Good morning. We’re covering reports that Yevgeny Prigozhin may have died in a plane crash and India’s successful moon landing. |
Plus, should Japan turn its back on growth? |
 | | Yevgeny Prigozhin leaving Rostov-on-Don, Russia, after his aborted mutiny in June.Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters |
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Wagner leader listed as a passenger on crashed plane |
His fate remains unclear. Several Russian news outlets reported, citing anonymous sources, that he was indeed on the plane that crashed. But Grey Zone, a Telegram account associated with the Wagner group, posted that it remained uncertain whether Prigozhin was dead or alive. U.S. officials also said they were unable to confirm his death. Dmitri Utkin, Wagner’s most prominent commander, was also on the passenger manifest. |
Frustrated over the country’s military leadership, Prigozhin instigated a short rebellion two months ago with his Wagner forces that posed a threat to President Vladimir Putin. Despite his actions, he appeared to move about freely in the mutiny’s aftermath, including meeting with the president on June 29. |
Elsewhere in Russia: Gen. Sergei Surovikin, a former commander of Russia’s forces in Ukraine believed to be close to Prigozhin, was removed from his post as chief of the Russian Air Force. He reportedly knew about the mutiny in advance. |
 | | People celebrating the successful landing of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft.Arun Sankar/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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India has become the first country to reach the southern polar region of the moon in one piece and only the fourth country ever to land on the moon. |
A lander named Vikram and a rover named Pragyan landed safely yesterday on the surface of the moon. India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission will explore an area of the moon that has yet to be visited and has frozen water that could be a resource for future missions. |
The landing, which came just days after a failed Russian mission, was broadcast live to tens of millions of people on Indian news channels. “This is an unprecedented moment,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said. “This is the moment for new, developing India.” |
 | | Destroyed structures in the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii.Go Nakamura for The New York Times |
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Firefighters in Hawaii left the scene |
Within an hour, residents and authorities said, the initial brush fire flared up again into what became the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century, destroying nearly everything in its path. The death toll has reached at least 115, and more than 2,000 structures were destroyed. |
 | | A wildfire in Chasia, on the outskirts of Athens on Tuesday.Angelos Tzortzinis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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 | | Ann Johnson, 48, uses a device that allows her to spell out words on a screen that helps her to communicate.Sara Hylton for The New York Times |
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A stroke paralyzed Ann Johnson at 30, robbing her of the ability to speak. Nearly twenty years later, in a milestone of neuroscience and artificial intelligence, her brain activity is being translated into words spoken by an avatar. The breakthrough could help others who have lost speech. |
When Saito decided to write about it, his editors were skeptical. Communism is unpopular in Japan. Economic growth is gospel. The book would be a tough sell. Except it wasn’t. |
Since its release in 2020, it has sold more than 500,000 copies and is about to be translated into English. Saito has tapped into what he describes as a growing disillusionment in Japan with capitalism’s ability to solve problems, whether it’s caring for the nation’s growing older population, stemming its rising inequality or mitigating climate change. |
 | | Chris Simpson for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Sophia Pappas. |
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That’s it for today’s briefing. See you tomorrow. — Justin |
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