September 7, 2022

UKRAINE | Today is day 196 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• A report released yesterday from the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency calls for the establishment of a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. The report also detailed multiple areas of damage to the plant and warned about high-pressure working conditions that could lead to human errors in operating the plant. [more]
• Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that the terms of a U.N.-brokered deal allowing the export of Ukrainian grain via the Black Sea are not being observed, and that most of the exported grain was going to the EU instead of to poorer countries -- a charge that Ukrainian officials denied. [more]
• Citing security, moral, and political issues, the foreign ministers of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia said today that their countries plan to restrict the entry of Russian citizens traveling from Russia and Belarus. [more]

TRUMP INVESTIGATIONS | The Washington Post reports that among the documents seized from former President Donald Trump's home last month were items detailing a foreign government’s military defenses, including its nuclear capabilities. The Post report does not identify the foreign government discussed in the documents, nor does it indicate whether the foreign government is friendly or hostile to the United States. [more]

U.S. EXTREMISM | A report released by the Anti-Defamation League Center on Extremism says leaked membership data from the far-right Oath Keepers group shows that more than 370 people believed to work for U.S. law enforcement agencies and more than 80 who are running for or served in public office are members of the group. The Oath Keepers' membership list, containing some 38,000 names, was published in a database by the transparency group Distributed Denial of Secrets. [more]

JANUARY 6 | A New Mexico state district court judge yesterday barred Otero County commissioner Couy Griffin from holding federal or local public office for engaging in insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The case against Griffin is one of a number of similar actions across the U.S. taken against January 6 attack participants under provisions of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which holds that anyone who has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution can be barred from office for engaging in insurrection or rebellion. [more]

U.S. POLITICS AND MILITARY | In an open letter published yesterday on the website War on the Rocks, eight former U.S. Defense secretaries and five former chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff warned of the dangers of extreme political divisiveness in the U.S. and laid out core principles for military-civilian relations. [more]

E-CIGARETTES | Electronic cigarette maker Juul Labs yesterday agreed to pay $438.5 million to settle a 33-state investigation into the company's marketing of its high-nicotine vaping products. The settlement also includes various restrictions on how Juul can market its products. [more]

SOMALIA | U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said yesterday that up to $1 billion in new aid will be needed to avert famine in Somalia in the coming months amidst the country's ongoing historic drought. [more]

ENERGY COSTS | European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson said yesterday that she expects EU energy ministers to adopt a package of measures next week aimed at addressing the bloc-wide energy crisis and related price spikes. [more]

U.K. | In her first speech as prime minister, Liz Truss said yesterday that she plans to cut taxes to bolster economic growth, strengthen the National Health System, and release details on proposals to deal with the U.K. energy crisis and costs in the coming days. [more]

PAKISTAN | Reports say the death toll from ongoing widespread flooding in Pakistan has risen to 1,343. Visiting affected regions today, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said parts of the country look "like a sea." [more]

CHINA | Authorities in China's southwestern Sichuan province say the death toll from Monday's earthquake in the region has risen to 74 and that another 26 people remain missing. [more]

ALBANIA | Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said today that his country is ending diplomatic ties with Iran and ordering Iranian diplomats to leave the country following an investigation that he said shows Iran orchestrated and sponsored a large-scale cyberattack against Albania in July. [more]

LITERATURE | Finalists for the 2022 Booker Prize for fiction writing were announced yesterday and include works by authors from the U.S., Britain, Ireland, Zimbabwe, and Sri Lanka. Among the finalists are the oldest-ever Booker nominee -- Alan Garner, age 87, for his novel "Treacle Walker" -- and the shortest-ever nominated work -- Claire Keegan's "Small Things Like These." The 2022 winner will be announced October 17 in London. [full nominee list] [more]

TECHNOLOGY | Apple is expected to announce a new range of iPhone 14 models, as well as a new Apple Watch model, at its "Far Out" event today in Cupertino, California. [more]

SEMICONDUCTORS | Citing security concerns, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo announced yesterday that companies that receive funding from the $50 billion CHIPS and Science Act signed into law last month will be prohibited for a decade from building advanced technology facilities in China. [more]

WNBA | The Las Vegas Aces beat the Seattle Storm, 97-92, last night to advance to the 2022 WNBA finals. The game marked the end of Seattle legend Sue Bird's basketball career, during which she won four WNBA titles, five Olympic gold medals, and two collegiate titles, and was the WNBA's all-time leader in assists and games played. [more]

TENNIS | At the U.S. Open yesterday: Caroline Garcia beat Coco Gauff to reach the tournament's women's semi-final round, and, on the men's side, Karen Khachanov defeated Nick Kyrgios to advance to the semifinals. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1901, with the signing of the Boxer Protocol, the Boxer Rebellion peasant uprising, which unsuccessfully sought to drive all foreigners out of China, officially ended. [more history]