May 4, 2023

UKRAINE | Today is day 434 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Ukraine and the U.S. have denied responsibility for a drone attack on the Kremlin yesterday that Russian authorities say was a U.S-approved Ukrainian attempt to assassinate President Vladimir Putin. Ukrainian officials have suggested that the Russian claims could be used in an attempt to justify increased strikes on Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure. [more]
• During a visit to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Russian officials must face justice for war crimes committed in the invasion of Ukraine. [more]

U.S. GUN VIOLENCE | One person was killed, and four others were wounded, yesterday when a man opened fire in the waiting room of an Atlanta, Georgia, medical practice. The suspect in the case, 24-year-old Deion Patterson, was arrested in nearby Cobb County hours after the shooting. [more]

FLORIDA | The conservative-led House and Senate in Florida yesterday approved bills that ban the use of state and federal funding for diversity programs in colleges and prevent students and teachers from being required to use pronouns that don’t correspond to someone’s sex. Governor Ron DeSantis has indicated he will sign the bills into law. [more]

SUDAN | U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths is in Sudan today, where he is seeking agreements on the safe passage of humanitarian aid deliveries from warring parties in the country’s weeks-old conflict that has killed more than 500 people and displaced some 330,000 others. [more]

ORGANIZED CRIME | Police in multiple European countries carried out coordinated raids yesterday in a move aimed at dismantling operations of Italy’s ’ndrangheta organized crime syndicate. Arrest warrants were served in Italy, Germany, Belgium, France, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, and Spain. [more]

INDIA | As many as 10,000 people, mostly members of the Christian minority, are reported to have taken part in protest marches yesterday against demands for special status for the Hindu majority in India’s northeastern Manipur state. Military personnel were deployed to the region overnight to enforce a curfew and quell clashes between the rival factions. [more]

ETHIOPIA | Both the U.S. and U.N. have announced the suspension of food aid deliveries to Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region while investigations take place into the theft of large amounts of humanitarian supplies. [more]

RWANDA | The Rwanda Broadcasting Agency reports that at least 129 people have died in floods and landslides caused by heavy rains in recent days in the African nation’s western and northern regions. [more]

ISRAEL AND WEST BANK | Reports say three Palestinian militants wanted in connection with an April attack that killed a British-Israeli woman and two of her daughters were killed by Israeli forces today in a raid in the West Bank city of Nablus. The Hamas militant group, which claimed responsibility for the April attack, says the three Palestinians were members of the group. [more]

ITALY | Reports from Italy’s northern Emilia-Romagna region say a day and a half of non-stop rain in the area has caused flooding and landslides that killed at least two people and prompted the evacuation of about 500 others. [more]

VACCINE APPROVAL | The U.S. Food and Drug Administration yesterday recommended approval of the world’s first vaccine to prevent infection with respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV — a respiratory illness that causes mild, cold-like symptoms in most people, but that kills 6,000 to 10,000 people and causes 60,000 to 120,000 hospitalizations in the U.S. annually. The Arexvy vaccine, from drugmaker GSK, still requires approval from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before being made available to the public. [more]

DRUG SUPPLY | Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk says it will significantly cut supplies of starter doses of its Wegovy weight loss drug to the U.S. to cope with supply issues amidst high demand for the prescription medication. [more]

HORSE RACING | The death of four horses at Churchill Downs racetrack in the week leading up to the facility’s 2023 Kentucky Derby has prompted investigations. Reports say two of the horses died following races earlier this week, while the other two suffered musculoskeletal injuries that led to them being euthanized. [more]

HOLLYWOOD | Late actress Carrie Fisher today joins her “Star Wars” film franchise co-stars Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill in having a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The recognition comes on the day of the annual “May the Fourth” celebration — a play on the films’ “May the Force be with you” line. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1959, the first Grammy Awards ceremonies were held simultaneously at locations in Beverly Hills, California, and New York, New York. Winners included Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and the Kingston Trio.  [more history]