August 7, 2024

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR | Updates from day 306 of the conflict:

• Following the July 31 death of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in an Israeli attack, the Palestinian militant group yesterday named Yahya Sinwar, who is reported to have masterminded the October 7 attacks on Israel, as its new leader. [more]
• Reports say Turkey is expected to file a request today to join South Africa’s case before the U.N.’s International Court of Justice in which Israel has been accused of genocide in its actions against Palestinians in Gaza. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 895 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here is your update:

• Ukrainian air and ground forces launched a major offensive on Russia’s western Kursk region yesterday, with Russian President Vladimir Putin calling the action a “major provocation” and claiming that Russian forces have repelled much of the attack. [more]

U.S. POLITICS | Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris announced Minnesota governor Tim Walz as her running mate yesterday. Walz, 60, is a military veteran, a former teacher and football coach, and served in the House of Representatives for 12 years. [more]

TROPICAL STORM DEBBY | States of emergency have been declared in Virginia and North Carolina ahead of expected heavy rains from Tropical Storm Debby after the storm caused widespread flooding in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. At least six deaths have been linked to the storm. [more]

U.S. MARKETS | The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq composite index all ended the day slightly up yesterday, signally a return of calm to U.S. markets following Monday’s massive sell-off. [more]

MARYLAND | The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday upheld Maryland’s decade-old ban on military-style firearms, rejecting arguments from gun rights groups that the 2013 law was unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. The law bans dozens of firearms, including the AR-15, the AK-47 and the Barrett .50-caliber sniper rifle, and puts a 10-round limit on gun magazines. [more]

U.S. AND CONGO | Reuters cites Jeffrey Prescott, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture, as saying the U.S. will provide a new $414 million humanitarian aid package for the Democratic Republic of Congo, where, according to reports, more than 25 million people are in need of such aid. [more]

SOUTH CHINA SEA | Amidst ongoing concern over Chinese territorial claims in the region, the U.S., Australia, Canada, and the Philippines conducted joint air and naval maneuvers today in the South China Sea. In an apparent response, Chinese naval and air units also conducted combat patrols in the region today. [more]

U.K. | British Justice Minister Heidi Alexander yesterday called for tech billionaire Elon Musk to act responsibly amidst ongoing anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim unrest in the U.K. after Musk posted on his social media platform X, formerly Twitter, that civil war is inevitable in the U.K. and accused the British justice system of treating Muslims more leniently than far-right activists. [more]

UAE | Officials at the United Arab Emirates’ Dubai International Airport announced today that the airport served a record 44.9 million travelers in the first half of 2024, putting it on track to break its own record as the world’s busiest airport for international travel. [more]

GERMANY | Authorities in western Germany say at least one person died, four were rescued, and several others remain trapped, following the partial collapse of a hotel today in the town of Kroev. [more]

THAILAND | The opposition Move Forward party, which won the most parliamentary seats in Thailand’s elections last year, was ordered dissolved today by the country’s Constitutional Court, which said the party’s campaign to amend a law protecting the monarchy from criticism risked undermining Thailand’s system of governance. The 143 Move Forward lawmakers in parliament are expected to reorganize under a new party and keep their parliamentary seats. [more]

BANGLADESH | President Mohammed Shahabuddin announced yesterday that Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus will head Bangladesh’s interim government in the wake of the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina following weeks of anti-government protests. [more]

SPACE | NASA announced yesterday that it has delayed its next astronaut launch to the International Space Station from this month to late September to allow more time to analyze thruster and leakage problems with Boeing’s Starliner space capsule. [more]

PARIS OLYMPICS | As of 7 a.m. ET today, the U.S. leads the overall medal count at the Paris Olympics with 86, followed by China, France, Great Britain, and Australia. In other Olympic news:

• The U.S. women’s national soccer team beat Germany, 1-0, in extra time yesterday at the Paris Olympics to advance to the gold medal match against Brazil on Saturday. [more]
• Cuba's Mijain Lopez, 41, ended his career with a win over Yasmani Acosta Fernandez of Chile to win the gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling at the Paris Olympics yesterday, becoming the first Olympic athlete to win gold in the same event at five consecutive Games, and the first wrestler to win five gold medals. [more]
• The U.S. won two gold medals, and five overall, in track and field events at the Paris Olympics yesterday, including wins by Gabby Thomas in the women’s 200-meter race and by Cole Hocker in the men’s 1,500-meter race. [more]
• The U.S. men's basketball team beat Brazil, 122-87, yesterday to advance to Thursday’s semi-finals at the Paris Olympics, in which they will play Serbia. [more]

BASEBALL | With a 5-1 win over the Oakland Athletics last night, the Chicago White Sox snapped their MLB American League record-tying losing streak at 21 games. [more]

ENTERTAINMENT AWARDS | Nominations for the MTV Video Music Awards were announced yesterday, led by Taylor Swift with 10 nominations and Post Malone with nine. Artist of the Year nominees include Ariana Grande, Bad Bunny, Eminem, Sabrine Carpenter, SZA, and Taylor Swift. [full nomination list] [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1819, South American insurgents led by Simón Bolívar defeated Spanish forces at the Battle of Boyacá, which freed New Granada, now Colombia and Venezuela, from Spanish control. [more history]