Good morning. We’re covering Iran’s attack on a U.S. air base in Qatar and World Central Kitchen’s resumption of operations in Gaza. Plus, the 100 best movies of the 21st century.
Iran attacked a major U.S. base in QatarIran fired a wave of missiles at the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East yesterday in retaliation for U.S. strikes on three critical nuclear sites in Iran. The Pentagon said that there were no reports of casualties in the attack. Here’s the latest. Iran launched short- and medium-range ballistic missiles at Al Udeid, a U.S. air base in Qatar that serves as the forward headquarters for U.S. Central Command and has 10,000 military and civilian personnel. The attack appeared calculated to send a message, while limiting the war’s chances of spiraling out of control. Officials said that Qatar and the U.S. had received advance warning of the attack, but have not said through what channels. Three Iranian officials said that Tehran needed to strike back at the U.S., but also wanted to allow both sides a possible exit ramp. President Trump’s first public comments since the attack indicated that he does not plan to retaliate. “I want to thank Iran for giving us early notice,” Trump said on Truth Social, adding that Iran had “gotten it all out of their ‘system,’ and there will, hopefully, be no further HATE.” In addition to there being no U.S. casualties, he added, “very importantly, there have also been no Qataris killed or wounded.” “CONGRATULATIONS WORLD,” he declared in a final post. “IT’S TIME FOR PEACE!” Still, American officials are growing concerned about the potential for retaliation by Iran, or its supporters, on U.S. soil. Related: Tehran’s missile strike came as Israel said it had launched a barrage of strikes, including one on the notorious Evin Prison in Iran, and promised more in the coming days. Analysis: President Trump had all but made up his mind to strike Iran before he said last week that he would make a decision “within the next two weeks.” Economy: Oil prices fell more than 7 percent and stocks rose as investors appeared optimistic that fallout from the U.S.-Iran conflict would be contained.
World Central Kitchen resumed work in GazaWorld Central Kitchen, the charity founded by the celebrity chef José Andrés, has started preparing meals again in Gaza, almost seven weeks after having paused operations because of Israel’s blockade. In a statement, the charity said that it cooked nearly 10,000 meals on Saturday, its first day of operations in Gaza in more than 12 weeks. Background: The charity suspended its Gaza operations on May 7 after Israel imposed a near total shutdown of aid deliveries in March. Last year, the group halted operations for nearly a month after Israel hit a convoy and killed seven team members. Separately, an E.U. review found that Israel’s actions in Gaza may have violated human rights obligations outlined in a treaty that underpins relations between Israel and the bloc.
The global A.I. data divideArtificial intelligence requires huge data centers, more than half of which are in China, the U.S. and the E.U., and very few of which are in African and South American nations. Thirty-two countries have the data centers to run cutting-edge tools like ChatGPT, researchers at Oxford found, and more than 150 countries have no A.I. infrastructure at all. For much of the globe, the future may favor the countries with the most computing power, leaving the rest in the dust.
Since the 1980s, China has provided a path to the middle class for hundreds of millions of people, but as economic growth slows, wages stagnate and jobs disappear, that path is eroding. My colleague Li Yuan spoke to several people who told her that children from modest backgrounds, no matter how driven or well educated, often struggled to succeed in a system that favored more-privileged people. As one man put it, employers think that if “you have to struggle, it means you’re not good enough.” Lives lived: Fred Smith, the billionaire founder of FedEx, died at 80. CONVERSATION STARTERS
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The 100 best movies of the 21st century, 100-80The way we watch and think about movies has changed dramatically over the past 25 years. But through that period of upheaval, which films truly stood out? We asked 500 filmmakers, stars and influential fans to vote for the 10 best movies, however they defined them, released since Jan. 1, 2000, and then we compiled their responses. You can see the first 20 picks here, and we will release the rest later this week. Also, see which movies stars like Julianne Moore and directors like Bong Joon Ho chose, and pick your own Top 10.
Cook: This hot honey chicken recipe yields supremely crispy chicken thighs in one pan. Listen: “I Quit,” Haim’s fourth album, leans into heartache and moving on. Watch: A new season of “The Bear” is out Wednesday, plus three other things for you to watch this week. |
