By Alexandra Banner, CNN

Scientists have long sought ways to slow the brain’s aging, often focusing on drugs and high-tech therapies. But a new study points to a surprisingly accessible solution: a unique diet low in salt and rich in leafy greens may help slow cognitive decline by more than two years.

Here’s what else you need to know to get up to speed and on with your day.

1⃣ Airport lines

Security lines are stretching for hours at some US airports as TSA staffing thins during the partial government shutdown. Wait times vary widely, but some have surpassed two hours at major hubs this week. At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, officials are urging travelers to arrive three hours early. For many TSA agents, this marks their first unpaid week since the shutdown began in mid-February — prompting a surge in callouts and resignations. The strain is especially evident at Houston airports, where over half of TSA employees called out on Sunday and Monday. Compounding the disruptions, bad weather is triggering thousands of flight delays and cancellations nationwide.

LIVE UPDATES: CNN is tracking TSA security wait times at 15 major airports across the US, including those in Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Dallas-Fort Worth and Denver. See the current wait times here.

2⃣ Heat wave

A potentially historic heat wave is set to grip much of the western US in the coming days, with some areas at risk of breaking all-time April temperature records before the month even begins. Fueled by human-caused climate change, the surge will bring summerlike heat in March from California to Texas and as far north as Montana. Extreme heat warnings and alerts are already in place for millions from San Francisco to Phoenix. Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, a powerful storm has moved out, but hundreds of thousands of customers remain without power across the Great Lakes, Northeast and mid-Atlantic — a dangerous situation as frigid air moves in behind it.

3⃣ Iran war

Iran launched fresh attacks on Israel today, vowing revenge for the deaths of two senior Iranian leaders on Tuesday. At least two people were killed in central Israel as the country said it was intercepting Iranian missiles at various places, including in Tel Aviv. In the predawn hours, CNN teams in the region witnessed flashes in the sky, including what appeared to be a cluster munition missile over Israel’s capital. Multiple locations in Tel Aviv were struck by falling debris, with bomb disposal teams and emergency crews dispatched to the scene. Video showed debris on a residential street and a vehicle on fire.

WATCH: Deadly Iranian missile strike targets Tel Aviv

4⃣ Illinois primaries

Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton has won the Democratic primary for an open US Senate seat, putting the little-known state official on a likely path to Washington in deep-blue Illinois. If elected, she would become just the sixth Bl

By Ella Nilsen, CNN

(CNN) — Rainbow trout is a prized catch for fisherman on the Northern Cheyenne reservation, in the high plains of southeastern Montana.

“The men in my family like to go fishing; they cook them right there because it’s fresh,” said Charlene Alden, the tribe’s environmental protection director.

But there is an invisible threat in the local waterways. The pollution coming out of the smokestacks at the nearby Colstrip power plant contains mercury and other toxic elements, which can settle in water and be ingested by the fish.

That kind of pollution used to be much more prolific around the country, before Obama-era rules cut it dramatically, by 90%. But Colstrip is among over 30 power plants nationwide that still burn lignite, a peat-rich coal that contains higher-than-average levels of mercury and other pollutants — and lignite plants were able to slip through a loophole in the Obama regulations.

Under former President Joe Biden, the Environmental Protection Agency attempted to crack down on the remainder, finalizing a regulation in 2024 that closed the prior loophole. But the Trump administration recently axed that measure, with EPA Press Secretary Brigit Hirsch calling the original Obama rule “highly effective” and one that has “protected public health and the environment for years.” In other words, to the current EPA, a 90% reduction is good enough.

While it’s true the Trump rollback impacts a relatively small number of power plants, it could have big implications for communities that live near them, like the Northern Cheyenne tribe.

Alden said she is concerned about what they mean for the health of her community.

“I think it’s taking a step backwards from making sure our environment is safe and making sure our food sources are safe,” Alden said. “We try hard to keep our little piece of land that we have left free of pollution. We consider ourselves stewards of the environment.”

An ‘insidious toxin’

Colstrip emitted nearly 60 pounds of mercury last year, according to EPA data mapped by the nonprofit Environmental Defense Fund. That heavy metal gets emitted into the air before bioaccumulating in land and water.

Mercury “is an insidious toxin,” said Joe Goffman, who led EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation under Biden. “It gets deposited in water, ingested by fish, and then people who eat the fish absorb it into their bloodstream.”

The metal is of particular concern to pregnant women, babies and small children, because it is a neurotoxin that can impact brain development and cause lung disease.

When the Trump EPA announced its rollback, the agency’s Deputy Administrator David Fotouhi said in a statement that the Trump changes were “fully protective of human health risks.”

But Harvard University research disputes that —– finding elevated levels of mercury in states such as North Dakota and Texas, where power plants still burn a lot of lignite coal. The paper shows smaller hotspots around the country near other coal-fired power plants that burn lignite, including Colstrip.

The Trump administration is “saying it’s small and costly, so it’s no big deal. But for those communities, it does matter,” said Elsie Sunderland, a professor of environmental chemistry at Harvard University who oversaw the research.

In addition, Sunderland and Goffman said,

By Hanna Ziady, CNN

London (CNN) — Oil prices held steady Wednesday after Iraq clinched a deal to resume some crude exports via Turkey. It’s not a ton of oil, but it’s what amounts for good news these days as the Strait of Hormuz remains largely blocked.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, traded modestly higher at $103.7 a barrel. WTI, the US benchmark, dropped 1.5% to just shy of $95 a barrel.

Crude exports from Iraq’s Kirkuk oil fields are set to resume Wednesday from Turkey’s Ceyhan port after the Kurdistan Regional Government, which controls part of northern Iraq, agreed to allow oil to flow via the Kurdistan Region-Ceyhan pipeline.

Iraq’s federal government and the KRG “also agreed to take the necessary security measures to protect the oil fields and ensure the continuity of oil exports,” the KRG said in a statement Tuesday.

The pipeline exports from the Kirkuk will flow at a rate of 250,000 barrels a day, a mere “drop in the ocean,” according to Neil Wilson, a strategist at trading platform Saxo. But the resumption of those flows is still “another positive headline relative to the simmering war,” he said in a note.

For context, Iraq was producing about 4.5 million barrels of oil a day before the war started, according to the US Energy Information Administration. The near-shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz means that around 20 million barrels of crude and oil products, about a fifth of world oil supply, are choked off from the global market every day.

Separately, an Iranian security source told CNN that Tehran is in discussions with eight countries outside the Middle East to grant safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz to tankers carrying oil traded in Chinese yuan. Oil is largely traded in dollars but one exception is Russian oil, which is traded in rubles or yuan.

Brent crude settled at $103.42 Tuesday, its highest level since the start of the war, as Iran intensified its attacks on energy infrastructure in the Gulf. Crude prices are up around 40% since the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28.

The fact that oil traders largely ignored the news of Iraq’s oil exports means the focus remains on the duration of the war. Iran launched fresh strikes on Israel Wednesday, vowing revenge for the killing of two top Iranian leaders this week, including former security chief Ali Larijani. Two people were killed by missile shrapnel in Tel Aviv, according to police, and multiple locations in the city were struck by falling debris.

Stock markets rose for a third day. In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi climbed 5% and Japan’s Nikkei rose 2.9%, “both helped by tech stocks,” according to Jim Reid, head of global macroeconomic research at Deutsche Bank.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed marginally higher on the day and European markets were also up in morning hours. US futures pointed to a stronger open.

Reid said in a note that there was “a bit more calm in (stock) markets at the moment and a small hint that there is a decoupling from the price of oil.”

Investors will now look ahead to the Federal Reserve meeting later on Wednesday for clues on how the central bank thinks

CNN

By Jessie Yeung, CNN

(CNN) — Tehran is vowing revenge after Israel killed two senior Iranian leaders, in a continued push to pick off power-brokers within the regime. Iran, Israel and Lebanon have traded further strikes, while the United States Embassy in Baghdad was targeted again.

Meanwhile, the US has dropped 5,000-pound bombs on Iranian missile sites along the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to secure the crucial waterway, which US President Donald Trump had asked for international help to reopen.

Here’s what to know on day 19.

What are the main headlines?

• Top officials killed: Iran confirmed on Tuesday that its powerful security chief Ali Larijani had been killed, announcing a “rapid strike” and “intense” attacks against Israel in retaliation. Larijani is the highest-ranking Iranian official to be killed since the death of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on the first day of the war. Israel has also killed the head of the Basij, Iran’s feared paramilitary force.
• US official resigns: Joe Kent, a senior Trump-appointed US intelligence official, abruptly announced Tuesday he is stepping down from his post, citing misgivings about the administration’s war with Iran. Trump said Kent’s resignation was a “good thing” because he was “very weak on security.”
• Trump dismisses allies: Trump said the US should rethink its NATO membership as he criticized allies for not helping with the war or in securing the Strait of Hormuz. A string of American partners have balked at Trump’s request to send warships to help transport oil through the strait – though a senior official from the United Arab Emirates said on Tuesday it’s open to helping.
• Iranian oil deal: Tehran is in discussions with eight countries outside the Middle East over its offer to grant safe passage to oil traded in the Chinese currency yuan, an Iranian security source told CNN. The source did not identify the eight countries.
• US warship movements: A US Navy warship believed to be carrying Marines and sailors to the Middle East is nearing the Malacca Strait of Singapore as it makes its way to the region, maritime tacking data showed Tuesday. Officials told CNN the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli was being sent to the Middle East, without revealing exactly where it would be deployed or what it would be used for.

By Karina Tsui, CNN

(CNN) — The head of the US Postal Service has warned lawmakers that the storied 250-year-old agency is at a “critical juncture” and will run out of cash in less than a year unless Congress allows it to borrow more money and charge more for postage.

“At our current rate, we’ll be out of cash in less than 12 months. So in about a year from now, the postal service would be unable to deliver the mail,” Postmaster General David Steiner said at a Tuesday hearing before the House Oversight Subcommittee on Government Operations.

Steiner, a former FedEx board member who became postmaster last year, pointed to the yearslong decline in the use of traditional mail and regulations weighing down the Postal Service’s finances, such as legal obligations for universal service and a limit on how much the agency can borrow.

The Postal Service has historically relied on revenue from its sales to stay afloat and does not receive tax dollars for operating expenses, though it has received some federal relief. A 10-year plan put in place in 2021 by Steiner’s predecessor to address its financial struggles has failed so far to reverse its losses.

USPS said it incurred net losses of $9 billion last fiscal year and $9.5 billion in 2024. It also lost $1.3 billion in the first quarter of 2026, it said in February.

The postmaster urged Congress Tuesday to increase USPS’s borrowing authority, which would buy time “that we can use to best determine what the Postal Service should do to best serve the American public” and whether all of the agency’s services should be maintained.

He emphasized the cost of its universal service obligation, which legally requires it provide mail services to all Americans and deliver mail all across the United States at the same price. That includes rural, far-flung or hard-to-reach destinations, expensive places for mail carriers to get to.

“I’m here to tell America that we can do anything you want … If you want the same number of delivery days and post offices, we can do that. But someone has to pay for it,” Steiner said.

Steiner noted the cost of USPS postage is significantly less than other industrialized nations and said raising the price of a first-class stamp from the current 75 cents to about 95 cents “would largely solve our controllable loss.”

Despite being one of the most popular parts of the federal government, according to 2024 data from the Pew Research Center, the agency has struggled with losing money for years alongside the decline in volume of mail – as emails, texts and other electronic communications replace letters, and online payments replace the sending of checks to pay bills.

Citing its financial challenges, President Donald Trump has previously suggested disbanding the US Postal Service’s Board of Governors and placing the agency unde