Israeli leaders approved a military takeover of Gaza
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet today approved his proposal for a gradual military takeover of Gaza, his office said. The plan goes against the advice of Israel’s military and promises to take the two-year conflict into unknown territory.
Under the proposal, the military would conquer the core of Gaza City and, at a later stage, push into central areas of the enclave where Hamas is believed to be holding Israeli hostages, and where the military has largely refrained from operating before.
The goal, according to the statement, is to achieve a decisive victory over Hamas. The plan allows for the provision of humanitarian aid to the civilian population “outside the combat zones,” it said.
Time frame: It is likely to take days, at least, for the military to call up reserve forces, carry out deployments for a push into Gaza City and allow time for the forced evacuation of tens of thousands of Palestinians from the new areas of combat.
Objections: The Israeli military has pushed back against the idea of fully occupying Gaza, which security officials estimate could require up to five more years of sustained combat. The families of hostages worry that Hamas could execute their loved ones, or that the Israeli military could inadvertently kill them.
On the ground: The Israeli military says it has conquered about 75 percent of Gaza. The main area outside its control is a coastal strip stretching from Gaza City in the north to Khan Younis in the south. Many of the two million Palestinians in Gaza have squeezed into tents, makeshift shelters and apartments in those areas.
Global economies recoiled at Trump’s new tariffs
World leaders rushed to contain the economic and political damage after President Trump’s sweeping new tariffs on about 90 countries snapped into place yesterday. The measures are expected to drive up prices for American consumers and are already causing global economic chaos.
Few American trading partners were spared. The leaders of Brazil and India plan to join forces to defend their economies. Switzerland’s failure to reach a last-minute deal with the Trump administration has reignited a longstanding debate over whether it should join the E.U.
Some important U.S. trading partners have successfully brokered deals with the Trump administration. The E.U. and countries including Japan, South Korea and Vietnam have negotiated deals for U.S. tariffs between 15 and 20 percent, and Mexico and China have received extensions before duties on their goods take effect.
Here’s the latest news, a timeline and an interactive map of tariffs by country.
The Kremlin confirmed Putin’s meeting with Trump
Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, agreed to meet with Trump “in the coming days,” a top Kremlin aide said yesterday. He declined to set a specific date or comment on the idea of a three-way meeting among the leaders of the U.S., Russia and Ukraine.
Putin has long desired a sit-down with Trump. Analysts say the Russian leader’s overarching goal is not necessarily to conquer a certain amount of territory on the battlefield, but to secure a peace deal that achieves his geopolitical aims, such as keeping Ukraine out of NATO.
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| MORNING READ |
How do restaurants appeal to diners with appetites that have been mini-sized by the weight loss drug Ozempic?
“They have one or two bites of food and a couple of sips of drinks, and they’re done,” one restaurant owner said. He rolled out a scaled-down tasting menu — a bite-size burger and fries paired with a miniature drink — to serve customers who want to go out, even if they’re barely hungry.
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| ARTS AND IDEAS |
The lingua franca of comedy?
No joke: English-language comedy clubs are on the rise in Europe, challenging comedians to navigate social barriers and culture clashes.
English-speaking comedians frequently open their sets with where they’re from, how they got here and what they think of the locals. “The rule of thumb is to make fun of your own nationality first,” said an American comedian who’s been living in the Netherlands for 30 years. “If you make fun of yourself first, you gain this permission to hold up a mirror to Dutch society.”
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