ABU DHABI, UAE — Weeks of intense diplomatic efforts led by the UN and U.S. have yielded a truce in Yemen.
Why it matters: The immediate result of the truce has been the easing of a fuel crisis and greater freedom of movement, which will likely bring relief to Yemenis struggling with one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) will lead a bipartisan group of lawmakers to Europe on Thursday to visit Poland and the Ukrainian border, three sources familiar with the trip tell Axios.
Why it matters: This is McCarthy's first congressional member delegation to the region since the war in Ukraine began.
The international community shouldn’t push for “peace at any price” with Vladimir Putin, Estonia Prime Minister Kaja Kallas told Axios in an interview on Tuesday.
Why it matters: Estonia, like Latvia and Lithuania, is a member of NATO and the EU but also a neighbor to Russia. The Baltic states fear if Putin is not defeated in Ukraine he could become more aggressive.
Attorney General Merrick Garland unveiled an indictment against Russian oligarch Konstantin Malofeev on Wednesday for sanctions violations and announced the seizure of "millions of dollars from a U.S. financial institution" as proceeds traceable to the violations.
Why it matters: The indictment is part of a series of actions the Justice Department has recently taken to disrupt Russian criminal activity and enforce U.S. sanctions on Russian oligarchs for supporting the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine.
The U.S., its G7 allies and the European Union are banning new investment in Russia and sanctioning Russia's largest bank, as well as Russian elites including Vladimir Putin's adult daughters.
Why it matters: A senior administration official told reporters that the steps were necessitated by the "sickening brutality in Bucha," a Kyiv suburb where the bodies of dozens of civilians were discovered after Russian troops pulled out. The official said the sanctions over Russia's invasion would push the country back to Soviet-era living standards.
Shanghai health officials said Wednesday that they would allow some parents to stay with their children who have been infected with COVID-19, AP reports.
Driving the news: Shanghai's lockdown measures included separating kids who had tested positive from their families, which sparked outrage across China.
Pope Francis condemned "the massacre of Bucha" Wednesday and kissed a war-stained Ukrainian flag found in the city after it was recently liberated from Russian forces, according to Reuters.
Why it matters: Multiple countries have denounced Russia after evidence surfaced of atrocities in the Ukrainian town of Bucha in the wake of Russia's military withdrawal from northern Ukraine.
The Israeli government lost its majority in the Knesset on Wednesday when the coalition whip from Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's Yamina party announced she was joining the opposition.
Why it matters: The dramatic political development brings the fragile Israeli coalition — which until now had a narrow one-seat majority — to the brink of collapse less than a year after it was formed.
