Experts warn backing Iran’s ethnic communities could increase the risk of a chaotic civil war. Plus, Pam Bondi subpoenaed by US House in Jeffrey Epstein investigation
Good morning.
Intense waves of airstrikes have hit dozens of military positions, frontier posts and police stations along northern parts of Iran’s border with Iraq, inwhat appeared to be preparation by the US and Israel for a new frontas their war entered its sixth day.
A US official with knowledge of the discussions between Washington and Kurdish officials said the US was ready to provide air support if Kurdish fighters crossed the border from northern Iraq.
Meanwhile, Baloch militant groups opposed to the Tehran regime have also moved from remote mountain bases inPakistanacross the border into Iran, according to local officials.
What blowback could result from backing armed groups from Iran’s ethnic communities?Experts have warned it mayheighten the risk of a chaotic civil warif the current regime collapses.
What is the latest on US military operations?Top military officials told lawmakers that theUS may not have the capacity to shoot down every Iranian dronebeing launched against its military assets, according to two people familiar with the matter. As a result, the US is focused on rapidly destroying the launch sites for Iran’s drones and conventional missiles.
Five Republicans on theHouse oversight committee backed Democratsto subpoena the attorney general, Pam Bondi, as part of the ongoing investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
The committee voted 24-19 to pass a motion introduced by the Republican representative Nancy Mace to compel Bondi to testify. In addition to Mace, Republican representatives Tim Burchett of Tennessee, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Michael Cloud of Texas and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania supported the motion.
Mace has strongly criticized Bondi over what she says have been the Department of Justice’s failures regarding the Epstein files.
Who else has criticized the Department of Justice and why?Lawmakers on both sides have condemned the department’s handling of the documents, which has included accidentally publishing the names of survivors and redacting, without explanation, the names of those who may have committed crimes.
Candidates in the race to becomeCalifornia’s next governor have so far ignored callsfrom the state’s Democratic party to drop out unless they have a “viable path” to victory.
At least nine Democrats are competing to replace the outgoing governor, Gavin Newsom, with no clear frontrunner, fuelling fears that the Democratic primary vote could be divided enough to allow two Republicans to advance to the November election.
Rusty Hicks, the chair of California’s Democratic party, warned in an open letter on Tuesday about that “unlikely” but “possible” scenario. He said candidates should be prepared to end their campaigns within the next month if they haven’t made “meaningful progress” toward a primary win. The candidates have argued that the decision must be left to voters.
The CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, has admitted that his company can’t control the Pentagon’s use of AI in military operations,amid concerns from employees over how thetechnology will be deployed.
