5 Big News Stories Overnight - Monday, July 20, 2026

Federal Agents Were Told F.B.I. Will No Longer Investigate ICE Confrontations

The New York Times reports:

Federal agents around the country were told in recent days that the F.B.I. would no longer investigate confrontations with immigration agents — cases that sometimes yield evidence that could be used to prosecute Department of Homeland Security agents implicated in violent encounters, according to people briefed on the decision.

If enacted, such a change would sharply limit law enforcement scrutiny of immigration agents, as the Trump administration draws mounting criticism over killings at the hands of federal officers. In the last two weeks, two fatal shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Texas and Maine have thrust the government’s tactics back into the spotlight.

F.B.I. managers around the country received a written notice informing them of the change on Thursday, according to the people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal communications. The same day, some ICE agents around the country were notified by their F.B.I. counterparts.

The Key to Solar and Wind Power Is Battery Storage, and China Is Dominating

The Wall Street Journal reports:

Imagine a group of battery banks that together have enough power to keep all of Texas and California going on a peak summer day. That is what China has built in the space of just five years—and it is just getting started.

With the artificial-intelligence boom straining power grids, Beijing is betting on large-scale battery storage banks the size of shipping containers to help manage the load. The technology is particularly valuable in China because the country is heavily investing in solar and wind power, which can’t produce 24-hour-a-day power. Battery storage soaks up excess electricity during sunny and windy days and releases the juice later when it is needed. 

As recently as five years ago, all the storage batteries in China had capacity of less than 4 gigawatts, little more than a rounding error in the country’s huge grid. As of the first quarter of this year, the country’s nonconventional energy-storage capacity—mostly batteries—soared to around 155 gigawatts, and Beijing said in June that it was targeting 300 gigawatts by 2030.

‘The Odyssey’ Stuns With $124 Million Opening Weekend, Third-Biggest Debut of the Year

Variety reports:

It’s a box office debut fit for a king. Christopher Nolan‘s action epic “The Odyssey” ignited to $124.5 million from 3,919 domestic theaters over the weekend, defying expectations and setting up the R-rated spectacle for a long, long journey in theaters.

These ticket sales are notable as Nolan’s biggest debut since 2012’s “The Dark Knight Rises” ($160 million) as well as the third-largest opening of the year following “Toy Story 5” ($159 million) and “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” ($131 million). They’re also impressive not just because “The Odyssey” is a nearly three-hour sword-and-sandal adventure, a genre that’s rarely made these days, but also because it is rated R, which limits who can buy tickets.

Breakdown of U.S. Fatalities

The deaths reflect a conflict fought heavily through regional airstrikes, drones, and missiles: 

Kuwait Drone Strike (6 deaths): Six Army reservists were killed in March 2026 when an Iranian drone struck an unfortified command building at a civilian port. 

Iraq Refueling Plane Crash (6 deaths): Six Air Force personnel died when their KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed while supporting combat operations. 

Saudi Arabia Base Attack (1 death): One soldier died from wounds sustained during a March 1 missile strike on the Prince Sultan Air Base. 

Arabian Sea Helicopter Crash (1 death): A Navy pilot died in July 2026 following an emergency landing at sea. 

Jordan Missile Barrage (2 deaths): Two soldiers were killed in action during an Iranian ballistic missile attack on a military base in Jordan. 

Northern Iraq Ordnance Explosion (1 death): The 17th casualty occurred on July 18, 2026, when a service member was struck by debris during a controlled detonation of an unexploded Iranian drone. 

Andrew Tate gives phone away during arrest

The Telegraph reports:

A video has emerged of the moment rape suspect Andrew Tate was arrested in which he can be seen apparently passing his phone to one of his entourage.

The 39-year-old social media influencer was detained in the United States alongside his younger brother Tristan, after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) authorised a string of fresh sex abuse charges against the pair.

In a video of the arrest by armed agents from the US Marshal Service, Tate appears to try to hand his phone to a member of his team, who drops it, only for it to be recovered by another.

PHOTO: from Video, Andrew Tate arrested in the US Credit: X/@sentdefender