Thursday, March 17 top stories
It is Thursday, March 17. Here are today’s top stories.
Ukraine war into fourth week
Today marks one month since Russian forces invaded Ukraine on Thursday, February 24. Here are several updates on the war.
Yesterday afternoon, U.S. President Biden said Russian President Putin is a “war criminal.” The Russian government said Biden’s statement is unacceptable and unforgivable.
Biden will talk with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday to discuss the war. China and Russia have a close relationship and there were recent reports that Russia has requested economic and military support from China. It is likely Biden will press China to take a stronger stance against Russia.
Ukrainian forces said they shot down 10 Russian planes and cruise missiles over Kyiv overnight. One of the missiles broke up mid-air and debris crashed into an apartment building, killing one person.
At least 21 people were killed by Russian shelling in a town near Kharkiv.
News reports said survivors are being pulled out of the wreckage of the theater in Mariupol. It was bombed yesterday while 1,000 people were inside. Satellite images showed that the Russian word for “children” was written in large letters on the floor outside of the theater. Ukrainian President Zelensky said the theater was intentionally bombed.
U.S. intelligence sources told the New York Times that about 7,000 Russian soldiers and three Russian generals were killed over the past three weeks. About 1,300 Ukrainian soldiers were killed.
Zelensky gave a virtual address to the German parliament today and was blunt and critical, saying they are putting the interests of their economy and reliance on Russian oil imports over the Ukrainian people. Germany has not banned Russian oil and gas imports out of concerns that it would drive up oil prices and cause a recession.
Brittney Griner’s arrest extended 2 months
Brittney Griner’s arrest in Russia will be extended for another two months to May 19, according to a report from a Russian news outlet. A video shows her walking with two Russian guards in a court building in Moscow. She pleaded not guilty to drug charges.
She was detained at a Moscow airport in February — before the Ukraine war started — and was accused of bringing cannabis oil in vape cartridges.
Many people are concerned that Russian authorities will use Griner as a political pawn and treat her harshly, especially because this is a time of war.
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Doritos bags will have fewer chips
Doritos said it would reduce the amount of chips it puts in its bags because of inflation and rising gas prices. Doritos said in order to keep the same price, it will put five fewer chips in its regular-sized bags to make them 9 1/4 ounces instead of 9 3/4 ounces. A news report explained that other companies such as Charmin (toilet paper) or Crest (toothpaste) are making their products smaller in order to keep the same prices.
Japan hit by earthquake
In Japan on Wednesday, there was a very strong 7.4 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Fukushima. Four people died and almost 100 people were injured. Many buildings and infrastructure had signs of damage and there were power outages, but fortunately the impact is nowhere near the level of devastation that the region experienced in 2011 from an earthquake, tsunami, and a nuclear power plant meltdown.
Netflix cracking down on password sharing
Netflix announced that they are testing a new feature that would add a fee to subscribers who share their login and password information to others who live in separate households. This is considered a crackdown on password sharing. Netflix said they would charge subscribers the equivalent of around $3 USD to add two “sub accounts.” Netflix is testing this concept in Chile, Costa Rica, and Peru first before deciding whether to roll out this feature worldwide.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.axios.com/biden-putin-war-criminal-ukraine-e45248b5-ad96-4a80-a8e0-067629e45282.html
https://www.tmz.com/2022/03/17/brittney-griner-moscow-court-arrest-extended-video-drug-charges-wnba/
https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-putin-news-03-17-22/index.html
https://news.yahoo.com/germanys-scholz-under-fire-zelenskys-155319097.html
https://about.netflix.com/en/news/paying-to-share-netflix-outside-your-household