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October 17: Hormuz Ship Sinking and Russian Strikes Across Ukraine
In the Strait of Hormuz
The Singapore-flagged cargo ship GFS Pride sank on October 14, taking more than 2,500 containers with it. Singaporean authorities say all 21 crew members were evacuated without injury and attribute the sinking solely to an onboard fire. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard navy gives a conflicting account, claiming the vessel struck a sea mine after entering an unauthorized route.
In Chicago
Police say they have identified a former detective as the man who abducted and killed eight-year-old Gloria Kowalewicz while she walked to Mass in 1960. Investigators say improved technology linked a fingerprint on her purse strap to Thomas F. McInerney Jr., who died in 2006. Evidence was preserved for decades, but Gloria’s parents died before police identified her killer.
At the Vatican
The Vatican says Pope Leo the Fourteenth will leave the hospital Saturday, four days after surgery for lung cancer. The 71-year-old pope had the lower lobe of his right lung removed. He is scheduled to deliver Sunday’s traditional noon blessing from a window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
In Ukraine
Russian strikes across Ukraine have killed at least eight people and injured nearly 60. Civilians are among those killed.
In Kherson, the city’s last functioning hotel, the Richelievsky, is sheltering people with nowhere else to go amid blackouts, artillery fire and drone attacks. Russian troops are across the nearby Dnipro River. Guests must close their curtains before dusk to avoid revealing their location to drone operators targeting civilians.
In software security
Cybersecurity researchers have identified a malicious npm package called imgdecode, which they link to the MALFEX software supply chain attack campaign. It conceals a shellcode loader in a Windows native add-on. The package had been downloaded 979 times and remained available on npm at the time of reporting.
On EU deforestation rules
Environmental watchdog Mighty Earth says major American companies and trade groups pursued a two-year campaign to delay and weaken the European Union’s deforestation regulation. Its investigation identified more than 350 meetings involving firms and organizations including Cargill, Bunge, Mondelēz and the U.S. Soybean Export Council.
At Cornell
Cornell University has suspended fraternity-house parties and social gatherings for the rest of the academic year following a former student’s civil lawsuit. She accuses seven Chi Phi members of sexually assaulting her at their fraternity house in October 2024. The university is among the defendants. All seven men deny wrongdoing, and none have been criminally charged.
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