News Wrap: Bangladesh faces historic heat wave

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• Geoff Bennett:

  In the day's other headlines: Bangladesh faced its worst heat in half-a-century and another day of widespread power outages for millions of people.

  The average highs this week in the capital, Dhaka, are up 12 percent from a year ago, and demand has overwhelmed the country's electrical system. Readings in the west part of the country have neared 110 degrees, and forecasters say there is no end in sight.

  Much of the Central U.S. braced this evening for another round of severe storms. Last night, tornadoes in Oklahoma killed three people and injured dozens more. Cell phone video showed hail hitting south of Oklahoma City at dusk. Then, as night fell, a tornado spun out of the sky. This morning, several towns woke to widespread damage to homes, businesses and schools.

  State investigators in Alabama arrested two more men today in Saturday's fatal shootings in Dadeville. All of the suspects are charged with reckless murder in the killings of four young people at a sweet 16 birthday party. Police have not said what the motive was.

  In Sudan, the army today rejected negotiations with a paramilitary faction after six days of fighting. Instead, the military said it would accept a surrender and nothing else. That came as shooting continued across Khartoum, despite a second attempt at a cease-fire.

  But, in New York, the U.N. secretary-general insisted on a new try at a truce.

• Antonio Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General:

  Hundreds of people have been killed and injured. Fighting in urban areas is particularly dangerous for civilians, including children who have repeatedly been forced to shelter in schools and evacuate from hospitals and the fire. This is completely outrageous.

• Geoff Bennett:

  Meantime the Pentagon began moving extra troops to nearby Djibouti to evacuate U.S. Embassy staffers from Sudan if needed.

  Authorities in Yemen are promising an investigation after a stampede there killed at least 78 people. It happened Wednesday in Sanaa, the capital, as hundreds gathered to receive financial aid. In the aftermath, victims' clothing and shoes littered the ground. Witnesses said people panicked when the guards fired into the air to control the crowd.

  NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg declared today that Ukraine has a rightful place in the alliance. He spoke in Kyiv during his first visit since the Russian invasion. In turn, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pressed again for warplanes and artillery.

• Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President (through translator):

  I turned to Mr. Secretary-General with a request to help us overcome the restraint of our partners. Slowing down such decisions means losing time for peace. This means the lives of our fighters, who haven't yet received the vital tools for defense in appropriate amounts.

• Geoff Bennett:

  Zelenskyy also said the time has come for NATO to commit to letting Ukraine join the alliance.

  Back in this country, a federal appeals judge has blocked House Republicans from questioning Mark Pomerantz in the hush money indictment of former President Donald Trump. The one-time New York City prosecutor once oversaw the investigation. Republicans have subpoenaed Pomerantz, but Manhattan's Democratic district attorney Alvin Bragg says they're trying to intimidate his office. The subpoena is now on hold until a three-judge panel can rule.

  President Biden's nominee for labor secretary, Julie Su, faced Republican criticism at her Senate confirmation hearing today. Su is now acting secretary and before that was deputy secretary, but Republican Mitt Romney charged that she unfairly favored unions and never met with business groups until recently.

• Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT):

  I guess it's really hard to understand how when we think about putting two groups together getting to compromise in negotiating how we could have any confidence that you would be seen as an unbiased, neutral arbiter.

  Julie Su, Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor: I think that business leaders and industry associations who have worked with me would paint a different story about both my openness and my desire…

• Sen. Mitt Romney:

  But you have got to meet with them for them to do so.

• Geoff Bennett:

  Several moderate Democrats have declined to say if they will vote for Su, leaving her confirmation prospects in doubt.

  Lawyers for actor Alec Baldwin now say prosecutors in New Mexico will drop the involuntary manslaughter charges against him. The case stemmed from the fatal shooting of a crew member on a movie set. Baldwin has said the gun went off accidentally and that he was unaware there were real bullets in it.

  And, on Wall Street, stocks headed lower amid new recession worries. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 110 points to close it 33786. The Nasdaq fell 97 points. The S&P 500 slipped 24.

  Still to come on the "NewsHour": India on track to replace China as the world's most populous nation; the latest SpaceX test fails mid-flight; medical professionals work to tear down barriers for patients in rural Texas; and a new book tackles the issues and joys of aging.

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