Daily Recap

World news is being pulled between crisis, diplomacy and accountability. In San Diego, police swarmed the city’s Islamic Center after reports of an active shooter, shutting roads and urging residents to stay clear as authorities worked to establish the facts. In Washington, Donald Trump said he had postponed planned US strikes on Iran after Gulf allies appealed for more time for negotiations, though he warned military action remains on the table if talks fail. In Europe, a British court handed a long prison sentence to a lorry driver caught smuggling £7 million worth of cocaine hidden in a shipment of Skims underwear. In Virginia, the trial of a former assistant principal reopened painful questions about school safety and official responsibility after a six-year-old shot his teacher in 2023. Meanwhile, in Oslo, Narendra Modi’s receipt of Norway’s highest civilian honour underscored a steadier story of diplomacy and strategic partnership.

A day of politics and power played out across screens, courtrooms, and markets. Anderson Cooper’s emotional farewell to “60 Minutes” closed a two-decade run with a pointed tribute to the show’s independence, even as he said family and the strain of juggling CNN and CBS drove his exit. In Washington, Donald Trump moved to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over leaked tax records, a step that appears to clear the way for a settlement. Abroad, tensions sharpened dramatically as Cuba warned of a “bloodbath” if attacked, while the U.S. sanctioned Cuban intelligence officials over claims Havana has acquired drones with possible Russian and Iranian backing. Trump also rattled global markets by telling Iran the “clock is ticking,” sending oil higher and stocks lower on fears of renewed instability. Meanwhile, Congo’s worsening Ebola outbreak added another layer of international urgency.

Global business news is being shaped by a mix of geopolitics, consolidation and resource nationalism. In Spain, Shakira won a high-profile tax case after the High Court ruled authorities failed to prove she was a tax resident in 2011, ordering a reimbursement worth tens of millions of euros and underscoring the reputational and financial stakes of aggressive tax enforcement. Energy markets, meanwhile, remain on edge: Washington has extended for 30 days a waiver allowing some Russian oil cargoes already at sea to reach vulnerable buyers, a pragmatic response to supply strains tied to disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. In the U.S., NextEra is reportedly pursuing a $67 billion takeover of Dominion, a sign that utilities are bulking up to meet AI-driven power demand. And in the global mining race, Australia forced China-linked investors to exit rare earths producer Northern Minerals, while Anglo American sold Australian coal assets for up to $3.9 billion as it refocuses its portfolio.

Tech’s power struggles, ambitions and anxieties are converging fast. In California, OpenAI and Sam Altman secured a major courtroom win as a federal jury rejected Elon Musk’s claims that the company had abandoned its founding mission, though an appeal is expected. At the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV is preparing to elevate AI from a business and policy issue to a moral one, launching his first encyclical on artificial intelligence alongside Anthropic co-founder Christopher Olah, with human dignity and the use of AI in warfare at the center. In the corporate world, Shein’s reported $100 million acquisition of Everlane signals how aggressively fast-fashion giants are hunting Western brands and credibility. And in media, new BBC director-general Matt Brittin, arriving from Google, is already warning staff that reinvention and painful savings will go hand in hand as public service broadcasting adapts to the digital age.

Sport today spans triumph, uncertainty and survival. In one of the most harrowing stories, former Scunthorpe defender Jonathan Gjoshe has spoken for the first time about the train stabbing that left him wounded seven times, describing how close he came to death as he continues to deal with the trauma and the impact on his career. In football, Arsenal edged Burnley 1-0 thanks to Kai Havertz, a tense win that leaves Mikel Arteta’s side within touching distance of a first league title in 22 years. At Manchester City, meanwhile, reports suggest Pep Guardiola is preparing to step down at the end of the season, though the club has yet to confirm it. Away from the pitch, Aaron Rai’s US PGA breakthrough has been cast as a triumph of long-noted determination, while Robert Lewandowski has taken on a new role as CHERY’s global brand ambassador.

Technology and public systems are under strain in very different ways today. In the crypto world, AFX says it has launched a purpose-built Layer 1 network for decentralized perpetuals trading, promising faster execution, zero gas fees and markets spanning everything from bitcoin to gold and crude. But in open-source software, Linux creator Linus Torvalds is warning that AI-assisted bug reports are overwhelming maintainers, turning security review into a battle against duplication and noise rather than a path to faster fixes. Meanwhile in southern China, a 5.2-magnitude earthquake in Guangxi has killed at least two people, displaced thousands and disrupted roads and rail as rescue crews clear debris and search damaged areas. And beyond breaking news, Australian journalist Cheng Lei is transforming her years in a Chinese prison into memoir and performance, using storytelling to reclaim a deeply personal ordeal in public.

Health headlines were dominated by infectious disease and the public systems mobilized to contain it. In Rotterdam, the cruise ship MV Hondius arrived under tight precautions after a hantavirus outbreak linked to multiple deaths, with Dutch authorities preparing disinfection and quarantine for remaining crew as global health officials kept the broader risk assessment low. In Central Africa, concern sharpened around Ebola after the CDC confirmed an American aid worker had been infected in the Democratic Republic of Congo and began arranging treatment in Germany, while the US expanded airport screening and travel restrictions tied to the regional outbreak. Alongside those disease alerts, violence intruded on public safety in California, where a deadly shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego is being investigated as a possible hate crime, underscoring how health, security and community resilience remain deeply intertwined.

Entertainment news today spans grief, legal drama and festival momentum. In New York, prosecutors in the Luigi Mangione murder case scored an important pretrial win after a judge allowed jurors to see a gun and notebook recovered from his backpack, though some other seized items were reportedly excluded, setting up a sharper fight over how damaging that evidence may be. At Cannes, A24 landed one of the market’s hottest deals, snapping up global rights to Jordan Firstman’s well-received “Club Kid” after a bidding battle that underscores the indie studio’s continued appetite for buzzy auteur fare. The industry is also mourning Tom Kane, the prolific voice actor behind Yoda in “Star Wars” animation and Professor Utonium in “The Powerpuff Girls,” who has died at 64. Elsewhere, authorities in Spain are investigating the death of a British tourist after a reported fall at Mount Urgull.