What happened
The US has carried out military strikes against Iran after one of its Apache helicopters came down near the Strait of Hormuz.

According to US Central Command (Centcom), the operation began last night US time and was intended as a measured reaction to what it described as Iranian aggression. The two pilots aboard the helicopter were recovered unharmed following a rescue mission involving an unmanned naval vessel and supporting US military assets.

Explosions have been heard in the Iranian coastal city of Sirik, said Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agency.

Who said what
Centcom described its strikes as a “proportional response”. Iran has stopped short of claiming responsibility for the loss of the helicopter. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had earlier warned that foreign military forces operating near Iran faced risks from accidents, mistakes or being caught up in a wider conflict. “To reduce risk, the best solution is for them to leave.”

What next?
The helicopter incident is now being scrutinised in Washington, with US officials assessing the circumstances surrounding the crash. Although Iran and Israel have recently paused direct exchanges of fire, both sides have said they are prepared to respond forcefully if hostilities resume. Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that Iran and the US are close to an agreement, “though there have been few signs of progress since a tenuous ceasefire took effect in early April”, said Sky News.

What happened
Iran’s allocation of tickets for the World Cup has been withdrawn, according to the country’s football federation. The Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran was due to receive 8% of stadium capacity – the standard amount – for each of their games to distribute to fans.

Fifa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Who said what
“Depriving” Iranian supporters of their tickets is contrary to the “principle of equality among participating countries”, said the Iranian federation, adding that the decision “raises serious questions about the interference of non-sporting and political considerations” in world football.

Iran’s participation in the tournament was “thrown into doubt” after US and Israeli strikes on the country began in February, said The Independent. The team has moved its base to Tijuana, Mexico following reports that the “Trump administration did not want it at its original planned base” in Arizona.

What next?
Iran are scheduled to play New Zealand on 15 June and Belgium on 21 June – both in Los Angeles – before facing Egypt in Seattle on 26 June. All players have been granted visas for entry to the US.

Jared Kushner’s goal of opening a luxury retreat on Albania’s coast has hit a speed bump. Albanian investigators have begun digging into the private equity firm that is spearheading the project – the first son-in-law’s Affinity Partners. And mass public protests over the proposed resort are a flashpoint for broader civic frustrations. What began as a “local land dispute on Albania’s southern coast”, according to France 24, has now become a forum for “wider grievances” over “corruption, arrogance of power and disgruntlement with the ruling government”.

The proposed project is slated for construction on the “uninhabited Adriatic island of Sazan” and across hundreds of acres of the nearby Vjosa-Narta protected site, a “sensitive coastal wetland area home to flamingos, seals and sea turtle nesting sites”, said Politico. Protesters gathered outside Prime Minister Edi Rama’s office this week “using a pink flamingo as their emblem”, said the BBC. “Hence,” added France 24, “why the movement has now been nicknamed Albania’s ‘flamingo revolution’.”

Initially a local development dispute, the project has spiralled into a “national political crisis”, said the Tirana Times, “triggering mass protests” and calls for Rama’s resignation. Rama, for his part, has “stuck to his guns”, said The Guardian, declaring last week that “there is absolutely no chance that the investment will stop as long as I am here”.

“No longer only about a resort,” the growing protests are now a “vehicle for wider anger” over Albanian civic society, added the Tirana Times. “It’s more or less everything” at the protests, Albanian Ornithological Society president Taulant Bino told The New York Times.