“President Trump on Thursday evening announced a deal for Hamas to disarm in ‘carefully structured phases,’ which, if carried out, would address one of the main sticking points for a broader peace deal in Gaza. … Amit Segal, chief political analyst for Israel’s N12News, outlined some terms earlier in the day, saying Hamas would surrender all weapons within ‘weeks’ to depots guarded by multinational forces, as well as ending all military activity and recruitment. Israel would not withdraw its military behind the ‘yellow line,’ the demarcation that has divided Gaza since a peace framework was announced in October, until disarmament is complete.” (07/30/26)
“President Donald Trump said Thursday he may pull acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination for the full-time post to avoid making concessions to a few Senate Republicans who want him to scale back protections for his family business and potential payouts for his allies that the president negotiated with his own Department of Justice. Trump doubled down on choosing his former personal lawyer as the nation’s top lawman, calling him ‘a STAR,’ and said he will keep him in the role as acting attorney general until Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina leave office. … Cornyn and Tillis, who both leave office next year, have sought additional assurances in writing spelling a final end to that an ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’ as part of Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.” (07/30/26)
“The Senate health committee approved the nomination of Erica Schwartz for Centers for Disease Control director Thursday, a step toward refilling the depleted ranks of the Trump administration’s health care leadership. The committee also approved the nomination of Sean Kaufman, who’s in line for assistant secretary for preparedness and response and had been in trouble because of past anti-vaccine statements. The votes showed Republicans, at least, are still willing to accept the administration’s assurances about the nominees even though committee chair Bill Cassidy has made it clear he’s uneasy with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s policies. The narrow committee endorsements put both nominees in line for votes to be confirmed by the full Senate, which have yet to be scheduled.” (07/30/26)
“At least four people have been killed and dozens injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza despite an ongoing ‘ceasefire’ in the latest violation of the agreement that was meant to help end the genocide. According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health on Thursday, hospitals across the Gaza Strip received six bodies and 34 injured people in the past 24 hours. These include four new deaths, as well as one person who died from previous injuries and one body that was recovered.” (07/30/26)
“Economic growth was weaker than expected in the second quarter while inflation in June held well above the Federal Reserve’s goal, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. Gross domestic product, a broad measure of goods and services, increased just 1.5% for the April-through June period, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers adjusted for seasonality and inflation. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for a growth rate of 1.8%, following the 2.1% increase in the first quarter. A separate report showed that the personal consumption expenditures price index, which is the Federal Reserve’s primary forecasting gauge, fell a seasonally adjusted 0.1% for the month, putting the annual inflation rate at 3.7%. The readings were in line with forecasts.” (07/30/26)
“For the fourth time since the end of the Vietnam War, a United States aircraft carrier made a port call in Vietnam on Thursday, promoting joint security ties at a time when tariffs and the war in Iran have hurt American influence across Asia. The carrier George Washington pulled into the quiet waters near Da Nang on day 70 of its deployment — not far from the beaches where U.S. Marines first landed in 1965, accelerating a war that killed around 58,000 Americans and 2 million Vietnamese. Both countries celebrated the 7-day port call, the longest stay in Vietnam for an American warship since the two countries restored relations in 1995, as a sign of how far the former enemies have come.” (07/30/26)
“The fastest-growing Ebola outbreak has killed more than 1,500 people in eastern Congo, official data released on Thursday showed, marking a 50% increase in around a week that shows the emergency continuing to outpace response efforts. As of Tuesday, 3,442 cases had been recorded, with 1,521 deaths, according to the latest government update. The outbreak, which was declared on May 15, has been linked to the Bundibugyo virus, for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments.” (07/30/26)
In early July, NASA launched a spacecraft designed to rescue the Swift observatory, which is currently decaying at a faster rate than normal, in hopes that it could still collect data for scientists over the coming years. But now that spacecraft itself is in trouble, and the fate of the mission remains unclear. In an update on the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory blog, NASA has revealed that the spacecraft called LINK experienced attitude control issues last weekend, meaning it had problems managing its orientation in space. That caused the spacecraft to spin, which in turn resulted to sporadic communications. … Thankfully, the ground team still has communication with LINK, and it’s planning to use the spacecraft’s electric propulsion thrusters to try and stop its spinning over the coming days.” (07/30/26)
“Best known as Viagra, the erectile dysfunction drug sildenafil started off as a treatment for reduced blood flow but soon saw its value spike after its other effects became clear. The blue pill could have more uses, according to research by scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Tel Aviv. The team found indications that it curbs cancer metastasis via a ‘newly discovered biological mechanism’ drawing upon the drug’s blood dilatation effects. … the team says an analysis of digital health records pointed to ‘significantly improved survival among sildenafil users, with a dose-dependent additive benefit observed when combined with statins.'” (07/30/26)
“The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week but layoffs remain in the historically healthy range of the past few years. U.S. filings for jobless aid in the week ending July 25 rose by 9,000 to 197,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The previous week’s figure was revised up by 1,000 to 188,000 but remains the lowest in more than 50 years. Analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet forecast 207,000 new applications. Weekly filings for unemployment benefits are considered representative of layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the U.S. job market.” (07/30/26)
