Good morning.<\/p>\n
Iran dramatically escalated its strategy of striking civilian infrastructure<\/a> and transport networks across the Gulf on Wednesday, attacking commercial ships and targeting Dubai\u2019s international airport as US and Israeli warplanes launched new waves of strikes.<\/p>\n Senior Iranian officials warned of a long \u201cwar of attrition\u201d and a global economic crisis stemming from Tehran\u2019s choking off of the region\u2019s energy supplies, and oil prices on Thursday again topped $100 a barrel<\/a> before dipping to $98. Violence continued across the Middle East, with Israel bombarding Beirut\u2019s southern suburbs and southern Lebanon<\/a> after Hezbollah launched drones and rockets at northern Israel on Wednesday night.<\/p>\n As the conflict nears the two-week mark, multiple Israeli security sources have told the Guardian<\/a> that Israel did not have a realistic plan for regime change when it attacked Iran, and that the expectation airstrikes could prompt a popular uprising was driven by \u201cwishful thinking\u201d, not hard intelligence.<\/p>\n Who has borne most of Iran\u2019s strikes? More than two-thirds of Iran\u2019s attacks have been on the UAE. Dubai, a center of global finance and international tourism, is facing an existential threat as foreigners flee<\/a>.<\/p>\n What do we know about the US defense secretary\u2019s attitude toward Iran? A Guardian review of Pete Hegseth\u2019s books<\/a>, speeches and broadcasts revealed he has voiced extreme antipathy towards Iran for years.<\/p>\n Trump hits back at Republican Senate majority leader over voter ID billThe Senate majority leader, John Thune, responds to a question from the media as he walks to his office in the US Capitol. Photograph: Shawn Thew\/EPA<\/p>\n Donald Trump has lashed out at Republican Senate majority leader, John Thune<\/a>, over his refusal to change rules to force a vote on the Save America Act, a sprawling bill that would curtail voting access.<\/p>\n Trump gave a blunt message for Thune on Wednesday: \u201cHe\u2019s got to be a leader.\u201d The president has previously threatened to refuse to sign any bills until Congress passes the legislation, ahead of midterm elections expected to be bruising for the Republicans.<\/p>\n Former UK prime minister Gordon Brown calls for international criminal court for crimes against childrenMourners attend the funeral of the victims of an airstrike on Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab, southern Iran. Photograph: EPA<\/p>\n The former UK prime minister Gordon Brown has called for the creation<\/a> of an international criminal court for crimes against children, saying \u201cno child should ever become collateral damage in a conflict\u201d.<\/p>\n Writing for the Guardian<\/a>, Brown focused on the missile strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh school at the start of the Iran conflict, which killed 168 people, primarily schoolgirls. A preliminary US military investigation<\/a> has reportedly determined that Washington was responsible. Brown also discussed Israel\u2019s killing of Palestinian schoolchildren in Gaza, where 18,069 have been killed, and the killing of more than 200 children by Iranian security forces.<\/p>\n Brown argued that \u201cschools deserve the same moral status as hospitals \u2013 protected places \u2013 and the same protection under international law\u201d.<\/p>\n Doesn\u2019t international law already prohibit assaults on schools and children? Yes, but Brown argues that as schools are \u201cincreasingly being drawn into war\u201d, a dedicated international criminal court for crimes against children is needed to emphasize the seriousness of these crimes.<\/p>\n In other news \u2026A woman in the female section of the Pul-e-Charkhi prison in Kabul, Afghanistan. Photograph: Felipe Dana\/AP<\/p>\n A judge in Afghanistan has rejected the divorce request of a woman who said her husband beat her with a cable wire, revealing the shocking level of physical violence against women permitted under the Taliban<\/a>.<\/p>\n Tech billionaires are bankrolling opposition to the state\u2019s proposed tax on billionaires and pouring millions into California\u2019s race for governor<\/a>.<\/p>\n The head chef and co-founder of Noma has resigned after allegations he physically abused his staff, with claims that Ren\u00e9 Redzepi had \u201cpunched employees in the face, jabbed them with kitchen implements and slammed them against walls\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n Hungary\u2019s prime minister, Viktor Orb\u00e1n, has accused Ukrainians of plotting to attack his family, as an increasingly bitter standoff between Kyiv and Budapest continues<\/a>.<\/p>\n Stat of the day: San Francisco cuts air pollution levels by more than 20% since 2010Cycle lanes, such as this in London, are among interventions that have helped reduce levels of PM2.5 and NO2 by more than 20% since 2010. Photograph: Toby Melville\/Reuters<\/p>\n San Francisco cut levels of two key air pollutants by more than 20%<\/a> between 2010 and 2024. It was the only US city that reduced levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and fine particulate pollution (PM2.5) by more than 20%, according to an analysis of nearly 100 cities around the world. Beijing and London were also among the 19 global cities to have achieved \u201cremarkable reductions\u201d in air pollution \u2013 notably, nearly half of the leading cities were in Central and east Asia.<\/p>\n The Filter recommends: the best sleep products Photograph: Courtesy of Drowsy Sleep Co<\/p>\n From mouth taping to the quirky potato bed trend, people seem willing to try anything to improve their sleep. But investing in your sleep does not always come cheap. This week, for sleep awareness week, many of the Filter US\u2019s favorite brands are offering discounts. Here are the 11 best deals<\/a>, from an affordable mattress on offer to the internet\u2019s favorite way to wake up.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t miss this: \u2018Invasive\u2019 AI-led mass surveillance in Africa violating freedoms, warn expertsDemonstrators gather during clashes with police at the anti-government protest in Nairobi, Kenya, last July. Photograph: Thomas Mukoya\/Reuters<\/p>\n AI-powered mass surveillance is being rapidly introduced across Africa<\/a> in breach of citizens\u2019 right to privacy, human rights experts have warned. At least $2bn has been spent by 11 African governments on Chinese-built surveillance technology that recognizes faces and tracks movements, with concerns that surveillance systems were used to monitor Ugandan activists and to crack down on gen Z-led protests in Kenya last summer.<\/p>\n Climate check: Australian governments subsidising fossil fuel use by more than $30,000 a minute, analysis findsThe Australia Institute analysis found national financial support for fossil fuels was expected to grow by 9.4% in 2025-26 to $16.3bn. Photograph: Mick Tsikas\/Reuters<\/p>\n Australian federal and state government subsidies for planet-heating fossil fuels have risen by almost 10% and will reach $16.3bn this year, according to a new analysis.<\/a> This amounts to governments paying or forgoing the equivalent of $31,020 each minute to subsidise companies producing and using coal, gas and especially oil.<\/p>\n Last Thing: \u2018Sly stowaway\u2019 \u2013 UK fox finds new home at Bronx zoo after illicit transatlantic tripThis red fox sneaked on to a cargo ship, crossed the Atlantic and is now at the zoo in New York. Photograph: AP<\/p>\n An English fox has wound up in Bronx zoo after it sneaked on to a cargo ship and traveled 3,400 miles from Southampton to New York<\/a>, according to officials at the zoo. Keith Lovett, the zoo\u2019s director of animal programs, said: \u201cHe seems to be settling in well. It\u2019s gone through a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n Sign up<\/p>\n Sign up for the US morning briefing<\/p>\n First Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday. If you\u2019re not already signed up, subscribe now<\/a>.<\/p>\n Get in touch<\/p>\n