Wednesday, July 2, 2025

United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine

United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth orders the indefinite suspension of air defense and weapon shipments to Ukraine, including Patriot interceptors and other missiles and ammunition.

Quadrilateral Security Dialogue

Australia, India, Japan, and the United States announce a joint initiative to work towards securing minerals necessary for new technologies and reduce reliance on Chinese sources.

World

Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian orders the suspension of cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency following the Iran–Israel war and the United States strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

2025 Chicago shooting

Four people are killed and fourteen others are wounded in a drive-by shooting outside a nightclub in Chicago, Illinois, United States.

Trial of Sean Combs

American rapper and music producer Sean Combs is acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering and found guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.

Justice

Australian airline Qantas is hit by a cyberattack affecting a third-party platform used by its call centre, compromising the personal data of up to 6 million customers.

Somali Civil War

At least five Ugandan soldiers are killed and some others are injured when a military Mi-24 helicopter part of the African Union peacekeeping mission crashes near Aden Adde airport in Mogadishu, Somalia's capital. The helicopter carrying eight people had been arriving from an airfield in the Lower Shabelle region of Somalia.

2025 European heatwaves

Two farmers are killed in a wildfire in Catalonia, Spain, while three people die from heat-related causes in Sardinia, Italy, and a 10-year-old American tourist dies after collapsing from extreme heat in Paris, France. Hundreds of others are hospitalized.

Disasters

Six people are killed and 29 others are missing when a ferry carrying 65 people capsizes off the coast of Bali, Indonesia.

3I/ATLAS

The Minor Planet Center confirms an interstellar object is transiting the Solar System on a hyperbolic trajectory, the third of its kind to be officially confirmed. The object is likely a comet and could be as large as 12 miles (20 km) in diameter.

Science

Ford recalls more than 200,000 vehicles due to a software defect that can cause the backup camera to fail, raising the risk of crashes.

Succession of the 14th Dalai Lama

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso confirms that after his death there will be a reincarnated successor. Chinese officials reject this statement and announce that the next Dalai Lama will have to be born in China and his appointment will have to be approved by the government.