Why it matters: These extreme events, along with flooding that struck Spain Sunday into early Monday, are each tied to an unusually stuck weather pattern, with elevated water temperatures in the Mediterranean adding to the trouble.
After years of chilly bilateral ties, the U.K. government is reaching out to Beijing while maintaining tough China rhetoric at home.
Why it matters: The balancing act echoes a similar stance in Washington, which in recent months has sent several top officials to Beijing. Policymakers in both capitals have recognized that a continued free fall in relations with China may be both unsustainable and dangerous.
Dominican Americans, one of the fastest growing U.S. Latino groups, have rarely cracked federal office — although that could start to change with a special congressional election in Rhode Islandthat includes two Dominican American candidates.
Driving the news:Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos and state Sen. Ana Quezada, both Dominican Americans, are among the field of candidates vying for the Democratic nomination in the race for former Rep. David Cicilline's open House seat.
Street vending was legalized in California five years ago, yet vendors in many cities face cumbersome permitting processes, limits on where they can set up and an uptick in violence, advocates and sellers tell Axios.
The big picture: There have long been battles over the rights of street vendors — most of whom, advocates say, are Latino and immigrants. That's especially true in the country's two largest cities, Los Angeles and New York.
A Texas woman, curious about what happened to a relative who died while serving in World War I, recently found his resting place in France — likely one of several Mexican Americans who died abroad and whose stories have been largely forgotten.
The big picture: Latinos have been fighting in U.S. conflicts for centuries, but recorded history of their service in World War I is scant.
President Biden has decided to nominate former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew to serve as U.S. ambassador to Israel, the White House said in a statement. Lew's expected nomination was first reported on Axios.
Why it matters: The fact that Biden decided to nominate a senior figure like Lew, who held several cabinet positions in the past, as the new ambassador shows the importance he gives to the post in Jerusalem in general and especially at the current time.
North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un is set to travel to Russia this month to discuss with President Vladimir Putin supplying weapons for the Kremlin's war on Ukraine, the New York Times first reported Monday.
The big picture: News of Kim's rare trip abroad comes as Moscow officials said they're discussing inaugural joint naval exercises with their Pyongyang counterparts and after the White House expressed concern about deepening military ties between Russia and North Korea.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Sunday plans to replace Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov because he said "new approaches" were needed.
Driving the news: Zelensky said in a televised address that lawmakers would vote this week on whether to dismiss Reznikov, who's led the ministry since before Russia's military launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "I expect the Parliament to support" nominee Rustem Umerov, who heads Ukraine's State Property Fund, Zelensky said.
Brett McGurk, President Biden's senior Middle East adviser, is expected to travel to Saudi Arabia this week to meet with senior Palestinian officials and discuss a potential Palestinian component of a possible mega-deal between the U.S., Saudi Arabia and Israel, four U.S. and Palestinian sources familiar with the issue told Axios.
Why it matters: Biden officials believe that if an agreement that includes a Saudi Arabia-Israel peace deal also benefits Palestinians, it will be much easier to persuade enough Democratic senators to support the deal, includingthe parts that are expected to be less popular like a U.S.-Saudi security agreement or a civilian nuclear energy program in Saudi Arabia.
