First Thing: US attacks tanker in continuing Iran conflict as Tehran releases US citizen
US renews blockade of Iranian ports, while Iran attacks sites in Bahrain and Kuwait. Plus, legendary director John Waters on 60 years of screen carnage
Good morning. The US has fired on an oil tanker attempting to reach Kharg Island in the strait of Hormuz as part of its blockade on Iranian ports. The US targeted coastal defences and missile sites, as well as targets farther north, with state media reporting strikes for the first time on the country’s capital, Tehran.
The US also said it had disabled the unladen oil tanker, firing Hellfire missiles into the ship’s smokestack after it ignored multiple warnings.
Iran responded with attacks targeting Bahrain and Kuwait. The escalating attacks come days after the ceasefire between the two sides appeared to have entirely collapsed with fears of a return to full-scale war.
What other developments have happened in the region? Donald Trump said Iran had released a US citizen detained since 2024, identified as Dena Karari, a dual US-Iranian citizen. Meanwhile, the Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, told the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, that Israel was determined to keep its forces in “security zones” in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza.
Venezuelan man becomes 22nd person to die in ICE custody this year
Another person has died in federal immigration custody this week in Georgia, officials announced on Wednesday. His is the 22nd death in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody this year. Jesús Manuel Arenas-Silva, a 45-year-old Venezuelan man, died on Monday morning while being transferred between detention facilities in Georgia. He was found “unresponsive” in a transport bus. ICE said the suspected cause of death was cardiac arrest.
What did the man’s family say? Arenas-Silva’s sister and immigrants’ rights groups in Georgia said in a press statement that ICE did not provide him with necessary medications during his time in detention for an unnamed condition, despite his family’s pleas that he take the medications during his arrest last week.
How is the crisis becoming more international? Mexico has formally requested that US state attorneys general criminally investigate cases of immigrants who have died in ICE custody or during raids, the Mexican government has said. Since the beginning of Donald Trump’s second term, 17 Mexican immigrants have died during immigration enforcement, 14 in ICE custody and three in agency operations.
JD Vance admits errors over Epstein files release
JD Vance has agreed with criticism that the Trump administration botched the handling of the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, telling the podcast host Joe Rogan that “we absolutely screwed up the comms”.
The files have been one of the most significant political liabilities to Donald Trump since his second term began. In a lengthy interview released on Wednesday, the US vice-president told Rogan that the administration should have released all the documents from the beginning, saying: “We absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files. Like, we just did. But do I think the reason we screwed up the comms is because we were trying to hide something? No.”
Why was the way the files were released criticised? After months of persistent controversy, lawmakers passed a measure that compelled the government to release a large trove of documents related to federal investigations of Epstein. In December, the justice department began releasing heavily redacted files, including photos, call logs, grand jury testimony and interview transcripts. But the redactions and the DoJ’s failure to meet a deadline to release the full files drew criticism from lawmakers and the public.
In other news …
Lionel Messi and Argentina will face Spain in the Fifa World Cup final on Sunday after a dramatic comeback victory over England, in which the South American players celebrated with a banner claiming the Falkland Islands.
The House defeated a measure to slash military aid to Israel, but more than 100 Democrats voted for it in a significant rebuke of the longtime US ally.
House Republicans have resurrected the Save America Act by adding it to the spending bill in their latest attempt to ban mail-in ballots and impose voter identification requirements.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Ukraine’s defence minister, despite pleas from foreign partners and civil society for him to keep his job.
A new $1 coin featuring Donald Trump is in production, the Treasury has said, marking the first time a living US president will appear on currency.
Stat of the day: More than 500 feared dead after reports of two shipwrecks off Myanmar, UN says
The UN has said more than 500 people are feared dead after reports of two large shipwrecks off Myanmar since late June. Preliminary information indicated that the two vessels in question departed from war-torn Myanmar’s Rakhine state in late June, with mainly members of the country’s mostly Muslim Rohingya minority onboard.
The Filter Recommends: These 20 grilling tools will actually upgrade your outdoor cooking game
If you’re looking to up your grilling skills this summer, investing in a handful of well-made essentials is all you need – Sal Vaglica has you covered.
Don’t miss this: ‘The minute I had success, I stopped taking drugs’: John Waters on 60 years of screen carnage
A simply delightful interview with the “Pope of trash” who discusses dead dogs, dirty rats, “that lunatic RFK” and why there are no novelty dances any more.
… or this: What is Ukraine’s 40-day campaign against Russia and has it worked?
Our senior international correspondent Peter Beaumont explains how taking war to the heart of Russian territory has seized the initiative for Ukraine and helped reset Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s turbulent relationship with Donald Trump.
Climate check: How global heating supercharged floods in West Africa, displacing thousands
Dozens of people drowned, hundreds had to be rescued, and thousands were displaced when floods struck the coasts of West Africa last month. Now, scientists have concluded that the rains that caused the floods were supercharged by climate breakdown, Damien Gayle writes. Global heating, they say, turned what should have been a routine weather event into a climate catastrophe.
Last Thing: Lucky escape for Australian woman after bite from deadly snake caught in bike wheel
Eastern brown snakes are highly venomous and have been called the world’s second most venomous snake, and a woman in her 60s is recovering after being bitten by one that became entangled in her bike chain in Australia.
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