Tuesday Briefing: Hundreds caught thanks to spy phones "in gangsters’ back pockets"

The Reuters Daily Briefing Tuesday, June 8, 2021 by Linda Noakes Hello Here's what you need to know. Hundreds are arrested in a global crime sting, websites rumble back to life after a major outage, and Biden sets up a 'strike force' to go after China Today's biggest stories A person is detained by Australian Federal Police after Operation Ironside against organized crime in this undated handout photo released June 8, 2021. GLOBAL CRIME BUST A global sting in which organized crime gangs were sold encrypted phones that law enforcement officials could monitor has led to more than 800 arrests in 18 countries. The operation by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Australian and European police ensnared suspects in Australia, Asia, Europe, South America and the Middle East involved in the global narcotics trade. Here's the story of how an informant and a messaging app led to a huge global crime sting. MAJOR INTERNET OUTAGE Government, media and news website are coming back to life after a widespread outage linked to U.S.-based cloud company Fastly. High traffic sites including Reddit, Amazon, CNN, Paypal, Spotify and the New York Times all experienced problems. Fastly is one of the world's most widely-used cloud based content delivery network providers. Guatemala's President Alejandro Giammattei and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris arrive to attend a news conference at the Palacio Nacional de la Cultura, in Guatemala City, June 7, 2021 U.S. An effort by President Joe Biden to reunite migrant families separated by the previous administration is moving slowly, with only seven children reunited with parents by a task force launched in February, according to a Department of Homeland Security report. Meanwhile, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said she had “robust” talks with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei on the need to fight corruption to help deter undocumented immigration from Central America to the United States. Several top Senate Republicans rejected Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s G7 deal to impose a global minimum corporate tax and allow more countries to tax big multinational firms, raising questions about the U.S. ability to implement a broader global agreement. The Justice Department recovered some $2.3 million in cryptocurrency ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline, cracking down on hackers who launched the most disruptive U.S. cyberattack on record. WORLD Peruvian socialist Pedro Castillo widened his lead against right-wing rival Keiko Fujimori in the country’s presidential vote, but she said she will not concede yet and alleged “irregularities,” although without showing much proof. We look at how markets and miners fear Castillo. Thousands of police have been drafted in from across Britain to beef up security for what organisers promise will be disruptive protests when G7 leaders gather for a summit this week. "We will be loud. We will be disruptive. We will be annoying," said the Kill The Bill group, one of about 20 activist organisations to have joined a 'Resist G7 Coalition'. Laboratory technician Sara Zemmahi was running to be a local councillor backed by French President Emmanuel Macron's ruling party until last month when it withdrew its support. Her transgression: wearing her hijab in a campaign poster. A roaming herd of 15 wild elephants is on the move again after resting for a day in a patch of forest on the outskirts of the city of Kunming in southwest China, resuming a year-long, 500-kilometer trek that has captured the public's imagination. BUSINESS The United States will target China with a new "strike force" to combat unfair trade practices, the Biden administration said, as it rolled out findings of a review of U.S. access to critical products, from semiconductors to electric-vehicle batteries. We look at how more Chinese firms could fall under Biden’s broader investment ban. Shares of Clover Health Investments and other 'meme stocks' jumped in premarket trading as small-time individual investors again piled into some of the most heavily shorted U.S. stocks. The London Metal Exchange has abandoned proposals to close its open outcry trading floor, the last such venue in Europe, but it believes electronic trading is the future. The floor was closed in March 2020 for the first time since World War II to allow for social distancing. Ford said its new Maverick compact pickup truck will have a gasoline-electric hybrid powertrain as standard equipment, a technology choice aimed at keeping the vehicle’s starting price below $20,000. BREAKINGVIEWS Agenda-setting insight from the international commentary brand of Reuters Read Pete Sweeney on how Hong Kong is devolving into an economic monoculture, Robert Cyran on the new Alzheimer’s drug that will feed into the U.S. healthcare cost spiral, and Aimee Donnellan on the Wall Streeters outpacing Europeans back to the office. Quote of the day "America is back. It means that we have again a very strong partner to promote the multilateral approach" Charles Michel European Council President Brussels upbeat on eve of Biden’s Europe trip Video of the day Latinos finally get their shot with 'In the Heights' Lin-Manuel Miranda is hoping his movie musical changes the conversation in Hollywood about Latinos, just as 'Crazy Rich Asians' did in 2018 for the Asian community. And finally… New dinosaur species discovered in Australia Paleontologists estimate the dinosaur reached a height of 5-6.5 meters at the hip and was 25-30 meters in length, making it as long as a basketball court and as tall as a two-storey building. More from Reuters COVID-19 Investigations Breakingviews Legal News Thanks for spending part of your day with us. Share your thoughts You are receiving this email because you signed up for newsletters from Reuters. No longer want to hear from us? Unsubscribe from The Reuters Daily Briefing. Terms, conditions, and privacy statement © 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved. 3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036