Flagship

Israeli West Bank assault kills nine

Israeli soldiers moved into the West Bank, killing at least nine people in an unusually large incursion into the occupied territory. Forces targeted at least four cities in what the Israel Defense Forces described as “a counterterrorism operation.” While Israel has been fighting in Gaza for nearly a year, persistent violence in the West Bank — largely by Israeli settlers towards Palestinians — has garnered little attention. What triggered the attack is not yet known, although the Israeli foreign minister said it was intended to “dismantle Iranian-Islamic terror infrastructures” and accused Iran of seeking to open a new front against Israel, alongside Gaza and the Lebanese border.

High expectations for Nvidia results

The chip giant Nvidia today reports what are expected to be bumper earnings. Successive quarters of huge spending on AI by US tech giants has driven speculation some may pull back on the largesse, and Nvidia’s results will offer insights into the broader sector: The firm’s stock is already up 150% so far in 2024, and traders anticipate a 9.8% increase in value — “the largest expected earnings move for any company in history,” Reuters reported. “It’s hard to remember a time when there was so much anticipation regarding one company’s earnings report,” an investment firm said. One place where businesses are not dialing back spending is China, where big companies have doubled AI-related capital expenditure.

Trump courts ‘weird’ vote

Donald Trump’s campaign for the US presidency leaned into its anti-establishment reputation by appointing former Democrats Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard to its team. The announcements came as US officials again indicted Trump over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot in Washington DC, ostensibly helping Vice President Kamala Harris, who is riding a wave of momentum and has tried to paint her opponent as “weird.” Trump’s team, however, believes there is “an untapped well of support” at the political margins, Semafor’s Dave Weigel reported. The Republicans are “going all in on the ‘weird’ vote,” he wrote, and Kennedy — a man who apparently once chainsawed the head off a dead whale — fits the bill.

Mexico hits back at US, Canada embassies

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said he would pause relations with the US and Canadian embassies after both criticized his judicial overhaul plans. Under the proposal, all judges, including Supreme Court justices, would be laid off and elected by popular vote, which experts fear could lead to groups like cartels imposing their agents on the courts. The plan could also put at risk the free trade agreement between the three countries, which is due to be reviewed in 2026, and which led to Mexico becoming the US’ biggest trading partner last year. “When multiple voices rise in a chorus of warnings, it is wise to pay attention,” the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico wrote.

Spain PM visits Africa to curb migration

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez opened a tour of West African nations aimed at stemming the rise in undocumented migration to Europe and curbing Russia’s influence in the region. Recent data showed the number of migrants reaching Spain’s Canary Islands rose by almost 150% in the first seven months of the year compared to 2023, with experts estimating tens of thousands more could attempt the perilous crossing in the coming months. Meanwhile a spike in Islamist violence as well as an economic slowdown in the Sahel and West Africa has forced many to move, despite regional countries’ increased reliance on Russia for their security needs.

Bond rally worries Beijing

Chinese authorities are counterintuitively pressing investors to stop buying the government’s bonds. Traders have been snapping up the country’s debt, driving yields on China’s benchmark 10-year bond to record lows — ostensibly a good thing because borrowing costs are thus cheaper. Publicly, officials have voiced fear of a rerun of last year’s US banking crisis, sparked by a sharp rise in US Treasury yields, and so have sought to tamp the rally. But economists say the authorities have a deeper worry: That the bond market surge reflects broad unease about the prospects for the country’s economy, and lack of otherwise investable assets. “Politically, they don’t like the signal that it sends,” one expert told The Wall Street Journal.

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War boost for Chinese, Israeli airlines

The wars in Ukraine and Gaza are proving an unexpected boon for some airlines. Traditionally dominant carriers — notably British Airways — have largely pulled out of flying to Beijing, as they are unable to fly over Russian airspace and the extra cost makes the route uneconomic. But Chinese airlines have no such restrictions and are expected to provide 63% of all flights to mainland China this year, up 10 percentage points from 2019, Bloomberg reported. El Al, Israel’s flag carrier, is similarly profiting from others cutting routes to the country over security concerns. It’s “a turnaround for an airline that just a few years ago… was facing bankruptcy,” The Wall Street Journal reported, and with which Israelis have a “love-hate relationship.”

Paris to open Paralympic Games

Paris will today hold the opening ceremony for the Paralympic Games, which organizers have promised will be the “most spectacular” ever. Ukraine will field one of the biggest teams at this year’s event, including athletes who have been injured during the country’s war with Russia. Many more have been forced to leave Ukraine to train elsewhere in Europe, as Russian strikes have destroyed the pools and tracks on which they practiced before the war. “The first goal is to prove to yourself that you haven’t worked in vain for the last few years,” a Ukrainian Paralympic swimmer told The Guardian. “The next is to make sure people don’t forget about Ukrainians, who are such strong people.”

Actors gather for Venice Film Festival

Dozens of Hollywood stars will be in attendance at today’s opening of the Venice Film Festival, which has become the “Oscar launchpad” for many. Once a struggling event for smaller productions, Venice is now one of the festivals with the highest global standing: Of the past 10 best picture winners, four have premiered on the lagoon, The New York Times reported. The successful turnaround is largely attributed to the festival’s director, Alberto Barbera, whose courting of Hollywood studios and drive to remodel the city’s crumbling cinemas has turned Venice into a required stop for productions that covet the most prestigious prizes.

Child smashes Bronze Age jar

A four-year-old boy smashed a 3,500-year-old Bronze Age jar during a trip to a museum in Israel. The amphora, likely used to carry wine or olive oil, predated the Old Testament, and was unusually intact. The boy, Alex, “was curious about what was inside,” according to his father, and “pulled the jar slightly.” Haifa’s Hecht Museum told the BBC that “whenever possible, items are displayed without barriers or glass walls,” and that it would continue to do so despite the “rare incident.” It also invited Alex back for an organized tour: Intentional damage would be “treated with great severity,” but “this was not the situation.” A specialist will restore the vase and it should return to its place shortly.

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• Japanese authorities ordered evacuations as they prepare for Typhoon Shanshan to make landfall.
• British Prime Minister Keir Starmer meets German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin for talks aiming to “reset” the UK’s relationship with Europe.
• Spain celebrates its annual Tomatina food fight festival in the town of Buñol.

The length in kilometers — 750,000 miles — of the world’s undersea fiber-optic cables. These cables, which carry more than 95% of international data globally, are highly vulnerable to accidental disruption such as from ships’ anchors or natural disasters like earthquakes, a new report from the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies warned. The cables also represent what CSIS called “an easy target for saboteurs operating in the gray zone of ‘deniable attacks short of war’.”

Pitchfork recommends Starchris, the new album by Body Meat. Producer and vocalist Chris Taylor juggles “the sleek pop sensibilities of a club-hopper with the type of obsessive engineering that only comes from late nights spent burying your head in software,” Sam Goldner writes, creating a “brilliantly discombobulating debut.” Listen to Starchris on Spotify.

• Harris will use human Donald Trump stand-ins, not AI, for debate prep.
• Trump faces revised 2020 election interference indictment.
• Kenya student fee change sparks fresh protest threat.