Midday Roundup: School's out for Islamic holidays in NYC

School’s out. Students in New York City public schools learned yesterday they will get two extra days off a year in honor of Islamic holidays. The change fulfills one of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s campaign promises to make the school calendar more Muslim-friendly. The exact portion of students who are Muslim in New York is unknown, but one study estimated it to be 10 percent, according to CNN. School will not meet on Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, and Eid al-Adha, which commemorates the Islamic legend of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael. (Muslims believe Abraham took Ishmael and not Isaac to the mountain at God’s command.) New York students already have days off for Christmas and Good Friday, as well as the Jewish holidays Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah.

Lethal aid. House lawmakers took aim at the administration’s Ukraine policy Wednesday. Lawmakers pressed Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland about the administration’s delay in sending lethal aid to Ukraine to defend itself against pro-Russian separatists. Nuland insisted that’s still on the table, but the president has not made a decision yet. Congressman Ed Royce, R-Calif., argued back, saying, “I would just make the point to not decide is to decide.” Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle expressed urgency in sending lethal aid to Ukraine.

Override vote. The Senate on Wednesday failed to override President Barack Obama’s veto of the bill authorizing construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. Several Democrats joined Republicans voting for the override. The vote was 62-37, five votes short of what they needed to overcome the veto.

Dot-com drama. President Barack Obama was unaware Hillary Clinton was using only personal email as secretary of state, diverging from the guidance of the White House counsel, sources revealed today. Clinton announced Wednesday night she had handed over to the State Department about 55,000 pages of emails related to official business. Secretary of State John Kerry said the department will review and release the emails, but it will take some time. An investigation by the Republican-led Select Committee on Benghazi exposed Clinton’s reliance on personal email alone.

Farewell to elephants. The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus announced plans to eliminate elephant acts from its show by 2018. A vice president for the company said consumers have shifted from being entertained by the elephants to being uncomfortable with their presence due to concerns about their treatment. Many municipalities have passed ordinances prohibiting or regulating elephant shows, and keeping up with the laws of each jurisdiction is becoming too costly and time-consuming for the circus.

WORLD Radio’s Jim Henry and Carl Peetz contributed to this story.