News Wrap: More than 250,000 in Texas still without power a week after hurricane

In our news wrap Monday, the largest energy provider in Texas is under intense scrutiny as more than 250,000 thousand customers are still without power a week after Hurricane Beryl, Israel carried out new attacks on Gaza following a weekend of airstrikes and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy hopes to hold an international peace summit and he wants Russia to attend.

Read the Full Transcript

Stephanie Sy: Thanks, Amna and Geoff.

Houston’s main utility company says the majority of power outages in the city should be fixed by Wednesday. That news comes amid growing pressure on CenterPoint Energy, as more than 200,000 customers remain without power a week after Hurricane Beryl swept through the area.

The Texas Public Utility Commission has launched an investigation into CenterPoint’s storm preparedness a day after Governor Greg Abbott demanded — quote — “specific actions to address power outages and reduce the possibility that power will be lost during a severe weather event.”

Beryl also left its mark thousands of miles away in Vermont. Officials there are seeking disaster assistance from FEMA after flooding knocked out bridges and washed out roads.

In the Middle East, Israel has carried out new attacks on Gaza following a weekend of devastating airstrikes. Today, in Deir al Balah in Central Gaza, local officials say an Israeli attack killed three members of the same family, including a child. The State Department spokesperson said today that Secretary Blinken expressed concern over civilian casualties in a meeting with Israeli officials.

Matthew Miller, State Department Spokesman: We have seen civilian casualties come down from the high points of the conflict and even from where they were, say, six weeks, two months ago, but they still remain unacceptably high. We continue to see far too many civilians killed in this conflict. We want to see civilian casualties completely ended.

Stephanie Sy: Blinken also spoke with Israeli officials today about ongoing talks toward a cease-fire deal with Hamas. During the meeting, Israel said it is still committed to reaching an agreement. Hamas also said today the cease-fire talks are continuing, but accused Israel of trying to derail progress with its ongoing attacks in Gaza.

In Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he aims to hold a second international peace summit and he wants Russia to attend. At last month’s gathering in Switzerland, Russia was absent. In his first news conference since visiting the U.S. last week, Zelenskyy also said he was ready to work with Donald Trump if the former president wins November’s election.

And he made an urgent plea for more military aid.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President (through interpreter): From the point of view of the structure of our air defense, to completely cover Ukraine, according to our military, we need 25 Patriot systems. This is in order to completely close the sky of Ukraine.

Stephanie Sy: Separately, a Moscow court convicted U.S. journalist Masha Gessen in absentia today on charges of spreading lies about the Russian military. Gessen was sentenced to eight years in prison. The Moscow-born author is the latest American target of Russia’s crackdown on dissent.

Gessen is a prominent critic of Vladimir Putin who lives outside Russia and is unlikely to face actual imprisonment.

Gambia’s Parliament voted today to uphold a ban on female genital cutting. Lawmakers rejected a push by the country’s religious conservatives, who had argued that the practice is — quote — “one of the virtues of Islam.” Gambia would have been the first country to reverse such a ban.

According to the U.N., more than 50 percent of women there between the ages of 15 and 49 have undergone the procedure, also called female genital mutilation. The practice can cause serious bleeding, death, and childbirth complications, but remains widespread in parts of Africa.

Police in Miami say they arrested 27 people and ejected 55 others amid chaotic scenes at the Copa America final last night in Florida. The showdown between Argentina and Colombia was delayed multiple times after fans tried to force their way into the stadium, some without tickets. A few even attempted scaling the walls to gain entry.

Security officials tried to control the gates, leading to tense scenes, with some fans forcing their way in. The head of Colombia’s soccer federation and his son were among those arrested.

On Wall Street today, stocks ended higher after the Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, said there has been progress on taming inflation. The Dow Jones industrial average added more than 200 points to close at an all-time high. The Nasdaq tacked on 75 points, ending just shy of its own record, and the S&P 500 also ended higher to start the week.