Tuesday Briefing: Ukraine is poised to strike inside Russia

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November 19, 2024

	By Gaya Gupta

Good morning. We’re covering Ukraine’s window to strike inside Russia and Donald Trump’s deportation plan.

Plus, revelations from a kids’ soccer coach.

Ukrainian soldiers near the Kursk region of Russia in August. David Guttenfelder for The New York Times

Ukraine is poised to strike inside Russia

President Volodymyr Zelensky suggested that Kyiv’s first launches of long-range weapons inside Russian territory would come soon and without warning. The move signals a new sense of urgency after President Biden’s decision to allow long-range strikes inside Russia using American-provided missiles.

American officials said the missiles, known as the Army Tactical Missile Systems, were likely to be deployed, at least initially, against Russian and North Korean troops in the Kursk region of western Russia. While Biden’s decision may help Ukrainian troops under fire in the short term, it is unlikely to change the trajectory of the war, according to American officials and military analysts.

In Moscow, the Kremlin said the Biden administration’s decision was a major step toward a direct confrontation between Russia and NATO.

Context: Biden allowed the Ukrainians to use the long-range missiles after months of pleas from Ukraine. But hanging over the decision is President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January. It is unclear how much of the Biden administration’s approach to Ukraine will survive once his successor takes office.

A parting message: At the start of the G20 summit in Brazil yesterday, Biden used one of his final moments on the global stage to encourage more world leaders to assist Ukraine.

A protest against Donald Trump’s immigration policies in New York City this month. Victor J. Blue for The New York Times

Trump intends to use the military for deportations

President-elect Donald Trump confirmed yesterday that he intended to declare a national emergency and use the U.S. military in his plans for mass deportations of undocumented immigrants.

Trump addressed his plan for mass deportations in a social media post. Trump’s top immigration adviser, Stephen Miller, described the policy in interviews with The Times last year. He said that military funds would be used to build “vast holding facilities that would function as staging centers” for immigrants as their cases progressed and they waited to be flown to other countries.

Aid destined for Gaza at the Kerem Shalom crossing in Israel on Nov. 11. Amir Cohen/Reuters

Nearly 100 aid trucks were looted in Gaza

A large convoy of trucks carrying aid was “violently looted” in the Gaza Strip over the weekend, UNRWA, the U.N. agency that helps Palestinians, said. Drivers were forced at gunpoint to unload supplies and nearly 100 of the 109 trucks in the convoy were lost in one of the worst such incidents of the war, UNRWA said.

The agency said that the episode highlighted the challenges of bringing aid into southern and central Gaza. Earlier this month, a U.N.-backed panel said that all of Gaza faced a risk of famine from now until April, with the north at particular risk.

Beirut: Israeli strikes in Lebanon’s capital, the first in weeks, forced residents to come to grips with another escalation of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Sajjad Hussain/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Sports

The National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. Shane Lavalette for The New York Times

Rory Smith and his son at the end of practice. Mary Turner for The New York Times

Despite reporting on soccer for decades, coaching the sport was never something Rory Smith, our global sports correspondent, had ever particularly yearned to do. But when he was asked to help coach his son’s under-7 soccer team, the three months he spent on the field came with revelations. Here’s what he learned.

Lives lived: In Portugal in 1974, Celeste Caeiro handed out red carnations to soldiers on their way to ending a dictatorship in what became known as the Carnation Revolution. She died at 91.

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

Angela Piazza/USA TODAY NETWORK

Texas weighs Bible-infused lessons in schools

In a highly contested push to expand the role of religion in public life, Texas has emerged as a leader. It was the first state to allow public schools to hire religious chaplains as school counselors, and the Republican-controlled legislature is expected to renew an effort to require public-school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments.

Texas education officials were also expected to approve a new elementary-school curriculum that infuses teachings on the Bible into lessons. The proposed curriculum has ignited an uproar, with parents and teachers — including some Christian Texans — expressing worry that the lessons blur the line between instructing and evangelizing.

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Yossy Arefi.

Bake: Sweet pears and tart cranberries are a perfect pairing in this easy dessert.

Watch: Here are six new movies our critics are talking about.

Read: Haruki Murakami’s “The City and Its Uncertain Walls” features all the author’s signature elements.

Compete: Can you sort these eight historical events? Try our Flashback quiz.

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

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

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