July 30, 2024

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR | Updates from day 298 of the conflict:

• Reports say thousands of Palestinians have begun returning to their homes in the eastern portions of the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis after Israeli forces ended a week-long incursion into the area. [more]
• Israeli military officials say right-wing Israeli protesters broke into two military compounds yesterday in protest against a military investigation into alleged abuse of a Palestinian detainee captured from an elite Hamas militant unit. [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 887 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• U.S. officials announced a new $1.7 billion military aid package for Ukraine yesterday. The package includes $200 million in immediate military aid from Pentagon stockpiles and $1.5 billion in funding for long-term supply and equipment contracts through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. [more]
• Ukrainian military officials confirm that Russian forces have taken control of the Donetsk-region villages of Vovche and Prohres as part of ongoing Russian summer assaults along the war’s front line. [more]

U.S. ELECTIONS | The Associated Press cites unnamed U.S. intelligence officials as saying that foreign governments, including those of Russia, Iran, and China, have increased efforts to spread election and political disinformation in the United States ahead of the November presidential election, with the apparent goal of undermining confidence in the electoral process. [more]

U.S. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE | A new report from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration supports the development of open-source artificial intelligence models, but warns that U.S. officials must continue to monitor potential AI-associated risks. [press release] [full report] [more]

TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT | Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate are scheduled to testify today before a joint hearing of the Senate Homeland Security and Judiciary committees on alleged law enforcement lapses connected to the July 13 assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania. [more]

U.S. CULTURAL RELATIONS | A new report from the Council on American-Islamic Relations advocacy group says discrimination and attacks against Muslims and Palestinians rose by about 70% in the U.S. in the first half of 2024 amidst heightened tensions associated with Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza. [more]

U.S. AND PHILIPPINES | Amidst ongoing concern over China’s efforts to increase influence in the South China Sea region, the U.S. is expected to announce $500 million in military funding to the Philippines today, along with an update on a proposed U.S.-Philippine intelligence-sharing agreement. [more]

INDIA | Authorities in India’s southern Kerala state say at least 93 people were killed in multiple mudslides triggered by heavy rains this morning. Search and rescue efforts continue in the state’s Wayanad district, with the Indian military providing both air and ground resources to assist emergency personnel. [more]

U.K. | Police in the northwest England city of Southport say two children were killed, and nine other children and two adults were wounded, yesterday in a knife attack carried out at a dance workshop. A 17-year-old male suspect has been arrested in connection with the incident and is being held on suspicion of murder and attempted murder. [more]

MORE U.K. | Rachel Reeves, the U.K.'s first female Chancellor of the Exchequer, says a new spending audit following the Labour Party’s recent electoral victory has uncovered a 22-billion-pound ($28 billion) shortfall in the public finances inherited from the previous Conservative administration. Reeves announced several funding cuts following the audit, including to a winter fuel payment program for millions of retirees, multiple transportation projects, and a hospital revitalization plan. [more]

VENEZUELA | Protests continue today in locations across Venezuela following Sunday's presidential election in which incumbent Nicolas Madura was declared the winner, with reports saying police used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse protesters in the capital Caracas. Opposition leaders say they have proof their candidate won the election, while Madura has warned of a coup attempt, and election officials have yet to release voting results from the nation's polling locations. [more]

CHINA | State broadcaster CCTV and the official Xinhua News Agency report that the number of deaths associated with Tropical Storm Gaemi in China’s Hunan province has risen to 22, that numerous people are still missing, and that some 11,000 people were evacuated due to the storm. [more]

PAKISTAN | Zaheerul Hassan Shah, head of the Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan radical Islamist party, was arrested yesterday, one day after a video went viral showing him offering 10 million rupees ($36,000) to anyone who would behead the chief justice of Pakistan’s supreme court. [more]

AFGHANISTAN | The ruling Taliban government today disavowed many Afghan diplomatic missions in other countries, saying it would not honor passports, visas, and other documents issued by diplomats associated with Afghanistan’s former Western-backed administration. [more]

KOREA | South Korean media cites intelligence information provided to lawmakers as saying North Korean Kim Jong Un appears to be suffering from obesity-related health problems such as high blood pressure and diabetes and that his physicians are seeking new medicines from abroad to treat the conditions. [more]

SERBIA | Demonstrations involving thousands of people took place in several Serbian towns yesterday to protest against Serbia’s recent lithium excavation project agreement signed with the European Union. Opponents of the project say it would cause irreversible environmental damage and bring little benefit to citizens. [more]

PARIS OLYMPICS | As of 5 a.m. ET, the U.S. leads the overall medal count at the Paris Olympics with 20, followed by France, Japan, China, Great Britain, and Australia. In other Olympic news:

• The men’s Olympic triathlon scheduled for today has been postponed for at least 24 hours due to continuing concerns about water quality in the Seine River. [more]
• The U.S. men’s gymnastics team won their first Olympic medal in 16 years yesterday at the Paris Olympics, finishing third behind Japan and China. The women's team gymnastics final is scheduled for today at 12:15 p.m. ET. [more]
• The U.S. women’s Olympic basketball team opened play in Paris yesterday with a 102-76 win over Japan. The U.S. team is seeking its eighth-straight Olympic gold medal. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1945, the USS Indianapolis was sunk by a Japanese submarine shortly after delivering internal components of the atomic bombs that were later dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to the Tinian Naval Base in the Mariana Islands. Nearly 900 crew members of the Portland class heavy cruiser were killed in the attack. [more history]