Morning Digest: Over 100 Indian students evacuated from Iran arrive in Delhi; U.S. President Trump hosts Pak Army Chief Munir, and more

The Hindu Morning Digest gives a select list of stories to start the day. Read the top news today on June 19, 2025

The first flight carrying over 100 students, who were evacuated to Armenia from war-torn Iran, landed in Delhi in the early hours on Thursday (June 19, 2025). Amid escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, Indian students in Tehran were moved out of the city, 110 of them crossing the border into Armenia, through arrangements made by the Indian Embassy on Tuesday (June 17, 2025) under ‘Operation Sindhu’.

In a rare gesture, U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday (Jun 18, 2025) hosted Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir at the White House, weeks after India and Pakistan were locked in a four-day military conflict. The closed-door luncheon meeting came amid escalating tensions between Israel and Iran, with Mr. Trump exploring Washington’s possible involvement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday (June 19, 2025) that NATO’s push to ramp up defence spending was not a “threat” to Russia, days before the alliance was set to sign off on a plan to boost its military capacity across Europe. In a late-night press conference, the Russian leader also said his troops would not stop pushing forward in Ukraine and sought to undermine his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Tata Sons and Air India Chairman N. Chandrasekaran on Wednesday (June 18, 2025) “apologised” for the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad last week that claimed more than 270 lives. In an interview with a news channel, Mr. Chandrasekaran said, “It is an extremely difficult situation where I have no words to express to console any of the families of those who died.”

Federal Reserve officials expect inflation to worsen in the coming months, but they still foresee two interest rate cuts by the end of this year, the same as they projected in March. The Fed kept its key rate unchanged for the fourth straight meeting on Wednesday (June 18, 2025), and said the economy is expanding at “a solid pace.” Changes to the Fed’s rate typically – though not always – influence borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, and business loans.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday (June 18, 2025) upheld a state law banning gender-affirming medical treatments for transgender minors – an issue at the heart of the American culture wars. The court voted 6-3 to uphold a Tennessee law barring hormone therapy, puberty blockers and gender transition surgery for those under the age of 18.

Air India will be cutting down international flights on widebody aircraft that mostly connect long haul and ultra long haul destinations by 15%, the airline said late on Wednesday (June 18, 2025) evening. The decision was taken to mitigate the impact of the compounding circumstances resulting from DGCA-ordered enhanced surveillance for Boeing 787 aircraft, geopolitical tensions in West Asia, night curfew in the airspaces of many countries in Europe and East Asia, and “the necessary cautious approach being taken by the engineering staff and Air India pilots”.