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| Cars moving south on a busy road near Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. There are hopes that a cease-fire agreement will end 13 months of bloodshed. Daniel Berehulak/The New York Times |
A fragile peace began in Lebanon
Thousands of civilians began to return to war-ravaged communities around Beirut and in southern Lebanon yesterday, as a U.S.-backed cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah took tenuous hold after more than 13 months of bloodshed. About one-quarter of Lebanon’s more than five million people had been forced from their homes by the war.
In northern Israel, where tens of thousands of people had fled to escape barrages of Hezbollah rockets and drones, there was no apparent rush back to the evacuated towns, where residents — and the Israeli authorities — were wary of the truce.
Many questions remain about the agreement’s durability, particularly in light of Israeli’s shelling of two villages in southern Lebanon, Khiam and Kfar Kila. Israel’s military said that its soldiers had opened fire after identifying a vehicle in “a zone prohibited for movement.” Here’s what else to know about the deal.
Analysis: After 13 months of war, Hezbollah will struggle to convince anyone other than its most fervent loyalists that its acceptance of a cease-fire is not a defeat.
In Gaza: The Israeli military struck dozens of sites that it said were Hamas military structures, killing at least 33 people, according to the Gazan Health Ministry.
I.C.C.: France’s Foreign Ministry strongly suggested that Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, would not immediately be arrested if he were to enter French territory, despite a warrant for his arrest.
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| Keith Kellogg, during a news conference at the White House this week. Stefani Reynolds for The New York Times |
Trump chose a Ukraine-Russia envoy
Donald Trump said yesterday that Keith Kellogg, a retired general who served in his first administration, would be his special envoy to Russia and Ukraine. In the newly created position, Kellogg would be central to Trump’s effort to bring a swift end to the war in Ukraine.
Trump has wrapped up most of his cabinet picks, after announcing his choices for top trade negotiator and for the head of the National Economic Council — roles that will be crucial to his plans to impose heavy tariffs on products from Canada, Mexico and China. Jamieson Greer, who is a lawyer and a former Trump official, is his pick for U.S. trade representative. Here’s the list of nominations so far.
Analysis: In Biden and Trump, there are two presidents leading the country, our White House correspondent writes — each moving in a different direction. World leaders are calculating whether it makes more sense to try to get something done with the outgoing leader, or to brace for his successor’s administration.
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| Gisèle Pelicot at the courthouse in Avignon, France, yesterday. She was the victim of an alleged mass rape orchestrated by her then-husband, Dominique Pelicot. Alexandre Dimou/Reuters |
Dozens of men were cross-examined in France
Dominique Pelicot faces up to 20 years in prison, the longest possible sentence, for drugging his wife of 50 years, Gisèle Pelicot, over almost a decade to rape her, and for offering her unconscious body to strangers he met online.
Fifty other men, aged between 27 and 74, have been cross-examined over the course of the 12-week mass rape trial that has left France deeply shaken. All but one of the men have been charged with aggravated rape, attempted rape or sexual assault. The French media have called them “Mr. Every Man” because of how varied, and how ordinary, the men appear.
| MORE TOP NEWS |
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| Aamir Qureshi/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
| Pakistan: More than 600 people were arrested in an overnight crackdown on supporters of Imran Khan, the former prime minister jailed in Islamabad. Myanmar: The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor sought an arrest warrant for Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, accusing him of crimes against humanity. Diplomacy: The Biden administration negotiated a prisoner swap with China for the release of three American men, including one who was an F.B.I. informant. China: Volkswagen said it would pull out of the Xinjiang region after being criticized by human rights groups for doing business there. |
| Climate: Documents show how some big petrochemical and plastics companies have been pushing back against a “tide of anti-plastic sentiment.” Namibia: Voters yesterday went to the polls in a general election that will test support for SWAPO, the party that has governed the nation since it gained independence. France: Boualem Sansal, an outspoken French Algerian writer, has been detained in Algeria on accusations of “endangering the nation” with his proclamations, his lawyer said. Education: William Hague, a former leader of Britain’s Conservative Party, was elected the next chancellor of the University of Oxford. |
| England: Unidentified drones have been sighted flying over four bases used by the U.S. Air Force.Russia: Moscow ordered the expulsion of two German journalists in retaliation for what it said was Germany’s move to close the Russian state broadcaster’s Berlin bureau. |
| SPORTS NEWS |
| Basketball: Our writer offers suggestions about ways to improve the N.B.A. All-Star Game. Running: At the N.C.A.A. Division I cross-country championships, one school turned to a trick both ancient and innovative. |
| Shohei Ohtani: The baseball star’s deal with New Balance features a signature collection and a new logo. Take a look. N.F.L.: Why the Lions and the Cowboys host games on Thanksgiving every year. |
| MORNING READ |
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| Eleanor Davis |
Thanksgiving, which Americans are celebrating today, is usually a holiday about coming together. But this year it will be celebrated in a deeply divided nation, as families wrangle with sometimes significant differences of opinion post-election.
| ARTS AND IDEAS |
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| Amir Hamja for The New York Times |
Flipping fruit
A cryptocurrency entrepreneur last week bought a piece of absurdist art that prominently featured a banana for $5.2 million (plus about a million in in-house fees). The Times interviewed Shah Alam, the migrant street vendor outside the auction house who initially sold the fruit for less than a dollar.
“I am a poor man,” he said after learning of the art’s sale price, his voice breaking. “I have never had this kind of money; I have never seen this kind of money.”
| RECOMMENDATIONS |
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| Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. |
Cook: Feta baked with a drizzle of honey is so easy — and so tasty.
