August 19, 2022

UKRAINE | Today is day 177 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Explosions were reported overnight near two Russian military facilities in Crimea. Russian officials say their forces shot down at least one Ukrainian drone near an air base in Belbek on the peninsula's southwest coast. [more]
• U.N. Secretary-General Antonia Guterres yesterday called for a complete demilitarization of the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, saying an agreement is needed to re-establish the plant's purely civilian infrastructure and to ensure the safety of the area. [more]

U.S. ENVIRONMENT | A new Department of Energy analysis concludes that implementation of the clean energy initiatives in the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law this week will reduce U.S. emissions of greenhouse gases by about 40% by 2030. [more]

U.S. REAL ESTATE | Sales of existing homes in the U.S. fell for the sixth month in a row in July, according to the National Association of Realtors. The industry group says existing home sales fell 5.9% in July, compared to June. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | The Labor Department reported yesterday that the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell by 2,000 to 250,000 in the week ended August 13. The Department further noted that the total number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits in the week ended August 6 rose by 7,000 to 1.43 million. [more]

TRUMP INVESTIGATIONS | A federal judge yesterday gave the Justice Department one week to propose redactions to the affidavit used to support the search warrant for former President Donald Trump's home in Florida. News organizations argued that the unprecedented nature of the search supports releasing the affidavit, while Justice Department officials said doing so would compromise its ongoing investigations. [more]

ANTI-VIOLENCE SUMMIT | The White House announced today that President Joe Biden will host a summit on September 15 aimed at combating hate-fueled violence. Speakers and other participants for the "United We Stand Summit" have not yet been announced. [more]

TRUMP ORGANIZATION | Allen Weisselberg, the former chief financial officer at the Trump Organization, pleaded guilty to 15 charges related to tax evasion yesterday. As part of his plea arrangement, Weisselberg agreed to provide testimony about the Trump Organization's business practices. [more]

LONDON | Almost all of London's Underground rail transit network is halted today due to a one-day strike called by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union over jobs, pay, and pension issues. [more]

NORTH KOREA | In a statement issued yesterday by the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, North Korea rejected a recent offer of major financial aid from South Korea in exchange for the North's denuclearization. [more]

CHINA | Officials at China's National Meteorological Center have issued the country's first national drought alert of the year due to sustained record-high temperatures that are threatening crops and water resources across the Yangtze River basin. [more]

SEMICONDUCTORS | Officials in South Korea said yesterday that their country will participate in a preliminary meeting of the U.S.-led so-called "Chip 4" group of leading microchip manufacturers. Japan and Taiwan are also reported to have been invited to the as-yet unscheduled meeting. [more]

COLLEGE SPORTS | The Big Ten college sports conference announced a football and basketball broadcast deal with Fox, CBS, and NBC worth a reported $7 billion through 2030. [more]

ENTERTAINMENT | The Nielsen company reported yesterday that the time spent watching content from streaming services in July was greater than both broadcast and cable networks for the first time ever. Nielsen says viewers spent 35% of their viewing time on streaming services, 34% on cable networks and 22% on broadcast television. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1960, American pilot Francis Gary Powers was sentenced to 10 years' confinement by the Soviet Union for espionage following the U-2 Affair. Powers was released in 1962 in exchange for the Soviet spy Rudolf Abel. [more history]