00:01Peace talk stalled. The U.S. and Iran at odds over control of the Strait of Hormuz, and neither side
00:07is backing down.
00:09Plus, a sudden shakeup at the Navy. The Secretary is out. What some say is behind a growing power clash
00:15inside the Pentagon.
00:17And ICE funding finally gets passed, with no new limits. And it all happened in the middle of the night.
00:26The stories that matter, clear and credible, from across the country to around the world.
00:32These are your unbiased updates from Strait Arrow News.
00:38Good morning, I'm Craig DeGrelli. This morning, as Washington prepares to host peace talks between Israel and Lebanon, U.S.
00:46negotiations with Iran appear to be stalling.
00:49New video aired on Iranian state TV shows armed forces boarding two commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz, where
00:56attacks on vessels have resumed.
00:58Iran is refusing to return to the negotiating table unless the United States lifts its blockade of Iranian ships and
01:05ports,
01:06calling it a violation of the ceasefire that President Trump extended indefinitely this week.
01:11After weeks of signaling the conflict could end soon, the president now says there is no timeline for when it
01:18will be over.
01:19Meanwhile, talks aimed at extending the fragile 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon are facing new strain.
01:26Authorities in southern Lebanon say at least six people were killed in three overnight strikes, with several others wounded,
01:32just hours before those talks were set to begin.
01:35Israel has denied carrying out at least one of the strikes and says its military intercepted a drone launched from
01:42southern Lebanon early this morning.
01:44A sudden shakeup at the Pentagon.
01:47The Navy's top civilian leader is out.
01:50Navy Secretary John Phelan is leaving his post effective immediately, according to the Pentagon.
01:56Multiple outlets, including CNN and Fox News, report Phelan was pushed out,
02:00with some sources saying he was given the option to resign or be fired.
02:05The move follows months of reported tension with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth,
02:10including disagreements over shipbuilding and leadership direction.
02:13Undersecretary Hong Kao is now stepping in as acting Navy Secretary.
02:18The departure comes at a crucial moment, with the Navy playing a central role in U.S. operations tied to
02:24the Iran conflict.
02:26Phelan is also the latest in a series of high-level departures across the administration
02:30and had previously faced scrutiny after his name surfaced in records tied to Jeffrey Epstein's private flight logs, according to
02:38CNN.
02:39There's no indication, though, of wrongdoing.
02:41The Pentagon has not given an explanation for his exit.
02:45Also from Washington, after an overnight voterama,
02:48the Senate has passed a budget blueprint that would fund immigration enforcement
02:53and move toward ending the partial government shutdown.
02:57Senators approved the measure 50 to 48, mostly along party lines,
03:01advancing roughly $70 billion in new funding without Democratic support.
03:06Republicans Rand Paul and Lisa Murkowski were the only GOP members to vote no.
03:11The plan sets up a filibuster-proof path to fund immigration and customs enforcement, border patrol,
03:17and related agencies through the remainder of President Donald Trump's term,
03:21without adding new operational limits.
03:24Democrats offered a series of amendments focused on cost-of-living concerns.
03:28All of them rejected.
03:30The measure now heads to the House, which must pass the same version
03:34before lawmakers can move forward with final legislation.
03:37Any changes there would send it back to the Senate for another vote.
03:42Now to redistricting.
03:44A Virginia judge is blocking new congressional maps
03:47just one day after voters approved them at the ballot box.
03:50A circuit court judge in Tayswell County has ordered the state not to certify Tuesday's results.
03:56In his ruling, Judge Jack Hurley says the referendum likely violates the state constitution,
04:02pointing to a required 90-day public notice period that was not met.
04:07He also calls the ballot language, quote, flagrantly misleading.
04:11Right now, Virginia's congressional delegation is split, six to five, in favor of Democrats.
04:16The new maps could shift that to a 10-to-1 advantage.
04:20The state attorney general says he will appeal immediately,
04:23arguing a single judge should not override the will of the voters.
04:27The Republican National Committee, which filed the lawsuit, is calling the ruling a win.
04:32But the group Virginians for Fair Elections says voters knew exactly what they were approving.
04:37The case now heads to the Virginia Supreme Court, which is already reviewing the challenge.
04:43Wildfires are tearing across parts of the southeast this morning,
04:47destroying homes in Georgia and forcing hundreds to evacuate as conditions rapidly worsen.
04:52In Brantley County, flames have already wiped out more than 50 homes.
04:56You see them roaring right there.
04:58They're spreading so fast, some residents had little to no warning.
05:02Multiple large fires are burning across southern Georgia, including a major inferno in Clinch County,
05:08together scorching more than 30 square miles.
05:11Crews are working to contain the fires with air support and fire breaks or barriers.
05:16But dry conditions and gusty winds are fueling the spread.
05:19In neighboring Florida, more than 100 wildfires are burning this morning,
05:24what officials say could become one of the worst fire seasons in decades.
05:28Smoke from the fires is drifting hundreds of miles,
05:31reaching cities like Atlanta and Jacksonville,
05:33with air quality dropping to unhealthy levels in some areas.
05:37The governor of Georgia has declared a state of emergency,
05:40with drought conditions worsening.
05:42Officials say they urgently need rain.
05:45Mexico's president is now considering sanctions
05:48after a deadly crash involving U.S. personnel inside the country.
05:52President Claudia Scheinbaum says her government is looking at possible action
05:57against the state of Chihuahua after what she calls an unauthorized operation involving American agents.
06:04The crash happened last weekend as a convoy returned from dismantling
06:07a large clandestine drug lab in northern Mexico.
06:11Four people were killed in the crash,
06:13including two U.S. embassy personnel and two Mexican investigators.
06:17U.S. officials have since confirmed to CBS News
06:20The Americans were tied to the CIA, working as instructors on anti-drug efforts.
06:26But Scheinbaum says the Mexican federal government was never informed
06:30and made clear that foreign agents are not allowed to operate on Mexican soil without approval.
06:36She's now demanding answers and raising the possibility of sanctions if laws were violated.
06:41The incident is exposing new tensions between the United States and Mexico
06:45as Washington pushes for more aggressive action against cartels.
06:49A crackdown on fentanyl coming into the U.S.
06:51And Mexico pushes back on sovereignty.
06:54Earlier this week, we showed you a robot running a marathon.
06:58Now, Sony has developed one that can play table tennis.
07:02And not just casually.
07:04At a high level, actually.
07:06The robot uses eight joints to control its movements.
07:09Positioning the paddle, returning shots, and sustaining rallies with human opponents.
07:15Researcher Peter Doerr helped develop the system.
07:17He explains how it works.
07:19The robot uses a system of cameras to understand what's happening.
07:27It's then taking a decision on how to move.
07:32And it's then moving the racket to hit the ball back or to serve under the official rules of table
07:41tennis.
07:42And the robot can really do that by learning to play table tennis from scratch.
07:49So there is no way to program a robot by hand to play table tennis.
07:54You have to learn how to play from experience.
07:58It's a pretty neat video.
08:00They've named the robot Ace.
08:02Sony says it's the first time a robot has reached human expert level play in a real world competitive sport.
08:10And early results back that up.
08:12Human practice partners say Ace is not just keeping up.
08:16It's beating some expert level players.
08:18Can you imagine?
08:19You see, I wonder if Ace has like a personality or a temper.
08:23Like John McEnroe, you cannot be serious.
08:25Where if Ace loses a point, it slams its paddle.
08:28That would add some flavor, right?
08:31All right, before we head out, here's what we're tracking today.
08:34At 830, the Labor Department releases its weekly jobless claims report, a key read on the pace of layoffs.
08:40At noon, Freddie Mac puts out its latest mortgage rates, a snapshot of where borrowing costs stand right now.
08:46That same hour, First Lady Melania Trump joins congressional spouses at the annual First Lady's Luncheon, where she's expected to
08:55deliver remarks.
08:56At 3, President Trump participates in a health care affordability event at the White House.
09:02No noise, no sides, just the story.
09:04NewsGuard gives us a perfect score for reliability.
09:06All sides gives us a center rating for balance certification.
09:11We give you facts first and the news straight.
09:13Those are your unbiased updates for this Thursday.
09:16We'll see you back here tomorrow, Friday.
09:18We love that.
09:18For all of us here at Straight Arrow, I'm Craig DeGrelli.
09:21Have a great day.
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