Reuters World News - Venezuela earthquakes, food stamp cuts and France's aircon debate

Episode Date: June 25, 2026

Two massive earthquakes rock Venezuela, killing dozens and trapping thousands under rubble. U.S. President Donald Trump faces a Republican revolt – including a shouting showdown with Senator Bill Cassidy – over his Iran deal. Millions of Americans are cut off from food stamps under his sweeping tax and spending cuts. And as Europe swelters in a record heatwave, air-conditioning becomes France’s latest political hot potato. Listen to the Morning Bid podcast ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast ⁠⁠here⁠⁠. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi, I'm Kim Vinal in Wanganui, New Zealand. It's Thursday, June 25th. Today. Two massive earthquakes hit Venezuela. Republicans challenge Trump over his interim Iran deal. Millions of Americans are cut off from food stamps. And Europe's heat wave makes air conditioning a political flashpoint in France. This is Reuters World News. bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes, seven days a week.

Residents of Caracas gather shell-shocked on the streets after two strong earthquakes hit the Venezuelan capital. More than 30 people have been killed, but officials warned the true death toll could be in the thousands. Rescue workers try to free those trapped after some buildings were reduced to rubble. The first quake, magnitude 7.2, hit about 100 miles west of the capital, followed less than a minute later by an even stronger magnitude 7.5 quake. In a televised address, interim president Delci Rodriguez declared a state of emergency. Offers of help are coming in, including from the U.S., pledged.

searching search and rescue teams and supplies. Julia Sims Cobb, Reuters Andean Bureau Chief, has more. So people in Caracas especially were completely panicked by these two earthquakes and evacuated their buildings. Obviously, Caracas has a lot of tall apartment buildings and other neighborhoods. It's singular two-story houses. But we've seen a lot of videos that heard testimonies from people who had to run down multiple flights of stairs in order to get out of the building when the shaking stopped.

So just generally a very terrifying experience for people who were affected by the quake. We have seen some videos that we haven't been able to verify of No Wayda. It's got some incredible damage, collapsed buildings, people driving on the roads, looking at the damage, even reports of some fires. Julia says that given Venezuela was already in a profound economic crisis, the government response may be impacted by the resources or lack of that are available. So Delci Rodriguez has said that they are focused for right now on rescue efforts and that there are rescue teams coming from other countries to help. She's thanked Donald Trump as well as Brazil's Lula de Silva and other leaders from around the region for their offers of help. And her focus for now is the rescue efforts. Rodriguez has said that there are shelters and hotels available for people who cannot return home.

But again, this is a government with extremely limited financial resources. Over in the US, The war is going very well. As you know, we're winning by a lot. Iran is making very big concessions. We'll see what happens. President Donald Trump addressed reporters after a closed-door meeting with fellow Republicans,

which reportedly descended into a shouting match. According to sources, Trump clashed with Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, who says the administration needs to explain the framework Iran deal and that the American people need to know more than what they're being told. The White House is also now asking for almost $70 billion to cover the cost of the war. And it comes just a day after the Senate voted to halt military operations in Iran. With billions being requested for the war effort, critics say the focus should be on making life affordable for Americans.

But plans for Trump to sign a rare bipartisan. partisan piece of legislation aimed at doing just that got cancelled last minute. Trump was scheduled to sign the bill meant to speed up the construction and availability of affordable housing, but just hours before, he switched tack. Instead, he said senators must first pass his divisive voter ID bill, the Save America Act. In another blow to America's cost of living crisis, more than 4.7 million. people have lost access to food stamp benefits since President Donald Trump's signature tax and spending law took effect almost a year ago. That's about one in ten SNAP recipients nationwide.

For some places, the impact is even sharper. In Arizona, nearly half of SNAP recipients are losing their benefits, around 450,000 people. Miriam Flores is a much. mother of seven who lives in Phoenix. She says she's stopped eating so she can afford to feed her kids. Reporter Leah Douglas says the cuts are tied to a new federal law that tightens work requirements, adds paperwork, and shifts more costs onto the states. This is really a historic change to the food stamp program.

We're seeing the most significant decline in enrollment, really in decades in the modern era of the program. And there's real concern that that could represent or lead to rise in hunger in the country. The Food Bank Network in Arizona is trying to fill this gap. We spoke to the Arizona Food Bank Network, which is a statewide organization that works with all the smaller pantries in the state, sort of coordinates food shipments and such. And they've seen a significant uptick in demand since these cuts started to go into effect. So they can't be expected and they don't expect to fully replace, for instance, SNAP benefits for those who are losing them. And so what this means for people who are receiving these benefits is, or have been receiving these benefits, is more precarity, more confusion and potentially a rise in hunger across the country that we haven't seen really in generations.

Traders, though, think the economy is going to get stronger. Their bet sent the dollar surging toward its sharpest monthly gain in almost a year. Meanwhile, strong earnings and forecasts from chip giants, Micron and Qualcomm are easing some concerns that the red-hot AI rally is not sustainable. For more markets news, check out Morning Bit, available wherever you get your podcasts. The heat wave in Europe is shattering records, killing dozens, closing schools, and knocking out electricity. In Paris, tourists faced limited hours for attractions like the Eiffel Tower,

with some wondering why Europe is being hit so much harder than other parts of the world. One potential answer? Air conditioning, or the lack of it. And as Bureau Chief Richard Locke explains, as a temperature's climb, air conditioning has become a political hot potato in France. Disset Wave has opened up something of a new front line in France's cultural wars and this at a time where we're less than a year out from next year's presidential election, the far right leader Marine Le Pen came out the other day saying it's absolutely absurd that people

are dying of heat in the 21st century in France. And she's promised a 20 billion euro package to roll out aircon if she is elected president. She said that money would be directed primarily towards schools, healthcare centres, hospitals, old people's homes. On the other end of the political spectrum, you've got her hard left presidential rival Jean-Luc Menanchon, who is saying, no way. No way is this an intelligent solution to fighting climate change in the 21st century? And he talks about the damage that air conditioning bells.

And there he's talking to the energy draining side of aircon, the fact that it sucks up a lot of power. However, among some of the proposals he's putting forward, he's advocating for climate leave. So days off for parents when it gets too hot and schools close. Over in Greece, officials are sounding the alarm over its chronically underfunded forest service and its struggle to keep up with the threat of wildfires.

Two and a half million acres of forest have burned in Greece since the year 2000, while the number of staff dealing with the fires has more than halved. It is exhausting. especially during the summer months, because we work over 12 hours. Forrester Zoyntina and her team of 27 cover around a third of the region of Attica, home to the capital, Athens. And it is almost impossible to be everywhere. More than a third of all forests and grasslands in Attica were destroyed by fires between 2017 and 2024,

although the Forestry Service has added around 300 staff since then. Keiko Fujimori, who is leading Peru's presidential runoff, is promising to serve for only five years if elected. Fujimori is looking to allay fares given she comes from a controversial political dynasty. Her father, Alberto, was president of Peru in the 90s, and was described by South. as an authoritarian. He dissolved Peru's Congress in 1992

and was ultimately arrested and imprisoned for human rights abuses. If confirmed by the electoral authority, Fujimori will become Peru's first female president. For more on any of the stories from today, check out Reuters.com or the Reuters app. Don't forget to follow us on your favorite podcast player. If you're listening on a smart speaker,

just ask for the latest news from Reuters seven days a week. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.