Flagship

Tuesday was world’s hottest day

July 3 and 4 were the world’s two hottest days on record. The global average surface temperature on Tuesday was 17.18 degrees Celsius (62.92 degrees Fahrenheit), the highest in records going back to the late 19th century, beating Monday’s 17.01 C. The previous record, 16.92 C, was set in August 2016. A warming world as a result of climate change means records should be expected, but temperatures are particularly high due to the weather phenomenon El Niño beginning this year. Last month was the hottest June so far recorded, and unprecedented marine heat waves pushed east Atlantic temperatures far above average. China and the U.S. also saw deadly heat waves and July is expected to be another record month.

India’s shifting ties

India’s prime minister implicitly criticized China at a regional summit, hinting that Beijing tolerates what New Delhi considers Pakistan-supported terrorism against India. His remarks highlight growing tensions between the neighbors. The fraying ties are “forcing India and the U.S. together,” a retired head of India’s navy wrote. American analysts are divided over whether the U.S. can rely on India standing up to China over issues such as Taiwan. “If Washington cannot expect India to contribute military forces in a crisis, then what is the point of the U.S.-Indian partnership?” one wrote in Foreign Affairs. “The answer involves accepting that partnerships are about more than planning for emergencies.”

Moscow military capacity halved: UK

Russia has lost nearly half its combat effectiveness and lacks the strength to mount its own counteroffensive, according to the head of Britain’s armed forces. Addressing U.K. lawmakers, the senior officer also rejected suggestions that Ukraine’s much-trumpeted counteroffensive was languishing, arguing that Kyiv aimed to “starve, stretch, and strike.” The assessment is one of several that question Russia’s future: President Vladimir Putin has had to fortify internal defenses after an aborted rebellion last week, leaving less capacity for the Ukraine war, and on a deeper level, his country suffers several long-term issues. “Russia’s biggest problem is not that it is losing the Ukraine war but rather that it is losing the 21st century,” the journalist Fareed Zakaria wrote.

Israel withdraws from Jenin

Israel declared its assault on the Jenin refugee camp over. Twelve Palestinians, including three teenagers, and one Israeli soldier were killed in what the military called a “counter-terrorism operation.” Five rockets were launched from Gaza as the troops withdrew, although Tel Aviv said they were all intercepted: Israeli forces responded with drones and air strikes. The United Nations says the fighting has damaged infrastructure within Jenin, leaving thousands without power and water. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that while the offensive had concluded, it was not a “one-time action,” and that operations would “continue as long as necessary to uproot terrorism.”

UAE grants robot-car license

The United Arab Emirates granted its first nationwide license for self-driving vehicles. The Chinese company WeRide will be allowed to test its Level 4 autonomous vehicles — which drive without any human intervention though still have a human driver — on public roads throughout the UAE. Trials in parts of the country, particularly Dubai, have been going on for some years. Dubai’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, wants a quarter of the city’s traffic to be autonomous by 2025 to boost robotaxi use and limit traffic on city roads, TechCrunch reported. The country’s ruling council also approved a policy for electric vehicles, regulating the market and building a national charging network.

Lula at heart of Latam disputes

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was at the center of disputes during a meeting of Mercosur, South America’s biggest trading bloc. Lula’s bid to resume talks with Venezuela was met with immediate backlash from the leaders of Uruguay and Paraguay, who denounced him for whitewashing the democratic crackdown in Venezuela, where the leading opposition candidate was banned from running in next year’s election. Brazil’s leader also criticized as “unacceptable” some of the proposals submitted by the EU to complete a trade agreement with Mercosur, including one to impose penalties for failures to meet climate goals. He added that the trading bloc could “explore new negotiation fronts,” including with China.

Disease spreads as Sudan war rages

At least 13 children have died in a suspected measles outbreak in Sudanese refugee camps, Médecins Sans Frontières said. The country’s months-long civil war has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, forcing them into makeshift camps. MSF said it has treated hundreds of children with suspected measles. The fighting — newly resurgent after the Sudanese army stepped up its assault on rebel Rapid Support Forces paramilitaries with air strikes and artillery in the city of Omdurman — has destroyed health facilities across Sudan: Only one specialist oncology center remains, in the city of Wad Madani, leaving a life-threatening shortage of chemotherapy for children.

Malaria returns to the US

At least four people caught malaria in Florida and Texas. The U.S. sees about 2,000 cases of malaria annually, but normally it is contracted overseas. Malaria was eliminated in the U.S. in 1951, and these are the first known locally transmitted cases since 2003. The range of some species of mosquitoes, notably the dengue-carrying Aedes, have expanded as the world has warmed. But Anopheles, which spreads malaria, is already widespread in the U.S.: The disease’s resurgence is not driven by climate change but by infected humans bringing the virus in and being bitten by domestic mosquitos, who then carry the virus and infect other humans. As travel has restarted post-COVID, more Americans are visiting tropical countries and being exposed to malaria.

Great whites gather off Cape Cod

The shores of Cape Cod have become the scene of one of the world’s biggest seasonal great white shark gatherings. The sharks gather at different times of year in various spots around the world — Australia’s Neptune Islands and Gansbaai in South Africa are two. Until recently, there were no such hotspots in the North Atlantic. But Massachusetts’ rebounding gray seal population has brought the hunters to shallow waters in the last decade or so, Scientific American reported. Researchers estimate that 800 individual great whites visited the area between 2015 and 2018. There are safety concerns, although two injuries and one death since 2012 do not speak of a Jaws scenario. And the other shark hotspots have turned the presence of the beautiful giants into major tourist attractions.

Cancer vaccine for Tasmanian devils

Testing will begin on a vaccine to prevent a deadly contagious cancer in the endangered Tasmanian devil. Devil facial tumor disease arose in Tasmania, Australia’s southern island state, 30 years ago. The cancer cells spread from animal to animal and have killed around 80% of the population. But a vaccine, inspired by those used to combat COVID-19, has been developed, Nature reported: It uses a modified virus to tell the devils’ cells to make proteins present in the tumors. The immune system will then recognize those proteins and be able to fight off the real tumors when they arise. If results are positive, the vaccine will be delivered orally, using edible bait left out for the devils.

• Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson meets U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House.
• Myanmar’s Supreme Court will hear appeals in two convictions against deposed former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, 78, who is currently serving a 33-year jail sentence.
• Beijing hosts the 12th China International Robot Show.

There are at least 140 space-tech startups in India, up from just five before the pandemic. Much of India’s space industry is built on the success of the Indian Space Research Organisation — the local version of NASA — whose “workhorse” rocket has a reputation for being one of the most reliable in the industry. Combined with a young, affordable, and highly skilled workforce, India is fast becoming one of the most competitive launch sites in the world.

A new exhibition celebrates 50 years of hip hop. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, a museum in Ohio, opened Hip Hop at 50: Holla If Ya Hear Me last week to highlight the genre’s history and cultural impact. It’s one of many ways in which the art form, born in New York City on 11 August 1973, is being marked this year. At the exhibit’s launch party, U.S. rapper Darryl McDaniels of Run-D.M.C. paid tribute to the binding force of the music. “It don’t matter who you are or where you’re from,” he said. “Music and the arts succeed where politics and religion fail.”

• While OpenAI takes the spotlight, another AI CEO is becoming increasingly influential. He’s charming lawmakers in Washington — and warning about risks posed by China.
• RFK Jr. once considered a run for New York attorney general. Eliot Spitzer sheds light on a surprising possible reason why he opted against it.
• Belarus’s leader-in-exile has a warning for the West: Yevgeny Prigozhin and his men won’t stay quiet or contained in Belarus.