oman in Tehran

Severe Typhoon Noul came ashore in Guangdong, and Hong Kong sat under a No. 9 signal with the Observatory weighing a No. 10

Houthis strike Saudi oil hubs at Jizan and Yanbu, a day after Saudi strikes on Hodeidah

Treasury sanctioned four people and nine companies tied to the Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, reaching his gold, rail, and digital-asset ventures

Seoul halted program selling twice before lunch as the oil shock and a US tech rout reached Asia

Forty ships crossed Bab al Mandeb on the day Brent went through $100

Hegseth tells the Senate the war with Iran has cost $37.5bn, up from $29bn in May

US strikes on Iran reach a tenth night, and CENTCOM puts a number on the shipping it says it is protecting

Three US service members have been killed as the strikes on Iran reach a ninth night

CENTCOM ties its latest strikes on Iran to commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz

Iraq and Syria sign up to rebuild a crude pipeline to the Mediterranean, with Chevron in the consortium

Jingye seeks full compensation for British Steel, and the Act leaves open whether any is payable

Libya's central bank agrees to put its commercial banks on China's CIPS payment system

OFAC moves 39 Hong Kong officials to a second list as the 2020 emergency expires

Sudanese state airlines lose US landing rights under chemical weapons sanctions

Bank of Canada holds at 2.25% as gasoline lifts inflation to 3.2%