First Thing: A deal with Putin won’t bring peace, says Ukraine ex-minister

Former defence minister Oleksii Reznikov tells west that Moscow’s goal is ‘the destruction of Ukrainian statehood’

Good morning.

Ukraine’s former defence minister is warning his western counterparts that any deal with the Kremlin will not end the war.

“Russia does not recognise the existence of Ukraine and the Ukrainian people; its goal is the destruction of Ukrainian statehood and the assimilation of Ukrainians,” Oleksii Reznikov wrote in a piece for the Guardian.

Reznikov resigned on Monday after procurement scandals at the defence ministry, but it is understood that he was not personally involved in any corruption schemes and left because of PR failings.

Florida supreme court to hear abortion case that could drastically limit access

Today the Florida supreme court will hear arguments over the state’s ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

If the state’s high court upholds the 15-week ban, a separate law would take effect prohibiting abortion after six weeks – before most people know they are pregnant.

“It’s been one restriction after another,” said Dr Kanthi Dhaduvai, a Jacksonville abortion provider with Physicians for Reproductive Health.

This comes after Mexico’s supreme court ruled that criminalizing abortions was unconstitutional, a ruling with the potential to turn the country into a popular destination for Americans seeking abortion access, as US state abortion bans proliferate.

Tennessee gun reform push ends after legislature adjourns without making any changes

Tennessee seemed poised to become the latest state to enact legislation on gun reform, following a deadly shooting at a suburban Nashville school that spurred nationwide attention and grassroots mobilization.

Months of protest, advocacy and face-time with the governor ended with no changes after the state legislature adjourned a special session late last month. “It seems like a game to them, to just gavel in and gavel out,” said Sarah Neumann, a Covenant school parent who attended every day of the special session to support new firearm and safety laws.

In other news …

State prosecutors in New Orleans obtained an indictment charging a retired Catholic priest who years ago secretly admitted to church leaders that he sexually molested or harassed numerous children.

Peter Navarro, a former White House adviser to Donald Trump, was found guilty of contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate with an investigation of the deadly January 6 attack on the US Capitol.

Actor Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for the rapes of two women two decades ago.

Donald Trump could soon seek to remove to federal court the Georgia racketeering case charging him with attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state.

Atlanta police arrested five activists, including two clergy members, after they chained themselves to a bulldozer at the construction site for “Cop City”, a huge police and fire department training center being built in a forest south-east of the city.

Stat of the day: More than 6,000 of Sudan’s refugees have arrived in Juba, the burgeoning new capital of South Sudan

Juba in South Sudan, Africa’s youngest capital, has transformed from a small garrison town into a precarious boomtown following an influx of oil money and immigration. Since April, when war broke out in neighboring Sudan, more than 6,000 of the country’s refugees have arrived in Juba.

Don’t miss this: Covering up Delhi’s slums before G20

With the G20 summit set to kick off in Delhi over the weekend, local authorities have been removing poor communities from sight by erecting tall green barricades and razing over several slums. “They have covered our area so that poor people like us, and poverty in the country, is not witnessed by the people arriving from abroad,” said Saroaj Devi, 50. “When it is election time, every politician comes to see us. They eat with us and make promises. But today, they are ashamed of our presence.”

… or this: The millions spent to expand New York law enforcement’s capabilities to track and analyze social media posts

Documents obtained by a privacy advocacy non-profit found that New York law enforcement agencies have spent millions of dollars to expand their capabilities to track and analyze social media posts and contracted with a surveillance firm accused of improperly scraping social media platforms for data.

Climate check: The drought threatening more disasters in Canada

Following a series of record-breaking wildfires in British Columbia, officials are warning that an unprecedented drought in the Canadian province could usher in a fresh set of natural disasters, including flooding, in the coming months.

“The consequences of the drought can be profound for many communities and individuals,” Bowinn Ma, British Columbia’s emergency management minister, told reporters. “I want to emphasize how significant the drought is that British Columbia is facing right now. It is unlike any kind of drought conditions the province has ever faced, and in my opinion, truly is a sleeping giant of a natural disaster that we are challenged with right now. The impacts will be very, very real.”

Last Thing: The quirky librarian aesthetic

The new hot trend among Gen Z? Glasses chains. What used to be visual shorthand for elderly women, spinsters or nerds is now hip, with members of Gen Z claiming glasses chains as their own. ”I always get compliments from people around my age or in the gen Z category,” said De’Siree Fairley, a 28-year-old elementary school teacher from Virginia. “I believe they admire aesthetics like dark academia and cottagecore, and glasses chains add to that whimsy.”

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