WORLD BRIEFING: January 20, 2024
Breaking the logjam over sending more U.S. aid to Ukraine are likely to be dashed by hard-line House Republicans. Hard-right House Republicans, who are far more dug in against aid to Ukraine, have argued that the bipartisan border compromise brokered by their counterparts in the Senate is unacceptable. And they bluntly say they do not want to give Mr. Biden the opportunity in an election year to claim credit for cracking down on unauthorized immigration - NYT
Syrian state media says that a residential building in Damascus was hit in an apparent Israeli airstrike. Video showed a large plume of smoke rising into the air in the Mezzah neighborhood. There is no confirmation from Israel - Times of Israel
Overnight, air defences shot down 4 out of 7 Shahed drones, which the Russian Federation used to attack Ukraine. Three more drones did not reach their targets. One person was killed and three others, including a child, were injured in the Kherson region from Russian shelling last day. In Donetsk region, two people were injured - Suspilne
The Russian army has again mined the occupied Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, the IAEA reported. Explosive devices are located between the inner and outer fence around the power plant. Last November, the ZNPP was demined.
At least 13 people have died in a fire at a school dormitory in central China, according to Chinese state media. The fire broke out around 11 p.m. Friday evening local time at Yingcai School near the city of Nanyang, Henan province, Xinhua reported.
Actor Alec Baldwin has been indicted by a New Mexico grand jury on charges connected to the 2021 fatal shooting on the set of the movie “Rust,” new court documents show. The Ukrainian-born cnematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed and director Joel Souza injured when a gun held by Baldwin fired a live round during a scene rehearsal on the set of the western - CNN
The chief of leading Ukrainian investment bank Concorde Capital, Ihor Mazepa, nabbed on his way to the World Economic Forum in Davos. The detention is concerning a 2014 case in which he allegedly illegally acquired land for a housing development. Observers fear it signals a step up in attacks on businesses in Ukraine by the presidential administration and could drive away investment
