Good morning.
Israel has rejected a US-French proposal for a 21-day truce with Hezbollah to allow for comprehensive talks, after three days of Israeli bombing that killed more than 600 people in Lebanon.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s office ruled it out, saying: “The news about a ceasefire – not true. This is an American-French proposal, to which the prime minister did not even respond.”
It came after the UN secretary general, António Guterres, warned “hell is breaking loose” in Lebanon and Israel’s top general said it was preparing for a possible ground incursion into the country, intensifying fears of a regional war.
The joint statement by the US president, Joe Biden, and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, who met at the UN general assembly in New York, said: “It is time for a settlement on the Israel-Lebanon border that ensures safety and security to enable civilians to return to their homes. The exchange of fire since October 7th, and in particular over the past two weeks, threatens a much broader conflict, and harm to civilians.”
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Why does the US not call for an immediate ceasefire? US diplomats suggested it could be seen as accepting a moral equivalence between the two sides’ behavior, and the US categorizes Hezbollah as a terrorist group.
Eric Adams, New York City mayor, reportedly indicted after corruption inquiry
New York City’s mayor, Eric Adams, has vowed to stay in office despite reports that he has been indicted after a federal corruption investigation.
Federal prosecutors are expected to publish the details of the charges faced by Adams, 64, on Thursday, according to the New York Times. This would make him the first sitting New York City mayor to be criminally charged.
After the news broke, Adams released in a video statement protesting his innocence. “I always knew that if I stood my ground for New Yorkers that I would be a target – and a target I became,” Adams said. “If I am charged, I am innocent and I will fight this with every ounce of my strength and spirit.”
Kamala Harris gave her first solo interview as the Democratic presidential nominee on Wednesday, presenting herself as trustworthy on the economy and condemning Donald Trump’s comments on abortion.
During the interview with MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle, Harris presented Trump as a candidate who favored the rich over America’s working and middle classes. She also referred to her time working at McDonald’s – something Trump has tried to claim is untrue.
She said the US economy would be in safer hands with her than with Trump. “The top economists in our country have compared our plans and say mine would grow the economy, [and] his would shrink it,” the Democratic candidate said.
Harris also blasted Trump over his remarks on abortion. “Donald Trump is also the person who said women should be punished for exercising a decision that they, rightly, should be able to make about their own body and future,” she said.
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How come it is her first solo interview? Harris has been criticized for avoiding press scrutiny. Axios reported this month that the Harris-Walz campaign had so far given fewer interviews than any other candidates in modern times.
In other news …
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Vladimir Putin has stepped up his threats of nuclear war, saying Russia would consider using nuclear weapons if attacked by any state with conventional arms.
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Mexico’s president-elect has not invited Spain’s King Felipe to her inauguration over of his refusal to apologize for crimes committed against Mexico’s Indigenous people in the 16th century.
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Rwandan forces and M23 rebels have fired artillery and rockets into refugee camps in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo several times this year, Human Rights Watch has said in a report that also accused the DRC’s armed forces of endangering the camps’ residents.
Stat of the day: Women whose periods stop early have higher risk of developing severe autoimmune conditions
Women whose periods stop before the age of 40 face an increased risk of severe autoimmune diseases, according to research. The study found that women with premature ovarian insufficiency are two to three times as likely as the general population to develop severe autoimmune conditions, such as type 1 diabetes, an overactive thyroid, lupus and inflammatory bowel disease.
Don’t miss this: ‘People feel ignored’: photographer Gregory Halpern on hardship and hope in the US rust belt
The photographer Gregory Halpern spent 20 years photographing his home city of Buffalo, documenting its hardships, obstacles and beauty. Searching for the evasive essence of “home” in his work, he speaks to the Guardian about de-industrialisation, how people in rust belt cities such as Buffalo feel ignored, and photographing a deer that is a local celebrity.
Climate check: Is the ocean becoming too acidic to sustain life?
The ocean is approaching a critical threshold as its waters grow more acidic owing to the absorption of CO2. The phenomenon makes the ocean less efficient in acting as a carbon sink, while also harming marine life, with the potential of causing the collapse of food chains. In this podcast, Ian Sample speaks to the biological oceanographer Prof Helen Findlay about how this happened – and what we can do.
Last Thing: The other British invasion – how UK lingo conquered the US
When Ben Yagoda was working in London in the 1990s, he had a keen ear for Britishisms. But then a weird thing started to happen: back in the US, he started hearing people beginning to use these same terms. British people complaining about the creep of “Americanisms” is a tale as old as time but really it is a two way street. “Run-up”, “gutted”, and even “clever” are all words that have traveled across the Atlantic Ocean.
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