“Federal regulators on Monday directed banks and credit unions to more closely scrutinize the loans they make to immigrants who are in the country illegally [sic], as part of the Trump administration’s broader immigration crackdown. In new guidance, regulators said that undocumented immigrants may present an ‘elevated credit risk’ and warned banks to account for the risk that they may lose their job or be deported as they underwrite new loans. Financial institutions, the guidance says, should take into account that a customer’s status as an unauthorized immigrant may pose a risk to their ability to repay credit cards, mortgages, auto loans or other loans.” (07/13/26)
“Outgoing Colombian President Gustavo Petro has barred President-elect Abelardo De la Espriella from holding his inauguration at a military base, triggering an unprecedented institutional dispute that has clouded the transfer of power and underscored the country’s deep political polarization. Citing his authority as commander-in-chief of the armed forces until Aug. 7, the leftist president blocked De la Espriella’s plan to take the oath of office before military personnel. The incoming government had sought to use the ceremony to signal a sharp break with the outgoing administration’s security policies.” (07/13/26)
“A group of 12 state attorneys general filed a lawsuit on Monday challenging Paramount Skydance’s
proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. The lawsuit seeking to block the merger for antitrust concerns was brought by a group including California Attorney General Rob Bonta. CNBC’s David Faber reported earlier that the lawsuit was expected to come on Monday. Representatives for Paramount and Bonta didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. The deal would combine two storied film studios — Paramount and Warner Bros. — as well as streaming platforms Paramount+ and HBO Max.” (07/13/26)
“The U.S. Department of Justice and the Pentagon have created a joint task force to identify and prosecute what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth described as unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information to news media. ‘I have delegated tasking authority to the War Department’s [sic] Office of General Counsel, empowering OGC to request and receive all information, records, and support across the department concerning media leak investigations,’ Hegseth said in a video posted to X.” [editor’s note: The War Department doesn’t have an Office of General Counsel because the War Department doesn’t exist – TLK] (07/13/26)
“Vusimusi ‘Cat’ Matlala, a key figure in a ongoing police corruption inquiry in South Africa, has withdrawn from a controversial plea deal, serving a blow to prosecutors. The business tycoon pulled out of the agreement after a South African court recommended a higher jail sentence – 12 years instead of the agreed eight. Matlala was accused of bribing top police officials to win a 360m rand ($22m; £16.5m) tender for his health company Medicare24 in 2024. He pleaded guilty last month, as part of a deal that could have seen Matlala giving key evidence against senior officials. Though disappointed by Matlala’s U-turn, the state still believes it has a ‘strong and winnable case’, Kaizer Kganyago, a spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) told journalists on Monday.” (07/13/26)
“India’s consumer price inflation rose to 4.38% in June, up from 3.93% in May as the U.S.-Iran war and a weak monsoon raised food and fuel prices, adding to cost pressures. The headline inflation number was above economists’ expectations for a 4.30% rise, according to a Reuters poll. … Last month, India’s central bank kept interest rates unchanged but said it expects inflation to rise and growth to temper in the financial year ending March 2027.” (07/13/26)
“The European Union coordinated efforts to raise 900 million euros ($1 billion) in aid for Gaza, working with 65 governments and organizations including the White House and the United Nations, the bloc’s top diplomat said Monday. Kaja Kallas announced the fund after a meeting of the Palestine Donors Group in Brussels. ‘The EU is the most credible supporter, for the Palestinian people. We are the largest donor and the strongest backer of the two-state solution,’ she said. The meeting was the second gathering of the Team Gaza Initiative, an effort by the EU to rally support for recovery projects like sanitation and farming in the destitute and war-ravaged coastal enclave of some 2 million people.” (07/13/26)
“El Salvador President Nayib Bukele has secured the nomination of his ruling Nuevas Ideas party for the 2027 presidential election, the party said late on Sunday, following legal changes that cleared the way for his seeking a third term. … In July 2025, the ruling party’s allies in Congress dismantled previous constitutional safeguards and approved new measures that allow indefinite presidential reelection.” (07/13/26)
“A driver was shot dead Monday while [supposedly] trying to mow down Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) [gang members] in Maine, according to authorities. Graphic footage on social media shows a man lying by the side of the road near a car, with a bullet hole visible through the driver’s side of the front windshield following the incident in Biddeford just after 7:15 a.m., the Portland Press Herald reported. The unidentified driver reportedly accelerated at ICE [gang members] at an intersection in the small town before the officers shot him dead, eyewitnesses said. … Details on the fatal shooting are still coming through, although locals reported seeing an increase in ICE [gang] activity in Biddeford in recent weeks.” (07/13/26)
“A proposed legal settlement with the U.S. government would require the Keystone Pipeline system’s operator to pay a $26.9 million civil penalty over a major oil spill in Kansas in December 2022 and spend about $40 million more to prevent future accidents. The agreement would resolve allegations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Kansas that South Bow, based in Canada, violated U.S. and state clean water laws. The rupture dumped nearly 13,000 barrels of heavy crude oil into a creek running through a rural pasture in Washington County, Kansas, about 150 miles (241 kilometers) northwest of Kansas City.” (07/12/26)
