Just after midnight yesterday, American diplomats were evacuated by helicopter from Khartoum, Sudan’s besieged capital city. That departure then turned into a full-fledged exodus of foreign officials, diplomats and citizens of other nations as the battle raged around them. Sudan, long viewed as strategically important, has been in the grip of intense fighting for over a week.
Some Sudanese, feeling angry and abandoned, lashed out at the Western negotiators they blame for the collapse of political talks that were supposed to lead to civilian rule — but which instead became a flashpoint for the two generals now battling for power. There are concerns that the exit of foreign diplomats might allow an even more brutal turn in the nation’s affairs.
At least 400 people have been killed in the clashes and 3,500 injured, according to the U.N., and two-thirds of Sudan’s major hospitals have closed. As prices soar, food is scarce and likely to become scarcer still; over the weekend, the country’s largest flour mill was destroyed in fighting. Even supplies of cash are running low.
Details: A U.N. convoy snaked its way out of Khartoum, starting a 525-mile drive to Port Sudan on the Red Sea, while British and French diplomats were escorted to an airfield where military cargo planes were waiting. Other groups headed for Qadarif, a small town near the border with Ethiopia, and a boat chartered by Saudi Arabia carried its fleeing diplomats across the Red Sea.
Sudan’s challenges: Many of those still stranded in their homes in Khartoum are without electricity, food or water. The health care system is on the verge of a breakdown, medical workers say.
From Opinion: The violence in Sudan is partly our fault, writes Jacqueline Burns, a former adviser to the U.S. special envoy for Sudan and South Sudan.
Fighting intensifies near Kherson
Russian troops are forcibly relocating people from occupied areas near the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, a Ukrainian official said yesterday, suggesting it could indicate that Moscow’s forces might be preparing to withdraw further from that area ahead of an anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive.
The assertions could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate comment from the Russian authorities. However, at other points in the war, evacuations from Russian-occupied areas have precipitated an eventual pullback of Russian forces in the face of Ukrainian advances. And in Moscow’s view, Kherson is one of several Ukrainian regions that are now legally part of Russia.
Russian forces retreated from Kherson in November and decamped to just across the Dnipro River, from where they have continued to launch attacks on the city.
Context: Citing Russian military bloggers, analysts from the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based research group, said in a report that Ukrainian forces had been attacking Russian troops dug into the riverbanks a mile or so outside Kherson. Residents of the city said that the Ukrainian military had been increasingly active along the river.
In other news from the war:
“I cry quietly”: A Ukrainian soldier describes the war’s toll.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, banned Russian place names and made knowledge of Ukrainian language and history a requirement for citizenship.
Many Russian prisoners are H.I.V. positive. They were promised anti-viral medications if they agreed to fight.
Divisions on Memorial Day in Israel
Today is Memorial Day in Israel, when thousands of families who have lost loved ones to wars and terrorist attacks gather to remember the dead. This year, the commemoration was to have been followed by a jubilant celebration of the 75th anniversary of the country’s founding. But Israel is deeply divided as never before, and what should have been a time of national contemplation and celebration is being overshadowed by protests and political chaos.
The minister overseeing the televised state ceremony for the 75th Independence Day celebration this week plans to air a prerecorded dress rehearsal in the event of a disruption by protesters. Yair Lapid, the leader of the parliamentary opposition, has announced that he will not attend.
Bereaved families have pleaded with politicians to forgo the usual speeches that they deliver on Memorial Day at military cemeteries across the country, with some fearing angry outbursts at a time when Israelis are supposed to unite. And some families are incensed by the fact that Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right minister of national security who was rejected for military service on the grounds that his views were too extreme, is the government representative assigned to speak at their cemetery.
First person: “I’m not speaking for one side or another,” said Sigalit Bezaleli, who has worked as an administrator for decades at Israel’s main military cemetery. “Whoever wants to come and honor us is welcome. The cemeteries are open to all.” But, she added, “I want our politicians to make a gesture and not to speak.”
THE LATEST NEWS
Around the World
Under government pressure, Chinese scientists have retracted studies and withheld or deleted data about the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. Above, the market in Wuhan, China, where the first large cluster of cases was identified.
A rebel group in Myanmar claimed responsibility for the assassination of a high-ranking election official for the military junta on Saturday.
Barlocco Island in Scotland is hard to get to, has zero amenities and costs $186,000. Buyers are lining up.
An Italian ferry immortalized in a Leonardo da Vinci sketch has stopped running because of a drought and an abundance of bureaucracy.
Other Big Stories
The “decarb bros” want to ditch the gloom of earlier environmentalism and focus on what new technology can do.
The Red Cross expressed alarm about the health of aging prisoners at Guantánamo Bay.
Britain’s deputy prime minister, Dominic Raab, resigned on Friday after an investigation found he had bullied subordinates.
From Opinion
We must challenge the misperception that a gun in the home makes people safer, Nicholas Kristof writes.
Eating fewer animals is a good way to slow climate change, even if you don’t go vegan, Peter Singer says.
“Abortion breaks God’s heart!” Damon Winter photographed anti-abortion billboards along Florida’s highways. See the images.
A Morning Read
For centuries, families in the Belgian town of Geel have taken in people with mental illnesses. Since the 1860s, the town has had its own state psychiatric hospital, which is the anchor and the safety net for the program. It is increasingly seen as a humane alternative to the neglect or institutionalization of those with mental illness found in other places.
SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC
Wrexham’s Hollywood promotion: How Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s hands-on approach helped the Welsh soccer team secure promotion in a true Hollywood ending.
Twenty years on from one of the greatest soccer matches ever played: Manchester United and Real Madrid’s epic showdown in 2003 transcended the sport, and helped usher in a new era of financial might and political meddling.
Manchester United must sell players before it can spend: The Premier League club needs cash to rebuild its team. These are the options for its head coach, Erik Ten Hag.
From The Times: Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands won the women’s race in the London Marathon despite having trained during Ramadan, a month of fasting. Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya won the men’s race, posting the second-fastest time on record: 2:01:25.
ARTS AND IDEAS
Looking for darkness in the outback
Last week, I traveled to the huge and empty state of Western Australia to report on a total solar eclipse that was visible from only four places on land — including a tiny, remote town that welcomed some 20,000 astronomy enthusiasts.
A few days before the eclipse, my colleague and I drove a little way into the outback to go looking for stars in Western Australia’s pristine dark sky.
Most people live with some level of light pollution. A third of the Earth’s population cannot easily see the Milky Way, the galaxy in which we live, and for most residents of the E.U. and the U.S., what scientists know as “night” never really comes. But you don’t have to travel far in Western Australia to see your place in the universe.
After driving for 20 minutes in our rented pickup truck, we stopped at a scrubby patch of ground off the main highway. As my eyes adjusted to the dark, the Milky Way came gradually into view and more and more stars slid into sight. The three studs of Orion’s Belt sparkled like jewels. The Southern Cross reminded me where we were, down at the bottom of the Earth.
And then, out of nowhere, a shooting star.
PLAY, WATCH, EAT
What to Cook
Make kale and walnut pasta with pantry staples.
Ask Well
Why do some people develop seasonal allergies in adulthood?
What to Read
In “The Best Minds,” Jonathan Rosen explores the life of his brilliant, complicated friend and the health care system that failed him.
Now Time to Play
Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Grated lemon peel (four letters).
And here are today’s Wordle and the Spelling Bee.
You can find all our puzzles here.
That’s it for today’s briefing — it’s great to be back. Thanks for joining me. — Natasha
P.S. My colleague Kim Seversonappeared on the podcast “Marketplace” to discuss her reporting on how Gen Z is saying no to milk.
The latest episode of “The Daily” is on classified documents leaked by a Massachusetts airman. Or, listen to the story of an Italian town where people pelt one another with oranges.
We and our partners use cookies on this site to improve our service, perform analytics, personalize advertising, measure advertising performance, and remember website preferences.Ok
Home » Analysis & Comment » Your Monday Briefing
Your Monday Briefing
An exodus from Sudan
Just after midnight yesterday, American diplomats were evacuated by helicopter from Khartoum, Sudan’s besieged capital city. That departure then turned into a full-fledged exodus of foreign officials, diplomats and citizens of other nations as the battle raged around them. Sudan, long viewed as strategically important, has been in the grip of intense fighting for over a week.
Some Sudanese, feeling angry and abandoned, lashed out at the Western negotiators they blame for the collapse of political talks that were supposed to lead to civilian rule — but which instead became a flashpoint for the two generals now battling for power. There are concerns that the exit of foreign diplomats might allow an even more brutal turn in the nation’s affairs.
At least 400 people have been killed in the clashes and 3,500 injured, according to the U.N., and two-thirds of Sudan’s major hospitals have closed. As prices soar, food is scarce and likely to become scarcer still; over the weekend, the country’s largest flour mill was destroyed in fighting. Even supplies of cash are running low.
Details: A U.N. convoy snaked its way out of Khartoum, starting a 525-mile drive to Port Sudan on the Red Sea, while British and French diplomats were escorted to an airfield where military cargo planes were waiting. Other groups headed for Qadarif, a small town near the border with Ethiopia, and a boat chartered by Saudi Arabia carried its fleeing diplomats across the Red Sea.
Sudan’s challenges: Many of those still stranded in their homes in Khartoum are without electricity, food or water. The health care system is on the verge of a breakdown, medical workers say.
From Opinion: The violence in Sudan is partly our fault, writes Jacqueline Burns, a former adviser to the U.S. special envoy for Sudan and South Sudan.
Fighting intensifies near Kherson
Russian troops are forcibly relocating people from occupied areas near the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, a Ukrainian official said yesterday, suggesting it could indicate that Moscow’s forces might be preparing to withdraw further from that area ahead of an anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive.
The assertions could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate comment from the Russian authorities. However, at other points in the war, evacuations from Russian-occupied areas have precipitated an eventual pullback of Russian forces in the face of Ukrainian advances. And in Moscow’s view, Kherson is one of several Ukrainian regions that are now legally part of Russia.
Russian forces retreated from Kherson in November and decamped to just across the Dnipro River, from where they have continued to launch attacks on the city.
Context: Citing Russian military bloggers, analysts from the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based research group, said in a report that Ukrainian forces had been attacking Russian troops dug into the riverbanks a mile or so outside Kherson. Residents of the city said that the Ukrainian military had been increasingly active along the river.
In other news from the war:
“I cry quietly”: A Ukrainian soldier describes the war’s toll.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, banned Russian place names and made knowledge of Ukrainian language and history a requirement for citizenship.
Many Russian prisoners are H.I.V. positive. They were promised anti-viral medications if they agreed to fight.
Divisions on Memorial Day in Israel
Today is Memorial Day in Israel, when thousands of families who have lost loved ones to wars and terrorist attacks gather to remember the dead. This year, the commemoration was to have been followed by a jubilant celebration of the 75th anniversary of the country’s founding. But Israel is deeply divided as never before, and what should have been a time of national contemplation and celebration is being overshadowed by protests and political chaos.
The minister overseeing the televised state ceremony for the 75th Independence Day celebration this week plans to air a prerecorded dress rehearsal in the event of a disruption by protesters. Yair Lapid, the leader of the parliamentary opposition, has announced that he will not attend.
Bereaved families have pleaded with politicians to forgo the usual speeches that they deliver on Memorial Day at military cemeteries across the country, with some fearing angry outbursts at a time when Israelis are supposed to unite. And some families are incensed by the fact that Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right minister of national security who was rejected for military service on the grounds that his views were too extreme, is the government representative assigned to speak at their cemetery.
First person: “I’m not speaking for one side or another,” said Sigalit Bezaleli, who has worked as an administrator for decades at Israel’s main military cemetery. “Whoever wants to come and honor us is welcome. The cemeteries are open to all.” But, she added, “I want our politicians to make a gesture and not to speak.”
THE LATEST NEWS
Around the World
Under government pressure, Chinese scientists have retracted studies and withheld or deleted data about the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. Above, the market in Wuhan, China, where the first large cluster of cases was identified.
A rebel group in Myanmar claimed responsibility for the assassination of a high-ranking election official for the military junta on Saturday.
Barlocco Island in Scotland is hard to get to, has zero amenities and costs $186,000. Buyers are lining up.
An Italian ferry immortalized in a Leonardo da Vinci sketch has stopped running because of a drought and an abundance of bureaucracy.
Other Big Stories
The “decarb bros” want to ditch the gloom of earlier environmentalism and focus on what new technology can do.
The Red Cross expressed alarm about the health of aging prisoners at Guantánamo Bay.
Britain’s deputy prime minister, Dominic Raab, resigned on Friday after an investigation found he had bullied subordinates.
From Opinion
We must challenge the misperception that a gun in the home makes people safer, Nicholas Kristof writes.
Eating fewer animals is a good way to slow climate change, even if you don’t go vegan, Peter Singer says.
“Abortion breaks God’s heart!” Damon Winter photographed anti-abortion billboards along Florida’s highways. See the images.
A Morning Read
For centuries, families in the Belgian town of Geel have taken in people with mental illnesses. Since the 1860s, the town has had its own state psychiatric hospital, which is the anchor and the safety net for the program. It is increasingly seen as a humane alternative to the neglect or institutionalization of those with mental illness found in other places.
SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC
Wrexham’s Hollywood promotion: How Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s hands-on approach helped the Welsh soccer team secure promotion in a true Hollywood ending.
Twenty years on from one of the greatest soccer matches ever played: Manchester United and Real Madrid’s epic showdown in 2003 transcended the sport, and helped usher in a new era of financial might and political meddling.
Manchester United must sell players before it can spend: The Premier League club needs cash to rebuild its team. These are the options for its head coach, Erik Ten Hag.
From The Times: Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands won the women’s race in the London Marathon despite having trained during Ramadan, a month of fasting. Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya won the men’s race, posting the second-fastest time on record: 2:01:25.
ARTS AND IDEAS
Looking for darkness in the outback
Last week, I traveled to the huge and empty state of Western Australia to report on a total solar eclipse that was visible from only four places on land — including a tiny, remote town that welcomed some 20,000 astronomy enthusiasts.
A few days before the eclipse, my colleague and I drove a little way into the outback to go looking for stars in Western Australia’s pristine dark sky.
Most people live with some level of light pollution. A third of the Earth’s population cannot easily see the Milky Way, the galaxy in which we live, and for most residents of the E.U. and the U.S., what scientists know as “night” never really comes. But you don’t have to travel far in Western Australia to see your place in the universe.
After driving for 20 minutes in our rented pickup truck, we stopped at a scrubby patch of ground off the main highway. As my eyes adjusted to the dark, the Milky Way came gradually into view and more and more stars slid into sight. The three studs of Orion’s Belt sparkled like jewels. The Southern Cross reminded me where we were, down at the bottom of the Earth.
And then, out of nowhere, a shooting star.
PLAY, WATCH, EAT
What to Cook
Make kale and walnut pasta with pantry staples.
Ask Well
Why do some people develop seasonal allergies in adulthood?
What to Read
In “The Best Minds,” Jonathan Rosen explores the life of his brilliant, complicated friend and the health care system that failed him.
Now Time to Play
Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Grated lemon peel (four letters).
And here are today’s Wordle and the Spelling Bee.
You can find all our puzzles here.
That’s it for today’s briefing — it’s great to be back. Thanks for joining me. — Natasha
P.S. My colleague Kim Severson appeared on the podcast “Marketplace” to discuss her reporting on how Gen Z is saying no to milk.
The latest episode of “The Daily” is on classified documents leaked by a Massachusetts airman. Or, listen to the story of an Italian town where people pelt one another with oranges.
You can reach Natasha and the team at [email protected].
Source: Read Full Article