$37.5bn cost of Iran war revealed as senator warns of ‘another forever war’ | First Thing

Pete Hegseth defends the $88bn supplemental funding request as he appears before the Senate Committee on Appropriations. Photograph: Alex Wroblewski/AFP/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Pete Hegseth defends the $88bn supplemental funding request as he appears before the Senate Committee on Appropriations. Photograph: Alex Wroblewski/AFP/Getty Images First Thing: $37.5bn cost of Iran war revealed as senator warns of ‘another forever war’ Pete Hegseth reveals costs so far as Trump administration seeks more funding. Plus, rediscovered plane wreck that changed flying for ever The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has told the Senate that the US-Israel war on Iran has cost $37.5bn so far, as he faced lawmakers furious over the conflict’s soaring price tag and the deaths last week of three American service members. He defended the Trump administration’s roughly $88bn supplemental funding request, calling it “urgent, necessary”. Patty Murray, a Democratic senator from Washington, demanded Hegseth explain what the war had actually achieved, accusing the administration of shifting its rationale by the week and warning that the conflict risked becoming “another forever war”. What is happening in Iran? The Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has described how he was pulled from the rubble of a leadership compound after the US-Israeli airstrike that killed the country’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, on the first day of the war, and has survived since by constantly moving around Tehran by car. Deepa Parent, meanwhile, has reports from the ground with ordinary Iranians, who say “it’s truly hell here” as airstrikes, repression and water shortages become the “new normal”. What other developments have affected the region? Zohran Mamdani, New York’s mayor, has acknowledged he does not have the authority to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu, but urged US federal authorities to do so if the Israeli prime minister visits the US later this year. The White House has announced that American airline carriers will be able to resume direct flights to Lebanon more than 40 years after the US suspended the route. Saudis and US strike deal for kingdom to enrich uranium, reports say View image in fullscreen Donald Trump is said to have approved the deal to help Saudi Arabia make fuel for civilian nuclear program. Photograph: Win McNamee/Getty Images Donald Trump has approved an agreement with Saudi Arabia that could provide the kingdom with uranium enrichment capability for its civilian nuclear programme. The agreement may be announced as early as Wednesday. The deal is expected to last 30 years and is also expected to involve US firms in developing the program. It could allow for the building of a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia after a joint US-Saudi study. What is uranium enrichment? It is the process of increasing the presence of isotope uranium-235 so the substance can sustain a nuclear chain reaction. Enrichment is not an automatic path to a nuclear weapon, but could open the door to a Saudi Arabia weapons programme, something its de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has not ruled out if Iran obtains an atomic bomb. US immigration agents arrested record number of people in June, data shows View image in fullscreen Guardian analysis of the latest ICE data shows federal immigration agents arrested 43,138 people in June. Photograph: Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images The Trump administration arrested a record number of immigrants last month, according to newly released government data that revealed how US immigration agents have been quietly but steadily increasing operations across the country. A Guardian analysis of the latest data published by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) found that federal immigration agents arrested 43,138 people in June – the highest number since Trump took office in January last year. ‘We were at their mercy’: inside the Amazon tactics that hiked prices across the internet View image in fullscreen California’s attorney general alleges that Amazon’s tactics have coerced suppliers into raising the prices of their products with its rivals. Photograph: Christopher Neundorf/EPA Internal emails revealed in court and interviews with former employees describe how Amazon’s practices drove up prices for competitors such as Walmart and Target. Over the last decade, Amazon has suppressed the sales of some suppliers’ products or demanded millions of dollars in compensation from them because of the low prices of its retail rivals. The California attorney general, Rob Bonta, alleges that Amazon’s tactics have coerced suppliers into raising the prices of their products with its rivals. Amazon denies the price-fixing claims and says it works to lower costs for consumers. In other news … View image in fullscreen Kaylee Hottle, 18, starred in the 2021 film Godzilla vs Kong and its 2024 sequel, Godzilla x Kong. Photograph: Richard Shotwell/PA The actor Kaylee Hottle – who played a major role in Godzilla vs Kong – has died aged 18, following a car crash in Maryland. Canada has cancelled the joint opening celebrations of the Gordie Howe International Bridge with US amid trade tensions and Trump’s 50% tariff announcement. A new review by the Gates Foundation has found there were “roughly 30 meetings” between Jeffrey Epstein and foundation leaders and staff – including Bill Gates. OpenAI has revealed an autonomous AI agent went rogue and hacked a prominent startup by itself in an “unprecedented incident”. The Trump administration has sought phone records of several New York Times journalists in an unusually aggressive attempt to unmask the confidential sources of reporters Stat of the day: Two in five Americans believe stock market only serves the top 1% View image in fullscreen The poll found almost 40% of respondents did not know that the economy and the stock market were not the same thing. Photograph: John Angelillo/UPI/Shutterstock Two in five Americans believe the stock market isn’t for them and only benefits the top 1%, according to a Harris Poll poll exclusive to the Guardian. Meanwhile, almost 40% of respondents did not know that the economy and the stock market were not the same thing. In another stunning survey result, Americans are 10 times more likely than people elsewhere in the world to regard politics as the greatest threat to their personal safety, suggesting the country’s deep partisan divisions are poisoning everyday life. Well Actually: I’ve heard menopause hormone therapy fixes everything. Should I take it? View image in fullscreen Timely HRT provides not only relief for the symptoms of menopause but also lowers the risk of bone fractures. Composite: The Guardian/Getty Images For our Call the doctor series, Dr Keren Landman answers common medical questions. Here she says that timely treatment provides immense relief of menopause symptoms, and has the added benefit of lowering the risk of bone fractures. But ascribing all your ills to menopause and expecting treatment to fix them is a set-up for disappointment. Don’t miss this: ‘The bed you thought was safe, isn’t safe’ – surviving drug-facilitated rape View image in fullscreen The Gisèle Pelicot case made headlines around the world, putting a spotlight on drug-facilitated rape. Photograph: Yoan Valat/EPA In September 2024, Amanda Stanhope watched, transfixed, from her home in Manchester, England, as the Gisèle Pelicot case made headlines around the world. “Gisèle’s case was the first time I knew of somebody else who had been raped while they were drugged,” says Stanhope. “I remember feeling: ‘Thank God I’m not alone.’” Anna Moore speaks to survivors. … or this: Wreckage of 1952 Pan Am plane crash that changed air safety found near Puerto Rico View image in fullscreen Pan Am flight 526A plunged into the ocean off Puerto Rico in 1952, killing 52 people. Photograph: Air/Sea Heritage Foundation and Deep Sea Vision/AP A fascinating slice of aviation history has been rediscovered. The wreckage of a Pan Am flight that plunged into the ocean off Puerto Rico in 1952, in an accident that killed 52 people, has been found. The 17 people who survived told investigators everyone lived through the splashdown but panic set in as passengers struggled to find life vests. That directly led to the passenger safety briefings given on modern-day commercial flights. Climate check: Japan records its first ‘cruelly hot day’ as cities swelter in 40-degree heat View image in fullscreen The new designation was coined to warn the public of the heat dangers of days that have become more common. Photograph: Nicolas Datiche/Sipa/Shutterstock Japan logged its first official kokushobi or “cruelly hot day” on Tuesday since the new term for when temperatures top 104F was introduced in April. The Japan Meteorological Agency coined the new designation to warn the public of the heat dangers of days that were once freak weather events but have now become more common. Last Thing: Why are fans wetting themselves to stand front row at concerts? View image in fullscreen Olivia Rodrigo. Photograph: Colin Darbyshire/Alamy Stock Photo/Alamy Live News. I go to a lot of concerts, but I am yet – thankfully – to adopt the tactic of the “pit diaper”. Olivia Rodrigo, Noah Kahan and Morgan Wallen have all dealt with audience effluence in recent weeks – but that is only one part of a fearsome subculture that has built up around fandom, endurance and “getting barrier”, as Kate Solomon explains. If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email newsletters@theguardian.com Explore more on these topics US news First Thing newsletter news Share Reuse this content