KIEV -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday proposed to the Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian parliament, to appoint former Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal as the country's new defense minister.
"Today, I have already signed documents to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine regarding Denys Shmyhal as the new defense minister," Zelensky said in a post on Telegram.
Zelensky also announced that Herman Smetanin, minister of strategic industries, will head the country's state defense conglomerate Ukroboronprom.(Ukraine-Defense Minister)
- - - -
WASHINGTON -- U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly told Republican lawmakers that he will fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, reported CNBC, citing a senior White House official.
"The President asked lawmakers how they felt about firing the Fed Chair. They expressed approval for firing him. The President indicated he likely will soon," the anonymous official told CNBC.
Later on Wednesday, Trump denied that statement. "We're not planning on doing it," Trump said. "I don't rule out anything ... But I think it's highly unlikely."(US-Fed)
- - - -
UNITED NATIONS -- UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said Wednesday that Israel must be held to the same principles and laws of all other states in terms of protection of civilians.
States and armed groups must uphold the rules -- forged because of the horrors of conflict and hatred -- that protect civilians in war, Fletcher told a Security Council meeting on the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
"Today, across the world, we watch these rules being corroded and degraded. Again, it is of course for you (the Security Council members) to decide how you act to ensure that all parties respect international humanitarian law. But I agree with some members of the Israeli Cabinet that you have consistently overestimated your powers of quiet persuasion," he said.(UN-Gaza-Israel)
- - - -
SANAA -- Yemen's Houthi armed group said on Wednesday night that they targeted Israel's Ben Gurion Airport with a ballistic missile and two drones in a new attack carried out earlier in the day.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said the attack forced the air traffic of the Israeli airport to halt temporarily and led thousands of Israelis to run to shelters. "The attack achieved its goal," Sarea said in a televised statement aired by Houthi-run al-Masirah satellite TV channel.(Yemen-Israel)
- - - -
CAIRO -- Egypt is experiencing an exceptional heatwave, with high temperatures and humidity posing significant risks to public health and impacting key sectors such as agriculture and industry.
The Egyptian Meteorological Authority said Wednesday's temperatures on the northern coasts range from 31 degrees Celsius to 32 degrees, in Greater Cairo from 37 degrees to 38 degrees, and in the southern region from 40 degrees to 44 degrees.
The severe heat is expected to persist in the coming days, with both daytime and nighttime temperatures forecast to rise by up to 3 degrees Celsius above seasonal averages, according to Director of Analysis and Forecasts at the Egyptian Meteorological Authority Mahmoud Shahin.(Egypt-Heatwaves-Warnings) ■
