First Thing: Details remain unclear after ‘terror attack’ on Dubai-Israel flight

What is believed to have taken place in the cockpit? Pilot Smit Machchhar, an Indian citizen from Mumbai, has been hailed as a hero after releasing the cockpit door to allow passengers in to wrestle back control of the plane, after his co-pilot – reportedly an Omani national – stabbed him and ⁠sent the jet plunging nearly 14,000ft (4,267 metres) in less than 30 seconds.

What happened next? One passenger said: “There were two spare pilots who were supposed to operate the next flight. The relief pilots … entered [the cockpit] and pulled the aircraft up, pulled the yoke, stabilised the plane and landed us in Saudi Arabia.”

How has Donald Trump responded? The president said: “It seems as though the co-pilot was perhaps a terrorist, or perhaps a whack-job, and he stabbed the pilot.”

Why has the death sentence for Pike been so controversial? As Ed Pilkington reported for the Guardian last month, at the time of the crime she was 18, and her co-accused was 17. That age difference meant he was spared the death penalty. Pike, at that age, had already been subjected to serious abuse, including multiple rapes by three separate men and beatings by numerous relatives.

What were Hegseth’s words? Addressing lower-ranking troops at the Marine Corps Base, the defense secretary said: “The complainers, the ideologues and the poor performers are no longer in the driver’s seat. It’s worth saying again, so the fake news understands it. We are no longer the woke department or the weak department. Simple translation of that: no fatties, no trannies, no beardos, no weirdos, no wimps, no radicals. Just warriors.”

What did Hegseth announce about Elon Musk? Musk will co-lead a government project to study the future of warfare, called Project Meridian, with a goal of “identifying the capabilities required to achieve absolute technological dominance on the next-generation battlefield”. The project will run for 120 days and culminate in an unclassified public report of its recommendations.

How has AI embarrassed Donald Trump this week? The president launched America.gov, an AI platform which includes a chatbot that is rather inconveniently quoting official government statistics which frequently debunk or contradict some of the president’s most notorious false claims.

Former homeland security secretary Kristi Noem is divorcing her husband, Bryon Noem, after 34 years of marriage, citing “irreconcilable differences”.

The US Department of Justice has indicted another 10 individuals on noncitizen voting-related charges in Minnesota. Administration officials have sought to support Trump’s longstanding unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud in US elections.

A 40-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of plotting to attack the Texas state capitol, authorities said.

The US Senate has blocked a Republican bill restricting stock trading by members of Congress.

The parents of a Detroit-area toddler who pulled a loaded pistol out of his backpack at a daycare will face charges, police said.

Pennsylvania has reported its fifth measles-associated death of 2026 as the state’s ongoing outbreak climbs to 943 confirmed cases across 39 counties.