Good afternoon,

Today’s news: Globally, starvation in Gaza, Ukraine blows up the Crimean Bridge, and Trump’s bill. Locally, security forces kill TTP militants in North Waziristan, an assistant commissioner abducted in Balochistan, and the federal govt moves to cancel passports of the deportees.

☕ Grab your chaye, let’s go.

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Around The World

Updates from Gaza. At least 95 Palestinians have been killed and 440 injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza in the past 24 hours. Israel’s military has also warned starving Palestinians in Gaza against approaching roads to the US-backed aid distribution sites, which will be closed for a whole day for “renovation, reorganisation and efficiency improvement work.” The UN Security Council is set to vote on a resolution calling for a ceasefire and humanitarian access to Gaza, a measure expected to be vetoed by the US.

A-bridged. Ukraine said on Tuesday that it had hit the bridge connecting Russia and the occupied Crimean Peninsula with explosives planted underwater, its third attack on the vital supply line for Moscow’s forces since 2022. Ukraine’s security service, the SBU, said it had mined the supports of the bridge with explosives equivalent to 1,100kg of TNT, which "severely damaged" the bottom level of the supports.

Bill, please. Elon Musk on Tuesday lashed out at President Donald Trump’s agenda bill, which the president is pressuring GOP senators to support, calling it a “disgusting abomination.” The budget includes multi-trillion-dollar tax breaks and more defence spending, and allows the US government to borrow more money. 

The bill was passed by the House of Representatives last month. The legislation would also curtail subsidies that benefit Tesla, Musk’s electric automaker. The comments mark Musk’s first public disagreement with Trump since leaving government, after having previously called the plan "disappointing.”

Meanwhile, billionaires, economists, and even Wall Street have sounded the alarm over the US debt and deficit, with worries that the vast government debt will crowd out spending on essential services, leaving a hollowed-out economy that can’t work for its citizens and which spooks global investors, tumbling economies worldwide.

Pakistan

The offensive. Pakistan’s security forces killed 14 militants in North Waziristan during an intelligence-based operation on June 2–3, 2025, amid a surge in attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The operation targeted members of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), whom officials describe as “Indian-sponsored Khawarij.” The ISPR stated the militants were “sent to hell” after a fierce firefight, and sanitization operations are ongoing. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised the military’s professionalism and reiterated his government’s resolve to completely eradicate militancy.

Update from Balochistan. Tump Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Hanif Noorzai was abducted by unidentified militants on Wednesday while traveling from Quetta to Tump, near the Iranian border, according to Kech Deputy Commissioner Bashir Ahmed Barich. No further details have been released. Noorzai, originally from Quetta, has served in various districts across Balochistan. The situation is still developing.

No exit. The federal government has begun the process of cancelling the passports of over 7,800 Pakistanis deported from countries like Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Qatar between 2019 and 2025, mainly due to involvement in illegal activities. Of these, around 5,600 were deported specifically for beggary, while 1,460 had traveled abroad through 691 Overseas Employment Promoters, some of whom now face show-cause notices and potential criminal charges.

What Else Is Happening?

🇰🇷Lee Jae-myung, the leader of South Korea’s liberal opposition party who survived an assassination attempt last year, won the country’s presidency in a snap election by nearly three million votes yesterday.

🔋Meta has cut a 20-year deal to secure nuclear power to help meet surging demand for artificial intelligence and other computing needs, following similar maneuvers from Amazon, Google, and Microsoft.

Today In History

On June 4, 1989, hundreds, perhaps thousands, of pro-democracy demonstrators and dozens of soldiers are estimated to have been killed when Chinese troops crushed a seven-week-long protest held by occupying demonstrators in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square.