Hard Numbers: Floods provide test India-Pakistan relations, Signs of Orthodox discontent over Israel, France returns Malagsy king’s remains, & More

150,000: Pakistan has evacuated at least 150,000 people from areas around three rivers of the Punjab province. Flooding risks are driving the evacuations, as monsoon rains continue to batter large portions of South Asia. The flooding could also inflame geopolitical tensions: India warned that it will release excess water into Pakistan from the nearby Madhopur Dam, a move that could exacerbate the flooding on the Pakistani side of the border.

80: “We affirm that Hamas’s sins and crimes do not relieve the government of Israel of its obligations to make whatever efforts are necessary to prevent mass starvation,” a group of roughly 80 Orthodox Jewish rabbis wrote in an open letter. Orthodox leaders have largely shied away from criticizing the Israeli government, but this letter marked a turning point.

600,000: US President Donald Trump said up to 600,000 Chinese students would be allowed to study in the US, framing the move as part of ongoing trade negotiations with Beijing. Currently, about 270,000 Chinese students are enrolled in US universities, roughly 100,000 less than the 2020 peak.

128: France is returning the skull of a slain Malagsy king, some 128 years after French forces killed and decapitated him as part of an effort to assert colonial control. The head was then taken to the Museum of Natural History in Paris. Madagascar’s government and King Toera’s descendants had pressed the Élyssée Palace to return his remains.