Reuters World News - Gaza-Egypt crossing, Biden on antisemitism, Eurovision and the Met Gala

Episode Date: May 7, 2024

Israel has taken control of a critical Gaza-Egypt crossing point. President Joe Biden will address antisemitism in a Holocaust Remembrance Day speech. The Eurovision Song Contest kicks into high gear in Sweden. And A-listers walk the green-and-white carpet for the 2024 Met Gala. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, Gaza truce talks hang in the balance as Israel vows to continue its Rafa operation. President Biden to address anti-Semitism at Holocaust remembrance. Eurovision kicks off despite boycott calls and tight security. And, no shrinking violets in sight, we have all the paraposes from the Garden-themed Met Gala. It's Tuesday, May 7th. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes. Every weekday.

I'm Carmel Crimmons in Dublin. Israel says it's taken control of the vital Rafa border crossing between Gaza and Egypt. It's pushed into the southern Gaza town, with tanks and planes pounding several areas. Here, Palestinians searched through the rubble

of a destroyed building in the aftermath. Health officials in Gaza say 20 people were killed. As that offensive took place, the prospects for a ceasefire deal hang in the balance. Hamas says it's agreed to a proposal from mediators, but Israel says the terms do not meet its demands.

Donald Trump has been held in contempt for a tenth time for violating a gag order. The judge in his hush money criminal trial warned any further violations will land him in jail. But Justice Juan Mershan called that truly the last resort. The third phase of India's massive general election is underway. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cast his vote, calling for a strong turnout and warning of the sweltering summer heat. Modi is seeking a rare third term, and surveys suggest he's on track for a comfortable majority.

Votes will be counted on June 4th. A US soldier has been detained in Russia on charges of criminal misconduct. It's the latest high-profile detention of an American in Russia. The army did not give any details of the charges, citing the sensitivity of the matter. Russian President Vladimir Putin is being sworn in for a new six-year term. The US and most EU countries boycotted the inauguration over the war in Ukraine. France and Hungary did plan to have envoys at the Kremlin, despite a plea from Kiev.

Reuters has two Pulitzer Prizes for breaking news photography for images from the Gaza-Israel conflict, as well as for national reporting for a series of investigations into Elon Musk's manufacturing empire. The New York Times and the Washington Post each took three Pulitzer's, and ProPublica won the public Service Award for stories on undisclosed gifts and trips that some US Supreme Court justices accepted from wealthy donors. Even by Boeing standards, this has been a rough week, and it's only Tuesday. The Federal Aviation Administration has opened a fresh investigation into the planemaker, after it said inspections on its 787 Dreamliner aircraft might not have been properly carried out. And, Boeing had to call off its first ever astronaut launch at the last minute, after discovering a valve

problem in the Atlas 5 rocket. That launch has been rescheduled for Friday. Antisemitic attacks have increased in the US since the October 7th Hamas attacks on Israel and subsequent war in Gaza. Today, President Biden will give a speech commemorating Holocaust Remembrance Day and is expected to address the issue of anti-Semitism. White House reporter Trevor Honeycutt has been looking into the electoral effect this controversy is having. Trevor, what's Biden trying to highlight here? President Biden is going to reiterate some things that he said a lot of times, right, which is that he supports the safety and the rights of Jewish people to live successfully and without fear in the United States and abroad. And I think he's going to be doing that in context of the fact that we just had this major attack on Israel by Hamas that was the largest attack on Jews anywhere since the Holocaust. And he's going to be doing this at an extremely charged moment in terms of U.S. policy

where there is a division among his own Democratic Party and among Jewish voters and the public generally about how Biden has handled Israel's response to the Hamas attacks in October. Obviously, the caveat that no demographic is a monolith always applies. But is this issue dividing Jewish voters? A lot of political analysts see Jewish voters voting on much of the same things that a lot of other voters are voting on this year. And so when you look at the top of that list, that's issues like the economy, like immigration, and many political analysts see foreign policy issues generally, including Gaza as being lower on that list. You know, the Trump campaign is hoping that some of the discord over Biden's policy is creating an opportunity for him. So the issue of these protests on campus has really played into a lot of existing Trump narratives about some of the issues with Joe Biden's presidency generally,

including kind of this notion that there's chaos in the streets and that there's anti-Semitic trends and arguments. that are being made on the left that Biden has not been able to snuff out. This year's Eurovision song contest kicks into high gear with the first semi-final tonight. The run-up to the Music Fest in Sweden has been dominated by heightened security and boycott calls over Israel's war in Gaza. But that hasn't phased Ukraine's entry, rapper Alonia Alonia and fusion singer Jerry Hale. Their song, Teresa and Maria, a faux-inflicted pop tune with fast-paced rap, is one of the favorites to win.

I caught up with them from their hotel in Malmo. Hello for everyone. My name is Salona Alona. I'm rap singer. I'm Jerry Hale. I'm Ukrainian singer. Jerry, the Eurovision attracts more viewers in the Super Bowl. How important is it for you to be there representing Ukraine? Every year is important, wherever it is. Every recognition, every performance anywhere, not only on Eurovision, is important for Ukraine. because it's an opportunity to say that we are still there, we still need your support, we know that you're tired out of this like circumstances. We are too.

Can you imagine how tired we are? But in this unity, we can win the world. We can do anything. Alonia, Alonia, we are expecting demonstrations against Israel's participation in the contest. Are you worried at all about these protests? It's a super question because what can scare Ukrainians? What can scare us?

I saw rockets. In my home village, big building was ruined. Like, what are you scaring me? No, I'm sorry. And how do you fancy your chances tonight? We don't feel it like a competition. It's like more music festival and this platform to collaborate. I woke up and like singing Zora, Zora, Zora,

like me, Dese, Frommu Kis are like, Rim, Deggidi-Dig. Like other songs, you know, because they are all super unique. Yes, unique and like... And how can you compete with different songs? It's about the taste. It's about how people express themselves. So it's like strange to compete on which song is better. The music is general.

It's a miracle and we have to celebrate it. Anna Winterer arriving at the biggest night in fashion, New York's Met Gala. This year, stars were told to dress in a Garden of Time theme. And there were a range of extravagant outfits to match. Among them, Lana Del Rey's dramatic headpiece with tree branches. I think it's perfect. She explained the Alexander McQueen outfit, featuring natural hawthorn branches,

was inspired by Sleeping Beauty and Mother Nature. Going for a different look was Doja Cat, whose reveal seemed to be straight out of the shower. She started her night heading to the event wearing a bath and hair towel. But by the time she arrived, Doja Cat had ditched her towels for an oversized T-shirt dress and not much else. This year is cotton, is the flower of choice, and I felt like it was timeless to choose a white t-shirt. And I feel like a wet t-shirt is very sexy, and so I went with that. But there was no sign of arguably the biggest star on the planet,

with photographers denied a chance to get a snap of Taylor Swift with Travis Kelsey. Maybe they're on gardening leave. That's it for Tuesday. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show. To make sure you never miss an episode, subscribe on your favorite podcast player or download the Reuters app.