Go for the gold: Your Weekend Briefing

July 11, 2021

Welcome to the Weekend Briefing. We're covering the crisis in Haiti, a proposed overhaul of the global tax system and Wimbledon.

Haitians at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince after the spread of rumors that the U.S. would hand out humanitarian visas.Joseph Odelyn/Associated Press

1. The assassination of Haiti's president has thrown the nation into disarray.

Shootouts have erupted in the streets of Port-au-Prince, and terrified citizens have been cowering in their homes after President Jovenel Moïse was gunned down in his residence on Wednesday. At least 20 people — 18 Colombians and two Haitian Americans — have been detained in the attack. One told his sister he was there to protect, not to kill, shortly before he died in the bloody aftermath.

The Haitian authorities have asked the U.S. to send troops to stabilize the country. But the Biden administration showed no immediate enthusiasm for sending even a limited American force. Some in Haiti quickly criticized the request, citing other foreign interventions that left a trail of abuses.

Moïse's assassination sparked dueling claims to power and exposed an even more complex, less visible battle among some of Haiti's kingmakers. One lawmaker's luxury villa in Montreal has become an emblem of the gap between Haiti's impoverished citizens and its political elite.

The G20 finance ministers and central bank governors' meeting in Venice.G20 Italy, via Reuters

2. The Group of 20 nations agreed on a plan that would overhaul the global tax system.

If enacted, the plan could reshape the global economy by cracking down on tax havens and imposing new levies on big multinational companies. But major details remain to be worked out before an October deadline to complete the agreement, and big businesses and a few countries are resisting. The approach is a reversal of years of economic policies that embraced low taxes as a way for countries to attract investment and fuel growth.

At the same meeting of finance ministers in Venice, the I.M.F. announced a plan to issue $650 billion in reserve funds for poor countries to pay for vaccines, finance health care and reduce debt.

Papillion, Neb., flipped for Biden in 2020.Walker Pickering for The New York Times

3. The 2022 midterms are still months away, but one question looms: How will the suburbs swing?

As Democrats try to keep their razor-thin advantage in the House and the Senate next year, they, and the Republicans, are already jockeying for the crucial voting bloc that soured on Donald Trump, tilted to Joe Biden and now holds the key to the second half of the president's term. Democrats will need to count on more than just the anti-Trump vote to motivate voters.

Among those on the midterm ballot will be Senator Maggie Hassan, whose centrist image resonates with famously independent voters in New Hampshire. But the swing state could become a marquee contest.

G. Haanvi Reddy and her siblings were orphaned when their parents died of Covid-19. Rebecca Conway for The New York Times

4. "My mother kept us safe like an umbrella does."

G. Sonali Reddy, 14, is one of more than 3,000 Indian children orphaned during the pandemic. The government has pledged to help them — with compensation of about $7 to $68 per month per orphan — but many still face the risk of exploitation. Getting a death certificate to qualify for the benefits has been difficult, and adoption is not an option for many of because of the cultural taboos against the practice.

In the U.S., the virus is down — but not out. Death rates are as low as they have been since the early days of the pandemic. But reports of new cases are starting to creep up as the Delta variant has seeded outbreaks in some places with low vaccination rates.

Virgin Galactic's passenger rocket plane, the V.S.S. Unity.Virgin Galactic, via Reuters

5. The billionaire space race is scheduled for liftoff today.

Richard Branson, the British billionaire who leads a galaxy of Virgin companies, will be a crew member on a test flight for Virgin Galactic's space plane. His task is to evaluate the cabin experience for future customers as billionaire entrepreneurs race to make spaceflight unexceptional.

Branson's flight comes nine days before Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, is scheduled to strap into the New Shepard capsule built by his rocket company, Blue Origin.

Virgin will broadcast coverage of the flight beginning at 9 a.m. Eastern from Spaceport America in New Mexico, with Stephen Colbert hosting the livestream. The last test flight was flawless. But the company's first space plane crashed during a test flight in 2014, and in 2019, Virgin Galactic came close to another catastrophe.

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The visitor center at Furnace Creek in Death Valley National Park.Roger Kisby for The New York Times

6. Record-breaking temperatures are returning to the Western U.S.

Over 31 million people are under heat advisories in the third heat wave to sweep through the West this summer. Temperatures in California's Death Valley soared to 130 degrees on Friday. Forecasters are also monitoring looming thunderstorms that could bring lightning strikes and fire risk.

The record-shattering temperatures in the Pacific Northwest would have been all but impossible without climate change, scientists say. The heat wave has led to nearly 200 deaths in Oregon and Washington State. It also killed hundreds of millions of marine animals, preliminary estimates show.

In British Columbia, residents returned to the town of Lytton this week and found it almost unrecognizable after a fire that was exacerbated by the heat wave.

Ellie the cow spent the last half of her life with the family on Hof Butenland.Lena Mucha for The New York Times

7. The cows don't have to produce milk. The pigs sleep late. And the term "out to pasture" has an entirely different meaning.

Hof Butenland, an ex-dairy farm turned animal retirement home in Germany, offers sanctuary to cattle, pigs, a few horses, chickens, geese and rescue dogs. All animals on the farm coexist as equals with Hof Butenland's human residents and workers.

The farm is provoking questions about how humans eat. In a country better known for juicy bratwurst and schnitzel, veganism is on the rise as Germans eat considerably less meat.

Ashleigh Barty of Australia after her victory in the Wimbledon women's singles final.Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

8. Tennis, soccer, basketball, ultimate fighting — it's a sports bonanza this weekend.

Ashleigh Barty, the world No. 1, claimed her first Wimbledon title — and became the second Indigenous Australian to do so — when she defeated Karolina Pliskova in the women's singles final. Today, Novak Djokovic will vie for his 20th major singles title, which would tie him at long last with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. He plays Matteo Berrettini at 9 a.m. Eastern.

But Wimbledon is merely an opening act for the main event in London on Sunday: England's first major soccer final since the 1966 World Cup, as it faces Italy in the Euro 2020 championship. Kickoff is at 3 p.m. Eastern.

Other wins and losses:

Lionel Messi delivered the title he and Argentina had chased for a generation, winning the Copa América final against Brazil.
Conor McGregor appeared to break a bone in his leg during a highly anticipated U.F.C. match against Dustin Poirier, who was declared the winner.
The Phoenix Suns play the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 3 of the N.B.A. finals tonight. The teams's center matchup pits two eras of basketball against each other.

Male giant cuttlefish competing to mate with a female.Wildestanimal/Alamy

9. Cuttlefish are ready for their close-up.

Octopuses and squid are full of character. But more scientists are making the case that cuttlefish, cousins of those sea creatures, hold the key to unlocking evolutionary secrets about intelligence. Studies suggest that the creatures, which have some of the largest brains of any invertebrate, are capable of self-control and of remembering their own experiences.

In other aquatic discoveries, the metabolism of sea otters works at a rate three times what might normally be expected from creatures their size to stay warm in frigid seas.

The family dog, master of hope.Ryan Christopher Jones for The New York Times

10. And finally, time to kick back.

The lessons that dogs can teach us. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter on 75 years of marriage. Drama students enter the real world. The Weekender is full of great reads, handpicked for you.

Our editors also suggest these 10 new books, our pop critics' latest music picks, "The First Wives Club" and more.

Did you follow the news this week? Test your knowledge. And here's the front page of our Sunday paper, the Sunday Review from Opinion and today's Mini Crossword and Spelling Bee. If you're in the mood to play more, find all our games here.

Hope your week brings good cheer.

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