Middle East & Iran Conflict
Israel Launches New Strikes in Southern Lebanon Israel launched new strikes in southern Lebanon, a day after Israel and Iran pulled back from direct confrontation. The Israeli campaign against the Lebanese militia Hezbollah has been an obstacle in U.S.-Iran peace talks. — New York Times
Israel Attacks Tyre in Lebanon, Tells All Residents to Leave Israel attacked the city of Tyre in southern Lebanon and ordered all residents to evacuate the area. — Al Jazeera
Netanyahu’s Bow to Trump’s Iran Pressure Spurs New Criticism Opponents attacked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for halting strikes against Iran after a call with President Trump, saying he was letting the United States make Israel’s decisions. — New York Times
Trump Insists Iran Deal Is Still ‘Days’ Away Despite Fresh Strikes Speaking to reporters after attending the NBA Finals in New York, Trump said the two parties are in the final stages of a “very, very good deal.” — CNBC
Israel’s Ben Gvir Calls for Arresting Lebanese ‘Women and Youth’ to Pressure Hezbollah Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir proposed arresting Lebanese women and youth as a means of pressuring Hezbollah. — Middle East Eye
UK Sanctions Entities Linked to Illegal West Bank Settlements The United Kingdom sanctioned entities linked to illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. — Middle East Eye
Israel’s Military Adventures Have Backfired — and the Public Is Losing Patience Analysis piece examining how Israel’s military operations have not achieved their stated objectives and domestic support is eroding. — Middle East Eye
United States
Trump Booed ‘Thunderously’ at NBA Finals US President Donald Trump was booed during his appearance at the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York. — Al Jazeera
US Helicopter Goes Down Near Strait of Hormuz, Crew Rescued A U.S. military helicopter went down near the Strait of Hormuz. It was not immediately clear what led to the incident, which came at a time when the regional cease-fire has grown tenuous. The crew was rescued. — New York Times
Nithya Raman Advances to LA Mayor Runoff After Seeing Off Republican Los Angeles city councillor Nithya Raman said she was “incredibly honoured” to advance to the LA mayoral runoff after defeating her Republican opponent. — Guardian
Jeffrey Epstein Assistant Lesley Groff Set to Testify Before House Panel Lesley Groff, a long-time assistant to Jeffrey Epstein, is set to testify before a House panel. — Guardian
US Stadium and Hotel Workers Threaten Strikes During World Cup Stadium and hotel workers across the United States are threatening strike action “to make things fair” ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. — Guardian
4 States Head to the Polls for Primaries Voters in four states head to the polls today for their primary elections, amid a period when global conflicts are at their highest level since World War II according to new data. — NPR
Europe & Ukraine
Zelenskyy Says He Told Trump That Putin Was ‘Playing Games’ with Washington Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he told Trump that Russian President Putin was “playing games” with Washington. — Guardian
Ukraine’s Neighbors Seek Shelter as Drones Fly Overhead Drones launched by both Russia and Ukraine are veering off course, menacing countries that are not at war, prompting NATO neighbors to seek new defenses. — New York Times
Schoolgirl Arrested After Three Stabbed at Manchester School A schoolgirl was arrested after three people were stabbed at a school in Blackley, Manchester. — Guardian
Man Seriously Injured in Belfast Stabbing Starmer Describes as ‘Sickening’ A man was seriously injured in a stabbing in Belfast that UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer described as “sickening.” — Guardian
Africa & Latin America
Nigeria Rescues 360 Women and Children Abducted by Boko Haram Nigerian forces rescued 360 women and children who had been abducted by the militant group Boko Haram. — France 24
Bolivia Moves Closer to State of Emergency Amid Large-Scale Protests Bolivia moved closer to declaring a state of emergency as large-scale protests continue to grip the country. — France 24
Libyans Still Traumatised by Deadly 2023 Derna Flood, but Reconstruction Offers Hope Libyans in Derna remain traumatised by the deadly 2023 flood, but ongoing reconstruction work is offering a measure of hope. — France 24
Business & Finance
Pentagon Blacklists Alibaba, BYD, and Baidu as Chinese Military Companies The Pentagon added Alibaba, BYD, and Baidu to its Chinese military companies blacklist. The updated 1260H list now covers 188 Chinese entities and bars the Pentagon from contracting with them starting later this month. — Quartz
GSK Makes Biggest Ever Acquisition with $10.6bn for US Cancer Drug Firm British pharma giant GSK announced its largest-ever acquisition, buying US cancer treatment firm Nuvalent for $10.6 billion. — Guardian
Meta Launches $115 Million Trades Training Program for AI Data Centers Meta is launching a $115 million free trades training program called America’s Workforce Academy, offering a five-week program with guaranteed job offers. It will pilot in Louisiana, Ohio, Indiana, and Texas. — Quartz
Big Oil Balks at Trump’s Invitation to Drill in Alaska’s Arctic Wildlife Refuge Major oil companies are declining to take up new drilling licenses in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, with the specter of shifting politics deterring investment. — Bloomberg
US Stock Futures Rise as AI Rebound Continues S&P 500 Index futures were up 0.4% in early New York trading as a rebound in AI-linked names continues. Oil prices fell on Trump’s Iran deal comments while chip stocks extended a recovery from last week’s selloff. — Bloomberg | Quartz
Tech & Crypto
Starknet Rolls Out ZK Privacy Layer for ERC20 Balances and Transfers STRK20 went live on Starknet, bringing private ERC20 transfers and balances with targeted disclosure mechanisms for regulators. — The Block
Bank of England Warns of AI Scams as Deepfakes Spread The Bank of England issued warnings about AI-powered scams as deepfake videos — including faked footage of Nigel Farage and Andrew Bailey fighting — spread on social media. — Guardian
Other Headlines
Extreme Heatwaves: Indians Struggle and Suffer from Water Shortages Indians are struggling with extreme heatwaves and suffering from severe water shortages. — France 24
Somali Referee Says His World Cup Dream Is Dashed After U.S. Denies Entry Omar Abdulkadir Artan, who would have been the first Somali to referee a World Cup game, says his dream was dashed after the U.S. denied him entry despite having “the right papers and everything.” — New York Times
US Chagos Talks Confirmed Amid Concerns Over China’s Naval Ambitions The Trump administration is holding regular high-level discussions with Britain to secure the long-term future of the Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean, amid reports the White House is considering buying the Chagos Islands over concerns about China’s expanding naval ambitions. — SCMP
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