Flagship

Israel blamed for Hamas killing

Hamas’ political leader was killed in an air strike on Tehran, a stunning attack blamed on Israel that amounted to a second senior militant commander dead in as many days. Israel did not comment on the strike, which threatened to further divide an international community already polarized over Israel’s war in Gaza: Turkey described the killing as a “perfidious assassination,” China warned of more instability, and Qatar cast doubt on future ceasefire talks. Hours earlier, Israel said it killed a senior member of Hezbollah, a Lebanese militia that, like Hamas, is backed by Iran. The precision nature of the killings in foreign capitals was noted by journalists, who contrasted them with the country’s heavy-handed assault next door in Gaza.

Warnings over global Trump effects

Multiple voices warned of the risks to US democracy and global stability from a second Donald Trump presidency. The political journalist Barton Gellman wrote in The Washington Post that recent tabletop role-playing exercises involving top former officials showed checks and balances in the US system did little to constrain a committed authoritarian in control of the executive branch. The Financial Times’ chief economics commentator meanwhile said that faith in US democracy has been “eroded” around the world. World leaders are taking steps to prepare: The European Union plans a “carrot-and-stick” approach, the FT reported, offering a rapid trade deal if Trump is elected, but being prepared to hit back if he goes ahead with his planned tariffs.

Growing threats to US

The US could lose a war with China, a congressional commission warned. The military “lacks both the capabilities and the capacity” to be confident of victory, and that the risk of a multi-front war is growing as collaboration increases between Russia, China, and other autocratic states. Washington faces other challenges, too: The national debt topped $35 trillion for the first time, driven by growing borrowing costs and ever-increasing Social Security and Medicare bills. Neither Kamala Harris nor Donald Trump, one of whom will almost certainly be the next president, have said anything on the campaign trail about deficit reduction, The New York Times reported, “suggesting that the economic problem will only worsen in the coming years.”

China pledges to boost consumption

China’s leaders pledged to bolster domestic consumption in order to strengthen flagging economic growth, an announcement seen as positive but likely falling short of what is required. The commitment from the Communist Party Politburo lacked details, much like the statements that followed the twice-a-decade meeting of the party’s economic leadership this month. Still, analysts described the latest remarks as a “good shift,” which will likely have “a mildly positive impact on confidence.” Economists worry that the broader challenges facing the world’s second-biggest economy — ranging from a beleaguered property sector to a mountain of local-government debt and high levels of youth unemployment — nevertheless remain largely unresolved.

BOJ hikes rates

Japan’s central bank tightened monetary policy, a sign that policymakers there are increasingly confident in the country’s economic recovery. Tokyo had for decades battled falling prices, spurring its central bank to loosen monetary policy in a bid to bolster growth, a policy now effectively concluded with a second rate hike this year. Japan’s policy stands in contrast to that of Western central banks, which are expected to begin a series of rate cuts in the autumn: The Federal Reserve in particular is today set to outline its trajectory, with reductions expected in September. One major beneficiary will be the renewable-energy sector, Semafor’s Tim McDonnell wrote, with high borrowing costs amounting to one of Big Renewables’ worst headaches of recent years.

Venezuela protests build

At least 11 people have died in protests across Venezuela as demonstrators demanded that President Nicolás Maduro acknowledge defeat in Sunday’s election. Meanwhile international pressure continued to build on Caracas, with the presidents of the US and Brazil calling for the release of vote tallies, which Venezuela’s opposition leader said would prove their candidate had won almost 70% of the ballots cast. Analysts expect the protests — which for the first time include low-income neighborhoods — to intensify in the coming days. “You wanted the poorer neighborhoods out in the street? Well, we’re all out now,” a protester told the BBC.

Sudan peace talks due

The Sudanese government accepted an invitation to attend peace talks aimed at ending the country’s 15-month civil war. The US-sponsored peace talks due next month will also include the UAE, whose continued support of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces experts say has fueled the biggest humanitarian crisis in the world. The talks come amid rising fears that millions of people in Sudan are on the verge of famine, a crisis aggravated by the warring parties’ resistance to letting international aid into the country over fears weapons might be smuggled in. “Whatever we get, it isn’t enough,” the mother of a malnourished 20-month-old boy told The New York Times.

Get authoritative news and analysis on finance, economics, and investing with The Daily Upside. Created by Wall Street insiders and bankers, The Daily Upside delivers daily actionable insights to over 1 million readers. Subscribe for free today.

AI manages Tennessee freeway

Speed limits on a US freeway are now controlled by artificial intelligence. At high traffic volume, braking cars create “shockwaves,” as cars behind brake harder, leading to sudden gridlock or even crashes. Smart motorways which adjust speed limits according to traffic are common in several countries, including the US, but involve human operators. The new AI tech has run unaided on the I-24 in Tennessee since March, using historical data to inform its speed limit decisions. New Scientist reported that the data was still being analyzed, but project managers were positive about the results: “It’s just absolutely transformational how these systems operate.”

How sport boosts science

The Olympics — and sports in general — have driven scientific advances. Swimwear, for example, has become ever more streamlined, moving from soggy wool to drag-reducing polyurethane, Smithsonian Magazine reported. Pole vaulting created ever lighter, more flexible poles, with modern carbon-fiber allowing vaulters to reach double the height of their predecessors who used hardwood. Running shoes have boosted speed and efficiency. Even the surfaces are innovative: The purple running track in the Paris Olympic stadium is a low-carbon resilient flooring made using recycled shells from mollusks caught by French fishermen in the Mediterranean Sea, WIRED reported.

Bronze Age shop receipt discovered

A 3,500-year-old shop receipt found in what is now Turkey recorded Bronze Age furniture sales. The 1½-square tablet is covered in cuneiform writing — the oldest known form of script — in the ancient Semitic language Akkadian, and contains a list of sales of a large number of wooden tables, chairs, and stools, and who paid for them. Cuneiform tablets from the Bronze Age Near East civilizations have been found with some of the first literature: The Epic of Gilgamesh, a heroic saga with a flood story that predates the Old Testament by 1,500 years, was written in cuneiform. But most of the half-million tablets discovered contain more prosaic things like ancient schoolwork and business accounts.

• Italy’s prime minister wraps up her four-day visit to China with meetings in Shanghai.
• The EU’s foreign affairs chief holds talks with Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi.
• Mountain Queen, a documentary about a female Nepali mountaineer, drops on Netflix.

The number of Wikipedia entries for female scientists written by the physicist Jess Wade. Women account for just 19% of all Wikipedia biographies, she told Scientific American, which “just angers me… so [I] started editing… and I guess I haven’t stopped.” She also wants to fix the imbalance upstream: Male scientists are more likely to meet Wikipedia’s “notability” criteria, through having prizes and professorships, so she spends a lot of time “thinking, how can we nominate women for more prizes?”

Moderate to Poor, Occasionally Good by Eley Williams. The novel — written by a winner of Granta’s Best Young British Novelist award — is book of the week at the London Review of Books’ bookshop. Buy it from the LRB bookshop, or your local bookstore.

• African governments on edge as youth plan Kenya-style protests.
• US labor market reaches unusual balance between hires, fires, and quits.
• Kamala Harris’ confusing record on immigration is under the microscope.