Explosions erupted in Lebanon’s capital on Tuesday evening, leveling buildings, damaging hospitals and shattering windows miles away. At least 78 people were killed. A shockwave raced from the site of the blasts, Beirut’s industrial waterfront, into the city’s densely populated residential neighborhoods and shopping districts downtown. Dozens of nearby buildings collapsed or…
Category: News
All kinds of news.
More U.S. Troops Will Leave Afghanistan Before the Election, Trump Says
President Trump said that there would be fewer than 5,000 American troops in Afghanistan by Election Day in November, signaling that the United States would continue to withdraw troops from the country despite limited progress toward the start of peace negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban. “We’re going down to…
Beirut Blasts, Melbourne Lockdown, Island SOS: Your Wednesday Briefing
(Want to get this briefing by email? Here’s the sign-up.) Good morning. We’re covering mounting casualties from twin explosions in Beirut, tougher lockdown measures in Melbourne and a pushback from gymnasts against abuse. ImageThe port in Beirut after two explosions on Tuesday. Credit…Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Dozens killed in massive Beirut explosions…
Sotheby’s Reports $2.5 Billion in Sales
Sotheby’s, the international auction house bought in 2019 by the telecommunications magnate Patrick Drahi, reported Monday that it has sold $2.5 billion of art and collectibles so far this year. The figures include more than $285 million from online-only auctions and $575 million in private sales. “The art and luxury markets have…
What Has Changed Since George Floyd
Want to get The Morning by email? Here’s the sign-up. Good morning. Microsoft talked to President Trump about buying TikTok. Several countries are rushing their coronavirus vaccine efforts. Let’s start with a look at the growing adoption of police reforms. In Washington, the efforts to reform policing have stalled. Congress can’t agree…
Coronavirus Live Updates: Fauci Supports Birx’s Assessment After Trump Criticizes Her
Here’s what you need to know: ImageDr. Anthony S. Fauci agreed with Dr. Deborah Birx’s statement that the United States has entered a “new phase” of the pandemic.Credit…Stefani Reynolds for The New York Times Fauci defends Birx after she is criticized by Trump. Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease…
‘Clean Up This Mess’: The Chinese Thinkers Behind Xi’s Hard Line
HONG KONG — When Tian Feilong first arrived in Hong Kong as demands for free elections were on the rise, he said he felt sympathetic toward a society that seemed to reflect the liberal political ideas he had studied as a graduate student in Beijing. Then, as the calls escalated into protests…
Israeli Court Rebukes Prime Minister’s Son Over Harassing Protest Leaders
TEL AVIV — An Israeli court on Sunday ordered Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s older son to stop harassing three people helping to lead protests against his father’s administration after he tweeted out their home addresses and cellphone numbers. Judge Dorit Feinstein of the Jerusalem Magistrates Court also ordered Yair Netanyahu, to delete…
Guyana Swears In New Leader, Resolving Struggle Over Oil Wealth
GEORGETOWN, Guyana — Guyana’s opposition party has won a bitterly contested general election, ending a prolonged political standoff that had crippled investment and heightened ethnic tensions in the small South American nation. The opposition candidate Mohamed Irfaan Ali was sworn in on as Guyana’s president on Sunday, shortly after the national electoral…
Iran Won’t Negotiate With U.S., Supreme Leader Says
Whether it’s reporting on conflicts abroad and political divisions at home, or covering the latest style trends and scientific developments, Times Video journalists provide a revealing and unforgettable view of the world. Whether it’s reporting on conflicts abroad and political divisions at home, or covering the latest style trends and scientific developments,…
ByteDance Said to Offer to Sell TikTok’s U.S. Operations
ByteDance, the Chinese internet giant that owns TikTok, has offered to sell all of the popular video app’s American operations as a way to save the business from being banned by the Trump administration, a person with knowledge of the matter said on Saturday. President Trump had told reporters on Friday that…
Can Humans Give Coronavirus to Bats, and Other Wildlife?
Many people worry about bats as a source of viruses, including the one that has caused a worldwide pandemic. But another question is surfacing: Could humans pass the novel coronavirus to wildlife, specifically North American bats? It may seem like the last pandemic worry right now, far down the line after concerns…
Canada’s Key Role in Creating a Once Awaited Vaccine
Canadians don’t have to go back to 1918 and the start of the Spanish flu pandemic to find an analogy to today. For decades, waves of polio outbreaks gripped the country with fear, death and uncertainty, as recently as the 1950s. ImageWork by Dr. Leone N. Farrell was critical to mass production…
Trump Officials Reconsider Prosecuting ISIS ‘Beatles’ Without Death Penalty
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is trying again to find a way to resolve the cases of two British Islamic State detainees who are notorious for their roles in the torture and killing of Western hostages, and who have been held in indefinite wartime detention by the American military in Iraq since…
Despite Historic Plunge, Europe’s Economy Flashes Signs of Recovery
LONDON — Before the pandemic, a traditional state of play prevailed in the enormous economies on the opposite sides of the Atlantic. Europe — full of older people, and rife with bickering over policy — appeared stagnant. The United States, ruled by innovation and risk-taking, seemed set to grow faster. But that…
Hong Kong, U.S. Election, Bangladesh Floods: Your Friday Briefing
(Want to get this briefing by email? Here’s the sign-up.) Good morning. We’re covering concerns about forced quarantines in China, President Trump’s suggestion to delay the election and what our critic learned in online theater training. , ImageAfter his release from prison, Wang Quanzhang was quarantined for weeks before being allowed to…
Aboard the Diamond Princess, a Case Study in Aerosol Transmission
In a year of endless viral outbreaks, the details of the Diamond Princess tragedy seem like ancient history. On Jan. 20, one infected passenger boarded the cruise ship; a month later, more than 700 of the 3,711 passengers and crew members had tested positive, with many falling seriously ill. The invader moved…
The Autocrat Problem
Want to get The Morning by email? Here’s the sign-up. Good morning. Congress questions Big Tech. Teachers’ unions push back on school reopenings. And Europe struggles to contain autocracy. ImagePrime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary has used the coronavirus crisis as an excuse to further centralize authority.Credit…Pool photo by Francois Lenoir The…
Belarus Says Russian Mercenaries Planned to Disrupt August Election
MOSCOW — Escalating a simmering feud with Russia, its neighbor and longtime ally, Belarus on Wednesday charged that more than 200 mercenaries from Russia, disguised as tourists, had infiltrated Belarus on a mission to disrupt its presidential election. Reports of a Russian mercenary force in Belarus, which could not be independently confirmed,…
Big Tech Hearings, Vietnam Outbreak, Sheep Shortage: Your Thursday Briefing
(Want to get this briefing by email? Here’s the sign-up.) Good morning. We’re covering Big Tech executives on the defensive, Vietnam’s mysterious surge in cases and a troubling trend in Latin American democracies. ImageJeff Bezos, the Amazon CEO, testifies before Congress on Wednesday.Credit…Pool photo by Graeme Jennings Big tech faces big questions…