September 8, 2022

Special afternoon update: Britain's Queen Elizabeth II died today, September 8, 2022, at Balmoral Castle in Scotland the age of 96.

• Elizabeth II was Britain's longest-reigning monarch, having been on the throne for 70 years.
• Her reign covered the terms of 15 prime ministers, from Winston Churchill to the newly installed Liz Truss, who the queen met with just two days ago.
• Her 73-year-old son Prince Charles automatically became king upon Elizabeth II's death, though his coronation is not expected to take place for several months.
• Speaking outside Downing Street following the death of the queen, U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss said, "Britain is the great country it is today because of her," "We are now a modern, thriving, dynamic nation. Through thick and thin, Queen Elizabeth II provided us with the stability and the strength that we needed," and "It’s an extraordinary achievement to have presided with such dignity and grace for 70 years."
• Details of Elizabeth II's state funeral are expected to be announced in the coming days.

Related links of interest:

• The process by which Charles's accession to the throne is formalized (Reuters)
• Updated Encyclopedia Britannica biography of Elizabeth II
• World leaders and politicians: reactions to Elizabeth II's death (Reuters)
• BBC Coverage: Obituary | A life in pictures | Commentary: Death of Queen Elizabeth II: The moment history stops

---

UKRAINE | Today is day 197 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Meeting with allied military leaders in Germany today, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said President Joe Biden has approved a new $675 million military aid package for Ukraine. [more]
• EU energy ministers are scheduled to consider implementing a price cap on Russian natural gas when they meet tomorrow in Brussels. Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened to completely cut off energy supplies to Western nations if such a price cap is put into effect. [more]
• Speaking before the U.N. Security Council yesterday, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said that the U.S. has evidence that between 900,000 and 1.6 million Ukrainians have been interrogated, detained, and forcibly deported to Russia since the invasion of Ukraine began. [more]

U.K. | According to a statement this morning from Buckingham Palace, Queen Elizabeth II has been placed under medical supervision at Balmoral Castle in Scotland due to concerns about her health. [more]

TENNESSEE | Four people were killed, and three others wounded, yesterday by a man who shot people, apparently at random, while he drove around Memphis, Tennessee, for several hours. Police arrested the suspect, Ezekiel Kelly, 19, at about 9pm last night. [more]

CANADA | Police in Canada say Myles Sanderson, 32, the second suspect in the weekend stabbing deaths of 10 people in the province of Saskatchewan died last night after going into medical distress following his arrest. Details of the cause of Sanderson's death have not yet been reported. [more]

CALIFORNIA | Authorities in California's Placer and El Dorado counties issued evacuation orders and warnings yesterday after a wildfire in the area grew to cover nearly 6.5 square miles. [more]

BANNON | Steve Bannon, the longtime advisor to former President Donald Trump, is scheduled to appear in court today in New York to face state charges related to the misuse of funds donated to the “We Build the Wall” project that raised money for construction of the U.S.-Mexico border wall. Bannon was pardoned by President Trump on related federal charges. [more]

HURRICANE | The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Earl is expected to strengthen into a Category 3 storm later today as it approaches Bermuda. The storm is expected to head northeastward after passing Bermuda, avoiding the U.S East Coast. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | Fed Vice Chair Lael Brainard said yesterday that the Federal Reserve will likely need to continue raising interest rates "for some time" to bring inflation down to the Fed's target level of 2%. [more]

EUROPEAN ECONOMY | The European Central Bank is expected to raise its benchmark interest rate by between half and three quarters of a percentage point when the bank's governing council meets today in Frankfurt. [more]

U.K. ENERGY | Ahead of an expected 80% hike in U.K. energy rates in October, Prime Minister Liz Truss today announced that annual household energy bills will be capped for the next two years at about 2,500 pounds ($2,885). Reports say the two-year plan is likely to cost about 150 billion pounds. [more]

MALARIA | In a study published yesterday in the journal Lancet Infectious Diseases, researchers at the University of Oxford say they have developed a new malaria vaccine that provides up to 80% protection against the disease and is cheaper and more easily manufactured than current alternatives. [full study] [more]

VIETNAM | The Vietnam News Agency reports that the death toll from a fire at a karaoke parlor in the city of Thuan An on Tuesday has risen to 32 and that some areas of the building remain inaccessible due to high temperatures from the smoldering fire. [more]

UGANDA | Officials in Uganda say at least 16 people died yesterday in landslides brought on by heavy rains this week in the African nation's western district of Kasese. [more]

GREECE | In an effort to reduce public sector energy use by 10% this year, and by 30% by 2030, the Greek government has tied implementation of energy saving measures to funding for government branches. [more]

SOLOMON ISLANDS | The Solomon Islands parliament voted yesterday to postpone the South Pacific island nation's general election from 2023 to 2024. Opponents say the move amounts to a power grab by the government of Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, while Sogavare himself says it was necessary because the country is hosting the Pacific Games next year. [more]

TENNIS | Frances Tiafoe beat Andrey Rublev at the U.S. Open yesterday, becoming the first American man to reach the tournament's semifinals since 2006. [more]

COUNTRY MUSIC | Nominees for the 2022 Country Music Association Awards were announced yesterday. Top nominees were Lainey Wilson with nominations in six categories, and Ashley McBryde, Carly Pearce, Chris Stapleton, and writer-producer Shane McAnally with five nominations each. [full list of nominations] [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1941, German and Finnish armies began their World War II siege of Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), Russia, which lasted for 872 days. [more history]