Monday Briefing: Reaching a climate deal

Plus, Hezbollah fires projectiles into Israel

View in browser|nytimes.com November 25, 2024 By Natasha Frost Good morning. We're covering the U.N. climate summit in Azerbaijan and aerial assaults exchanged by Israel and Hezbollah. Plus: How to improve your dinner conversations. The entrance to the U.N. climate summit known as COP29, in Baku, Azerbaijan. The talks went deep into overtime. Igor Kovalenko/EPA, via Shutterstock COP29 talks end with a deal Negotiators at this year's U.N. climate summit, known as COP29, struck an agreement early yesterday to help developing countries adopt cleaner energy and cope with the effects of climate change. Under the deal, wealthy nations pledged to reach $300 billion per year in support by 2035, increased from the current target of $100 billion. But the deal was almost immediately assailed as inadequate by a string of delegates. Independent experts have said developing countries need $1.3 trillion per year, much more than the agreement allows for. Countries are expected to submit updated emissions-reduction pledges in the coming months before a February deadline. And on the heels of the contentious climate talks, negotiators are descending on Busan, South Korea, for another U.N.-led climate effort: the first treaty designed to tackle plastic pollution. We spoke to David Gelles, who reported on the summit this week from Baku, Azerbaijan. What were the main goals of this year's conference? Every year, diplomats from nearly 200 nations gather to try to agree on plans to combat climate change. This year, during a record spell of extreme heat and severe weather, the main goal was to mobilize as much as $1.3 trillion annually to help developing nations adapt to a warming world and transition away from fossil fuels. But regardless of the final details of the deal, the major fault lines will remain: Vulnerable nations still need huge amounts of money to cope with global warming, and wealthy nations have been slow to make those funds available. With a Trump presidency on the horizon, what can we expect from future climate talks? The U.S. election result was a major topic of conversation at COP29. President-elect Trump has called climate change a "hoax" and pledged to pull out of the Paris climate accord. Given that, few countries are expecting the U.S. to play a major role in climate diplomacy — or the funding of climate finance goals — in the years ahead. A woman inside a building that was damaged by an Israeli strike in Beirut, the Lebanese capital, on Saturday. Daniel Berehulak/The New York Times Hezbollah fired about 250 projectiles into Israel Waves of air-raid sirens blared throughout much of Israel yesterday, including neighborhoods in the Tel Aviv area, after the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired about 250 projectiles into the country, the Israeli military said. A day earlier, an Israeli strike in the heart of Beirut, the Lebanese capital, killed at least 29 people, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry, and wounded more than 65 others. Israeli defense officials said the strike had been an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate a top Hezbollah military commander, Mohammad Haidar. A heavy barrage of Israeli airstrikes on the southern outskirts of Beirut continued late yesterday, with fighter jets racing across the skies and deafening explosions ringing out for miles. The Israeli military had earlier issued a series of sweeping evacuation warnings for the area. In the West Bank: Residents say Israeli forces are adopting tactics similar to the ones they have employed in Gaza, including airstrikes and the use of Palestinians as human shields. Related: An Israeli rabbi in the United Arab Emirates who had been missing since Thursday has been found murdered, Israeli and Emirati authorities said. Israeli officials described the death of the rabbi, Zvi Kogan, as an act of terrorism, without providing any further details. Those seeking to curry favor with the incoming Trump administration, including foreign nationals, now have the opportunity to donate to its transition effort without their names or potential conflicts becoming public. Kenny Holston/The New York Times Trump is running his transition team on secret money President-elect Donald Trump is keeping secret the names of the donors who are funding his transition effort — potentially making it impossible to see which interest groups, businesses or wealthy people are helping him jump-start his second term. Trump has so far declined to sign a legally required ethics pledge that, in exchange for up to $7.2 million in federal funds earmarked for the transition, would impose strict limits on fund-raising. By dodging the agreement, Trump can raise unlimited amounts of money from unknown donors to pay for the staff, the travel and the office space involved in preparations to take control of the U.S. government on Jan. 20, 2025. Read more here. In other politics news: Trump has vowed to slash immigration and ramp up deportations on Day 1. Immigrants are racing to get ahead of the crackdown. Trump's eclectic roster of figures to lead federal health agencies is almost complete — and his vision for a sweeping overhaul is coming into focus. Here's the latest on the next U.S. administration and a list of Trump's proposed nominees. MORE TOP NEWS Emilio Morenatti/Associated Press Spain: Last month, torrential rains in Valencia caused flooding and killed more than 200 people. Why did it take the authorities hours to warn those downstream? Papua New Guinea: Tragedies in the country are often followed by a worsening cycle of accusations of sorcery and brutal acts of violence. Pakistan: Clashes between Sunni and Shiite tribes near the border with Afghanistan left at least 25 people dead. Egypt: After a blogger criticized Cairo's airport, the government fired back, threatening legal action. India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party has been accused of using brute force to take over state governments with a tactic known as "resort politics." Australia: A kayaker's leg was amputated in a harrowing 20-hour effort to free him after he became trapped between rocks on a river in Tasmania. Colombia: Explicit lyrics in a recent reggaeton hit have prompted criticism that the music promotes harmful stereotypes about the country. Tourism: Hotels in New York City charged an average of $417 per night in September, the highest monthly rate ever recorded in the city. Slavery: For generations, scholars argued that white women were rarely involved in the active sale of Black people. New research says otherwise. SPORTS NEWS Chess: The world champion could lose his title this week, and it may not even not be close. Formula 1: Max Verstappen won his fourth championship, but 2025 looks wide open. Soccer: The displaced Sudanese team is playing on despite "the worst humanitarian crisis on earth." Tennis: A couple months after retiring, Andy Murray is returning to the sport as Novak Djokovic's new coach. MORNING READ George Steinmetz The photographer George Steinmetz set out to document the globally interconnected nature of the world's food supply, as the overall population nears 10 billion. That assignment became a decade-long obsession across six continents. Steinmetz's new book, "Feed the Planet," features the voluminous results of this quest — some 300 photos, most of them aerial. He brought a New York Times critic along to watch him work. Lives lived: Alice Brock, whose eatery was immortalized in Arlo Guthrie's 1967 antiwar song, "Alice's Restaurant," died last week at 83. CONVERSATION STARTERS Holiday cards: It's time to start planning. Remember these grammar rules. Show home: Artists and curators are tired of cold, white gallery rooms. So they're opening exhibits inside homes. Escaping Boko Haram: Alice Loksha Ngaddah, a nurse and mother of two, was kidnapped by Boko Haram in 2018. To get out, she faked a religious conversion. ARTS AND IDEAS Illustration by Matt Chase; Photographs by Shutterstock Avoiding awkward holiday conversations Ideally, holiday dinners should be restorative and fun. But fights about politics — or simply not knowing what to say — can sometimes make for a tiring experience. This year, Jancee Dunn, who writes The Times's Well newsletter, plans to ask her guests a few questions to spark big conversations: what their love language is, for example, or what the worst advice they've ever received may be. Prepping a few talking points may seem forced, said Alison Wood Brooks, the author of "Talk: The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves." But her research found that just 30 seconds of brainstorming ahead of time improves the flow of conversation. Read more about improving your dinner table conversations. 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: We think you'll love this cozy taco soup. Focus: How to train your mind like a Formula 1 driver. Watch: "Sabbath Queen," a documentary about a rabbi and his drag alter ego, is a Times Critic's Pick. Wear: Our Better Than Basic columnist likes these stylish riding boots. 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. 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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