July 15, 2026 – Short News

Trump Celebrates Iraq's New Prime Minister While Turning Up the Pressure on Iran

Trump welcomes the Iraqi prime minister to the White House: "He's young, and he's handsome. I don't like that. I'm not happy about it."

Donald Trump welcomed Iraq's new Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to the White House with unusually high praise, saying the two shared "tremendous chemistry." The president said he had backed al-Zaidi from the beginning and had always known he would become a leading figure in the Middle East. In fact, Trump had played a decisive role in al-Zaidi's rise. After Iraq spent months unable to form a government following parliamentary elections, Trump openly threatened to cut off U.S. support if former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whom Washington viewed as close to Iran, returned to power. Shortly afterward, al-Zaidi emerged as the compromise candidate. His visit to Washington marked his first trip abroad since taking office.

The focus of the meeting, however, was not their mutual admiration but Iran. Washington is demanding that Baghdad disarm all Iran-backed militias by the end of September. Several of those groups attacked American military bases and diplomatic facilities after the war against Iran began. Speaking in the Oval Office, al-Zaidi said there would be no justification for the continued existence of those armed organizations once the deadline expires. At the same time, his government knows that taking such action could make Iraq itself the target of those militias. Security experts therefore believe Baghdad will have little chance of disarming the groups without American intelligence, technical assistance, and military support.

At the same time, both governments are moving ahead with major economic projects. According to Iraqi officials, a broad energy agreement involving American companies and partners from Qatar is expected to be signed as early as Friday. The project includes a new oil pipeline running from Basra in southern Iraq through Haditha to the Turkish port of Ceyhan and onward to the Syrian Mediterranean port of Baniyas. The pipeline is expected to carry approximately two million barrels of oil per day. Trump described Iraq as a country with enormous potential and once again emphasized the importance of its oil reserves. Behind the scenes, Washington is also facilitating discussions between Iraq and Syria over additional energy projects.

The new prime minister is himself considered an unusual political figure. Before entering politics, he headed a bank that was barred from conducting dollar transactions in 2024 amid suspicions of money laundering and financial transfers benefiting Iran. Since taking office, however, al-Zaidi has sought to redefine himself through a sweeping anti-corruption campaign. Numerous current and former officials have already been arrested. At the same time, Middle East analysts warn against overestimating his actual room to maneuver. Although al-Zaidi is a businessman with no previous political career and is frequently described as the "Trump of the Middle East," he must still govern with the very political establishment that ultimately put him in office.

That Trump is publicly embracing the Iraqi prime minister is therefore driven less by personal admiration than by American strategic interests. Iraq remains a critical piece in Washington's struggle for influence against Iran. The more successfully Baghdad pushes back Iran-backed militias, the greater the United States' influence across the region becomes. That is precisely what will determine over the coming months whether the display of unity in the Oval Office develops into a genuine political partnership or whether Iraq once again finds itself caught between Washington and Tehran.

North Korea Expands Its Network of Informants and Turns the Idea of One Korea Into a Suspicion

North Korea has once again tightened its surveillance of its own population. Since July 1, the leaders of the so-called inminban, neighborhood groups made up of several households, have been ordered to report more than unusual behavior. They must now document unusual statements, political doubts, and even the general "state of mind" of their neighbors in writing and regularly submit those reports to local police. The goal is to eliminate every remaining belief that North and South Koreans are one people. What had been part of the state's official doctrine for decades has now become an ideological offense. The shift follows Pyongyang's new political course. After North Korea amended its constitution in March and officially declared the two Koreas to be hostile states, that policy is now being enforced in the daily life of every neighborhood. Weekly meetings within every inminban are reportedly no longer held to explain government policy but to identify anyone who still speaks about reunification, a shared Korean nation, or the period of exchanges between North and South. Even the slightest doubt about the new state doctrine is to be documented.

The responsibility placed on neighborhood leaders extends even further. If an ideologically unacceptable statement later surfaces within their group, not only the person who made it faces punishment. The neighborhood leader can also be held accountable. One of them summed up the dilemma bluntly: if he fails to report a neighbor for one wrong sentence, he may ultimately be punished himself. The consequences are already becoming visible. Residents say they barely dare to speak openly once they leave their homes. Even police officers have reportedly questioned privately how they are expected to look inside people's minds and then put those thoughts into writing. According to observers, the leadership wants to achieve more than changing laws. It intends to change how people think. Only when the idea of one Korean nation has disappeared completely will the new state doctrine be considered fully established.

With this new directive, state control is expanding beyond government institutions. It is changing the relationship between ordinary people. Neighbors become informants, everyday conversations become risks, and a single careless sentence can be enough to create suspicion. When even thoughts are expected to be monitored, what ultimately disappears is not only freedom of expression but also trust between people.

Democrats Block Trillion-Dollar Pentagon Budget Over Trump's Iran War

Resistance to Donald Trump's war against Iran has now reached the United States Congress. Senate Democrats blocked the massive defense spending bill, bringing the most important military legislation of the year to a halt for the first time. The measure failed by a vote of 50 to 46, falling short of the votes needed to advance. As a result, not only are planned pay raises for service members now on hold, but so are numerous Pentagon procurement and weapons programs. The immediate trigger is the war against Iran, which has now entered its fifth month. Democrats accuse Trump of dragging the United States deeper into a conflict whose objective no one can clearly explain. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said the defense bill must not become a blank check for a military policy that presents Congress with faits accomplis. Trump, he argued, cannot continue leading the country deeper into war while expecting Congress to quietly approve billions of dollars to fund it.

The confrontation intensified after the White House officially informed Congress that airstrikes against Iran had resumed, effectively ending what had already been a fragile ceasefire. For months, Congress has repeatedly attempted to limit the president's war powers through a series of resolutions. Every one of those efforts has failed because of Republican majorities. At the same time, the dispute over military spending continues to grow. After approximately $900 billion last year, the administration is now seeking as much as $1.5 trillion for defense and war-related spending. That comes on top of additional funding requests for operations against Iran. Even within the Republican Party, more lawmakers are now calling for far stricter oversight of those expenditures.

Several senators are also seeking to increase pressure on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. If the department refuses to provide requested records concerning internal procedures and controversial airstrikes, lawmakers want to suspend portions of his official travel budget. Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth made clear that she will support the defense bill only if it also includes an end to the Iran war. Simply pouring more money into an expanding military operation, she said, is not a strategy. It is the surest path to a war with no end.

Trump Pays E. Jean Carroll $5.6 Million - Court Defeat Is Now Final

Donald Trump has paid E. Jean Carroll the $5.6 million awarded to her by the court. That brings one of the most significant civil cases against the president to a legally binding conclusion. The money had been held in a court-supervised escrow account since the 2023 verdict while Trump exhausted every available appeal. After the United States Supreme Court declined, without explanation, to hear his final appeal, U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan ordered the immediate release of the funds. With accumulated interest, the original $5 million judgment had grown to approximately $5.625 million.

Read also our articles:

The Verdict Stands: A Jury Found Trump Liable for Sexual Abuse - And No Court Has Overturned It

What Remains When the Statement Becomes the Crime - The U.S. Justice System at the Edge

83 Million Dollars, a President, and a Court System That Keeps Delaying

Trump Keeps Fighting Carroll Verdict - Now the Supreme Court Is Supposed to Help Again

Trump Fails in Appeals Court - $83 Million Judgment to E. Jean Carroll Upheld

A President Facing the End of Excuses – Trump Loses Appeal in the E. Jean Carroll Case

A federal jury in Manhattan found Trump civilly liable for sexually abusing E. Jean Carroll inside a department store during the 1990s and for later defaming her. Carroll testified that Trump assaulted her and later dismissed her account on social media as a hoax and a lie. Those public attacks, in addition to the finding of sexual abuse, formed the basis for the damages awarded against him. Trump continues to deny all responsibility. Following the Supreme Court's decision, he again claimed he did not know Carroll and described the case as fabricated.

Carroll's attorney, Roberta Kaplan, confirmed that her client has now received the full payment. The White House referred requests for comment to Trump's private legal team. A spokesman for his attorneys said the American people stand with the president and want an end to what he called politically motivated witch hunts. None of that changed the legal reality. After every appellate court upheld the verdict and the Supreme Court declined further review, no legal avenue remained.

Judge Lewis A. Kaplan used unusually direct language in describing Trump's conduct. The president, he wrote, had delayed payment for years and repeatedly prolonged the litigation. Once the jury, the appellate court, and ultimately the Supreme Court had all ruled, it was time for Trump to satisfy the judgment. That order led to the release of the escrowed funds last week. The legal battle between the two sides, however, is still not over. In 2024, another federal jury awarded Carroll an additional $83.3 million after finding that Trump had again defamed her in 2019. He continues to challenge that judgment as well. His attorneys are preparing another appeal to the Supreme Court. If that effort also fails, Trump could soon be required to pay another multimillion-dollar judgment.

Six Iranian Supertankers Slip Through the Strait of Hormuz Before New Blockade Begins

Just hours before the United States announced a new naval blockade against Iran, at least six U.S.-sanctioned supertankers quietly passed through the Strait of Hormuz. During the transit, the vessels switched off their transponders, temporarily disappearing from civilian maritime tracking systems. Together, they are capable of transporting roughly 12 million barrels of crude oil. Since July 7, additional Iranian-linked oil tankers, gas carriers, and container ships have also departed the Persian Gulf using the same route. Altogether, Tehran is believed to have exported at least 57 million barrels of oil between the two U.S. naval blockades. The developments demonstrate that sanctions and military pressure have so far failed to halt Iran's oil exports. Quite the opposite. While Washington increased pressure, Tehran used the remaining window of opportunity to move as much oil as possible out of the country. Particularly striking is that, over the past several days, more vessels crossed the strait with their transponders turned off than with them operating normally. Observers therefore believe ships from other countries may also be concealing their movements in the region the same way.

At the same time, the military situation escalated once again. U.S. forces struck targets near the ports of Bandar Abbas and Konarak, on Larak Island, and in the port city of Chabahar. Iran responded by attacking several vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, claiming they had violated Iranian regulations. Traffic through one of the world's most important shipping routes nearly came to a standstill. At the same time, Donald Trump announced that the United States would resume its naval blockade of Iranian ports. Ships not connected to Iran would still be allowed to pass through the strait, but they would now be required to pay a fee. Trump declared that the United States would serve as the "Guardian of the Strait of Hormuz" and would collect 20 percent of the value of every cargo as compensation for providing security in the region.

While new realities are already being created at sea, it remains unclear whether this strategy can truly control the flow of oil. The past several days have demonstrated one fact above all else: despite sanctions, airstrikes, and blockade threats, Iran continues to export substantial quantities of crude oil and remains capable of significantly influencing traffic through one of the world's most important maritime chokepoints.

IBM Loses $69 Billion in a Single Day - AI Is Now Reshaping Corporate Technology Budgets

For IBM, it was the worst trading day in the company's history. Its stock plunged more than 25 percent within hours. Roughly $69 billion in market value disappeared in a single trading session. The immediate trigger was an unusually rare profit warning. But the real shock extends far beyond IBM. It demonstrates that the global race for artificial intelligence is fundamentally reshaping how major corporations spend their technology budgets. According to IBM, many customers are now dramatically shifting their investments. Instead of purchasing new software or consulting services, they are directing money toward servers, memory chips, storage systems, and other hardware needed to operate advanced AI platforms. Chief Executive Arvind Krishna said many companies rapidly redirected spending to secure scarce hardware before prices climb even higher. As a result, IBM lost orders it had fully expected to receive.

The shift is especially visible in the traditional software business. Banks, insurance companies, and major corporations, long among IBM's largest customers, are being forced to rethink their budgets. Billions of dollars are now flowing to providers of AI models and computing infrastructure, leaving less money available elsewhere. Software purchases are being postponed, modernization projects delayed, and consulting contracts canceled. What had once been viewed as an additional growth market is now beginning to displace other areas of the technology industry. IBM is not alone. Adobe, Salesforce, Workday, and ServiceNow also came under significant pressure in the stock market. Investors increasingly fear that rising AI costs are transforming the entire software sector. While manufacturers of graphics processors, memory chips, and AI data centers report record demand, traditional software companies are finding themselves on the defensive. The question is no longer whether companies will invest in AI. It is which existing technology spending they will sacrifice to pay for it.

There is another problem as well. IBM had placed enormous expectations on its new z17 mainframe, designed specifically for artificial intelligence workloads. Even there, however, sales failed to meet expectations. At the same time, shortages of memory chips and other components continue driving costs higher across the technology industry. The real message of this trading day is therefore not that IBM has suddenly become a weak company. It is that artificial intelligence is now reshaping entire corporate investment strategies and can erase tens of billions of dollars from even the oldest technology giants in a matter of hours.