The US Senate on Monday (June 30) began voting on a massive spending plan, dubbed the “big beautiful bill”, a massive Republican-led budget package that could reshape the US economy if passed. Backed by President Donald Trump, the bill features sweeping tax cuts, strict immigration measures, and deep changes to federal spending.

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The US Senate on Monday (June 30) began voting on a massive spending plan, dubbed the “big beautiful bill”, a massive Republican-led budget package that could reshape the US economy if passed. Backed by President Donald Trump, the bill features sweeping tax cuts, strict immigration measures, and deep changes to federal spending.

In India’s Telangana, over a dozen workers have been injured after an explosion at a chemical factory in the Pasamailaram Phase 1 area of the Sangareddy district on Monday (Jun 30), said officials. As per the PTI news agency, the death toll from the massive blast as of 1300 hrs IST was eight (8) workers.

Tensions ran high in the Loni Kalbhor area near Pune on Monday (June 30) after an Iranian flag and posters featuring Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei were seen close to the Loni railway station. According to reports, a few Iranian citizens had been shouting slogans in the area for the past three days. The sudden appearance of the banners triggered unrest near the Pune-Solapur National Highway and the law and order enforcement along with civic officials were forced to step in.

A Texas Congressman posted a controversial racist comment against Indian-origin New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani following a video on social media showing him eating rice with his hands.

After the onset of monsoon across India, nine days earlier than the expected date of July 8, several regions of the country have been covered with rain-laden clouds, which have brought respite from prolonged heat and humidity. Following this, heavy rain lashed Delhi-NCR and other parts of North India. Meanwhile, three people died in a road accident near Jalog, Shimla, amid continuous heavy rains due to monsoon in Himachal Pradesh on Monday.

Israel’s Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology Gila Gamliel put out an AI-made video on social media platform X, titled as ‘Next Year in a Free Tehran’. The video begins with establishing shots of Tehran. It then cuts to showing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, walking arm-in-arm down a street. The video further presents footage of Minister Gamliel and her husband, as well as exiled Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi and his wife walking in the same environment. The video ends with Israeli and Iranian imperial flags placed side-by-side.

Authorities have confirmed the identity of the suspect in the firefighter ambush as 20-year-old Wess Roley, reported CNN, quoting law enforcement official. Investigators believe the suspect intentionally set a brush fire on Canfield Mountain on Sunday before opening fire on responding firefighters, killing two and injuring a third.

Harvard University is facing the threat of a complete loss of federal funding after a Trump administration task force found it failed to protect Jewish students from harassment and discrimination. The investigation concluded the Ivy League institution breached civil rights laws, putting its federal funding in jeopardy unless it makes immediate changes.

Shefali Jariwala’s sudden death on Friday night has left the entire country in shock. The 42-year-old star was best known for starring in the hit music video Kaanta Laga. She had also famously featured in Bigg Boss 13 and acted in a few films down south. While the official cause of her death is yet to be revealed, reports state that a sharp drop in blood pressure, followed by a heart attack, may have caused her death.

Pakistan have appointed former all-rounder Azhar Mahmood as the new acting head coach of the Test team – the latest man to get the job in what has become a musical chair of coaches in the Pakistan cricket. Azhar is the seventh person to get the job since 2021 and take over another interim coach Aaqib Javed who had taken over when Jason Gillespie had quit abruptly shortly after white-ball coach Gary Kirsten did the same six months into the job last year.