Judge blocks Pentagon press escort rule for Times

July 1, 2026

1–2 minutes

Summary

A federal judge temporarily blocked a Pentagon escort policy for New York Times journalists and the agency said it would appeal.

Why this matters

The ruling is another legal test of how far the Pentagon can go in restricting press access. It also highlights ongoing tensions between government security claims and First Amendment protections for newsgathering.

A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a Pentagon policy requiring escorts for journalists in the building, ruling only for The New York Times, which brought the lawsuit.

The decision marked another setback for the Defense Department, as a judge has repeatedly rejected its efforts to limit press access.

“This Court has spoken at several points about the critical importance of protecting the freedoms enshrined in the First Amendment, and that evergreen message bears repeating: ‘Those who drafted the First Amendment believed that the nation’s security requires a free press and an informed people and that such security is endangered by governmental suppression of political speech. That principle has preserved the nation’s security for almost 250 years,’” U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman wrote in his decision. “As our country celebrates its 250th anniversary this very week, that principle must not be abandoned now.”

“This ruling strips away reasonable security measures and will make it easier for sensitive and classified information to reach our adversaries,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a post on X.

New York Times spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander said the decision “reaffirms the First Amendment rights of the press to cover the Pentagon without restrictions designed to prevent the public from knowing what the military is doing.”

More top news

Africa

African states push local mineral processing rules

African governments are increasingly requiring minerals to be processed at home to capture more value from rising global demand.

Full story +

At the Group of Seven summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, on June 17, Kenyan President William Ruto said Kenya was nearing a critical minerals agreement with the United States. He said Kenya wanted its rare earths, lithium, graphite, copper, nickel, and niobium to be refined and processed domestically rather than exported as raw materials.

Similar policies are emerging elsewhere in Africa. Namibia has barred exports of unprocessed lithium, cobalt, manganese, graphite, and rare earths. Mali is building a 200-tonne-a-year gold refinery and requiring more local refining. Ghana will begin buying 30% of large-scale gold output from July 2026 to support local refining and reserves.

The shift comes as demand for critical minerals rises. Lithium consumption increased by nearly 30% in 2024, driven by investment in electric vehicles, battery storage, renewable energy, and advanced manufacturing. The International Energy Agency said lithium use could increase fivefold by 2040, while demand for graphite and nickel could roughly double.

According to the agency, new mines often take more than a decade to reach production, and announced projects under its Stated Policies Scenario would leave lithium supply 40% short of projected demand by 2035. That has given countries with existing deposits more leverage to seek local processing, technology transfer, and industrial investment.

United Nations data showed the value added along the battery supply chain in 2022: lithium ore and brine exports were worth about $20 billion, battery materials $51 billion, cell components and battery packs $106 billion, and electric vehicles $135 billion.

There are already several examples of countries pushing domestic production. Nigeria’s Dangote refinery in the Lekki Free Zone outside Lagos produces 650,000 barrels a day and began production in early 2024. Between February and March 2026, Nigeria’s clean petroleum exports rose from about 100,000 barrels a day to 214,000 barrels, while the refinery supplied much of the domestic market and exported fuel to Ghana, Cameroon, Togo, Burkina Faso, and Ivory Coast.

In 2020, Indonesia banned unprocessed nickel ore exports. The value of Indonesia’s nickel product exports rose from less than $1 billion in 2015 to nearly $20 billion in 2022, alongside investment in smelters, refineries, battery materials, and electric vehicle manufacturing, though the expansion also raised environmental and labor concerns.
Asia

Myanmar conflict deaths top 100,000 since 2021 coup

There is no official death toll, and estimates vary. Analysts have described Myanmar’s conflict as Asia’s deadliest active war.

Full story +

More than 100,000 people have been killed in Myanmar since a military coup in February 2021 triggered a civil war, according to data released Wednesday by conflict monitor Armed Conflict Location & Event Data.

ACLED said 100,114 people had died in conflict-related violence since the military ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, detained the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and ended Myanmar’s decade-long democratic opening.

After security forces suppressed anti-coup protests, some activists left cities to form pro-democracy armed groups and joined ethnic minority forces that had long fought the central government.

More than 3.7 million people have been internally displaced, according to the United Nations, and more than one in five people faced acute food insecurity amid worsening poverty.

Violence ranged from occasional assassinations in Yangon to sustained fighting and daily airstrikes in other parts of the country. The military has used jets supplied by Russia and China.

ACLED said Myanmar was the world’s second-most conflict-affected country last year after the Palestinian territories. It recorded more than 1,200 armed groups and called Myanmar “the most fragmented conflict in the world.”

“It’s deadly, it’s dangerous to civilians, the conflict has spread across the whole country,” ACLED senior analyst Sun Mon Thant said.

A rebel offensive that began in late 2023 led to significant territorial gains, including pressure on Mandalay, but analysts said momentum later shifted back toward the military after China backed it and truces were signed with two powerful ethnic minority armies.

In February 2024, the military activated a conscription law and aimed to recruit 50,000 citizens.

The war also drove refugees into Thailand and Bangladesh and contributed to drug production and online scam operations in border areas, monitors said.
World Politics

U.S. reports progress in Doha talks on Iran deal

Among the main unresolved issues was the future management of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said it wanted some degree of control over maritime traffic and signaled that some ships might have to pay transit fees. The U.S., Europe, and most Gulf Arab states opposed any fees.

Full story +

U.S. negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held positive discussions in Qatar, and progress was being made in technical talks with Iran, according to a senior administration official, as the two countries sought to turn an interim peace deal into a permanent end to the war.

Witkoff and Kushner were in Doha on Tuesday for indirect talks between Washington and Tehran. An agreement signed last month opened a 60-day negotiating period, but efforts were strained by clashes over the Strait of Hormuz and disputes over management of the waterway.

Talks between U.S. and Iranian officials through mediators continued Wednesday. Witkoff and Kushner were not taking part, the news agency said.

Iran had formed working groups to discuss implementing the current agreement and negotiating a final peace deal, but no talks had yet taken place, the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported, citing Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi.

Trump’s two envoys traveled to Qatar after the U.S. and Iran agreed late last week to halt renewed attacks over Hormuz. Questions remained over control of the strait, with Iran’s state TV reporting that a foreign vessel ran aground in shallow waters on an “unapproved route.”

Qatari officials had lowered expectations for the latest round of negotiations, saying Witkoff and Kushner would not meet directly with Iranian officials. The senior administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said progress continued in separate technical talks involving lower-level representatives.
\top\

Ex-soldier convicted in $1.12M Fort Bliss MRE theft

Prosecutors said the stolen rations were worth about $1.12 million.

Full story +

A federal jury in El Paso convicted former soldier and Army contractor Joseph Lavar Davis of conspiring to steal Meals, Ready to Eat from Fort Bliss and stealing government property, the Justice Department said Tuesday.

Davis, 47, was found guilty June 24 of one count of conspiracy to commit theft of government property and one count of theft of government property, court records show. Prosecutors said the stolen rations were worth about $1.12 million.

According to a Justice Department statement, Davis worked in food service supply while on active duty in the Army and later in a similar contractor role. Prosecutors said he used those positions to create false requests for MREs, negotiate sales prices, and coordinate payment for the stolen goods.

Davis was indicted in February 2025 with Jatavis Lenard Fuse, Tyrone Lamar Odum Turner, and John Broberg. Prosecutors said the group worked between February and August 2020 to obtain more than 200 pallets of MREs by submitting false paperwork, renting trucks, moving the pallets to a warehouse, and selling them.

Fort Bliss uses MREs to feed troops in Texas and New Mexico on mobilization or training orders who are assigned to the Fort Bliss Mobilization Brigade, according to the indictment. Units assigned to the brigade submit requests for MREs and send representatives to the supply office to sign for and collect them.

In August 2020, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Army Criminal Investigation Division agents searched a civilian warehouse in El Paso and found about 100 pallets, or about 57,600 meals, the Justice Department said. The department said the warehouse owner had bought the pallets from others who stole them from Fort Bliss.

Fuse pleaded guilty in February to both charges, court records show. Turner pleaded guilty the same month to the conspiracy charge, and Broberg, the warehouse owner and operator, pleaded guilty in March to the same charge.

According to the indictment, Broberg paid more than $44,000 in several transactions to Fuse or bank accounts designated by Turner for the stolen MREs. Prosecutors said those payments coincided with truck rentals by Davis and Fuse, and with pickups from Fort Bliss in March and August 2020. Court records said Fuse and Turner also exchanged thousands of dollars with Davis on roughly the same dates.

Davis is on pretrial release and is scheduled to be sentenced in October. The case was prosecuted as part of a task force chaired by Vice President JD Vance focused on fraud, waste, and abuse in federal benefit programs, the Justice Department said.
US Politics

Trump sets GOP midterm convention in Dallas, Sept. 9

If Democrats win either chamber, they would be able to block parts of Trump’s agenda and open investigations into his administration during the final two years of his term.

Full story +

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Republicans will hold a national convention in Dallas on Sept. 9 and 10 ahead of the November midterm elections.

National party conventions are typically held during presidential campaigns, but Trump has promoted a midterm gathering since last year as a way to focus attention on House and Senate races that will determine whether Republicans keep control of Congress.

Republicans hold narrow majorities in Congress, and the party in power often loses seats in midterm elections. Without Trump on the ballot, Republican leaders have expressed concern about voter turnout.

In a Truth Social post announcing the event, Trump wrote that Republicans would use it “to show the great things we have done since the Presidential Election of 2024.”

“We will also have lots of Great Entertainment — It will be a RALLY like none other!” Trump wrote.

The Republican National Committee voted at its winter meeting in January to amend procedures for presidential nominating conventions to allow such an event.

The Democratic National Committee considered holding a similar midterm convention but did not move forward. The story said party finances were strained by weaker fundraising and millions of dollars in debt. Democrats have said the Republican event will give them an opportunity to link GOP House and Senate candidates to Trump, whose approval rating is underwater.

Holding the convention in Texas also draws attention to the state’s Senate race between Democratic nominee James Talarico and Republican nominee Ken Paxton.

Paxton, the Texas attorney general, defeated Sen. John Cornyn in this year’s primary with Trump’s backing. Republican Senate leaders have said Paxton’s past scandals, including an extramarital affair, an impeachment, and a securities fraud case that did not lead to a conviction, could hurt his candidacy and force the party to spend more in a race they might otherwise expect to win.

The convention also comes after Trump’s redistricting push in Texas, which he has pursued to help Republicans gain seats in this fall’s elections.
Tech & Artificial Intelligence

U.S. lifts Anthropic export limits on AI models

Mythos was first made available in April to a limited group of organizations because of concerns about its ability to identify and exploit software vulnerabilities. Fable was released publicly in June with additional security guardrails.

Full story +

The U.S. has lifted a licensing requirement that had restricted Anthropic from exporting its Mythos and Fable artificial intelligence models abroad, allowing the company to begin restoring public access on Wednesday, July 1.

On June 12, the U.S. government added the models to its export-restricted technologies list, barring availability to foreign nationals without special approval. Anthropic said complying with the rule at scale was impractical, and it ended public access to the models.

After talks with the government, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Anthropic “has agreed to proactively detect and address security risks associated with the models; to work diligently with the U. S. government on protocols and standards and releases for Mythos, Fable and future models; and to inform the US government of any malicious activity.”

Anthropic had publicly committed to much of that before the rule took effect.

Asian AI companies, including Fugu and Tulongfeng, had begun releasing models approaching Mythos-level capabilities, adding pressure on U.S. officials to ease restrictions so American companies could compete globally.

Last week, Lutnick authorized Mythos for release to select customers approved by the White House. OpenAI’s latest models were also released to a group of organizations approved by the Trump administration rather than to the public.

The administration’s approach to AI policy has left companies with limited clarity about future model releases. It also said a June executive order signaling a review of models before release drew criticism from analysts, including Dean W. Ball, who recently took a policy role at OpenAI.
US

Judge blocks SNAP purchase limits in 5 states

Restrictions vary by state, but approved waivers generally bar purchases such as soda, energy drinks, and candy. Iowa’s waiver was the broadest, covering most foods subject to the state’s sales tax, including candy, soft drinks, dietary supplements, and prepared foods.

Full story +

A federal judge ruled June 22 that the Agriculture Department lacked authority to approve state limits on some Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) purchases, blocking the policy in Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia.

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said the department was not authorized to approve waivers that removed certain foods from SNAP eligibility, including items states classified as “junk food.” “Congress defined what ‘food’ is supposed to be, and it did not authorize the agency to amend or waive the definition it enacted,” she wrote.

Several SNAP recipients in the five states sued the Agriculture Department in March, arguing the restrictions would “destabilize food access” and exceeded the agency’s legal authority.

The Trump administration had invited states to seek waivers as part of its “Make America Healthy Again” initiative. Officials said the policy was intended to address obesity and chronic disease, return SNAP to its “nutritional purpose,” and direct taxpayer dollars toward healthier food choices.

Nebraska became the first state to receive approval in May 2025, followed by Indiana and Iowa, before the U.S. Department of Agriculture expanded the program to 23 states. The waivers were approved as demonstration projects, and retailers were expected to update checkout systems so electronic benefit transfer cards would reject prohibited items while allowing those purchases with other payment methods.

The ruling did not immediately affect the 18 other states with approved waivers. Arkansas said June 29 that it would proceed with its restrictions. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders cited what she called a “chronic disease epidemic” and research from Stanford University that her office said found limiting sugary drink purchases with food stamps could reduce obesity and Type 2 diabetes.

Mississippi’s waiver request was still pending. Alabama, South Dakota, and Wisconsin had announced plans to seek waivers. The administration had not said whether it would appeal, but Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins wrote on social media that it “will keep fighting to Make America Healthy Again.”
Military & National Security

Marine Corps creates scout specialty for infantry

To become a 0315 Scout, Marines must complete the Infantry Common Core Course or the Infantry Rifleman Course, followed by the Ground Reconnaissance Course. 0317 Scout Snipers will be eligible for a lateral transfer without additional training.

Full story +

The Marine Corps said it will roll out a new infantry specialty later this year to provide infantry and light armored reconnaissance battalions with dedicated reconnaissance and surveillance support.

In an administrative message issued Tuesday, the service announced creation of the new primary military occupational specialty, 0315 Scout.

Lt. Gen. Jay Bargeron, deputy commandant for plans, policies, and operations, called the new specialty “a critical step in the modernization of our infantry battalions.”

“These Scouts will be our eyes and ears, extending our sensing capabilities and enabling commanders to make faster, more effective decisions to win our nation’s battles,” he said in a press release.

The Marine Corps said the new specialty resulted from “extensive live-force experimentation,” or combat simulations, that identified a need for a dedicated battalion-level formation to collect timely and accurate information on the enemy and operating environment.

According to the announcement, scouts will serve in a 26-Marine platoon within a battalion. They will be trained in field craft and advanced communications to conduct ground reconnaissance, surveillance, and battlespace shaping through assured long-range communications.

Scouts will carry advanced optics, communications suites, sensors, and unmanned systems for reconnaissance missions. They will also be armed with the M4 service rifle, M320 grenade launcher, and M27 Infantry Automatic Rifle.

Each scout team will include a Joint Fires Observer to coordinate and control surface-to-surface and air-delivered fires.
US Politics

Johnson ends House votes early amid GOP floor revolt

The House is not scheduled to return until mid-July, leaving two scheduled workweeks before the August recess.

Full story +

Speaker Mike Johnson sent House members home early Tuesday after a group of Republicans blocked action on the chamber floor, extending a standoff over President Donald Trump’s elections bill.

The procedural rebellion, led by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, prevented Johnson from advancing Republican priorities, including the annual Pentagon policy bill. Luna said she would end her protest if GOP leaders agreed to add Trump’s voter ID and proof-of-citizenship measure to the defense bill.

By Tuesday afternoon, Johnson told members to leave Washington early after concluding he could not regain control of the floor. It was the second straight week House Republican leaders dropped planned votes.

The disruption could complicate Johnson’s plan to move other parts of Trump’s agenda this month, including billions in Pentagon funding tied to the Iran war.

The dispute has intensified tensions inside the narrowly divided House Republican conference. Many Republicans blamed about a dozen hard-line members for blocking consideration of the defense bill, which some saw as one of their last major legislative efforts before the November midterms.

As the procedural vote was failing, Johnson told Luna and Rep. Tim Burchett that they were wrong, they don’t get it and that their votes would lead to embarrassment, according to three sources familiar with the remarks. Neither lawmaker changed their vote.

Johnson later said, “We have the smallest margin in US history. We’re nearing an election. People get very emotional about things, and sometimes they make irrational decisions.” Earlier, he called Luna’s actions a “self-inflicted wound” for his party.

Rep. Troy Nehls criticized the delay, saying, “I think we have squandered away an opportunity to do something great for the Fourth of July.”

Luna defended her tactics: “The fact that I’m being singled out because I know procedure — I’m not stupid. I’m going to fight on behalf of the American people.”

Republican leaders face a broader problem: Congress does not currently have the votes to pass Trump’s elections overhaul in the form he wants, even with Republican majorities in both chambers. Luna and others have urged Senate Republicans to change Senate rules, but Senate GOP leaders have said they do not have the votes to do that.

Trump publicly urged the defectors to back down, but some hard-liners questioned whether he was serious because he remains focused on the bill.

Rep. Thomas Massie said some Republicans were becoming more willing to oppose procedural votes: “There are people who normally wouldn’t vote against the rule and are doing it.”
US

Avi Loeb tapped to lead White House UAP advisers

Some said Loeb is “not viewed favorably” in the scientific community.

Full story +

Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb was appointed by the White House to lead a scientific advisory council studying potential national security risks tied to unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAP, as President Donald Trump’s administration moved to release more information on the issue.

Loeb, a cosmologist and former chair of Harvard’s astronomy department, said his team would report to a new White House panel focused on UAP. “It’s like a detective story,” Loeb said in an interview. “It’s a lot of fun, as long as you don’t pay too much attention to the critics.”

Loeb became widely known in 2017 after arguing that an interstellar object passing Earth could have been a thin “light sail” from an alien spacecraft, rather than a comet or chunk of ice. He later founded Harvard’s Galileo Project to search for possible artifacts from alien civilizations.

His work has drawn criticism from some scientists. Steve Desch, an Arizona State University astrophysicist, said Loeb uses flawed methods and that putting him in charge could undermine the effort. “I don’t know what’s going to come of this, but we’re not going to get any closer to answering these questions with him in charge,” Desch said.

Loeb said he would take a national security approach and begin with the assumption that the objects were human-made. He said better government data collection could help resolve debate over their origins. “Let’s keep our eyes on the orbs,” he said, “not the social media.”

His team included more than a dozen scientists and UFO activists, including retired Rear Adm. Timothy Gallaudet, who has said “nonhuman intelligence” controls some UAP, and Ben Lamm, a billionaire working to revive extinct species.

After its first meeting last month, the group asked the Pentagon for more than 50 videos, images and other records tied to known UAP incidents. Loeb said the group met privately but would brief the public and create a website to share findings.

Earlier this year, Trump directed his administration to increase transparency on UFOs and possible alien life. The order led to a UAP Governance Board overseen by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which first met in June. The Pentagon has released several batches of records, including older FBI reports and military videos. A Pentagon office investigating UAP said it has found no evidence of alien life.

Loeb said he did not believe the government was hiding such evidence.