Thursday morning news: June 4, 2026

Editor's note: The following text is a transcript of a podcast story. To listen to the story, click on the arrow beneath the headline above.

Iran latest » In Kuwait, an Iranian missile struck and killed at least one person, wounded dozens more, and damaged the country’s main airport early Wednesday morning.

It was a deadly blow against a key Gulf ally of the United States. Iran also attacked Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th fleet, but the Iranian missiles were intercepted there.

The U.S. struck back at targets inside Iran. All of that once again testing a fragile ceasefire.

Even so, President Trump confirmed reports that Iran's new supreme leader—Mojtaba Khamenei—is personally engaged in peace talks:

TRUMP: He is, uh, giving approval. Mm. Because that's the way it is, has been for a long, long time. Mm. Uh, his father and then him, I guess it's a succession. But, uh, we seem to be getting along quite well.

U.S. and Israeli airstrikes killed Mojtaba’s father Ali Khamenei.

Iran's state media claims that Tehran has cut off negotiations, but Trump calls that "false and erroneous."

The president also said he would like to meet face-to-face with Iran's supreme leader.

Israel-Hezbollah latest » Possible tension between President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Media reports described a profanity-laced phone call that the president had with Netanyahu. Trump reportedly used the word stupid for Israel's continued attacks on the Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah.

And Trump told the New York Post's Pod Force One podcast:

TRUMP: I, I wouldn't say angry. I was a little bit perturbed at his constantly fighting with Lebanon, you know? At some point, I said, "Bibi, we gotta stop this. You gotta stop it."

Israel accuses Hezbollah of repeatedly violating a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. Over the weekend, an Israeli soldier was killed and three others wounded in a Hezbollah drone attack in southern Lebanon after Israel expanded its operations there.

During testimony before the House Foreign Relations Committee Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio laid the blame squarely at the feet of Hezbollah.

RUBIO: We are hopeful that we can create a paradigm in which Lebanon's government and Israel can work together to disarm Hezbollah and allow the people of Lebanon to reclaim its country. But it's complex.

Netanyahu agreed, accusing the terror group of firing missiles at civilians in Israeli cities while at the same time hiding behind their own civilians in Lebanon. The prime minister also worked to smooth over differences with President Trump, telling CNBC:

NETANYAHU: And I have to tell you again, President Trump has been the greatest friend of Israel ever. We've never had such a friend in the White House. He's outstripped everyone.

Meantime, Iran continues to insist that before it will agree to any peace deal with the U.S., the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah must stop.

House passes war powers resolution » On Capitol Hill for the first time, the House has passed a measure aimed at ending the war with Iran.

AUDIO: On this vote, the yays are 215 and the nays are 208. The concurrent resolution is adopted.

The resolution orders President Trump to pull U.S. forces out of the fight, unless Congress votes to formally declare war.

But the measure is largely symbolic. 

Even if the Senate were to pass it as well, the president could veto it, and it would take a two-thirds majority to override that veto, which is highly unlikely.

Still, it was a rare crack in the Republican ranks. Four Republicans broke with the president to join every Democrat in supporting the measure. 

AI executive order » President Trump wants a national-security check on the most powerful artificial intelligence. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more:

KRISTEN FLAVIN: The president signed an executive order on Tuesday letting federal experts screen the most advanced AI systems for security risks ... up to 30 days before they reach the public.

It is entirely voluntary right now. The order even bars the government from forcing any company to get a license before releasing a new model.

But analysts say the big AI labs—Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google—will likely cooperate anyway to fend off the tougher mandatory rules that could come later. In return, they get early collaboration with the government's top cyber experts.

The White House calls the light touch deliberate—as Trump doesn't want to slow what he calls America's AI lead over China.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

Primaries update » Votes are still being counted in California after Tuesday’s primary election. But in Los Angeles, with a majority of the ballots now tallied, it still appears that incumbent mayor Karen Bass is heading to a runoff against political newcomer, former reality TV star Spencer Pratt. 

Bass told her supporters:

BASS:  You know who I am. I have devoted my entire life to serving the city that I love, where I was born, and I'm gonna continue to do that all the way to victory in November!

But Pratt says he’s also feeling confident:

PRATT:  Again, Mayor Bass, this is the first time, what, since 2005 an incumbent is going to a runoff? This is not a, a candidate that I'm too concerned about.

And in the California governor’s race, Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra are still the leading vote-getters, likely to face off in November.

I'm Kent Covington.

And coming up: fighting the growing Ebola outbreak in Africa. And later, a veteran astronaut explains how he fends off fear even in a crisis.

This is The World and Everything in It.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.