The Headlines - Israel’s ‘Intensive’ Escalation, and an Air Traffic Control Crisis

Episode Date: May 6, 2025

Plus, the Met Gala’s unforgettable looks. On Today’s Episode:Netanyahu Warns of ‘Intensive’ Escalation in Gaza Campaign, by Michael D. Shear, Aaron Boxerman and Adam RasgonCanada’s Carney Is on a High-Stakes Visit to the White House, by Matina Stevis-GridneffTrump Administration Asks Court to Dismiss Abortion Pill Case, by Pam BelluckTrump Offers to Pay Immigrants Who Deport Themselves, by Hamed AleazizControllers Briefly Lost Contact With Planes at Newark Last Week, Union Official Says, by Michael Levenson. Mark Walker. Christine Hauser and Christine ChungThe Real ID Deadline Is Days Away. Are You Ready to Fly?, by Christine Chung and Debra Kamin15 Unforgettable Looks at the Met Gala, by The Styles DeskTune in every weekday morning. To get our full audio journalism and storytelling experience, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Tell us what you think at: [e-mail]. 

From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today is Tuesday, May 6th. Here's what we're covering. In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his country is on the brink of an intensive escalation of the war in Gaza. Yesterday, as military reservists across the country were called up, Netanyahu said a, quote, forceful entry to Gaza would happen soon and that Gaza's entire population would

be pushed into the southern part of the territory. Over the course of the 18-month- long war, many Gazans have already been forced to evacuate multiple times, and 50,000 Palestinians have been killed. Benjamin Netanyahu described the escalation as an attempt to achieve the two objectives of the war, bringing home the remaining hostages and eradicating Hamas in the Gaza Strip. But here in Israel, there is significant concern about the plan and some skepticism. My colleague Michael Shear is reporting from Jerusalem.

He says that some see Netanyahu's announcement as a political move designed to appease far-right Israelis who've wanted the country to take more aggressive action in Gaza. Beyond that, critics of Mr. Netanyahu question the entire premise of the operation. The Israeli government has not provided many details of exactly how the military operation would work and what it would look like.

But the critics say that the fact that there has already been an 18-month-long war that hasn't achieved the prime minister's goals makes them question why sending additional troops in now would make any difference. They argue it would be better to negotiate a final end to the war with Hamas that brings the hostages home and ends the hostilities for good. Today in Washington. President Trump is trying to break us so that America can own us.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who's forcefully pushed back on President Trump's threats toward Canada, will now meet with him. He's attacking Canadian families, workers and businesses. It will be their first in-person meeting at the White House. We didn't ask for this fight, but Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves. Carney was elected last week after running on a largely anti-Trump platform, defending Canada's economy and sovereignty after Trump imposed tariffs on the country and repeatedly

threatened to make Canada the 51st state. Carney will now attempt a juggling act of keeping up that aggressive stance, trying to defuse the trade war that could undermine his country's economy, and not setting off Trump, who's lashed out at other world leaders. How do you avoid an Oval Office ambush

like we saw happen to President Zelensky? Look, I go there with the expectation of constructive, difficult but constructive discussions. Now two more updates on the Trump administration. The Justice Department weighed in on a federal lawsuit that's aiming to limit access to abortion pills yesterday and asked the judge to dismiss the case. The dismissal request caught some by surprise given that Trump and a number of his officials have forcefully opposed abortion rights. The lawsuit was brought

by several conservative attorneys general who object to how the FDA's made it easier in recent years to get the medication Mifepristone. The government's dismissal request didn't get into the merits of that argument. Instead, the filing just said the case had been brought in the wrong venue. One abortion law expert told the Times that the administration could just be buying time to figure out what their strategy on Mifepristone will be, or it could indicate that they're trying to be politically cautious on abortion, potentially with the 2026 midterms in mind. And what we thought we'd do is a self deport where we're going to pay each one a certain

amount of money and we're going to get them a beautiful flight back to where they came from. President Trump said his administration is offering a thousand dollars and a flight home to undocumented immigrants who willingly leave the United States. Administration officials say it will save the government money by avoiding the costs of arresting and detaining people. They say one migrant already took them up on the offer and flew from Chicago back to Honduras. The administration says it's deported around 140,000 migrants since January, so far far short of Trump's campaign promise to remove millions.

At one of the busiest airports in the US., Newark Liberty International, a chaotic mix of factors has caused widespread disruptions and prompted safety concerns. The issues began last Monday when air traffic controllers temporarily lost all radar contact and communications with planes there, reportedly for 90 seconds. The situation was so stressful that some of the controllers then took time off of work, under a law allowing federal employees who've experienced a traumatic event on the job to take leave. In a statement, the Federal Aviation Administration said that, quote, our antiquated air traffic

control system is affecting our workforce. With the air traffic control center understaffed, United Airlines, Newark's largest carrier, then said it was cutting 35 flights per day from its schedule there. That's added to the headaches for travelers, with the airport already under strain from bad weather this week and construction on one of its runways. The staffing shortages hitting Newark are part of a nationwide crisis. More than 90% of the country's air traffic control facilities are operating below recommended levels. Last week, the Transportation Department started promoting $5,000 hiring bonuses to try and fill those gaps.

Speaking of air travel, starting tomorrow for anyone flying in the U.S., just pulling out your old driver's license might not do it anymore. You will need a real ID, the enhanced identification, or you'll need a passport or other federal document. Yes, you heard this two years ago and a few years before that and a few years before that, going back almost two decades. But after repeatedly extending the deadline, the government is now firm. Tomorrow is it. So if you haven't done it yet, you might want to get in line now. People have been flooding into their local DMVs to try and get their real IDs. And finally, I am currently standing inside the Met for one of the biggest nights in style and fashion.

Everyone is here. Spike Lee, Meg Thee Stallion, Serena Williams. My colleague, Sandra Garcia was at the Metropolitan Museum of Art last night covering the Met Gala. Andre 3000 just walked in with a piano attached to his back. The annual fundraiser that gets likened to the Super Bowl of Fashion. The theme this year is super fine, black fashion. It focuses on dandyism or the art of using your clothes to assert your dignity, using your clothes as armor, especially for black people, and how that has created style and

fashion. The event raised a record $31 million for the museum, though, as always, it was the outfits getting all the attention. It's not just a night for a gown or a tux, but for going all out with sculptural sky-high headpieces or an 18-foot-long feathered train, like disco queen Diana Ross was rocking last night.

The Times has collected the 15 most distinctive looks from the gala. There are snakes, pearls, a bowling bag, big, big, big bows, and what's being called the color of spring, butter yellow. You can check them out at nytimes.com. You can check them out at NYTimes.com. Those are the headlines. Today on The Daily, a water crisis in one of the hottest places on earth, Iraq. That's next in the New York Times audio app where you can listen wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Tracy Mumford.

We'll be back tomorrow.