The US House of Representatives passed a foreign aid package
The House voted on Saturday supporting $95 billion in long-stalled foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, resoundingly approved the grants after months of protests from Republicans on the far right. The Senate is expected to pass the legislation as early as tomorrow and it will almost certainly become law.
As part of the package, the House also introduced a bill that would force Chinese company ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, to sell the app or risk a nationwide ban in the US
In Ukraine, the vote was encounter relief as the army is rapidly running out of weapons and ammunition. The Pentagon said it may continue sending weapons to Ukraine in the next few days.
“I really believe the information,” said Chairman Mike Johnson, a Republican. bipartisan support to pass the bill. “I think Vladimir Putin will continue to march across Europe if allowed.”
Detail: The act includes $60 billion for Kyiv; $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid to civilians in conflict zones, including Gaza; and 8 billion USD for the Indo-Pacific region.
Iran seemed to falter after Israel's attack
Iran seems to have choosing to reduce tensions after Israel's retaliatory attack on Friday. Iranian officials and state media downplayed the attack.
Israel also appears to have tried to avoid a broader war. Its attack — a response to Iran's volley, itself a response to Israel's deadly strike on the Iranian embassy compound in Damascus, Syria — was significantly limited. It destroyed an air defense system at a military base near Isfahan, central Iran.
“It remains to be seen whether this latest tit-for-tat will create deterrence,” Farnaz Fassihi, our UN bureau chief who covers the shadow war, told my colleague Daniel E. Slotnik. some threat to both sides or not? “It seems like neither side really wants to engage in an all-out war with each other.”
Iran's concerns: Inflation is running at 32% annually, a restive population has consistently challenged the government's legitimacy and even supporters of the hooded rule have criticized its enforcement.
The conflict in Myanmar may be changing
After years of conflict in Myanmar, the rebels have achieved victory over the military junta, potentially Turn the tide of war. If they entered the center of the country, they could defeat the powerful army.
My colleague Hannah Beech is with one of the rebel groups on the front lines in Karenni State, where the resistance says it holds more than 90% of the territory. “This time is different,” she explains in this short video.
For more: Why did this war – which could divide a country of 55 million people – happen? internationally ignored? Here are some context and context.
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Rahul Gandhi, the successor of an Indian political dynasty, is trying to overthrow prime minister Narendra Modi. He traveled all over the country to try to pull its once-dominant party, the Indian National Congress, out of the political wilderness.
Australian Letter: The wife and daughter of our Sydney office manager went shopping just minutes before the recent mall stabbing. “Sometimes the news – and the worst news, involving death and tragedy – hits as close to us as it does to the people we write about,” Damien Cave wrote.
China's doping investigation
On Saturday, my colleagues published a shocking revelation: Seven months before the Tokyo Olympics were delayed because of the pandemic, China's 23 best swimmers tested positive for the same banned drug at a domestic meeting.
Chinese officials secretly cleared them of doping. The World Anti-Doping Agency, which oversees national drug testing programs, accepted China's theory that a mass contamination incident was the cause and allowed China to keep the results secret .
Some of the athletes who tested positive – including nearly half of the Chinese swimming team sent to Tokyo – won medals, including three gold. Many people still compete for China. Several, including two-time gold medalist Zhang Yufei, above, are expected to compete in Paris this summer.
The investigation has shocked the swimming world. An American who won a silver medal in Tokyo said she felt her team had been “cheated.” A British gold medalist is asking for a ban. The sports minister in Germany, where a documentary about the incident aired on Sunday, has demanded an investigation. And global anti-doping officials are fighting tooth and nail.
Summarize: Read Lessons learned from the investigation.
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