10 things you need to know today: December 22, 2023

1. Student kills 14 at Prague university

A student fatally shot at least 14 people and injured 25 others on Thursday at Prague's Charles University, in the Czech Republic's worst-ever mass shooting, local police said. Photos posted on social media showed students barricading themselves inside classrooms. Multiple news outlets identified the suspected shooter as David Kozak, 24, a history student who had written on the Telegram messaging app that he "always wanted to kill." Police posted on X, formerly Twitter, that the suspected attacker had been "eliminated." Gun violence is rare in the Czech Republic, but Prague's mayor, Bohuslav Svoboda, said "our world is also changing and the problem of the individual shooter is emerging here as well." BBC, The Telegraph

2. Giuliani files for bankruptcy protection

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, an ex-lawyer for former President Donald Trump, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Thursday, a day after being ordered to expeditiously pay $148 million in damages for defaming two Georgia election workers he falsely accused of ballot fraud. Giuliani's bankruptcy lawyers said the filing in New York should surprise nobody because Giuliani clearly can't "pay such a high punitive amount." Giuliani has been overwhelmed with legal bills in civil and criminal cases over his pushing of debunked claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Trump. Giuliani has complained he doesn't have enough money to defend himself. His filing listed debts of $500 million and assets of $10 million. Bloomberg

3. UN agency says 1 in 4 Gazans are starving

"Woefully insufficient" food supplies have reached Gaza since the Israel-Hamas conflict erupted 10 weeks ago, leaving more than a quarter of the Palestinian enclave's population of 2.3 million starving, according to a United Nations World Food Program report released Thursday. "I have never seen something at the scale that is happening in Gaza. And at this speed," said Arif Husain, chief economist for the U.N. agency. Israel says its military has nearly cleared Hamas fighters out of northern Gaza, but will continue fighting in the south for months. The Hamas-run Gaza government says 20,000 Palestinians have died in the war, which started when Hamas executed a deadly Oct. 7 surprise attack in southern Israel. The Associated Press

4. Report: Scant evidence of Hamas presence at hospital

A Washington Post analysis published Thursday concluded that evidence provided by the Israeli government "falls short" of proving that Hamas was running a command-and-control center at Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital. Before and after Israeli forces stormed the complex on Nov. 15, Israeli Defense Forces officials said they had "concrete evidence" that Hamas was operating in tunnels and bunkers under the medical complex, the Palestinian enclave's largest. "Terrorists came here to command their operations," Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari said on Nov. 22. But the Post reported that rooms connected to a tunnel the IDF found showed no sign of militant activity, and none of the five hospital buildings Hagari pointed to had access to tunnels. The Washington Post

5. Seattle hospital sues Texas AG over request for trans-care records

The Seattle Children's Hospital is suing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) to block his demand for information about gender-affirming treatment that Texas youths may have received across state lines, according to court filings. The dispute signaled an escalation of efforts by Paxton's office to crack down on the availability of transgender health care more than two months after Texas enacted a law banning the use of puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender youth. The Seattle hospital argued that Paxton's request violates Washington and federal laws, his office lacks jurisdiction over a medical facility in Washington state, and his demands under the guise of a consumer-protection investigation are "sham requests." The Seattle Times, The Texas Tribune

6. Mortgage rates fall to lowest level since June

U.S. mortgage rates fell for the eighth straight week to their lowest level since June, according to data released by Freddie Mac on Thursday. The rate on the popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, which dropped below 7% last week for the first time in four months, continued declining this week to an average of 6.67%. A year ago, the average rate on the long-term loan was 6.27%. The Federal Reserve's aggressive campaign to raise interest rates to cool the economy and bring down inflation pushed mortgage rates up from historic lows. Combined with high housing prices, that created the "least affordable housing market since the 1980s," according to CNN. Mortgages have fallen as inflation edged down, stoking anticipation of Fed rate cuts next year. CNN

7. Jury acquits 3 Tacoma officers in Manuel Ellis' death

A jury on Thursday found three Tacoma, Washington, police officers — Matthew Collins, Christopher Burbank and Timothy Rankine — not guilty on all charges in connection with the 2020 death of Manuel "Manny" Ellis, a Black man who died after being shocked, beaten and held face down on a sidewalk, pleading for breath. Police said they were trying to arrest Ellis, who was unarmed and walking home after buying donuts from 7-Eleven, for trying to open the doors of occupied cars. Three witnesses said they didn't see Ellis do anything suspicious. Matthew Ericksen, a lawyer representing the Ellis family, said they were "emotionally devastated" by the decision. About 100 protesters gathered at a mural of Ellis in Tacoma. The Associated Press, The Seattle Times

8. US, China military leaders resume dialogue

Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr., chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke with his Chinese counterpart, Gen. Liu Zhenli, in a teleconference call on Thursday, restoring direct military dialogue between the two world powers after a dangerous 16-month rupture, The Wall Street Journal reported. China's Defense Ministry said the generals discussed Taiwan and the South China Sea. The call occurred just over a month after President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping talked at a summit outside San Francisco and agreed to restart military contact in an effort to ease U.S.-China tensions. U.S. officials said China has also cracked down on illegal trade in chemicals used to make fentanyl. The Wall Street Journal

9. Honda recalls 2.5 million US vehicles

Honda's American arm said in a filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that it was recalling more than 2.5 million Honda and Acura vehicles in the United States and a total of 4.5 million worldwide to address a fuel pump defect, multiple news outlets reported Thursday. The problem can cause the engines of affected cars and SUVs to fail or stall. The automaker said it would replace the fuel pumps at no cost, but that it would notify drivers in phases because it didn't have enough parts to fix all of the vehicles at once. Dealers are expected to start notifying owners this week, Honda said in the NHTSA filing. NPR, Reuters

10. Vin Diesel accused of sexual assault

A former assistant to actor Vin Diesel filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles on Thursday accusing the "Fast & Furious" star of groping and sexually assaulting her in 2010. The woman, Asta Jonasson, said the incident occurred in Atlanta during the filming of "Fast Five." Jonasson said Diesel's production company One Race hired her to help organize Diesel's activities and accompany him to social events. She said Diesel assaulted her at the St. Regis hotel late at night after entertaining hostesses from a club. Bryan Freedman, a lawyer for Diesel, said the actor "categorically denies this claim in its entirety," and that the lawsuit "is the first he has ever heard about this more than 13-year-old claim made by a purportedly 9-day employee." USA Today