Israel strikes Iran military targets

Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Robert MacMillan, Reuters.com Weekend Editor

We have a rich offering of stories to share with you on the Weekend Briefing. The rapid retreat of Iceland's glaciers and ice sheets could be triggering more volcanic activity. Listen to our World News podcast for even more about that. The last generations of Black Americans who lived during the Jim Crow era reflect on civil rights as they prepare to vote in a U.S. election that has been roiled by racial divisions. And our first City Memo tells you how you can best enjoy Budapest.

Israel strikes Iranian military targets

Tehran. Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency

The latest: Israel's attacks did not appear to be aimed at oil and nuclear targets after calls from allies and neighbors for restraint. We don't know if the strikes, done in retaliation for Iran's missile attacks, will lead to escalation, which is what everyone fears.
In the region: Israel and Hezbollah traded fire across the Lebanon border. An Israeli strike killed three journalists in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah killed two people in northern Israel and violence raged in Gaza as Washington pressed for a way out of the conflict.

Michelle Obama, Harris and Trump campaign in Michigan

On the trail: Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are battling for voters that include a large Arab American and Muslim population concerned about the war in Gaza, and union workers worried about how electric vehicles could reshape the U.S. auto industry. Beyoncé joined Harris in Texas as the vice president warned of the danger Republicans present to abortion rights.
Elsewhere: Georgia, the country not the state, holds parliamentary elections today, with a choice between closer ties to Russia or the West. Japan's elections on Sunday could throw some more international instability into the mix. And keep an eye on Uruguay and of course on Moldova.

Putin does not deny U.S. claims about North Korean troops

Our business: The Russian president said it is up to Moscow how to run its mutual-defense clause with Pyongyang. North Korea said any deployment to help Russia would be lawful. The U.S. and other nations expressed their concern over Moscow's possible use of North Korean forces in its war with Ukraine. Kyiv said the troops are in Russia's Kursk region.
Don't visit: Volodymyr Zelenskiy rejected a plan for the U.N. secretary general to visit Kyiv after António Guterres attended this week's BRICs summit in Russia and shook hands with Vladimir Putin. Guterres is already persona non grata in Israel.

Budget shortfall threatens UN climate dialogue

Not enough: While a handful of countries such as Japan and Germany have exceeded their payment obligations, others, notably the United States and China, the world's two biggest economies and the top emitters of greenhouse gases, have not yet met theirs. Here's what nations are discussing at the COP16 biodiversity talks in Colombia.
Hot and smoggy: Current climate policies will cause global warming of more than 3 degrees Celsius by the end of the century, according to a U.N. report, more than twice the rise agreed to nearly a decade ago. India's top court said a pollution-free environment is a fundamental right, one that anyone who lives there can tell you is not being enforced. Donald Trump has promised to gut Joe Biden's climate subsidies. Many of his allies are benefiting from them.

E. coli infections tied to McDonald's burgers rise to 75

Billions and billions served: Two people infected with the bacteria developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious condition that can cause kidney failure. Moves by U.S. fast-food chains to temporarily pull fresh onions off their menus laid bare the recurring nightmare for restaurants: Produce is a bigger problem for restaurants to keep free of contamination than beef.
AI trouble: A woman sued Character.AI and Google, saying a bot modeled after Daenerys Targaryen from "Game of Thrones" led her son to kill himself. Dow Jones sued Perplexity AI, accusing it of illegally copying its content. The New York Times earlier sent the company a cease-and-desist letter for the same reason.

Before I forget…

- President Biden apologized for the U.S. government's role in running abusive Native American boarding schools for more than 150 years. King Charles said the Commonwealth should acknowledge its painful history as African and Caribbean nations push for reparations for Britain's role in transatlantic slavery.
- Advocates for a greater role for women in the Catholic Church say Pope Francis is failing their cause by avoiding finally allowing women to be ordained as clergy.
- Abercrombie & Fitch's former CEO pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking.
- China published its first guidelines to standardize the diagnosis and treatment of obesity, with more than half of adults overweight and obese.
- France's top court ordered BNP Paribas to repay a client who fell victim to a scammer who pretended to be an adviser for the bank. BNP at first blamed the client.
- Archaeologists have identified two lost cities that thrived along the Silk Road from the 6th to 11th centuries. How cool is that?
- When I was a lad, my first job was restaurant dishwasher and busboy. I used to think the angry chef spitting in the soup was radical. He had nothing on this Spanish chef.

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