10 things you need to know today: August 14, 2023

1. Maui wildfire death toll rises as search for missing continues

The death toll from last week's wildfire that destroyed the historic seaside town of Lahaina, Hawaii, rose by three to 96 late Sunday. The fire in western Maui is already the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century, and search crews with cadaver-sniffing dogs are still combing through the ruins as an unspecified number of people remain missing. Gov. Josh Green said over the weekend that the number of fatalities would "continue to rise. We want to brace people for that." Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Pacific Disaster Center maps showed that about 2,200 structures, 86% of which were homes, were damaged or destroyed in Lahaina, with total losses near $6 billion.

Honolulu Star-Advertiser The Associated Press

2. Russian warship fires warning shots at cargo ship in Black Sea

A Russian warship fired warning shots at a Ukraine-bound cargo ship in the southwestern Black Sea over the weekend, the first such incident since Moscow ended the United Nations–brokered deal that had allowed merchant ships to export grain from Ukraine. Russia said in a statement that one of its patrol ships, the Vasily Bykov, had fired automatic weapons to "forcibly stop the vessel," the Palau-flagged Sukru Okan, after its captain failed to halt for an inspection. Russian forces used a helicopter to board the vessel. "After the inspection group completed its work on board, the Sukru Okan continued on its way to the port of Izmail," the Russian defense ministry said.

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Reuters

3. Report: Messages implicate Trump team in Georgia voting system breach

Georgia prosecutors investigating Donald Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state have text messages and emails connecting members of the then-president's legal team to a breach of the Coffee County voting system, CNN reported Sunday, citing sources familiar with the matter. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is expected to seek grand jury indictments as soon as this week against more than a dozen people, including several allegedly involved in the January 2021 breach in Coffee County, which Trump won by nearly 70% of the vote. Last year, a former Trump official, testifying under oath, told the House Jan. 6 committee that a plan to access Georgia voting systems was discussed in meetings at the Trump White House.

CNN

4. Kim Jong Un calls for increased North Korea missile production

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ordered increased missile production in his isolated nation ahead of annual joint military drills by South Korea and the United States, state media KCNA reported on Monday. Kim said during visits to factories that produce tactical missiles, armored vehicles, artillery shells, and other munitions that North Korea must prepare for war by developing "overwhelming military power." Pyongyang considers the South Korea-U.S. military exercises to be a rehearsal for war. South Korea and the U.S. said Monday the Ulchi Freedom Guardian summer exercises on Aug. 21-31 would enhance their readiness to respond to increasing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea.

Reuters

5. Niger junta to charge ousted president with 'high treason'

Niger's ruling junta said Sunday it would prosecute ousted President Mohamed Bazoum for "high treason and undermining the internal and external security" of the country. The National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland of Niger, the military council that took over after the presidential guard removed Bazoum in a July coup d'etat, said it had "gathered the necessary evidence to prosecute the deposed president and his local and foreign accomplices." The announcement widened the rift between the junta and the international community. Neighboring West African nations have threatened to use force, if necessary, to restore constitutional order in Niger, which had been one of the few remaining democracies in the Sahel region.

Al Jazeera CNN

6. Far-right candidate leads Argentina presidential primary

Javier Milei, a far-right libertarian congressman, got the most votes in Argentina's open presidential primary election on Sunday. His surprisingly strong showing made him the front-runner heading into the fall general election. Milei, a 52-year-old economist and former TV commentator, had 30% of the vote with 96% of the ballots counted. He campaigned on a call to adopt the U.S. dollar as the South American nation's official currency, and some observers compared him to Donald Trump. "I think these results are surprising even to him," said Pablo Touzon, an Argentine political consultant, in The New York Times. "Up until now, he was a protest candidate." Center-left finance minister Sergio Massa finished in second place with 21%, followed by conservative former security minister Patricia Bullrich.

The New York Times

7. Gunman kills 1 at shrine in Iran

A gunman opened fire at the Shah Cheragh shrine in the Iranian city of Shiraz, killing one person and wounding eight, the official IRNA state news agency reported Sunday. Yadollah Bouali, the regional Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps commander, told state TV the attacker was a "terrorist" who "entered the gate of the shrine and opened fire with a battle rifle." No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Shah Cheragh was hit in a previous attack in October 2022 that left 13 people dead. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for that assault. Iran executed two people who allegedly helped carry out last October's attack, and alleged ringleader Hamed Badakhshan of Afghanistan was killed at the scene.

BBC News

8. Co-owner of Kansas newspaper dies a day after police raid

The 98-year-old co-owner of the local newspaper in Marion, Kansas, died on Saturday, a day after police raided the paper's office and its owners' home, seizing computers, servers and the cellphones of reporters and editors. "These are Hitler tactics and something has to be done," Joan Meyer, a newspaperwoman since 1953, said after officers ransacked the newsroom. Meyer told The Wichita Eagle she felt stressed by the incident. She collapsed and died the next day. The search of the Marion County Record, circulation 4,000, came after the paper received a document from a tipster that contained personal information about a local restaurateur. Journalists called the raid a violation of press freedom. "This is scary," said Emily Bradbury, executive director of the Kansas Press Association.

The New York Times The Wall Street Journal

9. 'Barbie' leads domestic box office for 4th week

"Barbie" led the domestic box office for the fourth straight weekend, bringing in another $33.7 million. The hit movie made another $45 million in weekend ticket sales overseas, lifting the Greta Gerwig comedy's global earnings to $1.2 billion. The film about the iconic doll, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, is now the second-highest grossing Warner Bros. release ever. "Oppenheimer," the second half of the "Barbenheimer" duo that has supercharged the summer movie season, bounced back to the No. 2 spot in its fourth week after slipping to No. 3 a week ago. The Christopher Nolan–directed Universal Pictures film about the atomic-bomb scientist added $18.8 million, bringing its overall domestic total to $264.3 million.

Variety The Associated Press

10. Lilia Vu wins women's British Open

Lilia Vu shot a 5-under-par 67 to win the women's British Open on Sunday. The California golfer started the day tied for the lead with England's Charley Hull, the hometown hero at the AIG Women's Open, which was held 30 minutes from where she grew up. But Vu built a big lead by avoiding trouble as Hull and other rivals fell back. Wu wound up finishing ahead by six strokes to take her second major title of 2023. "It sounds almost unreal," Vu said. She won an LPGA event in Thailand in February and the Chevron Championship two months later, but missed the cut in several subsequent events. "Honestly I was thinking those two wins were a fluke," she said.

Sports Illustrated The Associated Press