Trending Now
We have updated our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for Eurasia Group and its affiliates, including GZERO Media, to clarify the types of data we collect, how we collect it, how we use data and with whom we share data. By using our website you consent to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, including the transfer of your personal data to the United States from your country of residence, and our use of cookies described in our Cookie Policy.
{{ subpage.title }}
Firefighters work at the site of destroyed garages of an automotive enterprise hit during Russian drone and missile strikes, in Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine, on September 3, 2025.
Hard Numbers: Russia fires hundreds of drone missiles into Ukraine, Caveats to Google’s legal win, Judge rules on Trump admin’s use of 18th-century law, & More
526: Russia launched 526 drones at Ukraine overnight, as rates of drone and missile strikes have nearly doubled since Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inconclusive meeting with US President Donald Trump last month. Moscow is advancing slowly on the battlefield while ignoring Trump’s peace deadlines.
$2 trillion: Google was breathing a sigh of relief yesterday after a US federal judge rejected the Justice Department’s request to split up parts of the $2-trillion-plus company, which would involve spinning off its Chrome browser and Android devices. While the decision was a victory for the tech firm, the judge also ordered Google to share its search data with competitors and banned it from penning deals that would make its products the default tools on mobile devices.
60: Thailand’s caretaker Pheu Thai government has requested royal approval to dissolve Parliament after the opposition-backed Anutin Charnvirakul gained key support to form a rival coalition. The move follows last week’s dismissal of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra by the Constitutional Court. If the king allows Parliament to dissolve, it would trigger elections within 60 days.
200,000: The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has deported nearly 200,000 people this year, including some who were accused of gang ties and removed under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act. But on Tuesday, a federal appeals court ruled this act can no longer be used to fast track removals, saying that mass migration isn’t an “invasion.” The case is likely headed to the Supreme Court, but this ruling may temporarily curb Trump’s expanded deportation powers.
$8.5 million: France’s billionaire Pinault family is facing a lawsuit after its company Ponant canceled a glamorous cruise – one that cost $8.5 million – that was supposed to take more than 150 Russian elites to the North Pole, according to the Financial Times. The Russian-owned travel company that booked the trip alleges that the French firm has only returned $5.8 million of the total cost. The reason the firm canceled: a Russian crypto entrepreneur who brokered payments between the two firms was arrested in the United States.
Protesters line the street outside Alligator Alcatraz in Ochopee, Florida, holding signs during a vigil on Aug. 10, 2025.
Hard Numbers: Judge orders temp shutdown of Alligator Alcatraz, Colombian violence spreading, Women’s Rugby World Cup begins, & More
18: At least 18 people were killed during a pair of attacks around two of Colombia’s major cities on Thursday, the latest sign that the Latin American country’s security is deteriorating following the assassination of conservative presidential candidate Miguel Uribe. Left-wing President Gustavo Petro called for a security meeting to discuss additional protections.
9: There was another grim discovery in Kenya’s Shakahola Forest this week, as authorities exhumed nine bodies from fresh graves that are believed to be connected with an infamous starvation cult that once operated in this remote part of the East African country, sparking fears that the group still functions. The leader of the cult allegedly encouraged his followers to starve to death, and faces manslaughter charges.
6: Nearly six years after former US National Security Advisor John Bolton exited his White House role, the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided his Maryland home Friday morning in connection with a probe into whether he mishandled classified documents. There are concerns that the raid is politically motivated, since Bolton has become a fierce critic of US President Donald Trump since leaving the first Trump administration.
16: The Women’s Rugby World Cup begins today, as 16 countries battle it out for supremacy in a sport that has gained notoriety thanks to US player Ilona Maher’s massive online following – 375,000 tickets have already been sold for the tournament. England, which is hosting the tournament, will play against Maher’s United States in the opening match.
Crowds gather in Times Square to celebrate the surrender of Japan, V-J Day, New York City, New York, USA, U.S. Army Signal Corps, August 15, 1945
Hard Numbers: 80th anniversary of V-J day, Trump wants a stake in Intel, ICE eyes detention expansion, South Korean producers win “Baby Shark” lawsuit
80: Today marks the 80th anniversary of Victory over Japan Day, or “V-J Day”, the day that Imperial Japan surrendered to the Allied forces, bringing an end to World War Two. We’ve previously covered how Japan and the US’ relationship have since evolved.
7%: Intel shares rose by 7% on Thursday after reports emerged that the White House was considering purchasing an ownership stake in the US-based chipmaker. The reports highlight Trump’s increasing willingness to intervene in private chip companies, with Nvidia and AMD agreeing to hand the White House 15% of their Chinese revenues earlier this week.
107,000: US President Donald Trump has reportedly ordered a major expansion of ICE’s detention facilities – raising the number of beds by over 41,000 to 107,000. While the Department of Homeland Security has not confirmed details, the project is being funded by Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill passed in congress last month.
6: Fear not, the hit children’s song “Baby Shark” is here to stay. After a grueling six-year legal battle, South Korea’s Supreme Court ruled against US composer Jonathan Wright, who filed a lawsuit accusing the producers of the song of plagiarism. You can listen to Wright’s version here and decide for yourself.
Trump vs higher education, with Harvard's Noah Feldman
From lawsuits and executive orders to funding cuts tied to antisemitism claims, the Trump White House is targeting institutions like Harvard and Columbia in what Feldman calls an effort to undermine independent centers of truth. “Trump's gone after universities, he's gone after media, and he's going after courts,” Harvard Law professor Noah Feldman tells Ian Bremmer in the latest episode of the GZERO World podcast. “Each in its own way is an independent institutional voice telling people, ‘This is the way things are.’”
Feldman explains why this isn’t just about cancel culture or campus politics—it's about whether universities will remain places where truth is pursued freely, or "knuckle" under political pressure. He discusses Harvard’s legal fight with the administration, growing antisemitism on and off campus, and the deeper risks for American democracy if academic independence erodes.
Subscribe to the GZERO World Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published
FFM Mogami at the Yokosuka Naval Base on April 8, 2025.
Hard Numbers: Japan wins huge Oz carrier contract, Migrant boat sinks off Yemen, US to require bonds from visa-seekers, Taiwan arrests chip snoops
$6.5 billion: Japan won a $6.5 billion defense contract to build 11 new warships for Australia’s navy on Tuesday. The deal comes as Australia undertakes a major defense overhaul in order to counter China’s expanding presence in the Indo-Pacific.
68: At least 68 African migrants have died after a boat capsized off the coast of Yemen on Sunday. Yemen is a major transit route for migrants from the Horn of Africa – which includes Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti, and Eritrea – who go to the Gulf monarchies in search of work. The overall death toll is feared to be greater than 140.
15,000: The US is planning to require some visa applicants to pay bonds of up to $15,000, as President Donald Trump continues his crackdown on immigration. The State Department said the measure will target countries whose citizens overstay their visas most often: looking at you, Colombia, Mexico, Canada, Haiti, Venezuela, and Spain.
6: Taiwanese authorities have arrested six people suspected of stealing trade secrets from TSMC, the world’s most advanced semiconductor manufacturer. While their nationalities haven’t been made public yet, China’s Huawei and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) and the US’s Intel trail far behind TSMC, which supplies chips to Nvidia and Apple.Deportation numbers under US presidents 2000-2025.
Graphic Truth: Deportation Nation
Donald Trump has unveiled a sweeping crackdown on undocumented immigration, targeting the removal of millions of undocumented immigrants in what he has pledged will be the largest deportation in American history.
But as debates – and protests – over that policy rage on, the title of “deporter in chief” still rests, in fact, with another president, Democrat Barack Obama. He earned that epithet by removing some 3 million people during his time in office, the largest number of any president. With Trump aiming to surpass that, here’s a look at the number of deportations by year, and administration, over the past quarter century.
Palestinians wounded in an Israeli strike near a humanitarian aid distribution centre are rushed to Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis.
HARD NUMBERS: Gaza aid point killings rise, US states approve opioid settlement, and more
59: Israeli forces on Tuesday killed at least 59 Palestinians trying to access a food and aid distribution point in Gaza. This marks the deadliest day in a recent wave of shootings near the distribution points. More than 300 Palestinians have been killed in similar incidents since a private group backed by Israel and the US, called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, launched aid distribution sites in Gaza.
7.4 billion: All 50 US states approved a $7.4 billion settlement with Purdue over the pharma giant’s role in the opioid crisis. $6.5 billion of that will come from the owners of Purdue, the Sackler family. Unlike past opioid settlements, this one allows individuals to keep suing the Sacklers in civil court for another 15 years.
70,000: Nearly 70,000 people have already applied for the “Trump Card,” a VIP visa program that offers US residency to foreigners willing to cough up $5 million for the privilege. The program was officially launched last week.
6: Recent clashes between police and supporters of former Bolivian president Evo Morales have left six people dead and hundreds injured, deepening a political crisis in the gas-rich Andean country ahead of this fall’s presidential election. The courts have banned Morales, who was ousted amid protests in 2019, from running for a fourth term.
Yale Law School's Emily Bazelon on Trump's showdown with the courts
Listen: President Trump has never been shy about his revolutionary ambitions. In his second term, he’s moved aggressively to consolidate power within the executive branch—signing more than 150 executive orders in just over 150 days, sidelining Congress, and pressuring the institutions that were designed to check his authority. His supporters call it common sense. Critics call it dangerous. Either way, it’s a fundamental shift in American governance—one that’s unlike anything happening in any other major democracy.
While Congress has largely collapsed into partisan submission, and the DOJ and other power ministries face political purges, one institution still stands: the courts. In this episode, Ian Bremmer speaks with New York Times Magazine staff writer and Yale Law School’s Emily Bazelon about how the judiciary is holding up under pressure, what rulings to watch, and whether the rule of law can survive the Trump revolution.
Subscribe to the GZERO World Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published