00:00Donald Trump has threatened to cut ties or impose heavy tariffs on the European Union
00:05after they proposed making Canada an associate member of the bloc.
00:10The US central bank has raised interest rates for the first time in more than three years,
00:15a sharp policy turnaround to prevent inflation from becoming more entrenched.
00:20Belarus has released 25 political prisoners in exchange of the US lifting sanctions of two Belarusian companies.
00:30The Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague has convicted former Kosovo President Hashim Taci
00:35to 25 years in jail on four counts of war crimes.
00:40US President Donald Trump has threatened to cut trade with the European Union
00:45or impose more tariffs after the bloc proposed to make Canada,
00:48which has embroiled in a trade war with Washington, its first ever associate member.
00:54Speaking to reporters after disembarking Air Force One,
00:57Trump was ambiguous in his remarks,
01:00hinging his next move on whether the EU's inclusion of Canada
01:03is deemed by him an act of good or bad faith.
01:06If they do that, if I think it's at all a hostile act,
01:09I will put very serious tariffs or stop trading with Europe on many things.
01:15So if they do that, if Europe does that, with a bad intention,
01:19if it's a good intention, that's fine.
01:21If it's a bad intention, we'll put very heavy tariffs on the move.
01:25The move was proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
01:30during her State of the Union address before the European Parliament on Wednesday,
01:34with Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney notably in attendance.
01:38This is not a partnership against anyone else, but for our common strength.
01:46In short, we want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible.
01:54And dear Mark, I said we must urgently reimagine our partnerships.
01:59So I would like to work with you on opening the door for Canada
02:06to being the first associate member of the European Union.
02:11The European Executive Chief said the EU plans to boost its alliance with Canada
02:16to enhance collaboration across the board to, quote,
02:19create common prosperity and economic security.
02:22The alliance will expand to include manufacturing, tech and energy projects,
02:27and defense integration to boost Arctic security.
02:34The US central bank has raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter point
02:40to a range of 3.75 percent to 4 percent, its first increase since July 2023.
02:48The goal?
02:49To make borrowing more expensive, which usually slows spending and helps bring inflation down.
02:55In a unanimous 12-0 vote, that put Chair Kevin Walsh directly at odds
03:01with US President Donald Trump, who appointed him.
03:05Trump reportedly expected Walsh to eventually lower rates.
03:09The market reaction to the decision has been fairly muted,
03:13likely due to the fact that the hike was widely expected.
03:16The Fed's communication was as striking as its decision.
03:20The statement ran to three short paragraphs.
03:23A fraction of the length markets are used to, with no forward guidance and no hedging.
03:29One sentence even reads,
03:30the committee will deliver price stability, not seeks to, not is committed to, but will.
03:37The Fed is signaling that interest rates may stay high or even go higher
03:41because inflation is still a problem, as uncertainty remains elevated, the Fed said,
03:47owing partly to geopolitical developments, its terms for the war in Iran.
03:57Belarus has released 25 political prisoners in exchange of the US lifting sanctions on two
04:05Belarusian companies in a deal brockered by US envoy John Cole, who was in the capital, Minsk.
04:12Cole said that more talks could lead to a further release of individuals.
04:29The US and many other Western countries imposed sanctions on Belarus after it allowed Russia
04:36to use its territory to invade Ukraine in 2022.
04:40Washington has now eased some sanctions, which affected paint manufacturer La Kokraska
04:46and forestry sector group Belzpomprom.
04:49Hundreds of people were imprisoned after mass protests in 2020,
04:54sparked by the re-election of President Alexander Lukashenko, who's been in power since 1994.
05:07The Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague has convicted former Kosovo President Hashim Taci
05:13to 25 years in jail on four counts of war crimes committed during his country's war for independence
05:19from Serbia.
05:21Taci, who was tried along with three other former guerrilla leaders, was convicted of murder,
05:26torture, cruel treatment, and arbitrary detention.
05:29The presiding judge said Taci used his position, leadership, authority, and standing to encourage
05:35the crimes, including the targeting of political opponents and civilians perceived as collaborators
05:40and traitors during their time in the Kosovo Liberation Army.
05:44For many inside Kosovo, Taci and the KLA are symbols of its independence movement.
05:50After the war, Taci remained a central political figure and was instrumental in its 2008 declaration
05:56of independence.
05:57But his image was tarnished by a 2010 Council of Europe report, alleging links to organized
06:03crime and serious abuses committed during and immediately after the war.
06:08Throughout the trial, Taci's images have appeared on huge billboards across the country,
06:13and his supporters have regularly organized rallies in Pristina.
06:17Despite the seriousness of the charges, supporters of Taci expected him and his co-accused to be
06:23released, with preparations for a possible return already underway prior to the sentencing.
06:32Multiple petrol stations have been vandalized in northern France, with the words thieves written
06:39and screens smashed in protest against rising fuel prices.
06:44While four petrol stations were vandalized around the town of Douai, one local resident says
06:50that for this type of action to work, people need to mobilize en masse.
07:08Meanwhile, some places across France, including Paris, saw prices for diesel go up to almost
07:15€2.50 per litre, causing some French motorists to flock to Total Energy's service stations as
07:22they announced a cap of €1.99 per litre of E10 petrol and at €2.25 for diesel, considerably
07:30less than the national average.
07:33Other petrol stations, especially independent stations and supermarkets, are complaining about
07:39what they call unfair competition from Total Energies.
07:43The energy giant can afford to sell fuel more cheaply because it also produces and refines oil,
07:49even if it incurs considerable losses at their pumps.
07:57The war with Iran had cost the US military around $38 billion by the 1st of August, according
08:03to the country's non-partisan Congressional Budget Office.
08:07It said continued fighting could cost another $2-3 billion or more each month, depending on
08:13the intensity of the conflict.
08:15Replacing munitions used through August 1st was estimated at $21.7 billion, making it the
08:22largest single component of military cost.
08:25The report also warned that depletion of missile defense interceptors had reduced US inventories
08:30for several years.
08:33It is estimated that the United States may have used between half and two-thirds of those munitions
08:38since June 2025.
08:40The CBO also said the conflict was increasing inflationary pressures by disrupting oil and
08:46natural gas supplies.
08:49It is projected that first quarter inflation next year could be 0.5 percentage points higher
08:54than previously expected.
09:00Yemen's Houthis say they have shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet as tensions escalate over
09:06attacks on the kingdom and control of the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
09:11Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sari said the aircraft was targeted with a locally made air-to-air
09:16missile while carrying out what he called hostile operations.
09:20The group also denied Saudi accusations that it had targeted Mecca, saying its operations were
09:25aimed at oil facilities and military bases.
09:29Saudi Arabia's coalition vowed retaliation, however, describing the security of Islam's
09:34holicides and pilgrims as a red line.
09:37The warning followed alerts over possible attacks in Mecca and southern Saudi Arabia after
09:43ballistic missile and drone strikes from Yemen wounded 13 people.
09:47The Houthis have meanwhile seized Yemen's Red Sea coast and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and
09:52declared a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia.
09:54The waterway connects the Indian Ocean with the Red Sea and provides access to the Suez Canal.
10:00The Houthis insist that navigation is threatened only for Saudi vessels, but further disruption
10:06could affect shipping and Egypt's Suez Canal revenues, which are already at around half their
10:11pre-2023 level following Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping.
10:22A six-story building housing dozens of people in Gaza collapsed on Wednesday, killing at least 21 people,
10:30including 11 children, while dozens were still missing.
10:34The building crumbled overnight onto nearby homes and tents in Gaza City, according to
10:39the Civil Defense Agency.
10:41It was known to be unstable because of damage from Israeli strikes earlier in the war, underscoring
10:47how perilous and desperate living conditions have grown for the majority of the enclave's
10:52population as a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas is stalling.
10:57There's been no reconstruction work since the ceasefire was agreed to almost a year ago.
11:02Israel has said that it won't allow any rebuilding until Hamas disarms and has allowed only a handful
11:08of excavators into Gaza.
11:10With so many Palestinians left homeless and major shortages of construction materials, many
11:17Gaza residents have taken the risk of moving into unsafe buildings.
11:21Gaza's Civil Defense Agency has identified around 2,000 buildings in the territory that it says
11:26are at risk of collapse.
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