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Today’s top stories
U.S. forces seized an Iranian-flagged cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, President Trump said on social media. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said the Iranian ship refused to comply with U.S. warnings over six hours before U.S. forces fired on and boarded it. Trump said U.S. Marines have custody of the vessel. The incident is the latest escalation as the ceasefire between the U.S., Israel and Iran nears its end this week.
Even before the U.S. took custody of the ship, Trump and Iranian officials had been trading accusations of ceasefire violations. Trump wants the Strait of Hormuz reopened to stabilize oil markets and has set a red line for Iran’s nuclear program. The average price of gas is hovering near $4 a gallon for regular; some people are cutting back on driving and expenses as prices bite.
Trump said he is sending a team of negotiators to Pakistan for in-person talks to end the war. Vice President Vance had not left yet. Iran has not confirmed talks would take place; its state news agency quoted a senior official saying Iran had “no plans” for the next round of negotiations even as it said it was examining recent U.S. proposals. The U.S. has not revealed those proposals.
Two months after the Supreme Court ruled that most of Trump’s tariffs were unconstitutional, the federal government launched an online portal for business owners to request refunds. It went live this morning. U.S. Customs estimates it owes about $166 billion in tariff refunds. The agency is launching only the first phase of payouts, so not all goods imported under the illegal tariffs will qualify immediately. Federal guidance says once refund requests are approved, it could take 60 to 90 days for importers to get their money.
NPR’s Scott Horsley says the refund process could be a scramble: about 330,000 businesses were wrongly forced to pay these tariffs. The process is supposed to be straightforward and similar to routine overpayment refunds, but Customs has never tried to pay this many refunds at once.
A gunman killed eight children and wounded two women in northwest Louisiana, according to the Shreveport Police Department. Authorities said the incident stemmed from a domestic disturbance. The adult male suspect is dead; he was believed to be the father of seven of the children killed. One of the women shot was his wife and the mother of seven of the children.
Living better
GLP-1 medications like Ozempic, Wegovy and Zepbound are intended for long-term use to treat chronic conditions such as diabetes and obesity, but many people who start them end up stopping — because treatment is often framed as short-term, or because of cost, loss of insurance or side effects. Some plan to restart later. Research has yet to reveal the health effects of cycling on and off these drugs.
Consumer use of GLP-1s is moving faster than research on their effects in different scenarios. Limited research exists on periodic use, but other studies show weight regain after stopping GLP-1s can be faster than with behavior-focused diets. Experts warn that temporary use can undermine health by reducing lean muscle mass each time treatment is resumed. While muscle loss is common with dieting, GLP-1s may cause more dramatic muscle loss, producing a bonier, looser-skinned appearance, says Mahmoud Salama Ahmed, a medical chemist at Texas Tech University. When people stop taking the drugs, they often quickly regain fat; it is unclear how much of the lost muscle will return.
Picture show
On a searing hot day in Mattiyarenthal, a village in Tamil Nadu, southern India, women farmers toil over chile pepper plants. Women carry out more than 70% of agricultural activities in the region. The demanding work discourages many men, but for women the chile fields are a godsend: a few months of labor can earn enough extra income to keep homes running for the rest of the year. See photos of these overlooked women farmers.
3 things to know before you go
1. Voyager 1, the most distant human-made object, is running out of power. NASA announced it has shut down one of the spacecraft’s remaining scientific instruments to prolong its life.
2. Communities in the Midwest are cleaning up after tornadoes and severe storms tracked through parts of Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.
3. When Jay was 22, a poor decision landed him in a county detention center. Sitting alone in his cell, he began to lose hope until an unsung hero in the next cell asked to pray for him. The interaction happened nearly a decade ago, and Jay says he still thinks about that pivotal moment.
This newsletter was edited by Treye Green.