Iranian Leader Dies, Austin Shooting, and Tooth Fairy Index

 Need To Know 

Khamenei Killed in Strikes

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed over the weekend, targeted as part of a wide-ranging surprise attack by the US and Israel across the country. The head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was also believed killed alongside dozens of other senior leaders. 

Khamenei, an 86-year-old hardline cleric, had ruled Iran since 1989, building the country into a regional economic and military power (see history here). Despite his age, he had not publicly revealed a succession plan, with the country currently led by an interim three-person council. 

Framed as a preemptive strike, more than 1,000 targets have been hit as of this writing. Iranian state media said more than 200 people had been killed, including 165 at a girls school adjacent to a naval base in the country’s south.      

The attack followed weeks of talks over Iran’s nuclear program and a buildup of US forces in the region. It also coincided with a rare meeting of top officials—including Khamenei—in the middle of Tehran. 

Iran launched a series of retaliatory strikes across the region yesterday, aimed at various targets in Israel, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, and elsewhere. Three US service members were killed during operations (the cause was not immediately clear).

The conflict comes after widespread antigovernment demonstrations by Iranians in December. At least 7,000 civilians were killed in the resulting crackdown, though international groups say the toll may be significantly higher.

See photos from the strikes and updates here.

Austin Shooting

A gunman killed at least two people and wounded 14 others when he opened fire outside a bar in Austin, Texas, early yesterday. The FBI said there were possible indications of terrorism; a motive has not been publicly identified as of this writing. One law enforcement official told The Associated Press the suspect was a 53-year-old naturalized US citizen born in Senegal wearing a sweatshirt that said "Property of Allah" and a T-shirt with an Iranian flag.

Authorities say the shooter drove around the neighborhood multiple times in an SUV before firing out the window at people outside Buford’s Bar on Austin's West Sixth Street. He then parked the car nearby and began shooting at pedestrians. Police quickly intervened, killing the suspect. Medics were on the scene within 57 seconds of receiving the first 911 call at 1:59 am. Two weapons were used: a pistol and a rifle.

Watch the Austin police news conference here.

Lacks Lawsuit Settled

Pharmaceutical giant Novartis reached a settlement with the estate of Henrietta Lacks last week, offering an undisclosed sum for decades of biomedical research and development based on the HeLa cell line. 

In 1951, Lacks, then a 31-year-old Black woman, was undergoing surgery for cervical cancer at the then-segregated Johns Hopkins Hospital when a sample of tumor cells was biopsied without her consent—a common practice at the time. In the lab, the cells continued to grow and divide (see background, w/video), doubling in number roughly every 24 hours and creating the first “immortal” human cell line. Trillions of HeLa cells have been produced over seven decades, used in research enabling groundbreaking medical advances, including vaccine development, cancer treatments, in vitro fertilization, AIDS research, and more. 

Despite her (nonconsensual) contributions to medical science, Lacks remained relatively unknown until the 2010 book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.” Learn more about her legacy here.

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture

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Science & Technology

> North Dakota judge finalizes $345M ruling against environmental activist group Greenpeace; organization found liable for damages and defamation during 2016-17 protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline  (More) 

> Stem cell therapy delivered to babies in the womb with spina bifida shows improved outcomes; cells derived from donated placentas were applied during fetal spinal surgery (More) | Learn the basics of stem cells (1440 Topics)

> Reported US measles cases rise above 1,130 through the first two months of the year, about 50% of all cases reported in 2025;  last year was the highest total in more than two decades; see maps and stats (More) | How measles works (More, w/video)

👩‍🔬Who was Grace Hopper? Tomorrow's 1440 Science & Technology newsletter looks at the life and legacy of the pioneering mathematician and computer scientist. We're also exploring particle accelerators, solar power, and more. Join 130,000+ science enthusiasts here!

Business & Markets

> US stock markets close down Friday (S&P 500 -0.4%, Dow -1.1%, Nasdaq -0.9%), driven in part by the collapse of UK mortgage lender Market Financial Solutions (More) 

> OpenAI raises an additional $110B, with funding round led by Amazon, SoftBank, and others at a $730B premoney valuation (More) | Anthropic's Claude reportedly used in US strikes in Iran, despite Friday blacklisting by the Trump administration (More)

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Politics & World Affairs

> Clashes outside the US Consulate in Pakistan kill at least nine people, leave more than two dozen wounded after Iranian leader Ali Khamenei was killed by US-Israeli strikes (More) | Afghanistan targets Pakistani jets in Kabul after Pakistan declares open war, launches airstrikes (More) | See previous write-up (More)

> Department of Homeland Security taps billions of dollars in FEMA disaster relief funding as standoff over funding enters third week (More) 

> Belgium seizes Guinea-flagged oil tanker suspected of being part of Russia's "shadow fleet" in the North Sea with support from the French military (More) 

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