HERE ARE THE TOP STORIES
Australia’s highest-ranking Catholic official is facing “historic sexual offences” charges.
Cardinal George Pell, the third-most senior at the Vatican, was charged on summons over multiple charges, police confirmed. The 76-year-old is responsible for the Vatican's finances. He was a priest in Ballarat before becoming archbishop of Melbourne in 1996 and was appointed as a cardinal in 2003.
Pell addressed the media on Thursday afternoon to deny the allegations. "I'm innocent of these charges. They are false," he said. Pell said he’d return to Australia to face the charges and was "looking forward" to his day in court, which is set for July 18.
WE'RE KEEPING AN EYE ON
Trump’s travel ban could be implemented as soon as today.
Following the Supreme Court's Monday decision partially lifting the injunctions against Trump's executive order, there is still no public plan about how the travel ban will be implemented. But news organizations reported Wednesdaynight that a State Department cable had detailed the new policies — which could go into effect as soon as Thursday.
CNN reported that a senior administration official said the ban would go into effect at 8 p.m. Thursday — timing that matched what a nongovernmental source told BuzzFeed News was expected. The federal government also hasn’t publicly specified how agencies will define and enforce "a credible claim of a bona fide relationship."
Click here for more and follow BuzzFeed News’ Chris Geidner for live updates.
QUICK THINGS TO KNOW
World: Here’s why Syria would even think about using chemical weapons again. People from all across India marched on Wednesday against a series of anti-Muslim killings. And a Labour peer has called for investigations into Russian deaths on UK soil after a BuzzFeed investigation.
US news: A judge is allowing the Gawker–Hulk Hogan saga to roll on. Nine states are standing up for these transgender veterans in a case against the feds. Sexual harassment claims against a Yale professor were buried when he changed jobs — exposing a big problem in higher education. And a Minnesota teen was charged with killing her boyfriend during a failed YouTube stunt.
Health care: Senate Republicans are contemplating abandoning billions in tax breaks for the rich. And a Senate panel voted to offer free birth control to members of the military and their dependents.
Biz/tech: The NYPD is canceling its contract with Palantir, sparking a showdown over law enforcement information and who controls it. And Blue Apron is going public today, but the IPO isn't looking pretty.
BuzzFeed Reader: “White women have long been the primary currency of the celebrity industry. But in our current political and cultural climate, investing in them feels increasingly ill-advised,” writes Anne Helen Petersen.
Random: People actually think Mars Rover missions are being faked somewhere in Canada — but NASA strongly disagrees. And a prehistoric square-shaped monument has been discovered beneath a stone circle in England.
- Mixtape: Here’s the story behind the ”Immigrants (We Get the Job Done)” video from The Hamilton Mixtape.
