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From today's featured article

Hamilcar's defeat of Spendius and Autaritus took place in 240 BC during the Mercenary War. The precise location of the battle, in what is now north-west Tunisia, is unknown. A Carthaginian army led by Hamilcar Barca defeated a rebel army led by Spendius and Autaritus. Unable to confront the Carthaginian war elephants and cavalry on open terrain, the rebels stayed on higher and rougher ground and harassed the Carthaginian army, trapping it in a mountain valley. The Carthaginian situation was bleak until the rebel commander Naravas defected, bringing 2,000 cavalry with him, allowing Hamilcar to deploy his army. Spendius chose to engage in a battle but was heavily defeated. Spendius perceived Hamilcar's generous treatment of rebel prisoners as the motivation behind Naravas's defection and had 700 Carthaginian prisoners tortured to death to prevent reoccurrence; the Carthaginians, in turn, killed their prisoners. From this point, neither side showed any mercy; the unusual ferocity caused contemporaries to term it the "Truceless War". (This article is part of a featured topic: Mercenary War.)

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Did you know ...

Tourists on the Diablo inclined railway

... that tours of Diablo, Washington, included a ride on an inclined railway (pictured) previously used in the construction of two dams?
... that an academic center at Rio de Janeiro State University was renamed in 2018 in honor of Matheusa Passareli?
... that semi-automated offside technology can track up to 29 points on each football player 50 times per second?
... that Ray Allensworth was featured on the Time 100 Next list in 2025 for her work as program director of the first private spacecraft to land successfully on the Moon?
... that the Jiajing Emperor refused to order the rescue of his empress from a palace fire because he held a grudge against her over the execution of his favorite consort?
... that Uraias refused the Ostrogothic throne because he believed that his family lacked good fortune?
... that the PBS documentary One Person, One Vote? follows four U.S. presidential electors from the 2020 election, including a Kanye West elector?
... that Antonius Agus Sriyono visited Odessa on an official diplomatic mission three decades after writing a fictional story about a robber fleeing to the city?
... that Daniel Johnston caused the crash landing of his father's plane after throwing its ignition key out the window during a psychotic episode?

In the news

Jannik Sinner

A fire at a pub in Bangkok, Thailand, kills at least 33 people.
In tennis, the Wimbledon Championships conclude with Linda Nosková and Jannik Sinner (pictured) winning the women's and men's singles, respectively.
Former emir of Qatar Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani dies at the age of 74.
China's orbital rocket booster Long March 10B becomes the first recovered after launch using a net-based recovery system.
A wildfire in Almería, Spain, kills 13 people.
A series of coordinated attacks across Pakistan's Balochistan province leaves at least 42 people dead.

On this day

July 18

Nadia Comăneci on the balance beam

1290 – King Edward I issued an edict to expel all Jews from England.
1723 – Johann Sebastian Bach directed the first performance of his cantata Erforsche mich, Gott, und erfahre mein Herz in Leipzig.
1976 – At the Olympic Games in Montreal, Nadia Comăneci (pictured) became the first gymnast to score a perfect 10 for her routine on the uneven bars.
1989 – American actress Rebecca Schaeffer was shot and killed by Robert John Bardo, eventually prompting the passage of anti-stalking laws in California.
1995 – Selena's album Dreaming of You, instrumental in popularizing Tejano music, was posthumously released.

Benito Juárez (d. 1872)
Richard Branson (b. 1950)
M.I.A. (b. 1975)
Amy Gillett (d. 2005)

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Today's featured picture

The kererū (Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae) is a species of pigeon native to New Zealand. Described by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1789, it is a large, conspicuous pigeon, up to 50 centimetres (20 in) in length and ranging from 550 to 850 grams (19 to 30 oz) in weight, with a white breast and iridescent green–blue plumage. Kererū pairs are monogamous, breeding over successive seasons and remaining together when not breeding. Found in a variety of habitats across the country, the kererū feeds mainly on fruits, as well as on leaves, buds and flowers. Its numbers have declined since European colonisation and the arrival of invasive mammals such as rats, stoats and possums in New Zealand, although populations have recently increased in suburban habitats. Considered a taonga (cultural treasure) to the Māori people, the kererū was historically a major food source in Māori culture. In 2018, it was designated Bird of the Year by the New Zealand organisation Forest & Bird. This kererū was photographed in the Waitākere Ranges on the North Island.

Photograph credit: Charles J. Sharp

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