June 29, 2022

UKRAINE | Today is day 126 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Reports say Russian forces intensified attacks across Ukraine this morning, including missile strikes in the Mykolaiv area of southern Ukraine, where the Mykolaiv city mayor said at least three people were killed when a Russian missile struck a residential building. [more]
• At a meeting of NATO leaders in Madrid, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said today that NATO allies will continue to supply Ukraine with weapons in its war against Russia for as long as necessary. [more]
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the U.N. Security Council remotely yesterday and called for Russia to be expelled from the United Nations. [more]

JANUARY 6 | Testimony before the House January 6 Committee yesterday by former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson focused on actions by then-President Trump and senior White House officials and advisors in the days leading up to, during, and after the January 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol. Hutchinson's testimony included statements that Trump and other officials were informed that some Capitol Mall rally attendees were armed, that Trump called for metal detectors to be removed so more people could attend his speech before proceeding to the Capitol, that White House officials were aware of calls for violence at the Capitol and against Vice President Mike Pence, and that Trump tried to insist on going to the Capitol personally, even after being warned of possible legal consequences of doing so. In social media posts, former President Trump denied much of what Hutchinson said during her testimony. [more]

NATO | A formal invitation for Sweden and Finland to join the NATO is expected to be issued today after Turkey dropped its objections to the Nordic countries' membership applications yesterday. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had previously threatened to block the alliance expansion, insisting Finland and Sweden change their stances on Kurdish rebel groups that Turkey considers terrorists. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | The Conference Board business research group says that its U.S. consumer confidence index measurement fell to 98.7 in June, down from 103.2 in May, to the lowest level since February 2021. [more]

INDIA | Large gatherings remain restricted in the western India city of Udaipur today after police arrested two Muslim men yesterday in connection with the killing of a Hindu man in what authorities have characterized as a religious attack. [more]

CLIMATE | The European Union Council reached an agreement yesterday under which the E.U. bloc would call for 100% elimination of carbon emissions from new cars by 2035. The plan will require approval by the European Parliament and member nation governments in order to take effect. [more]

JAPAN | Officials in Japan have warned of impending power shortages amidst the country's worst documented streak of hot weather in June since records began to be kept in 1875. [more]

AUSTRIA | Reports say a civil emergency has been declared in parts of southern Austria today after multiple villages were cut off by mudslides and flooding following heavy rainfall. [more]

MONKEYPOX | Amidst the ongoing global outbreak of monkeypox, White House health response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said yesterday that the U.S. is working to increase testing and expanding the group of people for whom vaccination against the disease is recommended. [more]

CANADA | Two suspects were killed and six police officers were wounded yesterday during a shootout at a bank on Vancouver Island in the Canadian province of British Columbia. [more]

COVID-19 | In findings published online yesterday in JAMA Network Open, researchers at the University of Maryland and Boston University say maternal mortality up to a year after giving birth rose sharply in the U.S. during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the increased risk disproportionately affecting Black and Hispanic mothers. [more]

MORE COVID-19 | A U.S. Food and Drug Administration panel recommended yesterday that updated COVID-19 booster shots be made containing some form of the omicron COVID variant as a proactive measure ahead of an anticipated fall booster campaign. [more]

FRANCE | A court verdict is expected today in the cases of 20 men accused of taking part in the November 13, 2015, Islamic State terrorist attacks that killed 130 people in Paris. Only one of the defendants is accused of being part of the 10-man team that carried out the attacks, while the others are accused of assisting with related funding, logistics, and transportation. [more]

NEW YORK | Ghislaine Maxwell, the associate of Jeffrey Epstein who was accused of helping procure underage girls who were sexually abused by Epstein, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison yesterday on five criminal counts, including sex trafficking. [more]

VEHICLE RECALL | Automaker Nissan has announced that it is recalling some 320,000 2013 through 2016 model year Pathfinder SUVs in the U.S. because the vehicle hoods can unexpectedly fly open and block the driver's view. [more]

TENNIS | 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams lost to France's Harmony Tan yesterday in the first round of the Wimbledon tournament. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | During a performance of William Shakespeare's Henry VIII on this date in 1613, London's Globe Theatre was destroyed after its thatch was accidentally set aflame by a cannon marking the king's entrance onstage. [more history]