The Morning Brief: North Korea, Charlie Murphy and Fear Factor

Good morning. These are today’s top stories:

Fears grow over North Korea’s nuclear plans

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said tensions surrounding North Korea can’t be fixed with military force amid concerns North Korea may conduct another nuclear test or fire more ballistic missiles, according to the Associated Press. There are also fears that North Korea has the capability of firing a missile loaded with sarin gas toward Japan, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said. North Korea is set to mark its national celebration Saturday called the “Day of the Sun.”

More officers put on leave over United incident

The Chicago Department of Aviation said yesterday that it placed two more Chicago officers on leave following a high-profile incident recently in which a passenger was dragged off a United Airlines flight. Another officer involved in the incident was placed on leave earlier this week as part of the department’s “review,” it said. United said yesterday it will reimburse all passengers who were on that flight.

Comedian Charlie Murphy dies at 57

Comedian Charlie Murphy, who was the older brother of Eddie Murphy, died yesterday of leukemia at 57, his publicist said. The entertainer was known for his work on Comedy Central’s hit Chappelle’s Show and was most recently part of “The Comedy Get Down Tour.”

Also:

Russia has vetoed a U.N. resolution that would have condemned the chemical attack in Syria.

A 13-year-old boy is among four dead as protests in Venezuela continue.

Paul Manafort, Trump’s former campaign chair, is registering as a foreign agent.

Teachers and firefighters are being priced out of homeownership in major U.S. cities, a new study has found.

Ludacris is helping MTV relaunch Fear Factor, a competition reality TV show premiering May 30.

The sculptor behind New York City’s iconic Charging Bull blasted the “Fearless Girl” statue.

Researchers have discovered what causes shoelaces to come undone.

The Morning Brief is published Mondays through Fridays. Email Morning Brief writer Melissa Chan at melissa.chan@time.com.