| By Derek Caney (@stax920)
Saudi Arabia joined Turkey, Bangladesh and Iraq on the list of countries attacked by militants over the last week as the end of Ramadan draws near. The attack in Saudi, which killed four officers, targeted U.S. diplomats, Shi'ite worshippers and a security headquarters at a mosque in the holy city of Medina. No one has claimed responsibility, but the New York Times reported that it bears the hallmarks of an Islamic State attack. The militant group claimed responsibility for the Bangladesh and Iraq attacks over the weekend. And Turkey suspects it of last week's Istanbul bombing. Leaders of the group had called for attacks during Islam's holy month.
Bangladeshi police are hunting for six militants suspected of helping gunmen attack a Dhaka cafe, as officials began questioning families of the militants for clues as to what turned them into killers. Gunmen stormed the restaurant in Dhaka's diplomatic zone late on Friday and killed 20 people, most of them foreigners from Italy, Japan, India and the United States.
Digits of the day: 175 Meanwhile the death toll in the Iraq bombings rose to at least 175, with 200 wounded and 37 people missing. Bodies were recovered from the rubble in the Karrada area of Baghdad, where a refrigerator truck packed with explosives blew up on Saturday night when people were out celebrating Ramadan. If it turns out Islamic State is behind all of the attacks, it would underscore a new phase in the group's war; moving toward terrorist-style guerrilla bombings and away from the battlefield in Syria and Iraq, where the group has lost ground in recent months.
Around the solar system 
Auroras created by high-energy particles are seen at the pole of the planet Jupiter in a NASA composite of two separate images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. NASA
NASA's Juno spacecraft capped a five-year journey to Jupiter with a do-or-die engine burn to sling itself into orbit, setting the stage for a 20-month dance around the biggest planet in the solar system to learn how and where it formed. Jupiter orbits five times farther from the sun than Earth, but it may have started out elsewhere and migrated, jostling its smaller sibling planets as it moved. Indeed, Jupiter's movements may have affected Earth's position, putting it into an orbit where life could begin. Quote of the day: “The question I’ve had my whole life that I’m hoping we get an answer to is ‘How’d we get here?’ That’s really pretty fundamental to me.” -Scott Bolton, lead mission scientist, Southwest Research Institute.
Around the country - When the House of Representatives reconvenes today, Speaker Paul Ryan, the nation's top-ranking elected Republican, plans to introduce gun control legislation to keep guns out of the hands of people on certain terror watch lists, a bill that Democrats say doesn't go far enough. A similar bill was already defeated in the Senate.
- After months of waiting on the sidelines during the Democratic primaries, President Barack Obama hits the road in what is likely to be the first of many trips campaigning for Hillary Clinton.
Around Wall Street - "Life is short. Have an affair" goes the slogan for the Ashley Madison online hookup site. But a Federal Trade Commission probe is killing the mood with an investigation. Part of the probe involves the use of fembots, computer programs that impersonate real women, who strike up conversations with paying male customers. Ashley Madison is trying to restore its credibility after its security was penetrated by hackers, suggesting that the site probably should have been more careful. But maybe it thought the fembots were taking care of it.
- Solar power is on pace for the first time this year to contribute more new electricity to the grid than will any other form of energy – a feat driven more by economics than green mandates. The cost of electricity from large-scale solar installations now is comparable to, and sometimes cheaper than, natural gas-fired power, even without incentives aimed at promoting environmentally friendly power.
- As oil prices began recovering from 13-year lows early this year, U.S. shale producers ramped up their hedges against the possibility of another downturn in the future. That typically indicates more drilling activity ahead as producers that locked in prices for a sizeable part of their output ensure enough cash flow to sustain or increase production.
Around the world - Emboldened by Britain's vote to leave the European Union, Hungary's right-wing president Victor Orban called for a referendum on Oct. 2 on whether to accept any future EU quota system for resettling refugees. Last year, when hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Middle East and Africa crossed Hungary en route to northern Europe, Orban's government erected a razor-wire fence on the country's southern border to keep them out.
- Britain's ruling Conservative Party begins selecting a new leader to replace David Cameron as prime minister with interior minister Theresa May and junior minister Andrea Leadsom, the leading candidates to get the top job. May is the Tory favorite, although she opposed Britain's withdrawal from the EU. Leadsom supported Brexit.
- China should prepare itself for military confrontation in the South China Sea, an influential nationalist Chinese paper said, a week ahead of a decision by an international court on a dispute there between China and the Philippines. The state-run Global Times said the dispute, having already been complicated by U.S. intervention, now faces further escalation due to the threat posed by the tribunal to China's sovereignty. China is planning military drills in the South China Sea starting tomorrow.
Today's reason to live Emmylou Harris – Jupiter Rising |
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