The New York Times - Monday Briefing: A tense wait in Israel

August 5, 2024

	By Justin Porter

Good morning. We’re covering Israel’s tense wait for retaliation after assassinations and how Myanmar’s junta has evaded jet fuel sanctions.

Plus, war hasn’t stopped the search for love in Ukraine.

Protesters hold up posters bearing the image of the bearded Ismail Haniyeh and wave Palestinian flags.

Protesters in Tehran last week after Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Iran. Arash Khamooshi for The New York Times

A tense wait in Israel for retaliation

Amid fears of a broadening conflict, a number of international airlines suspended flights to and from Israel pending expected retaliation against the country by Iran and its Lebanese proxy, Hezbollah. Britain, Canada, France and the U.S. were among the countries urging their citizens to leave Lebanon immediately.

The move followed the killings earlier in the week of a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut and Hamas’s political leader in Tehran. Tens of thousands of Israelis are unable to come home, according to an Israeli official, adding to the sense that the country was no longer in control of its own fate and had no clear plan for quieting its many conflicts. Here’s the latest.

Clashes continued throughout the weekend. Israel and Hezbollah each said yesterday that they had fired at targets in the other’s territory. An Israeli airstrike on a school functioning as a shelter in Gaza City killed at least 30 people and injured dozens more, according to the Palestinian emergency response agency in Gaza and Palestinian news outlets.

Most of the victims were women and children, a spokesman for the Palestinian Civil Defense said. The attack was the third on a school in the last four days. Israel said it had targeted Hamas “command and control centers.”

A look ahead: Israel’s war against Hamas is the deadliest that Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have ever faced. But Hamas has remained operational, recruited new fighters in Gaza and beyond and re-emerged in areas that Israel had driven the group out of months before. Survival could provide a symbolic victory that may allow Hamas to emerge politically stronger.

Four fighter jets flying in a sky dotted with birds.

Myanmar Air Force jets performing maneuvers during a celebration last year. Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Myanmar’s junta evades sanctions to fuel airstrikes

Myanmar’s military, unable to defeat the rebels on the ground, has increased its indiscriminate bombing of civilian targets to terrorize the population. In separate attacks, the junta recently bombed a wedding and a monastery, killing some 60 people.

The escalating attacks demonstrate that Myanmar is evading sanctions aimed at blocking the flow of jet fuel needed to keep the regime’s bombers, fighter jets and helicopter gunships in the air.

Although the strikes have taken their toll, rebel forces have continued to make gains. In recent weeks, they seized a prison in Shan State, freeing hundreds of political prisoners, and on the opposite side of the country, another rebel army captured a civilian airport in Rakhine State.

Details: Myanmar’s aviation companies have disguised their operations by transferring their assets, changing their names and selling and reselling fuel shipments while they are en route, activists and U.N. investigators say.

🇺🇸 U.S. ELECTION 2024

The presidential election is less than 100 days away. This is what we’re watching.

Vice President Kamala Harris standing at a lectern during a rally. A screen bears the words “Harris for President” in the background.

Vice President Kamala Harris at a campaign rally in Atlanta last week. Nicole Craine for The New York Times

Harris narrowed down her V.P. finalists

Vice President Kamala Harris was planning to meet with at least three top candidates to be her running mate — Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota and Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania — before beginning a swing-state tour with her choice tomorrow. Harris, who often prioritizes personal rapport, is expected to place considerable stock in the in-person meetings.

Harris and Donald Trump are essentially tied in Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania, while Trump has a slight lead in Georgia and Wisconsin.
Trump suggested, without evidence, that Georgia’s Republican governor was hampering his efforts to win the battleground state.
JD Vance, Trump’s running mate, has been blunt about wanting to test constitutional limits. Here’s how he thinks about power.

What do you want to know? We’re asking readers to send us their questions about the U.S. presidential election. We’ll take them to our reporters for answers. You can send us your question by filling out this form.

Stay up-to-date: Live coverage | Poll tracker | The “Run-Up” podcast | On Politics newsletter

MORE TOP NEWS

Three people move along a street in front of a building in flames on an urban street.

A garment store burning yesterday during protests in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Abu Sufian Jewel/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Bangladesh: At least 70 people were killed in clashes between security forces and protesters, as the government imposed new restrictions to quell a growing antigovernment movement.
A.I.: Using smugglers and front companies, China’s private sector is obtaining advanced Nvidia chips that the U.S. has banned for export to there.
U.K.: Violent anti-immigrant protests erupted in several cities in the wake of a mass stabbing in the northern town of Southport.
Somalia: The Islamist militant group Al Shabab claimed responsibility for a terrorist attack that killed at least 32 people.
China: At least four people were dead and 23 others were missing after a flash flood and landslide in a mountainous part of Sichuan Province.
Russia: Two of the prisoners released in last week’s prisoner swap were deep-cover sleeper spies whose own children didn’t know the family had ties to Russia.
Wildfire: Across North America, fires are burning with a level of intensity rarely seen at this point in the summer.
Philanthropy: Tensions between Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have shaken the world of charitable giving.

Olympics

Wang Shun, in a white and red warm-up suit with a bronze medal around his neck, applauding for Leon Marchand, in a white warm-up suit, with a gold medal around his neck, as an official congratulates him. The two athletes stand atop the medals podium.

Wang Shun of China, right, finished behind Léon Marchand of France in the 200 individual medley. Gabriela Bhaskar for The New York Times

Swimming: China’s team, which has been dogged by doping questions, has disappointed in the gold medal count.
Track and Field: Julien Alfred of St. Lucia won the women’s 100-meter sprint — and her country’s first-ever medal, a gold. Here’s how she did it.
Tennis: Novak Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz to win the men’s gold medal.

MORNING READ

MrBeast smiling and holding an orange Nickelodeon trophy in the shape of a blimp.

MrBeast at an event in Los Angeles last year. Richard Shotwell/Invision, via Richard Shotwell, via Invision, via Associated Press

Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, has made a name for himself on YouTube by way of philanthropic acts with a dark twist. Contestants on his recent show, “Beast Games,” said that they had been ready for extreme challenges, but not the conditions on set.

“We signed up for the show, but we didn’t sign up for not being fed or watered or treated like human beings,” one contestant said.

CONVERSATION STARTERS

Give it away: When a former monk in the U.S. won a $259 million jackpot in 2014, he decided to splurge on something a bit out of the ordinary: support for nonprofit theater.
A long way from “poison apples”: Here’s what nutrition experts say about tomatoes, and some recipes to go with them.
The office ties that bind: How guilty should you feel about leaving the boss who gave you your first big break?

We hope you’ve enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times .

ARTS AND IDEAS

A view from above of two people at a table with papers, pens, a cellphone and a water bottle on it.

A speed dating event in Kyiv, Ukraine. Oksana Parafeniuk for The New York Times

Ukraine’s shattered love lives

The pursuit of love might seem secondary to dealing with missile attacks, power outages and food shortages, but many Ukrainians say they need romantic relationships to help them cope with the trauma of war. For women, the problem is particularly acute. Tens of thousands of men have died. Many more are on the front lines, and others are reluctant to leave their homes because of draft officers in the streets.

Some women are turning to dating apps or speed-dating events, and singles still dance at nightclubs in Kyiv. And in this search, at least, there is a chance to briefly forget the harsh realities of war.

RECOMMENDATIONS

A wooden spoon is tucked into a cast-iron skillet full of basil and tomato fried rice. A bowl of fried rice is next to the skillet.

Bryan Gardner for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.

Cook: Basil and tomato form a dynamic powerhouse in this fried rice.

Connect: Here are five ways to meet new people (without joining a book club).

Read: In our Read Like the Wind newsletter, Sadie Stein recommends two authors she disliked and gave a second chance.

Play: Spelling Bee, the Mini Crossword, Wordle and Sudoku. Find all of our games here.

That’s it for today. See you tomorrow. — Justin

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