September 6, 2023

UKRAINE | Today is day 559 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Kyiv today, where he is expected to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to discuss Ukraine’s ongoing counteroffensive and reconstruction efforts. [more]
• Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said yesterday that Ukrainian forces’ ongoing counteroffensive efforts have made the Zaporizhzhia region of southeast Ukraine the current focus of the war. [more]

JANUARY 6 | Enrique Tarrio, former national chairman of the far-right Proud Boys group, was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison yesterday for his role in the January 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol. Tarrio was convicted earlier this year of seditious conspiracy and other charges related to the attacks and his sentence is the longest yet given to any January 6 defendant. [more]

NEW YORK CITY | In a court filing yesterday that resolves lawsuits stemming from police action during street protests sparked by the 2020 death of George Floyd, the New York City Police Department agreed to reform its responses to such protests by creating a new senior executive role to oversee responses to demonstrations, allowing more press freedom to cover marches, and establishing a four-tiered response to protests designed to de-escalate conflict and prevent excessive use of force. [more]

GEORGIA | According to an indictment released by Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr yesterday, sixty-one people have been charged under the state's racketeering law in connection with protests against the building of an Atlanta-area police and firefighter training facility that critics have dubbed "Cop City." Many of those charged are already facing related individual indictments for crimes including domestic terrorism, intimidation, and money laundering. [more]

ALABAMA | A three-judge federal panel said yesterday that Alabama’s latest congressional districting map does not create a second Black-majority district mandated in a previous ruling and, therefore, does not comply with the Voting Rights Act – a ruling that legislators are expected to appeal. The panel appointed a special master to propose new maps creating such a district by September 25. [more]

HAWAII | Lawyers pursuing a class action lawsuit against Hawaiian Electric Company in connection with last month’s wildfires on the island of Maui said in the court filing yesterday that cable TV and telephone companies could share responsibility for the fires due to possible overloading and destabilization of some of the electric company’s poles. [more]

U.S. AND CHINA | The Wall Street Journal reports that the U.S. Department of Defense is considering the deployment of a large network of artificial intelligence-based technology, including drones and other autonomous systems, over the next two years to counter threats from China. [more]

CLIMATE AND WEATHER | According to the World Meteorological Organization, last month was the hottest August on record and the second hottest month ever after July 2023. Additionally, August saw the highest global monthly average sea surface temperatures on record across all months, at 20.98 degrees Celsius, or 69.764 degrees Fahrenheit. [press release] [more]

BRAZIL | Authorities in Brazil’s southern Rio Grande do Sul state say at least 21 people died, and more than 1,600 were left homeless, this week due to a severe extratropical cyclone storm that affected some 60 cities and towns in the region. [more]

CHINA | Speaking today at the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Chinese Premier Li Qiang warned of the danger of a “new Cold War,” and said that countries around the world need to “appropriately handle differences and disputes.” [more]

SUDAN | The United Nations’ International Organization for Migration said yesterday that 3.8 million people in Sudan have been internally displaced, and another 1 million people have fled to other countries, since the mid-April onset of conflict between the country’s military and paramilitary forces. The organization also notes that the conflict has caused a severe humanitarian crisis in Sudan due to shortages of food, water, medicines, and fuel. [more]

RUSSIA | The British government plans to designate Russia’s Wagner mercenary group a terrorist organization, according to U.K. interior minister Suella Braverman, who characterized the group as “violent and destructive” and said it acts as a “military tool of Vladimir Putin's Russia overseas.” [more]

AFRICA | At the first Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi yesterday, Kenyan President William Ruto said that climate change is “relentlessly eating away” at Africa’s economic development and suggested that the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases are not paying their fair share for the effects of pollution on Africa and other parts of the world. [more]

OIL PRODUCTION | Both Saudi Arabia and Russia announced yesterday that they will extend their existing voluntary oil production cuts to the end of 2023, prompting a temporary spike in global oil prices. [more]

COLLEGE FOOTBALL | In the first AP Top 25 rankings of the college football season, Georgia is No. 1, followed by Michigan, Alabama, Florida State, and Ohio State. Additionally, Duke and Colorado entered the rankings at 21st and 22nd following marquee weekend wins over Clemson and TCU, respectively. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1901, William McKinley, the 25th president of the United States, was shot by anarchist Leon Czolgosz at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. McKinley died eight days later. [more history]