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The $850 million Obama Presidential Center held its star-studded dedication Thursday in Jackson Park, with Oprah, Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and performances slated from Springsteen and Bono, before opening to the public Friday. President Trump was pointedly not invited to the ceremony for the 235-foot tower, museum, and library complex. Critics also panned the event over a land acknowledgment and the building's design.
Florida's Fourth District Court of Appeals ruled unanimously Wednesday that barring adults aged 18 to 20 from carrying concealed firearms violates the Second Amendment. Judge Spencer Levine wrote that the restriction would make the right "second-class," noting 18-year-olds can serve in the military, and found Florida identified no historical tradition supporting the ban enacted after the 2018 Parkland shooting.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday announced a six-month "NATO 3.0" review of America's force posture in Europe, warning allies that future US dues hinge on meeting defense-spending targets. He said the Pentagon expects to draw down jets, bombers, and submarines and have European nations fill the gaps, slamming "free-riding" allies for thin support during the Iran war.
At the Obama Presidential Center dedication Thursday, former first lady Michelle Obama drew sharp conservative pushback for remarks framing immigrants — including those in the country illegally — as central to the nation's identity. The comments landed amid an aggressive federal immigration-enforcement push and added to the day's running criticism of the Chicago ceremony.
The White House abruptly postponed Vice President JD Vance's planned trip to lead technical nuclear talks in Switzerland, saying the plans "have not been finalized." Iran's lead negotiator, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, warned that any US breach of the new agreement would bring "an even harder slap," adding that Iran will not honor its commitments if Washington does not honor its own.
Trump signed the memorandum of understanding to end the US-Iran war Wednesday night at Versailles, accelerating the timeline and scrapping a planned ceremonial Friday signing. The deal envisions reopening the Strait of Hormuz and lifting sanctions on Tehran, with the 60-day negotiating window now running. Iran's Supreme Leader said he held "a different view" but granted permission for the agreement.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared that continued Israeli military operations or troop presence in southern Lebanese territory seized during the conflict would violate the US-Iran framework. Israel maintains it needs the positions for security, leaving the Lebanon question a live flashpoint that could unravel the fragile deal.
Stanford researchers found that blocking a protein called 15-PGDH restored lost knee cartilage in older mice and prevented arthritis after joint injuries. Rather than relying on stem cells, the treatment coaxed existing cartilage cells back to a more youthful state, and human samples from knee-replacement surgeries showed similar regenerative responses — pointing to possible injectable or oral joint-repair drugs.
Researchers announced the discovery of fossilized baby early tetrapods that skipped the tadpole-style metamorphosis scientists had assumed. The finding suggests the first land-dwelling vertebrates were less like modern amphibians than long believed, reshaping the picture of how animals first adapted to life out of the water.
New World screwworms — parasitic fly larvae that burrow into living flesh — have been confirmed in Zavala County, South Texas, the pest's return to US soil after roughly 60 years. With six cases identified, the USDA dispatched a strike team to release sterile male flies and set up quarantine zones, racing to keep the outbreak from ravaging cattle and pushing already-record beef prices higher.
