Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (1st District of Washington)
Today, Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) highlighted the historic and devastating cuts to federal food programs in President Trump’s megabill that he recently signed into law. Joined by Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients, nutrition advocates, educators, and local food providers, DelBene underscored that thousands of Washington families and children will go hungry because of the cuts in this law.
Last week, Congressional Republicans sent a massive bill to President Trump that slashes over $200 billion from SNAP, imposes new burdens on states, and jeopardizes food assistance for families, children, and seniors across the country. These cuts, along with ones made to Medicaid and student loan repayment programs, were made to fund another massive tax giveaway to ultra-wealthy people and large corporations. The law is estimated to add over $4 trillion to the national debt.
In Washington, 900,000 people receive SNAP with an average benefit of only $6 per day. Because of Trump’s new law, more than 130,000 residents could lose some or all of their benefits under this legislation. The state has said that all SNAP recipients in Washington will see their benefits cut to some degree.
“No one should go hungry in the wealthiest country on Earth. This Republican megabill imposes cruel, unnecessary cuts that hurt working families, children, veterans, and seniors just to fund tax breaks for billionaires,” said DelBene. “These cuts will make it harder for people to feed their families and for local food banks to meet the growing need. I’ll continue fighting back against these harmful policies.”
“President Trump’s cruel bill will literally take food away from thousands of Washington children to pay for tax cuts for billionaires,” said Governor Bob Ferguson. “For many families, they’re already working to stretch every dollar. Hunger impacts kids’ performance in school, their health and their physical development. These cuts will adversely impact a generation of kids into the future.”
“In recent years, we’ve seen firsthand how interconnected food security is with housing, healthcare, education, and employment. SNAP plays a vital role in the safety net. When benefits are reduced—especially at the scale we are now seeing—families don’t just feel the impact, they’re forced into impossible choices: rent or groceries, medication or meals,” said Carla Rankin, Executive Director, Arlington Food Bank. “While food banks like ours work tirelessly to bridge the gap, we are not a substitute for strong federal nutrition programs. We rely on public support, private donations, and an army of volunteers—and those resources are not infinite.”
“What we anticipate with these SNAP and Medicaid cuts is we’re going to have increased demand on our services, because right now, we’re only serving about 50% of the eligible population for WIC, so we know our caseload is really going to increase,” said Nicole Flateboe, Executive Director, Nutrition First. “The One Big Beautiful Bill has also cut Medicaid, which we rely upon for establishing eligibility for our clients, so, that’s going to just create increased administrative burden and red tape for getting these folks on the program.”
Organizations represented at the event included Arlington Community Food Bank, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, Volunteers of America Western Washington, Arlington School District, Arlington Farmers Market, Washington State University SNAP-Ed, and Nutrition First.
Source: United States Senator for Nebraska Deb Fischer
Today, U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced she advanced $16 million in additional funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) facility at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s (UNL) Innovation Campus through the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The funding was included in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which now awaits consideration on the Senate Floor.
“The USDA Ag Research Service facility located at UNL will be a hub for world class agricultural innovation. That’s why I was pleased to advocate for this funding to construct the second phase of the ARS Center, which will continue to help attract students, scientists, and industry leaders who are focused on turning valuable research into tangible products for our farmers and ranchers,” Fischer said.
Fischer also secured additional funding and provisions for Nebraska, which include:
$1.5 million for the National Drought Mitigation Center at UNL;
Prioritizing ARS research for the beef industry at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center (USMARC) in Clay Center, Nebraska; and
Requiring the USDA to streamline contracting and procurement services for livestock research facilities to help USMARC with cost overruns on facility improvements.
Source: United States Senator for Maine Susan Collins
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Susan Collins, Chair of the Appropriations Committee, announced that she secured significant funding and provisions for projects in Maine in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.
The measure, which was advanced by a unanimous vote of 27-0, provides $27.1 billion in discretionary funding. Committee markup of the FY 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill is an important step that now allows the bill to be considered by the full Senate.
“By assisting Maine’s farmers and investing in critical agricultural research and nutrition programs, this bill would support rural communities throughout the state,” said Senator Collins. “As the Chair of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to champion this funding as the appropriations process moves forward.”
Bill Highlights:
Local Projects: More than $25 million for Congressionally Directed Spending projects in Maine.
PFAS Research: $10 million, an increase of $3 million above the FY 2025 enacted level, for the Center of Excellence for PFAS solutions throughout Agricultural and Food Systems in conjunction with the University of Maine.
Potato Research: Maintains full funding for the National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s potato research programs.
Potatoes in School Breakfast: Maintains provision that allows school food authorities to provide potatoes through the School Breakfast Program.
Farm Loss: Includes language directing the Farm Services Agency to provide a report to the Committee on what factors are leading to agricultural production and farm loss in New England, and to include historical and projected data on acreage and crop types.
Neurology Drug Program: $5 million for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Neurology Drug Program to support the development of policies and guidance to keep pace with emerging brain science.
Nutrition: Fully funds nutrition assistance programs that support low-income women, children, and seniors.
This article was first published in The Conversation UK’s World Affairs Briefing email newsletter. Sign up to receive weekly analysis of the latest developments in international relations, direct to your inbox.
It was revealing this week to read reports of Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with Donald Trump (his third White House visit since Trump’s inauguration in January). There was no sense that the US president upped the pressure on the Israeli prime minister to soften Israel’s conditions in order to secure a ceasefire. Instead the pair appears to have discussed the prospect of moving large numbers of Palestinians out of the Gaza Strip to countries what would, as Netanyahu put it, “give Palestinians a better future”.
If Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, has his way, the future for those Palestinians who want to stay put does indeed look pretty bleak. And the 57,000 people who, according to figures collated by the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, have lost their lives since the Israeli assault on Gaza began back in October 2023, have no future at all.
But the plan for the future of Gazan Palestinians that Katz unveiled this week will horrify many too. It involves the construction of a “humanitarian city” at Rafah, close to the Egyptian border at the very southern end of the Strip. Under the plan, people entering the city will be searched for weapons and checked for affiliation to Hamas. Once in, they will not be allowed to leave, except to depart from Gaza altogether.
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This immediately prompted critics to accuse the Israeli government of ethnic cleansing. James Sweeney, an expert in human rights and international law at the University of Lancaster, believes that, if Israel were to carry out Katz’s plan, there would be strong case against political and military leaders for war crimes and crimes against humanity. He argues that the plan amounts at the very least to the forcible transfer of civilians prohibited under the Geneva conventions and the Rome statute, which underpins the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The snag, as Sweeney sees it, is going to be enforcing international law. While there is an ICC warrant out for the arrests of Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, the Israeli prime minister was able to visit Washington without fear of being apprehended. The US doesn’t recognise the ICC and, indeed, the prosecutor that issued the warrant against Netanyahu and Gallant is now subject to US sanctions.
Of course, what happens in Gaza tends to reverberate throughout the region. If hundreds of thousands of Palestinian citizens are moved out of Gaza, it’s likely to be to one of the neighbouring countries. When the idea of a Trump Riviera was first mooted earlier this year, the US president said the Palestinian population could be rehomed in Egypt or Jordan – something both those countries pushed back against with alacrity.
And the powerful Gulf States, which Trump was keen to woo as business partners when he made a tour of the region in May, are also deeply concerned about Israel’s conduct of its military campaign in Gaza. Geopolitics aside, their populations are broadly sympathetic to the Palestinian people, so a plan to force them out of their homes is unacceptable for Gulf leaders.
Scott Lucas, an expert in Middle East politics at University College Dublin, gives us a broader view of the region. He describes what he calls two “kaleidoscope moments” when one event has changed the entire region. The first was the Hamas attack of October 7. This brought to an abrupt end the process of normalisation of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia. The second was the 12-day war between Israel and Iran, which has further isolated Israel. Lucas believes for there to be any hope of regional stability and the furthering of Israeli relations with the rest of the region, the war in Gaza must end.
Ali Mamouri, a Middle East scholar at Australia’s Deakin University doesn’t believe there’s much chance of this happening any time soon. Part of this is political: Netanyahu still depends on the far-right elements of his coalition represented by national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich. They remain steadfastly opposed to even a ceasefire and want to see Israel expel Palestinians by hook or by crook.
Also, by prolonging the war, Netanyahu can keep delaying his corruption trial (incidentally, Donald Trump has called for the charges to be dropped altogether).
And the idea of full statehood for Palestine remains anathema for Israel, as Netanyahu made clear this week talking with journalists after his meeting with Trump when he made clear his insistence that far from pulling Israeli troops out of Gaza, Israel would keep full control of all security matters there: “Now, people will say: ‘It’s not a complete state, it’s not a state.’ We don’t care,” he said.
Mansour concludes: “The coming weeks will reveal whether Israel chooses the path of compromise and coexistence, or continues down a road that forecloses the possibility of lasting peace.”
Just as the picture remains bleak in Gaza, the prospects for peace remain very slim in Ukraine. Although given Donald Trump’s mercurial approach to foreign affairs, it’s also fair to say that anything is possible.
This week the US president decided to recommence US arms supplies to Ukraine, having previously frozen military aid (although he insists this was done by his defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, and that he was “blindsided” by the move). His relationship with Putin appears to have soured – for the present at least. He said: “We get a lot of bullshit thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth. He’s very nice all of the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
And at the most recent Nato summit in The Hague on June 25, Trump put his signature to a declaration that Russia poses “long-term threat … to Euro-Atlantic security” and that Nato member states retain “their enduring sovereign commitments to provide support to Ukraine”.
But Stefan Wolff, an expert in international security at the University of Birmingham, believes that Nato’s European members cannot bank on the US as a reliable long-term partner. There are few signs that the US is pressuring Russia to compromise on its maximalist aims, which remain unchanged since it invaded Ukraine in February 2022. So Russia remains the most urgent threat to European security. And it’s a threat that Europe will need to prepare to confront, if necessary without US assistance.
But there are signs that many European countries are preparing to do just that, Wolff writes. Increased commitments to defence spending are a strong start. As he concludes: “They will not turn Europe into a military heavyweight overnight. But they will buy time to do so.”
Understandably, much of the reporting of the war in Ukraine has focused on the human tragedy unfolding in the war-torn country: the enormous casualty list on both sides, civilians killed or forced from their homes in the fighting, and the Ukrainian citizens forced to live under Russian occupation.
But a new film, which premiered recently at the Tribeca film festival, looks at War Through the Eyes of Animals. Janine Natalya Clark, an expert in transitional justice at the University of Birmingham, has done similar. Clark interviewed a number of Ukrainian natural scientists including botanists, ornithologists, herpetologists (who study reptiles and amphibians) and a marine biologist. She asked them to make sound recordings in their area to reflect on how the war is affecting Ukraine’s flora and fauna.
What emerged was extraordinary and reflects how the conflict has affected the natural world in both positive and negative ways. Clark believes that this information will be invaluable when it comes to rebuilding Ukraine and in securing justice and reparations for the damage done – not just to humans, but to Ukraine’s animals and the habitats in which they live.
In Russia, meanwhile, a controversial measure introduced by the Putin government is dividing public opinion. In some parts of the country, schoolgirls who become pregnant are being paid more than 100,000 roubles (nearly £900) for giving birth and raising their babies.
Jannifer Mathers, a Russia expert at Aberystwyth University, looks at the rise of pronatalism in the face of declining populations and finds it’s not just an issue in Russia, but for many other countries as well, including the US.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
An observational study published in Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine looks at gabapentin prescription for chronic pain and the risk of dementia and cognitive impairment.
Prof Ian Maidment, Professor in Clinical Pharmacy, Aston University, said:
“This study found an association between gabapentin and dementia. It was an observation study and therefore conclusions about causality cannot be drawn. Furthermore, the research did not control for length of treatment or dose of gabapentin. Other similar recent studies have failed to find a link. Therefore, overall the jury is out on whether gabapentin causes dementia.”
Prof Martin Prince, Professor of Epidemiological Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, said:
“This is an interesting pharmaco-epidemiological study, using a retrospective (historical) cohort design, and reporting a significant increased risk of dementia incidence among those prescribed gabapentin for chronic low back pain. The authors are right to stress that they are reporting an association, and not necessarily a causal link. As I will discuss, confounding and reverse causality are tenable explanations for the observed effects. The strengths of the study include a large sample size, a long surveillance period, a state of the art propensity matching on a large number of potential confounding factors, and additional confounders controlled for in the analysis.
“There are some issues apparent with the research.
The most significant is that the title of the paper (which refers only to chronic low back pain) appears to be misleading. Closer reading of the research methods reveals that the inclusion criteria were actually “chronic pain (ICD- 10- CM G89.29), chronic pain syndrome (ICD- 10- CM G89.4), lumbar radiculopathy (ICD- 10- CM M54.16), or chronic low back pain (ICD- 10- CM M54.5)”. This is a much broader group, and would include, among other conditions, post-herpetic neuralgia and painful diabetic and other peripheral neuropathies, which are particularly common indications for prescription of gabapentin. There is an inconclusive literature linking shingles episodes to an increased risk of dementia (and suggesting that the Shingrix vaccine may lower the risk), and recent research using the UK biobank linking multisite chronic pain with the incidence of dementia and hippocampal atrophy (1). None of this body of potentially relevant research was referenced or discussed in the current paper. Confounding by indication therefore remains a distinct possibility – the condition that gabapentin is treating, rather than the drug itself being responsible for the increased dementia risk. Of note is that use of gabapentin would likely be reserved for those with more severe pain, and therefore a more severe underlying condition. While the investigators clearly sought to limit the potential for confounding by indication (for example by excluding from consideration individuals prescribed gabapentin for epilepsy), their efforts are likely to have been only partially successful. Reverse causality must always be considered in dementia cohort studies given the 20 years or more interval between the earliest detectable signs of Alzheimer’s Disease (from neuroimaging and blood biomarkers) and clinical onset. Those diagnosed with dementia would not, strictly speaking, have been dementia-free at cohort inception. It is possible that the CNS effects of Alzheimer’s disease modulate pain processing and appreciation, leading to more complaints of more severe pain, at multiple sites. Hence that Alzheimer’s disease caused the pain, and, ultimately the Gabapentin prescription, not vice versa. Or that there is an underlying common cause, for example inflammation, that is driving both the neurodegeneration and the neuropathic pain.
I could not understand why mild cognitive impairment, frontotemporal dementia and dementia with Lewy Bodies were listed as factors that were propensity matched at baseline, when the onset of mild cognitive impairment and all cause dementia were outcomes of interest and hence presumably excluded at baseline? It isn’t very clearly explained. It is possible that those with MCI at baseline were left in when assessing dementia as an outcome, but excluded when assessing MCI as an outcome. But leaving FTD and DLB cases in at baseline (with the implicit assumption that they could be considered as remaining at risk for developing AD or vascular dementia), seems to be an odd approach.
Since, apparently, separate diagnostic codes for Alzheimer’s Disease and Vascular dementia were available, I am surprised that no attempt was made to explore whether the association with gabapentin prescription was similar or different across the two sub-types. The relationship of gabapentin use to both AD polygenic risk scores, and AD-specific blood biomarkers would also be another area for future research.”
W. Zhao, L. Zhao, X. Chang, X. Lu, & Y. Tu, Elevated dementia risk, cognitive decline, and hippocampal atrophy in multisite chronic pain, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 120 (9) e2215192120, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2215192120 (2023).
Prof Tara Spires-Jones, Director of the Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh, Group Leader in the UK Dementia Research Institute, and Past President of the British Neuroscience Association said:
“This study by Eghrari and colleagues examined medical records from over 24,000 people in the US and found that prescription of the medication gabapentin for chronic pain was associated with a higher risk of developing dementia. While authors used statistical methods to try and account for other risk factors, this type of study cannot prove that gabapentin was the cause of increased dementia risk. One very important factor that was not examined in this study is levels of physical activity. People with chronic pain requiring gabapentin may have been less physically active, which is a known risk factor for developing dementia.”
Prof Sir John Hardy, Group Leader at the UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL, said:
“While this is interesting, one has to worry that these types of findings are artefactual and result (for example) from a marginal acute effect on cognitive performance rather than effects on the underlying disease.”
Dr Leah Mursaleen, Head of Clinical Research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said:
“Research shows that nearly half (45%) of dementia cases could be prevented or delayed if 14 health and lifestyle risk factors are addressed by people and society. At the moment, there’s not enough evidence to suggest pain medications are linked to higher dementia risk, but this research gives us interesting insights.
“This large observational study looked at health records of over 26,000 people in the US diagnosed with chronic lower back pain and who were prescribed gabapentin within a 10-year period. They found gabapentin prescription was associated with an increased risk of dementia and mild cognitive impairment, especially in people under the age of 65.
“Some of the strengths of this research was the large sample size and some dementia risk factors were considered, such as age and high blood pressure.
“However, this study only shows an association between gabapentin prescriptions and mild cognitive impairment or dementia, so we do not know if the medication is directly causing the higher risk. Gabapentin dosage wasn’t recorded, and there was no information on how long people were on the medication.
“Because this study only used health records of people with chronic pain, we cannot rule out other factors that might be influencing the findings. And previous studies looking at people prescribed gabapentin for other conditions like seizures, didn’t show a link between the medication and higher dementia risk.
“Managing chronic pain is very important and if anyone has any concerns about the medication they are receiving, they should speak to their doctor.”
‘Risk of dementia following gabapentin prescription in chronic low back pain patients’ byNafis B Eghrariet al.was published inRegional Anesthesia & Pain Medicineat 23:30 UK time on Thursday 10 July.
DOI:10.1136/rapm-2025- 106577
Declared interests
Prof Ian Maidment: No declarations of interest
Prof Martin Prince: No conflicts of interest to report
Prof Tara Spires-Jones: I have no conflicts with this study but have received payments for consulting, scientific talks, or collaborative research over the past 10 years from AbbVie, Sanofi, Merck, Scottish Brain Sciences, Jay Therapeutics, Cognition Therapeutics, Ono, and Eisai. I am also Charity trustee for the British Neuroscience Association and the Guarantors of Brain and serve as scientific advisor to several charities and non-profit institutions.
Prof Sir John Hardy: Have consulted for Eisai
For all other experts, no reply to our request for DOIs was received.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 10 (Xinhua) — Chinese Vice Premier Liu Guozhong on Thursday stressed the need to enhance fundamental research and scientific and technological innovation capacity in the pharmaceutical field.
Liu Guozhong, also a member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, visited the Institute of Materia Medica of Peking University, where he learned about the pharmacological research and development, construction progress and operation of key laboratories, and held a symposium to hear opinions and suggestions from various interested parties.
According to the Vice Premier of the State Council, it is necessary to intensify joint research and policy implementation, putting people’s lives and health first, and promote the development of innovative drugs and medical equipment, thereby providing strong support for the promotion of the Healthy China initiative.
Noting the positive dynamics of innovative development of Chinese pharmaceuticals in recent years, Liu Guozhong called for joint research efforts by enterprises, universities, research institutes and medical institutions, stressing that new technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data should be fully utilized to accelerate the formation of databases related to life and health.
Liu Guozhong also called for expanding high-level opening-up and deepening international exchanges and cooperation in pharmaceutical technology to better protect people’s health and well-being. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source:Te Whakarōputanga Kaitiaki Kura o Aotearoa (NZSTA)
More than 700 school board members, education leaders and sector experts are converging on Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre this weekend for the 35th Annual Te Whakarōputanga Kaitiaki Kura o Aotearoa – New Zealand School Boards Association (NZSBA) Conference, the largest event of its kind dedicated to school governance in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The conference opens today under the theme Creating a Difference, reflecting the crucial role that boards play in shaping the future of schools and student success across the country.
Over the next three days delegates will take part in a wide-ranging programme of keynote presentations, workshops and networking events designed to equip school board members with the knowledge, tools and inspiration to lead effectively. Highlights include keynote addresses by Minister of Education Hon Erica Stanford, education thought leader Professor Mere Berryman and renowned neuroscience educator Kathryn Berkett.
Alongside the learning programme, the conference also provides opportunities for connection and celebration, including the Gallagher Insurance Gala Dinner themed Once Upon a Change, which will bring delegates together to recognise the impact of governance done well.
NZSBA President Meredith Kennett says this year’s event comes at a pivotal moment for education governance.
“We’re seeing major shifts across the sector – from changing legislation to new technologies and increasing expectations of transparency and engagement. This conference is about supporting our boards to rise to these challenges and continue to make a positive difference in their communities.”
The conference runs from Friday 11 July to Sunday 13 July.
Source: United States Senator for New York Kirsten Gillibrand
Withheld Funding Will Force Schools To Cancel Free And Affordable After-School Care For Low-Income Kids And Other Critical Programs
Last Year, New York State Received $464 Million From These Federal Programs
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand held a virtual press conference demanding that the Trump administration release $7 billion in federal funding for schools nationwide. The administration is currently withholding the resources, which fund before- and after-school programs, professional development for teachers, STEM education, accelerated learning courses, college and career counseling, and school-based mental health services. Last year, this federal funding amounted to 13.5% of total K-12 funding for New York. Gillibrand sent a letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon and OMB Director Russell Vought demanding answers on how long the administration plans to withhold this funding and when, if ever, they will release it.
“President Trump is once again playing games with our kids’ futures,”said Senator Gillibrand.“The funds he is withholding go toward commonsense programs that help our kids thrive in school and prepare to get good-paying jobs in the future. They pay for before– and after-school programs that let parents stay in the workforce and professional development programs that make sure teachers are using cutting-edge strategies to reach students. Losing this funding will be catastrophic for our schools, our kids, and our families. The Trump administration must release these funds immediately.”
Among others, the following grant programs are having their disbursements withheld by the Trump administration:
Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants, which support professional development and other activities to improve the effectiveness of teachers and school leaders, including reducing class size. New York State received almost $126 million from this grant program last year.
21st Century Community Learning Centers, which support high-quality before- and after-school programs focused on providing academic enrichment opportunities for students. New York State received over $102 million from this grant program last year.
Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants, which provide flexible funding for school districts for a wide range of activities, including supporting STEM education, accelerated learning courses, college and career counseling, school-based mental health services, and improving school technology, among many others. New York State received over $107 million from this grant program last year.
The letter was also signed by Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Representatives Nydia Velázquez (D-NY-07), Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY-08), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY-13), Dan Goldman (D-NY-10), Paul Tonko (D-NY-20), Yvette Clarke (D-NY-09), Jerry Nadler (D-NY-12), Grace Meng (D-NY-06), George Latimer (D-NY-16), Gregory Meeks (D-NY-05), John Mannion (D-NY-22), Josh Riley (D-NY-19), Joe Morelle (D-NY-25), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY-14), Ritchie Torres (D-NY-15), Pat Ryan (D-NY-18), and Tom Suozzi (D-NY-03).
The full text of the letter is available here or below:
Dear Secretary McMahon and Director Vought:
As members of the New York congressional delegation, we write to respectfully raise urgent concerns regarding the Department of Education’s decision to withhold nearly $7 billion dollars in already enacted federal funding for Fiscal Year 2025 that states, local governments, and schools across the country rely on to provide critical resources and services to millions of students.
On June 30th, state educational agencies were informed that the following five grant programs authorized under the Every Student Succeeds Act1 and one program sixth under the Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act would not receive their anticipated disbursements on July 1st:
1. Migrant Education Program (Title I, Part C) – State Grants: Funds support migratory children in reaching challenging academic standards and graduating from high school.
2. Supporting Effective Instruction State Grants (Title II, Part A): Funds support increasing student achievement by improving the quality and effectiveness of educators and underserved students’ access to effective educators.
3. English Language Acquisition State Grants; Title III, Part A: Funds help students learn English and meet challenging state academic standards.
4. Student Support and Academic Enrichment Program (Title IV, Part A): Funds support improving student academic achievement, including by providing students with access to a well-rounded education, improving school conditions for student learning, and improving the use of technology.
5. Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers (Title IV, Part B): Funds provide academic enrichment opportunities such as literacy and other educational services during non-school hours (e.g., through after-school or summer programs) for students and families—particularly those in underserved and low-performing schools.
6. Adult Basic and Literacy Education State Grants (including Integrated English Literacy and Civics Education State Grants): Funds support adult education and literacy services programs locally, including workplace literacy services; family literacy services; English literacy programs and integrated English literacy-civics education programs.
The funds currently being held up by review were not only approved by Congress in the FY24 appropriations law, but they were also extended under the FY25 full-year continuing resolution that President Trump signed into law. While summer programming can continue because New York public schools are funded through August, this reckless delay of over $400 million dollars 2 , which accounts for 10% of federal K-12 funding in New York is alarming local educators and program directors throughout the state. It is also disrupting school and district planning, jeopardizing programming for millions of students, and could result in layoffs and program cancellations.
Based upon a recent survey from Boys & Girls Clubs of America, 926 Boys & Girls Clubs could be forced to shut their doors, and more than 220,000 kids – including over 2,700 youth and teens in New York – will lose access to healthy meals, meaningful mentorship, and safe spaces during the most vulnerable hours of the day. It would also mean the loss of over 5,900 jobs at Boys & Girls Clubs around the country, specifically more than 182 youth development professionals in New York, that are currently operating current summer learning camps and fall learning programs.
In response to informal outreach from congressional offices, states, and stakeholders, the Department of Education has directed all questions to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) as the source of the delay. However, this attempt to redirect inquiries does not abdicate the Department of its statutory obligation to distribute authorized and appropriated funds in a timely manner. As highlighted in a recent article from the non-partisan Learning Policy Institute3 , the Administration’s withholding of these funds appears to violate both the Impoundment Control Act and the plain language of the FY25 appropriations law.
Accordingly, we respectfully request the Department of Education and Office of Management and Budget to respond to the following questions:
1. As of July 1st, current withholding of funds appears to violate the Impoundment Control Act. What legal justification is the Department and OMB relying on to delay disbursement of these formula grant funds, despite clear statutory direction?
2. Are the Department and OMB aware of the service interruptions for students and educators in New York as funds are being reviewed?
3. What communication has been shared with state educational agencies to help them and their partners navigate this period of uncertainty, especially regarding staffing and programming for September?
4. When does the Administration anticipate it will have completed its review and will release the enacted funding to states to use for the school year starting next month? Or does the Administration plan to submit a request to Congress to rescind this enacted funding?
The Department of Education’s mission is to promote student achievement and ensure equal access to education. Delaying congressionally approved funding deeply undermines that goal and threatens to widen existing opportunity gaps particularly for English learners, low-income families, and communities of color.
We urge you to disburse all $6.9 billion dollars currently being reviewed and provide immediate clarity to states, districts, and community partners who are now facing chaos in their planning and programming. Our students deserve better.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Classes of all day schools, including secondary schools, primary schools, special schools, kindergartens, and kindergartens-cum-child care centres, are suspended today (July 11). If classes of evening schools are required to be suspended tonight, the Education Bureau will make the announcement in due course.
Meanwhile, the Secondary One registration originally scheduled for today is rescheduled to next Monday, July 14. If parents are unable to register in person or through an authorised representative on the above dates, please contact the allocated secondary school or the School Places Allocation Section of the Education Bureau (Tel: 2832 7700 or 2832 7740) to make appropriate registration arrangements.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
Classes of all day schools, including secondary schools, primary schools, special schools, kindergartens, and kindergartens-cum-child care centres, are suspended today (July 11). If classes of evening schools are required to be suspended tonight, the Education Bureau will make the announcement in due course.
Meanwhile, the Secondary One registration originally scheduled for today is rescheduled to next Monday, July 14. If parents are unable to register in person or through an authorised representative on the above dates, please contact the allocated secondary school or the School Places Allocation Section of the Education Bureau (Tel: 2832 7700 or 2832 7740) to make appropriate registration arrangements.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Treena Clark, Chancellor’s Indigenous Research Fellow, Faculty of Design and Society, University of Technology Sydney
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains images of deceased people.
First Nations garments have always held deep meaning. What we wear tells stories about culture, Country and community.
From the moment of invasion, clothing and adornment were removed and used to erase our cultural presence. But resistance never stopped.
Today, First Nations designers, artists and community members continue to reclaim garments as acts of survival, empowerment and self-determination.
Cultural practices like cloak-making and adornment are linked to wellbeing. They restore pride, connect to ancestors and Country, and build community.
First Nations fashion designers and artists create exquisite items that represent culture, speak back to colonisation, and contribute to healing.
A shared experience
Like so many others, what I wear is deeply personal. I have my dad’s old Aboriginal rugby guernsey. He wore it for years. Now I wear it. It’s a piece of him I get to carry.
It’s a part of what links me to my research in understanding First Nations fashion and style as living expressions of who we are.
I had the chance to yarn with 20 Aboriginal Knowledge Holders from Tarntanya (Adelaide), Naarm (Melbourne) and Warrane (Sydney) about their fashion and style choices.
Like many of the people I spoke to in this study, we use First Nations fashion and style as a way to stay connected to culture and community and express identity and resistance.
Fashion as connection and solidarity
For many of the Knowledge Holders I spoke with, wearing First Nations clothing and adornment connects them to culture and community.
It becomes a way to share who they are and stand together in a world that has tried to silence and erase them.
The Knowledge Holders wear everything from subtle pins and badges to bold hoodies, t-shirts and merch with Aboriginal flag motifs and slogans. Some choose delicate shawls or clothing with cultural artworks.
As one Knowledge Holder put it, it’s “a contribution, a brick in the wall” that helps the building of identity and belonging.
For mob living off-Country in cities or overseas, wearing culture becomes an important way to stay connected.
This sense of connection can also show up in the most ordinary places.
Several Knowledge Holders shared how wearing an Aboriginal shirt in places like the supermarket often sparks a moment of connection. Sometimes they approach others, sometimes they’re the ones approached.
Fashion as pride and cultural practice
For most of the Knowledge Holders, wearing First Nations clothing affirms their Aboriginality and gives them a sense of pride.
For some, it’s about proudly showing who they are, especially in a society where racism still exists. That pride runs through generations.
Some talked about how they weren’t always allowed to show their First Nations identity openly, but now they can wear cultural clothing freely, all of the time.
The Knowledge Holders wear First Nations fashions at work, in shops, when travelling overseas, at graduations and especially at cultural events or protests.
Another Knowledge Holder shared how fashion filled a gap, giving First Nations people the words and symbols to express their culture and identity.
This Knowledge Holder declared, “fashion helped the pride come out”.
Others shared that even though wearing these clothes can mean dealing with racism or ignorance, they still choose to show that pride.
Fashion as identity and protest
For many of the Knowledge Holders, First Nations fashion and style is a way to strengthen their identity, share culture and protest.
They talked about wearing protest clothing as a clear political statement, especially at marches, NAIDOC events or on Invasion Day.
For many, clothing is how they show who they are, both to themselves and to others.
One Knowledge Holder said
if I don’t wear something Indigenous, they wouldn’t know that I was.
Some pointed out that First Nations fashion and style can be an important sign for them, especially if they feel they “pass” as non-Indigenous or look ethnically ambiguous.
But not all Knowledge Holders use fashion to show their identity. One told me they only wear First Nations clothing in solidarity with others, not as personal expression.
There’s more to learn and do
First Nations fashion and style is so much more than just clothing. It’s memory, resistance and a story we carry on our bodies.
As one of the Knowledge Holders put it:
we wasn’t allowed to be proud of it. Now we can wear [an Aboriginal] t-shirt whenever, all day every day.
That says it all. But there’s still work to do. We need to keep learning and understanding about all the different layers and identities that shape these experiences.
There is more research to be done to include more voices, like those of diverse genders and sexualities, Torres Strait Islanders and regional fashion scenes.
And it’s not just about research. We need more policies, more exhibitions, more programs and more platforms that celebrate First Nations fashion and style.
Treena Clark has received funding through the University of Technology Sydney Chancellor’s Indigenous Research Fellowship scheme.
US President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on Australia’s pharmaceutical exports to the United States has raised alarm among industry and government leaders.
There are fears that, if implemented, the tariffs could cost the Australian economy up to A$2.8 billion. That’s both in direct exports and as inputs to third countries that produce drugs also hit by tariffs.
The proposed tariffs come amid growing pressure from pharmaceutical lobby groups in the US for Trump to use trade negotiations as a tool to make changes to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and raise Australian drug prices.
In response, Treasurer Jim Chalmers stated the government would not compromise the integrity of the PBS to do a deal with the Trump administration. Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie also confirmed bipartisan support for the PBS.
Our largest export market for pharmaceuticals
The US is Australia’s biggest pharmaceutical export market, accounting for 38% of total Australian pharmaceutical exports and valued at $2.2 billion last year.
About 87% of exports to the US consist of blood plasma products, mainly from manufacturing giant CSL. These are used for transfusions in a range of medical and surgical situations.
In a submission to the US Commerce Department, which is reviewing the sector, CSL called for tariffs to be phased in over five years, and for an exemption for certain biotech equipment.
Trump floated proposed tariffs potentially as high as 200%. But he also said these would not be imposed for “about a year, a year and a half” to allow negotiations to take place.
It helps reduce the cost of essential medications, ensuring access to treatments for a wide range of medical conditions. Medicines included on the PBS are subsidised by the government, with the patient making a capped co-payment. More than 900 medicines were listed on the scheme in 2023–24, costing the government $17.7 billion.
Decisions to list medications on the PBS are made by the health minister based on recommendations from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. The committee evaluates the clinical effectiveness, safety, cost-effectiveness (“value for money”) and estimated financial impact of new medications.
If approved, the PBS uses this information to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies, helping to keep prices affordable.
How does the US system compare?
This contrasts with the US system, which operates more under free-market principles. In the US, pharmaceuticals are subsidised through private health insurance or government programs such as Medicaid. Neither directly negotiates with pharmaceutical companies.
The fragmented nature of the US system enables pharmaceutical companies to maintain higher prices, as there is no central authority to enforce cost controls. Studies have shown that prices for pharmaceuticals in the US are, on average, 2.78 times those in 33 other countries.
In addition, in the US pharmaceutical companies are granted extensive patent protections. These provide exclusive rights to sell their drugs for a certain period.
This exclusivity often leads to monopolistic pricing practices, as generic competitors are barred from entering the market until the patent expires.
In Australia, patents also exist. But the PBS mitigates their impact by negotiating prices and promoting the use of cost-effective alternatives, such as generics, once they become available.
Industry lobbying
US pharmaceutical industry bodies have long criticised the PBS. They claim the scheme “undervalues new innovative medicines by setting prices based on older inferior medicines and generics, and through use of low and outdated monetary thresholds per year of life gained from clinically proven treatments”.
The slow process to list drugs on the PBS has also attracted criticism. The advisory committee meets only three times a year, with resources currently being stretched beyond capacity.
In response to these criticisms, the Australian government commissioned a review, which was completed in 2024. It provided 50 recommendations to ensure Australians can continue to access effective, safe and affordable medicines in an equitable and timely way.
The government has established an advisory group to work on implementing these recommendations. However, it is unclear whether proposed changes will appease the powerful US pharmaceutical industry.
I am responsible for evaluating new health technologies for consideration of government subsidy through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS)
US President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on Australia’s pharmaceutical exports to the United States has raised alarm among industry and government leaders.
There are fears that, if implemented, the tariffs could cost the Australian economy up to A$2.8 billion. That’s both in direct exports and as inputs to third countries that produce drugs also hit by tariffs.
The proposed tariffs come amid growing pressure from pharmaceutical lobby groups in the US for Trump to use trade negotiations as a tool to make changes to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and raise Australian drug prices.
In response, Treasurer Jim Chalmers stated the government would not compromise the integrity of the PBS to do a deal with the Trump administration. Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie also confirmed bipartisan support for the PBS.
Our largest export market for pharmaceuticals
The US is Australia’s biggest pharmaceutical export market, accounting for 38% of total Australian pharmaceutical exports and valued at $2.2 billion last year.
About 87% of exports to the US consist of blood plasma products, mainly from manufacturing giant CSL. These are used for transfusions in a range of medical and surgical situations.
In a submission to the US Commerce Department, which is reviewing the sector, CSL called for tariffs to be phased in over five years, and for an exemption for certain biotech equipment.
Trump floated proposed tariffs potentially as high as 200%. But he also said these would not be imposed for “about a year, a year and a half” to allow negotiations to take place.
It helps reduce the cost of essential medications, ensuring access to treatments for a wide range of medical conditions. Medicines included on the PBS are subsidised by the government, with the patient making a capped co-payment. More than 900 medicines were listed on the scheme in 2023–24, costing the government $17.7 billion.
Decisions to list medications on the PBS are made by the health minister based on recommendations from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. The committee evaluates the clinical effectiveness, safety, cost-effectiveness (“value for money”) and estimated financial impact of new medications.
If approved, the PBS uses this information to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies, helping to keep prices affordable.
How does the US system compare?
This contrasts with the US system, which operates more under free-market principles. In the US, pharmaceuticals are subsidised through private health insurance or government programs such as Medicaid. Neither directly negotiates with pharmaceutical companies.
The fragmented nature of the US system enables pharmaceutical companies to maintain higher prices, as there is no central authority to enforce cost controls. Studies have shown that prices for pharmaceuticals in the US are, on average, 2.78 times those in 33 other countries.
In addition, in the US pharmaceutical companies are granted extensive patent protections. These provide exclusive rights to sell their drugs for a certain period.
This exclusivity often leads to monopolistic pricing practices, as generic competitors are barred from entering the market until the patent expires.
In Australia, patents also exist. But the PBS mitigates their impact by negotiating prices and promoting the use of cost-effective alternatives, such as generics, once they become available.
Industry lobbying
US pharmaceutical industry bodies have long criticised the PBS. They claim the scheme “undervalues new innovative medicines by setting prices based on older inferior medicines and generics, and through use of low and outdated monetary thresholds per year of life gained from clinically proven treatments”.
The slow process to list drugs on the PBS has also attracted criticism. The advisory committee meets only three times a year, with resources currently being stretched beyond capacity.
In response to these criticisms, the Australian government commissioned a review, which was completed in 2024. It provided 50 recommendations to ensure Australians can continue to access effective, safe and affordable medicines in an equitable and timely way.
The government has established an advisory group to work on implementing these recommendations. However, it is unclear whether proposed changes will appease the powerful US pharmaceutical industry.
I am responsible for evaluating new health technologies for consideration of government subsidy through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS)
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Laurenceson, Director and Professor, Australia-China Relations Institute (UTS:ACRI), University of Technology Sydney
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese leaves for China on Saturday, confident most Australians back the government’s handling of relations with our most important economic partner and the leading strategic power in Asia.
Albanese’s domestic critics have lambasted him for meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping before United States President Donald Trump. They are also aggrieved at his refusal to label China a security threat.
But neither criticism really stacks up.
An Albanese-Trump meeting would have happened last month on the sidelines of a G7 gathering in Canada. It was Trump who left early, standing up more leaders than just Albanese.
Nor is Albanese the first Australian prime minister to meet a Chinese president before an American one. His predecessor Tony Abbott caught up with Xi a few weeks after coming to office in 2013, before he had a chance to meet President Barack Obama.
‘Friends, not foes’
Meanwhile, polling indicates just one in five Australians see the relationship with China first and foremost as “a threat to be confronted”. Rather, a clear two-thirds majority see it as “a complex relationship to be managed”.
Albanese is also regarded as more competent than his opposition counterpart in handling Australia’s foreign policy generally – and better at managing the China relationship specifically.
The prime minister’s Chinese hosts also have an incentive to ensure his visit is a successful one.
In the past fortnight, China’s ambassador in Canberra, Xiao Qian, has penned opinion pieces in two of Australia’s biggest media outlets, insisting Australia and China are “friends, not foes” and touting the “comprehensive turnaround” in bilateral ties since Labor won government in May 2022.
Beijing and Washington view each other as their geopolitical priority. Beijing can make it harder for Washington to enlist security allies such as Canberra in this rivalry by maintaining its own strong and constructive bilateral ties with Australia.
And quite apart from the competition with the US, China relied on Australia last year as its fifth largest import source.
Plenty of complaints
None of this is to say Albanese’s visit will be easy, because Australia-China relations are rarely smooth.
Canberra continues to have many complaints about China’s international behaviour.
For example, Foreign Minister Penny Wong recently signed a joint statement with her counterparts in Washington, Tokyo and New Delhi expressing “serious concerns regarding dangerous and provocative actions” by China in the East and South China Seas, and the “abrupt constriction […] of key supply chains”.
Wong has also said the government remains “appalled” by the treatment of Australians imprisoned in China, including Dr Yang Jun, who is facing espionage charges he strongly denies.
Defence Minister Richard Marles has voiced Canberra’s alarm at Beijing’s “no limits agreement” with Moscow, and claimed China has
engaged in the biggest conventional military build-up since the end of the second world war.
However, this assessment is contested by independent Australian analysts.
Beijing also has plenty of complaints. They include Canberra’s ongoing pursuit of closer military cooperation with the US and UK through the AUKUS pact.
There is also the commitment to forcing the sale of the lease to operate the Port of Darwin that is currently held by a Chinese company.
Reliable trading partner
Albanese has already made clear his visit to China will have a strong economic focus.
While grappling with security challenges, any Australian government, Labor or Coalition, must face the reality that last year, local companies sold more to China – worth A$196 billion – than our next four largest markets combined.
China is also, by far, Australia’s biggest supplier, putting downward pressure on the cost of living.
Research produced by Curtin University, commissioned by the Australia-China Business Council, finds trade with China increases disposable income of the average Australian household by $2,600, or 4.6% per person.
In an ideal world, Australia would have a more diversified trading mix.
But again, any Australian government or business must grapple with the reality that obvious major alternative markets, like the US, are not only less interested in local goods and services, but are walking away from their past trade commitments.
This also explains Alabese’s response when he was asked in April if he would support Trump’s trade war against China:
It would be extraordinary if the Australian response was “thank you” and we will help to further hurt our economy
Likewise, Trade Minister Don Farrell is adamant Australia’s interests will determine the Albanese government’s choices, not “what the Americans may or may not want”.
We don’t want to do less business with China, we want to do more business with China.
Deeper trade ties with Asia, including China, are not just about making a buck. Wong has stressed the national security implications of a strong economic relationship:
[It is] an investment in our security. Stability and prosperity are mutually reinforcing.
All of this means Albanese’s six-day visit to China is shaping up to be time well spent.
James Laurenceson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: The Conversation – USA (2) – By Hatim Sharif, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Texas at San Antonio
A Kerrville, Texas, resident watches the flooded Guadalupe River on July 4, 2025.Eric Vryn/Getty Images
Texas Hill Country is known for its landscapes, where shallow rivers wind among hills and through rugged valleys. That geography also makes it one of the deadliest places in the U.S. for flash flooding.
In the early hours of July 4, 2025, a flash flood swept through an area of Hill Country dotted with summer camps and small towns about 70 miles northwest of San Antonio. More than 120 people died in the flooding. The majority of them were in Kerr County, including more than two dozen girls and counselors at one summer camp, Camp Mystic. Dozens of people were still unaccounted for a week later.
The flooding began with a heavy downpour, with more than 10 inches of rain in some areas, that sent water sheeting off the hillsides and into creeks. The creeks poured into the Guadalupe River.
A river gauge at Hunt, Texas, near Camp Mystic, showed how quickly the river flooded: Around 3 a.m. on July 4, the Guadalupe River was rising about 1 foot every 5 minutes at the gauge, National Weather Service data shows. By 4:30 a.m., it had risen more than 20 feet. As the water moved downstream, it reached Kerrville, where the river rose even faster.
Flood expert Hatim Sharif, a hydrologist and civil engineer at the University of Texas at San Antonio, explains what makes this part of the country, known as Flash Flood Alley, so dangerous.
What makes Hill Country so prone to flooding?
Texas as a whole leads the nation in flood deaths, and by a wide margin. A colleague and I analyzed data from 1959 to 2019 and found 1,069 people had died in flooding in Texas over those six decades. The next highest total was in Louisiana, with 693.
Many of those flood deaths have been in Hill County. It’s part of an area known as Flash Flood Alley, a crescent of land that curves from near Dallas down to San Antonio and then westward.
The hills are steep, and the water moves quickly when it floods. This is a semi-arid area with soils that don’t soak up much water, so the water sheets off quickly and the shallow creeks can rise fast.
When those creeks converge on a river, they can create a surge of water that wipes out homes and washes away cars and, unfortunately, anyone in its path.
Hill Country has seen some devastating flash floods. In 1987, heavy rain in western Kerr County quickly flooded the Guadalupe River, triggering a flash flood similar to the one in 2025. Ten teenagers being evacuated from a camp died in the rushing water.
San Antonio, at the eastern edge of Hill Country, was hit with a flash flood on June 12, 2025, that killed 13 people whose cars were swept away by high water from a fast-flooding creek near an interstate ramp in the early morning.
The escarpment is a line of cliffs and steep hills created by a geologic fault. When warm air from the Gulf rushes up the escarpment, it condenses and can dump a lot of moisture. That water flows down the hills quickly, from many different directions, filling streams and rivers below.
The same effect can contribute to flash flooding in San Antonio, where the large amount of paved land and lack of updated drainage to control runoff adds to the risk.
What can be done to improve flash flood safety?
First, it’s important for people to understand why flash flooding happens and just how fast the water can rise and flow. In many arid areas, dry or shallow creeks can quickly fill up with fast-moving water and become deadly. So people should be aware of the risks and pay attention to the weather.
Improving flood forecasting, with more detailed models of the physics and water velocity at different locations, can also help.
Probabilistic forecasting, for example, can provide a range of rainfall scenarios, enabling authorities to prepare for worst-case scenarios. A scientific framework linking rainfall forecasts to the local impacts, such as streamflow, flood depth and water velocity, could also help decision-makers implement timely evacuations or road closures.
Education is particularly essential for drivers. One to two feet of moving water can wash away a car. People may think their trucks and SUVs can go through anything, but fast-moving water can flip a truck and carry it away.
This article, originally published July 5, 2025, has been updated with the death toll rising.
Hatim Sharif does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: United States Senator for Wyoming Cynthia Lummis
July 10, 2025
Washington, D.C. – Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) released the following statement today about the outrageous decision by the National Education Association (NEA) to cut ties with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) over their support for Israel.
“I find it deeply troubling that the National Education Association (NEA) has chosen to sever ties with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), an organization dedicated to fighting antisemitism, discrimination, and hate crimes across America. At a time when we’re witnessing alarming rises in antisemitic incidents nationwide, our educational institutions should be strengthening – not weakening – their partnerships with organizations committed to protecting Jewish Americans and combating hatred. The NEA should be reminding educators and students alike that Israel was the victim of an unprovoked terrorist attack by Hamas, and that antisemitism has no place in our educational system.”
The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) has fined Bupa A$35 million for unlawfully rejecting thousands of health insurance claims over more than five years.
Between May 2018 and August 2023 Bupa incorrectly rejected claims from patients who had multiple medical procedures, with at least one of those procedures covered under their health insurance policy.
Instead of paying the portion of the treatment that was covered, Bupa’s automated systems wrongly rejected the entire claim.
Each tier has a minimum set of “clinical categories”. These are groups of hospital treatments that must be covered.
For example, basic hospital cover only has three mandatory inclusions: rehabilitation, hospital psychiatric services and palliative care. But this is “restricted” cover, meaning patients will often still have to pay substantial out-of-pocket costs for these services.
Basic cover is entry-level cover, mainly for people who want to avoid the Lifetime Health Cover loading and the Medicare Levy Surcharge. These are both ways of encouraging people to take up private health insurance while young and keeping it, especially people on higher incomes.
At the other end of the scale is gold cover, which includes unrestricted cover for all defined clinical categories, including pregnancy and birth.
You can generally change your level of cover at any time. When you upgrade to include new services or increase benefits for existing services, you will need to serve new waiting periods for those new or increased benefits.
A common waiting period is 12 months for pre-existing conditions (any ailment, illness or condition that you had signs or symptoms of during the six months before upgrading, even if undiagnosed), and for pregnancy and birth-related services. But there is generally only a two-month waiting period for psychiatric care, rehabilitation or palliative care, even if it’s for a pre-existing condition.
It’s a good idea to review your policy every two years because your health needs and financial circumstances can change.
How much do companies pay out?
The proportion of premiums that are paid out to cover medical claims is known as the “average payout ratio”. And this has been about 84–86% over most of the past 20 years.
This does not mean your health insurer will pay out 84–86% of your individual claim. This national average accounts for the percentage of all premiums in any one year, across all insurers, that’s paid out in claims.
That’s because for-profit health insurers have pressure to deliver profits to shareholders and have incentives to minimise payouts and control costs.
If not properly managed, these incentives may result in higher out-of-pocket expenses and denied claims.
Why has my claim been rejected?
Common reasons for claims to be rejected include:
the policy excluded or restricted the clinical category
the waiting period was not served
incorrect information (for example, a doctor billed an incorrect item number)
what’s known as “mixed coverage” (as in the Bupa scandal), where not everything in a claim is covered, but the entire claim is declined.
What if I think there’s an error?
If your health insurance company refuses your claim, you can request a detailed explanation in writing.
If you believe your claim has been incorrectly denied, you can make a formal complaint directly with the insurer. For this you need to check your policy documents, and gather supporting evidence. This may include detailed invoices, medical reports, referral letters and correct item numbers.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the health fund’s internal review, or the fund doesn’t respond with the specific time-frame (for instance, 30–45 days), you can escalate your complaint.
You can get in touch with the Commonwealth Ombudsman (phone: 1300 362 072). This provides a free, independent complaint handling service for a range of consumer issues, including health insurance.
The Bupa scandal, along with ongoing concerns about transparency and rising out-of-pocket costs, highlights the need for policy reforms to better protect consumers.
The government should require health insurers and health-care providers to give clear estimates of all potential out-of-pocket costs for a procedure before it happens. This would avoid unexpected bills and help consumers make informed decisions about their health care.
Yuting Zhang has received funding from the Australian Research Council (future fellowship project ID FT200100630), Department of Veterans’ Affairs, the Victorian Department of Health, National Health and Medical Research Council and Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network. In the past, Professor Zhang has received funding from several US institutes including the US National Institutes of Health, Commonwealth fund, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. She has not received funding from for-profit industry including the private health insurance industry.
Source: US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) led an amicus brief today to protect Americans from religious discrimination by state governments. Senator Lee filed the brief to defend free speech and religious observance from infringement by government entities as part of the case Cambridge Christian School v. Florida High School Athletic Association.
“When the government blocks Christian schools from praying before their own football games, something is very wrong,”said Senator Mike Lee.“Even after the Supreme Court has repeatedly warned about the dangers of expansive definitions of government speech, some lower courts are creating new loopholes and ignoring protections for freedom of speech and religion. This overstep represents a serious danger to even private expressions of faith, and must be overturned. I pray the Supreme Court grants this case, corrects the lower court’s error, and upholds the First Amendment.”
Joining Senator Lee in filing the amicus brief are U.S. Senators Ted Budd (R-NC), John Cornyn (R-TX), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Josh Hawley (R-MO), James Lankford (R-OK), Ashley Moody (R-FL), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Tim Scott (R-SC), as well as U.S. Representatives Lauren Boebert (R-CO), John McGuire (R-VA), Andy Ogles (R-TN), Keith Self (R-TX), and Daniel Webster (R-FL).
Background
Cambridge Christian School was set to play another Christian high school in the Florida state football championship game. Both schools wished to begin their game with prayer over the loudspeaker, but the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) refused their request – despite allowing it three years prior.
The FHSAA originally argued that the prayer might have been viewed as a government endorsement of religion. After realizing that defense failed under controlling precedent, they changed their tune. The FHSAA now argues that the prayer would have qualified as “government speech,” giving them the right to deny the request. The Eleventh Circuit accepted this argument despite countless instances of private, non-government speech occurring over the loudspeaker at these football games.
The court essentially backdoored in a new way to silence Americans by allowing the government to reclassify speech whenever it sees fit.
The Establishment Clause, Free Speech Clause, and Free Exercise Clauses are meant to work together to prevent the government from impinging on freedom of religion. But actors who are hostile to religion exploit the government-speech doctrine to undermine the constitutional rights of religious persons and groups. As Justice Samuel Alito has noted, that doctrine is “susceptible to dangerous misuse” and courts “must exercise great caution before extending government-speech precedents.” This decision by the Eleventh Circuit is one of those dangerous extensions.
Senator Lee’s amicus brief argues:
The Eleventh Circuit erred in its application of the government-speech doctrine, thus creating a loophole for government to stifle private speech.
The Eleventh Circuit’s misclassification of the speech of private actors as government speech would (a) chill otherwise protected speech, and (b) cause confusion as to what is and is not government speech.
The Supreme Court should adopt an analytical framework to resolve these types of disputes.
Source: US Whitehouse
Today, at the direction of President Donald J. Trump, the Administration is taking the biggest step in more than 30 years to protect taxpayer-funded benefits for American citizens — NOT illegal aliens. The move, which preserves roughly $40 billion in benefits for American citizens, overturns decades of bureaucratic defiance and builds on President Trump’s executive order directing an END to the subsidization of open borders.
Under President Trump, hardworking Americans will no longer be forced to front the cost of benefits for illegals:
The Department of Health and Human Services is restricting illegal aliens from 13 additional public programs, including Head Start, health workforce scholarships and loans, mental health and substance abuse support, family planning, and more.
The Department of Education is ending free tuition for illegal aliens at post-secondary career and technical education programs.
The Department of Agriculture is restricting illegal aliens from federally funded food assistance programs.
The Department of Labor is barring illegal aliens from accessing federal workforce development resources and grants.
The Department of Justice is closing longstanding loopholes that have allowed illegal aliens to access taxpayer-funded benefits.
NASA will hold a media teleconference at 11 a.m. EDT on Thursday, July 17, to share information about the agency’s upcoming Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites, or TRACERS, mission, which is targeted to launch no earlier than late July. The TRACERS mission is a pair of twin satellites that will study how Earth’s magnetic shield — the magnetosphere — protects our planet from the supersonic stream of material from the Sun called solar wind. As they fly pole to pole in a Sun-synchronous orbit, the two TRACERS spacecraft will measure how magnetic explosions send these solar wind particles zooming down into Earth’s atmosphere — and how these explosions shape the space weather that impacts our satellites, technology, and astronauts. Also launching on this flight will be three additional NASA-funded payloads. The Athena EPIC (Economical Payload Integration Cost) SmallSat, led by NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, is designed to demonstrate an innovative, configurable way to put remote-sensing instruments into orbit faster and more affordably. The Polylingual Experimental Terminal technology demonstration, managed by the agency’s SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) program, will showcase new technology that empowers missions to roam between communications networks in space, like cell phones roam between providers on Earth. Finally, the Relativistic Electron Atmospheric Loss (REAL) CubeSat, led by Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, will use space as a laboratory to understand how high-energy particles within the bands of radiation that surround Earth are naturally scattered into the atmosphere, aiding the development of methods for removing these damaging particles to better protect satellites and the critical ground systems they support. Audio of the teleconference will stream live on the agency’s website at: nasa.gov/live Participants include:
Joe Westlake, division director, Heliophysics, NASA Headquarters Kory Priestley, principal investigator, Athena EPIC, NASA Langley Greg Heckler, deputy program manager for capability development, SCaN, NASA Headquarters David Miles, principal investigator for TRACERS, University of Iowa Robyn Millan, REAL principal investigator, Dartmouth College
To participate in the media teleconference, media must RSVP no later than 10 a.m. on July 17 to Sarah Frazier at: sarah.frazier@nasa.gov. NASA’s media accreditation policy is available online. The TRACERS mission will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This mission is led by David Miles at the University of Iowa with support from the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. NASA’s Heliophysics Explorers Program Office at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the mission for the agency’s HeliophysicsDivision at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The University of Iowa, Southwest Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, and University of California, Berkeley, all lead instruments on TRACERS that will study changes in the Earth’s magnetic field and electric field. NASA’s Launch Services Program, based at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, manages the Venture-class Acquisition of Dedicated and Rideshare contract. To learn more about TRACERS, please visit: nasa.gov/tracers -end- Abbey Interrante / Karen FoxHeadquarters, Washington301-201-0124 / 202-358-1600abbey.a.interrante@nasa.gov / karen.c.fox@nasa.gov Sarah FrazierGoddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland202-853-7191sarah.frazier@nasa.gov
. Pillen Announces Appointments to Newly Created School Financing Review Commission
LINCOLN, NE – Today, Governor Jim Pillen announced appointments to the School Financing Review Commission, as created through the passage of LB303. The bill, which received bipartisan support from the Legislature on a vote of 48-0, was introduced on the Governor’s behalf by Senator Jana Hughes. When passed, LB303 included an emergency clause, making it effective when Gov. Pillen signed it on June 4.
The commission, consisting of 18 members, is tasked with reviewing the state’s school funding formula – the Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act (TEEOSA) – and providing the Legislature with annual recommendations about adjustments to ensure stable state aid to schools, while also reducing property taxes.
“I believe the state needs to fulfill its constitutional obligation to fund public K-12 education. Not run those schools but fund them. Creation of this commission is a first, but critically important step in fixing the 35-year problem that has resulted from TEEOSA,” said Gov. Pillen. “If we are to get a grip on the state’s property tax crisis, we must be willing to address the ever-growing burden that falls on property tax as a result of footing the bill for our schools.”
Commissioner of Education Brian Maher will serve as the commission’s chairperson and the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) will provide assistance to the group. The remaining 17 positions, and the Governor’s appointees, are listed below.
Property Tax Administrator (or designee):
Sarah Scott, Property Tax Administrator
Governor’s Representative:
Grant Latimer, Policy Advisor to Governor Pillen
Representatives Appointed by the Legislature (three, nonvoting):
Senator Dave Murman, Chairman, Education Committee
Senator Eliot Bostar, Appointed by the Revenue Committee
Senator Jana Hughes, Appointed by the Executive Board
Postsecondary Education Representative with Expertise in School Finance:
Paul Turman, Chancellor, State College System
Superintendents or School Board Members from Class I, II, III Districts (four):
Class I: Ann Foster, Superintendent, Brady Public Schools
Class II: Jason Dolliver, Superintendent, Pender Public Schools
Class III: Aaron Plas, Superintendent, Bennington Public Schools
Additional: Keith Runge, President, Columbus Lakeview School Board
Class IV District Member (one) and Class V District Member (one):
Class IV: Liz Standish, Associate Superintendent for Business Affairs, Lincoln Public
Class V: Shavonna Holman, School Board Member, Omaha Public
At-Large Members (five):
Former Senator Lou Ann Linehan
State Treasurer Tom Briese
Certified Public School Teacher: (This position has not yet been appointed)
Former Senator Fred Meyer
John Schwartz, Superintendent, Millard Public Schools
“I appreciate the commitment of these dedicated public servants who, like me, want to ensure the quality of our state’s education, but recognize the need to balance that investment with smart tax policy, making us more competitive with our neighboring states so we can grow Nebraska,” said Gov Pillen. “We are fortunate to have leadership on this commission ready to begin this important initiative.”
. Pillen Announces Appointments to Newly Created School Financing Review Commission
LINCOLN, NE – Today, Governor Jim Pillen announced appointments to the School Financing Review Commission, as created through the passage of LB303. The bill, which received bipartisan support from the Legislature on a vote of 48-0, was introduced on the Governor’s behalf by Senator Jana Hughes. When passed, LB303 included an emergency clause, making it effective when Gov. Pillen signed it on June 4.
The commission, consisting of 18 members, is tasked with reviewing the state’s school funding formula – the Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act (TEEOSA) – and providing the Legislature with annual recommendations about adjustments to ensure stable state aid to schools, while also reducing property taxes.
“I believe the state needs to fulfill its constitutional obligation to fund public K-12 education. Not run those schools but fund them. Creation of this commission is a first, but critically important step in fixing the 35-year problem that has resulted from TEEOSA,” said Gov. Pillen. “If we are to get a grip on the state’s property tax crisis, we must be willing to address the ever-growing burden that falls on property tax as a result of footing the bill for our schools.”
Commissioner of Education Brian Maher will serve as the commission’s chairperson and the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) will provide assistance to the group. The remaining 17 positions, and the Governor’s appointees, are listed below.
Property Tax Administrator (or designee):
Sarah Scott, Property Tax Administrator
Governor’s Representative:
Grant Latimer, Policy Advisor to Governor Pillen
Representatives Appointed by the Legislature (three, nonvoting):
Senator Dave Murman, Chairman, Education Committee
Senator Eliot Bostar, Appointed by the Revenue Committee
Senator Jana Hughes, Appointed by the Executive Board
Postsecondary Education Representative with Expertise in School Finance:
Paul Turman, Chancellor, State College System
Superintendents or School Board Members from Class I, II, III Districts (four):
Class I: Ann Foster, Superintendent, Brady Public Schools
Class II: Jason Dolliver, Superintendent, Pender Public Schools
Class III: Aaron Plas, Superintendent, Bennington Public Schools
Additional: Keith Runge, President, Columbus Lakeview School Board
Class IV District Member (one) and Class V District Member (one):
Class IV: Liz Standish, Associate Superintendent for Business Affairs, Lincoln Public
Class V: Shavonna Holman, School Board Member, Omaha Public
At-Large Members (five):
Former Senator Lou Ann Linehan
State Treasurer Tom Briese
Certified Public School Teacher: (This position has not yet been appointed)
Former Senator Fred Meyer
John Schwartz, Superintendent, Millard Public Schools
“I appreciate the commitment of these dedicated public servants who, like me, want to ensure the quality of our state’s education, but recognize the need to balance that investment with smart tax policy, making us more competitive with our neighboring states so we can grow Nebraska,” said Gov Pillen. “We are fortunate to have leadership on this commission ready to begin this important initiative.”
People pray before Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance at a town hall hosted by Lance Wallnau on Sept. 28, 2024, in Monroeville, Pa.AP Photo/Rebecca Droke
The NAR is a loosely organized but influential charismatic Christian movement that shares similarities with Pentecostalism, especially in its belief that God actively communicates with believers through the Holy Spirit. Unlike traditional Pentecostalism, however, the organization emphasizes modern-day apostles and prophets as authoritative leaders tasked with transforming society and ushering in God’s kingdom on Earth. Prayer, prophecy and worship are defined not only as acts of devotion but as strategic tools for advancing believers’ vision of government and society.
After the shooting, the Christ for the Nations Institute issued a statement “unequivocally” denouncing “any and all forms of violence and extremism.” It stated: “Our organization’s mission is to educate and equip students to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ through compassion, love, prayer, service, worship, and value for human life.”
But the shooting has drawn attention to the school and the larger Christian movement it belongs to. One of the most important aspects of NAR teachings today is what is called “the Seven Mountain Mandate.”
The Seven Mountain Mandate calls on Christians to gain influence, or “take dominion,” over seven key areas of culture: religion, family, education, government, media, business and the arts.
The Seven Mountain concept was originally proposed in 1975 by evangelical leader Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ. Now known as “Cru,” the Campus Crusade for Christ was founded as a global ministry in 1951 to promote Christian evangelism, especially on college campuses.
Since 1996, Bill Johnson, a senior leader of Bethel Church, and Johnny Enlow, a self-described prophet and Seven Mountain advocate, among others, have taken the original idea of the Seven Mountain Mandate and reshaped it into a more aggressive, political and spiritually militant approach. Spiritual militancy reflects an aggressive, us-vs.-them mindset that blurs the line between faith and authoritarianism, promoting dominion over society in the name of spiritual warfare.
Their version doesn’t just aim to influence culture; it frames the effort as a spiritual battle to reclaim and reshape the nation according to their vision of God’s will.
Lance Wallnau, another Christian evangelical preacher, televangelist, speaker and author, has promoted dominion theology since the early 2000s. During the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Wallnau, along with several prominent NAR figures, described Donald Trump as anointed by God to reclaim the “mountain” of government from demonic control.
In their book “Invading Babylon: The 7 Mountain Mandate,” Wallnau and Johnson explicitly call for Christian leadership as the only antidote to perceived moral decay and spiritual darkness.
NAR-aligned leaders have framed electoral contests as struggles between “godly” candidates and those under the sway of “satanic” influence.
Similarly, NAR prophet Cindy Jacobs has repeatedly emphasized the need for “spiritual warfare” in schools to combat what she characterizes as “demonic ideologies” such as sex education, LGBTQ+ inclusion or discussions of systemic racism.
In the NAR worldview, cultural change is not merely political or social but considered a supernatural mission; opponents are not simply wrong but possibly under the sway of demonic influence. Elections become spiritual battles.
This belief system views pluralism as weakness, compromise as betrayal, and coexistence as capitulation. Frederick Clarkson, a senior research analyst at Political Research Associates, a progressive think tank based in Somerville, Massachusetts, defines the Seven Mountain Mandate as “the theocratic idea that Christians are called by God to exercise dominion over every aspect of society by taking control of political and cultural institutions.”
The call to “take back” the culture is not metaphorical but literal, and believers are encouraged to see themselves as soldiers in a holy war to dominate society. Some critics argue that NAR’s call to “take back” culture is about literal domination, but this interpretation is contested.
Many within the movement see the language of warfare as spiritually focused on prayer, evangelism and influencing hearts and minds. Still, the line between metaphor and mandate can blur, especially when rhetoric about “dominion” intersects with political and cultural action. That tension is part of an ongoing debate both within and outside the movement.
At the same time, the Seven Mountain Mandate doesn’t depend on centralized leadership or formal institutions. It spreads organically through social networks, social media – notably podcasts and livestreams – and revivalist meetings and workshops.
André Gagné, a theologian and author of “American Evangelicals for Trump: Dominion, Spiritual Warfare, and the End Times,” writes about the ways in which the mandate spreads by empowering local leaders and believers. Individuals are authorized – often through teachings on spiritual warfare, prophetic gifting, and apostolic leadership – to see themselves as agents of divine transformation in society, called to reclaim the “mountains,” such as government, media and education, for God’s kingdom.
This approach, Gagné explains, allows different communities to adapt the action mandate to their unique cultural, political and social contexts. It encourages individuals to see themselves as spiritual warriors and leaders in their domains – whether in business, education, government, media or the arts.
The framing of the Seven Mountain Mandate as a divinely inspired mission, combined with the movement’s emphasis on direct spiritual experiences and a specific interpretation of scripture, can create an environment where questioning the mandate is perceived as challenging God’s authority.
Slippery slope
These beliefs have increasingly fused with nationalist rhetoric and conspiracy theories.
The ‘Appeal to Heaven’ flags symbolize the belief that people have the right to appeal directly to God’s authority when they think the government has failed. Paul Becker/Becker1999 via Flickr, CC BY
A powerful example of NAR political rhetoric in action is the rise and influence of the “Appeal to Heaven” flags. For those in the New Apostolic Reformation, these flags symbolize the belief that when all earthly authority fails, people have the right to appeal directly to God’s authority to justify resistance.
To be clear, its leaders are not calling for violence but rather for direct political engagement and protest. For some believers, however, the calls for “spiritual warfare” may become a slippery slope into justification for violence, as in the case of the alleged Minnesota shooter.
Understanding the Seven Mountain Mandate is essential for grasping the dynamics of contemporary efforts to align government and culture with a particular vision of Christian authority and influence.
Art Jipson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
At least 510,182 internally displaced people (IDPs) across Benue state
Dire conditions in IDP camps
Children and pregnant women amongst most vulnerable
The Nigerian authorities must take urgent steps to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in the central state of Benue where attacks by gunmen have displaced at least 500,000 people, many of whom are languishing in squalid camps without access to sufficient water, poor sanitation, food and healthcare, Amnesty International said today.
In the most recent attack on 14 June, gunmen raided the town of Yelewata, killing more than 100 people and forcing over 3,941 more to flee their homes. The smell of decomposing bodies hung in the air during a visit to the affected community by Amnesty International in the aftermath of the attacks. Signs of the recent violence were unmistakable with bullet shells littering the ground, and mass graves that had been newly dug to bury the dead.
Survivors were seen carrying bags of grain, bundles of firewood and other household items as they sought safety and shelter in camps for internally displaced persons (IDP). According to interviews with IDPs in Gwer West, Agatu, Ukum, Kwande, Logo, Guma and Makurdi IDP camps, as well as a makeshift IDP camp at Makurdi Modern Market, communities who come under attack are often left to fend for themselves with security forces only arriving long after the gunmen had left.
“The Nigerian authorities have failed the people of Benue state again and again. Rampant attacks by gunmen have deprived thousands of people of their rights to life, physical integrity, liberty, freedom of movement and access to livelihoods. Survivors of these harrowing attacks face the fresh torment of being displaced in overcrowded, unhygienic camps where disease runs rampant and essentials such as food and clean water are scarce,” said Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria.
“The situation risks creating a humanitarian disaster, which the authorities must urgently address by ensuring that people’s essential needs are met by providing desperately needed aid.”
Besides interviews with IDPs, Amnesty International also spoke to camps officials, medical workers and non-governmental organizations in the affected areas. It found that communities across Benue state, including Gwer West, Gwer-East, Agatu, Apa, Ukum, Kwande, Logo,and Guma, continue to face a brutal pattern of violence.
This is typically unleashed at night, although daytime attacks also occur, with gunmen systematically overrunning villages, using firearms to carry out indiscriminate or targeted killings from a distance. This is accompanied by brutal close-range violence with machetes and knives used to inflict grievous injuries, including hand amputations.
The Nigerian authorities have failed the people of Benue state again and again.
Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria
Misery of the IDP camps
As of 31 December 2024, an estimated 500,182 people had fled to IDPs camps in Benue state to escape years of attacks by gunmen. More than 10,000 additional people have been displaced since the start of 2025 following attacks on communities in Gwer West, Agatu, Ukum (Gbagir), Kwande (Anwase), Logo, and Guma (Yelewata, Agan, and Gbajimba), among others.
Amnesty International’s visits to IDP camps reveal wholly inadequate shelter, exposing IDPs to harsh weather, overcrowding, and heightened risks of disease, as well as gender-based violence, including rape and domestic violence.
Access to healthcare is also a major challenge in the IDP camps with a lack of treatment for the most common diseases and ailments, such as malaria, typhoid, and stomach ulcers. According to a camp official, births occur almost daily in the IDP camps, with many pregnant women requiring medical attention but also contracting infections because of inadequate hygiene facilities.
An IDP told Amnesty International: “If we don’t get drugs, we just sit and watch the sick person helplessly.”
Many children are unable to exercise their right to an education in the camps.
“Our children no longer go to school and there are no arrangements by the authorities to teach children in the IDP camp. The government should bring an end to insecurity in our local government area and Benue state. Before that, provide us with food and proper shelter at the IDP camps,” an IDP told Amnesty International.
A camp official told Amnesty International that a makeshift school built in one of the camps had been shut down for over three years because camp authorities could not continue paying ad-hoc teachers their stipends.
There are hundreds of minors who fled their homes due to attacks and now live without parental care. The children were separated from their families while fleeing attacks on their villages and communities. The authorities have been unable to provide these vulnerable children with a safe place to live and essential services. Two female IDPs told Amnesty International:
The authorities’ persistent failure to hold suspected perpetrators to account is fueling a cycle of impunity that is making everyone feel unsafe. Authorities must now end the growing culture of impunity for these attacks.
Isa Sanusi
“When we arrived, they [my children] left. I do not know where they have gone. I can’t speak with them; I don’t have a phone….I have 8 children and because we do not have enough space here in the IDP camp, many of them have left me and I do not know where they are.”
Amnesty International is calling on the Nigerian authorities to take immediate steps to provide sufficient and accessible humanitarian support to the survivors of these attacks. Authorities must take steps to domesticate and effectively implement the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons within the country’s legal system.
“The authorities’ persistent failure to hold suspected perpetrators to account is fueling a cycle of impunity that is making everyone feel unsafe. Authorities must now end the growing culture of impunity for these attacks.”
“We call on the authorities to ensure that all people displaced because of the attacks in Benue state are provided with adequate relief, including protection, shelter, food, clean water, sanitation and healthcare. Authorities must ensure that all people who have suffered losses from the crisis are also provided with adequate compensation,” said Isa Sanusi.
Nigeria is state party to a number of treaties that guarantee the human rights of everybody in the country regardless of the circumstances. This includes the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights which requires Nigerian authorities to ensure equal access to amongst others the rights to housing, health, food, water, sanitation and education.
The EU and the EU Delegation in Cairo are aware of and continue to monitor the recent developments in Egypt after the Ismailia Court of Appeals issued a ruling linked to the legal status of Saint Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai.
In a meeting called by the Arab Republic of Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, the Egyptian authorities assured Member States’ Ambassadors and the EU Head of Delegation in Cairo that the Egyptian government remains fully committed to preserving the monastery’s religious, historical, and spiritual status, adding that the current status of the area around Saint Catherine’s Monastery is untouchable. It was reaffirmed that the monks’ access to the site will not be affected by the court ruling.
The EU welcomes the commitments of the governments of Greece and Egypt to work together towards safeguarding the rights of Saint Catherine’s Monastery and awaits any new developments with regard to its legal status.
The EU will continue to follow the situation closely and await the result of the discussions between the Egyptian and Greek Authorities, insisting on the necessity to preserve the monastery’s religious, historical, and spiritual status, in accordance with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage Convention[1].
[1] United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage convention website, Saint Catherine Monastery: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/954/.
Source: United States Senator for Idaho James E Risch
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho) today introduced the Say No to Indoctrination Act to codify President Trump’s executive order preventing taxpayer dollars from funding radical gender ideology in K-12 schools.
“Schools should prepare our children for the future, not promote radical gender ideology,” said Risch.“The Say No to Indoctrination Act puts an end to woke education practices in K-12 schools and makes President Trump’s common-sense policy permanent.”
Senator Risch’s bill is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Roger Marshall (R-Kansas), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and has received support from Concerned Women for America and American Principles Project.
“Children should not be radicalized, indoctrinated or taught gender ideology in public elementary or secondary schools funded by federal tax dollars,” Crapo said. “This legislation places commonsense guardrails around the use of these dollars in public education, which will ensure schools are providing foundational instruction in subjects like mathematics and reading rather than divisive concepts of gender ideology.”
“For far too long, radical left-wing ideology has preyed on K-12 students in our nation’s school systems. It’s high time we put a stop to these woke lesson plans that take advantage of children and undermine parental rights. I am proud to join Senator Risch and my colleagues to prevent taxpayer dollars from funding public schools that teach gender ideology,” said Budd.
“As American students lag behind globally in math, reading, and writing, the last thing our taxpayer-funded teachers and schools should be doing is teaching radical leftist nonsense like so-called gender theory,” said Marshall. “I’m proud to support this legislation to codify President Trump’s executive order, and ensure our children’s education is focused on meaningful, future-ready skills, not woke ideology.
“Parents send their kids to school to learn the skills they need to succeed later in life, not to be indoctrinated with radical gender ideology. There are only two genders—male and female, and not a single penny of federal funds should go to schools that teach anything different,” said Schmitt.
“Our children go to school to be educated, not indoctrinated,” said Tuberville. “I’ve always said that education is the key to unlocking opportunity. But under Joe Biden, Democrats turned our children’s classrooms into woke propaganda HQ. Schools should focus on teaching kids to read, write, and do math. I’m proud to join my colleagues in introducing the Say No to Indoctrination Act to get woke politics out of the classroom.”
The Say No to Indoctrination Act codifies the Executive Order President Trump issued on January 20, 2025, declaring that no taxpayer dollars be sent to K-12 schools that teach or promote radical gender ideology.
Risch has long fought to eradicate radical gender ideology. In May, Risch introduced the Protecting Minors in Federal Health Plans Act, which would prohibit Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) plans from covering gender transitions for minors. Risch also introduced the Dismantle DEI Act to codify President Trump’s executive order terminating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs and initiatives.
Governor Josh Green, M.D., took action on 313 of the 321 bills enrolled during the 2025 regular session of the Hawai‘i State Legislature. Of those, Governor Green conducted 13 bill signing ceremonies to bring together community leaders and stakeholders to discuss and highlight impactful legislation. Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke led efforts for broadband access and expanded Preschool Open Doors through two bill signing ceremonies as acting governor.
Significant milestones during this legislative bill signing session include the enactment of the state budget:
On June 30, Governor Green signed House Bill 300 (Act 250, SLH 2025), the executive biennium budget, which appropriates $19.8 billion across all means of financing in fiscal year 2026 and $19.7 billion in fiscal year 2027. It includes $10.53 billion in general funds in fiscal 2026 and $10.58 billion in fiscal 2027.
CIP funding within the budget comprises $3.3 billion across all means of financing in fiscal 2026 and $2.3 billion in fiscal year 2027. General obligation bonds to support statewide construction projects allocates $1.4 billion for fiscal 2026 and $432 million for fiscal 2027.
Governor Green line-item vetoed $110 million across the fiscal biennium, representing less than half a percent of the roughly $40 billion state budget. These reductions demonstrate fiscal prudence in maintaining a stabilized state budget amid emerging federal funding uncertainty.
Additional key legislation enacted includes:
On May 27, Governor Green signed Senate Bill 1396 (Act 96, SLH 2025) into law, establishing the nation’s first Green Fee to combat the ever-evolving climate crisis that threatens the state. Guided by recommendations from the Climate Advisory Team (CAT), established by Governor Green, comprehensive climate and community-based policies identified the need for a sustainable funding source to support climate resiliency. Dialogue between key stakeholders and the tourism industry contributed to a collaborative effort to find solutions to safeguard the environment.
The signing of this bill strengthens infrastructure and funds initiatives through the revenue generated by a 0.75% increase to the transient accommodation tax. Revenues will fund environmental stewardship, climate and hazard mitigation and sustainable tourism.
On May 30, Governor Green signed Senate Bill 1300 (Act 139, SLH 2025), expanding access to free school meals for Hawai‘i public school students. The legislation aims to eliminate barriers for students experiencing food insecurity, allowing keiki to focus on learning and extracurricular activities. Beginning in the 2025-26 school year, free school meals will be available to all qualifying students under the National School Lunch Program. The following school year, eligibility will expand to include ‘ohana with income below 300% of the federal poverty level. The act appropriates $3.3 million to the Department of Education over the two school years to subsidise free school meals.
On June 30, Governor Green signed House Bill 1483 (Act 243, SLH 2025), strengthening legislation relating to fireworks crimes and increasing the criminal penalties for violators. These newly enacted provisions aim to safeguard Hawai‘i residents and communities by setting stronger deterrences and implementing additional regulatory measures to support the prosecution of fireworks-related crimes.
To further enhance enforcement, the legislation works to streamline the judicial process by amending the traffic and emergency period infractions adjudication system to include fireworks infractions. The addition shall expedite the handling of the high-volume fireworks violation and reduce the burden on the courts.
On July 7, Governor Green signed Senate Bill 1044 (Act 296, SLH 2025), reactivating the Hawaiʻi Hurricane Relief Fund (HHRF) to provide insurance coverage in scenarios where the private market fails to do so. To provide additional insurance coverage options, the bill enhances the powers of the Hawaiʻi Property Insurance Association (HPIA) and establishes the Condominium Loan Program to help buildings remain insurable, and mandates the Insurance Commissioner to conduct a comprehensive study aimed at developing sustainable strategies for market stabilization.
On July 8, Governor Green signed House Bill 1001 (Act 301, SLH 2025), establishing the Maui Wildfires Settlement Trust Fund to support the funding for the claims of settlement arising from the 2023 Maui wildfires. The bill appropriates $807.5 million to support the state’s portion of the total $4.037 billion settlement agreement. This funding provides timely compensation for survivors as an alternative to lengthy litigation.
To prioritize victims and their families, provisions in Act 301 specify that property and casualty insurance companies can only recover payments made to a policyholder through a statutory lien.
Additionally, Governor Green signed House Bill 1064 (Act 302, SLH 2025), effectuating the Phase Three report provided by the Fire Safety Research Institute, to improve the state’s fire preparedness and response following the 2023 Maui wildfires. The recommendations provided intent to set improvements to the Office of the State Fire Marshal.
Under Act 302, the Office of the State Fire Marshal is transferred to the Department of Law Enforcement and is to be led by the State Fire Marshal, the first in the state in nearly 46 years. The measure establishes roles, duties and discretionary authority for both the Office and the State Fire Marshal. To further integrate this role into the state, organizational structure amendments clarify responsibility and reporting requirements for the State Fire Marshal and the State Fire Council.
Part of the State Fire Marshal’s responsibility is to provide centralized analysis of fire occurrences from across the state using the annual records submitted by each county’s fire chief. The legislation establishes the biennial statistical report requirement to keep the public informed and to provide the legislature with reports regarding the office’s operations.
Governor Green signed more than 300 additional bills, separate from the public bill signing ceremonies.
“This legislative session delivered many important wins, and I’m deeply grateful to the Hawai‘i State Legislature for championing measures that serve our people and protect our ‘āina,” said Governor Green. “At the same time, we faced real challenges, especially the uncertainty of federal funding, which put critical lifelines for our communities at risk.”
It was the foresight and resilience of our communities — and our willingness to listen — that helped move many of these bills across the finish line. I remain committed to advocating for key administrative priorities, including housing, homelessness, healthcare, wellness and resilience, and climate action. Together, we will continue to build a stronger, healthier and more sustainable future for all of Hawai‘i.”
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4
​The Commissioner of Customs and Excise, Mr Chan Tsz-tat, yesterday (July 9) completed his four-day visit to the Urumqi Customs District and the Fuzhou Customs District. He attended the launching ceremony of the Fuzhou Customs District’s Fujian-Guangdong-Hong Kong Single E-lock Scheme during his visit.
During July 6 to 8, Mr Chan visited the Urumqi Customs to meet with the Director General in the Urumqi Customs District, Mr Hao Weiming. The two exchanged views on the promotion of Hong Kong’s economic and trade ties and exchanges with Xinjiang, as well as the exploration of co-operation opportunities and enhancement of collaboration between the two sides. Mr Chan also visited the Urumqi International Land Port, the Operation Monitoring and Inspection Control Centre of the Urumqi Customs District, and the Kalasu Ground Crossing to learn more about the intelligent cargo monitoring and customs clearance process of the China-Europe Railway Express in Urumqi. He expressed hope that both sides could reinforce the complementary strengths of the country’s southern and western gateways to contribute to the stability of the supply chain between Asia and Europe in the future.
During the visit, Mr Chan and the Vice Chairman of the People’s Government of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Mr Zhu Lifan, toured the Khunjerab Ground Crossing Gateway, which is under the Urumqi Customs and has an altitude reaching 5 100 metres, to understand its significance in safeguarding the smooth operation of the China-Pakistan economic corridor and national security. They also discussed issues of mutual concern. Afterwards, they visited the Shuibulanggou Party Spirit Education Base.
Yesterday, Mr Chan went to Fuzhou to continue his visit and attended the launching ceremony of the Fujian-Guangdong-Hong Kong Single E-lock Scheme in Fuzhou Customs. Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Chan said that the official launch of the first Customs clearance point of the Scheme in Fuzhou Customs will help further promote interconnections and the flow of goods between Fujian, Guangdong and Hong Kong, marking a new breakthrough in clearance facilitation and co-operation between Mainland and Hong Kong Customs. Meanwhile, Mr Chan said he hopes that the extension of the Scheme to Fuzhou Customs would enhance the efficiency of cross-boundary intermodal transportation, bring Fuzhou’s various products to overseas markets, and consolidate and strengthen Hong Kong’s status and competitiveness as an international maritime centre, international aviation hub and international logistics hub, creating a win-win situation for trade between the two places.
At the event, the first transportation truck carrying transshipment goods departed from the first clearance point in Fuzhou Customs District through the Scheme, and arrived at Hong Kong International Airport via the Shenzhen Bay Control Point this morning (July 10), where the goods were transshipped to overseas destinations. Fujian-Guangdong-Hong Kong Customs could streamline the clearance process and expedite the flow of cargo transshipments by reducing duplicated inspections of the same consignments under the Scheme.
In Fuzhou, Mr Chan also separately met with member of the Leading Party Members Group of Fuzhou Municipal People’s Government Mr Zhang Fan; the Deputy Director General of the Guangdong Sub-Administration of the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China, Mr Feng Guoqing; and the Deputy Director General in the Fuzhou Customs District, Mr Lin Yuefei. He expressed his gratitude for their dedicated support and co-ordination in extending the Scheme to Fuzhou Customs District, and had discussions on leveraging opportunities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development and deepening co-operation.
Following Xiamen Customs District, Fuzhou Customs District is the second Customs District to implement the Scheme in Fujian Province. Hong Kong and Mainland Customs will continue to proactively expand the Single E-lock Scheme by establishing more clearance points in both places, and plan to extend the Scheme to the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region to attract more cargoes to Hong Kong for transshipment and increase the competitiveness of Hong Kong’s shipping and logistics sector.
MONTGOMERY – Governor Kay Ivey on Thursday announced she will appoint Bo Offord to serve as commissioner of the Alabama Medicaid Agency. Stephanie McGee Azar, after leading the Medicaid Agency for over 13 years, will become the chief executive officer of the State Employees’ Insurance Board of Directors (SEIB).
“As Alabama’s longest consecutively serving Medicaid commissioner, Stephanie Azar has proven herself a skillful manager of the state’s public health insurance program for low-income families,” said Governor Ivey. “She successfully directed annual Medicaid budgets for more than 13 years and shepherded the passage of legislation to create and fund the first Alabama Medicaid Reserve while maintaining a balanced budget. I am grateful to Stephanie for her years of invaluable service, and I am confident she will continue to serve the state well through her new position at SEIB.
“Meanwhile, Bo Offord has diligently helped guide the Alabama Medicaid Agency for close to two decades, serving as assistant general counsel, deputy general counsel and general counsel. He has demonstrated the necessary expertise to ensure the Agency remains on the sound footing Commissioner Azar established, and I look forward to his leadership as he assumes his new role of Medicaid commissioner.”
A graduate of The University of Alabama and Faulkner University’s Thomas Goode Jones School of Law, Offord began practicing law in 2007. Since he joined the Alabama Medicaid Agency in 2010, he has represented and advised the Medicaid Agency in probate, circuit and appellate matters, as well as in complex federal regulatory issues.
“It is an honor to be appointed by Governor Ivey to serve as the next commissioner of the Alabama Medicaid Agency,” said Offord. “I am sincerely thankful for the opportunity to serve the citizens of Alabama in this capacity. I had the privilege to work with Commissioner Azar for 15 years, witnessing firsthand her professionalism and leadership. I am certain she will have nothing but success at the State Employees Insurance Board.”
