June 20, 2024 (Thursday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- Russian invasion of Ukraine
- United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Ukraine is prioritized first among the countries to receive ordered deliveries of MIM-104 Patriot missile systems from the United States. (CNN)
- United States officials announce that they will allow Ukraine to use US weapons to strike Russian forces within Russia, provided they are located right across the border with Ukraine, removing the prior limit of only allowing strikes across the Kharkiv front. (Politico)
- Eastern Ukraine campaign
- Three people are killed and four others are injured in Russian cluster munitions strikes on the village of Rozkishne, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. (Al Jazeera)
- United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Sudanese civil war
- The Rapid Support Forces captures Al-Fulah, the capital of West Kordofan, Sudan, after the Sudanese Armed Forces withdraw from the city after several hours of fighting. (Al Jazeera)
Arts and culture
- Orca Shipwreck
- The Israel Antiquities Authority announces the discovery of a 3,300-year-old ship and its cargo, one of the oldest known examples of a ship sailing far from land. The ship was discovered last year by a company drilling for natural gas off the coast of Northern Israel. (NBC News)
Disasters and accidents
- 2024 Hajj disaster
- At least 1,081 pilgrims are now confirmed to have died from heat-related causes during the Hajj in Saudi Arabia. (France 24)
- 2024 Tamil Nadu alcohol poisoning
- At least 36 people are killed and more than 60 others are hospitalized after consuming tainted liquor in Kallakurichi district, Tamil Nadu, India. (Reuters) (New Indian Express)
- A cruise ship rescues 68 migrants and finds five bodies in a wooden dinghy that was drifting off the Canary Islands, Spain. (ABC News)
- At least two people are killed and nine others are injured when a passenger train collides with a train on a test run near Santiago, Chile. (AP)
- Kuwait announces temporary power cuts in parts of the country during peak consumption hours, saying that the country is struggling to meet increased demand caused by extreme summer heat. (Al Arabiya)
International relations
- Russia–United States relations
- U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal and Lindsey Graham move to designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism after its defensive pact with North Korea. (The National)
- Outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte is announced as the next Secretary General of NATO, beginning his term on October 2. (Politico)
Law and crime
- ChinaAngVirus disinformation campaign
- Congress of the Philippines lawmakers pursue an investigation into a U.S. military social media disinformation operation to discredit Chinese COVID-19 vaccines to Filipinos to determine the damages caused, international law infringements, and possible legal action. (Reuters)
- Vandalism of Stonehenge
- The orange powder paint sprayed on Stonehenge by Just Stop Oil activists yesterday is removed with a handheld blower fan, leaving no visible damage. (BBC News)
- Two Just Stop Oil activists film themselves cutting through a metal fence and spraying orange paint on two private jets at Stansted Airport in Essex, England, United Kingdom. Police arrest the activists for criminal damage. (BBC News)
- A tourist accused of desecrating the Quran is removed from a police station in Swat District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, by a mob who beat him to death before setting his corpse on fire. (Al Arabiya)
- The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom rules that the future impact of proposed fossil fuel projects must be assessed, when considering site proposals for drilling. (The Guardian)
Politics and elections
- The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announces sanctions on firms based in China, India, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan, for their alleged support to Russia in the Russo–Ukrainian war. (Al Jazeera)
- One person is killed, at least 200 people are injured, and over 100 are arrested in protests across Kenya against government plans to raise $2.7 billion in additional taxes. Kenya Police fired live rounds, tear gas, and water cannons at protesters. (Reuters)
Science and technology
- 2024 in archosaur paleontology
- Researchers announce the discovery the Lokiceratops rangiformis, a dinosaur species named after the Norse god Loki, in North America. The findings are published in the journal PeerJ. (ABC News)
- The International Union for Conservation of Nature announces that the Iberian lynx has been upgraded from endangered to vulnerable for the first time since 1986, after a 2023 census showed a population of 2,021 animals. (BBC News)
Sports