Joe Biden: ‘Maga crowd’ could target LGBTQ+ children next | First Thing
President warns of new Republican party attacks on rights after supreme court abortion leak. Plus, Amber Heard takes witness stand against Johnny Depp
Hello and good morning,
Joe Biden has warned of new attacks on civil rights as the supreme court prepares to strike down the right to abortion, telling reporters at the White House that LGBTQ+ children could be the next targets of a Trump-dominated Republican party he called this Maga crowd" and the most extreme political organisation ... in recent American history".
When will the Mississippi case conclude? It's expected to be resolved in June. The leaked draft is not final.
What will be the immediate impact? More than half of US states will outlaw abortion immediately or as soon as practicable. There are 26 states hostile to abortion, with 13 having passed so-called trigger laws, effectively banning abortion as soon as Roe v Wade is overturned.
What can you do? Essayist Rebecca Solnit writes how Americans can fight back to protect abortion rights.
How are civilians being evacuated from the Mariupol steel plant? Russia has said it will implement a daytime ceasefire for three days from Thursday to allow more civilian evacuations from the Azovstal plant.
What further evidence of potential war crimes has emerged? The bodies of 20 more civilians were found in the past 24 hours in the Kyiv region, according to Kyiv's regional police chief, Andriy Nebytov.
What new measures are western leaders taking? The UK said it was providing $56m in funding to help the most vulnerable in Ukraine and at its borders; Biden said he would speak with other G7 leaders about additional sanctions. The European Union is proposing to ban all Russian oil imports.
What are Russia and its allies saying? The Kremlin dismissed speculation that it would declare all-out war in Ukraine in the coming days as nonsense". Brazilian presidential frontrunner, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said Zelenskiy and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, bore equal responsibility for the war.
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