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| The site of an Israeli airstrike in southern Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, on Tuesday. Wael Hamzeh/EPA, via Shutterstock |
Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a cease-fire
The Israeli cabinet yesterday approved a cease-fire proposal that would stop the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group. The fighting has displaced over a million Lebanese and tens of thousands of Israelis, killed more than 3,000 Lebanese and 100 Israelis and upended the regional balance of power. See maps that show how the deal will work.
During a televised address, President Biden said the cease-fire would go into effect at 4 a.m. this morning in Israel and Lebanon. He said the deal had been “designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities.” Hezbollah did not comment on the announcement.
In a public address, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said a truce was necessary to allow Israel to focus on Iran, to isolate Hamas and to replenish weapons stockpiles. Read analysis of what the deal could mean for the region.
On the ground: In the hours before Israeli ministers approved the deal, the Israeli military launched one of its heaviest barrages of airstrikes since the war began, hitting the heart of Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, and Hezbollah-dominated neighborhoods south of the city.
Details: Under the agreement, Israel would gradually withdraw its remaining forces from Lebanon over the next 60 days, while Hezbollah would not be allowed to entrench itself near the Israeli border, according to Biden.
For more, we spoke to Patrick Kingsley, our Jerusalem bureau chief.
What do both sides want out of this cease-fire?
Patrick: Israel mainly wants Hezbollah to withdraw from the borderlands of southern Lebanon, thereby removing a threat to Israeli communities on the other side of the border. Israel also wants the right to redeploy inside Lebanon, if Hezbollah doesn’t actually withdraw.
Publicly, Hezbollah has suggested that it mainly wants Israel to stop firing and to withdraw from southern Lebanon. Privately, Hezbollah likely wants its forces to remain as close as possible to the border, without provoking another Israeli invasion or air campaign.
| The possible patterns of withdrawal for Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. The New York Times |
How could these negotiations affect the ongoing war in Gaza?
Patrick: They might not have a great effect. Some hope that Hamas’s remaining leaders in Gaza, deflated by the decision of their Lebanese ally, might agree to leave Gaza, allowing for the end of the war. But most experts find that idea fanciful. Instead, Hamas is expected to dig in, while the Israeli government is likely to continue to push for Hamas’s complete destruction, even as Israeli generals warn that such a goal is near impossible.
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| Donald Trump said that his plans to impose stiff new tariffs were intended to halt the flow of drugs and migrants into the U.S. Eric Lee/The New York Times |
Trump’s tariff threat reverberated around the globe
Donald Trump’s vow to impose heavy tariffs on products from Canada, Mexico and China led to promises of retaliation and raised the prospect of trade fights that could surpass those of his first term. Beijing could respond by starting a currency war, which would carry formidable risks for both sides.
Trump cited the movement of people and drugs into the U.S. when promising to impose tariffs of as much as 25 percent on goods from all three countries. President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico signaled that her country was prepared to respond with tariffs of its own, and she noted that illegal border crossings into the U.S. have plunged since last year.
Indirect effects: The U.S. auto industry depends heavily on manufacturing and parts from both Mexico and Canada, and any tariffs would quickly affect consumers.
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| Taking shelter inside a metro station during a Russian attack on Kyiv, Ukraine, yesterday. Alina Smutko/Reuters |
Russia said Ukraine attacked it with U.S. missiles
Russia said that Ukraine had again struck its territory with U.S.-supplied missiles. The strikes, on Saturday and Monday, involved more than a dozen weapons known as Army Tactical Missile Systems, the Russian Defense Ministry said. The attack damaged military infrastructure and wounded some soldiers, and Moscow said it was preparing “retaliatory actions.”
In Ukraine, the air force reported yesterday that Russia had unleashed an overnight attack involving nearly 200 drones. The attacks were the latest in a series of intensifying air assaults between the two countries in recent days.
In Rome: During a two-day meeting, top diplomats from the U.S. and allied nations discussed the war in Ukraine, multiple Middle East conflicts, the civil war in Sudan and other hostilities, instability and tensions around the world.
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| Aamir Qureshi/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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| Obesity: A new drug delivered in a monthly injection helped patients lose 20 percent of their weight, trial results in the U.S. showed. |
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| Charlotte de la Fuente for The New York Times |
Can you tax burps and farts? A new climate levy in Denmark aims to rein in the planet-warming methane produced by cows and pigs.
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100 notable books of 2024
The staff of The New York Times Book Review put together a list of standout fiction and nonfiction of the year, across science fiction, historical fiction, essays and more.
Our interactive list lets you check off the books that you’ve already read, or that you want to. By the time you reach the end, you’ll have your own personal reading list that you can share with your friends. Check out the selection.
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| David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. |
Cook: This apple-blackberry crisp is low effort and high reward.
