Plus, Trump's Iran warning.

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Daily Briefing

Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Hello. British police search a royal mansion as an investigation into the King's brother goes on, Trump warns Iran of 'bad things' if no deal is made, and more than $175 billion in US tariff revenue is at risk in a Supreme Court ruling.

Plus, Trump orders government release of UFO records.

Today's Top News

 

Andrew Mountbatten Windsor leaves Aylsham Police Station, Britain, February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Phil Noble

  • British police are searching the former mansion of King Charles' younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor after he was released from police custody following his arrest over allegations he sent confidential government documents to Jeffrey Epstein. Here's how Reuters captured the photo of former Prince Andrew leaving custody.
  • President Donald Trump has given Iran 10 to 15 days to agree to a nuclear deal - warning that “really bad things” will happen if it doesn’t. White House Correspondent Steve Holland joins the Reuters World News podcast to break down the ultimatum and what it could mean for the region - listen now. 
  • A banner of Trump has been unfurled outside the headquarters of the Justice Department in the latest effort to stamp his identity on a Washington institution.The blue banner unfurled between two columns in a corner of the agency's headquarters includes the slogan: "Make America Safe Again."
  • Pedro Sanchez’s thinly veiled criticisms of US policy play well with his voters but are irritating Spain's powerful ally, where political advisers close to the White House warn the Socialist prime minister to watch his step.
  • A war of words erupted between French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over the killing of a French far-right activist who was beaten by hard-left activists over the weekend during protests in Lyon.
  • An Austrian court found a mountaineer guilty of manslaughter over his girlfriend's death of cold near Austria's highest summit after he left her to fetch help when she could not go on.
  • More than 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited to fight on Russia's side in the war in Ukraine, according to a Kenyan intelligence report presented to lawmakers this week, five times more than authorities had previously estimated.
  • Actor Eric Dane, who played the handsome Dr Mark Sloan on the hit television series "Grey's Anatomy," died aged 53, his family said, less than a year after revealing that he suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.
 

Business & Markets

 
  • The US trade deficit widened sharply in December amid a surge in imports, and the goods shortfall in 2025 was the highest on record despite Trump's tariffs on foreign manufactured merchandise.
  • More than $175 billion in US tariff collections are at risk of having to be refunded if the US Supreme Court rules against the president's broad emergency tariffs, Penn-Wharton Budget Model economists said. Read our exclusive.
  • New US cybersecurity rules for the defense sector are leading some small suppliers to rethink military work due to high compliance costs, raising production risks at a time when the Trump administration is pressuring contractors to boost output and diversify the supply base.
  • When Koji Sato was named Toyota CEO in 2023, he appeared to be the man for the moment: a veteran engineer who could give the world’s best-selling automaker a badly needed boost in electric vehicles. But the moment changed.
  • Mexican authorities raided a tunnel used to steal fuel from a state-owned pipeline this week, offering a rare glimpse into a long-running battle against a black-market trade often dominated by organized crime.
 

The Week Ahead

  • Next week marks the four-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
  • President Donald Trump will deliver a State of the Union address Tuesday. Some Democrats will boycott the speech for a rally.
  • Artificial intelligence bellwether Nvidia is set to post quarterly results on Wednesday, as investors worry about returns on AI spending and industry disruptions caused by the emerging technology.
  • British Prime Minister Keir Starmer faces a reckoning on Thursday, when a Manchester special election could deliver a fatal blow to his faltering leadership.
  • Here's all you need to know about the week ahead in financial markets.
 

Iranian supreme leader Khamenei, implacable foe of the United States

 

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Tehran, Iran. Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has crushed unrest and survived foreign pressure before but, with his envoys racing to avert threatened American airstrikes through ongoing talks, Iran's Supreme Leader faces the gravest crisis of his 36-year rule.

An embittered population toils under a sanctions-hit economy. Huge protests in January were crushed at a cost of thousands of lives. Israeli and US strikes last year smashed prized nuclear and missile facilities. Iran's regional policy lies in tatters, with old allies and proxies weakened or gone.

Read more
 

And Finally...

A parking sign at the Little A'Le'Inn near Area 51, in Rachel, Nevada, U.S. September 19, 2019. REUTERS/Jim Urquhart

Donald Trump said he would direct federal agencies to begin releasing government files related to aliens and unidentified flying objects, pointing to what he described as strong public interest in the issue.

In a social media post, Trump said he would order Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth and other agencies to release the information, calling the matter "extremely interesting and important."

Read more