Flagship

US response to Israel conflict hampered

The first batch of U.S. military assistance arrived in Israel as the country appeared on the verge of a major ground operation in Gaza. The death toll from Hamas’s surprise weekend attack and its fallout has risen to over 2,000, including at least 1,200 Israelis and 950 Palestinians. As the war entered its fifth day, gruesome details emerged of the initial assault: U.S. President Joe Biden, in an angry press conference, described reports of parents and children “butchered,” and called Hamas’s operation an “act of sheer evil.” He also confirmed that U.S. citizens are among the 150 hostages taken by Hamas, and that his Secretary of State Antony Blinken will fly to Israel in the coming days.

Washington’s response, however, was hampered by political gridlock. The ousting of the House of Representatives speaker by Republican hardliners left the House unable to pass legislation, and neither of the two frontrunners to replace him can command a majority ahead of today’s vote. Congress will be asked to provide more aid, but without a speaker it will be unable to vote to do so. Republicans are nonetheless keen to show themselves to be friends of Israel. Semafor’s Dave Weigel reported that Republican presidential candidates are scrambling to make two things clear: “They’d give the Jewish state anything it needed, and whatever came next would be Joe Biden’s fault.”

The links between Ukraine and Israel

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s surprise visit to NATO headquarters highlighted links between Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and the Israeli response to Hamas’s assault. Zelenskyy has voiced support for Israel, but warned that conflict in the Middle East advantaged Russia and risked distracting from his country’s efforts to evict Russian invaders. NATO officials meeting today will discuss both wars, with diplomats acknowledging to Politico that they feared U.S. support for Ukraine could wane because of the Hamas attack. In the U.S., too, the two conflicts are tied together, with the Biden administration working alongside Senate leaders to link aid to Ukraine and Israel in an effort to overcome congressional dysfunction, according to The Washington Post.

China quiet on Israel-Gaza

Beijing’s muted response to the Israel-Hamas conflict points to the limits of China’s diplomacy. Xi Jinping has made no comment on the issue, and the foreign ministry has issued no condemnation of Hamas for carrying out the initial assault. In part, this is down to risk-averse foreign policy, rhetorical claims of non-interference, and historic close ties with Palestinians: State media and China’s heavily censored internet largely sided with the Palestinians, according to two Substackers who closely follow both. But it contrasts sharply with Beijing’s recent work reestablishing diplomatic ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia. “It does poke a hole in the type of propaganda ... of China being this kind of massive player in the Middle East,” one expert told Reuters.

Japan real estate draws investors

Office vacancies in the U.S. and London are at a 20-year high, while in Japan investors are flocking to commercial real estate, driven by low interest rates and high occupancy. Just 5% of Tokyo’s offices stand empty, Nikkei reported, compared to 9% of London’s and nearly 30% of San Francisco’s. The pandemic drove hybrid and home working to new levels in the West, and high interest rates mean that mortgages are expensive, according to the Financial Times. But in Japan, financing is consistently cheap, and most workers have returned to the office. Building is easier in Japan as well: Tokyo is experiencing a construction boom, with several major new buildings springing up in the city center.

Booker winner faces prosecution

The Booker Prize-winning novelist Arundhati Roy could reportedly be prosecuted for a 2010 speech in which she allegedly called for Kashmir’s secession from India. Though a case was filed soon after the remarks were made, a senior official only just approved it proceeding, Indian media reported. Roy, among India’s best-known writers, is a divisive figure for her criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The news comes amid a wider crackdown on journalists and opponents of Modi: A small outlet critical of the prime minister has been subject to multiple raids in recent weeks over alleged foreign funding, while others face prolonged investigation in which “the process … becomes the punishment,” a former diplomat wrote in The Indian Express.

France and US signal new Niger stage

French forces began departing Niger and the U.S. officially declared the country had undergone a coup, signaling a new stage in protracted efforts to end military rule there. France’s withdrawal, which ends security cooperation designed to combat an Islamist insurgency in the area, had been an early demand of Niger’s military rulers after they took power in July. The U.S.’s confirmation of a coup having taken place, meanwhile, came after Washington “exhausted all available avenues to preserve constitutional order,” a U.S. official said, with the designation ultimately limiting the size and scope of assistance Washington can legally provide.

Hurricane Lidia hammers Mexico

Hurricane Lidia made landfall in Mexico on Tuesday night, with 140 mph winds hitting the Pacific coast. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said the “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm hit the sparsely populated region of Las Penitas, but moved towards the coastal resort of Puerto Vallarta. The storm has brought “extraordinary rain and high surf,” downed trees and power lines, and caused landslides. One death was reported. Lidia is losing speed now that it has moved over land, and was downgraded to Category 2, but will remain dangerous for some time as it moves northeast into Mexico’s interior.

Game CEO quits after pricing row

The CEO of the video-game firm Unity stepped down after a controversy about pricing changes. Unity’s “engine,” a software platform that runs several popular games including Pokémon Go, is used by lots of small studios. In the past, those studios paid a license fee to use it, but CEO John Riccitiello announced in September that developers would be charged every time a consumer installed a game using Unity’s code. The backlash was extreme: Many studios threatened to stop using the engine, suggesting developers dislike fancy subscription-payment models just as much as consumers do. Riccitiello stepped down Tuesday, with no explanation given.

Junk sector braces for EV revolution

The growth of the electric-vehicle market is expected to change the auto salvage industry. Only 9% of U.S. car sales were electric in Q2 2023, and most EVs have years of life left. But after decades of scrapping petrol-powered, mostly steel vehicles, junkyards are bracing for change, the Financial Times reported. Salvage businesses will need to find ways of handling batteries, an EV’s most valuable part: Scandinavian salvagers, who already see EVs regularly, are selling batteries to agricultural and maritime users. EVs, with fewer moving parts, also have less wear and tear, perhaps meaning a smaller market for replacement parts. The scrap metal market will also change: EVs contain more aluminum and copper, which are more valuable but harder to extract than steel.

Prada to make NASA moon suits

Prada will help design the space suits for NASA’s 2025 moon mission. The Italian designer will help Axiom Space, the manufacturers: Prada apparently has “considerable experience with various types of composite fabrics and may actually be able to make some real technical contributions,” a former astronaut told the BBC. Hopes of a gold-embossed space suit with 1970s lapels or similar should, however, be put to one side. Firstly, Prada is known for its minimalist style, and second, the suit’s first job is to stop the astronaut from boiling or freezing, and its color is a vital part of that job. So “paisley spacesuits or any fancy patterns like that” are unlikely.

• Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan visits Turkmenistan for talks with his counterpart.
• Final day of the annual conference for the U.K.’s Labour Party.
• The first three episodes of Messi Meets America, a six-part docuseries about the Argentine soccer star, are released on Apple TV+.

Projected global economic growth next year, according to the International Monetary Fund’s latest assessment. The figure is 0.1 percentage points lower than the IMF’s prior forecast, down largely to cuts to expected growth in both China and the eurozone this year and next. Overall, international economic expansion is being curtailed by the continued consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s war in Ukraine, persistently high interest rates, and the impact of climate-related extreme weather events. “The global economy is limping along, not sprinting,” the IMF’s chief economist said.

Ghanaian sculptor El Anatsui’s towering new installation was unveiled at Britain’s Tate Modern. Behind the Red Moon, the 79-year-old artist’s largest ever indoor artwork, is staged in three acts consisting of sculptural hangings made of thousands of metal bottle tops and fragments sourced in Nigeria. “These ubiquitous objects recycled from the real world inevitably represent consumption and waste,” noted Artnet, “but also provide a way for Anatsui to refer to geopolitics and how commodities are shipped to Africa via a network of age-old colonial trade routes.”

• Israel’s mounting war on Hamas poses risks for the U.S., Europe, and Ukraine.
• The bots have come for podcasts. Companies are offering thousands of downloads to send shows to the top of the charts.
• Former Trump national security adviser Robert O’Brien says the U.S. should send special operators to Israel to assist with rescuing hostages and to recover any Americans.