The negotiators arrived in Cairo after Israeli tanks entered Rafah.
Yesterday Israel sent tanks to Rafah and took control of the border crossing with Egypt, stopping the flow of aid. Delegations from Israel and Hamas also arrived in Cairo to resume talks on a proposed ceasefire agreement.
Here’s the latest.
Israel’s operation did not appear to be the long-threatened all-out ground invasion. The Israeli army called it a “very precise” anti-terrorist operation. He said he had entered the city to destroy Hamas infrastructure used in an attack that killed four Israeli soldiers over the weekend near another border crossing, this one from Israel to Gaza.
The director of a Rafah hospital said 27 bodies and 150 wounded had been brought to his facility since the start of the raid.
The so-called Rafah safe zone: The area that Israel has designated as a safe zone for Gazans fleeing the city is neither safe nor equipped to receive them, European and UN officials said yesterday. The head of the Norwegian Refugee Council said in a statement that the area was “already overstretched and lacking vital services.”
Updates on ceasefire talks: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is under pressure from the United States and other allies to agree to a ceasefire, said that while he had sent a delegation back to talks, “together, we continue to wage war against Hamas.”
Stormy Daniels testified
Stormy Daniels, a porn star who received $130,000 for remaining silent about her story of having sex with Donald Trump, testified yesterday at her trial in Manhattan. She spoke in excruciating detail about an encounter that, she said, left her shaken and bewildered, and the cash payment that bought her silence.
His account and the subsequent payment, which he received in 2016 from Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, are at the center of the case. Trump is accused of falsifying business records to cover up the payment. He has pleaded not guilty and has denied that the sexual encounter ever occurred.
When prosecutors were done with Daniels, the defense’s cross-examination was immediately combative. A Trump lawyer attempted to portray Daniels as a liar driven by greed. He is expected to return to the stand tomorrow.
Daniels’ often explicit testimony led Trump’s lawyers to request a mistrial. The judge denied his request.
Daniels’ story: She described in great detail a 2006 evening with Trump that began with a dinner invitation and progressed to sex. That night, she said, Trump appeared on “The Apprentice” in front of her and told her not to worry about the fact that he was married.
From inside the courthouse: “Her mockery of Trump is very clear, and the tension in the courtroom during her testimony about him is the highest it has been in this trial so far,” my colleague Jonah Bromwich reported.
Ukraine said it foiled assassination plot
Ukraine’s security services said yesterday they had stopped a Russian plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelensky and other senior military and political figures. Two Ukrainian colonels accused of participating in the plot have been detained on suspicion of treason.
Ukrainian intelligence said in a statement that the plot had involved a network of Russian intelligence agents, including the two colonels. They were tasked with identifying people close to Zelensky’s security team who could take him hostage and then kill him.
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A recap of the Met Gala
On Monday night, celebrities strutted their stuff at the Met Gala, known as the fashion party of the year. The event attracted about 400 people and raised about $26 million for the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, millions more than other major New York City galas bring in.
Zendaya appeared on the red carpet in two different dresses. Cardi B needed eight ushers to fix her voluminous skirt. Gigi Hadid said her dress had 2.8 million beads.
“It’s the most condensed moment where we get to see public figures dress up in the most extravagant, peacock-like outfits for the whole world to see,” said Vanessa Friedman, our fashion critic.
See more unforgettable looks and cocktail hour photos.