Thursday Briefing: More device explosions in Lebanon

Plus Sichuan pepper's magic trick

View in browser|nytimes.com September 19, 2024 By Whet Moser Good morning. We're covering more explosions in Lebanon and the Federal Reserve's big rate cut. Plus: How the Sichuan pepper thrills. Hezbollah supporters at a funeral for four people killed by exploding pagers. Diego Ibarra Sanchez for The New York Times More deadly device explosions hit Lebanon At least 20 people were killed and more than 450 were wounded when walkie-talkies owned by Hezbollah members exploded across Lebanon yesterday, the second attack involving booby-trapped devices in two days, according to Lebanese and Hezbollah officials. The Israeli military has not commented on either attack, but 12 current and former officials said that Tuesday's attack, which used pagers, was years in the making. As part of a front company called B.A.C. Consulting, Israeli intelligence officers made pagers that contained batteries laced with the explosive PETN, which began shipping to Lebanon in the summer of 2022. This is how they built a modern-day Trojan horse. Here's what visual evidence tells us about the explosions, which have killed at least 32 people. Roughly 3,000 others people have been wounded in the attacks since Tuesday afternoon. What's next: Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, said in a video statement last night that Israel was "at the outset of a new period in this war." Without mentioning the explosions in Lebanon, he said the "center of gravity" of Israel's military efforts was "moving north." Analysis: Israel's attack on pagers and other wireless devices belonging to Hezbollah was a tactical success that had no clear strategic effect, analysts told The Times. Sean O'Brien, speaking at the Republican National Convention in July. Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times A major U.S. union will not endorse Harris or Trump The leadership of the 1.3-million-member International Brotherhood of Teamsters said in a statement that it would not back a presidential candidate. The decision was a blow to Vice President Kamala Harris, who has the endorsement of the country's other powerful labor unions. It also vindicated Trump's strategy of wooing the union's president, Sean O'Brien. The union endorsed President Biden in 2020, as well as fellow Democrats Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012 for their presidential campaigns. O'Brien's openness to Trump, who appointed antilabor members to the National Labor Relations Board, has badly divided the union. Two Teamsters joint governing councils in the West — which cover 300,000 workers, including those in the swing state of Nevada — said they would back Harris. More on the U.S. election Americans head to the polls in less than seven weeks. Harris courted the Latino vote yesterday, while Trump held a rally in New York, where his presence could help Republicans hold the House. George Clooney escalated his feud with Trump. Melania Trump defended her nude modeling as she promoted a new book. Do you have questions about the election? Send them to us, and we'll find the answers. Stay up to date: See our poll tracker. Listen to "The Run-Up" podcast. Sign up for the On Politics newsletter. The U.S. central bank made a dramatic rate cut The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by half a percentage point yesterday, lowering them to about 4.9 percent, an unusually large cut and down from a more than two- decade high of about 5.33 percent. The pivot comes after months of fading inflation and a recent uptick in the unemployment rate. By starting off with a big cut, the Fed is in effect taking out insurance against a bigger employment slowdown. What's next: Officials expect to make another half-point reduction before the end of the year, to 4.4 percent. MORE TOP NEWS Social Media, via Reuters Ukraine: Russia seized a town in the Donetsk region, as a Ukrainian drone hit a big ammunition depot in western Russia. Russia: The death in prison of a pianist who opposed Moscow's war in Ukraine has transformed him into an antiwar symbol. U.K.: England and Wales will introduce buffer zones to ban protests outside abortion clinics. Moscow: An ugly divorce between Russia's richest woman and her estranged husband appeared to escalate into a shootout yesterday, leaving two people dead. Brazil: Elon Musk's social media platform, X, used a technical maneuver to restore service for many Brazilians after a court blocked it. Kashmir: People began voting in the first election for the regional legislature in a decade, restoring a degree of self-rule five years after India stripped it of its semiautonomous status. U.S.: Bulletproof school supplies, like a $185 pencil case or a $450 hoodie, are being marketed as protection from school shootings. Health: Adults under 50 have been developing cancer at increasingly higher rates. Scientists think alcohol use may be one factor driving the trend. SPORTS NEWS Soccer: Daniele de Rossi has been fired as Roma head coach after eight months in charge. Formula 1: Max Verstappen's race engineer, GianPiero Lambiase, has been promoted as part of Red Bull's staffing restructure. MORNING READ Brian Lawless/PA Images, via Getty Images Seven years after one of the best-known Catholic bishops in Ireland, Eamonn Casey, was laid to rest in Galway Cathedral, disturbing new allegations that he had sexually abused his niece have emerged. The latest covered-up offense has ignited demands that his remains be removed from the crypt. Lives lived: Elias Khoury, who won praise as one of the greatest modern Arabic novelists, died at 76. CONVERSATION STARTERS Fantastic fashion: Francesco Risso, the creative director of Marni, triumphed with his show at Milan Fashion Week. Be flexible: Our lead consumer technology writer said that his next phone would be foldable. A romantic cabin: The novelist Joyce Maynard fulfilled her dream of staying on a péniche — a converted riverboat — in Paris. ARTS AND IDEAS Anthony Cotsifas for The New York Times The life-affirming Sichuan pepper Hydroxy-alpha sanshool is an alkylamide that, instead of binding to taste receptors, activates nerves primed to detect physical touch. It abounds in the plants indigenous to China whose fruits are known in Mandarin as hua jiao and in English as Sichuan pepper. It isn't a pepper at all, but part of the citrus family. The sensation Sichuan pepper delivers begins with faint micro-oscillations along the edges of the tongue, as if your mouth were a rung bell. Eating a lot of it can feel like being kissed by a horde of tiny bees. Hua jiao is still something of a novelty in the West, its pleasures disorienting. What we recoil from as pain proves to be an illusion. The body reacts instinctively, reminding us of the helpless animal within. Then the mind defeats it and we eat more, now in on the joke. 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. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Sophia Eleni Pappas. Cook: Yotam Ottolenghi's smoky shrimp saganaki is a one-pan meal that cooks in just 30 minutes. Heal: Chronic inflammation can be a silent killer, but your diet can play a role in tamping it down. Travel: London has small specialized shops that sell unique wares in spots full of wonder. 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. — Whet Correction: Yesterday's newsletter misstated the name of the rape victim in the trial in France. She is Gisèle Pelicot, not Dominique. Reach Whet and the team at briefing@nytimes.com. Need help? 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