5 Big News Stories Overnight - Monday July 13, 2026

Senator McConnell Issues Statement About Illness After Weeks of Silence

Politico reports:

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Sunday that he will return to the Senate after a weeks-long hospitalization in a statement seeking to put to bed rampant speculation about his health.

McConnell, in a lengthy note to constituents, said he was placed in the hospital after falling last month and also has dealt with a “mild case of pneumonia.”

“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion,” he said. “I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital.”

McConnell’s statement is the first he has made since he was hospitalized in mid-June. And while he said he will return to the Senate, he said that he can’t go back just yet and didn’t specify in the statement when he will return.

Iran expands attacks on Gulf states after intense US strikes

France 24 reports:

Fresh attacks rocked Iran and Kuwait on Sunday evening as Tehran and Washington squared off over the Strait of Hormuz, offering contradicting statements as to whether the vital waterway was open to traffic.

Iran reported strikes on two of its southern islands while Kuwait, where Tehran has repeatedly targeted US installations, said border posts and an offshore oil platform had been attacked.

The as-yet unclaimed strikes came hours after Tehran and Washington exchanged fire for the third time this week, with control of Hormuz again the central issue, plunging into further question negotiations aimed at building on a preliminary deal and ending the Middle East war for good.

Before the war began with surprise US-Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28, there was free passage through Hormuz, but Tehran now insists that it will control the strait, while Washington is adamant it cannot.

PHOTO: Moslem Daneshzadeh, Unsplash

Calls for radical action as Burnham told homelessness in England may rise 25% by 2030

The Guardian exclusively reports:

Andy Burnham has been warned that an additional 50,000 people in England will become homeless in the next four years without a radical “housing first” agenda of government.

The incoming prime minister’s leadership team is understood to have been briefed on projections, due to be published on Monday, showing the current record levels of homelessness rising 25% by 2030 to more than 230,000 people.

Burnham has promised the “biggest council housebuilding programme since the postwar period” if he becomes prime minister as expected on 20 July.

He is understood to have told advisers he wants to see a rapid fall in the number of people sleeping rough within months of taking office.

Apple’s ‘Thermonuclear’ Response to the OpenAI Threat

The WSJ reports:

Steve Jobs declared “thermonuclear war” on Google’s Android operating system in 2010, calling it a “stolen product.” Now, his successor is going to battle against Apple’s new most dangerous rival.

In one of his last acts as Apple’s chief executive before successor John Ternus takes over, Tim Cook fired a missile at OpenAI. In a lawsuit filed Friday, Apple alleged that a senior OpenAI executive, who once sat atop Apple’s own product design team, was involved in a monthslong campaign to steal Apple trade secrets.

Although it isn’t yet clear what evidence the company has to back up all its claims, the suit lands before OpenAI has released a product and as the technology industry races to build artificial-intelligence-powered devices that can move society beyond the smartphone era. The winner could dominate the future just as Apple’s iPhone has ruled the consumer market for the last 20 years.

“I am not afraid of Apple, but I have tremendous respect for them,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman posted on X Saturday.

Zelensky Announces Cabinet Reshuffle, Offers PM Svyrydenko New Diplomatic Role

Kyiv Post reports:

President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced a planned reshuffle of the Cabinet of Ministers and law enforcement agencies, stating he has offered Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko a new position focused on international relations.

Proposed changes to the Cabinet of Ministers

In a statement on Telegram on July 12, Zelensky said he discussed the importance of updating the government with Svyrydenko to implement a new political strategy. Acknowledged her tenure as prime minister, he stated he offered her a role leading a new direction in relations with a key partner. Zelensky added that he expects parliament to process the necessary government replacements.

The president outlined that internal operations require adjustments to address current challenges. These include increasing support for frontline and border regions, boosting the supply of weapons and drones to the military, and preparing for the winter period.