News Wrap: More E. coli cases linked to McDonald's outbreak

In our news wrap Friday, more people have been reported sick from the E. coli outbreak tied to McDonald’s, the Biden administration is proposing a new path for student loan forgiveness, Hezbollah militants and the Israeli army traded fire across the Lebanese border and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says North Korean troops could join Russian forces on the battlefield as soon as this weekend.

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Amna Nawaz: In the day’s other headlines, more people have been reported sick from the E. coli outbreak tied to fast-food giant McDonald’s Quarter Pounders.

The CDC says there are at least 75 reported illnesses in 13 states as far West as Washington state and as far east as Michigan. The number of hospitalizations has risen to 22 and one person has died. No source of the outbreak has been confirmed, but Taylor Farms, a California-based supplier of yellow onions to McDonald’s and other fast-food chains, has voluntarily recalled its produce from a facility in Colorado.

The Biden administration is proposing a new path for student loan forgiveness, this time for Americans facing imminent financial hardship. If finalized, the Education Department could proactively cancel loans for borrowers with an 80 percent risk of imminent default within two years. It’s estimated some eight million people would qualify, including those facing unexpected medical bills, high childcare costs, or damage from natural disasters.

This is President Biden’s third attempt at student loan forgiveness, and the proposal is expected to face legal challenges, just as the first two attempts have.

Hezbollah militants and the Israeli army traded fire across the Lebanese border today. Two people in Northern Israel were killed by shrapnel from a Hezbollah rocket attack, while, in Southeast Lebanon, an Israeli airstrike killed three journalists overnight. Many other media are staying in the same area, which has been largely spared from attacks so far. The Committee to Protect Journalists called for an independent investigation.

And we will have more on the war in Gaza later in the broadcast.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that North Korean troops could join Russian forces on the battlefield as soon as this weekend. That would be the first time a third country puts boots on the ground in the war, bringing far-reaching geopolitical consequences. Russian President Vladimir Putin has not commented on the troop presence, which the U.S. confirmed earlier this week.

But Putin said any decision would be one that both Russia and North Korea would decide together when the time comes.

Vladimir Putin, Russian President (through interpreter): We are in contact with our North Korean friends, and when we have to decide something, we will undoubtedly decide. Our friends from North Korea have the same point of view. But I want to say that it is our sovereign decision.

Amna Nawaz: And there’s new friction caused by this handshake yesterday between Putin and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at an economic summit in Russia. It caused an outcry in Ukraine and prompted President Zelenskyy to cancel a planned visit by Guterres to Kyiv.

Forecasters warn that a deadly tropical storm in the Philippines that’s already killed 82 people may turn back around and return to the area next week. Rescuers and police dug through some 10 feet of mud, rocks and debris to search for missing villagers as landslides buried homes and cars. Over two dozen people remain unaccounted for in the northwestern Batangas Province and elsewhere.

Nearly 240,000 people have been forced into shelters, many with nothing left.

Vilma Briyuso, Philippines Resident (through interpreter): We have nothing left. We have no more house to go home to. All I’m thinking about is, where do we go next? We have no more home.

Amna Nawaz: Tropical Storm Trami is the 11th storm and so far the deadliest to hit the Philippines this year. The country typically sees an annual average of 20 tropical storms.

And stocks closed mostly lower on Wall Street today, snapping a streak of six consecutive weeks of gains. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped more than 250 points, easing back from its record high late last week. The Nasdaq posted the only major gain on the day of more than 100 points. The S&P ended virtually unchanged.

And Phil Lesh has died. A musician who began as a classically trained violinist and jazz trumpeter became the pioneering bassist for and a founding member of the Grateful Dead. Alongside the late lead guitarist Jerry Garcia’s soaring solos, Lesh’ bass provided the Dead’s trademark rolling thunder sound from the acid rock days of the late 1960s until Garcia’s death in 1995.

But that was nowhere near the end for Lesh. He was performing until just recently. Here he is from his birthday celebration this past March. An official statement on Lesh’s social media said that he passed peacefully this morning. He was 84 years old.

And from his many fans here at the “News Hour,” fare you well, Phil.