
Outrage Grows Over Starvation in Gaza, and a Mysterious Pentagon Budget Line
Produced by Will Jarvis and Ian Stewart
Edited by Ian StewartJessica Metzger and Tracy Mumford
Featuring Jeanna Smialek and Vivian Wang
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say, by Natan Odenheimer
Israel Says It Has Paused Some Military Activity in Gaza as Anger Grows Over Hunger, by Aaron Boxerman
News Organizations Urge Israel to Let Reporters and Aid Into Gaza, by Ephrat Livni
U.S. Reaches Preliminary Trade Deal With Europe, by Ana Swanson, Jeanna Smialek and Melissa Eddy
What Will It Cost to Renovate the 'Free' Air Force One? Don't Ask, by David E. Sanger and Eric Schmitt
Avian Flu Wiped Out Poultry. Now the Screwworm Is Coming for Beef, by Pooja Salhotra
Tear It Down, They Said. He Just Kept Building, by Vivian Wang
Tune in, and tell us what you think at theheadlines@nytimes.com. For corrections, email nytnews@nytimes.com.
For more audio journalism and storytelling, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter.
Special thanks to Pooja Salhotra.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


New York Post
3 minutes ago
- New York Post
Netanyahu believes occupying Gaza is the only way to save the hostages – but it will also start bloodiest phase of the war yet, experts warn
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is preparing to call for the full military occupation of the Gaza Strip to fight Hamas and free the hostages, according to multiple reports – but it could kick off the bloodiest phase of the war yet for the Jewish state. Netanyahu has long maintained that military might is the best way to finish off Hamas and rescue the remaining 50 hostages in Gaza, and the proposal calls for deploying Israel Defense Forces troops on the ground across the entire Palestinian territory, according to Israeli media. 'This puts the IDF under new risks, with the soldiers having to deal with regular ambushes, improvised explosions and sniper fire from an insurgency,' Colin Clarke, a counter-terrorism expert at the New York-based Soufan Group, told The Post. 'This operation could also lay the groundwork for the next version of Hamas.' 8 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly pushing for a full military occupation of the Gaza Strip. AFP via Getty Images The Israeli government has confirmed about 450 deaths of IDF soldiers in 18 months of the Gaza ground war. Israel already occupies about 75% of the Strip, with Gaza's nearly two million people huddled in the crowded pockets along the western shore. Any full-scale occupation of Gaza, would likely see troops go into Deir al-Balah, which currently stands as the only major city that has yet to see major ground operations. The families of the 20 living hostages have said it's likely their loved ones are being held there — and they worry any military action would put them in grave danger. 8 Netanyahu maintains that military force stands as the best way to save the hostages and accomplish his goal of fully eliminating Hamas. AFP via Getty Images Hamas has reportedly ordered its terrorists to execute their captives if Israeli soldiers are spotted nearby. Reports began emerging on Monday evening that Netanyahu was ready to greenlight the full occupation of Gaza, with one senior official telling Israeli outlets that 'the die has been cast.' The move to occupy Gaza came after Hamas published a pair of videos last week showing off the emaciated bodies of two Israeli hostages, with one digging his own grave and the other weeping as he begged for food and water. 8 The fighting would likely be the bloodiest of the war so far inside the already war-torn enclave, experts warned. AFP via Getty Images 8 Israeli soldiers would face regular attacks from insurgent groups inside Gaza if they were to be stationed there as an occupying force. AFP via Getty Images Christopher O'Leary, a former senior FBI official who led many hostage recovery teams, said that while Hamas likely published the propaganda videos in hopes of pressuring Netanyahu to re-engage in the cease-fire talks, they likely had the opposite effect. 'It showed off the brutality of Hamas to the world and gave Netanyahu the justification he needed to launch a full occupation of Gaza,' O'Leary said. The logistics of occupying Gaza, however, are being questioned by at least 19 former Israeli military, intelligence and security chiefs, who publicly warned of unnecessary bloodshed earlier this week. 8 The call to occupy Gaza came after Hamas published video of emaciated hostages, including 24-year-old Evyatar David. Al-Qassam Brigade Footage 8 The terror groups in Gaza also published video of Rom Braslavski begging for food and water. Mona Yacoubian, the director and senior adviser of the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said the plan would put too much strain on the IDF, which likely doesn't 'have the bandwidth or ability to maintain the occupation.' 'We've already seen soldiers suffer from fatigue, death, PTSD, and suicide through the course of the war,' she said. 'Israel also has to contend with its other conflicts in Syria, Lebanon, against the Houthis in Yemen and, of course, Iran.' Yacoubian, Clarke, and O'Leary also warned that an occupation would see insurgency rise in Gaza and more guerilla attacks on the soldiers stationed in the enclave. 8 About 70% of all buildings in Gaza have been destroyed by the war, with the fighting threatening the few areas that have been spared. AFP via Getty Images 'If occupation becomes the norm, in a place with widespread destruction and hunger, we'll see insurgents rise up and strike back,' said O'Leary, who has also served on the Counterterrorism Division of the FBI. 'It also risks Hamas regaining popular support and legitimacy from the people to defend them from the occupation force,' he added. Yacoubian warned that the IDF won't just have Hamas to contend with, as armed gangs from other factions would likely also rise to power to fight Israel. 'This could birth groups more radical than Hamas,' she said. 'This is a recipe for Israel to become embroiled in a forever war in Gaza.' 8 Experts fear occupation may lead Hamas to regain popularity among the masses as the opposition to Israel. AFP via Getty Images Critics have claimed that Netanyahu is pushing for a full occupation out of necessity to appease members of his right-wing coalition to keep his government from dissolving. Members of Netanyahu's cabinet, like National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, have demanded Israel take Gaza and prioritize the destruction of Hamas over diplomatic means to rescue the hostages. Yoram Cohen, a former director of Israel's Shin Bet intelligence agency, ultimately accused the prime minister on Sunday of echoing his cabinet member's 'fantasy' of eradicating Hamas. Clarke said that there is no clear path to fully eliminate Hamas, as evident by Israel's claim earlier this year that it killed 70% of the terror group's armed forces, only for the militants to repeatedly rebuild their numbers. Clarke warned that without stated logistical goals that go beyond 'the elimination of Hamas,' Israel could find itself marred in a years-long occupation effort that fails to complete its mission, like what happened in southern Lebanon for 18 years back in 1982. 'I'm not saying Israel will be stuck in Gaza for the next 18 years, but they might be,' he said.


Time Magazine
4 minutes ago
- Time Magazine
New Epstein Documents Reveal Details About His Life
Previously unseen letters to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, along with photographs from inside his seven-story Manhattan mansion, were published by the New York Times on Tuesday. The tranche of pictures and letters from well-known artists and politicians offers a glimpse into the New York financier's life and relationships in the years leading up to his arrest for sex trafficking in 2019. They include messages for his 63rd birthday in 2016 from director Woody Allen, former prime minister of Israel Ehud Barak, real estate billionaire Mortimer Zuckerman, along with linguist and political activist Noam Chomsky. 'Being neighbors, my wife Soon-Yi and I have been invited for dinner many times. Always accept, always interesting. Wide variety of interesting people at every dinner just about Politicians, scientists, teachers, magicians, comedians, intellectuals, journalists…' Allen's letter reportedly says. He then likens the dinners to those at the castle to the 1931 movie adaptation of Dracula Dracula, where 'where Lugosi has three young female vampires who service the place.' Read More: A Timeline of Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein's Relationship as It Draws Renewed Attention Another letter from Barak and his wife reportedly describes Epstein as a 'collector of people.' The Times did not publish a scan of this letter as it did with Allen's, but reports that it concludes with a refrain that Epstein's friends may "enjoy your table for many more years to come.' TIME attempted to reach Barak, Chomsky, Zuckerman, and Allen for comment. The New York Times also published photographs from inside Epstein's mansion showing him with powerful global and financial figures Pope John Paul II, Mick Jagger, Elon Musk, Bill Clinton and Fidel Castro. They photograph a framed dollar bill signed by billionaire Bill Gates, with the caption 'I was wrong!' written on it. Also framed is the now-infamous photo of Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Epstein and Maxwell, taken in 2000, but with Maxwell not in frame. Epstein's relationship with the rich and powerful has been the subject of intense speculation in the years since his arrest and death by suicide in 2019. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Trump had sent his own letter to Epstein in a book for his 50th birthday in 2003—long before his crimes became public knowledge. Trump has denied writing the letter and accompanying 'bawdy' drawing that the Journal reports is in the book, and the President sued the newspaper's parent firms Dow Jones and News Corp, its owner Rupert Murdoch, and two reporters over the report. The President has sought to play down his connection to Epstein over the years. He has said consistently that he broke off his friendship long before any allegations of his crimes came to light. He recently gave more details about the split when he said he fell out with the financier after Epstein 'stole' Virginia Giuffre, who later became a victim of Epstein, from the President's spa at Mar-a-Lago in Florida, where she worked as a 16-year-old in 2000. The Trump Administration has faced criticism for its refusal to release the so-called 'Epstein files,' after many within Trump's inner circle claimed for years that their contents would expose serious crimes by powerful people. The case has consumed both Republicans and Democrats as both parties search for answers. On Tuesday, the House Oversight Committee, led by Republicans, subpoenaed the Justice Department on files related to Epstein, calling for the DOJ to turn over all investigative materials related to his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell's sex trafficking operation. Just last week, Maxwell was quietly moved to a minimum-security prison in Texas, soon after she met with the DOJ's Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, prompting anger from Democrats.


Fox News
4 minutes ago
- Fox News
All-Star Panel: A Major Turning Point in Gaza
On Tuesday, Israel allowed foreign journalists into the Gaza strip for the first time since the conflict began in late 2023, following growing international scrutiny over claims of starvation in the region. Meanwhile, Texan redistricting efforts risk sparking a nationwide gerrymandering battle as California Governor Gavin Newsom threatens to redraw his state's district maps in retaliation. Republican Strategist Colin Reed, former State Department Spokesperson Marie Harf, and FOX Radio Washington Correspondent Jared Halpern discuss the latest updates on the Israel and Hamas conflict, whether an occupation would work strategically, and what the fallout of Texas's redistricting plan might look like. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit