Today’s edition of quick hits.

* The latest strikes in Iran: “The United States military launched retaliatory strikes against Iran Wednesday evening in response to Iranian attacks a day earlier, U.S. Central Command said, as the return to hostilities in the region threatened to plunge more of the Middle East into war.”

* Russia’s latest deadly attack: “A Russian ballistic missile and drone barrage across Ukraine overnight killed at least eight civilians, including children, and injured more than 50 others, officials said Thursday, and NATO scrambled its warplanes after one of the missiles crossed into Poland.”

* On a related note, specifically on that part about Poland: “NATO said a Russian missile entered Polish airspace during the onslaught and landed in a rural area. It caused no injuries or damage but could deepen tensions between the military alliance and Moscow, as wary European countries fear the 4-year-old war could spill into their territory.”

* I vaguely recall when news like this would generate a frenzy in Republican politics: “Long-term government borrowing costs shot higher on Wednesday, in a sign that investors doubt whether Kevin Warsh, the new chairman of the Federal Reserve, will keep inflation contained. The 30-year Treasury yield, an indicator of what it would cost the federal government to borrow money for three decades, rose 0.11 percentage points to 5.22 percent on Wednesday, its largest one-day increase in more than a year, and its highest level since 2007.”

* A striking losing streak: “A fifth federal appeals court has rejected the Trump administration’s bid to subject millions of immigrants — most of whom have lived in the U.S. for years without criminal records — to mandatory detention without bond. The ruling by the California-based 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is the most significant rejection yet of the Trump administration’s unprecedented mass detention policy.”

* MS NOW confirmed that, as of this morning, Jay Clayton, the incoming director of national intelligence, has begun receiving intelligence briefings, but his swearing-in has not yet been scheduled. That’s odd because officials tend to be sworn into office the day after their Senate confirmation vote.

* A case worth watching: “The Alien Terrorist Removal Court, a court created 30 years ago to deport immigrants accused of terrorism, is weighing its first-ever case: a bid by the Justice Department to deport an Afghan woman it has accused of supporting the Islamic State group, often known as ISIS.”

* I guess there’s a reason the White House hasn’t talked about mortgage rates in a while: “Mortgage rates jumped to their highest level in a year, dealing another blow to a long-stalled housing market that shows little sign of recovering. The 30-year fixed rate averaged 6.66% this week, up from 6.58% the week prior, according to Freddie Mac. That marked the fourth consecutive week of rising rates.”

* These questions hardly seem unreasonable: “Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy demanded ‘transparency’ from the Department of Education Wednesday regarding the disputed results of a national civics contest for high school students. … The Connecticut senator wrote on behalf of Aangad Singh, the 15-year-old Connecticut boy who competed, and his family, who are seeking to understand why Singh did not advance to the finals.”

See you tomorrow.

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