Russia’s biggest strike on Kyiv since the Trump talks
An hourslong barrage of missiles and drones aimed at Kyiv yesterday killed at least 18 people, including four children, officials said. The assault, the largest on the capital in the less than two weeks since President Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska, showed that America’s recent flurry of diplomacy has not brought Russia and Ukraine any closer to peace.
“Russia chooses ballistics instead of the negotiating table,” Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s president, wrote on social media. “It chooses to continue killing instead of ending the war. And this means that Russia still does not fear the consequences.”
Trump has voiced frustration with Putin’s assaults on Ukraine. But he has not followed through on threats to impose new sanctions against Russia.
E.U. mission hit: Buildings belonging to the E.U. mission and the British Council in Kyiv suffered damage in the attack. Britain said it had summoned the Russian ambassador to protest the attack. Here is video of the damage.
Next steps: Zelensky said that his chief of staff and the head of the country’s security council would meet with Trump’s team today in New York to discuss security guarantees to be included in any future peace agreement.
Related: Russia and its allies are flying surveillance drones over routes the U.S. and its allies use to ship military supplies through Germany, Western officials said.
| Israeli military reservists protested in Tel Aviv this month. Avishag Shaar-Yashuv for The New York Times |
Israeli reservists drop out ahead of Gaza offensive
Israel is preparing to call up thousands of reservists for its Gaza City offensive. But officials aren’t sure how many will return to the fight.
Over the past few months, an increasing number of Israeli reserve soldiers have not been showing up for military service. Some are disillusioned by the war, and many more are exhausted after long deployments and battles on multiple fronts, in Lebanon, Syria and the West Bank.
While Israel’s government has announced that the military is planning a full-scale assault on Gaza City, soldiers have not yet moved into a majority of the city. But they have been operating for weeks in Zeitoun, a neighborhood in Gaza City. New satellite images reviewed by The New York Times show how Zeitoun, which was largely intact just three weeks ago, has been flattened by Israeli bombardment.
| The International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna. Its inspectors have monitored Iran’s nuclear activities. Elisabeth Mandl/Reuters |
European countries moved to reimpose Iran sanctions
Britain, France and Germany told the U.N. yesterday that Iran had violated the terms of a 2015 nuclear deal and that they planned to reinstate sanctions that were suspended under the agreement.
The move toward “snapback sanctions,” outlined in a U.N. resolution, starts a 30-day window for negotiations before the penalties return. Iran called the move illegal and said it would undermine the “ongoing process of engagement” with the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog.
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| U.S.: Lisa Cook, a governor on the Fed’s board, sued Trump for his decision to fire her. And here’s a closer look at the standoff at the C.D.C. after Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tried to fire Susan Monarez, the agency’s director. Lebanon: The U.N. voted to end its peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon in 2027, a move Israel welcomed. |
| Syria: Officials said that at least six soldiers were killed by Israeli airstrikes on a Damascus suburb. Haiti: The Trump administration proposed a significantly larger force to take back control of the country from brutal gangs. Hong Kong: The trial of the media mogul Jimmy Lai ended yesterday, but whether he is freed may hinge on politics. Here’s what to know. Retail: Trump’s steep tariffs are upending small U.S. businesses that once saw Brazil and India as safe bets for manufacturing. |
| SPORTS NEWS |
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| MORNING READ |
What’s inside a tree? A lot, it turns out.
Scientists studying forests have found that a single tree can be home to over a trillion living things — hidden communities of bacteria and single-celled organisms that quietly help the tree thrive. The findings, published in the journal Nature, open up new avenues of research into microbial diversity. “This is sort of, hopefully, giving people a little bit of a map to dive into deeper questions,” an author of the study said.
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| Ancient holiday: Researchers discovered relics from a 2,000-year-old sunken “party town” off Egypt’s coast. Lafufus? Global demand for Labubus, the cute-ugly plush elf dolls, has prompted a flood of counterfeits — and safety warnings. ‘The Sound of Music’: Sixty years after the classic film opened in theaters, it still enchants Americans and befuddles many Austrians. Culture war: The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam could close if it doesn’t secure additional funding from the Dutch Ministry of Culture. |
| ARTS AND IDEAS |
The secret ingredient in ‘KPop Demon Hunters’
The animated musical “KPop Demon Hunters,” about a girl group facing off against a diabolical boy band, went from a slow-burn hit to an outright phenomenon. It’s Netflix’s most-watched movie ever.
One reason for that success is the movie’s understanding of fandom, my colleague Maya Phillips writes. The film carefully engages niche communities, like anime and K-pop fan groups. Fandom helped the movie’s catchy songs climb the pop charts in real life, and it is a key driver of the plot, with concert scenes featuring shots of adoring fans. Read more from Maya, who has seen the movie at least six times.
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Zap: This microwave Nutella pudding cake is the ooey-gooey version of mud cake.
