Good morning. We’re covering the rescue mission after a plane crash near Washington, D.C., and a hostage release in Gaza. Plus: Looking ahead to the Grammys.
No survivors from a plane crash near WashingtonAll 67 people on board an American Airlines flight and an Army helicopter that collided on Wednesday evening over the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., just three miles from the White House, were killed, officials said. Rescue crews have recovered about two dozen bodies from the icy water of the river. Here’s a timeline of the crash and the recovery effort. The collision was the first fatal crash involving a major U.S. airline in more than 15 years. The night was clear, and both aircraft were following standard flight paths, officials said. But roughly a minute after the helicopter crew told air traffic control that it could see the jet, the two collided. A webcam caught the moment of impact. An internal report found that staffing at the air traffic control tower was “not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic,” and it suggested that at the time of the collision the air traffic controller was doing a job usually handled by two people. But Sean Duffy, the transportation secretary, said communications appeared to have been normal. We mapped out the flight paths. Victims: Among the victims on the flight, a two-and-a-half-hour journey from Wichita, Kan., were a group of friends returning from a duck hunting trip and more than a dozen figure skaters, including two world champions from Russia. Politics: President Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, all suggested diversity initiatives had a role in the crash. When asked for evidence, Trump said, “I have common sense.”
A hostage release in Gaza descended into chaosIsrael released 110 Palestinian prisoners yesterday, including some who had been convicted of deadly attacks, after an anarchic hostage handover in Gaza that cast doubt on whether the exchange would go ahead. Hamas released three Israeli and five Thai hostages who had spent more than a year in captivity. One release, in Gaza’s north, went relatively smoothly. But in the southern city of Khan Younis, the hostages were surrounded by crowds, some of whom chanted support for Hamas. See videos from the scenes. In Thailand, the families of the released hostages, who worked in Israel as farmhands, shed tears of joy. “When we are happy, we cry,” one father said. “When we are sad, we also cry. But these are happy tears.” Hamas: The group confirmed that Muhammad Deif, the leader of its military wing in Gaza and one of the chief architects of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, was dead. Israel had previously said that he died in the bombing of a compound in July.
R.F.K. Jr. faced a grilling over vaccinesRobert F. Kennedy Jr. battled his way through his second Senate confirmation hearing yesterday, defending his views on vaccination during a raucous three-hour session that featured shouting matches, angry accusations and a senator in tears. In a narrowly divided Senate, Kennedy can afford to lose only three Republican votes if he is to win final confirmation, provided that all Democrats oppose him. The bulk of the hearing was devoted to whether Kennedy was willing to accept consensus in scientific research. We fact-checked the health claims he made. Related: In separate confirmation hearings, Kash Patel, President Trump’s pick to run the F.B.I., alternated between deference and defiance, and senators questioned Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s nominee to run national intelligence.
They were a club of teenage Luddites, eschewing social media and smartphones in favor of flip phones and human connection. Three years on, the members are still trying to navigate a more offline world — and they reported that their movement was growing. Lives lived: Marianne Faithfull, who took a long and perilous journey to critical acclaim as a singer, ultimately releasing more than 20 albums, died at 78.
Beyoncé vs. Taylor Swift at the GrammysThe biggest contest at the annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, at least in terms of celebrity wattage, will be Beyoncé vs. Taylor Swift. Beyoncé has already won more Grammys than any other artist in history, but she has yet to win album of the year. Other top contenders include Billie Eilish, a Grammy and Oscar darling, and Kendrick Lamar, whose nominations stem from a public dis war with Drake. Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan, two of last year’s fresh pop sensations, each received their first Grammy nods. Here’s the full list of nominees. Related: At the Oscars, every best actress pick has a solid shot this year.
Cook: Pickled onions add tangy contrast to this vegetarian chili. Read: Bill Gates looks back on his boyhood in his new memoir, “Source Code.” Travel: Spend 36 hours in Accra, the capital of Ghana. Rest: Here’s what to know about how food and diet affect sleep. 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 P.S. Starting Saturday, The Ethicist is answering readers’ thorniest questions about sex and love as part of a special Magazine issue about relationships. Sign up to get the Ethicist newsletter delivered to your inbox. Reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com. |
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