--- description: U.S., Allies Strike ISIS in Syria U.S. and allied forces have launched airstrikes against Islamist militants in Syria for the first time, the Pentagon confirmed.... title: Morning Must Reads: September 23 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb24c27fcf0ec0da8/6986837dcd6848a30809364f/morning-must-reads1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Morning Must Reads](/tag/morning-must-reads/) ## Morning Must Reads Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Morning Must Reads: September 23 by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 23, 2014 12:04 PM CUT  The early morning sun rises behind the US Capitol Building in Washington, DC. The early morning sun rises behind the US Capitol Building in Washington, DC.Mark Wilson—Getty Images by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Sep 23, 2014 12:04 PM CUT [U.S., Allies Strike ISIS in Syria](http://time.com/3419906/u-s-launches-airstrike-campaign-against-isis-in-syria/ "undefined") U.S. and allied forces have launched airstrikes against Islamist militants in Syria for the first time, the Pentagon confirmed. The strikes were aimed at key targets of the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria as well as a secretive al-Qaeda offshoot [The 50 Best Places to Live](http://time.com/money/collection/best-places-to-live/ "undefined") MONEY ranks the best small cities in America, taking into account great jobs, strong economies, affordable homes, excellent schools and much more [U.S. Aims to Curb Firms Moving Overseas to Dodge Taxes](http://time.com/3419493/obama-tax-inversions-burger-king/ "undefined") The Treasury Department said it will take steps to prevent companies from moving headquarters overseas by cutting tax benefits of those transactions [WHO Warns of Ebola ‘Catastrophe’](http://time.com/3420281/who-ebola-west-africa-epidemic/ "undefined") A new World Health Organization study warns that Ebola cases worldwide could triple to 20,000 by November if authorities fail to ramp up efforts to combat the deadly virus. About half of those cases would be found in Liberia, among the hardest-hit nations in West Africa [Israeli Military Shoots Down Syrian Fighter Jet](http://time.com/3421215/israel-military-shoots-down-syrian-aircraft/ "undefined") The Israeli military used the Patriot air defense system to shoot down a Syrian fighter jet that “infiltrated” its airspace over the Golan Heights on Tuesday morning, marking the first such downing in decades and heightening tensions in the volatile plateau [U.S. Pledges $15 Million to Help Cut Methane Emissions](http://time.com/3420307/u-s-15-million-methane-emissions/ "undefined") U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday pledged $15 million to back the World Bank’s initiative to cut methane emissions. “It is about time that world leaders come to the United Nations to recognize this threat in the way that it requires and demands,” he said [Pink Floyd Announces New Album](http://time.com/3420020/pink-floyd-new-album-endless-river/ "undefined") The album, named _The Endless River_, is the band’s first since 1994’s _The Division Bell_. The recording is completely instrumental, save for a track called “Louder Than Words,” and does not feature bassist and co-vocalist Roger Waters. Its release is set for Nov. 10 [More Than 700 Babies Exposed to Tuberculosis at Texas Hospital](http://time.com/3419640/tuberculosis-texas-infants/ "undefined") The El Paso, Texas, Department of Public Health said more than 700 babies and 40 health workers were exposed to tuberculosis in a city hospital. A Providence Memorial Hospital employee with TB entered the hospital and worked in close proximity with infants [Climate-Change Activists #FloodWallStreet](http://time.com/3419287/floodwallstreet-climate-change-protest/ "undefined") Activists staged a sit-down protest on Wall Street against the role of large corporations in global warming on Monday, a day after an estimated 400,000 people demonstrated at the People’s Climate March in New York City [Hollywood’s Gender Gap Is as Gaping as Ever](http://time.com/3419411/women-led-blockbuster-successes-havent-killed-movie-gender-gap/ "undefined") According to a new report by the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, only 23% of the films distributed internationally from 2010 to 2013 featured female protagonists and only 31% of the speaking characters were women [Brazil Says No to Global Forest Plan](http://time.com/3420331/brazil-says-no-to-global-forest-plan/ "undefined") Despite its critical role in protecting the Amazon rainforest, Brazil will not endorse a global antideforestation initiative being announced at the U.N. climate summit, complaining it was left out of the consultation process. A U.N. official disputed that claim [Ballsy Study Finds Narwhal Tusk Size Correlates With Virility](http://time.com/3419809/narwhal-tusks-fertility/ "undefined") In a study published in _Marine Mammal Science_, researchers suggested that a tusk’s length signals to female narwhals which males are the most fertile and would make the best mates, meaning that narwhal tusks aren’t unlike peacock feathers or antlers [_Get_ ](http://time.com/politicsemail "undefined")[TIME](http://time.com/politicsemail "undefined")[_’s_ ](http://time.com/politicsemail "undefined")[_The Brief e-mail every morning in your inbox_](http://time.com/politicsemail "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3421485/morning-must-reads-september-23/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3421485/morning-must-reads-september-23/"},"headline":"Morning Must Reads: September 23","datePublished":"2014-09-23T12:04:52.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T10:21:09.920Z","description":"U.S., Allies Strike ISIS in Syria U.S. and allied forces have launched airstrikes against Islamist militants in Syria for the first time, the Pentagon confirmed....","url":"https://time.com/3421485/morning-must-reads-september-23/","keywords":["Morning Must Reads"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb24c27fcf0ec0da8/6986837dcd6848a30809364f/morning-must-reads1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb24c27fcf0ec0da8/6986837dcd6848a30809364f/morning-must-reads1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Morning Must Reads","caption":"Capitol","creditText":"Mark Wilson—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/morning-must-reads/","name":"Morning Must Reads"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3421485/morning-must-reads-september-23/","name":"Morning Must Reads: September 23"}}]}] ```