Good evening. Here's the latest at the end of Thursday.
National Guard tapped for migrant crackdownThe Department of Homeland Security has requested more than 20,000 National Guard members to help with a push to meet President Trump's goals on immigration. If the request is approved, it will be the first time National Guard troops are used to help enforce an immigration crackdown in the U.S. The troops would add to a broader effort that, in the past four months, has sent thousands of active-duty combat troops and armored Stryker combat vehicles to the southwestern border — as well as U-2 spy planes, surveillance drones and two Navy warships. The Pentagon said that the mission had cost $525 million so far. The military buildup appears to have deterred cartels. Intelligence officials said that human traffickers were now charging migrants about $20,000 per person, up from $7,000 a year ago. The leader of the U.S. Northern Command recently told Congress that the border mission would probably be "measured in years, not months." But the government's wider crackdown on immigration faced a challenge in the courts today. The Supreme Court held arguments in a case related to Trump's move to end birthright citizenship for children born in the U.S. to undocumented migrants. While the case focused on the power of judges to block policies, several justices seemed troubled by the legality and the consequences of Trump's executive order.
Israel is razing RafahLast year, a million Palestinians fled to Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza, to escape the brunt of Israel's bombardment in the war against Hamas. When Israel invaded the area, most of it was spared. That is no longer the case: Israel's military has destroyed extensive parts of Rafah since the cease-fire ended in March. Satellite imagery and videos analyzed by The Times showed buildings being destroyed with controlled demolitions and excavators. New military installations have gone up. "We will replicate the model implemented in Rafah in other areas of the Strip as well," an Israeli military spokesperson said. Related: Israeli military strikes killed dozens across Gaza today, the Gaza health ministry said.
Russia-Ukraine peace talks descended into confusionUkrainian and Russian delegations arrived in Turkey for what were supposed to be the first peace talks in three years. But Moscow sent a midlevel delegation without President Vladimir Putin to Istanbul, where the Russians wanted talks to be held, while President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine went to Ankara, where he slammed the Kremlin for its "disrespect." Zelensky said that he would send a pared-down delegation to Istanbul. But overshadowing it all was Trump, who told reporters on Air Force One that "nothing's going to happen until Putin and I get together." Trump had said that he would travel to Turkey "if something happened," but there was no other indication that a last-minute summit would materialize.
The first personalized gene-editing treatment healed a babyWhen KJ was only a week old, doctors diagnosed him with a genetic disorder called CPS1 deficiency, which affects just one in 1.3 million babies. If he survived, his parents were told, he would have severe mental and developmental delays. Doctors had as few as six months before the risks mounted. Dozens of researchers put all else aside to compress the yearslong process of developing a gene editor meant to fix one mutation — one incorrect letter among the three billion in the human genome. The method they developed has KJ, now 9½ months old, on track to go home — and it could be used for other conditions, both rare and common. More top news
Amy Sherald's "superfine" AmericaThe painter Amy Sherald is best known for her 2018 portrait of Michelle Obama, but it's an anomaly within her oeuvre, which bestows its recognition on people you would not recognize: the girl next door, a boy on a slide, a farmer on his tractor. A new retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art, set to move to the National Portrait Gallery in September, makes clear that she's an American realist, reminiscent of Norman Rockwell. She has called herself an "escapist," and she records ordinary people and pleasures in her work — especially the pleasures of a clean, colorful outfit.
How much does it cost to see Beyoncé?A lot of fans moved fast to get tickets to see Beyoncé's on her Cowboy Carter Tour. They waited in a presale line, watched prices fluctuate wildly in real time, and paid around $1,000 for a seat. And then prices dropped: an $800 ticket went for $200, a $1,300 seat for $800. Complaints piled up, and fans blamed "dynamic pricing," face values that change according to demand. Which there may have been less of: StubHub and the ticket seller SeatGeek both said average ticket prices for the Cowboy Carter Tour are down from the Renaissance World Tour. Dinner table topics
Cook: These easy chicken tacos can be ready in about half an hour. Watch: "Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning" is enjoyably unhinged. Read: Benoît Gallot is the "curator" of one of the world's most famous cemeteries. He's also an Instagram star and, now, an author. Imbibe: The viral drink of the summer is jalapeño slices in a glass of "sauvy b." Clean: Have you been putting off these chores? Travel: Spend a good 36 hours in Rome. Protect: These tips will help your hearing as you get older. Listen: On his new album, "Golliwog," the underground rapper Billy Woods is scary good. Play: Today's Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. For more, find all our games here.
The return of DoomWithin every game known as a "first-person shooter," there is a little bit of Doom. The 1993 game about a space marine slaying endless swarms of demons started a brand known for ultraviolence and ushered in a generation of successors. More than three decades later, the arrival of Doom: The Dark Ages effectively reinvents the franchise with a revamped movement system. In the original, players couldn't look up or jump. Now, the protagonist, Doom Slayer, can fly dragons through a medieval gothic world with deepened lore — but the same old sense of raw power. Have a fearless evening. Thanks for reading. Matthew will be back tomorrow. — Whet Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at evening@nytimes.com.
|
