The Daily Brief

May 27, 2022

Daily Brief -
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No Brief for Monday, May 30, as we'll be honoring Memorial Day here in the United States. We'll return to regular service on Tuesday, May 31.
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TEXAS SCHOOL SHOOTING | The investigation into the school shooting Tuesday at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, continues, with updated information including the following [more]:

  • Investigators say 90 minutes elapsed between the time Uvalde gunman Salvador Ramos arrived at Robb Elementary School and the time he was killed by a Border Patrol tactical unit. [more]
  • Despite earlier official statements to the contrary, investigators now say that there was no school-based police officer on-site at Robb Elementary School when the gunman entered the building. [more]
  • Investigators say Instagram posts of pictures of gun magazines and rifles were among the digital warning signs that the Uvalde gunman was planning a violent act. [more]
  • A first Senate Democratic attempt to open debate on domestic terrorism and gun control bills in the wake of mass shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde was blocked by Senate Republicans yesterday. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says party negotiators will try to forge a related compromise bill during the Senate's upcoming two-week recess. [more]
  • The annual convention of the National Rifle Association opens today in Houston, Texas, despite calls by some for the event to be cancelled or moved after the shooting in Uvalde. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 93 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

  • Reports say Russian forces have made progress in their attempts to encircle Ukrainian forces in the eastern Donbas region. [more]
  • Russian officials yesterday blamed Western nations' Ukraine-related sanctions for the ongoing food crisis caused by lack of exports from Russia and Ukraine. In response to similar claims last week, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken noted that food, fertilizer, and seeds are exempt from most international sanctions. [more]
  • The mayor of the Donbas-region city of Sievierodonetsk, Oleksandr Stryuk, says more than 1,500 people have been killed in the city as Russia seeks to take control of the area. Stryuk also noted that about 12,000 people remain in the city and that about 60% of its residential buildings have been destroyed. [more]
  • Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba yesterday reiterated his country's need for heavy weapons, including artillery and rocket launchers, to battle Russian advances. [more]
  • Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko yesterday called for a new military command on this country's southern border with Ukraine, saying, "A new front has opened and we can't fail to pay attention to it." [more]

NORTH KOREA | China and Russia vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution yesterday that called for new sanctions on North Korea over its recent intercontinental ballistic missile testing. [more]

IRAQ | Lawmakers in Iraq passed a bill yesterday that criminalizes any normalization of ties with Israel, including business relationships. [more]

ENVIRONMENT | The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday allowed a Biden administration plan to increase the estimate of monetary damages used in calculating the cost of greenhouse gas emissions to move forward. Biden plans to return to an Obama-era calculation of $51 in damages per ton of carbon dioxide emitted, which had been reduced to $7 per ton during the Trump administration. [more]

CLIMATE CHANGE | A three-day meeting of environment and energy ministers from the the Group of Seven wealthy nations opened yesterday in Berlin with proposals for shifting from reliance on fossil fuels to renewable energy as the key topic. Attendees say the climate group's proposals could be carried forward to a June meeting of G-7 leaders in Elmau, Germany.  [more]

MONKEYPOX | World Health Organization official Sylvie Briand said today that the current monkeypox outbreak can be contained through quick action in countries where the disease is non-endemic. To date the WHO has reported more than 200 confirmed or suspected cases in more than 20 countries. [more]

U.S. TRAVEL | The summer travel season kicks off this weekend with the domestic travel and tourism over the three-day Memorial Day weekend expected to rise to nearly pre-pandemic levels, according to many industry predictions. [more]

CHINA | Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is visiting the Pacific nation of Kiribati today, where talks about fishing rights are expected to be the central topic when Wang meets with Kiribati President Taneti Maamau. [more]

BASKETBALL | The Golden State Warriors advanced to the NBA Finals with last night's 120-110 win over the Dallas Mavericks. Golden State will face the winner of the current series between Boston and Miami in the Finals. [more]

R.I.P. | Actor Ray Liotta, best known for his roles in the films "Goodfellas" and "Field of Dreams" died yesterday at the age of 67. [more]

ALSO R.I.P. | Andrew Fletcher, keyboard player and founding member of the pioneering electronic music band Depeche Mode died yesterday at the age of 60, according to a statement from the band. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1660, the Treaty of Copenhagen between Sweden and Denmark-Norway was signed, concluding a generation of warfare between the two powers, as well as helping to establish the modern boundaries of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.  [more history]