April 29, 2024

Programming note: Due to various circumstances, we will be unable to produce the Daily Brief from Wednesday through Friday of this week. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to resuming full service on Monday, May 6.

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR | Updates from day 206 of the conflict:

• U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Saudi Arabia today – his seventh visit to the Middle East since the beginning of the current Israel-Hamas conflict. Blinken’s trip will include stops in Jordan and Israel for talks expected to focus largely on Israel’s plans for a ground offensive in Rafah, concerns of regional violence escalating into a wider conflict, the need for increased humanitarian aid in Gaza, and ongoing negotiations for a cease-fire. [more]
• Palestinian health officials say at least 22 people were killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes on the southern Gaza city of Rafah. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 795 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Ukrainian army chief Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi said yesterday a strengthened Russian offensive has forced Ukrainian troops to retreat from the villages of Berdychi, Semenivka, and Novomykhailivka in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region. [more]
• According to the Russian Defense Ministry, 17 Ukrainian drones were shot down in four southwestern Russian regions on Sunday. On Saturday, more than 60 drones and 30 missiles were launched by Russia, with most targeting Ukrainian energy infrastructure. [more]

OKLAHOMA | Authorities say at least four people were killed, and more than 100 others were injured, in a series of tornadoes and powerful storms that struck Oklahoma over the weekend. Gov. Kevin Stitt has declared a state of emergency for 12 of Oklahoma’s counties due to damage from the severe weather. [more]

LOUISIANA | The New Orleans area Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office says three police officers were wounded yesterday in a standoff with a man who was later killed by a police sharpshooter. [more]

COLLEGE PROTESTS | Reports say about 275 people were arrested in connection with ongoing pro-Palestinian and counter-protests at colleges across the U.S. over the weekend. [more]

U.S. ENVIRONMENT | Under a newly finalized Department of Energy rule, new federal buildings and those undergoing major renovations will be required to phase out the use of fossil fuel-generated energy by 2030. The department estimates that, over 30 years, the move “will reduce carbon emissions from federal buildings by 2 million metric tons and methane emissions by 16 thousand tons—an amount roughly equivalent to the emissions generated by nearly 310,000 homes in one year.” [press release] [more]

HIV | In its latest Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports on what it says are the first known cases of HIV infection through the use of contaminated needles used in cosmetic injections. The infections occurred in three women who underwent cosmetic procedures at a New Mexico medical spa from 2018 through 2023. [full report] [more]

KENYA | Education officials in Kenya say schools in the East African country will remain closed through May 6 due to recent widespread flooding that has damaged more than 100 schools and resulted in the deaths of at least 93 people. [more]

CAMBODIA | Prime Minister Hun Manet says 20 soldiers were killed, and several others were wounded, Saturday in an ammunition explosion at a military base in Cambodia’s southwestern Kampong Speu province. [more]

CHINA | A tornado struck portions of Guangzhou, the capital and largest city of southern China’s Guangdong province, on Saturday, killing at least five people and injuring at least 33 others. [more]

DUBAI | The ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, announced yesterday that Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest for international travel, will move its operations to the site of the city-state’s southern Al Maktoum International Airport within the next 10 years in a project estimated to cost nearly $35 billion. [more]

SCOTLAND | Humza Yousaf resigned from his position as Scotland’s first minister today in a move that analysts say gives the U.K. opposition Labour Party an opening to make gains in the Scottish parliament. [more]

JAPAN | The value of the Japanese yen rose against the U.S. dollar this morning due to suspected Japanese government intervention after the currency fell to a 34-year low against the dollar earlier in the day. The yen has fallen 11% against the dollar so far this year. [more]

OLYMPIC GAMES | Organizers of this summer’s Paris Olympics took possession of the Olympic flame on Friday in a ceremony at the stadium where the first modern Games were held in Athens in 1896. [more]

GOLF | Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans team event yesterday, closing with a par on the first playoff hole to beat Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer. The win was McIlroy's 25th PGA Tour victory and Lowry’s third. [more]

HOLLYWOOD | Nicole Kidman was awarded the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award last night in a star-studded evening of tributes to the Academy Award-, BAFTA-, Emmy-, and Golden Globe Award-winning actress. [more]

WEEKEND MOVIES | "Challengers" topped the North American box office over the weekend with an estimated $15 million in receipts, followed by "Unsung Hero" and "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire." [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1429, French national heroine Joan of Arc and her troops entered the besieged city of Orléans during the Hundred Years' War. [more history]