Speaking publicly for the first time in two days, a visibly angry President Vladimir Putin denounced as “blackmail” a weekend rebellion by the Wagner mercenary group but suggested leniency for the fighters who took part.
“They wanted Russians to fight each other,” Putin said in a televised address. “They rubbed their hands, dreaming of taking revenge for their failures at the front and during the so-called counteroffensive. But they miscalculated,” he said, thanking the Russian military.
The group’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed in an audio message earlier that he had no intention of ousting Putin with his march on Moscow. He said that he was only protesting a new law that would require his fighters to sign contracts with the government by July 1, effectively halting Wagner’s operations in Ukraine.
Prigozhin’s location was unknown, and it was unclear whether he would face criminal charges. Although the revolt was halted, it showed that Putin’s hold over the elite coalition that keeps him in power is under stress, with unpredictable consequences.
In Washington, President Biden said the U.S. and its allies had “nothing to do” with the uprising. “This was part of a struggle within the Russian system,” he said, adding that he had instructed his national security team to “prepare for a range of scenarios.”
Two people died in the Texas heat
A boy and his stepfather died during a hiking trip in Big Bend National Park in Texas on Friday as temperatures there rose to 119 degrees Fahrenheit — the second-highest mark ever recorded in the state. Over the next week, dangerous levels of heat are expected in the South, West and Midwest, including in 79 major cities. We’re tracking the heat index here.
Separately, new calculations suggest that pipes and drainage systems in many big U.S. cities can’t handle rainstorms supercharged by climate change. Nationwide, 12.6 million properties could face flooding despite not being federally required to be insured for it.
A.I. moves into the doctor’s office and the classroom
ChatGPT-style artificial intelligence is coming to health care, and the vision of how it could advance medical care is inspiring. But for now, the best use of A.I. is to ease the burden of record-keeping, billing and other tasks that take doctors hours a day and contribute to burnout.
Many schools scrambled this year to block or limit the use of chatbots in classrooms, but Newark Public Schools is taking a different approach. Teachers are testing an A.I.-assisted tutoring bot developed by Khan Academy, whose online lessons are used by hundreds of districts. The preliminary report card reads: “could use improvement.”
A glimpse of life without abortion access
The tiny U.S. territory of Guam in the western Pacific Ocean is thousands of miles from the nearest state and has no resident doctors who perform abortions. Court decisions could cut access to pills, the only legal option left. Forces on both sides of the abortion debate say that the island of 154,000 people is on track to become the purest example of what life would be like under a near-total abortion ban.
More top news
Plea: Anderson Lee Aldrich pleaded guilty to charges of murder and attempted murder in last year’s deadly shooting an L.G.B.T.Q. bar in Colorado Springs.
Media: Fox News shook up its prime-time lineup, promoting Jesse Watters to fill Tucker Carlson’s old slot.
Guatemala: Bernardo Arévalo, a professorial lawmaker, stunned the establishment by advancing to a runoff in the presidential election against Sandra Torres, a former first lady.
Pakistan: The military fired three senior commanders and disciplined 15 officers over their conduct during protests that supported former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
New York: Congestion pricing in New York City cleared its final federal hurdle, all but ensuring that the nation’s first such program will begin next year.
Politics: State Senator Sarah McBride said that she would run for Delaware’s House seat. She would be the first openly transgender member of Congress.
Health: Facing a shortage of cancer drugs, oncologists are advised to give priority to patients who have the best chance of survival.
Finance: Scores of middle- and lower-income countries like Suriname are grappling with a debt crisis, but aid is often held up by conflict between Western institutions and China.
Obituary: John Goodenough, who shared the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his crucial role in developing the revolutionary lithium-ion battery, died at age 100.
EVENING WIND DOWN
How to tank a book before it’s published
The website Goodreads, a cross between a social media platform and a review site like Yelp, has been a boon for publishers hoping to generate excitement for books. But those same features can be weaponized by review bombing, in which a flood of negative comments and one-star reviews that can derail a book’s publication long before its release. Sometimes, the reviewers haven’t even read the work.
“It may look like a bunch of one-star reviews on Goodreads, but these are broader campaigns of harassment,” said Cecilia Rabess, author of “Everything’s Fine,” above. “People were very keen not just to attack the work, but to attack me as well.”
A Cuban boxer takes his first pro steps
Andy Cruz is one of the most accomplished fighters ever to emerge from Cuba’s celebrated boxing program. Along with his Olympic gold medal, he has three amateur world titles and has twice won at the Pan American Games.
After falling out with Cuba’s boxing federation, Cruz made it to Philadelphia, where he’s learning to box like a pro. He will make his professional debut on July 15 in a 10-round bout against Juan Carlos Burgos, a hardened veteran with a 35-7-3 record.
Dinner table topics
All you can eat: The buffet is making a comeback after many restaurants used the pandemic break to spruce up their spreads.
Manhattan tug of war: Celebrities are fighting to preserve a famous church on the Upper West Side. Its congregants want to tear it down and sell it.
The chills: Shirley Jackson’s unsettling story “The Lottery,” published 75 years ago, still gets under readers’ skins. Stephen King, David Sedaris and others explain how.
Umbria’s treasures: Travel by train to see Orvieto, Perugia and Assisi in the region known as Italy’s green heart.
WHAT TO DO TONIGHT
Cook: This shish kebab is marinated in yogurt and tomato and punched up with lively spices.
Watch: The 20th season of “The Bachelorette” premieres tonight on ABC.
Read: Check out these three swoonworthy summer romance novels.
Listen: “Chemistry,” Kelly Clarkson’s first pop music album since 2017, draws on familiar formulas.
Fold: Google’s $1,800 gadget proves that people might want smartphones with bendable screens.
Keep cool: These treatments can help curb excessive sweating.
Wear: How short is too short for men’s pants? It depends.
Play: Today’s Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. For more, find all our games here.
ONE LAST THING
Binge (on shows and food) in comfort
For better or worse, eating in front of the TV is an American tradition. It got a huge boost in the 1950s from a company called Swanson, makers of the infamous TV dinners on divided aluminum trays.
Since then, dinner and a show has come a long way thanks to better furniture, like coffee tables, ottomans and side tables. So, if you sometimes take a plate and a beverage into the living room, take a look at how these New Yorkers are set up.
Have a contented evening.
Thanks for reading. Matthew Cullen will be back tomorrow. — Justin
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