Good morning. We're covering Germany's election and the latest from the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Plus: The scam that tore a town apart.
Germany prepares to vote, as a Trump-E.U. rift growsGermans will head to the polls on Sunday to choose their next chancellor. The man favored to clinch the election is Friedrich Merz of the Christian Democrats. Polling second is the far-right party Alternative for Germany, or AfD, which has been linked to neo-Nazis and to plots to overthrow the state. Merz has been considered a potentially better match for President Trump than the current Social Democratic chancellor, Olaf Scholz, not least for his reputation for bluntness at a moment when Europe's security environment is rapidly changing. To get a sense of what's at stake, I spoke with Jim Tankersley, our Berlin bureau chief. What are the big issues galvanizing voters? The first is the economy. Germany is in a crisis of stagnant growth and declining competitiveness. Its famed industries, like auto manufacturing, are slumping. Voters are frustrated and appear likely to evict the current chancellor, Olaf Scholz, over it. The second big issue is immigration. Germany has welcomed millions of refugees over the last decade. They have adapted relatively well, but their presence has unsettled many native-born Germans. The dissatisfaction has grown after a series of seemingly unrelated attacks committed by immigrants over the last year. How might the actions of the Trump administration affect the election? Germans generally don't like the American president, but until last weekend his actions didn't seem to be motivating many voters. That might have changed after Trump essentially cut Europe — including Ukraine — out of negotiations with Russia over an end to the war in Ukraine. What impact could the AfD have on the outcome of the vote? The party has gained popularity based on an unrelenting promise to stop migration at Germany's borders and deport some immigrants already in the country. Parts of it are formally classified as extreme by German intelligence, and some of its members have been arrested in plotting to overthrow the government or fined for repeating banned Nazi slogans. It is currently polling in second place. With a late push, it could potentially challenge Merz's Christian Democrats for first.
A troubling development after a hostage handoverHamas handed over yesterday what it said were the remains of four Israelis abducted during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Among them were Shiri Bibas and her two young children, Ariel and Kfir, the militant group said. Early this morning, however, the Israeli military said that genetic testing had revealed that the body that was purported to be Shiri Bibas's was not, and that it, in fact, wasn't that of any hostage. This was a "violation of the utmost severity" of the ongoing cease-fire, a military spokesperson said. The claim has thrown the truce's next steps into doubt, even as Hamas is expected tomorrow to free the last six living hostages covered in the first phase of the cease-fire, in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners. 'Abhorrent and cruel': In the handover, four coffins were placed on a stage in front of a cartoonish picture of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, as triumphant music played. A poster threatened that if Israel resumed the war, more hostages would return in coffins. Tel Aviv: Three buses exploded in parking lots last night, raising suspicions of a coordinated terrorist attack. Netanyahu's office said that he had instructed the military to carry out "a massive operation" in the West Bank targeting militant hubs. Saudi Arabia: The kingdom is hosting U.S., Russian and Arab officials for high-stakes talks on Ukraine and Gaza, more proof of its regional clout and warm relations with President Trump.
Deciphering Trump's comments on UkraineEuropean leaders are struggling to make sense of a seemingly dramatic reset of the relationship between Washington and Moscow. President Trump has been echoing talking points made by President Vladimir Putin of Russia, falsely accusing Ukraine of having provoked Russia's invasion and casting Russia as the aggrieved party rather than the aggressor. And while Trump may not quit NATO outright, he is already undercutting it. Yet behind closed doors, Marco Rubio, the U.S. secretary of state, has sought to reassure nervous European allies that talks with Russian negotiators this week did not represent an abrupt departure from U.S. policies as many feared. They were instead meant as a first step in a process of making a deal, he told European diplomats on a recent call. In Ukraine, citizens still reeling from the war have been perturbed by Trump's comments. In Bucha, a Ukrainian suburb that was the site of a notorious massacre, residents worried that they had been abandoned. "If America leaves us," one said, "we are screwed." From the war: A senior Ukrainian intelligence official confirmed a plot to blow up drone goggles that was inspired by what Israeli intelligence had pulled off with exploding wireless devices and Hezbollah militants. It was unclear how much effect the scheme had on Russian forces.
On China
A successful banker. The disappearance of tens of millions of dollars. And a cryptocurrency scam that turned a small town in Kansas against itself. Later, as his friends and colleagues sorted through the wreckage, the banker would be called a thief, a liar and "pure evil." His lawyer put it differently: "He was the pig that was butchered." Lives lived: Souleymane Cissé, a Malian writer and director who became the first Black African filmmaker to win the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, died this week at 84.
When a digital maze feels like homeMetroidvanias — video games known for their labyrinthine environments that become more accessible with upgrades — have been delighting (and confounding) players since their creation in the 1980s. The name for this subgenre is a mash-up of the titles of the games Metroid and Castelevania, which earned devoted fan bases in the mid-'80s for the freedom they gave players to explore their arcane worlds. Much of the appeal of Metroidvanias stems from a foundational emotion: feeling lost, until even a lonely labyrinth starts to feel like home. We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times.
Cook: A reader calls this one-pot roasted chicken and rice "a joy to cook and delicious to eat." Train: Are long, slow workouts the key to longevity and better health? Watch: "Best Interests" is a deeply empathetic British TV series. Dress: Be inspired by street style from around the world. 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. Have a great weekend. — Natasha Reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com.
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Altin Dumani raporton punën e SPAK-ut: Kemi 33 zyrtarë të lartë nën hetim,
19 prej tyre janë dërguar në gjykatë
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Kreu i SPA Altin Dumani po raporton në lidhje me punën e Prokurorisë së
Posaçme në KLP. Të pranishëm gjate raportimit eshte përfaqësues të OPDAT
dhe përf...
Hace 16 horas
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