Good morning. We’re covering Donald Trump’s new choice for attorney general and an arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu. Plus: Would you bathe in crude oil?
Trump announced a new pick for attorney generalHours after Matt Gaetz abruptly withdrew from consideration as attorney general, President-elect Donald Trump announced that he would nominate Pam Bondi, a former Florida attorney general, for the role. Bondi served on Trump’s legal team during his first impeachment, and she oversaw the filing of voting-related lawsuits in battleground states during his recent campaign. She currently leads the legal arm of the America First Policy Institute, a right-wing think tank that has kept close ties to Trump’s transition team. Trump has been eager to install a loyal ally to head the Justice Department, which he has suggested he wants to run more as a legal extension of his White House. The president-elect has said he intends to nominate three members of his criminal defense team to top roles in the Justice Department. More on Trump
Putin said Russia hit Ukraine with a new missilePresident Vladimir Putin said yesterday that Russia had launched a new intermediate-range ballistic missile at Ukraine in response to Kyiv’s recent strike inside Russia using American and British weapons. He described the strike as a successful “test” of a new missile called the Oreshnik and added that it had hit a military-industrial complex. Ukraine said that a volley of missiles, including the intermediate missile, had targeted Dnipro, a city in eastern Ukraine. Analysis: The target was well within the range of Moscow’s conventional weapons, but Russia launched a new weapon — a longer-range missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads. The choice was intended to strike fear into Kyiv and its allies, officials said. What’s next: Trump has vowed to end the war in Ukraine, but will his administration provide security guarantees to prevent Russia from taking more territory?
The I.C.C. issued an arrest warrant for NetanyahuThe International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip. It was an extraordinary blow to Israel’s global standing as it presses on with wars on multiple fronts. The court said the warrants included accusations of using starvation as a weapon of war and “intentionally directing an attack against the civilian population.” A warrant was also issued for Muhammad Deif, Hamas’s military chief. Israel has said that it killed Deif in an airstrike, but the court said it could not confirm that. Netanyahu’s office and opposition politicians alike rejected the accusations in a rare display of unity. Palestinians welcomed the news. What to know: Netanyahu and Gallant are unlikely to stand trial on the charges anytime soon. But they now face a smaller world. The U.S. and Israel aren’t signatories to the court, but 124 countries are, and they would be committed to carrying out the warrants if Netanyahu or Gallant set foot on their soil. In other news: Israeli prosecutors indicted one of Netanyahu’s aides, who was charged with leaking classified information on Hamas and most likely harming national security.
The chocolate-colored crude oil extracted from beneath the hills of Naftalan, Azerbaijan, doesn’t burn. Instead, locals and scientists say, it heals — if you bathe in it. Anton Troianovski, our Moscow bureau chief, tested this theory during this week’s U.N. climate summit in Baku. Read his dispatch here. Lives lived: John Prescott, who served as Britain’s deputy prime minister for a decade and was one of its best-known Labour politicians, died at 86.
The National Book AwardsThis year’s National Book Award for fiction, one of America’s most prestigious literary prizes, was given to Percival Everett for his novel “James.” The book, published in March to rave reviews, is a retelling of Mark Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” from the perspective of Huck’s companion, an enslaved man named James. “Two weeks ago, I was feeling pretty low, and to tell you the truth, I still feel pretty low,” Everett said while accepting the award, in an oblique reference to the results of the presidential election. “As I look out at this, so much excitement about books, I have to say, I do feel some hope.” The nonfiction award was given to the anthropologist Jason De León for “Soldiers and Kings,” an immersive account of the nearly seven years he spent embedded with human smugglers on the U.S.-Mexico border. We hope you’ve enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times.
Cook: Lemon-garlic kale salad can be a snappy side or a light dinner. Watch: Our critic gives “Gladiator II” the thumbs up. Poach: One simple trick makes vegetables their best selves. Stretch: Here are seven ways to test your mobility. Read: Our favorite graphic novels this month deal with sex, horror and the end of the world. Play the Spelling Bee. And here are today’s Mini Crossword and Wordle. You can find all our puzzles here. That’s it for today’s briefing. See you next week. — Natasha Reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com.
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