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July 23, 2026 By Sam Sifton Good morning. As the war between the United States and Iran continues, I want to look at how The Times uses photographs and video to better understand what’s happening on the ground. A photograph, circulating online and verified by The Times, shows the aftermath of the most recent strike on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. MenchOsint, via X Photographic evidence Here are two sentences that jumped out at me yesterday from our live coverage of the war: The Iranian military said in statements carried by the country’s state news media early Wednesday that it had targeted U.S. military facilities in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain. There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties from the U.S. military or the authorities in any of the three countries. What struck me was how familiar that sounded. We heard this week about the deaths of four U.S. service members, soldiers assigned to missile defense work. But we haven’t heard very much at all about the extent of damage Iranian strikes have caused to American military bases in the region. And it’s hard to find. The Pentagon hasn’t held a major news briefing since early May. There’s not a lot of high-resolution satellite imagery. The Trump administration asked major U.S. satellite providers to withhold visual images of the region. Our visual investigations team, however, was able to assess the damage to two U.S. sites in Jordan by comparing images from disparate sources. Iran, for instance, often releases satellite imagery of strikes as part of its propaganda campaign. The Times journalists corroborated those images using videos captured from inside and outside the sites, along with photography and lower-resolution satellite imagery they were able to gather. Here are some key findings from their investigation — the Pentagon, by the way, declined to comment: Three of the soldiers killed last week were stationed at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. After the attacks there on Friday night, a video appeared on social media showing a projectile exploding near several buildings. The original source of the footage is unknown, but The Times was able to verify it, and reports that it was likely filmed by personnel on the base. Iran later released several satellite images that showed significant damage to the station, and The Times assessed it using a range of visual evidence, including satellite imagery from the European Space Agency. At least 20 structures appeared completely or partially destroyed. High-resolution satellite imagery released by Iran, which was distributed along with the annotation seen in red, shows damage to a structure at the Tower 22 outpost. The Times has verified that the image provides an accurate depiction of the damage. Fars News Agency, via Telegram Iran also struck Tower 22, a U.S. military outpost on Jordan’s border with Syria. The destruction there first appeared in low-resolution European satellite imagery that my colleagues corroborated, and then in a higher-resolution satellite image published by Iranian state media showing that one of the base’s buildings had been badly damaged. The Times corroborated that, too. The New York Times A video that was shared on Telegram, and which was verified by The Times, also showed a building reduced to rubble at Tower 22. It is unclear if the strike caused casualties. Cartographic evidence You can learn a lot looking at those kinds of pictures. At maps, too. Check out the ones my colleagues made to show how the threat of a Houthi blockade in the Red Sea could again upend global oil markets by compromising a crucial fallback for the Strait of Hormuz. The New York Times More on the war: Oil prices surged after the Houthis said they had attacked two Saudi tankers in the Red Sea. Read the latest news. A PERSONAL RECKONING Thomas Gibbons-Neff, center, while serving as a Marine in Afghanistan in 2010. Bryan Denton for The New York Times One more war story. Back in 2010, Thomas Gibbons-Neff was in the Marine Corps, the 22-year-old leader of a scout sniper team in one of the largest operations of the war against the Taliban: the battle of Marja. He’s spent the past decade as a reporter covering wars and gun culture in the United States, first for The Washington Post and, since 2017, here at The Times. Now he is going back to school to become an English teacher. As he prepared to leave The Times, Gibbons-Neff returned to Afghanistan to speak with the people he fought against, in search of answers and maybe closure. “I’ve had a hand in killing around six people,” he writes. “Maybe seven. I don’t know if one man bled out on the side of the road or was taken to a doctor. I think about him often.” His is a searing, difficult, somehow beautiful story. I urge you to read it closely, all the way through. We’ve removed the paywall to make it free for you. THE LATEST NEWS Saudi Nuclear Deal President Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in November. Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times The Trump administration signed a nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia that could allow the kingdom to enrich its own uranium. Under the terms of the deal, Saudi Arabia does not have to allow international inspectors into its facilities — a requirement that applies to more than 140 countries. The deal is a coup for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has pushed for years to obtain American nuclear technology. Israel is concerned that the deal will encourage other countries to develop nuclear programs — and experts say that could lead to an arms race in the Middle East. On Capitol Hill The House adopted Republicans’ $95 billion budget plan to fund the war in Iran and impose new voting restrictions demanded by President Trump. It could face an uphill battle in the Senate. The chamber also approved a $1.15 trillion military spending bill over the opposition of Democrats, who said backing it was akin to embracing the war in Iran. Without significant revisions, it lacks votes to pass in the Senate. Also passed in the House: a bill to limit stock trading by members of Congress. More on Politics The Trump administration canceled grants to teen pregnancy programs, saying they encouraged premarital sex. The new proposal? Teach abstinence only. Tens of thousands of immigrants have received letters from the federal government demanding that they pay up to $1.8 million in fines or leave the country. Around the World The gallery at the Louvre Museum in Paris where thieves took crown jewels worth $100 million reopened to the public. The only difference: no gems. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ebola seems to be spreading in the cramped camps that house more than a million displaced people. Other Big Stories European Union regulators fined Google $1 billion for using its position as the world’s largest search engine to unfairly promote its own services. A Florida pastor sued OpenAI, claiming that advice from ChatGPT led him to delay treatment for a life-threatening embolism. It appears to be the first case arguing that a chatbot harmed someone seeking medical advice. Scientists in Vermont have identified a contagious form of skin cancer in catfish. They recommend not eating the fish. THE MORNING QUIZ This question comes from a recent edition of the newsletter. Click an answer to see if you’re right. (The link will be free.) Which leader set off a debate over work-life balance after writing on social media this week that she typically gets “zero to three hours” of sleep a night? President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy Senator Darline Graham Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi of Japan OPINIONS Illustration by The New York Times; source photographs by Danielle James/The Flint Journal and Ryan Sun/Associated Press Abdul El-Sayed and Haley Stevens are two Democrats vying to represent Michigan in the Senate. Times Opinion assembled a panel to discuss how each might fare in Congress. Why is Gen-Z is in a sex recession? Experts debate the reasons on the Opinions podcast. Deeply reported journalism needs your support. The Times relies on subscribers to help fund our mission. Become a subscriber today. MORNING READS Oliver Parini for The New York Times We’ve made these links free for you. Exposure therapy: To conquer his fear of heights, a hiker crossed a river gorge on a tightrope. Did it work? “The Surrendered Wife”: Laura Doyle believes women are too controlling. Some say she’s saved their marriages. Your pick: The most clicked link in The Morning yesterday was about Jimothy, the raccoon taking over the internet. A killer tactic: A sunfish can weigh over 2,000 pounds. Watch how orcas made one explode. TODAY’S NUMBER Brad Trone for The New York Times 50 — That is how many years it has taken the artist Charles Ross to complete a giant earthwork in eastern New Mexico called “Star Axis.” It is part observatory and part pyramid, with a staircase that rises 11 stories through a tunnel inside a mesa 6,000 feet above sea level. You end up in a viewing chamber with a circular window that frames Polaris, the North Star. Have a look. SPORTS Tour de France: Doping control officers are testing riders in the middle of the night. Some athletes think disturbed sleep could contribute to crashes. W.N.B.A.: Caitlin Clark picked up her seventh technical foul of the year in the Indiana Fever’s 123-88 blowout win over the Connecticut Sun. Another would bring her a one-game suspension. RECIPE OF THE DAY Christopher Testani for The New York Times Remember that chicken in milk recipe I suggested the other day? I used the leftovers to make chicken salad, with some dill pickles as a mix-in. Then I made sandwiches of buttered sourdough bread, thin-sliced deli ham, good Swiss cheese and a mound of the salad. Grilled crisp in a hot pan, they were outrageously good, like modified, madcap Monte Cristos. And you don’t need a recipe! INTO THE WOODS I loved Elisabeth Egan’s profile of the mystery writer Caitlin Mullen, whose latest novel, “Heather,” is set in the wilderness of southern New Jersey, desolate and strange. “You have no vantage points,” Mullen explained when they toured the region together. “You can’t see where you’ve come from. You can’t see what you’re heading toward.” That’s not a bad explanation of the book, either. More on culture Oskar Eustis announced yesterday that he is retiring as artistic director of the Public Theater in New York after 21 years. In 2020, the Criterion Collection had four African-American directors in its catalog. Today its online store has 99 DVD entries in its “Black Lives” section. “I haven’t seen such a major rethink of a cinematic organization maybe ever,” a film history professor told The Times. THE MORNING RECOMMENDS Phoebe Bridgers Todd Owyoung/NBC, via Getty Images Listen to Phoebe Bridgers’s “Chinese Satellite,” from the dark days of 2020. Lindsay Zoladz, who writes “The Amplifier” newsletter, says, “The whole song is frighteningly good, but here’s the line that always destroys me: ‘You know I’d stand on the corner, embarrassed with a picket sign / If it meant I would see you when I die.’” Sign up for The Amplifier newsletter. Your alternative to the algorithm — a real, live human helps you discover songs you’ll love. Get it in your inbox. Exercise on the beach. Among other things, it brings fitness benefits you can’t usually get in a gym. Learn a new language. Apps can help. But if you really want to succeed, follow these tips assembled by the multilingual authorities at Wirecutter. As they say in Lyon, plonge-toi. GAMES Here is today’s Spelling Bee. Yesterday’s pangram was hardtack. And here are today’s Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections, Crossplay and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times and me. See you tomorrow. — Sam Reach our team at themorning@nytimes.com. Host: Sam Sifton Editor: Adam B. Kushner News Editor: Tom Wright-Piersanti Associate Editor: Lauren Jackson News Staff: Evan Gorelick, Brent Lewis, Lara McCoy, Karl Russell Saturday Writer: Melissa Kirsch Editorial Director, Newsletters: Jodi Rudoren

⛳ 1 for the road: The toughest ticket This year's Masters rejection. Tons of golf fans learned this week they didn't win the Masters ticket lottery — an annual rejection that has become almost as much of a tradition as the tournament itself, Axios' Mike Szvetitz writes. About 2 million people apply for Masters tickets for each tournament day, with applicants having just a 0.55% chance — roughly 1 in 182 — of being selected, according to one estimate from Bookies.com. Those are better odds than being struck by lightning or winning the lottery.

🚘 Milestone for self-driving cars Waymo robotaxis navigate San Francisco earlier this month. Photo: Heather Diehl/Getty Images Axios transportation correspondent Joann Muller, who has covered autos for 35+ years, writes: An independent study finds Waymo's robotaxis are involved in fewer crashes than human drivers — a key milestone for earning public trust. Why it matters: Research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety offers some of the strongest evidence yet that driverless vehicles can outperform human drivers on safety. Zoom in: Researchers compared crash rates of human-driven cars and Waymo robotaxis in San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Austin, four cities where robotaxis are prevalent. Waymo vehicles had 68% fewer "police-reportable crashes" per mile traveled than human drivers in those cities. Waymo had 85% fewer single-vehicle crashes than human drivers.

🧐 Stock market mystery Data: FactSet. Chart: Emily Peck/Axios A markets mystery has perplexed some analysts this year: Why are stocks near all-time highs while geopolitical conflict and inflation rock the global economy? The usual retort is that the stock market isn't the economy, but a new Moody's report offers a more nuanced explanation: Markets have adjusted — you just have to know where to look, Axios' Emily Peck writes. 💡 How it works: It's visible with bonds and under the hood in the stock market, where certain sectors are struggling (charted above). Software stocks have fallen this year, thanks to AI, as have those for autos, consumer goods and apparel, as consumers struggle with higher prices. The new hot sectors are energy, because of the Iran war and other conflicts, and hardware and semiconductors, as investors flock to the picks and shovels of the AI boom. Keep reading.

🤖 AI's alarming new skill Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios Frontier AI models are getting scary good at breaking rules in ways their creators didn't anticipate, Axios' Sam Sabin writes. Why it matters: Forget AGI and superintelligence timelines. Today's models already slip past guardrails, carry out sophisticated, multistep cyberattacks and — in at least one case — compromise real-world infrastructure, sometimes before their creators know what happened. ⚠️ Case in point: OpenAI said Tuesday that GPT-5.6 Sol and an upcoming model carried out last week's AI-led cyberattack on Hugging Face, a popular host for AI models and datasets. OpenAI says its models were asked to solve a hacking challenge during pre-deployment testing and went to extreme lengths to win. The models decided on their own to break out of their walled testing environment, inferring that Hugging Face might hold the test's answers. They used stolen credentials and other vulnerabilities to access part of Hugging Face's production infrastructure. Clément Delangue, co-founder and CEO of Hugging Face, called the incident an "attack unlike anything we've seen before" and praised OpenAI for its partnership as the companies investigate what happened. Logan Graham, head of Anthropic's frontier red team, said he told his team to "remember this moment as the first true AI safety incident." 👀 The intrigue: Hugging Face used GLM 5.2, an open-weight model from Chinese AI company Z.ai, to analyze the attack after running into guardrails when using U.S. frontier models. Keep reading ...

🗳️ Big Dem feud over 2028 Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios A long-simmering feud between Black and Latino Democratic leaders exploded yesterday over which state should vote first in the 2028 presidential primary: South Carolina or Nevada, Axios' Alex Thompson and Holly Otterbein write. Why it matters: The racially fraught battle could help determine which candidates gain an early edge in the race to become the party's next White House nominee. 🎰 State of play: South Carolina, with its large Black population, and Nevada, with its large Latino population, have emerged as the states most likely to lead off the Democratic contest in 2028, according to interviews with seven members of the Democratic National Committee, state party officials and strategists. That has prompted sniping between leading Black and Latino voices ahead of the DNC's powerful Rules & Bylaws Committee meeting today. 👓 Between the lines: The order in which states vote can boost certain candidates over others. South Carolina going first could give former Vice President Harris an advantage in a 2028 primary. Early polls show her dominating the potential 2028 field among Black voters. Progressive Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders won Nevada comfortably in 2020. His protégé, New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is weighing a White House run and could start with a base of support if Nevada, where organized labor wields more influence, were to go first. More on the feud.

AI optimist alliance Two of the most powerful CEOs in tech — Nvidia's Jensen Huang and Meta's Mark Zuckerberg — are making separate, loud bets on AI optimism this week. Why it matters: Together, the CEOs represent a significant counterweight to the voices urging Washington to pump the brakes. In an hourlong interview with me for our "Behind the Curtain" video series, Huang railed against AI doomerism, implicitly challenging fellow tech CEOs who emphasize the technology's potentially catastrophic risks. "The fact that this is going to be the end of humanity — it's complete nonsense," Huang said. "The fact that this is going to destroy half of the American jobs is complete nonsense." Scaring workers and companies away from using AI, he said, poses the greater danger. Zuckerberg strikes the same note this morning in a video ad and Facebook post that argues Meta's focus on connecting the world will only be strengthened by AI — a shot at rivals he says promote fear and a dystopian vision of the future, Axios' Sara Fischer writes. The ad says: "Some people will have you believe AI will make us less connected, that it's going to leave us behind. We couldn't disagree more. … Call us optimists, call us dreamers, call us whatever the hell you want. But we're betting on people, and we like those odds." In his Facebook post, Zuckerberg says Meta "has always believed in giving people the power to share, connect, and shape your world in the ways you want. … We're focused on giving every person the tools to reach your full potential and making sure the benefits of technology are distributed to everyone." 👀 What we're watching: In an upcoming policy memo, Zuckerberg is expected to echo Huang on open source and competition (Let all models rip!) and will put a heavy emphasis on getting free AI into the hands of consumers, a big differentiator with Meta's competitors, we're told. 🎬 Huang — who is influential with the Trump administration — told me policymakers should consult more than "one or two" CEOs and avoid restricting AI based on scenarios that haven't materialized. He also suggested some companies invoke safety concerns to win favorable regulations: "Some of the companies hope that the government would be helpful in creating regulations to their advantage." 🖼️ The big picture: Anthropic and OpenAI have pushed Washington to take the most advanced systems and their potential risks seriously. Critics say those campaigns could also entrench their market position. Washington is also deciding what to do about powerful open-source models emerging from China. 🔬 Zoom in: Officials accuse Chinese firms of stealing from American models to build their own as they rapidly become more competitive with OpenAI and Anthropic. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent yesterday threatened sanctions against Chinese firms conducting what he called "industrial-scale distillation attacks." Earlier that day, the White House's top science official accused Chinese startup Moonshot AI of distilling Anthropic's technology to build its fast-rising Kimi model. The bottom line: Asked whether he feared the administration could overcorrect, Huang said yes.

THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 23 1885 Former president Ulysses S. Grant dies On July 23, 1885, just after completing his memoirs, Civil War hero and former president Ulysses S. Grant dies of throat cancer. The son of a tanner, Grant showed little enthusiasm for joining his father’s business, so the elder Grant enrolled his son at West Point in 1839. Though Grant later admitted in his memoirs […] read more Sponsored Content by REVCONTENT 1960s 1967 Detroit Riots of 1967 begin 1980s 1984 Miss America resigns over nude photos African History 1952 Military seizes power in Egypt Arts & Entertainment 1988 Guns N’ Roses make popular breakthrough with “Sweet Child O’ Mine” 2011 Amy Winehouse is found dead in her London apartment 1999 Woodstock ’99 begins 1982 Actor and two children killed on “Twilight Zone” set Crime 1923 John Dillinger joins the Navy in an attempt to avoid prosecution 1918 Nebraska serial killer poisons her first victim Sports 1996 U.S. women take home gymnastics gold U.S. Presidents 1973 President Nixon refuses to hand over tapes World War I 1914 Austria-Hungary issues ultimatum to Serbia

The expression "within the veil" is used in the following OT passages: Ex 26:33 And thou shalt put the veil on the posts, and thou shalt carry in thither *within the veil* the ark of the testimony; and the veil shall make a separation for you between the holy and the holy of holies. Le 16:2 And the Lord said to Moses, Speak to Aaron thy brother, and let him not come in at all times into the holy place *within the veil* before the propitiatory, which is upon the ark of the testimony, and he shall not die; for I will appear in a cloud on the propitiatory. Le 16:12 And he shall take his censer full of coals of fire off the altar, which is before the Lord; and he shall fill his hands with fine compound incense, and shall bring it *within the veil.* Le 16:15 ¶ and he shall kill the goat for the sin-offering that is for the people, before the Lord; and he shall bring in of its blood *within the veil,* and shall do with its blood as he did with the blood of the calf, and shall sprinkle its blood on the mercy-seat, in front of the mercy-seat. It is also used here: Heb 6:19 Which [hope] we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that *within the veil;* The following verse says: 20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, [even] Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Hebrews 6:19,20 plainly state that Jesus entered into the Most Holy Place when he ascended. That is where *within the veil* is located.

Totally erroneous statement.

⚡️Dems demand reckoning House Democrats are demanding a reckoning after the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spent over $500,000 backing a candidate in Arizona who is on track to lose her primary. Why it matters: Frustrated lawmakers aren't laying the blame directly at House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries' feet. But dissatisfaction with the House Democratic campaign arm is growing after three failed attempts to intervene in Democratic primaries this cycle. 🚨 Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), a top DCCC dues payer, said the party should be "rationing our resources to win general elections," calling for "a conversation about ... what the involvement in primaries looks like." "That's $100,000 that I put in," Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) said of her dues, arguing that the DCCC "shouldn't be spending this money" on primaries. 🚗 Driving the news: Former Arizona state Rep. Amish Shah led former TV journalist Marlene Galán-Woods in the Democratic primary in Arizona's 1st District by roughly seven percentage points as of this evening. With 87% of the votes reporting, Galán-Woods "still has a chance," but "I would much rather be Shah than her," one House Democrat who has followed the race closely told us. The DCCC ran a $514,000 joint ad buy with the Galán-Woods campaign after endorsing her as part of its "Red to Blue" program in June, according to AdImpact. 🌎 Zoom out: This latest hit for the DCCC comes after it fell short in California's 22nd District, where progressive activist Randy Villegas won in an upset over more moderate state Assembly member Jasmeet Bains in June. Later that month, DCCC-endorsed state Sen. Joe Baldacci lost to progressive rival Matt Dunlap in Maine's 2nd District. The DCCC ran roughly $250,000 in joint ad buys with Bains and Baldacci, according to AdImpact and other ad data we viewed. 📢 What they're saying: "Can you imagine if we'd put that $800,000 in the general election so we can win in November?" asked Ramirez, adding, "I would recommend that we just don't engage in primaries." "I personally don't think we should be investing against Democrats when we've got a big battleground," Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.), who represents swing-district House Democrats in leadership, told us. The other side: "We move on to the general. We're going to win that general election, and we're going to win the majority; that's an incredibly important district to do it," Rep. Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.), a co-chair of the DCCC's frontline program, told us. — Andrew Solender

House Republicans adopt $95 billion package for the Iran war and Trump’s priorities WASHINGTON (AP) — The House adopted a Republican-only $95 billion budget proposal Wednesday, a long-shot effort to fund the Iran war and other White House priorities over objections from Democrats and a few GOP holdouts in a final push before the midterm elections. https://apnews.com/article/gop-95-billion-iran-war-trump-johnson-f9dea5ef800bfeb0e343256e841af38f? 😎 No-shutdown optimism Senators on both sides of the aisle are quietly hopeful about avoiding a third government shutdown this year. Why it matters: Time is short, patience is wearing thin and neither party wants to head into the campaign's final sprint under the cloud of a funding lapse. "People understand that it would be helpful to have a [continuing resolution] that extends beyond the election," Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) told us. "So it doesn't get all bound up in partisan discussions around the elections." "I just think everybody's trying to give ourselves room to find a bipartisan agreement, and we are not there yet," Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) said. Asked whether the vibes were positive, Schatz replied: "Not negative." 💪 Republicans were even more optimistic about a bipartisan CR. "Perhaps we can get ours passed, and then when the House comes back the last week of August, they can pass it there," Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) said. "I don't think there's going to be much controversy there, unless the Democrats change their minds." State of play: The House passed a short-term spending bill late last night. Senate Majority Leader John Thune will essentially ignore it. For now. 🔮 The same fate likely awaits the budget resolution Speaker Mike Johnson narrowly pushed through this afternoon on a 216-214 vote. 🤔 The intrigue: House Republicans are still steaming over Thune's decision to declare, in advance, that he won't take up reconciliation until the government is funded. "He's the leader of the Senate. I think it's a mistake to hold up such an important piece of legislation," House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) told us. But his new Senate counterpart, Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), appears far more comfortable with Thune's timeline and sequencing. "With [Senate Appropriations Chair] Susan [Collins] apparently showing progress toward a CR — even talking about a defense supplemental in that agreement — that would, to a certain extent, negate having to do one," Johnson said, referring to a separate reconciliation package. 👀 What to watch: There's no guarantee a major news event won't derail bipartisan funding talks, just as Medicaid cuts and the ICE shootings did earlier this year. President Trump's escalation of the conflict with Iran is already complicating defense spending negotiations, with Democrats largely opposed and Republicans split over the scope of additional funding. Any effort to attach supplemental defense money tied to Iran to the CR could make the vote significantly more difficult. The bottom line: Thune slyly suggested he was prepared to use a reconciliation package to fund the government along party lines — if needed. He may not have to act on that threat if the bipartisan Senate progress continues. — Hans Nichols, Stef W. Kight and Kate Santaliz

🚲 1 fun thing: E-bike record ride Photo: Portland Bureau of Transportation Portland, Oregon, set a Guinness World Record this past weekend for the largest-ever group e-bike ride, Axios Portland's Kale Williams reports. 1,060 cyclists set off from Salmon Street Springs Fountain for a 2-mile loop around downtown. That's more than double the previous record, held by Seattle. Photos & video ...

🇺🇸 President Trump today attended the dignified transfer of four U.S. service members recently killed in the Middle East, his third such ceremony amid the Iran war. He told reporters that his message to grieving families will be: "We love you, we love your child." Get the latest. 🇮🇱 The White House and the Israeli Prime Minister's Office are discussing a potential Oval Office meeting between Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu next week. More from Barak Ravid.

🚗 Used EV prices spike Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios Used electric vehicles are actually rising in value amid surging demand for more affordable cars, Axios' Joann Muller reports from new Recurrent data. Prices are up more than 5% since January, with the biggest gains at the sub-$20,000 end of the market. 📈 By the numbers: A typical used 2023 Chevrolet Bolt cost less than $18,000 back in January. Now it's going for over $21,000. A 2021 Volkswagen ID.4, which could be had for less than $19,000 in January, now costs over $21,000. A 2022 Tesla Model 3 that cost around $23,750 earlier this year now runs nearly $27,000. The bottom line: Even with these higher prices, used EVs could spur adoption and help car buyers find affordable options. Go deeper.

Measles smashes 2025 levels Data: Johns Hopkins; Chart: Erin Davis/Axios Visuals The number of reported U.S. measles cases this year has already surpassed last year's final total, Axios' Tina Reed writes from the latest Johns Hopkins University data. 2,295 cases have been reported so far in 2026, a 35-year record. 2,286 cases were reported across all of 2025. 💉 Measles is rebounding in areas with low vaccine coverage, threatening the country's elimination status. 95% of reported cases are among people who are unvaccinated, or whose vaccination status is unknown. While overall vaccination rates are still relatively high, public health officials say they must remain above 95% to maintain herd immunity. William Moss, a professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, tells The Washington Post: "The fact that we've reached this total this early in the year is really a reflection of those large outbreaks earlier in the year, particularly in South Carolina and Utah." "It's very frustrating. This is a reflection that we have been unable to stop measles virus transmission in this country." (Gift link.) 🤧 Measles symptoms often include a cough, high fever and conjunctivitis, plus a telltale rash. It can escalate into severe ear infections, pneumonia and encephalitis (inflammation of the brain that can lead to permanent brain damage and even death). On average, measles kills 1–3 of every 1,000 infected children. The rebound comes as a number of key public health positions — including CDC director and surgeon general — remain vacant, and after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. initially downplayed the virus' threat. He's since said that the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is the most effective way to prevent measles spread, while noting that vaccination is a personal choice. Go deeper. ps:Just imagine we had Measles beaten and this administration just undid all the good that previous ones had done!!

France recorded 5,700 more deaths than usual during its historic June heat wave PARIS (AP) — France recorded at least 5,700 more deaths than usual during a historic heat wave last month, the public health agency said Wednesday, sharply increasing its estimates of the feared toll from record-shattering temperatures. https://apnews.com/article/france-heatwave-extra-deaths-health-agency-dff2ed624e0cdad02f836d30ae3e878f?

US military carries out strikes on Iran as both sides threaten civilian infrastructure DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The U.S. military announced Wednesday that it was conducting a 12th night of strikes against Iran as both sides increasingly targeted civilian infrastructure. https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-hormuz-strait-war-july-22-2026-42ff3de8d135ad72ff3ba4d94cc0921d? U.S. escalates with B-1 bombers A B-1 Lancer lands at RAF Fairford in England earlier this year. Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images Intel from Axios' Barak Ravid: The U.S. military used a B-1 long-range bomber Tuesday to strike targets connected to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, U.S. officials said. Why it matters: It was the first U.S. B-1 mission since fighting with Iran resumed 12 days ago. Using B-1 bombers, which can carry two dozen 2,000-lb. bombs or dozens of cruise missiles, signaled a significant escalation and expansion of the U.S. military campaign. 👀 What we're watching: President Trump is still considering returning to major combat operations against Iran. U.S. and Israeli officials say this could happen within days.

👋 Good morning! Happy Hump Day. In today's edition: What we'll remember about the World Cup, Triple Crown watch, million-dollar hardwood, why we love baseball, Lewandowski's debut, and more. Yahoo Sports AM is written by Kendall Baker and Jeff Tracy. Let's sports...   🚨 ICYMI HEADLINES ⚽️ Record viewership: 39 million people watched the World Cup Final on Fox, making it the most-watched soccer telecast in American history. Nearly 24 million more watched on Peacock and Telemundo, bringing the total U.S. viewership to almost 63 million — more than every NFL game last season except the Super Bowl. 🏀 LeBron update: It's been more than three weeks since LeBron James told the Lakers that his 24th NBA season will take place elsewhere, but his decision may not be as imminent as some believed. "We're not going to be rushed," says agent Rich Paul. 📺 ESPN layoffs: Karl Ravech, one of ESPN's most recognizable anchors who's been with the network since 1993, was laid off on Tuesday as part of the company's latest cuts. NFL insider Tom Pelissero was also among the prominent names let go from NFL Network, acquired by ESPN earlier this year. 🏀 All-Summer League: Warriors forward Yaxel Lendeborg was named Summer League MVP and headlined the All-Summer League First Team. Joining him were Cameron Boozer (Grizzlies), Caleb Wilson (Bulls), Brayden Burries (Bucks) and Meleek Thomas (Cavaliers). ⚾️ 474 feet: Fernando Tatis Jr., blasted a 474-foot moonshot in the Padres' 8-3 win over the Braves, the longest home run hit by any player this season. Tatis is heating up, hitting three HR in his last four games after hitting just five in his first 96 games.   ⚽️ UNTIL NEXT TIME THE LASTING LEGACY OF THE 2026 WORLD CUP (Hayden Hodge/Yahoo Sports) The 2026 World Cup is gone, but those five magical weeks across the U.S., Canada and Mexico won't soon be forgotten. Here are some of the moments, players and elements of the tournament we'll be discussing for years, even decades, to come, courtesy of Yahoo Sports' Jay Busbee. 🇦🇷 Messi That's really all we need to say, one name. If this World Cup was Lionel Messi's final run on the worldwide stage, what a run it was. There are players who rise to meet the moment, and then there are players who define the moment. Messi stands above them all. 🌎 Expansion worked You can say that FIFA's naked desire for planeloads of extra revenue is the reason behind the World Cup's expansion, and you'd be right. But that doesn't mean it didn't work, as so many of those added slots went to beloved Cinderellas like Cape Verde and DR Congo, who provided some of the best stories of the tournament. 💵 Pricey tickets Here's the problem with sticker shock: If someone else is willing to pay it, that means they weren't quite so shocked. You have to concede: FIFA correctly read the state of the World Cup ticket market. And if you want to attend a future World Cup match, you should've started saving 10 years ago. High ticket prices are here to stay. (Maja Hitij /FIFA via Getty Images) 🟥 The red card that wasn't For the good of the World Cup as a whole, it's probably best that the USMNT lost to Belgium immediately after FIFA "suspended" Folarin Balogun's red card. Yes, the original penalty was unnecessarily harsh, but the idea of a bureaucratic autocracy arbitrarily fudging its own rules set an ugly precedent the USMNT might regret in World Cups to come. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England's collapse This one will linger for years in the minds of the Three Lions faithful, who watched their beloved side come five regulation minutes from a spot in the World Cup Final before Argentina's magic flipped the script. Add this one to the ever-growing list of England agonies that we'll roll out and recount every World Cup from here on out. 🇫🇷 France's surrender The other semifinal will stick with us, too, mainly due to the fact that the overwhelming tournament favorite suddenly forgot how to score. Les Bleus stormed all the way to the semis with a combination of brilliance and brutality, looking like a champion-in-waiting until, suddenly, they weren't. The sting of their dramatic reversal of fortune won't soon dissipate. (Steph Chambers/FIFA via Getty Images) 🇺🇸 American journeys If we learned nothing else from this World Cup, let's please learn this: we've got one hell of a great country here, even if we need to hear it from visiting international tourists. The visitors to America discovered so much more to love about this nation; and, if you were paying attention, America discovered so much to love about the rest of the world. 🇳🇴 Erling Haaland The Norwegian giant wasn't exactly an unknown when this World Cup began, but he quickly vaulted himself into the Messi-Mbappé conversation with his uncanny ability to score pretty much at will. He'll be around World Cups for a while, but this was the one where he began what could be a legendary journey. 🇪🇸 Spain's dominance A World Cup defined by high-scoring stars was won instead by its most complete team. In the end, La Roja's death by a thousand passes survived La Albiceleste's Messi-led disappearing act. What a way to end a fantastic World Cup… and start the countdown to 2030.   ⚾️ AIR YORDAN TRIPLE CROWN WATCH (Maria Lysaker/Getty Images) Just one MLB hitter has won the Triple Crown since 1967. Can Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez become the second? Where it stands: Alvarez — who's had 15 hits and 4 HR during his current eight-game hitting streak — leads the American League in all three categories roughly two-thirds of the way through the season. He seeks to join Miguel Cabrera (2012) as the only other player to win the Triple Crown since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. AVG: .326 (second place: Rays DH Yandy Díaz, .312) HR: 33 (Rays 3B Junior Caminero, 29) RBI: 75 (Yankees 1B Ben Rice, 68) Zoom out: Despite never having finished a season as the league leader in any of those stats, Alvarez is about as likely a candidate you'll find to join this exclusive club. The 2019 Rookie of the Year has never hit fewer than 30 HR in a full season, and he's one of just three active players with a career batting average of .300 or better. The lefty suffered a frustrating setback last season when a broken hand limited him to just 48 games, but the AL MVP frontrunner has played all but two games this year and has never looked better, barreling the ball more often than any other player in the league. Even more exclusive club? Just 13 players in the modern era (since 1901) have won the AL or NL Triple Crown, but only five of them* have led the entire majors in all three categories. Well, Alvarez is currently tied for the MLB lead in HR, one back in the RBI column and just six points off the lead in batting average. *MLB-wide Triple Crown winners: Ty Cobb (1909), Rogers Hornsby (1925), Lou Gehrig (1934), Ted Williams (1942), Mickey Mantle (1956)   💰 CENTER COURT PRICEY HARDWOOD MJ stands at center court during a game in 1998. (Andrew D. Bernstein/ NBAE/ Getty Images) Sotheby's sold four pieces of sports memorabilia on Monday for over $1 million each, bringing total sales for its Summer Sports Week to $26 million as collectors continue flocking to blue-chip assets representing pivotal moments from superstar careers. The most unique piece? A section of Bulls hardwood — signed by Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen — that sat at center court during Chicago's three-peat from 1996 to 1998. The price tag? A cool $1,792,000. Finally, my basement is complete. Want to learn about the rest of Sotheby's seven-figure sales? We'll dive deeper in today's edition of Yahoo Sports Biz, which hits inboxes in a few hours.   📚 GO DEEPER GOOD READS (Taylor Wilhelm/Yahoo Sports) ⚽️ Kari Anderson: Way-too-early 2027 Women's World Cup preview Sad that the 2026 World Cup is over? Disappointed that the USMNT didn't make it further? No sweat — we're less than one year out from the real American contenders taking the field. Here's a little taste of what's to come when the 2027 Women's World Cup kicks off in Brazil next June. (Bruno Rouby/Yahoo Sports) ⚾️ Russell Dorsey: Top 25 MLB trade candidates MLB's trade deadline is less than two weeks away (Aug. 3), and with a majority of teams still sniffing at least a wild card spot, there could be plenty of action as clubs prepare for the stretch run. So let's rank the top 25 players who could be moved, starting with the two-time reigning AL Cy Young. (Josh Heim/Yahoo Sports) 🏀 Cassandra Negley: WNBA All-Star weekend could be overshadowed by laundry list of contentious issues This weekend's All-Star festivities should be a joyous celebration of the WNBA's 30th season. Instead, mere months after those contentious but ultimately fruitful CBA negotiations, the league is buckling under the weight of so many issues it's difficult to keep track.   ⚾️ READ AND REACT BASEBALL'S UNIQUE APPEAL How can you not be romantic about baseball? (Luke Hales/Getty Images) Yesterday's newsletter included a section about Twins All-Star Joe Ryan allowing an MLB record-tying six home runs, which inspired a response from a reader that was too good not to share. Jeff T. (Greenfield, MA) writes: What happened with Joe Ryan last night is a perfect illustration of why baseball appeals so much to someone like me. It is by far the least-predictable sport. SGA would never have a game where he plays 32 minutes and scores two points and turns it over 15 times. Impossible. Josh Allen will never, ever, go 4-37 passing with 9 picks. Again, impossible. But Joe Ryan on Monday happened. Cooperstown-bound sluggers can go 0-4 with 4 Ks and look, for one game anyway, like they don't even belong in the majors. Sometimes you can even pull a stunt like Bob Brenly, who once, when he was with the Giants, committed four errors IN ONE INNING, accounting for four runs against his team, but somehow balanced the ledger by going 3-5 with four runs batted in and two homers, including a walk-off shot in the 9th. "This man deserves Comeback Player of the Year for this game alone." — Giants Manager Roger Craig Read and react: If something we write inspires you, jogs a memory or otherwise elicits a reaction, don't hesitate to hit reply. We might just share your response in a future edition.   📺 VIEWING GUIDE WATCHLIST: WEDNESDAY, JULY 22 (Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images) ⚽️ MLS After a brief return last week before the World Cup Final, MLS is back for good tonight as all 30 teams take the field to kick off the second half of the season in earnest. Debut to watch: Polish legend Robert Lewandowski makes his highly anticipated MLS debut tonight (7:30pm ET, Apple) for the Chicago Fire, visiting an Inter Miami side that will be without Lionel Messi as he takes a well-deserved post-World Cup break. Lewandowski, 37, scored 567 goals across the last 16 seasons for Dortmund, Bayern Munich and Barcelona. More to watch: ⚾️ MLB: Tigers at Cubs (8pm, ESPN) … Third-year hurler Keider Montero (3.22 ERA, 0.98 WHIP) has been one of Detroit's most valuable players, moving from starter to long reliever and now back to starter again. 🏀 WNBA: Sun at Fever (8pm, USA); Wings at Fire (10pm, USA) … Final day of games before the All-Star break. 🚴 Tour de France: Stage 17 (7:20am, Peacock) … Belgium's Remco Evenepoel won his second straight stage on Tuesday, picking up 28 seconds on Tadej Pogačar, whose lead is now 4'32" with five stages left. Got plans tonight? Gametime is the best place to score last-minute tickets to the events in your city.   ⚾ EXCLUSIVE CLUB MLB TRIVIA Arenado stands on second base after his 2,000th hit. (Norm Hall/Getty Images) Nolan Arenado, the newest member of the 2,000-hit club, is just the sixth player in MLB history with at least 2,000 hits, 350 home runs and 10 Gold Gloves. Question: Can you name the other five? Hint: Mariners CF, Giants CF, Phillies 3B, Reds C, Tigers RF Answer at the bottom.   🏈 DRAFT ORDER YAHOO FANTASY x CAMEO With the NFL season less than 50 days away, it's time to start thinking about fantasy drafts. The good news for you? Yahoo Sports and Cameo are teaming up to make it easy for fans to get a celebrity to announce their fantasy football league's draft order. How it works: Beginning this season, fans can book personalized videos from Cameo directly within the Yahoo Fantasy experience, where a Cameo button is featured on the home screen and draft tab of the Yahoo Fantasy app, and in the game home on the Yahoo Fantasy website. When you tap on the button, you'll be able to book a celebrity on Cameo to announce or pick your league's draft order. Once the personalized video is ready, it will be available for every league member to watch on the Yahoo Fantasy app and website.   Trivia answer: Ken Griffey Jr., Willie Mays, Mike Schmidt, Johnny Bench, Al Kaline

Gaza’s Catastrophic Loss Across an area only about half the size of Manhattan, the Gaza Strip features hundreds of archaeological and heritage sites, ranging in date from prehistoric times to the British Mandate. Indeed, as one of the few harbors along the southern Levantine coast, Gaza was a center of commerce and exchange for thousands of years, remembered in the Bible and ancient sources as one of the leading Philistine cities and then, during the Roman period, as a critical commercial hub that connected the Roman East with the wider Mediterranean world. https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/archaeology-today/cultural-heritage/gazas-catastrophic-loss/?

I agree and it seems like his administration not only wants to control crypto but also elections, etc.!! The reason I say this is because a billionaire heads every department in the U.S., what better way to buy up everything in the country??