World
State of the Union: Von der Leyen and Metsola reelected, Trump nominated
This edition of State of the Union focuses on the reelection of Ursula von der Leyen and Roberta Metsola and the state of play of the U.S. presidential campaign.
Hello and welcome to State of the Union, I’m Stefan Grobe in Strasbourg.
It’s still July, but for European lawmakers it felt like back-to-school day.
Following the European elections in June, the new and old members of the European Parliament gathered in Strasbourg for the first plenary session of the new legislative season.
The 720-member chamber is the EU only directly elected institution, it negotiates and adopts EU legislative proposals and approves the bloc’s budget.
On top of the agenda this week: the election of the top positions in Parliament and Commission – no real surprise here, as Roberta Metsola and Ursula von der Leyen were both confirmed in office.
Metsola, who easily won a second term, got a little emotional when she recalled what Europe meant to her when she grew up in Malta.
“To me, Europe was worth fighting for. It was never perfect, but we looked to the European Parliament, to this Strasbourg hemicycle, as a symbol of standards of opportunity, of reconciliation. It was our guarantee of the rule of law, of equality, of democracy, of liberty, of prosperity.”
While all eyes were on Strasbourg this week, it was business as usual in Brussels.
And for the EU Commission it meant grappling with the drama of the presidential campaign in the United States.
The attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Pennsylvania sent shockwaves through the corridors of power in Brussels.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell reacted with condemnation and relief: “Fortunately, the attack on Trump was not what they wanted it to be, he is alive, thank God. And hopefully the campaign will normalize and Americans will decide what they think is right.”
The assassination attempt paired with the struggle inside the Democratic Party over whether President Joe Biden should drop out of the race have dramatically upended the election campaign.
At the Republican Convention in Milwaukee this week, Trump was celebrated as a hero and a survivor of evil.
Republicans are now more confident than ever before to win in November, even to beat Biden in a landslide.
So, do we all have to fasten our belts and get ready for another Trump administration in Washington? What does that mean for Europe?
ADVERTISEMENTWe spoke to Majda Ruge, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, based in Berlin.
Euronews: Following the assassination attempt, Trump and Biden have called for unity – how long can that moment last? Or is it already over?
Ruge: Well, the sort of unity that we’re actually seeing is more in the Republican Party, I would say. I think Trump’s call for unity is also a very subtle and intelligent tactics to reach out to either undecided or disgruntled Biden voters in the swing states. So, you know, I’m not expecting a sudden turn to, national unity, really, but more kind of an approach of unifying the Republican Party and then reaching out to voters that might be useful for President Trump.
Euronews: European leaders have been preparing for a Trump victory in November – will they have to step up their efforts now?
ADVERTISEMENTRuge: They definitely will have. I think the key question really on these preparations is not whether they should prepare and step up, but when they should have started, and I think they should have started long time ago, at least two years ago. Now it’s very clear that there will be a radical shift in the U.S. foreign policy if Trump is re-elected, and that the Europeans will be faced with multiple policy shocks at the same time, starting from potential withdrawal of U.S. aid for Ukraine over radical downsizing of U.S. military presence in Europe and their role in NATO through trade protectionism.
Euronews: What will bring a possible vice president JD Vance to future U.S.-EU relations?
Well, if you kind of look at his foreign policy profile, not that he has an active one as a government official, but he has been quite vocal, and active both in terms of interviews, statements and op-eds. He is a big, big sceptic of U.S. support for Ukraine. He thinks that the wealthy European nations, and he has singled out Germany many times, are the one who are responsible for really financing and, you know, paying for this war. He is kind of a restrainer in heart, but in fact, on foreign policy, a big prioritizer of China and Taiwan. So, I think that one thing we can expect as Europeans, if Trump is elected, is that JD Vance, his appointment as vice president is going to draw in many of the foreign policy experts in the Republican ecosystem who have long been arguing that a radical shift of military and financial resources needs to be made from Europe and Ukraine to China and Taiwan.
World
Man charged with attempted murder, released after allegedly forcing toddler into crocodile enclosure at zoo
Man FORCES child into crocodile enclosure
A British man has been arrested after allegedly forcing a 3-year-old boy into a crocodile enclosure at a zoo. The child suffered critical injuries, and authorities say the suspect did not know the boy as the investigation continues.
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A man was released from custody on Friday after he was charged with attempted murder for allegedly forcing a 3-year-old boy into a crocodile enclosure at a zoo.
Cambridgeshire police said that the man, who remains unidentified, wasn’t fit to be interviewed.
The boy suffered critical injuries in the incident at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a farm and zoo in Huntingdon, England, north of London.
The 30-year-old man will remain on bail until Sept. 30, pending further inquiries.
GEORGIA MOM’S WALMART TRIP DEVOLVES INTO ‘TUG-OF-WARRING’ IN DESPERATE ATTEMPT TO SAVE HER SON
A crocodile rests inside an enclosure at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a farm and zoo in Old Hurst, Cambridgeshire, Britain, on April 14, 2026. (Dorota Dee Trajdos/Reuters)
“The man, who is not known to the victim, was assessed as not being fit for interview,” police said in a statement.
The boy is in stable condition, after reportedly suffering a broken arm and pelvis.
He was saved from the crocodile by Tracey Johnson, the wife of the zoo’s owner.
MOTHER JUMPS INTO WATER TO SAVE 4-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WHO FELL BETWEEN CRUISE SHIP AND DOCK
“I know Tracey very well and she’s a lovely lady and it’s nothing more than I’d expect from her,” a local told BBC News. “She’d always put her own life at risk to save someone else. She’s an extraordinary lady and very brave.
The villager added that Johnson put herself in “immense danger” during the rescue.
The owners said their tropical house would remain closed until further notice.
Crocodiles rest inside an enclosure at Johnsons of Old Hurst farm and zoo in Old Hurst, Cambridgeshire, Britain, on April 14, 2026. (Dorota Dee Trajdos/Reuters)
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the boy and his family following the incident that occurred today,” the owners wrote on social media.
Johnsons of Old Hurst is a farm and zoo north of London in Huntingdon, England. (Google Maps)
Huntingdonshire district councillor Charlotte Lowe said she couldn’t “fathom how it’s happened because they’ve got all the right protection and safety equipment, for want of a better word, in there,” The Guardian reported.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the Cambridgeshire Constabulary for comment.
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US President Donald Trump has doubled down on his comments on Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, saying she asked him “over and over” for a photo when the pair met at the G7 summit in France earlier this week.
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Following the summit, Trump told an Italian journalist that he “felt sorry for Meloni” after she “begged me to take a picture with her”.
Meloni hit back in a video posted to social media, branding Trump’s claims as “completely made up” and insisting that neither she nor Italy begs anyone for anything.
The once close pair’s relationship has grown increasingly fractious in recent months, particularly since Rome refused to provide the US support for its operations in Iran and after Meloni defended Pope Leo XIV, who was criticised by the Trump administration over his remarks on the war and the US’s immigration policies.
“Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni asked, over and over, for a picture with me during the G-7 meeting in France,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account on Saturday. “She is doing poorly in Italy with her level of popularity, possibly because she turned down the United States of America, a Country that truly loves and protects Italy, when it came to denying Iran from obtaining or developing a Nuclear Weapon”.
“Now, after the United States defeated Iran militarily, she wants to be friends again in order to get her “numbers up.” No thanks!!!” Trump added.
World
‘X-Men’ Star Famke Janssen Says Marvel ‘Made a Mistake’ By Not Asking Her to Return as Jean Grey in ‘Avengers: Doomsday’
Famke Janssen said during a recent conversation with Nerdtropolis at Spacecon 2026 that Marvel “made a mistake” by not bringing her back as Jean Grey for December’s “Avengers: Doomsday.”
“I am so bad at keeping secrets that I always say to everyone I’m the worst actor in the world. It’s all on my face. You right away will read it,” Janssen said. “I think they made a mistake, but hey, who am I? I’m just a little me who thinks that.”
Janssen first appeared as the telepath Jean Grey, aka Phoenix, in 2000’s “X-Men,” and then reprised the role for 2003’s “X2: X-Men United” and 2006’s “X-Men: The Last Stand.” She also briefly appeared as Grey in 2013’s “The Wolverine” and 2014’s “X-Men: Days of Future Past.”
Janssen’s absence from “Doomsday” is notable, considering Marvel is bringing back many of her “X-Men” co-stars for the film. Patrick Stewart (Charles Xavier), Ian McKellen (Magneto), James Marsden (Cyclops), Kelsey Grammer (Beast), Alan Cumming (Nightcrawler) and Rebecca Romijn (Mystique) are all set to return.
In an October 2025 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Janssen said in every interview she does, she’s asked about the future of Jean Grey in the MCU.
“It’s interesting,” Janssen said. “I didn’t realize that was such a big part. Every interview I do, that will come up, and of everything I say, that is going to be the only thing that’s gonna be printed.”
“I should be flattered, I suppose, that this character has resonated with people,” she added. “It’s been so long, but it’s nice that people are still talking about her. I’m sure every single time there’s a new movie that they’re doing, like [is it] ‘Doomsday?’ … it’ll come up again.”
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