Thursday Briefing: Israeli troops near Gaza City

Also, Africa's push for a new world map.
Morning Briefing: Europe Edition
August 21, 2025

Good morning. We're covering Israel's preparations for a Gaza City offensive and Russia's push to take even more of Ukraine.

Plus, Africa's push for a new world map.

An armored vehicle next to a fence with rubble and destroyed buildings in the distance.
An Israeli military vehicle on the Gaza border on Tuesday. Jack Guez/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Israel moved ahead on Gaza City and new settlements

Israel approved 3,400 new settlements in the occupied West Bank yesterday, and its troops reached the outskirts of Gaza City with plans to take it over. Both developments cast further doubt on the chances of either a cease-fire or the creation of a Palestinian state.

World leaders quickly condemned the action against Gaza City.

Experts said the moves suggested Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was bending to the ideologies of extremists in his coalition in order to remain in power — even at the cost of isolating Israel internationally.

Gaza City: Israeli military officials said that tents were being moved into southern Gaza for people who would be displaced. Under the plan, troops would encircle the city and allow the population to move south through checkpoints to catch militants. Then, Israel would move in with force. The military "has begun the next phase of the war," the Israeli military's chief spokesman said.

Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza City considered moving to the central or southern parts of the territory, but many have already relocated repeatedly. Some said they wouldn't move again.

Settlements: The settlement project, called East One, is in the heart of the occupied West Bank. Human rights groups and European countries say building there would increasingly bisect the central West Bank, making the possibility of a future Palestinian state there even more tenuous.

The idea of a Palestinian state "is being erased from the table," Bezalel Smotrich, the hard-line finance minister, declared after the government had approved the project.

A soldier in camouflage walks past flattened buildings, with smoke rising from some.
Near the city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine on Sunday. Finbarr O'Reilly for The New York Times

Russia is pushing hard to grab Ukrainian land

As Trump presses Ukraine and Russia to make peace, President Vladimir Putin of Russia is pushing to capture as much land as possible. The tactic could force Ukraine to enter negotiations from a position of weakness, a Ukrainian commander said.

The Russians are sending in small groups of soldiers on foot, who are harder to detect. They effectively sneak past the Ukrainian troops, regroup and attack, and then repeat this cycle as they inch forward, my colleagues Kim Barker and Finbarr O'Reilly reported from near Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine, where fighting remains intense.

Diplomacy: Russia's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, said yesterday that Moscow would insist on being a part of any future security guarantees for Ukraine, a condition that European and Ukrainian officials see as absurd. It was the clearest sign yet that enormous gaps remain in the negotiations over a possible end to Russia's invasion.

A GIF showing Maggie Haberman and photos of the White House meeting on Ukraine.
The New York Times

My colleague Maggie Haberman explains how Trump has engaged with Russia and Ukraine in the video above.

A person poses for a photo in front of a large picture of Xi Jinping as others look on.
A portrait of Xi Jinping in Lhasa.  Go Nakamura/Reuters

Xi made a rare visit to Tibet

Xi Jinping, China's leader, made a tightly choreographed trip to Lhasa yesterday, his first since 2021 to the capital of Tibet. The visit reflected the Chinese leadership's concern with redoubling control ahead of a potential succession fight after the eventual death of the Dalai Lama, who is 90.

In a speech, Xi called for stronger regulation of "religious affairs" and for measures to "guide Tibetan Buddhism to adapt to socialist society."

More China news:

MORE TOP NEWS

A group of people stand near the twisted wreckage of a bus in a mountainous landscape.
Mohsen Karimi/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

SPORTS NEWS

Timothy A.Clary/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
  • Tennis: Iga Świątek and Casper Ruud made it to the final of the revamped 2025 U.S. Open mixed doubles. Follow our live coverage.
  • Soccer: Arsenal is attempting to nab Eberechi Eze from its rival Tottenham, which nearly signed him from Crystal Palace.
  • Formula 1: McLaren is building a dynasty, as the team's two star drivers battle for this season's world championship.

MORNING READ

Two world maps, one above showing the Mercator projection, which makes Africa seem smaller, and one below showing the Equal Earth projection, which more accurately displays the continents' sizes.
Weiyi Cai

Many of us learned world geography at school with the Mercator map. But the centuries-old map, which was created by a German cartographer, distorts reality. It makes Europe and Africa appear to be the same size, even though Africa is actually three times as big.

"A lot of people are asking, What are we actually looking at here?" my colleague Saikou Jammeh in Dakar, Senegal, said. "Why are we still teaching children this 16th-century map that shows Europe as primary and minimizes global south countries?"

Saikou covered a push by African leaders to replace the Mercator map with a more accurate alternative, called the Equal Earth projection. Read more.

Lives lived: Rodrigo Moya, a photojournalist who captured farmworkers, guerrillas and celebrities in Mexico and across Latin America, died at 91.

CONVERSATION STARTERS

A man in glasses and a short-sleeved striped shirt sits in front of a large mural of a winged horse.
Paulo Nunes dos Santos for The New York Times

ARTS AND IDEAS

A GIF shows two hands manipulating an elaborately-folded piece of silver paper and then spreading it out on top of a yellow backdrop.
Brigham Young University

Engineers like this new origami pattern

Origami artists have been folding paper for centuries, creating an unfathomable number of shapes and designs. And yet, researchers have discovered a new class of origami they call bloom patterns.

The new patterns resemble idealized flowers, and many are rotationally symmetric. And because they fold up flat and compact, bloom patterns could be useful as engineers build folding structures to send to outer space. They're also simply pretty to look at.

RECOMMENDATIONS

A piece of yellow cake with berries embedded in it and a drizzle of white frosting rests on a white plate next to a golden fork.
David Malosh for The New York Times

Bake: This quick cake is the best way to use all your berries.

Read: Our critic says Regina Black's "August Lane" is the best book she's read this year.

Watch: Germans love the Wild West parody "Das Kanu des Manitu" ("Manitu's Canoe").

Care: These exercises can be useful for managing chronic low back pain.

Snack: Kiwis can help your digestion, immunity and sleep.

Wordle

Wordle →

Connections

Connections →

Strands

Strands →

Spelling Bee

Spelling Bee →

Crossword

Crossword →

Mini

Mini →

That's it for today's briefing. See you tomorrow. — Justin

We welcome your feedback. Send us your suggestions at briefing@nytimes.com.

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

You received this email because you signed up for Morning Briefing: Europe Edition from The New York Times.

To stop receiving Morning Briefing: Europe Edition, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings.

Subscribe to The Times

Connect with us on:

facebookxinstagramwhatsapp

Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices

LiveIntent LogoAdChoices Logo

The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018

No comments:

Powered by Blogger.