Good afternoon,

Today’s news: Globally, updates from Gaza, Iran, and Botswana. Locally, monsoon toll rises to 800 with over 150,000 evacuated, an army officer joins the interior ministry, and PIA halts Paris flights for UK return.

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Around The World

Updates from Gaza. Israel is facing fierce global condemnation after it struck one of the main hospitals in the Gaza Strip on Monday and then hit the facility again as journalists and rescue workers rushed to the scene, killing at least 21 people and wounding scores more. It was among the deadliest of multiple Israeli strikes that have hit both hospitals and journalists over the course of the 22-month war.

Canada, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and other countries condemned the attacks. International human rights and humanitarian organizations, including Doctors Without Borders (MSF), also expressed outrage and shock at the attack, which targeted medical workers. Live updates here.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attacks were a “tragic mishap”, as Israeli forces killed at least 61 people across Gaza on Monday and 24 more since dawn today. Protesters also blocked the Ayalon Highway in Tel Aviv this morning as part of a nationwide day of action calling for the release of the hostages held in Gaza and a negotiated end to the war.

Eat your greens. Australia is expelling the Iranian ambassador to Canberra after the country’s intelligence agency found that Iran was behind at least two antisemitic arson attacks on Australian soil. The Iranian ambassador and three other diplomatic staff have been given seven days to leave the country. 

Meanwhile, representatives from Britain, France, and Germany are set to hold talks with their Iranian counterparts in Geneva today amid a looming deadline to reimpose sanctions on Iran. The Europeans’ concern over the Iranian nuclear program has grown since Tehran cut off cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Updates from Botswana. Botswana has declared a public health emergency as it faces a shortage of essential medicines and medical equipment for a range of illnesses, including hypertension, cancer, diabetes, tuberculosis, and asthma. President Duma Boko set out a multimillion-dollar plan to rectify the supply chain involving military oversight. The economy of Botswana has been hit by a downturn in the international diamond market. This strain, further fueled by US aid cuts, has seen high levels of unemployment and poverty.

Pakistan

It continues. Relentless monsoon rains have left nearly 800 people dead across Pakistan. Over 150,000 people have been moved from flood-prone districts in Punjab, where the Sutlej and Ravi rivers have reached dangerous levels, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has the heaviest toll with more than 400 deaths and thousands of homes destroyed. Relief efforts are underway as officials warn the ongoing rains could rival the catastrophic 2022 floods. 

Switch-a-roo. For the first time, Pakistan has appointed a serving army officer—Major General Noor Wali Khan—as additional secretary in the interior ministry on a three-year secondment, a move officials say is aimed at improving coordination among civil armed forces amid rising militancy. The ministry oversees key paramilitary and civilian agencies, internal security, counterterrorism, and visa regulations, making it one of the most powerful government divisions.

Flightless birds. Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will suspend its Lahore–Paris flights from mid-September to prioritize the planned resumption of UK operations, with the last flights scheduled for Sept. 12 and Sept. 17 . The airline, which resumed European flights in January after a four-year ban, said the suspension is temporary due to low demand and expects to restart the Paris route in November and UK flights by mid-October, pending authorization from the UK Civil Aviation Authority. 

What Else Is Happening?

🧬Researchers have built GPT-4b micro, an AI trained on biological data rather than internet text, to redesign ‘Yamanaka’ proteins that reprogram aging cells. The AI-designed proteins converted the cells into stem cells 50 times more efficiently, demonstrating significantly better DNA repair abilities.

🌐Donald Trump has threatened countries that have digital taxes with additional tariffs on their goods. The main target for the sanctions is the EU or its member state officials implementing the Digital Services Act.