New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed an emergency declaration late Tuesday seeking federal aid to help Ruidoso, in the southern part of the state, to recover from flash floods that killed a father and two children. “This crisis demands immediate action,” she said in a statement, citing the town’s past resilience. Earlier this week, the mayor of Ruidoso asked state lawmakers for help preparing for flood risk, saying wildfires last year had left his community vulnerable to flash flooding. Wildfire-burned soils do not easily absorb water, which leads to rapid runoff into river systems. – Staff

In a finding published on Wednesday, the The European Court of Human Rights said Moscow was responsible for widespread violations of international law – from the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in 2014, to the murder, torture, rape, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and kidnapping of Ukrainian children after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of 2022. The court issued judgements in four cases brought by Kyiv and the Netherlands accusing Moscow of atrocities in Ukraine dating back more than a decade. It’s the first time an international court has concluded there have been widespread human rights abuses by Russian forces in Ukraine.

It alleged a Title IX violation Wednesday for allowing transgender student athletes to participate in female sports. On Monday, California had rejected a resolution agreement in which the U.S. Department of Education had called for measures including rescinding recognition for transgender athletes’ achievements. The legal escalation, which jeopardizes the state’s education funding, marks the latest tension point between the White House and the Democrat-led state. – Staff

Hundreds of thousands of workers across India are on strike to oppose Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s privatization efforts and economic reforms. Organized by major trade unions and farmer groups, the strike disrupted coal mining, banking, and public transport. Protesters in cities like Kolkata and Mumbai rallied against labor law changes and the privatization of state-run companies. Many shops, schools, and offices in states like Kerala and Odisha were shut. Workers demand higher wages, halting privatization, and scrapping new labor laws. Mr. Modi’s government defends the reforms as necessary for economic growth, but unions argue they harm workers and benefit corporations.