News Wrap: Washington becomes 10th state banning sale of certain semi-automatic rifles

GEOFF BENNETT:

In the day's other headlines: Washington state became the country's 10th state to ban a number of semiautomatic rifles, including AR-15s, the weapons used in many mass shootings.

Democratic Governor Jay Inslee signed the bill today and said, inaction in the face of gun violence is unacceptable.

GOV. JAY INSLEE (D-WA):

These weapons of war of assault weapons have no reason other than mass murder. Their only purpose is to kill humans as rapidly as possible in large numbers. And I will say this. AR-15s should not be idolized. They should be prohibited.

GEOFF BENNETT:

Two gun rights groups immediately filed legal challenges to the new law in federal court.

A state investigator in Alabama testified today that a barrage of 89 bullets killed four young people at a birthday party earlier this month. The gunfire erupted at a dance studio in Dadeville as a sweet 16 celebration was under way. The investigators said at least seven guns were fired. The testimony came at a hearing for three of the six suspects charged with murder.

A new danger has emerged in the fighting and chaos in Sudan. The World Health Organization reports one of the factions has seized a national lab holding everything from polio to measles to cholera. It warned of a huge biological risk if the germs get loose.

Meantime, a cease-fire largely failed. And people in Khartoum waited to board buses to flee the city. Others have said they have no hope of leaving.

ASMAA HAMAD, Khartoum Resident (through translator):

There's no water, no power, nothing essential for people to use. We have been sitting here in the street like this for four days. There have been unbelievable amounts of people rushing to board buses. But how are we supposed to pay thousands for the bus tickets?

GEOFF BENNETT:

The fighting has also spread beyond Khartoum into the Western Darfur region.

There's word tonight that Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have killed the organizer of the Kabul Airport bombing back in August 2021; 13. U.S. troops and some 170 Afghans died in that attack during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal. The Associated Press reports the Islamic State figure behind the bombing was killed in the Taliban raid this month.

In Northwestern Pakistan, the death toll has reached 17 in Monday night's explosions at a police complex. More than 50 people were injured. The blasts heavily damaged a munitions warehouse. Investigators said today there's no evidence of a militant attack, they blamed an electrical short-circuit.

A Japanese spacecraft's attempt to land on the moon apparently failed today. Ground controllers in Tokyo watched a live animation of the unmanned lander descending, but they lost contact when it was just 33 feet from the lunar surface. It would have been the first moon landing by a private company.

And, on Wall Street, stocks had their worst day in a month, fueled by disappointing corporate profits and falling consumer confidence. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 344 points, or 1 percent, to close at 33530. The Nasdaq fell 2 percent. The S&P 500 was down 1.5 percent.

Still to come on the "NewsHour": former President Trump faces trial in a rape and defamation case brought by author E. Jean Carroll; a comprehensive review of how the U.S. handled the pandemic lays out the lessons learned; and we remember the life and career of the legendary performer Harry Belafonte.