Israel conducted a strike in Iran early this morning local time, a senior U.S. official told Axios' Barak Ravid.

• Why it matters: Israel, which has not confirmed it launched an attack, has vowed to retaliate against Iran for a missile and drone attack on Israel. The U.S. is concerned that continued counterattacks could trigger wider regional escalation.

Between the lines: The muted initial response by both sides suggests Iran and Israel want to avoid escalation. (N.Y. Times)

The Biden administration has warned Israel that escalation with Iran wouldn't serve U.S. or Israeli interests — and urged Israel to "be careful" with retaliation, U.S. officials said.

• The U.S. official said Israel notified the U.S. in advance: "We were not surprised."

🔎 Zoom in: The Fars news agency, which is affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported explosions were heard in the city of Isfahan in central Iran near an Iranian air force base.

• Iranian state TV reported several drones were shot down by air defenses in Isfahan.
• The strike didn't appear to target nuclear facilities, which IRNA said were undamaged.

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House Democrats made an extremely rare break with modern political norms late last night to rescue Speaker Mike Johnson's foreign aid package, Axios' Andrew Solender reports.

• Why it matters: It's the starkest evidence to date that the GOP's fractured, tiny House majority has effectively yielded to something resembling a bipartisan coalition.

The four Democrats on the House Rules Committee voted with five of the panel's establishment Republicans to advance the package of four bills to votes on the House floor.

• The crossover was needed after three right-wing hardliners on the panel — Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) and Chip Roy (R-Texas) — voted against sending it to the floor.
• The right-wing rebellion would've been enough to kill the package if Democrats didn't step in.

👓 State of play: The Rules Committee typically consists of leadership loyalists who dutifully vote along party lines on advancing legislation to the floor.

• But former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy placed Massie, Norman and Roy on the panel last year to placate right-wing hardliners.
• That put power in the hands of Democrats, who overwhelmingly support the package and are desperate to send aid to Ukraine.

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A jury of 12 Manhattanites was picked to determine the fate of Donald Trump in the first-ever criminal trial of a former president.

• One alternate was also picked, leaving five to go when the court resumes this morning, Axios' Erin Doherty and April Rubin write.

The final 12 are a slice of Manhattan:

• Five women and seven men made it onto the jury.
• They include two lawyers, an engineer, a teacher, a software engineer and a health care worker.

🔮 What's next: Judge Juan Merchan says oral arguments are on track to start Monday.

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Netflix blew past Wall Street expectations last quarter on revenue, earnings and subscriber additions — signaling the company's password-sharing crackdown is working, Axios' Sara Fischer writes.

• Why it matters: The earnings report, which also included a worse-than-expected outlook, shows it's still the world's dominant streamer.

The company's addition of 9.33 million new subscribers nearly doubled analyst forecasts.

• The company's operating margins and profits have been rising steadily since the company introduced the password-sharing crackdown and an ad-supported tier.

🥊 Reality check: The company's shares crashed despite soaring profits and the positive news about the password-sharing crackdown.

• Investors were clearly jolted after the company said it'd no longer report subscriber growth numbers to Wall Street.

Keep reading ... Get Axios Media Trends, out each Tuesday.

Chinese government-linked hackers have burrowed into U.S. critical infrastructure and are waiting "for just the right moment to deal a devastating blow," FBI director Christopher Wray warned yesterday.

• Why it matters: A Chinese group known as Volt Typhoon has displayed a persistence that's rare among nation-state hackers, Axios Codebook author Sam Sabin writes.

Volt Typhoon has successfully gained access to numerous American companies in telecommunications, energy, water and other critical sectors — including 23 pipeline operators, Wray said in a speech at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Reuters reports.

• China has "made it clear that it considers every sector that makes our society run as fair game in its bid to dominate on the world stage," Wray said.

More from Wray's speech.

The NYPD arrested at least 108 pro-Palestinian demonstrators yesterday after Columbia University asked police to clear an encampment of unauthorized protesters, Axios' April Rubin writes.

• Why it matters: The arrests — one day after Columbia president Nemat Shafik testified in front of Congress — immediately sparked additional intense protests.

Those who were taken into custody were issued summonses for trespassing, officials said during an evening news conference.

• Several students were suspended. Isra Hirsi, daughter of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), was arrested.

Between the lines: Young protesters — including recent alumni — remained on campus late into the night, Axios' Hope King reports from Columbia's campus.

• "The purpose of tonight was a spontaneous reaction to the rather brutal and violent arrest of the protest encampment," said Nas Issa, who graduated from Columbia in 2020.

Meta is trying to turbocharge its effort to catch up with OpenAI and Microsoft, AI's breakaway leaders.

• The social media giant is putting its chatbot — Meta AI, built with Meta Llama 3 — in the search boxes of Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, as well as a standalone site.

Why it matters: Meta is betting that the convenience of having a powerful AI assistant within their apps could help preserve their high-margin, ad-based business model — keeping users engaged instead of going elsewhere for AI benefits, Axios' Ryan Heath writes.

• The company bills the chatbot as the "most intelligent" free AI assistant.

See demos ... Keep reading.

Taylor Swift's new album, "The Tortured Poets Department," dropped at midnight ET with listening parties and themed gatherings. Then Swift surprised fans at 2 a.m. ET with news of 15 extra songs. (NBC)

• Why it matters: It's a new era for the already ubiquitous popstar, whose record-breaking tour returns to the U.S. in October.

"Tortured Poets" is Swift's fifth! — yes, fifth — album in five years. Altogether, the double album contained over two hours of music.

• L.A. Times critic Mikael Wood writes: "The LP turns out to be something of a heel turn; it's got a proudly villainous energy as Swift embraces her messiest and most chaotic tendencies."

🎧 Go deeper: Axios' Troy Smith ranked every Swift song, 1 to 214 ... Listen here.