Good morning. We’re covering Trump’s latest move on Ukraine and clashes in Syria. Plus, why Hitchcock still makes us freak out.
Trump announced arms for Ukraine and a deadline for PutinPresident Trump said yesterday that the U.S. would help Europe send more weapons to Ukraine and warned Russia that it would be hit by “very severe tariffs” if there was no peace deal in 50 days. The threat of tariffs is unlikely to have much of an impact — Russia sells little to the U.S. — but Trump also threatened to impose secondary sanctions, which are penalties imposed on other countries or parties that trade with nations under sanctions. Trump made his remarks during a meeting with NATO’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, who has been coordinating efforts to send more weapons to Ukraine. Under the arrangement, NATO would buy U.S. weapons, including more advanced Patriot missile defense batteries, and pass them to Kyiv. Quotable: Trump said he was “disappointed” in President Vladimir Putin. “My conversations with him are very pleasant, and then the missiles go off at night,” he said. Analysis: Trump seems to be adopting an approach toward Russia that looks much like that of his predecessor: arming the Ukrainians. But there is reason to doubt that he will stick with it, my colleagues David Sanger and Maggie Haberman write. In Kyiv: President Volodymyr Zelensky said that he would seek to replace Ukraine’s prime minister, a major shake-up that comes amid battlefield setbacks and a souring mood in the country.
A plan to move Palestinians risks derailing cease-fire talksAn Israeli proposal to force much of Gaza’s population into an encampment near the territory’s border with Egypt is threatening to derail the latest truce efforts. Legal experts have warned that the plan would violate international law, and a senior member of Hamas said that the proposal was “utterly unacceptable.” “This would be an isolated city that resembles a ghetto,” Husam Badran, a senior member of Hamas, said yesterday, adding that “no Palestinian would agree to this.” Israel has yet to formally announce the plan. Legal experts say that barring Palestinians from returning to their homes would be a form of ethnic cleansing. Israeli critics compared the encampment to a modern-day “concentration camp.”
Fighting in southern Syria left at least 50 deadMore than 50 people were killed in Syria’s Sweida province yesterday during a second day of clashes between Bedouin groups and militias from the Druse religious minority, according to a local official and a monitoring group. The Syrian government called for restraint and vowed to “quickly and decisively” resolve the conflict by sending military forces, but 18 soldiers sent in were killed, according to a defense official. The violence underscores the government’s difficulty in asserting nationwide control since the regime of Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December. Separately, the Israeli military said that it had hit tanks advancing toward Sweida to enforce a pledge not to allow the buildup of armed forces in southern Syria.
Scotland’s Outer Hebrides island chain offers outstanding wildlife, walking and fishing, with turquoise seas lapping at white sandy beaches. But good luck getting there and back. Frequent disruptions to the ferry service are spoiling island life. As resilient islanders battle for improved ferry service, they’ve come up with a weapon: a protest song. Listen to it here. Lives lived: Muhammadu Buhari, a feared military strongman in Nigeria in the 1980s, was later democratically elected twice in the 2010s. He died at 82.
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Five ways Hitchcock gets inside your headLook up “suspense” in the dictionary and there should be a little sketch of Alfred Hitchcock’s silhouette next to it. He never won an Oscar (the academy finally gave him an honorary one in 1968), but the British director is inarguably one of cinema’s most influential auteurs. Hitchcock’s work is marked by carefully framed images and a fondness for playing with our emotions, but his greatest talent was making us freak out, my colleague Alissa Wilkinson writes. Check out her guide to the Master of Suspense.
Cook: Halloumi gets crisp in this dish and plays beautifully with corn and tomatoes. Read: Sex, tech and pharma converge in “Bonding,” by Mariel Franklin. Game: Move over Mario and Luigi. The fan favorite of the new Mario Kart for the Switch 2 console is a cow. Savor: How healthy are peaches? Experts share all the juicy details. Play: Spelling Bee, the Mini Crossword, Wordle and |
