This Fourth of July weekend is shaping up to be quieter than most. Much of the US is likely to see the chance of rain through Monday, putting a damper on fireworks displays. It’ll be a different story in the West, where severe drought conditions have led many cities to cancel fireworks shows altogether due to the risk of sparking wildfires.
Here’s what else you need to know to Start Your Week Smart.
• Russia is claiming to have taken control of Lysychansk, the last city in the Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine that was still under Ukrainian control. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin that the military had taken over Lysychansk and a number of nearby settlements, according to the country’s Ministry of Defense.
• Thousands of residents have been ordered to evacuate southwest Sydney, Australia’s biggest city, with torrential rain and damaging winds pounding the east coast and threatening floods in areas that were hammered in March.
• Uvalde school district police chief Pedro “Pete” Arredondo has resigned his separate position on the Uvalde city council in the wake of the massacre at Robb Elementary School in May, according to a resignation letter he sent to the city.
• A large group of people carrying flags and shields marched along downtown Boston’s Freedom Trail on Saturday, according to the Boston Police Department – and video footage of the group obtained by CNN shows the flags bearing the symbol of the White nationalist Patriot Front group.
• Covid lockdowns in China resulted in a rare drop in production and sales for Tesla in the second quarter. The electric automaker reported that completed sales dropped nearly 18%, to about 255,000 vehicles in the second quarter compared with the first three months of the year. Production fell 15% to 259,000.
Monday
Happy Independence Day! It’s the 246th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. All non-essential federal, state and city government offices will be closed in the US, along with banks, schools, stock and bond markets, and post offices.
Coney Island, however, will be open for business as thousands of fans are expected to watch Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest. Defending world champion Joey Chestnut broke his own record last year, devouring 76 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes.
And If you need a little diversion before your holiday festivities begin, take CNN’s Summer Quiz!
Thursday
A second hearing is scheduled for two-time US Olympic basketball gold medalist and WNBA star Brittney Griner, who has been detained in Russia on drug smuggling charges since her arrest at a Moscow airport on February 17. Griner, who plays in Russia during the WNBA’s off-season, went on trial at a court near Moscow last Friday and potentially faces up to 10 years in prison.
July 7 is also World Chocolate Day, which – as legend has it – marks the introduction of chocolate to Europe from Central America in 1550. This year’s celebrations are likely to be marred by the recent temporary shutdown of an enormous chocolate factory in Belgium due to a salmonella outbreak.
Friday
Amid a backdrop of soaring inflation, a stock market that’s reeling, and a slowdown in economic growth, the government will release its employment report for June on Friday. Job growth has been a rare bright spot for an economy decimated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Employers added 390,000 jobs in May and 436,000 in April.
Want more 5 Things?
This week on the Sunday edition of the 5 Things podcast, CNN’s Alexandra Field takes us to Missouri to examine how the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade is playing out on the ground in the Midwest. Listen here.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
Cassidy Hutchinson, who was once an aide to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, is sworn in Tuesday, June 28, before testifying to the House select committee investigating last year’s deadly attack on the US Capitol. Her testimony bolstered the narrative that the committee has been driving toward over the last few weeks: That former President Donald Trump incited and supported the insurrection as part of a desperate power grab to steal a second term, and that many of his top advisers thought his schemes were illegal.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Jeenah Moon/Reuters
A couple kisses in a fountain in New York’s Washington Square Park as people take part in the Queer Liberation March on Sunday, June 26.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
David Swanson/Reuters
Muni Long performs at the BET Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday, June 26.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
Players from the Colorado Avalanche celebrate after they defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning to win the Stanley Cup on Sunday, June 26. It is the franchise’s first title since 2001.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Jordan Vonderhaar/Getty Images
Law enforcement officials investigate a tractor-trailer in San Antonio on Monday, June 27. Inside they found dozens of dead migrants. In all, 53 people died in what one Homeland Security Investigations’ agent called the deadliest human smuggling incident in US history.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Fred Schilling/Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States/Reuters
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Lisa Krantz for CNN
Ciaralyn Dysart does a handstand in a San Antonio public pool that had just opened for the season on Friday, June 24. Millions of Americans were under heat advisories and looking for ways to cope with the scorching temperatures.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Jens Buttner/DPA/Zuma
An orangutan named Hsiao-Nings holds her baby at a zoo in Rostock, Germany, on Tuesday, June 28. The baby was born on June 15.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Aaron Favila/AP
Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., second from right, and Vice President Sara Duterte, second from left, attend an inauguration ceremony in Manila, Philippines, on Thursday, June 30. Marcos Jr. won the election by a landslide in May, and he was sworn in 36 years after his father was ousted in a popular uprising.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Odd Anderson/AFP/Getty Images
Water is seen on top of an iceberg in Greeland’s Disko Bay on Wednesday, June 29.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Dax McDonald/AP
An Amtrak train lies on its side after derailing near Mendon, Missouri, on Monday, June 27. Three people died and at least 50 were injured after the train hit a dump truck at an uncontrolled intersection.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Sergei Grits/AP
People comfort each other at the scene of a deadly shooting in Oslo, Norway, on Saturday, June 25. Oslo’s annual Pride parade was canceled following the shooting near the London Pub, which describes itself on its website as “the largest gay and lesbian venue in Oslo.” Two people were killed and eight were taken to the hospital.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Joaquin Sarmiento/AFP/Getty Images
Tango dancers wait backstage during an event at the Medellín Tango Festival in Medellín, Colombia, on Sunday, June 26.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Jan Hetfielsch/Getty Images
A triathlete rides through Nice, France, during an Ironman competition on Sunday, June 26.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Charlie Riedel/AP
Kyle Isbel, a center fielder with Major League Baseball’s Kansas City Royals, is doused by teammates after a win over Texas on Wednesday, June 29.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images
WNBA star Brittney Griner, who has been held in Russia on allegations of attempted drug smuggling, arrives at a hearing outside Moscow on Monday, June 27. A Russian court scheduled her trial to start Friday, according to her lawyer, and ruled that her detention be extended six months pending its outcome. The US State Department has classified Griner as “wrongfully detained,” and her supporters have expressed concern that she might be used as a political pawn given rising tensions amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Francois-Xavier Marit/AFP/Getty Images
French diver Alexis Jandard competes in the 3-meter springboard event at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, on Monday, June 27.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Sarah Silbiger for CNN
Jill McElroy and her 9-year-old daughter, Meriam, participate in an abortion rights demonstration outside the Supreme Court on Friday, June 24. “A lesson we have always taught our children is they are the bosses of their own bodies,” McElroy told photographer Sarah Silbiger. “The court’s decision today goes against that, and as a family, we think that’s wrong.” See more reaction from the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Chris Pizzello/AP
Rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs performs during a tribute in his honor at the BET Awards on Sunday, June 26.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images
Serena Williams reacts during her first-round Wimbledon loss to Harmony Tan on Tuesday, June 28. It was her first singles match after a yearlong absence. When Williams was later asked if it was the final Wimbledon match of her decorated career, she said it was a question she “can’t answer.”
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Sigit Prasetya/NurPhoto/Zuma
A firefighter works to extinguish a peatland fire in Indonesia’s Ogan Ilir Regency on Tuesday, June 28.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Manish Swarup/AP
Police officers detain activists from right-wing Hindu parties who were protesting in New Delhi after a Hindu man was allegedly killed by two Muslim assailants on Tuesday, June 28. Religious tensions were flaring in India as authorities tried to stop video of the brutal attack from circulating online.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Susan Walsh/Pool/AFP/Getty Images
From left, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson speak while attending a NATO summit in Madrid on Wednesday, June 29.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Sebastien Bozon/AFP/Getty Images
Ons Jabeur plays Mirjam Bjorklund during a singles match at Wimbledon on Monday, June 27.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Paul Yeung/Reuters
People run with a Chinese flag in Hong Kong on the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover from British to Chinese rule on Friday, July 1.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Jaime Reina/AFP/Getty Images
A horse rears inside a house during the traditional San Juan festival in Ciutadella de Menorca, Spain, on Thursday, June 23.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
John Minchillo/AP
Sarah Ransome, an accuser of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, speaks to members of the media outside a federal court in New York on Tuesday, June 28. Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for carrying out a yearslong scheme with Epstein to groom and sexually abuse underage girls.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Javier Bernardo/AP
Migrants run on Spanish soil after crossing the fences separating the Spanish enclave of Melilla from Morocco on Friday, June 24. Dozens of migrants stormed the border crossing. It was the first such incursion since Spain and Morocco mended diplomatic relations last month.
Photos: The week in 32 photos
Lisa Krantz for CNN
Jennifer Martin and Greg Lerma relax on a hammock on the Hays Street Bridge in San Antonio on Friday, June 24. “It’s always been hot in South Texas, so it’s something we are used to,” Martin said of the extreme temperatures. “It does seem to be getting hotter earlier and it seems like our winters just kind of disappeared a little bit, except for that crazy snowstorm that happened a couple years ago.” See last week in 36 photos.
Join us in commemorating our nation’s independence with “CNN’s The Fourth in America” special, including musical performances and firework shows, live on Monday beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Hosted by CNN’s Dana Bash, Ana Cabrera, Don Lemon and Sara Sidner, “CNN’s The Fourth in America” special will feature performances from AJR, Ava Max, Alessia Cara, Avril Lavigne, the B-52’s, Def Leppard, the Doobie Brothers, Gloria Estefan, Jason Derulo, Jimmie Allen, Journey, The Lumineers, Machine Gun Kelly, Maren Morris, Old Dominion, Pitbull, Santana, Third Eye Blind, T-Pain, Willie Nelson and more.
The Grand Slam tennis tournament continues today with the Round of 16. On Saturday, Polish tennis player Iga Swiatek, ranked world No. 1 by the Women’s Tennis Association, was defeated by France’s Alizé Cornet, ending her 37-match winning streak.
Take CNN’s weekly news quiz to see how much you remember from the week that was! So far, 46% of fellow quiz fans have gotten an 8 out of 10 or better this week. How well can you do?
‘America the Beautiful’
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Ray Charles’ utterly moving rendition of an American classic with roots that stretch back to the 1890s. Feel free to turn this one up. (Click here to view)