Negotiators arrive in Cairo after Israeli tanks enter Rafah
Israel yesterday sent tanks to Rafah and took control of the crossing with Egypt, halting the flow of aid. Israeli and Hamas delegations also arrived in Cairo to resume talks on a proposed ceasefire.
Israel’s action does not appear to be the full-scale ground invasion that has long been threatened. The Israeli military said it was a “very precise” counter-terrorism operation. It is said to have entered the city to destroy Hamas infrastructure, and Hamas killed four Israeli soldiers in an attack over the weekend near another crossing point from Israel into Gaza.
The director of a hospital in Rafah said 27 bodies and 150 wounded had been brought to his hospital since the invasion began.
Rafa’s so-called safe zone: UN and European officials said yesterday that Israel’s designated safe zone for Gazans fleeing the city is neither safe nor capable of receiving them. The president of the Norwegian Refugee Council said in a statement that the region was “already overstretched and lacks vital services.”
Latest progress in ceasefire negotiations: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, facing pressure from the United States and other allies to agree to a ceasefire, said that while he had sent a delegation back to negotiate, “we are simultaneously continuing to wage war against Hamas.”
Stormi Daniels testifies
Porn star Stormy Daniels gets $130,000 for staying silent about claims she had sex with Donald Trump Testified yesterday in Manhattan trial. She recounted in harrowing detail an encounter she said left her shaking and confused, and the hush money that kept her silent.
Her account and subsequent payments – which she received from Trump’s personal attorney Michael Cohen in 2016 – are at the heart of the case. Trump is accused of falsifying business records to conceal the payments. He has pleaded not guilty and denied having sex.
Once prosecutors finished questioning Daniels, the defense’s questioning immediately became heated. One of Trump’s lawyers sought to paint Daniels as a liar driven by greed. She is expected to return to the stands tomorrow.
Daniels’ often explicit testimony prompted Trump’s lawyers to seek a mistrial. The judge rejected their request.
Daniels’ account: She detailed an evening with Trump in 2006 that began with a dinner invitation and progressed to sex. That night, she said, Trump dangled in her face an appearance on “The Apprentice” and told her not to worry that he was married.
View from inside the court: My colleague Jonah Bromwich reported: “Her ridicule of Trump was so obvious that the tension in the courtroom as she testified against him was the highest it has been in the trial so far.”
Ukraine says it foiled assassination plot
Ukraine’s security services said yesterday that they had Prevented Russian plot to assassinate President Zelensky and other senior military and political figures. Two Ukrainian colonels accused of involvement in the plot were arrested on suspicion of treason.
Ukraine’s intelligence agency said in a statement that the plot involved a network of Russian intelligence officers, including two colonels. Their mission was to identify people close to Zelenskiy’s security personnel who could take him hostage and then kill him.
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But resistance is growing in some major cities: Women are gathering in bars, salons and bookstores to question misogynistic narratives and discuss their place in a country that has chosen for them.
Lived: Kris Hallenga was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer at age 23 and has spent years educating young people about early detection. She died at the age of 38.
conversation starter
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No surprises needed: Some couples reject traditional engagement Select a joint proposal instead.
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London real estate: many people choose live in houseboat, which may be cheaper than an apartment on land. But as the canals filled up, life on board became increasingly unattainable.
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In-depth conversation: Scientists say sperm whales use a much richer range of sounds than previously known, calling them “pinyin letters“.
art and ideas
Met Gala Review
Celebrities strutted their stuff at the Met Gala, as the event is dubbed, on Monday night. annual fashion party. The event attracted about 400 people and raised about $26 million for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, millions more than other large galas in New York City.
Zendaya appeared on the red carpet wearing two different gowns. Cardi B needed eight ushers to straighten her voluminous skirt. Gigi Hadid said her dress was studded with 2.8 million beads.
Our fashion critic Vanessa Friedman said: “This is our most concentrated moment when we get to see public figures in their wildest outfits, displayed to the world like peacocks.”
look A more memorable look – and Cocktail hour photos.
