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Monday's Mini-Report, 6.23.25
Today's edition of quick hits.
* A 6-3 ruling from SCOTUS: "The Supreme Court on Monday made it easier for the Trump administration to deport convicted criminals to 'third countries' to which they have no previous connection. The court in a brief unsigned order put on hold a federal judge's ruling that said those affected nationwide should have a 'meaningful opportunity' to bring claims that they would be at risk of torture, persecution or death if sent to countries the administration has made deals with to receive deported immigrants."
* 'Devastating' was overstating matters: 'Iran's military said it targeted America's Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar with a 'devastating and powerful' missile attack today in retaliation for the U.S. attack on three of Iran's nuclear facilities, according to a statement from the IRGC published by Iranian-state media Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting.'
* A dubious denial: 'A senior Qatari official denied reports that Qatar was given an explicit tip-off that the Iranians were launching an attack on Al Udeid Air Base.'
* The Strait of Hormuz: 'One way that Iran could potentially retaliate for the American strikes on three of its nuclear sites, analysts say, would be to shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route for oil and gas. In meetings at the White House, senior military officials have raised the need to prepare for that possibility, after Iranian officials threatened to mine the strait, a narrow 90-mile waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the open ocean. Such a move could pin any U.S. Navy ships in the Persian Gulf, American military officials say.'
* In Ukraine: 'President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine visited Britain ... just hours after a major Russian drone and missile attack on Kyiv killed at least nine people and injured over 30. The attack was the latest in a series of deadly and intensifying Russian strikes on Ukraine. But concerns are growing in Kyiv that such assaults are drawing less attention and condemnation from Western allies as their focus shifts to the Middle East and the U.S. entry into the Israel-Iran war.'
* On a related note: 'Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested during an economic forum that the 'whole of Ukraine' belongs to his country, even though Russia only controls about a fifth of Ukrainian territory.'
* Kilmar Abrego Garcia's fate: 'A federal judge on Sunday rejected the Justice Department's bid to detain Kilmar Abrego Garcia pending his federal criminal trial in Tennessee, citing the importance of due process while noting that he could still separately be held by immigration authorities.'
* Keep a close eye on this one: 'China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early Friday, 61 of which crossed the central line in the Taiwan Strait that unofficially divides the sides, an unusually large number as tensions remained heightened in the region. It wasn't clear why so many planes were scrambled between late Thursday and early Friday, as tabulated by Taiwan's Defense Ministry. The planes were sent in two separate tranches, it added.'
* A startling headline from last week: 'Alaska just hit a climate milestone — its first-ever heat advisory.'
* VOA's precarious future: 'The Trump administration sent layoff notices on Friday to more than 600 employees at Voice of America, a federally funded news organization that provides independent reporting to countries with limited press freedom.'
* In related news: 'In a hearing Monday to determine the future of Voice of America, U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth scolded the government for not complying with his preliminary injunction from April.'
See you tomorrow.
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