May 8, 2023

UKRAINE | Today is day 438 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Authorities in Kyiv say Russia launched its largest wave of drone strikes on Ukraine in months today, firing some 60 Iranian-made kamikaze drones at Ukrainian targets, including at least 35 aimed at Kyiv. Ukrainian military officials say all the drones targeting Kyiv were shot down, but that at least five people were wounded by falling debris. [more]
• Ukrainian air force officials say their troops were able to shoot down, for the first time, a Russian hypersonic missile Saturday using newly acquired American Patriot air defense systems. [more]
• Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said over the weekend that the safety of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which is controlled by Russian forces, is “increasingly unpredictable” following reports that Russia has begun evacuating residents from Russian-occupied areas close to the plant. [more]
• Reports say many mass celebrations of tomorrow’s Victory Day anniversary in Russia have been cancelled due to concerns that events could be targets for Ukrainian attacks. [more]

U.S. GUN VIOLENCE | Eight people were killed, and seven others wounded, Saturday afternoon when a man identified by police as 33-year-old Mauricio Garcia opened fire with an AR-15-style rifle at an outlet mall in Allen, Texas. Investigators say Garcia, who was killed at the scene by a police officer who was in the area on an unrelated call, appears to have had interests in white supremacist and neo-Nazi views, but that his motivation for the shooting is still under investigation. [more]

U.S. DEBT LIMIT | Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned yesterday of an economic calamity if Congress does not raise the federal government’s debt limit in the coming weeks, causing a first-ever federal default on debt, which could happen as early as June 1. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that U.S. employers added 253,000 non-farm jobs in April — up from 165,000 in March — and that the national unemployment rate fell to 3.4%, matching a 54-year low. [more]

TEXAS | At least eight people died, and 10 others were injured, yesterday when an SUV driven by a yet-unidentified man slammed into a crowd of people waiting at a bus stop outside a Brownsville, Texas, migrant shelter. Police say it is not yet clear if the incident was intentional. [more]

OVERSIGHT SHOWDOWN | Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken could be held in contempt of Congress if the State Department does not comply with a subpoena to turn over classified documents related to the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan. [more]

TRUMP INVESTIGATIONS | Closing arguments are scheduled to take place before a Manhattan federal court jury in the civil trial filed against Donald Trump by writer E. Jean Carroll, who has accused the former president of raping her in the 1990s and of later defaming her. [more]

CANADA | Officials in the Canadian province of Alberta say about 29,000 residents have been evacuated due to more than 100 active wildfires in the region, where a province-wide state of emergency was declared over the weekend. [more]

CONGO | Reports from the Democratic Republic of the Congo say the death toll from recent flooding caused by heavy rains in the Central African country has risen to about 400. [more]

PERU | Reports say at least 27 mine workers were killed over the weekend in a fire that broke out deep in a gold mine in Yanaquihua in Peru’s Arequipa region. [more]

IRAN | Iran’s Mizan news agency, which is associated with the country’s judiciary, says two men were executed for blasphemy in the country’s Arak prison today after having insulted Islam’s Prophet Muhammad and promoting atheism. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom says the two men were convicted of blasphemy in 2020 after  taking part in an online discussion group called “Critique of Superstition and Religion.” [more]

INDIA | Officials in India’s Kerala state say at least 22 people, mostly tourists, died yesterday when an overcrowded boat capsized in an estuary of the Poorappuzha River near the town of Tanur. [more]

SOUTH KOREA AND JAPAN | In a visit to Seoul yesterday aimed at strengthening Japanese and South Korean ties, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed his sympathy for the suffering of Korean forced laborers during Japan’s colonial rule of Korea. [more]

SYRIA | Foreign ministers of the Arab League voted yesterday to reinstate Syria’s membership in the organization more than a decade after it was suspended due to the Syrian government’s crackdown on opposition movements. [more]

AIR TRAVEL | U.S. President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg are expected to propose new rules today that would require airlines to compensate and cover expenses for customers facing “controllable airline cancellations” or delays. [more]

HORSE RACING | 15-1 contender Mage, ridden by Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano, won Saturday’s 2023 Kentucky Derby, followed by Two Phil's and Angel of Empire. [full results] [more]

ENTERTAINMENT AWARDS | At last night’s MTV Movie & TV Awards, for which the live show was cancelled due to the ongoing screenwriters’ strike: “Scream VI” won the award for best movie, “The Last of Us” won for best TV show, Tom Cruise received the prize for best performance in a movie for “Top Gun: Maverick,” and Jenna Ortega won for best performance in a TV show for “Wednesday.” [full awardee list] [more]

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE | "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" topped the North American box office over the weekend with an estimated $114 million in receipts, followed by "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" and "Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret." [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | following Germany's unconditional surrender, World War II in Europe officially ended at midnight on this date in 1945, although the war in the Pacific continued until the Japanese surrender in September. [more history]