Israel vs Iran, The Minnesota Shootings, & The Louvre Shuts Down

Hello readers, welcome back! As a reminder, we’ll be sending emails on just Tuesdays and Thursdays each week from now on. Today, we’ll catch up on the Iran-Israel conflict, the Minnesota political shootings, the G7 summit in Canada, MI6’s new head, the No Kings protests, and the Louvre’s shutdown.

Here’s some good news: multiple countries signed on to a U.N. treaty aimed at protecting the oceans last week at the U.N. Ocean conference in France. Also, this abandoned Boston school building has been converted into an LGBTQ+ welcoming affordable senior housing community.

“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.”

― Toni Morrison

An Explosive Weekend

Weekends are supposed to be relaxing, right? Unfortunately for anyone reading the news, last weekend was anything but. Israel kicked off a regional conflict with Iran last Friday, firing off a series of air and drone strikes that damaged Iranian nuclear facilities, military bases, and air defenses, and also killed multiple top military commanders. Iran was briefly stunned by the attacks before responding with multiple barrages of ballistic missiles, many of which were taken down by Israeli and U.S. air defenses. The two sides continued trading blows over the weekend – several Israeli airstrikes targeted Iranian oil fields, while multiple Iranian ballistic missiles hit buildings in Tel Aviv.

Although Israel has seemingly established aerial superiority over much of Iran and has been pounding the country’s nuclear facilities, it’s unlikely that this offensive will stop Iran’s path to nuclear enrichment. Most of Tehran’s key nuclear facilities are located deep underground, and Israel lacks the bunker-buster bombs needed to take them out. “I don’t see any surrender coming from Tehran right now — there are no white flags being waved,” said one Middle East analyst. “It’s very hard to see Iran walking back its enrichment rights while Iran’s program still looks operational and Iran is intact as a state.”

Yesterday, though, Israel issued evacuation orders for a large part of Tehran. Airstrikes quickly followed, with live footage from Iran’s state broadcaster showing an explosion shaking the television station’s headquarters. So far 224 people have been killed in Iran with over 1,400 injured, while 23 have died in Israel with 600 injured. Late in the day yesterday, Trump emphatically warned that “everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran,” perhaps indicating that a bigger Israeli attack might be on its way.

Multiple Midwest Murders

On Saturday, Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman (a Democrat) and his wife Yvette were injured in a shooting at their home just north of Minneapolis. The shooter fled the scene, attempting (but not carrying out) two more shootings before arriving at the home of former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman. There, he shot and killed the couple  – who died protecting their daughter – before fleeing as police arrived on the scene. The shootings prompted the “largest manhunt in the state’s history,” according to local Brooklyn Park Police Chief Mark Bruley. 

Officers first caught sight of the suspect, a Trump supporter named Vance Boelter, at the site of the Hortmans’ house while performing safety checks on local lawmakers. By Sunday, law enforcement tracked down an abandoned vehicle used by Boelter in nearby Sibley County, and a source tipped police off to the fact the suspect had fled into nearby woods. Authorities led a coordinated search of the area which ended with Boelter crawling out of a bush and giving himself up to the police.

According to anonymous law enforcement officials, authorities discovered a list of 70 names in one of Boelter’s getaway vehicles, an SUV altered to look like a cop car. The list apparently included state and federal lawmakers, community leaders, abortion rights advocates, and health care facilities, and was likely a list of targets for the shooter. They also found three AK-47 assault rifles and a handgun in the vehicle. The shooter now faces six federal charges of stalking, murder, and firearm offenses, as well as four state charges of murder and attempted murder, and is being held in federal custody.

LMNT Has The Perfect Summer Thirst-Quencher For Everybody

Saying Goodbye To The G7

• The Group of Seven industrialized nations were set to meet in Canada yesterday and today. Unfortunately for leaders of the other six countries (the U.K., France, Germany, Canada, Italy, and Japan), Trump made an early exit from their meeting after deciding not to sign off on a draft statement calling for Iran and Israel to de-escalate their ongoing conflict.

• “President Trump had a great day at the G7, even signing a major trade deal with the United Kingdom and Prime Minister Keir Starmer,” wrote White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “Much was accomplished, but because of what’s going on in the Middle East, President Trump will be leaving tonight after dinner with Heads of State.” That U.S.-U.K. trade deal was mainly hammered out in May, and will allow British cars and aerospace materials to enter the U.S. without tariffs, while U.S. farmers will be allowed to sell up to 13,000 metric tons (29 million pounds) of American beef to the U.K. each year.

Mrs. MI6, I Presume?

• MI6, the U.K.’s foreign intelligence agency (and James Bond’s fictional workplace), has appointed its first-ever female chief. Blaise Metreweli is set to become the new head of MI6 later this year after Sir Richard Moore, its current leader, steps down. Metreweli is currently serving as the head of MI6’s head technology and innovation division, and she’s also worked in director-level roles at MI5, the U.K.’s domestic intelligence agency.

• The head of MI6 is commonly referred to as “C” after the agency’s first chief, Captain Mansfield Cumming, who always signed his letters with just his last initial. “C” reports directly to the U.K.’s foreign secretary and is part of the top-level Joint Intelligence Committee. As “C,” Metreweli’s main goals will be gathering intelligence from Russia, China, and other U.K. adversaries. And maybe recruiting the next James Bond.

Additional World News

• 34 killed in deadliest day of shootings near Gaza's new food distribution centers, authorities say (AP)

• Russia and Ukraine fulfil deal to repatriate dead soldiers (BBC)

• Sahel Crisis Goes Coastal as Insurgents Push Toward the Atlantic (NYT, $)

• North Korea: What its warship failure teaches us about Kim Jong Un's regime (BBC)

No Kings, Lots Of ICE Raids

• Over the weekend, millions of Americans across the country participated in the “No Kings” protests, demonstrating against the Trump administration’s draconian ICE raids and his various other abuses of power. The popular demonstrations also took place at the same time as Trump’s multimillion dollar birthday-slash-military parade in Washington, D.C., stealing all of the headlines from the president’s big event.

• In response, Trump has sicced ICE on Democrat-led cities across the country. “ICE Officers are herewith ordered, by notice of this TRUTH, to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History,” wrote Trump on his TruthSocial account. “We must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America’s largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside.” 

• According to the president, those major cities have become the “core of the Democratic power center” by using “illegal aliens to expand their voter base.” He’s supposedly trying to crack down on that practice by sending even more ICE agents into the left-leaning metropolitan areas, though that crackdown is only likely to make Americans more anti-ICE.

• Meanwhile, Axios has reported that ICE has run $1 billion over budget this year, and will likely run out of money within three months. Trump is looking to patch up that funding gap with the help of his “Big Beautiful Bill,” though his budget has currently been stalled out in the Senate.

Additional USA News

• After a calm night, LA mayor shortens downtown curfew hours imposed after violent protests (AP)

• Jury finds MyPillow founder defamed former employee for a leading voting equipment company (AP)

• CDC official in charge of Covid data resigns ahead of vaccine meeting (Guardian)

• Immigration Raids Add to Absence Crisis for Schools (NYT, $)

A Hangup In The Louvre

• Call it suffering from success – yesterday, the Louvre announced that it would be temporarily closing its doors on Monday and Tuesday as staff protest the overwhelming waves of tourists that the museum is forced to deal with throughout the summer. The strike was a spontaneous decision made by workers at a routine internal meeting on Monday – gallery attendants, ticket agents, and security personnel all refused to work their posts after the meeting, citing aggressive mobs of tourists, leaks in the building, and dangerously high temperatures as their reasons for walking off the job.

• “What began as a scheduled monthly information session turned into a mass expression of exasperation,” said Sarah Sefian, a gallery attendant. Last year, the museum saw a total of 8.7 million visitors, which overwhelmed staff even when visitor numbers were capped to 30,000 per day. French president Emmanuel Macron has promised to invest up to €800 million into improving the Louvre’s infrastructure over 10 years, but Sefian says that’s not enough. “We can’t wait six years for help,” she said. “Our teams are under pressure now. It’s not just about the art — it’s about the people protecting it.”

Additional Reads

• No kings, few fans: USA’s year of World Cups gets off to a flat start (Guardian)

• The Trump Mobile T1 Phone looks both bad and impossible (Verge)

• Founder of 23andMe buys back company out of bankruptcy auction (Ars Technica)

• Scientists are dropping live mosquitoes out of drones in Hawaii. Here’s why. (Vox)

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