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IMPORTANT
| | |  | Mercury Rising | Europe Swelters Under Record-Breaking Heat Wave It’s a “heat apocalypse,” says France, as temperatures across the continent are expected to reach 107 degrees Fahrenheit today and tomorrow. In the U.K., which issued its first ever red warning for exceptional heat, authorities have asked commuters to avoid trains unless absolutely necessary. “This is serious heat that could actually ultimately end in people’s deaths because it is so ferocious,” explained Tracy Nicholls of the U.K.’s College of Paramedics. “We’re just not set up for that sort of heat in this country.” Meanwhile, wildfires are consuming parts of France, Greece, Portugal and Spain, forcing mass evacuations of residents and tourists. (Sources: The Guardian, France24) |
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|  | Cleaning House | Zelenskyy Fires Spy Chief, Top Prosecutor as Complacency Sets In Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy cited collaboration with Russian authorities from within the ranks of his domestic security agency, SBU, and the state prosecutor general. It’s the first major political upset in the country since Russia invaded in February, underlining how seriously Zelenskyy is approaching alleged treason cases. On the war front lines, he’s struggling to convince Ukrainians to keep taking air raid warnings seriously amid fears that five months of war has created complacency throughout the country. “Lots of people are tired, but everyone knows we need to keep going,” one fighter in the Donetsk region said. (Sources: Reuters, NYT) |
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|  | Hanging Heads | Texas Investigation Slams Police Response in Uvalde School Shooting Everybody failed here. That’s the finding in the most comprehensive report yet on the May massacre. The report, conducted by the Texas House, found that almost 400 law enforcement officers, including 91 state troopers, were gathered at the school, but none took the initiative to lead a response. That includes school district police Chief Pete Arredondo, who wrote its live-shooter protocol and assigned himself as incident commander — but didn’t activate the plan. The investigation is the first to critique state and federal agencies, not just local officers, saying they outnumbered local police and “could have helped to address the unfolding chaos.” (Sources: WaPo, Texas Tribune) |
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|  | State of Chaos | Sri Lanka’s Interim Government Struggles as Region Watches Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe has declared a state of emergency in the wake of former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation. Political experts note that it’s just the latest of several emergency declarations since April, none of which have quelled protests as prices rise and fuel and medicines are increasingly scarce. Neighboring countries are watching the crisis closely. While the political chaos of the last few months is a domestic issue, the International Monetary Fund says the economic headwinds that exacerbated it are universal. Laos, Maldives, Pakistan and Bangladesh are all at risk, particularly due to Chinese loans with unclear terms. (Sources: BBC, Al Jazeera) |
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|  | Briefly | Here are some things you should know about today: On trial. Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon is in federal court today on criminal contempt charges after he refused to comply with a subpoena issued by the House Jan. 6 committee. (Source: The Guardian) The hot seat. Voting is underway among nearly 4,800 lawmakers in India to choose the next president, who will be sworn in July 25. Former Jharkhand Gov. Droupadi Murmu is the current front-runner. (Source: Scroll.In) ‘No clear evidence.’ The U.K.’s controversial plan to ship asylum-seekers to Rwanda is unlikely to stop dangerous English Channel crossings, a group of MPs has said. (Source: BBC) |
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INTRIGUING
| | | | | Duuun Dun… | It’s Safe to Go Back in the Water in New York A spike in shark attacks on Long Island has beachgoers nervous, but they’re not looking for you: They’re looking for fish. A sand tiger shark nursery near the coast and a boom in baitfish populations — not to mention perfect beach weather — could explain the increase in encounters, shark expert Gavin Naylor says. While adult sand tiger sharks look scary, experts say it’s likely most encounters have been juvenile sharks attracted by toes. But that’s no reason to fear the water. “It's a statistical fact that sharks don't target people,” Naylor says. “If they did, we'd have about 10,000 bites a day.” (Source: NPR) |
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| | | Ring It Up | Amazon Sets Sights on Britain’s Lucrative Grocery Market The retail giant has pledged to match prices from Tesco, the U.K.’s largest supermarket chain, on hundreds of products. It might be a relief for British consumers, who are expected to see annual grocery spending increase $450 this year amid 9.1% inflation, but analysts say Amazon will find the market far more difficult to crack than the United States. There are only 19 U.K. Amazon Fresh stores — just one outside of London — and the four major chains that control two-thirds of the market are all offering creative deals to offset cost of living increases. (Sources: Bloomberg, BBC) |
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| | | They Do! | Bennifer Is Back and This Time It’s Official Twenty years after Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s engagement — and split two years later — made headlines, the pair married in a “super small” Las Vegas ceremony over the weekend. According to the tabloids, a marriage license was filed Saturday before a ceremony with just Lopez’s mother and two children in attendance. Lopez and Affleck announced their engagement back in April. “We're older now, we're smarter, we have more experience, we're at different places in our lives, we have kids now, and we have to be very conscious of those things,” Lopez said about the rekindled relationship earlier this year. (Sources: The Cut, People) |
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| | | Not-So-Happy Family | West Virginia Woman Solves Own Attempted Murder Wanda Palmer was found in her Ravenswood home in June 2020 with head wounds so serious medics didn’t expect her to survive. She spent two years in a coma while the investigation petered out. “The keys to the whole thing lay with the victim herself and with her unable to communicate we were left with nothing,” Sheriff Ross Mellinger said. But last month police were notified that Palmer had woken up. Despite her brain injury, she was able to tell them that her brother was the one who attacked her. He has been arrested and charged with attempted murder and malicious wounding. (Source: USA Today) |
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| | | Smile for the Birdies | Underdog Cameron Smith Takes Out St. Andrew’s Competition The 28-year-old Australian trounced the veteran favorite, North Ireland’s Rory McIlroy, to claim the $2.5 million Claret Jug. Smith had long been considered one of golf’s best players who hadn’t won a championship, racking up smaller wins and a No. 6 world ranking. But fans say Sunday’s result wasn’t a case of McIlroy losing — he certainly had the crowds behind him — but Smith had a majestic 8-under 64 game, including five consecutive birdies. He’s the first Australian to win a major in seven years and the first to win The Open at St. Andrew’s since Greg Norman in 1993. (Sources: ESPN, FOX Sports) |
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