September 5, 2024

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR | Update from day 335 of the conflict:

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday repeated his demand that any cease-fire and hostage release deal for Gaza must include continued Israeli control of the Philadelphi corridor – a narrow strip of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt – saying control of the border region is essential to ensuring Hamas cannot smuggle in weapons to repeat its October 7 attacks on Israel. [more]

U.S. GUN VIOLENCE | Four people – two students and two teachers – were killed, and nine others were wounded, yesterday when a 14-year-old student opened fire with an assault-style rifle yesterday at Apalachee High School in Windsor, Georgia. Police say the shooter, who surrendered to authorities, had previously been the subject of investigations into threats of violence at the school. [more]

TRUMP ELECTION TRIAL | U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan is scheduled to hear arguments today on potential next steps in the federal election subversion prosecution of former President Donald Trump. The hearing is the case's first since July’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said former presidents are largely immune from prosecution for actions related to their official duties. [more]

U.S. ECONOMY | According to Labor Department data released yesterday, there were 7.7 million job openings in the U.S. at the end of July – the lowest number since January 2021. There were 5.5 million hires for the month and 5.4 million total job separations. [full report] [more]

ARIZONA | The city of Phoenix, Arizona, had its 100th straight day of temperatures reaching at least 100 degrees Fahrenheit earlier this week. Arizona’s Maricopa County, where Phoenix is located, has seen at least 150 heat-related deaths this year, with more than 400 other deaths under investigation for similar causes. [more]

U.S. ELECTIONS | The Justice Department announced charges yesterday against two employees of Russia’s state-run RT media group, saying the suspects conspired to commit money laundering and violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act in connection with the funding of a Tennessee-based content creation company that produced videos for social media platforms that promoted the Russian government’s interests and agendas in an attempt to spread misinformation and discord ahead of November’s U.S. elections. Officials say videos produced by the company were viewed more than 16 million times on YouTube alone. [press release] [more]

GLOBAL POLLUTION | A new study in the journal Nature says that 57 million tons of plastic pollution are created globally every year – enough waste to fill New York City’s Central Park with plastic waste piled as high as the Empire State Building. Researchers say India generates the most plastic pollution, followed by Nigeria, Indonesia, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Russia, and Brazil. The U.S. ranks 90th in plastic pollution, according to the study. [full study] [more]

CHINA AND AFRICA | Speaking at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Summit in Beijing today, Chinese President Xi Jinping said his country aims to increase backing of infrastructure projects and create at least 1 million jobs in Africa through investments of nearly $51 billion over the next three years. [more]

JAPAN AND AUSTRALIA | At a meeting of defense and foreign ministers today in the Australian coastal town of Queenscliff, Japan and Australia agreed to expand their joint military training exercises. The move comes amidst both countries’ expressed concerns about stability in the Taiwan Strait region and over China’s aggressive territorial claims in the South and East China Seas. [more]

CHINA | Schools and many places of business are closed today in regions of southern China ahead of the arrival of Typhoon Yagi. The storm is expected to hit China’s Hainan and Guangdong provinces by tomorrow. [more]

GERMANY | Police in Munich, Germany, shot and wounded a suspect who appeared to be carrying a firearm this morning near the Israeli Consulate in the city. Authorities say there is no indication of the presence of any other suspects or risks in the incident. [more]

ISRAEL AND WEST BANK | Palestinian health officials say at least six people, including the son of prominent jailed militant Zakaria Zubeidi, were killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes on the West Bank town of Tubas. [more]

FRANCE | French President Emmanuel Macron appointed former E.U. Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier his new prime minister today. [more]

NEW ZEALAND | On a day also marked by funeral rights for her late father and Maori King Tūheitia, 27-year-old Ngā wai hono i te po ascended to the throne of New Zealand’s indigenous population today, becoming only the second female Maori monarch. [more]

TENNIS | Semi-final matches at the U.S. Open tennis tournament are set, with Jessica Pegula facing Karolina Muchova and Emma Navarro facing Aryna Sabalenka today in the women’s bracket, and Jannik Sinner playing Jack Draper and Taylor Fritz playing Frances Tiafoe tomorrow in the men’s bracket. [full women’s bracket] [full men’s bracket] [more]

SOCCER | Neither Lionel Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo were nominated for the Ballon d’Or this year – the first time since 2003 that neither were on the annual list for soccer’s most prized individual honor. [full 2024 nomination list] [more]

BASEBALL | Starting pitcher Shota Imanaga and relievers Porter Hodge and Nate Pearson combined to deliver the Chicago Cubs’ first no-hitter at Wrigley Field since 1972 last night in a 12-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1972, Palestinian terrorists attacked the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany, during the Summer Olympic Games, taking hostages and eventually killing 11 members of the Israeli team. [more history]