Eurotopics.net

In Iran, the influential secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani has been killed in an airstrike. The fate of the supreme leader also remains unclear: Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen since the death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The media ask whether the Iranian regime can survive if its leadership continues to be eliminated by Israeli and US attacks.

The US Department of Defense also relies on artificial intelligence in war, collaborating with companies such as xAI. The Pentagon recently blacklisted the AI developer Anthropic after the company refused to make its technologies fully available for military purposes. Commentators examine potential applications and risks.

Simon Gardner, a journalist for Reuters news agency, has published a lengthy report which claims to reveal the true identity of street artist Banksy. Fans have reacted angrily online, saying that anonymity is part of Bansky's artwork. While some commentators agree, others are in favour of the unmasking.

Simona Mohamsson, leader of the Swedish Liberals, and Jimmie Åkesson, leader of the far-right Sweden Democrats (SD), have announced their intention to form a coalition government. This shift in policy ahead of September's general elections is a bone of contention within the Liberal Party.

There are unclear signals as to how long this should continue: on Monday US President Donald Trump said it would end "very soon", but shortly afterwards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement saying that they were "not done yet". The air strikes on Iran intensified on Tuesday, and Tehran also continued its attacks on Israel and the Gulf states. Europe's press casts about for realistic exit scenarios.