Thursday Briefing: Multiple charges for the Telegram founder

Plus, a major raid in the West Bank

View in browser|nytimes.com August 29, 2024 SUPPORTED BY ROHDE&SCHWARZ By Natasha Frost Good morning. We're covering the arrest of the Telegram founder and major raids in the West Bank. Plus: A feud over feasting on the beach. Pavel Durov in 2014. Jim Wilson/The New York Times The Telegram founder was charged with multiple crimes Pavel Durov, the Russian-born entrepreneur who founded the online communications tool Telegram, was charged yesterday in France with a wide range of crimes and barred from leaving the country. The Paris prosecutor said that Durov was released from custody, but had been ordered to pay bail of five million euros, or about $5.5 million. Durov was charged with complicity in managing an online platform to enable illegal transactions by an organized group, as well as with complicity in crimes such as enabling the distribution of child sexual abuse material, fraud and drug trafficking. His indictment was a rare move by legal authorities to hold a top tech executive personally liable for the behavior of users on a major messaging platform. Telegram has played a role in multiple criminal cases in France. Analysis: Durov's case has intensified a long-simmering debate about free speech on the internet and the responsibility of tech companies to monitor what their users say and do on their platforms. Israeli soldiers near Tulkarm in the West Bank yesterday. Jaafar Ashtiyeh/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images At least 10 people were killed in the West Bank Hundreds of Israeli troops, backed by drones and armored vehicles, carried out major raids in the West Bank, Israeli and Palestinian officials said yesterday. The Palestinian Health Ministry said that at least 10 Palestinians had been killed. Israeli officials described the raids as an ongoing operation targeting militants, and the Israeli military said it had killed nine militants. The operation followed months of escalating Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank, where nearly three million Palestinians live under Israeli military rule. More than 600 Palestinians have been killed in the territory since the Oct. 7 Hamas-led assault on Israel, according to the U.N., in violence involving both the Israeli military and extremist Jewish settlers. In addition to its actions in Gaza and the West Bank, the Israeli military said that it had attacked what it said was a terrorist operating on the Syria-Lebanon border, as well as structures in southern Lebanon belonging to Hezbollah, the militant group allied with Iran. Context: American, Israeli and Iranian officials have said that Tehran is trying to flood the West Bank with weapons. 🇺🇸 U.S. ELECTION 2024 The presidential election is less than 70 days away. This is what we're watching. Donald Trump believes the world would be a very different place had he not lost the 2020 election. Doug Mills/The New York Times Trump blames Biden for the world's ills Had Donald Trump won re-election in 2020, in his own estimation, Hamas would not have invaded Israel, the war in Ukraine would not have taken place and Iran would not be arming Hezbollah, the Houthis or Hamas. It is a politically appealing argument, if global crises unfolded in neat, four-year segments corresponding with the inauguration of American presidents. But the reality is that presidents inherit a world already hurtling through history, writes David E. Sanger, in this analysis. Arlington National Cemetery: Trump's visit has become clouded with controversy amid allegations that campaign members filmed a gravesite without permission. Your questions: We're asking readers what they'd like to know about the election and taking those questions to our reporters. Today, we gave one to Alan Feuer, who covers Trump's criminal cases and writes the Trump on Trial newsletter. How can a felon be a candidate of a political party for presidential elections in the United States? — Dr. Bilali Camara, Netherlands Alan: There are many collateral consequences for being convicted of a felony in the U.S. Sometimes defendants lose their right to vote. Sometimes they are forbidden from owning guns or from obtaining certain professional licenses. But broadly speaking, even felons can still run for — and hold the office of — president. There are only a few federal crimes that bar people from entering the White House. Anyone found guilty of inciting an insurrection, for example, can be precluded from serving as president. But none of the felonies that Donald Trump has been convicted or accused of so far stand in his way of seeking to regain the nation's highest office. You can send us your questions here. Here's what else to know: Vice President Kamala Harris will appear today on CNN, in her first major interview since rising to the top of the Democratic ticket, with Gov. Tim Walz, her running mate. Trump claimed without evidence in an interview that President Biden and Harris were partly responsible for his assassination attempt. Stay up-to-date: Live coverage | Poll tracker | The Run-Up podcast | On Politics newsletter A MESSAGE FROM ROHDE&SCHWARZ Protecting the lifelines of society Critical infrastructures, such as power grids, transportation systems and financial networks are increasingly vulnerable to various threats. At Rohde & Schwarz, we recognize the importance of ensuring the reliability, resilience, and security of these essential systems. That's why we're dedicated to providing innovative solutions to support the protection of critical infrastructures. Learn more! MORE TOP NEWS Tobias Schwarz/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Brexit: The British prime minister, Keir Starmer, has promised a rapprochement with Europe — beginning with simply being pleasant to its leaders. France: A 33-year-old Algerian man was charged with attempted murder and other crimes after an arson attack on a synagogue last week, prosecutors said. Japan: Typhoon Shanshan made landfall in Kyushu, Japan's southernmost island, at about 8 a.m. local time, lashing parts of the country with torrential rain. Ukraine: Russian strikes near the front line killed six people. Russian troops pressed ahead in eastern Ukraine, closing in on the key city of Pokrovsk. Diplomacy: U.S. and Chinese officials discussed plans for a call between President Biden and China's leader, Xi Jinping, and for talks between their military commanders. Russia: Journalists from The Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, as well as dozens of other Americans, were barred from entering the country. Climate: Wildfires in Canada last year produced more planet-warming carbon than the burning of fossil fuels in almost any country, researchers found. Africa: The continent's debt crisis is getting worse, sapping growth in many countries and stoking instability. Germany: Polls show that extremist parties are expected to make gains in upcoming elections in three states in the former East Germany. Antiquities: A 4-year-old boy accidentally smashed a 3,500-year-old jar in a museum in Israel. He and his family have been invited to return when the artifact is restored. SPORTS NEWS Paralympics 2024: The Summer Paralympics started yesterday. Here's what to watch out for. Soccer: Liverpool agreed to a deal to sign the Italian winger Federico Chiesa from Juventus. Day 3 of the U.S. Open: Alexander Zverev, Madison Keys and Frances Tiafoe advanced. Follow our coverage. MORNING READ Studio Oleomingus Studio Oleomingus's video games have bright, chaotic color palettes inspired by cheap gum wrappers and vintage matchbox covers. The studio, based in India, uses these bright palettes to examine some of the country's darkest chapters. Dhruv Jani, the lead writer and designer, said the approach was inspired by postcolonial writers who used absurdism and magical realism to evoke the bizarre experience of being colonized. CONVERSATION STARTERS Canadian favorites: The most well-known product of Quebec's casse-croûtes — fast-food shacks — is definitely poutine. But when is pogo going to get famous? What about a pinceau? A start-up city: A U.S. corporation built Próspera off the coast of Honduras to evade taxes and regulation. The Honduran government wants it gone. Lonely TV: Dark comedies like "The Bear" and "Sunny" provide a contrast to contemporary comedy's relentlessly upbeat streak, our critic writes. ARTS AND IDEAS Francesco Guerra for The New York Times The right to feast on the beach Lasagna; rice with mussels; seafood pasta; fried sausages. All these dishes and more have long been consumed by Italian beachgoers in the southern city of Bari. But over the last couple of summers, the beloved ritual has become a source of tension, as a growing number of beach clubs on the Apulian coast have started barring people from coming in with food. The new directives have caused a stir, described in one paper as a "Beach-Picnic 'War.'" Dozens of articles tried to answer the question of whether it was legal to bar people from bringing their home cooking to the beach, and lawyers and even politicians have weighed in. The lunch on the beach "is all we have left," one resident said, adding: "Coming here is our right." Read more about Apulia's beach club tensions. We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times. RECOMMENDATIONS Chris Simpson for The New York Times Cook: This honey salabat tea cake is rich and gingery. Conserve: Here are tips for squeezing more time out of a struggling phone battery. Watch: "In the Arena: Serena Williams," an eight-part documentary, revisits the highs and lows of the tennis star's career. Listen: New recordings by the pianist Robert Levin take a free and dazzling approach to Mozart. Read: Get lost in one of 19 new books coming in September. 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's briefing. See you tomorrow. — Natasha Reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. 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