The VICE Morning Bulletin
Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images

FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

The VICE Morning Bulletin

The VICE Morning Bulletin

White House urges Russia to break with Assad, Egypt mulls state of emergency after church bombings, FOX hires law firm to investigate sex harassment claim against O'Reilly, and more.

US News

Trump Administration Urges Russia to Break with Assad
Senior Trump administration officials are calling on Russia to drop long-standing support for the Syrian regime. Speaking ahead of his visit to Moscow on Tuesday, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said he hoped Russia was "thinking carefully about its continued alliance with Bashar al Assad." US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said peace would not come to Syria "with Russia covering up for Assad."—The Washington Post

Russian Programmer Arrested Under US Warrant in Spain
A Russian computer programmer has been arrested in Spain, possibly in connection to the American probe of meddling in its 2016 presidential election. Though it's unclear exactly what the programmer, Pyotr Levashov, has been accused of, a Department of Justice official confirmed the arrest, on an international US warrant, was part of a criminal investigation.—Reuters

Advertisement

Manhunt for Wisconsin Man Who Mailed Manifesto to Trump
Police in Wisconsin are searching for a man who allegedly stole firearms from a gun store and penned a 160-page anti-government, anti-religious manifesto to President Trump. Police said they consider Joseph Jakubowski, 32, "armed and dangerous." The FBI is offering a $10,000 reward for tips on the suspect's whereabouts.—NBC News

New York Approves Free State College Tuition
Lawmakers have approved a budget plan to provide free tuition for working- and middle-class families at colleges and universities in New York, making it the first state to do so. The grants will go to any New York student whose family earns $125,000 or less a year, though there will be GPA and other requirements and room and board are not provided.—CBS News

International News

China Agrees to Tougher Sanctions for North Korean Tests
Beijing and Seoul will impose tougher sanctions on North Korea if it carries out additional nuclear or long-range missile tests, according to South Korea's chief nuclear envoy Kim Hong-kyun. Kim noted the countries agreed a test of either type of missile would merit "strong additional measures," and that a potential American intervention is not really being contemplated by the nations.—Reuters

Egypt Mulls State of Emergency After Church Bombings
After some 44 people were killed in the bombing of two Coptic churches this weekend, Egypt is on the cusp of suspending the regular rule of law. ISIS claimed responsibility for the bombings in Alexandria and Tanta and threatened to carry out additional attacks. If approved by Egypt's parliament, the official emergency declaration would allow police to arrest people without a warrant and conduct searches much more freely.—BBC News

Advertisement

Police Kill Eight in Kashmir Election Chaos
At least eight people are dead in Kashmir after police targeted protestors with bullets and shotgun pellets. Officials said the demonstrators protesting against Indian rule had thrown gasoline bombs and set voting devices on fire. "We regret these killings," said a spokesman for the ruling People's Democratic Party.—Al Jazeera

Great Barrier Reef Sees 'Disaster Year' for Bleaching
Two-thirds of Australia's Great Barrier Reef has been damaged by coral bleaching, according to the latest aerial surveys. Scientists say the natural wonder has never been hit with two consecutive incidents of this severity before, and one expert says the reef is at a "terminal stage."—The Guardian

Everything Else

FOX Hires Firm to Investigate Claim Against O'Reilly
FOX News parent company 21st Century Fox (which owns a small stake in VICE Media) has hired a law firm to investigate at least one sexual harassment claim made against host Bill O'Reilly. The firm, Paul Weiss, also investigated claims made against former network boss Roger Ailes, who resigned last year after a reported $40 million payout.—Reuters

Drake Tops Album Chart for Third Week in a Row
Drake's More Life is on top of the Billboard 200 for the third week in a row—the first album to nab the spot for three consecutive weeks since Drake's 2016 album Views. Florida hip-hop artist Kodak Black made it to No. 3 in the album chart with his debut Painting Pictures.—Billboard

Marvel Takes 'Disciplinary Action' Against Artist Inserting Islamist Messages
Marvel Comics announced one of its artists will face "disciplinary action" for inserting Islamist and anti-Semitic messages into X-Men Gold #1. The company said Indonesian artist Ardian Syaf had added references "in direct opposition of the inclusiveness of Marvel Comics."—TIME

Frank Ocean Drops New Track with Jay Z and Tyler, the Creator
Frank Ocean released a brand-new track over the weekend featuring Jay Z and Tyler, the Creator. Ocean premiered "Biking" on another installment of Blonded Radio on Beats 1.—Noisey

Hacker Sets Off Dallas Tornado Sirens
Police in Dallas are trying to identify the hacker who set off the city's tornado sirens for about an hour and a half on Friday night. The city's 911 system received more than 4,400 calls from spooked citizens.—VICE

The Shadow Brokers Publish Password for Hacker Tool Files
The Shadow Brokers—the hacker or hackers who previously dumped NSA tools—have published a password, apparently for a cache of hacking tool files. They claimed it was a protest against President Trump for abandoning "the peoples who getting you elected."—Motherboard