October 9, 2023

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR | Updates on day three of the conflict:

• Israeli officials say at least 1,000 Israelis have been killed since the onset of Hamas' Palestinian militant attacks began on Saturday, including 260 reported to have been killed at a music festival in southern Israel. Hamas officials say at least 460 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli retaliatory strikes that are ongoing. [more]
• In the aftermath of Saturday’s attack, the Israeli security cabinet has declared a state of war and has authorized a comprehensive military response against Palestinian militants and Gaza. [more]
• As many as 130 hostages are being held in Gaza, according to Hamas and other Palestinian groups. The U.S. and U.K. have confirmed that they have citizens among those either killed or abducted. [more]
• Israel’s chief military spokesperson, Rear-Admiral Daniel Hagari, said this morning that a record 300,000 Israeli military reservists have been called up to active duty in the wake of Saturday’s attacks. [more]
• The U.S. announced yesterday that the U.S. Navy’s Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier battle group has been ordered to move to the eastern Mediterranean to provide support to Israel and act as a show-of-force to deter regional escalation of the fighting. [more]
• Fighting continues this morning, with Hamas rocket attacks reported in multiple Israeli regions, ongoing Israeli missile and aircraft retaliatory strikes on Gaza, and significant Israeli ground force buildups in the areas surrounding Gaza. [more]
• Israeli military officials have ordered a “complete siege” of Gaza, cutting off electricity, as well as food, fuel, and water supplies to the Palestinian enclave. [more]
• Citing senior Hamas and Hezbollah members, the Wall Street Journal reports that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard worked with Hamas beginning in August to plan this weekend’s attack on Israel. Israeli and U.S. officials have stated, however, that there is no evidence, as yet, directly tying Iran to the Hamas attack, and Iran has denied involvement in the Hamas actions. [more]
• An emergency U.N. Security Council meeting on the situation in Israel was held yesterday, with no specific action having been taken despite a reported U.S. demand that the Council unanimously condemn the Hamas attack on Israel. [more]
• Oil and oil futures prices surged following the Hamas attack on Israel amidst concerns of supply disruptions and the potential for the conflict to expand in the Middle East region. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 592 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• A recent report from the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank says recent satellite imagery of increased rail traffic along the North Korea-Russia border may indicate the onset of North Korea supplying munitions to Russia for use in Ukraine, a situation considered increasingly possible since last month’s meetings between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin. [more]
• Oleksandr Prokudin, governor of southern Ukraine’s Kherson region, says 59 Russian drone and missile attacks on the area were carried out by Russia overnight, resulting in damage to several houses and gas pipelines, as well as injuries to at least 12 people. [more]

NOBEL PRIZES | Harvard University professor Claudia Goldin has been named the winner of the 2023 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for her research advancing the understanding of the gender gap in labor and employment markets. [more]

U.S. GUN VIOLENCE | Pennsylvania state police say one person was killed, and eight others were wounded, early Sunday when gunfire broke out during a private party being held at a community center in White Township. No arrests have been made in the case and police have asked the approximately 150 attendees of the party to come forward with any information they may have on the incident. [more]

U.S. EMPLOYMENT | The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that U.S. employers added 336,000 jobs in September – more than double the number economists had predicted – and that the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.8% for the month. [full report] [more]

CALIFORNIA | Putting into place what reports say is the most comprehensive such mandate in the U.S., California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law Saturday that requires large businesses in the state to file annual reports detailing their direct and indirect emissions, including from production, store operations, employee business travel, and product transportation. [more]

HAWAII | Limited tourist activity resumed this weekend in western Maui following a government push to boost local economies in and around Lahaina in the aftermath of devastating wildfires in the region two months ago. [more]

U.S. POLITICS | Reports say Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is expected to announce today that he will end his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination and will, instead, run as an independent. [more]

U.S. LABOR | United Auto Workers leaders said Friday that would be no immediate expansion of the union’s strike against the Big 3 U.S. automakers, citing progress in contract talks. In separate UAW action, union workers at Mack Trucks voted yesterday to begin a strike against Mack parent company Volvo Trucks today over pay and benefit issues. [more]

AFGHANISTAN | Taliban government officials say at least 2,000 people were killed when a 6.3-magnitude earthquake and several strong aftershocks struck Afghanistan’s Herat province Saturday. Neighboring China and Pakistan have publicly offered aid in recovery efforts, and humanitarian groups have called for more aid from the international community. [more]

INDIA | Officials in India’s Sikkim state say the death toll from last week’s flooding in the region has risen to 74, and that at least 101 people remain missing. [more]

GERMANY | Incoming and outgoing flights at Germany’s Hamburg airport were suspended today after a security threat concerning a flight arriving from Iran was received via e-mail. The airport has not yet given an estimate on when flights will resume. [more]

ECUADOR | Seven men accused of roles in the August assassination of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio were killed over the weekend in a Quito-region prison at which they were being held. The killings came about a week before Ecuador holds its presidential runoff election. [more]

GYMNASTICS | The U.S. team won their seventh straight team championship at the gymnastics world championships in Antwerp, Belgium, which concluded yesterday. The U.S. team was led by superstar Simone Biles, who finished with four gold medals and one silver, and claimed her sixth individual all-around title. [more]

GOLF | Luke List won a five-way playoff yesterday to claim his second career PGA title, winning the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Mississippi. In women’s play, South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim won the Ascendant LPGA tournament in Texas by four shots. [more]

SOCCER | Arsenal are tied with Tottenham Hotspur atop the English Premier League following their 1-0 win over Manchester City yesterday. The Arsenal win was their first Premier League victory over Manchester City since 2015. [more]

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE | "The Exorcist: Believer" topped the North American box office over the weekend with an estimated $27.2 million in receipts, followed by "PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie" and "Saw X." [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | Built between 1848 and 1884 and dedicated in 1885, the Washington Monument—a marble-faced granite obelisk that honors the first U.S. president, George Washington—opened to the public in Washington, D.C., on this date in 1888.  [more history]