## Iranian missile blitz takes down AWS data centers in Bahrain and Dubai — Amazon reportedly declares “hard down” status for multiple zones

Authored by tomshardware.com

Iranian strikes on AWS data centers in Bahrain and Dubai have disrupted services that the company declared multiple zones in the region to have “hard down” status, meaning the affected areas are completely unavailable.

According to Big Technology, AWS issued an internal memo stating that operations in the two data centers have been disrupted and that it's working to migrate affected clients' workloads to other regions.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has conducted strikes against AWS sites in the Middle East since the start of the war in early March.

The AWS sites in the Middle East each have three compute zones, with both data centers reporting “hard down” and “impaired but functioning” zones.

Amazon isn’t the only tech company that the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran has directly hit.

It has reiterated the threat at the start of April and even struck an Oracle data center later that week.

However, while damage to data centers in the Middle East is concerning for the region, the global tech industry has bigger concerns. »

### Colorado Lawmakers Approve Ban of Selling Dogs, Cats at Pet Stores

Authored by westword.com

A bill to prohibit pet stores from selling dogs and cats cleared its last major vote on Monday, March 30, passing the Senate 19-16.

Supporters of HB 1011 argue that banning dog and cat sales in pet stores would cut off demand for these breeding mills in Colorado.

According to state legislators, only six or seven pet stores in Colorado currently sell dogs or cats. »

### Hand-raised baby corals bring hope of restoring Great Barrier Reef

Authored by abc.net.au

The coral seeding device protects the baby coral when it's dropped onto the Great Barrier Reef.

Experts sound alarm over under-pressure Great Barrier Reef Experts sound alarm over under-pressure Great Barrier Reef.

Hundreds of coral seeding devices containing live baby coral, ready to be dropped onto the Great Barrier Reef. »

### Former US air force master sergeant pleads guilty to defrauding military out of $37m

Authored by theguardian.com

A former US air force master sergeant who nicknamed himself “Al Capone” has pleaded guilty to defrauding the military branch out of $37m by inflating the cost of IT contracts – and giving some of the extra money to an individual he called “Godfather”.

James, 51, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bribery and conspiracy to rig bids for the US Pacific air forces based in Hawaii.

In a plea agreement, James admitted conspiring with multiple competitors to rig bids for IT contracts with the US defense department. »

### The Next Crisis Isn’t Oil. It’s Food. And It’s Already Starting

Authored by dissentdaily.com

But calling this just an energy crisis, that’s where the mistake is.

There’s another side to this story that almost nobody’s talking about, and it might be the most dangerous one: food.

And if this war is being managed through an incomplete picture, then the danger isn’t just the war itself. »

## In pictures

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