Here’s what you need to know to start your day.
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Good morning. A new gambit from Russia, a new definition of Israel and a new policy from Facebook. Here’s what you need to know:
• President Vladimir Putin of Russia said that unspecified forces in the U. S. were trying to undermine the results of the talks in Helsinki, Finland, comments aimed at deepening American divisions.
His remarks capped off a week of President Trump’s shifting narratives on Russia, which underscore the degree to which the president picks and chooses intelligence to suit his political purposes .
Two weeks before his inauguration, our reporters discovered, Mr. Trump was shown highly classified intelligence showing that Mr. Putin had personally ordered efforts to disrupt the 2016 election. Even so, Mr. Trump has sought to spread the blame for the meddling.
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• Israel’s Parliament narrowly passed a contentious basic law that enshrines it as the Jewish-nation state. The legislation downgrades the status of the Arabic language, promotes Jewish construction and affirms the exclusive right of Jews to self-determination.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the vote as “a defining moment in the annals of Zionism.” Arab members of Parliament ripped up copies of the bill, crying out, “Apartheid!”
The nation’s right-wing government has been emboldened by the Trump administration as well as the nationalist and populist movements gaining traction among allies in Europe and elsewhere.
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• Myanmar’s military planned the genocidal campaign to rid the country of Rohingya Muslims, according to a new report.
Fortify Rights, a young Bangkok-based human rights organization, published the finding from testimony collected from 254 survivors, officials and workers over 21 months.
The conclusions: Military and local officials removed tools that could be used for self-defense, created easier pathways for military raids, armed and trained ethnic Rakhine Buddhists, and closed international aid for the Rohingya. Government troops were deployed to Rohingya areas of Rakhine State where the Rohingya once lived, and participated in violence that began in late August.
Several groups have formed in Myanmar to examine the violence, which led to the exodus of around 700,000 Rohingya. So far, none has resulted in broad admissions of blame by the state.
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• Facebook, facing growing criticism, said it would begin removing misinformation that could lead to people being physically harmed, an expansion of its rules about the type of content it will take down.
The new rules will also apply to Instagram, but not to WhatsApp (both are owned by Facebook).
Rumors spread on social media have fueled many lethal and violent attacks. Read our reports from India, Myanmar and Sri Lanka.
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• “The time has come for the pope to sack him.”
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull of Australia called on Pope Francis to fire Archbishop Philip Wilson, the highest-ranking Catholic official to be convicted of concealing child sexual abuse.
The archbishop has given up his duties, but has refused to resign while he appeals his conviction. He said he would offer his resignation only if his appeal was unsuccessful.
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• President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has wasted no time in using the levers of democracy to expand his authority over Turkey.
Since his inauguration for a second term last week, he has issued several decrees and presidential decisions enabling him to exert control with almost unchecked authority.
“The state is being reorganized around Tayyip Erdogan,” a journalist wrote.
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• At a key U. S. trade commission hearing on the Trump administration’s proposed auto tariffs, small business owners and players in the global auto industry expressed concerns over rising costs and stifled innovation .
• China’s prolonged review of Qualcomm’s bid for another chipmaker, NXP, is widely seen as retaliation for U. S. tariffs .
• The race to $1 trillion market value has gotten tighter: Amazon’s market value broke $900 billion briefly on Wednesday. Amazon’s value has nearly doubled since late October, while Apple’s has largely stagnated above $900 billion.
• Microsoft, which reports quarterly earnings shortly, is emerging as a clear No. 2 to Amazon in cloud computing.
• A New Zealand firm reduced its workweek from 40 to 32 hours over four days. Productivity shot up.
• U. S. stocks were down. Here’s a snapshot of global markets.
• In South Korea, a court ordered the government and a shipping company to pay compensation to families who lost relatives in the 2014 sinking of Sewol ferry, above, which killed 304 people. [ The New York Times]
• In northern Syria, makeshift prisons hold suspects accused of fighting for ISIS, whose home countries are reluctant to repatriate them. A Times reporter gained access. [ The New York Times]
• Vietnam’s foreign ministry said that a new cybersecurity law would create a “safe and healthy cyberspace,” but critics warn it will further empower the government to crack down on dissent. [ Reuters]
• Iran rejected eight requests from the U. S. for a presidential meeting at the U. N. General Assembly last year, a top Iranian official said. [ The New York Times]
• In Berlin, police have seized 77 properties owned by a Lebanese family suspected of crimes including the theft of a 220-pound, pure 24-carat gold coin. [ BBC]
Tips for a more fulfilling life.
• Recipe of the day: Plan the weekend around making a cherry and apricot clafoutis, and don’t forget to share.
• How to look well rested, even when you’re not .
• 10 items to spruce up your outdoor space .
• Every two weeks, our food writer Besha Rodell focuses on a different aspect of Australia’s culinary scene. Today, she looks at the Greek influence on Australian dining, much more than lemon and olive oil.
• One of our best-read stories today is this Op-Ed in which a writer from the American heartland examines the liberal blindspots about “Trump Country.” For one thing, she writes, it is not Trump Country.
• Cedar trees, a national symbol of Lebanon, have outlived empires and survived modern wars. But global warming could wipe out most of the country’s remaining cedar forests by the end of the century. Here’s what Lebanon’s mountaintop forests look like today.
• Asian-American actors, storytellers and comedians are finding a place in the U. S. comedy ecosystem through a monthly showcase at theaters in Los Angeles and New York.
“We know that drinking, plus driving, spell death and disaster.”
At a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden 34 years ago this week, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation designed to force states to raise their minimum drinking age to 21 by linking it to federal highway aid.
