Current events: 2024-05-14

[Wikipedia Current Events]

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • 2024 Kharkiv offensive, Kharkiv strikes
    • At least 20 people are injured when Russian airstrikes hit a residential building in Kharkiv, Ukraine. (Reuters)
    • Ukraine pulls back from positions near Lukyantsi and Vovchansk in the Kharkiv Oblast. (Reuters)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • Rafah offensive
    • Israeli tanks enter residential areas of Rafah as they attempt to capture the city. Hamas' armed wing al-Qassam Brigades says it has destroyed an Israeli troop carrier with a Al-Yassin 105 anti-tank missile, killing several troops and wounding others, while the IDF claims to have "eliminated" several terrorists in the city. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

• The 77th annual Cannes Film Festival opens in Cannes, France, with an honorary Palme d'Or award for Meryl Streep. (AP)

Business and economy

• China–United States trade war
  • United States President Joe Biden passes tariff increases on Chinese imports, including electric vehicle batteries, computer chips, medical products, and a 100% electric vehicle tariff. (Reuters)
• GameStop short squeeze
  • GameStop's stock rises another 61%. (Quartz) (Yahoo)

Disasters and accidents

• The death toll from a building collapse in George, South Africa, rises to 33. (Reuters)
• Eight people are killed and 40 others are injured when a bus carrying farmworkers collided with a truck and overturned in Marion County, Florida, U.S. (AP)
• Thirteen people die in a highway crash near Ayacucho in the Peruvian Andes. (Reuters) (Infobae)

Law and crime

• Corruption in Russia
  • Russian police arrest former head of personnel of the Ministry of Defence Yuri Kuznetsov for bribery of over ₽1 million (${{To USD round|1000000|RUS|sf=2}}). His charges carry up to 15 years of jail time. (Al Jazeera)
• Two prison guards are killed and three are critically injured during an ambush against a prison van near Rouen, Normandy, France. An inmate escaped alongside the attackers. (BBC News)
• Tunisian police raid the headquarters of the Tunisian Order of Lawyers and arrests Mahdi Zagrouba, known for his opposition to President Kais Saied. This comes two days after the police detained lawyer Sonia Dahmani and two journalists. (Al Jazeera)
• The Supreme Court of Kazakhstan sentences former Minister of National Economy Kuandyk Bishimbayev to 24 years in prison for torturing and murdering his wife. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

• 2023–2024 Georgian protests
  • Riot police clash with protesters on the streets of Tbilisi, Georgia, after the parliament approves a controversial "foreign agent" law that forces media organizations to declare foreign funding. (BBC News)
  • The United States warns Georgia that $390 million in planned economic support will be "under review" if the Georgian government considers the U.S. an "adversary", and not a strategic partner. (The Guardian)
• 2024 New Caledonia unrest
  • New Caledonia imposes a curfew after violent protests and riots. (The Guardian)

Science and technology

• Russia puts the nuclear capable submarine-launched Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile into service. (Reuters)

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