The "Humboldt Project" will connect Chile to Australia with a 14,800-kilometer cable and improve connectivity. Other South American countries, such as Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil are also expected to benefit.

Santiago

Environmental activists in Chile are voicing strong opposition to the expansion of data centers, particularly those operated by Google, in the Santiago region. They argue that these facilities consume large amounts of water, with one center projected to use 169 liters per second, equivalent to nearly nine Olympic-sized swimming pools daily. This is a significant concern in a region already experiencing prolonged drought and limited water reserves.

The environmental group MOSACAT has highlighted the risk to local wetlands and the broader impact on agriculture and daily life. Their protests have led to a Chilean court halting a Google data center project until its environmental impact is properly assessed. While Google has undertaken some measures, such as tree planting to offset emissions, activists continue to call for stricter regulations and a fairer distribution of environmental burdens associated with global data infrastructure.

Chile, Google sign first-of-its-kind deal for undersea cable

Environmental groups in Chile are fighting back against the construction of more data centers. Many companies, including tech giant Google, have created server farms in the Santiago region. And more are being planned. Activists like Tania Rodriguez have long been sounding the alarm. We recognize the havoc these data centers wreak on nature. Data centers that are not necessarily beneficial for Chileans, but rather for other countries in the world. They generate very few jobs and the environmental impact is severe. Tania Rodriguez is a member of the environmental organization MOSACAT. The group is protesting the expansion of data centers in the region, including a new Google project. MOSACAT activists say these data centers have a huge impact on Chile's water supply. The data center itself would use 169 liters of water per second. That's the equivalent of nearly nine Olympic-sized swimming pools every day, which are filled and drained because this isn't reusable water. Given the increasing droughts we're experiencing, this is a mind-boggling waste. Environmentalists say the data center's high water consumption puts the Kilicora wetlands at risk. Santiago does not have the luxury of large water reserves. And actually, the region is in a drought period that's predicted to stretch on for years. Many people used to grow crops. There are places here where they used to grow strawberries, and now they can't do anything. They have to buy everything, and they don't even have water to use in the bathroom. With government support, Santiago has become a popular location in Latin America for data centers. Chile is attractive because our laws are lax. We have almost no legislation. Plus, there's no political responsibility. The activists recognize that there are also advantages to AI, but they want the environmental burden of data centers to be shared more fairly with other countries. They arrive here and want to do these huge construction projects, which are coming from Europe. So they bring them here, to Latin America. Their protests have been successful. A Chilean court halted Google's data center project, ruling that it had to consider its environmental impact. Google has planted trees to offset emissions, but the region continues to be affected by drought. Chilean activists continue to fight for change, and hope that the government will implement stricter environmental regulations in the future.

President Trump explained why he fired Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer on Friday. Government data showed fewer jobs were added to the U.S. economy last month than expected.

Washington

Global Tariffs

Trump announces new tariff rates, fires employment commissioner

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith, who ran two federal prosecutions of President Trump, is under investigation for allegedly violating a law barring federal employees from using their position to influence elections.

Jack Smith investigated for using position to influence elections

Montana authorities released a new surveillance image showing who they have identified as the suspect in a bar shooting in Anaconda. Meanwhile, nearly 2,000 miles away, police in Tennessee are searching for a quadruple homicide suspect.

Anaconda

Suspect on the run after Montana bar shooting

Los Angeles officials are praising an appeals court ruling limiting immigration stops, but the decision may only escalate a battle over transparency and control. Elise Preston has the latest information.

Los Angeles

Appeals court keeps restrictions on California ICE raids

Disturbing new video shows a severely malnourished Israeli hostage being held in what appears to be an underground tunnel. This comes as witnesses and aid workers say Israeli troops opened fire on hungry civilians at two Gaza food distribution sites.

Sderot

Middle East Conflict

Hamas propaganda shows malnourished Israeli hostage

U.S. President Donald Trump fired the U.S. commissioner of labour statistics after weak jobs numbers signaled tariffs weren’t yet leading to his promised economic boom.

Trump slams weak jobs numbers as 'rigged,' fires statistics chief

Donald Trump has ordered the repositioning of two United States nuclear submarines to “appropriate regions” relative to Russia, blaming a heated exchange with Dmitry Medvedev, Moscow’s military leader and former president.

Moscow

Trump sends nuclear submarines towards Russia

A mass shooting in Anaconda triggers community shock and concern, as witnesses share their experiences and the investigation unfolds amid rising tensions.

Community in shock following deadly shooting in Anaconda

U.S. President Donald Trump said he's ordered his administration to fire the commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, on the same day new data was released showing weak job growth in July. The Labor Department also sharply revised job growth for May and June down.

Trump orders firing of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner

U.S. President Donald Trump says he ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in the "appropriate regions" as a response to comments made by Russia's former president. CBS News' Charlie D'Agata reports.

Trump says nuclear submarines moved in response to Russia

Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell has been transferred to a Bryan, Texas, prison, CBS News confirms. Maxwell was previously held in Tallahassee, Florida.

Bryan

Ghislaine Maxwell transferred to Texas prison

The announcement comes as international pressure mounts on Israel over the war in Gaza and the deepening humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.

Ljubljana

Slovenia becomes first EU country to ban arms trade with Israel

The United States imposed sanctions on Palestinian Authority officials just as other nations are stressing the importance of the PA in governing Gaza in the event of an end to the devastating war in the enclave.

New York

U.S. sanctions Palestinian Authority in growing diplomatic rift

Ukraine’s Parliament has reversed a controversial law signed last week by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which would have allowed the government greater control over anti-corruption agencies. The decision comes as the country faces one of its most significant political crises since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

Ukraine parliament reverses bill on anti-corruption agencies amid crisis

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order increasing tariffs on Canadian goods that don't meet the terms of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement to 35 per cent.

Ottawa

Trump raises Canada tariff to 35%, grants extension to Mexico

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on July 31 in a bid to salvage Gaza truce talks and tackle a humanitarian crisis in the enclave, where a global hunger monitor has warned that famine is unfolding.

Jerusalem

Trump's envoy meets Netanyahu for Gaza aid, ceasefire push

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff is visiting Israel as more countries join the call to recognize a Palestinian state in September. CBS News' Robert Berger has the latest.

Trump envoy in Israel as Canada joins call on Palestinian statehood

President Donald Trump says the U.S. will charge a 15% tariff on imports from South Korea as part of a deal that eases, for now, tension with a top-10 trading partner and key Asian ally.

Trump says U.S. will set 15% tariff on South Korean imports

U.S. President Donald Trump slapped a 50% tariff on most Brazilian goods to fight what he has called a "witch hunt" against former President Jair Bolsonaro, but softened the blow by excluding sectors such as aircraft, energy and orange juice from heavier levies.

Rio de Janeiro

Trump hits Brazil with tariffs, sanctions but key sectors excluded

Widespread damage from tsunami waves after one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded appears to have been largely avoided. Experts say this event should be used to gauge disaster preparedness for a more serious situation in the future.

Okinawa

Tsunami damage less severe than feared after Russian earthquake

Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that Canada will recognize a Palestinian state later this year if the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the West Bank, meets certain conditions.

Canada to recognize Palestinian state in September if conditions met

Australia said on Wednesday (July 30) it will add YouTube to sites covered by its world-first ban on social media for teenagers, reversing an earlier decision to exempt the Alphabet-owned video-sharing site and potentially setting up a legal challenge.

Canberra

Australia expands teen social media ban to YouTube

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday (July 30) the United States will impose a 25% tariff on goods imported from India, as well as an unspecified penalty for buying Russian weapons and oil, on Aug. 1.

Trump says U.S. to hit India with 25% tariff starting August 1

Mourners flooded the streets of Birmingham to celebrate the life of rock-and-roll legend Ozzy Osbourne during his funeral procession in the United Kingdom. Mark Savage, a music reporter at the BBC, a CBS News partner, joins with more details.

Birmingham

Ozzy Osbourne fans flood Birmingham streets to mourn late music icon

U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters before departing from Scotland that Jeffrey Epstein poached workers from his Mar-a-Lago spa. Trump mentioned Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's most vocal accusers, in his latest remarks.

Trump says Epstein 'stole' young women from Mar-a-Lago spa

Owdeh Hathaleen, a 31-year‑old Palestinian activist, teacher, and filmmaker behind the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, was shot dead by an Israeli settler near the village of Umm al‑Khair in the South Hebron Hills.

Palestinian activist killed by Israeli settler in West Bank

A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula triggered tsunami waves of up to 16 feet nearby, and sparked evacuation orders in Japan, Hawaii and across the Pacific on Wednesday (July 30).

Breakdown