Michael Cohen on the stand
Michael Cohen — the do-anything fixer who as soon as boasted about burying Donald Trump’s secrets and techniques and spreading his lies — testified yesterday at Trump’s felony trial.
In a vital passage, he mentioned that the hush-money cost that he made to Stormy Daniels got here at Trump’s path. “He expressed to me, ‘Simply do it,’” Cohen mentioned on the stand in New York, including, “I used to be doing every little thing and extra to guard my boss.” Right here’s the newest.
Cohen’s testimony is a key to prosecutors’ efforts to tie Trump to allegations of a conspiracy to safeguard his presidential marketing campaign in 2016 by burying Daniels’s account of a 2006 sexual encounter. Cohen admitted to mendacity and bullying for Trump, shopping for and suppressing unfavourable tales whereas appearing the a part of a “thug.”
Cohen, who nonetheless faces cross-examination from the protection, additionally floor down some key assertions: that Trump was, as his legal professionals argue, oblivious to his fixer’s machinations, and that the previous president was a household man deeply apprehensive about how Daniels’s accusations would hurt his marriage. Cohen described Trump as a micromanager, who was targeted above all else on his marketing campaign.
Protesters disrupted Israeli Memorial Day occasions
Israelis gathered throughout the nation yesterday for the primary nationwide day of mourning for victims of struggle or terrorist assaults because the Hamas-led Oct. 7 assault. Protesters disrupted a number of ceremonies and heckled Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, as they demanded that authorities officers do extra to safe the discharge of hostages.
The protests underscored the energy of the anguish over the struggle within the Gaza Strip, the destiny of hostages taken on Oct. 7 and home politics.
Hostages: About 240 folks had been kidnapped by Hamas within the assaults, and the Israeli authorities has up to now secured the discharge of greater than 100.
In Gaza: Israeli airstrikes yesterday shook the northern and southern ends of the territory, with the army saying it had struck greater than 120 targets over the previous 24 hours. Floor troops additionally engaged Hamas fighters in a number of areas, the Israeli army mentioned. Amid the preventing, tens of 1000’s of civilians fled, looking for security.
Hamas: A high chief for years oversaw a secret police power in Gaza that spied on younger folks, journalists and people who questioned the federal government, in accordance with info reviewed by The New York Occasions.
Ukraine’s air defenses are beneath pressure
Ukrainian air defenses used to intercept most Russian missiles, however in current months, an increasing number of have made it by way of, crippling Ukraine’s means to guard main infrastructure and plunging cities into darkness.
A Occasions evaluation of each day Ukrainian army reviews exhibits a serious shift. Kyiv reported intercepting greater than 80 p.c of the missiles final Could. That charge has now dropped to lower than half, as Ukraine requires extra provides and Russia fires bigger barrages that overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses and sooner missiles which might be more durable to shoot down.
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What to search for at Cannes
The Cannes Movie Competition begins right now within the south of France. Kyle Buchanan, a Occasions tradition reporter, wrote about the films, artists and occasions we’ll be keeping track of.
Some 45 years after “Apocalypse Now” received the Palme d’Or, Francis Ford Coppola is again with “Megalopolis,” starring Adam Driver as a visionary architect decided to rebuild a metropolis after a catastrophe. It’s laborious to think about a friendlier place for the movie’s debut than Cannes, the place Coppola is revered.
However the greatest film premiere will likely be “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.” Anticipate a serious red-carpet second from Anya Taylor-Pleasure, who takes over the title character originated by Charlize Theron. (For extra, learn our interview with Taylor-Pleasure.)
Actual-world controversies could bleed into the glitzy pageant. The pageant’s employees could strike, annoyed by their contracts. And the French movie business is reckoning with #MeToo, with extra accusations rumored to be coming through the pageant.
