February 22, 2023

UKRAINE | Today is day 363 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• U.S. President Joe Biden will meet with leaders of countries on NATO’s eastern flank today in Warsaw, Poland, to discuss ongoing security threats and other impacts from the war in Ukraine. [more]
• Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, yesterday accused Russian military leaders of “treason” for allegedly refusing to supply Wagner forces with ammunition for operations in Ukraine. [more]

SUPREME COURT | The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments today in its second case of the week centering on the potential liability of internet service companies for content posted on their platforms. Today’s case involves claims by the family of a man killed in a terrorist attack in Istanbul that Google, Twitter, and Facebook aided and abetted the attack because they assisted in the growth of the Islamic State group. [more]

IMMIGRATION | The U.S. Homeland Security and Justice Departments announced a proposed rule yesterday under which asylum requests from migrants would generally be denied if they do not first seek protection in a third country through which they pass in order to reach the U.S. border with Mexico. [more]

JANUARY 6 | U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has reportedly given Fox News host Tucker Carlson exclusive access to thousands of hours of video surveillance footage from the January 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol — a move critics have condemned as a potentially grave breach of security. [more]

OHIO | The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency yesterday ordered Norfolk Southern, the rail carrier that operated the freight train that derailed and released hazardous chemicals near East Palestine, Ohio, in early February, to pay for environmental and both residential and business cleanup associated with the incident and its resulting chemical release. [EPA statement and order] [more]

MORMON CHURCH | The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced yesterday that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the Mormon church, along with its associated investment arm, Ensign Peak Advisers, has been fined $5 million for obscuring the extent of the church’s investments through the use of shell companies. [more]

MALCOLM X | On yesterday’s anniversary of the 1965 assassination of civil rights leader Malcolm X, members of his family announced plans to sue multiple government agencies, including the FBI, CIA and New York Police Department, saying in an initial filing that the agencies “acted, and failed to act, in such a way as to bring about the wrongful death of Malcolm X.” [more]

VIRGINIA | Democrat Jennifer McClellan was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in Virginia’s 4th District yesterday, becoming the first Black woman from the state to be elected to Congress. McClellan, who defeated Republican nominee Leon Benjamin, will fill the seat left vacant following the death of Democratic Rep. Donald McEachin in November. [more]

SEATTLE | The Seattle, Washington, city council voted yesterday to outlaw discrimination based on caste — the hereditary transmission of social and economic status as typified historically in India — becoming what is thought to be the first U.S. city to implement such a measure. [more]

ISRAL AND WEST BANK | Palestinian health officials say at least nine Palestinians were killed, and more than 100 wounded, today in a raid by Israeli security forces on the West Bank city of Nablus. Reports say the violence was prompted by Israeli forces blocking off all entrances to the city before surrounding a home in which at least two wanted Palestinian fighters were hiding. [more]

GLOBAL FINANCE | Finance ministers and central bank governors from the G-20 group of leading global economies are meeting this week in Bengaluru, India, where discussion topics are expected to include climate finance, digital currencies, global tax issues, rising inflation, debt levels, and the economic impacts of the war in Ukraine. [more]

SYRIA | Reuters cites unnamed sources as saying that a Sunday rocket attack on the Syrian capital of Damascus, which Syria blamed on Israel, targeted a meeting of Iranian and Syrian officials where drone and missile capabilities and advancements were being discussed. [more]

CHINA | Reports say at least two people have died and more than 50 others remain missing following a coal mine tunnel collapse today in China’s northern Inner Mongolia region. [more]

MALI | The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali reports that three U.N. peacekeepers were killed, and five others wounded, yesterday by a roadside bomb in central Mali. According to U.N. officials, 168 peacekeepers have been killed in Mali since 2013. [U.N. statement] [more]

MADAGASCAR | International weather agencies say hundreds of thousands of people in Madagascar will likely be affected by flooding and storm surges caused by Cyclone Freddy, which reached the southeast African island nation yesterday with wind gusts of about 111 mph. Government officials say at least four deaths have already been caused by the storm. [more]

MIGRATION and ASYLUM | According to the European Union Agency for Asylum’s annual overview report, 966,000 people applied for asylum in E.U. countries plus Norway and Switzerland in 2022 — up about 50% from 2021 and the most since 2016. The largest groups of asylum applicants were Syrians, Afghans, Turks, Venezuelans and Colombians. [more]

SOCCER | The women’s national teams from Haiti and Portugal have qualified for the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time after beating Chile and Cameroon, respectively, in matches in New Zealand yesterday. The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup begins in July. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1932, the Purple Heart, a U.S. military decoration originally instituted by George Washington in 1782 to honor bravery in battle, was revived as an award for those wounded or killed in action against an enemy. [more history]