Evening Briefing: Haiti rocked by assassination

July 7, 2021

By Remy Tumin

Good evening. Here's the latest at the end of Wednesday.

President Jovenel Moïse in Port-au-Prince in 2018. Dieu Nalio Chery/Associated Press

1. Haiti is under martial law after the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse.

Haiti's ambassador to the U.S. said the murder at Moïse's residence on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince was carried out "by well-trained professionals" posing as agents of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency. Moïse's wife, Martine Moïse, was also shot in the attack. Here are the latest updates.

The airport and other points of entry to Haiti were closed as the authorities tried to hunt down the assailants. Claude Joseph, the interim prime minister, said that he was running the country and declared a "state of siege."

In recent months, the streets of Haiti have become filled with protests demanding the removal of Moïse. He had clung to power, ruling by decree for more than a year, and was seeking to rewrite the Constitution as part of an agenda that his critics charged would lead the country to authoritarian rule. The political vacuum left by Moïse's killing could fuel a cycle of violence, experts warned.

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A rescue worker offered comfort in Surfside, Fla.Saul Martinez for The New York Times

2. Officials ended the search for survivors in Surfside, Fla., and will shift to recovery efforts nearly two weeks after a condo building collapsed.

"Just based on the facts, there's zero chance of survival," Assistant Chief Ray Jadallah of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue told the families of missing residents during a private briefing. "We need to bring closure."

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Despite no sign of survivors since the hours immediately after the building collapsed on June 24, officials had continuously pledged they would keep searching as long as any chance of rescue remained. By Wednesday, the death toll had risen to 46, with 94 people unaccounted for.

A medical worker gave a vaccine in Mexico City on Wednesday. Hector Vivas/Getty Images

3. The world is worried about the Delta variant. But the research is clear: Most Covid-19 vaccines are very effective against it.

Though the results from the studies vary from country to country, experts say that's to be expected because it's hard to pinpoint the effectiveness of a vaccine in real world conditions. Researchers tracking how well vaccines protect against the variant have found that the shots keep people out of the hospital and are generally protective.

That's especially good news in the U.S., where the highly contagious variant is officially the dominant one in the country, the C.D.C. said.

Virus deaths linked to U.S. prisons may be higher than reported, The Times found. The gap in the death toll may hamper efforts to protect inmates from future pandemics.

Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, ran on a promise to improve public safety.Karsten Moran for The New York Times

4. Eric Adams, a former police captain, is poised to become the second Black mayor in New York City's history.

His rivals in the Democratic primary, Kathryn Garcia and Maya Wiley, conceded defeat after the tally of absentee ballots showed them finishing behind Adams. Garcia and Wiley had both sought to become the first woman elected mayor of the city.

But it was Adams's message on improving public safety without violating the rights of Black and Latino New Yorkers that helped him lead the race. In heavily Democratic New York City, Adams will be the overwhelming favorite in the general election in November against Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee.

President Biden at the White House on Wednesday.Michael A. McCoy for The New York Times

5. President Biden gathered top advisers in the Situation Room today to develop a strategy to counter brazen ransomware attacks by Russian hackers.

The meeting came after a Russia-based cybercriminal organization claimed responsibility for a cyberattack that targeted up to 1,500 businesses around the world over the holiday weekend, making it one of the largest ransomware attacks in history. The Republican National Committee was also the subject of an attack. The hacks test the red lines set by Biden during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin of Russia last month.

Separately, Donald Trump sued Facebook, Twitter and Google and their chief executives after the platforms took various steps to ban or block him from posting. The former president immediately began fund-raising off it.

Tropical Storm Elsa making landfall in Cedar Key, Fla.Mark Wallheiser/Getty Images

6. Tropical Storm Elsa made landfall on Florida's Gulf Coast. It's expected to turn toward Georgia next.

The storm passed over the Florida Keys on Tuesday and strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane before weakening into a tropical storm on Wednesday. Florida is still bracing for potential storm surges that could flood parts of the state's western coast. Tropical storm watches remained in effect as far north as New Jersey. Here's the latest.

And scientists confirmed the suspicions of millions of people who suffered through a recent heat wave in North America: Last month was the warmest June on record, with some of the hottest temperatures ever experienced on the continent.

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Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates in 2018.Ludovic Marin/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

7. Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates will try to work it out — at the Gates Foundation.

The first couple of philanthropy will work together at the foundation they lead for two more years following their planned divorce. If they can't find a way to work together after that, French Gates will resign from the world's largest charitable group, and Gates will buy her out. The Gateses also injected an extra $15 billion in resources, and the foundation will add new independent trustees.

In Idaho, the tiny resort town of Sun Valley is now teeming with billionaires for what some call mogulfest. Hosted by Allen & Company, the annual event is where major deals are struck and corporate disputes are settled — or sparked.

England's Harry Kane, right, celebrates scoring his team's second goal.Pool photo by Laurence Griffiths

8. England beat Denmark 2-1 to advance to the Euro 2020 final against Italy.

The winning goal came from striker Harry Kane, who converted the rebound of his own saved penalty kick to break a 1-1 tie midway through extra time. It will be England's first appearance in a major tournament final since 1966. The final match is Sunday at Wembley Stadium.

At Wimbledon, Roger Federer, the eight-time champion who turns 40 next month, was overpowered in his quarterfinal match, losing in straight sets to 14th-seeded Hubert Hurkacz. Novak Djokovic advanced to the semifinals.

And tonight, the Tampa Bay Lightning are one game away from winning the Stanley Cup after the Montreal Canadiens forced a Game 5. Face-off is at 8 p.m. Eastern.

Spike Lee and other jury members arriving to the screening of "Annette."Ian Langsdon/EPA, via Shutterstock

9. Cannes is back and as lavish as ever, our awards season columnist writes.

The film festival, which opted to cancel instead of go virtual because of the pandemic, returned to the Croissette after a two-year break. The opening-night ceremony included a five-minute standing ovation for the Adam Driver-Marion Cotillard musical "Annette."

"To watch all the celebrities swan down the red carpet in their tuxedos and couture, you would think Cannes picked up right where it left off," the critic writes — minus the traditional double kiss on the cheek.

In Paris, couture is back. Our fashion critic has reviews of Pieter Mulier's Alaïa debut, Dior, a smart update at Chanel and liquid silk organza at Armani.

Synchronous fireflies in Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee.Floris van Breugel/Nature Picture Library, via Alamy

10. And finally, hey, ladies, look at us.

The spontaneous synchronization of certain species of fireflies has long baffled humans who observed the peculiar mating ritual, in which blinking males strive to attract the attention of ground-level females. Research has shown that when a swarm reaches a certain density, the fireflies begin to blink in unison.

To better understand what's behind this synchronicity, scientists set up cameras in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to capture the fireflies' flashes in three dimensions. Researchers discovered that male fireflies did not flash instantaneously, but rather in a cascading wave — if a synchronizing firefly saw its neighbor flash, it might flash, too. The findings also suggested that there was no clear firefly leader or single locus of activity.

Have a glittery night.

Lance Booth compiled photos for this briefing.

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