Reuter's Daily Briefing - 13 May 2026 - By Kate Turton Hello. Saudi Arabia launched covert attacks on Iran, Trump says stopping Iran's nuclear program outweighs Americans' economic pain, and Republicans won the redistricting war but may still lose the US House

 

Reuter's Daily Briefing By Kate Turton Hello. Saudi Arabia launched covert attacks on Iran, Trump says stopping Iran's nuclear program outweighs Americans' economic pain, and Republicans won the redistricting war but may still lose the US House. Plus, why are Britons so fed up? Today's Top News   A Saudi fighter jet on approach to the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 13, 2025. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo Saudi Arabia launched numerous, unpublicized strikes on Iran in retaliation for attacks carried out in the kingdom during the Middle East war, two Western officials briefed on the matter and two Iranian officials said. US President Donald Trump said that Americans’ financial struggles are not a factor in his decision-making as he seeks an end to the Iran war, saying that preventing Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon is his top priority. As he headed to Beijing for a high level summit, he does not expect to need Beijing's help to end the war with Iran. Trump added Nvidia's Jensen Huang to a group of CEOs traveling with him when he stopped in ‌Alaska en route. China Bureau Chief Kevin Krolicki tells the Reuters World News podcast that that the last-minute addition of Huang is a reminder of how much remains in flux. Beijing has been sending its squid fishing fleet off the coast of Argentina for years. Lately, the boats have caused concerns about overfishing and potential surveillance. Our graphics team investigates. Republicans have won the Great Redistricting War of 2026, but that may not be enough for the party to maintain its hold on the US House of Representatives in November's midterm elections. For the latest news and expert analysis on the state of US politics, sign up for the weekly US politics newsletter. Israel has escalated its attacks in Gaza in the five weeks since halting its joint bombing with the US in Iran, redirecting its fire back on the ruined Palestinian enclave where the military ‌believes Hamas fighters are tightening their grip. After years in which Volodymyr Zelenskiy's wartime reputation withstood corruption allegations that swirled around his associates, the Ukrainian leader now faces a far bigger test: graft charges that have reached his own former right-hand man. Business & Markets   A stunning run-up in shares of semiconductor companies has helped drive the US stock rally, but the eye-popping gains are sparking concerns about an overheated market and prompting some investors to prepare for a pullback. China and the US are considering extending a truce on Chinese rare earth export curbs at a leaders' summit this week, but Chinese customs data shows Beijing is still throttling shipments of the materials vital for defense and manufacturing. Fifteen years after leaving the Federal Reserve in opposition to an expansive bond-buying program that has since saddled it with a $6.7 trillion portfolio, Kevin Warsh is expected to return as the US central bank's leader this month with a big reform agenda. US banks are rushing to fix scores of IT system weaknesses flagged by Anthropic’s powerful but costly Mythos AI tool, prompting urgent repairs, software upgrades and raising the possibility of disruption for customers. Meta employees distributed flyers at multiple US ‌offices to protest the company's recent installation of mouse-tracking software on their computers, according to photos of the pamphlets seen by Reuters. Read our exclusive. India's travel industry fears that an appeal by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to avoid unnecessary foreign travel will squeeze ‌new bookings after inflationary pressure knocked down summer overseas inquiries by as much as 15%, industry and analysts say. Here's why British voters are so angry   A person stands outside a church being used as a polling station. Fulham, London, Britain, May 7, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Coombs  In less than two years, Britain's governing Labour Party has gone from a landslide election victory to a historic rout at last week's local and regional votes that has put Prime Minister Keir Starmer's job on the line. While incumbents across Europe face similar difficulties, Britain's politics have become ever more febrile in the decade since it voted to leave the European Union: Starmer, its sixth leader since then, promised change ‌but has struggled to deliver. While much of the voter anger appears to be directed at Starmer himself, opinion polls consistently point to a handful of core sources of frustration at both national and local level. Read more And Finally... A biker rides over Kruunuvuori bridge, Finland's longest and highest bridge, in Helsinki, Finland, May 5, 2026. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger Finland's capital Helsinki has spent billions of euros on public transport and bicycle lanes despite mixed reactions from residents. In April, about 50,000 people turned out for the opening of a scenic 0.75 ‌mile bridge linking the inner city to nearby islands and reserved for pedestrians, cyclists and trams. Read more   Sponsors are not involved in the creation of newsletters or other Reuters news content. Advertise in this newsletter or on Reuters' website   Reuters Daily Briefing is sent 5 days a week. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here.