Wednesday Briefing: A new Trump indictment

Plus, Oasis gets the band back together.

View in browser|nytimes.com August 28, 2024 By Natasha Frost Good morning. We're covering a new indictment against Donald Trump and the rescue of an Israeli hostage. Plus: An Oasis reunion tour. 🇺🇸 U.S. ELECTION 2024 The presidential election is less than 70 days away. This is what we're watching. Jack Smith, the special counsel. Doug Mills/The New York Times A new indictment was filed against Donald Trump Federal prosecutors issued a pared-down version of an indictment accusing Donald Trump of plotting to overturn the 2020 election, stripping out some charges and tweaking others to help the case survive the Supreme Court's recent ruling granting former presidents broad immunity. Read the revised indictment. It kept the basic structure of the first indictment, issued nearly 13 months ago, which accused Trump of involvement in intersecting plots to overturn the results of the 2020 election, but it removed any discussion of any allegations that might be construed as related to Trump's official acts as president, while also contending that other acts should be interpreted as the conduct of a private candidate for office. Trump criticized Jack Smith, the special counsel, and the indictment on social media. Sept. 10 debate: Trump said that he would participate in a presidential debate with Harris hosted by ABC News and suggested that the question of whether microphones would be muted when a candidate wasn't speaking had been resolved. A spokesman for ABC declined to comment. Harris will sit tomorrow for her first major interview, with CNN. Here's the latest. Here's what else to know: The first rioter to breach the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was sentenced yesterday to more than four years in prison. Trump plans to name Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard as honorary co-chairs of his transition team, an adviser said. Our colleagues on The Morning newsletter have 21 questions that Harris still hasn't answered. Take a look. Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain was a prosecutor before he turned to a life in politics, as was Harris. The two share a few other traits. Do you have questions about the election? Send them to us, and we'll find the answers. Stay up-to-date: Live coverage | Poll tracker | The Run-Up" podcast | On Politics newsletter The brother of Farhan al-Qadi showing a picture of them together, after al-Qadi was rescued. Menahem Kahana/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Israel forces rescued a hostage from Gaza An elite Israeli military unit yesterday rescued Farhan al-Qadi, a member of Israel's Bedouin Arab minority who was being held hostage in a tunnel deep beneath the Gaza Strip. He was the eighth living captive to be freed by Israeli troops in nearly 11 months of war and the first to be found alive in the subterranean labyrinth used by Hamas. An Israeli military spokesman said the operation to rescue al-Qadi had been founded on "precise intelligence." But Israeli officials, speaking anonymously, said that al-Qadi, 52, had been found alone and unguarded, by chance, during an operation to capture a Hamas tunnel network. He was said to have appeared weak, undernourished and lacking enough energy to climb out of the tunnel on his own. In Gaza: The rescue came amid Israeli airstrikes across Gaza that the Palestinian emergency services said had killed at least 20 people. At one of the bombing sites in the southern city of Khan Younis, emergency crews frantically searched for survivors trapped under a collapsed building. Context: Roughly 250 people, both dead and alive, were taken to Gaza during the Oct. 7 attack, which left about 1,200 people dead and sparked the brutal war in Gaza. More than 100 hostages are thought to remain in Gaza, at least 30 of whom are now presumed dead by the Israeli authorities. A hotel in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, that was hit in a missile strike. Andrii Gorb/Reuters Russia launched deadly new wave of strikes Russia launched pre-dawn missile and drone attacks on Kyiv and several other large Ukrainian cities yesterday, the second day of a bombing campaign that came as Moscow fights to fend off a Ukrainian offensive. At least six people were killed, according to the authorities in Ukraine. At a forum in Kyiv, Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, said that he would press ahead with a diplomatic strategy to start talks. He laid out looming challenges for Ukraine, as well as his strategy of diplomacy and military efforts to bring Russia to the negotiating table. Ukraine is also seeking security guarantees from allies, including a request to join NATO. Ukraine dispatch: Powerful guided "glide bombs" have helped Russia raze entire towns in eastern Ukraine with ever greater speed. "When you drive into a ruined town, it's like hopelessness," one soldier told our reporter. MORE TOP NEWS Sebastiao Moreira/EPA-EFE, via Shutterstock Brazil: Wildfires are roaring across the Pantanal, the world's largest tropical wetland and one of the most biodiverse areas on the planet. Diplomacy: Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security adviser, arrived in Beijing yesterday for talks aimed at showing that U.S. and China can manage their differences. California: A man was charged with arson in a fire that destroyed 13 homes, burned over 3,700 acres and forced the evacuation of 26,000 people last month. Germany: A fatal stabbing in the city of Solingen, which prosecutors say was committed by a Syrian who had been rejected for asylum, has inflamed a longstanding debate over migrants. Japan: Typhoon Shanshan brought torrential rain and strong winds to the southwest, forcing flight cancellations and disrupting the high-speed rail network. Mexico: President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said that his government was "pausing" diplomatic relations with the U.S. in response to its criticism of his judicial overhaul. Business: Royal Caribbean and other cruise companies are aggressively building over-the-top megaships. Spain: A pod of orcas, possibly training to hunt tuna, damaged a boat and left its two-person crew stranded. SPORTS NEWS Day 2 of the U.S. Open: Iga Swiatek defeated Kamilla Rakhimova, and Naomi Osaka beat Jelena Ostapenko. (Read more about Osaka's "Lolita goth" look.) Follow our coverage. Behind the back: Watch this incredible shot by Karolina Muchova. Down time: For Italian tennis stars in New York City for the Open, one little restaurant has become their Rome away from Rome. MORNING READ Warner Bros. Tim Burton got the band back together — more than 30 years since "Beetlejuice" cemented itself as a cult classic. Now, the principal cast has reunited for "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," debuting at the Venice Film Festival today. Read our interview. For more: How the Venice Film Festival became an "Oscar launchpad." Lives lived: Mariah Carey's mother, Patricia, and sister, Alison, died on the same day over the weekend, the pop star announced. CONVERSATION STARTERS Twilight love: Shanghai's older singles are looking for love in unexpected places, among them public parks and an Ikea cafeteria in an upscale neighborhood. Loneliness epidemic: What is causing the current crisis, and why is it so hard to cure? The anti-pep rally: An ultra-chill dance routine performed by cheerleaders for the Kia Tigers, a South Korean baseball team, has flooded TikTok. ARTS AND IDEAS Shutterstock An Oasis reunion tour Oasis, Liam and Noel Gallagher's 1990s Britpop band, will play dates in Britain and Ireland in 2025, filling arenas with mass singalongs of anthemic hits like "Wonderwall," "Live Forever" and "Champagne Supernova." In the list of rock bands considered least likely to bury their hatchets long enough to successfully reunite, Oasis has always been near the top, after years of verbal and physical fisticuffs between the brothers. What changed? The announcement follows days of gossip on social media and detailed reporting from anonymous "industry insiders." Liam Gallagher himself boosted those rumors. When one fan said he was "scared" about the news to come, Liam replied: "How do you think I feel." Go deeper: Read our timeline of the Gallagher brothers' feud. RECOMMENDATIONS Bryan Gardner for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Greg Lofts. Cook: Make this prosciutto and melon salad on a hot summer day. Watch: "Chimp Crazy," a documentary series on chimpanzee ownership, highlights an obsession about the role of pets in our lives. Dress: Don't be scared to wear your flip-flops — even in the city. Listen: Sabrina Carpenter's sixth full-length album, "Short n' Sweet," is playful, vulnerable, amorous and calculating, our critic says. 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 P.S. Which of these classic novels got a bad review from our critics? Take our quiz. Reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com. 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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