Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.
The U.S. eases sanctions on IranIn a major reversal of U.S. policy, the Trump administration announced today that it was suspending oil sanctions against Iran for 60 days. The temporary move could provide Iran with an economic boost by allowing it to increase oil exports, begin charging market prices and gain better access to U.S. currency. The exemption was the result of “ongoing productive” peace talks in Switzerland between the U.S. and Iran, according to Scott Bessent, secretary of the Treasury. Vice President JD Vance, who has been leading the negotiations for the U.S., said that Tehran had agreed to invite U.N. inspectors back to Iran’s nuclear sites. Vance called the development — which echoes part of the Obama-era deal with Iran that President Trump tore up in his first term — “a major milestone,” but a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of Iran said that it had made “no new commitments” regarding nuclear inspections. Here’s what else we learned from the first round of talks. In other news from the region, Israel and Hezbollah appeared to maintain a tense cease-fire in Lebanon, where fighting had complicated U.S.-Iran peace talks.
Britain is set to have its seventh prime minister in 10 yearsKeir Starmer, Britain’s prime minister, announced his resignation today, acknowledging that he could no longer hold off a long-simmering mutiny inside his Labour Party. His departure from office, later this summer, will extend a period of political turmoil that began around the time voters chose to leave the European Union in 2016. His likely successor is Andy Burnham, a popular former mayor of Manchester. Here’s what to know about him.
Justices restore murder conviction in the Etan Patz caseThe Supreme Court’s conservative majority has restored the 2017 kidnapping and murder conviction of a man accused in the killing of Etan Patz, a 6-year-old boy whose 1979 abduction in Manhattan reshaped American childhoods. The court’s unsigned ruling today reversed a federal court’s decision that had reopened the case against the man, Pedro Hernandez. Although the opinion of that court “appears to reflect serious doubt about the reliability of Hernandez’s confessions,” the majority wrote, the court overstepped its bounds by undoing a state court conviction. The three liberal justices — Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson — dissented.
Alan Greenspan dies at 100Alan Greenspan was the pre-eminent economic policymaker of his time. He led the Federal Reserve under four presidents, from 1987 to 2006, establishing himself as a powerful and polarizing force in shaping market-friendly policies. He died today at 100; read about his life here. Greenspan’s record remains a subject of intense debate, especially after the financial collapse of 2008, but his influence is unquestioned. In some important ways, the new Fed chair is carrying on his legacy. More top news
Lionel Messi is still incredibleThe Argentine superstar Lionel Messi entered his sixth World Cup this month with nothing left to prove. He was already considered the greatest soccer player ever, and he turns 39 this week — an age at which most top-level players are already retired. Nevertheless, Messi has been sensational. This afternoon, in Dallas, he scored his 17th World Cup goal, a new men’s record. An hour later, he added a second goal to break the overall record held by Marta, the captain of the Brazilian women’s team. “It’s quite hard to explain,” Argentina’s manager said. “We’re still amazed by him, even though we get to see him on a daily basis.”
Listen to ‘the most important Mozart discovery in decades’The National Library of France recently announced the discovery of a 44-page notebook documenting Mozart’s efforts to teach the daughter of a duke how to compose great music. Inside were seven previously unknown works for flute and harp that experts believe to have been substantially written by Mozart for her to complete as an exercise. The pieces — described by the scholar who found them as “worthy of living” — were performed publicly for the first time yesterday. Listen to a snippet here.
Dinner table topics
Cook: This cashew chicken salad is bright and lively. Listen to some of the many great songs shepherded by Clive Davis, the music titan who died today at 94. Visit a national park this summer. Here’s what to know ahead of time. Get your eyeliner just right with tips from our style magazine. Use a Wirecutter-recommended fan. They tested 60 options. Take the latest Flashback history quiz. Play: Here are today’s Connections, |
