Monday Briefing: The latest push for a Gaza cease-fire

Lingering trauma for freed Ukrainian prisoners of war and suspected spies for China in Europe

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story April 29, 2024 By Daniel E. Slotnik Good morning. We're covering the push for a cease-fire in Gaza and traumatized Ukrainian prisoners of war returning to the front. Plus: A conversation with Anne Hathaway. Displaced Palestinians in a camp in Rafah, in southern Gaza, on Sunday. Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Israel wrestled with invading Rafah as negotiators sought a cease-fire International diplomats converged yesterday on the Middle East to press for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas as Israel wrestled with whether to begin a ground invasion of Rafah in southern Gaza, according to Israeli analysts and officials. The officials said that they were open to holding off on an invasion if it meant that Israeli hostages taken during the Oct. 7 attacks would be released. Benny Gantz, a member of Israel's war cabinet, said that freeing the estimated 100 or so remaining hostages "is urgent and much more important" than entering Rafah. Pressure on Israel to stop the fighting seemed to be growing. President Biden warned Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, against invading Rafah and pressed for a cease-fire on a call, and officials said they believed that the International Criminal Court was preparing to issue arrest warrants for senior Israeli and Hamas officials on charges related to the conflict. More Gaza news: Rebuilding Gaza: International development agencies, Middle East business interests and urban planners have a blueprint for reviving Gaza after the fighting stops. World Central Kitchen: The charity said that it would resume operations in Gaza with local aid workers, nearly a month after the Israeli military killed seven of its workers in targeted drone strikes. Maj. Valeria Subotina spent nearly a year as a prisoner of war in Russia. Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times Former Ukrainian prisoners of war show signs of trauma Many Ukrainian prisoners of war return with physical and psychological wounds after enduring torture from their Russian captors. Once back in Ukraine, they are often improperly treated and returned to duty too early, according to former prisoners, officials and psychologists familiar with individual cases. Russia's torture of prisoners of war has been well documented by the U.N., with former inmates speaking of relentless beatings, electric shocks, rape, sexual violence and mock executions. One expert described the torture as systematic. More than 10,000 Ukrainian prisoners of war remain in Russian custody, and nearly 3,000 have been released from Russia in prisoner exchanges since the invasion began. Most of the released prisoners return to active duty after about three months of rest and rehabilitation. Critics say they need more rest, but the Ukrainian military, short of troops on the front line, has given relatively few medical exemptions to former prisoners of war. The Chinese Embassy in Berlin. Markus Schreiber/Associated Press Suspected spies for China are appearing in Europe Six people in three separate cases were charged last week in Europe with spying for China — two in Britain and four in Germany. The espionage cases, the first of their kind in two countries that once cultivated warm relations with Beijing, served as exclamation points in Europe's long, often anguished breakup with China. China experts said that the arrests indicated that European countries were toughening their response to Beijing's meddling. China's foreign ministry dismissed the charges as groundless. Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT MORE TOP NEWS Sameer Al-Doumy/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images British policy: Asylum seekers in Britain feared that they could be deported to Rwanda. "Every day, the rules seem to change," one said. China: At least five people died when a tornado hit Guangzhou on Saturday. British royals: King Charles III will return to public duties this week, about three months after he announced that he had cancer. Vietnam: Vuong Dinh Hue, the chairman of the National Assembly, resigned on Friday amid a widening anti-corruption campaign. Flight problems: A Delta Boeing 767 turned around after it lost its emergency slide after takeoff. Opium trade: Fentanyl has largely displaced heroin in the U.S., which means that demand has plummeted for poppies like those grown in part of Guatemala. U.S. election: President Biden joked about Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, saying, "I'm a grown man running against a 6-year-old." South Africa: My colleagues looked at how far the country has come in meeting the goals of the Freedom Charter, a foundational document for the nation after apartheid. Campus protests Arrests: More than 200 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested at four colleges in the U.S. on Saturday night. Mixed signals: Schools that cracked down on protesters over the weekend gave varying rationales for their actions, while other schools warned of consequences for protesters but had yet to act. Democrats: The protests are stoking internal divisions and political risks for the left in an election year. Opinion Zheng Huansong/Xinhua/eyevine, via Redux Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy embodies how far-right parties hope to take control of the E.U., writes David Broder. The novelist Sasha Vasilyuk, who grew up in Ukraine and Russia before moving to the U.S. as a teenager, grapples with teaching Russian to her American-born son during a time of war. Nicholas Kristof wonders why the U.S. celebrates its arms deliveries to Ukraine while downplaying those to Israel. MORNING READ Devin Oktar Yalkin for The New York Times My colleague David Marchese interviewed the actress Anne Hathaway for our new series, The Interview. "I find it hard to imagine that people would be interested in me," Hathaway said. "That's one reason that I don't know that I'm a very good celebrity. I don't really know where the walls are between being intimate and narcissism and self-regard." Here's their whole conversation. Lives lived: The sound engineer Bob Heil brought rich sonic coloring to tours by rock titans like the Who. He died at 83. CONVERSATION STARTERS Open Olympics: Paris plans to hold the opening ceremony for this summer's Games on the Seine, the first time it will take place outside the security of a stadium. Venice Biennale: Pope Francis visited a women's prison where the Vatican has mounted its pavilion at the world's principal showcase for new art. Artists worked with incarcerated women to create pieces for the show. Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT SPORTS NEWS Mohammed Badra/EPA, via Shutterstock Nathaniel Adjei: The latest victim of Kylian Mbappe's brilliance. Madrid Open: Rafael Nadal put on a show in front of 12,000 fans. Preparing for the Audi arrival: Sauber signed Nico Hulkenberg to a multiyear deal in Formula 1. ARTS AND IDEAS The Upshot Staff A decade of the Upshot Ten years ago last week, The New York Times introduced the Upshot, a section devoted to explaining "politics, policy and everyday life." That's a wide scope, by design, and more than 5,000 articles later, the Upshot has been many things to many readers. Here are some favorites: The fried calamari index for measuring food trends. How y'all, youse and you guys talk. The top jobs where women are outnumbered by men named John. Let us show you how GPT works — using Jane Austen. The Upshot's editors chose those four articles, and 96 more, to represent what they do. You can see them here. We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times. RECOMMENDATIONS Christopher Testani for The New York Times Cook: Mint brightens this creamy asparagus pasta. Listen: Podcasts like "The Happiness Lab" can help soothe an anxious mind. Read: "Liberty Equality Fashion" explores the clothes that embodied the ideas of the French Revolution. Work out: These exercises can help your sex life. Play the Spelling Bee. And here are today's Mini Crossword and Wordle. You can find all our puzzles here. That's it for today. Thank you for reading, and see you tomorrow. — Dan You can reach Dan and the team at briefing@nytimes.com. Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Morning Briefing: Europe Edition from The New York Times. To stop receiving Morning Briefing: Europe Edition, unsubscribe. 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