Russia and Ukraine trade drone attacks. And Twitter gets rebranded. These stories and more highlight the rundown for Monday, July 24, 2023.
Ukraine, Russia trade attacks
Russian authorities accused Ukraine of launching a drone attack on Moscow on Monday, July 24. Two buildings were hit and one of the drones ended up near the Russian Defense Ministry’s main headquarters. This was the second attack in Moscow this month.
In Ukraine, Russian forces struck southern Ukrainian ports with exploding drones. It’s the latest in a series of attacks on Ukrainian port infrastructure after the grain deal fell apart one week ago.
On July 23, at least one person was killed and 22 others wounded in an attack on Odesa that severely damaged 25 landmarks across the city. Russia has described the recent strikes as retribution for last week’s Ukrainian strike on a bridge that links Russia with Crimea.
As the war continues to escalate, our investigative reporter Ryan Robertson has a new two-part series that explains what would happen if Russia deployed nuclear weapons and the likelihood of that happening. You can find the first of his two part series here.
U.S., North Korea begin conversations over missing soldier
Conversations have started between the United States and North Korea over the American soldier who crossed into the North last week. According to the Deputy Commander of the U.N. Command, General Andrew Harrison, communication lines have been set up at the Joint Security Area between the Koreas.
Private Travis King crossed the border July 18 while he was on his way to Fort Bliss, Texas to face military discipline after serving nearly two months in a South Korean prison on assault charges. General Harrison says the well-being of King remains the command’s primary concern. And while he remains optimistic, there is no way to know how the conversations with North Korea will proceed.
Netanyahu to be released from hospital as Israel takes critical vote
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now has a pacemaker after going to the hospital unexpectedly over the weekend. Netanyahu says he is feeling “excellent” and is expected to be discharged July 24 just in time for Israel’s lawmakers to vote on a controversial bill that limits supreme court powers to overrule some government decisions.
President Biden says Netanyahu should not move forward with the plan. A vote on a key part of the plan will take place July 24 after thousands of people, both supporters and critics, have taken to the streets in protest for months.
DOJ threatens legal action over Texas buoy border wall
The Department of Justice has told Texas that if they don’t remove a buoy border wall by 2 p.m. on July 24, they will be slapped with a lawsuit. Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) responded by saying he’ll see the president in court.
The buoys, strung across the Rio Grande, are meant to serve as a deterrent for migrants crossing the border through the river. And miles of buoys were installed in Eagle Pass, Texas last week.
Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), the state representative in this district, spoke with CBS’ “Face the Nation” on July 23.
Critics of the buoys called the installation “inhumane” because migrants could get stuck underneath them and drown. Gonzales says migrants have already been drowning and that the governments’ concerns are coming too late.
“I don’t think the buoys are the problem. This has been happening every single week. We’ve seen people drown last year, there were hundreds of migrants that are drowning. I’m glad it’s getting some attention,” said Gonzales, adding, “But there is a disconnect between what is happening at the top and the person at the ground that is delivering- that is doing the actual function.”
Musk changing Twitter bird logo to letter X
Twitter will now be known as “X”. CEO Elon Musk has changed the name of the social media platform. On July 23, Musk proposed the new direction for Twitter, including a the new name and replacing the well-known blue bird logo with an X. The change took effect on July 24.
Musk tweeted that the idea of changing the logo is to “embody the imperfections in us all that make us unique.”
The letter X is no stranger to Musk. He also owns his rocket company SpaceX, founded the startup X.com which led to PayPal, and his Tesla auto brand has a Model X.
Last October Musk tweeted that buying Twitter was an accelerant to creating “X”, the “everything” app.
‘’Barbenheimer’ dominates weekend box office
The weekend box office was dominated by Barbie and Oppenheimer. Their releases sparked a “Barbenheimer” phenomenon. Something the movie industry has been in need of. Ticket sales have been down 20% compared to 2019 pre-pandemic numbers.
Barbie drew in $155 million during its first three days in theaters and is the highest opening of 2023. Oppenheimer brought in $80.5 million in its debut. Together, the duo is eyeing the second highest box-office-weekend ever. It’s a positive note in Hollywood as the writers and actors strikes continue.
