A flydubai aircraft bound for Tel Aviv was forced to make an emergency landing in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, when one pilot allegedly attacked the other in what may have been an attempt to bring down the plane. The majority of the approximately 170 passengers aboard were Israeli, and several entered the cockpit and subdued the assailant after the wounded pilot unlocked the door. A second flight crew member on board assisted with the safe landing.
The motive remains unknown.
What Happened Onboard
NPR’s Kat Lonsdorf reported from the Tel Aviv airport as passengers came back. She described the arrivals hall as crowded with journalists and family members waiting for travelers to emerge. Some passengers were crying. Others were smiling. Many appeared tired after their journey.
A passenger described trying to keep his young son calm during the ordeal to Lonsdorf. A plumber said he helped subdue the attacker and pulled up on the plane’s controls after remembering something he had seen on TV.
The event happened within just thirty days of Israel’s national election, which means it will probably come up again and again during the campaign season still to come.
The FBI Is Investigating ShinyHunters
The FBI says it is “aggressively” investigating a cyberattack claimed by ShinyHunters after the group said it stole sensitive FBI employment data. It is still unclear how much information was taken or whether hackers got in through third-party software or the bureau’s own systems.
Job applications, promotion records, family details and medical information are among the data that NPR was told may have been taken from the system, according to some current and former workers.
Hegseth Wants Fewer Generals
Pete Hegseth, the U.S. Defense Secretary, says he wants fewer generals and admirals — and a military built around drones, AI and what he calls a “warrior ethos.” In a speech at Quantico, Hegseth said he has already cut the number of senior officers by about 10% and wants to reach 20%.
The U.S. is still at war with Iran, yet the announcement included a new military command centered on drones and other emerging technologies.
According to Quil Lawrence, the NPR correspondent, the problem is not so much about reducing the number of top-ranking officers as it is about which ones John Hegseth is removing and why. He has kept some colonels from being promoted to general without ever giving a public reason for those choices, and he has dismissed several senior officers.
Lawrence points out that the Pentagon has not held a news briefing since May, marking a sharp departure from the past two decades, when warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan often drew intense media attention.
Trump’s Road Show
Today President Trump heads to Oklahoma, a state that isn’t a battleground but offers him a chance to run through his midterm message before a friendly audience. He has vowed to campaign for Republicans in 35 tight contests, yet his opening stops are in reliably red states such as Oklahoma and Alabama.
NPR’s Franco Ordoñez reports that part of the reasoning behind the trips is to fire up voters who regularly show up for Trump but might be tougher to move when he isn’t on the ballot. Oklahoma provides Trump with a low-stakes setting to test out his campaign lines ahead of heading to more competitive states, where his presence could just as easily energize Democrats and independents.
The Math Problem That AI Couldn’t Explain
OpenAI says its AI helped solve one of math’s hardest problems. The catch? Mathematicians weren’t quite sure how it got there.
Geoff Brumfiel, NPR’s senior editor and correspondent, found that OpenAI’s GPT-6 Astra model was not some machine supergod that outstripped human intellect — it was just that it was really bad at showing its work.
“It was really bad at showing its work.”
The mathematical community accepts that the solution is accurate, yet the computer-generated demonstration spans 166 pages, which they estimate will take weeks to sort through and identify what truly matters. Still, they remain enthusiastic about the potential for AI to resolve additional challenges going forward.
Here is the full reporting by Brumfiel. If you find an AI story you believe he ought to be tracking, you can send it along through Signal at gbrumfiel.13.
Three Things To Know
Global warming kept pushing Switzerland’s glaciers downward in 2026, with more than 5% of their ice melting away. The losses continued in what has become a long run of decline for the country’s frozen masses.
One year has passed since the $7,500 federal EV tax credit was removed from the books. Here is what has happened to electric and hybrid vehicles in the marketplace since then.
NPR’s Emily Feng visited a glassmaker working through Syria’s punishing summer heat in her postcard from Damascus.
This newsletter was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi. Suzanne Nuyen contributed.
The Reaction
Passengers worked together to stop the attacker, and the plane landed safely in Saudi Arabia without anyone on board being killed. The resolution of the FlyDubai attack came about through quick action by those on the flight, and that is what we can say with certainty.
An examination by federal authorities continues without conclusion. The scope of the intrusion and the information disclosed have yet to be determined.
The changes to senior officer ranks and the introduction of a new drone-focused command are still at an early stage. Neither has been put through its paces yet, so their full effects remain unknown.
The strategy behind Trump’s campaign is well known. Oklahoma serves as a reliable place for testing messages before they move on to more competitive states.
The proof is correct, but it stays hard to understand. Sixteen-six pages of computer output make for a heavy load of reading, even for people who study this field.
The tales that defined the morning span travel, technology, politics and climate, with each one carrying its own particular weight.
Source material: “Passengers recount chaos on Tel Aviv flight. And, FBI probes employee-data hack,” NPR.
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