| |  |  | The Reuters Daily Briefing | Thursday, May 20, 2021 by Linda Noakes | Hello Here's what you need to know. How Russia's new Gulag tries to break convicts like Navalny, how Ford burned $12 billion in Brazil, and is bitcoin a bust or a buy? | | | | | Today's biggest stories  A cicada from Brood X clings to a tree after emerging from 17 years underground to join the trillions of cicadas that will surface in eastern states in the coming weeks, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, May 19, 2021. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts U.S. The U.S. House of Representatives voted to create an independent commission to probe the deadly January 6 attack on the Capitol by former President Donald Trump’s supporters, as one in six Republicans defied party leaders’ attempts to block it.
By joining forces in a newly combined criminal probe of Trump’s finances, the New York attorney general and the Manhattan district attorney have opened new avenues to sharing critical information that could speed indictments in the sprawling investigation.
Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into law a "fetal heartbeat" abortion bill that bans the procedure after about six weeks of pregnancy and grants citizens the right to sue doctors who perform abortions past that point.
Newly published bodycam footage shows Louisiana state troopers punching, dragging and stunning a Black man who died in custody two years ago, raising fresh questions about a case that is already the subject of a federal civil rights investigation.
Heavy rain drenched dozens of migrants who crossed the Rio Grande river into La Joya, Texas, as storms complicated an already chaotic scene. The number of people crossing the southern border hit a 20-year high in April, creating a political and humanitarian challenge for President Joe Biden
|  A Moroccan boy swims using bottles as a float near the fence between the Spanish-Moroccan border in Ceuta, Spain, May 19, 2021. REUTERS/Jon Nazca WORLD Spain's defence minister has accused Morocco of "blackmail" over its passivity in the face of a surge in migrant arrivals in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta earlier this week. In one of the most dramatic moments since the surge began, Reuters TV showed a boy swimming to Ceuta's beach with a dozen empty plastic bottles tied to his body.
Former inmates of the jail holding Vladimir Putin's main rival have told Reuters they were subjected to beatings, medical neglect and severe psychological pressure. “They are crushing the prisoner as an individual," says a former prisons inspector. In a special report, we investigate Russia's new Gulag.
Diplomatic moves towards a ceasefire in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict gathered pace after U.S. President Joe Biden called for a de-escalation, but Israel kept up its bombardment of Gaza and Hamas rocket fire resumed after a pause.
India has ordered tighter surveillance of a rare fungal disease hitting COVID-19 patients, piling pressure on hospitals struggling with the world's highest number of daily coronavirus infections. Doctors believe that the use of steroids could be causing the rash of cases.
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MARKETS
A selloff in cryptocurrencies, high-growth stocks and other high-flying assets may be signaling a more cautious outlook among market participants after a stretch of rampant exuberance, investors and analysts say.
Bitcoin regained some lost ground to trade near $40,000, a day after a brutal selloff on concerns over tighter regulation in China and unease over the extent of leveraged positions in the cryptocurrency world.
The market value of Tesla's bitcoin holdings has fallen by half to $1.26 billion, close to the electric car maker's purchase cost. Chief Executive Elon Musk signaled that the company is still not selling, tweeting symbols for diamond hands to his 55.3 million followers.
Our markets team looks at whether bitcoin is a bust or a buy and Breakingviews columnist John Foley argues that the cryptocurrency is, for now, the worst of all financial worlds.
BUSINESS
A century ago Henry Ford established the town of Fordlandia in Brazil, hoping to become an Amazonian rubber baron, but retreated deep in the red. Now the automaker he founded is once again licking its Brazilian wounds.
Zhang Yiming will step down as chief executive of TikTok-owner ByteDance, leaving the task of navigating a rising number of Big Tech regulations worldwide to college roommate, long-time colleague and current human resources head Liang Rubo.
A court in Amsterdam has ordered fugitive former car executive Carlos Ghosn to repay Nissan and Mitsubishi almost $6.1 million in wages he received from their Dutch registered joint venture in 2018.
A decade ago, private equity couldn't get enough of plastic packaging. They snapped up companies making bags, films and trays to contain everything from food and fashion to drink and drugs. Now many buyout firms are steering clear, and some of those holding assets are struggling to offload them at what they consider attractive prices.
| | | | | | | | | Quote of the day "Being in a big, dark room with strangers - screaming and laughing and experiencing the power of that - is a human, natural need" J.J. Abrams 'Star Wars' director Hollywood rallies movie-goers | | | | Video of the day  'You can help us get justice,' Tulsa massacre survivors tell Congress Viola Fletcher, her younger brother Hughes Van Ellis and Lessie Benningfield Randle recounted their experiences surviving the massacre 100 years ago when a white mob killed and burned its way through one of the largest and wealthiest Black communities in the United States. | | | | And finally… Drained lake reveals remnants of lost Italian village  The eerie image of a church bell tower emerging from Lake Resia became so famous it inspired a book and a Netflix series. Now the remains of the surrounding village, which has been under water for more than 70 years, have been revealed again. | | | Thanks for spending part of your day with us. | | | | | |
