News Wrap: Bipartisan House coalition passes $95 billion foreign aid package

In our news wrap Saturday, the House passed a long-delayed $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, the Senate approved an extension of a controversial surveillance law, hospital officials say an Israeli airstrike on a house in southern Gaza killed at least nine people including six children, and former Arkansas governor and U.S. Sen. David Pryor died at the age of 89.

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  • John Yang:

    Good evening. I'm John Yang. A highly unusual bipartisan coalition in the House has overwhelmingly passed a long delayed $95 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. The sudden spurt of activity comes after months of dysfunction and delay.

    On the House floor, Democrats stood and cheered while waving Ukrainian flags. Earlier, lawmakers turned back an amendment from ultra-conservative representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia that would have stripped out the $60 billion for Ukraine. That money was a sticking point.

    House Republicans had said border security was more pressing. To appease them, House Speaker Mike Johnson held a separate vote on a border security bill, and it failed to get the support it needed to pass. The House also approved language that could lead to a U.S. ban on TikTok, the popular social media platform. The entire measure now goes to the Senate.

    Late last night, the Senate approved a two-year extension of a controversial surveillance law that's part of FISA. That's the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The 60 to 34 vote came minutes after the provision expired. It sent the measure to President Biden for his signature. This means the government may continue to collect without a warrant the communications of foreign targets, even when they're communicating with Americans. Privacy and civil rights advocates have long wanted to require the government to get a warrant to do that.

    An Israeli airstrike in a house in Gaza's southern city of Rafah overnight killed at least nine people, six of them children. That's according to hospital officials. More airstrikes today in central Gaza killed at least one civilian in a refugee camp. Iraq is investigating the source of an overnight explosion at a base used by pro-Iranian militias.

    Israeli officials and the U.S. military both say they weren't involved. It came less than a day after a suspected Israeli strike near an Iranian nuclear site.

    And former Arkansas governor and us Senator David Pryor has died. Pryor was one of the state's most popular politicians. He went undercover to investigate nursing homes and was the chief sponsor of the taxpayer bill of rights. He had survived a heart attack, a stroke, and COVID-19. His son, former U.S. senator Mark Pryor said he died of natural causes. David Pryor was 89 years old.

    Still to come on PBS News, what's at stake for India and its allies in this six-week long election and what can be done to protect journalists reporting on the front lines of deadly conflicts?

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