Netanyahu is weighing what to do next in Gaza
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, discussed the path forward in the war in Gaza during a meeting yesterday with the military’s chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir. The general presented “the options for continuing the military campaign in Gaza,” the prime minister’s office said, without specifying what they were.
Netanyahu’s office also told some Israeli reporters that the prime minister might expand military operations across all of the Gaza Strip. Three officials briefed on the matter cautioned that no decision had been made about the way forward.
Israel, facing growing international condemnation over starvation in Gaza, is now allowing some private businesses to deliver goods to the enclave and is trying to refocus attention on the plight of hostages held by Hamas.
At a meeting of the U.N. Security Council in New York, diplomats denounced Hamas but also called for Israel to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Related: The war in Gaza has put Germany, which has a unique relationship with Israel because of the Holocaust, into an uncomfortable position.
A Times investigation into the Jeju air crash
Seven months ago, a Jeju Air flight crashed in South Korea, killing 179 people. A Times investigation identified a series of missteps that made the crash much more deadly.
Jeju Air Flight 2216 made an emergency landing in Muan, South Korea, on Dec. 29 after both of its engines were struck by birds. The plane overshot the runway and slammed into a concrete wall, bursting into flames.
Many of the people onboard might have survived if the wall had been built out of more breakable materials, as international safety guidelines recommend. A series of design and construction failures meant the wall was built with concrete and placed too close to the runway. Government regulators also ignored a warning about the risks.
Here are takeaways from the investigation.
Remembering Hiroshima, 80 years later
The U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, 80 years ago today, on Aug. 6, 1945. The bombing, and that of Nagasaki three days later, instantly leached two Japanese cities of their color and life.
These photos captured the bombings’ excruciating aftermath in stark black and white. Take a look.
For more: Here’s how artists have tried to make sense of the bombings, and the perilous age they began.
| MORE TOP NEWS |
| China: Officials in the city of Foshan are battling chikungunya, a mosquito-borne virus, with measures that recall the government’s strict Covid-19 response. Africa: Rwanda has agreed to accept 250 deportees from the U.S., joining two other African countries that are working with the Trump administration to take in migrants. Medicine: U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. canceled nearly $500 million in grants and contracts to develop mRNA vaccines. Trade: Does Japan want American cars? Trump is pushing for deals that lower trade barriers for staple U.S. exports. U.S.: The Trump administration will make some foreign visitors pay cash deposits of up to $15,000 to help ensure they do not overstay their visas. Britain: Ozzy Osbourne died of a heart attack, according to a death certificate. Titan: A U.S. Coast Guard report said that safety and design failures caused the submersible to implode during a dive to the Titanic in 2023. |
| SPORTS NEWS |
| Soccer: Meet Maximilian Senft, the 35-year-old poker player who is excelling as the manager of the Austrian team SV Ried. Running: Gjert Ingebrigtsen coached his son Jakob to two Olympic victories — then he faced him in court. Tennis: Fresh off a third-round run at the French Open, Victoria Mboko is having a moment. |
| MORNING READ |
Very few people know what it’s like to recover from a shark attack. After the adrenaline surge of the bite, survivors face searing pain, nightmares and the loneliness of suffering from wounds that few others can relate to.
Dave Pearson, an Australian surfer who lived through a bull shark bite on his left arm in 2011, realized that he and other survivors needed to connect. He created Bite Club, a network of more than 500 survivors that has become a lifeline, a support group and an accidental family.
| CONVERSATION STARTERS |
| Manhattan lair: Look inside Jeffrey Epstein’s townhouse, where the financier and sex offender entertained the elite. ‘Rare as Smaug’s treasure’: A well-preserved first edition of “The Hobbit” turned up after decades sitting on a shelf in a home in England. Twinkling nights: Here’s how hot, muggy weather led to a firefly boom in the U.S. this summer. Tech billboards: Take this quiz to see how fluent you are in the lingo of today’s tech industry. |
| ARTS AND IDEAS |
How to break free from your phone
Putting away your smartphone is easier said than done. My colleague Christina Caron asked screen-time experts about how to stop the constant scrolling. Here are some tips:
| Try “batching,” or checking messages, social media and email at two or three specific times, instead of constantly.Use apps like Forest, Streaks and Offscreen to measure how long you don’t use your phone.Physically separate yourself from your phone, through an activity like swimming or by using a phone “sleeping bag” for bedtime. |
Read all of the expert advice, and then put away your phone.
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Cook: These meatballs have a secret. They’re half vegetable, half chicken.
