First Thing: US agrees Saudi uranium deal as strikes on Iran continue and Yemen’s Houthis hit tankers

Conflict continues across the region as White House announces nuclear technology agreement. Plus, the artist who flattened a Tesla with a tank

Good morning. The US has signed a landmark nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia that could allow the kingdom to enrich uranium in the future. The deal will be submitted to Congress for review, where it could face opposition among lawmakers who fear a lack of monitoring safeguards.

In lengthy talks stretching over more than one administration, the US has feared that Riyadh would look elsewhere for nuclear technology if the US did not provide what it wanted. Saudi Arabia has long said that if it does not partner with the US, it could do so with China or Russia, which have different proliferation standards.

Why is a uranium deal with Saudi Arabia controversial? The full details of the deal have yet to be released, but it comes as the US’s war with Iran is being fought in part to prevent Tehran enriching uranium domestically and make it near impossible for Iran to build a nuclear weapon. Saudi Arabia has in the past said it would need a nuclear weapon if Iran acquired one. Kenneth Roth has analysed why Trump would agree it right now.

What are the latest developments in the war? The US military launched its 12th successive night of strikes, which have now widened to western and central Iran. In attacks lasting five hours, the US claims to have struck military targets including maritime capabilities, missile and ⁠drone storage facilities, coastal surveillance sites and air defense assets. Yemen’s ⁠Houthi militia also attacked two ​Saudi Arabian oil tankers, the Iran-aligned group said on Thursday, with a Saudi news agency later confirming one of the vessels was ablaze in the Red Sea.
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