May 12 1200 UTC Brief

In the Middle East Israel’s Knesset has unanimously passed a death penalty law covering Palestinians convicted of the worst crimes tied to the Oct. 7 attacks. The move is aimed at cases the government defines as genocide, and it lands in the middle of a war that has already turned lawmaking into another front. Separately, Israeli authorities say they have charged at least 60 people with spying for Iran, with prosecutors alleging they were recruited through Telegram channels. And in Turkey, the renovated Halki Theological School is still waiting for permission to reopen, despite work expected to finish in September. The building may be ready. The approval, less so. In health and science The World Health Organization says more hantavirus cases are likely after a deadly outbreak aboard the expedition cruise ship MV Hondius. Health agencies are tracing passengers and monitoring possible exposures across several countries. On a less grim note, scientists in China say they have engineered a bacteria-based plastic that can be broken down on command. The material uses dormant bacteria embedded in the plastic, which can be activated to reduce it to basic components under the right conditions. If it scales, that would be a rare development in plastics that does not involve simply blaming consumers for using them. In Europe Keir Starmer says he is not resigning, even as pressure builds in Westminster. Ministers have lined up behind him for now, while his team avoids answering the obvious follow-up: whether he would only go if forced into a formal leadership challenge. In business Lufthansa says it will raise its stake in ITA Airways to 90 percent in a €325 million deal, which would give the German airline majority control of the Italian carrier.