Tuesday Briefing: Death toll in Florida building collapse rises

The Reuters Daily Briefing Tuesday, July 6, 2021 by Farouq Suleiman Hello Here's what you need to know. Death toll from collapsed Florida condominium rises, Belarus court jails former presidential contender and Twitter loses immunity over user-generated content in India. Today's biggest stories Search-and-rescue efforts resume the day after the managed demolition of the remaining part of Champlain Towers South complex in Surfside, Florida, U.S. July 5, 2021. REUTERS/Marco Bello U.S. The death toll from a collapsed condominium tower near Miami rose to 28 after the controlled demolition of the remainder of the building enabled rescuers to expand their search. The collapse of the building will set off years of litigation as victims and their families look to find fault among the building's management as well as engineers, architects and others, according to legal experts. Tropical storm Elsa's center exited Cuba on Monday, churning northwards to Florida although the lopsided weather system continued to dump heavy rains over the Caribbean's largest island in its wake. Across the United States, where a complex thicket of laws stymies public access to body-camera footage, activists have urged law enforcement to release video to increase transparency and accountability in policing. U.S. business lobbying groups cheered a bipartisan infrastructure deal, but are gearing up to fight the corporate tax hikes looming in a separate but linked spending bill that Democrats aim to pass without Republican votes. Former Belarusian presidential contender Viktor Babariko, who was arrested last June on corruption charges, attends a court hearing in Minsk, Belarus July 6, 2021. Ramil Nasibulin/BelTA/Handout World A court in Belarus jailed former presidential contender Viktor Babariko for 14 years after convicting him on corruption charges he denied, sparking condemnation from the West and the embattled opposition-in-exile. Israel reported a decrease in the effectiveness of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in preventing infections and symptomatic illness but said it remained highly effective in preventing serious illness. South Korea said it will receive 700,000 doses of Pfizer/BioNTech's vaccine from Israel on loan this week, under the vaccine swap arrangement announced by both governments, South Korea will give Israel back the same number of shots in September and October. Fully-vaccinated people and children will no longer have to self-isolate after a close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID-19 after August 16 in England unless they also test positive, health minister Sajid Javid said. Rescuers in Japan waded through mud, rock and splintered wood in search of 24 people still missing after heavy rain triggered massive landslides in the seaside city of Atami three days ago, killing four people. Pope Francis' progress following intestinal surgery is going normally, and he slept well and got up to walk, the Vatican said. The results of routine tests were good, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said. Business Twitter no longer enjoys liability protection against user-generated content in India as the U.S. tech giant has failed to comply with new IT rules, the Indian government said in a court filing. Between 800 and 1,500 businesses around the world have been affected by a ransomware attack centered on U.S. information technology firm Kaseya, its chief executive said. The U.S. debt ceiling comes back into effect at the end of July, putting pressure on the Treasury to reduce its cash balance ahead of the deadline. Here's a look at how excess cash is playing out in U.S. reverse repo and money markets. Didi Global shares slumped as much as 25% in U.S. pre-market trade, ahead of its first session since Chinese regulators ordered the company's app be taken down days after its $4.4 billion listing on the New York Stock Exchange. Crude oil buyers in Asia are concerned that an unexpected cancelation of an OPEC+ meeting to discuss a rise in output could drive oil prices even higher and hurt their margins. Quote of the day "It is in the European Union's very own interests to drive the process forward here." Angela Merkel German Chancellor Merkel sees strategic case for Balkan states joining EU Video of the day Hong Kong leader defends proposed privacy law changes And finally… Smart foam material gives robotic hand the ability to self-repair Singapore researchers have developed a smart foam material that allows robots to sense nearby objects, and repairs itself when damaged, just like human skin. More from Reuters COVID-19 Investigates Legal news Great Reboot Thanks for spending part of your day with us. Share your thoughts You are receiving this email because you signed up for newsletters from Reuters. No longer want to hear from us? Unsubscribe from The Reuters Daily Briefing. Terms, conditions, and privacy statement © 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved. 3 Times Square, New York, NY 10036