Tuesday morning news: August 30, 2022

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kristen Flavin. 

Artemis » NASA officials said a hydrogen leak, communication problems, and the weather made it scrap its long-awaited Artemis I mission.

The unmanned rocket was set to blast off Monday for a flight to the moon and back. It’s the first step in NASA’s quest to put humans back on the moon. And beyond that, a larger goal: Mars

The grounded rocket could still launch with its crew of three test dummies as early as Friday.

About 800 people, including children in astronaut suits, watched a live stream of the Artemis I launch pad Monday.

WORLD’s Bonnie Pritchett was onsite and spoke to onlookers.

AUDIO: Well the things that we learn from the space program itself. I mean it affects us so much in our everyday lives that we don’t even pay any attention to anymore.

If all goes well, NASA plans to send human astronauts to orbit the moon in 2024.

Trump update » President Donald Trump asked for a special master to protect his privileged documents—but the request might now be moot.

The Justice Department said Monday that a specialized team already went through documents seized in a raid on Trump’s Florida estate. The team flagged—quote—a limited set of materials that potentially contain attorney-client information, that from a court filing Monday.

Iraq Protests » AUDIO: [Iraqi protests]

The death toll for protests in Iraq has risen to 15, that after Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr announced his retirement from politics.

Authorities say gunfire wounded 15 people. Nearly a dozen more have been hurt either by tear gas or fighting with security forces.

AUDIO: [Arabic]

One man said he and his fellow protesters are tired of political parties. They want solutions to Iraqis’ problems.

The Iraqi military has announced a nationwide curfew, and the prime minister has suspended Cabinet proceedings.

Muqtada al-Sadr’s supporters raided Iraqi parliament at the end of July. Their goal? To prevent the formation of a government aligned with Iran.

Afghanistan » It’s been a year since the U.S. military moved out of Afghanistan and the Taliban moved in.

At-risk Afghans say they are still struggling to find safe and legal ways out of the country. Meanwhile, critics say terrorists are making themselves at home there.

On July 31, missiles fired from a U.S. drone took out al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul. U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst says that proves the Taliban is colluding with al-Qaeda.

ERNST: We’ve just saw strikes several weeks ago which took out the leader of al-Qaeda as he was sipping coffee on his veranda in downtown Kabul.

Al-Zawahiri’s presence violated the Taliban’s withdrawal agreement with the U.S. Taliban leaders said they didn’t know he was there.

In the U.S., National Security Council Coordinator John Kirby said the government is trying to streamline the process for Afghans to resettle here:

KIRBY: The state department is trying to look for ways to make the process better. They’re continuing to actively process applications every single day.

Of the tens of thousands of Afghans who applied for U.S. humanitarian parole after its withdrawal, only 297 have been approved.

Ukraine nuclear plant » A 14-man UN team has left to go visit the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine, that as European leaders fear the potential of a nuclear disaster.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky supported the visit…

ZELENSKY: [Ukrainian]

But he also said that sanctions need to be leveled against Russia’s nuclear energy corporation for—quote—“radiation blackmail.”

The UN nuclear team is set to arrive later this week, and will check crucial safety features to help prevent nuclear disaster.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said a visit isn’t enough:

KULEBA: Russia must go… it’s as simple as that.

Meanwhile, shelling still continues around the plant, and both Ukraine and Russia say the other is responsible.

Stocks falling » Stocks fell again on Monday, that after Fed chair Jerome Powell announced on Friday that the Federal Reserve would continue its severe interest rate hikes.

The Fed’s last two increases were three-quarter point hikes. Many on Wall Street expect another such bump in September. Senior market analyst Ed Moya said the Fed …

MOYA: Is really locked in a position right now where they were late to begin tightening. They were wrong about inflation being transitory. And now they they really, you know, put themselves in a corner where they have to deliver rate hikes aggressively.

The S&P 500 fell seven-tenths of a percentage point on Monday. The Dow and the Nasdaq also lost one point or less.

I’m Kristen Flavin. For more news, features, and analysis, visit us at wng.org. 

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