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Debate date, Gaza cease-fire pressure and Covid strikes gold

 
Today's politics story

Trump agrees to ABC debate with Harris, proposes 2 more

What happened
Donald Trump ended weeks of self-fueled speculation on Thursday and agreed to meet Kamala Harris for a Sept. 10 debate on ABC, the date and network previously scheduled for his second debate with President Joe Biden. Trump also proposed two additional debates with Harris to be hosted by Fox News on Sept. 4 and NBC on Sept. 25.

Who said what
Harris and Trump have both "confirmed they will attend the ABC debate" on Sept. 10, the network said. Last week, Trump said he would not debate on ABC and would face Harris on Sept. 4 on Fox News or "I won't see her at all."

Trump agreed to the ABC debate and proposed the other two during a "combative" and "meandering hour-long news conference" at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, The Washington Post said. Asked what he would do if Harris agreed only to the ABC debate, Trump said he didn't "know how that's gonna work out." Harris told reporters in Michigan she was "looking forward" to the Sept. 10 debate, was "glad" Trump had "finally committed" to it and "hope he shows up." She said she was "happy" to discuss "an additional debate after Sept. 10." 

What next?
A Harris campaign official "reiterated their position that a Sept. 4 Fox debate is off the table" and said "discussions on future debates depend on Trump's participating in the Sept. 10 debate on ABC," Reuters said. The 90-minute ABC debate will be the "latest crucial moment in an already unpredictable presidential campaign," The New York Times said. It's "expected to be held in Philadelphia," moderated by David Muir and Linsey Davis, and "will probably be held without a live audience." 

CBS, with Trump's backing, is discussing dates for a vice-presidential debate between J.D. Vance and Tim Walz, The Associated Press said.

 
 
Today's international story

US, Arab allies tell Israel and Hamas to seal a deal

What happened
The leaders of the U.S., Qatar and Egypt released a joint statement on Thursday demanding that Israel and Hamas return to stalled talks on the war in Gaza, saying "only the details" for a cease-fire remain to be ironed out and "there is no further time to waste, nor excuses from any party for further delay." The proposed negotiations start Aug. 15 in either Cairo or Doha, Qatar. 

Who said what
"It is time to release the hostages, begin the cease-fire and implement this agreement," President Joe Biden, Egypt President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Qatari Emir Tamim al-Thani said in the joint statement. A senior Biden administration official said "the bulk of the work has been done and the deal is really there," though "about four or five issues" remain unresolved.

Progress toward a deal has been "complicated by the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, who had been leading the negotiations," The New York Times said.

What next?
Hamas did not respond to the letter. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he will send a delegation next week. But "critics of Netanyahu accuse him of slow-rolling talks," The Associated Press said. During mediated negotiations in Rome two weeks ago, The Washington Post said, the Israeli team "presented new demands to the framework," leaving U.S. officials "from Biden on down" and Israeli military and political leaders "furious at Netanyahu's last-minute ultimatum."

 
 
Today's SPORTS Story

Lyles wins Olympic bronze in 200m, with Covid

What happened
American sprinter Noah Lyles finished third in the men's 200 meters at the Paris Olympics on Thursday, dashing expectations that he would add a second gold after his thrilling photo-finish win in the 100 meter sprint Sunday night. Then he collapsed to the ground, gasping for air, and left the track in a wheelchair. Lyles later said he tested positive for Covid-19 early Tuesday. Botswana's Letsile Tebogo won the race and his country's first-ever Olympic gold medal.

Who said what
The virus "definitely affected my performance," Lyles said, but "to be honest, I'm more proud of myself than anything for coming out and getting the bronze medal with Covid."

"We're left to wonder whether a healthy Lyles" would have won gold in both the 100 and 200, elevating him to a "track deity" alongside Jesse Owens, Carl Lewis and Usain Bolt, Jerry Brewer said at The Washington Post. Instead of becoming a "legend," Lyles "became a throwback to a time we've quickly forgotten."

What next?
"I believe this will be the end of my 2024 Olympics," Lyles said on Instagram, suggesting he won't run either the 4x100 relay or the 4x400. His premature exit "struck a sobering chord at a revitalized Olympics that were supposed to be all about the return of fans," The Associated Press said, reminding us "there will never be a 'post-Covid' Games."

 
 

It's not all bad

The U.S. women's gymnastics team had a furry friend by their side as they prepared for the Paris Olympic Games: Beacon, a golden retriever that helped manage athletes' stress levels. As part of USA Gymnastics' mental health program, Beacon provided emotional support during training and competitions, boosting the team's morale and performance and earning him "celebrity standing in both gymnastic and dog-loving circles," The Guardian said. His calming presence seems to have worked, as the squad earned eight medals overall.

 
 
Under the radar

Law enforcement has increasingly been using artificial intelligence tools to assist in solving crimes. Now one of these tools, a software program known as Cybercheck, is in the hot seat.

Cybercheck uses "advanced machine learning algorithms to analyze vast amounts of data, including witness statements, digital forensic evidence, mobile signaling and other cyber profile data," according to its website. This may help find evidence that human investigators may have missed, Business Insider said, but many "fates were determined in part by Cybercheck's secret algorithm," and several investigators have alleged problems with the AI tool. 

In one case, a man named Adarus Black was sentenced to life in prison after a jury, citing triangulated-cellphone-data analysis from Cybercheck, found him guilty of a drive-by-shooting murder, despite physical evidence tying Black to the crime scene.

As Cybercheck's use has spread, defense lawyers have "questioned its accuracy and reliability," said NBC News. Its "methodology is opaque," and it "hasn't been independently vetted," though by 2023, the tool had been used in "nearly 8,000 cases spanning 40 states and nearly 300 agencies."

Some judges and prosecutors have pushed back against Cybercheck's use, but defense attorneys "face an uphill battle in trying to challenge the reliability of evidence generated using AI," said Business Insider.

The criminal justice system is "being asked to trust a company to present evidence that could eventually put people in prison," William Budington at the Electronic Frontier Foundation told NBC. This "goes against the right to due process."

 
 
On this day

August 9, 2014

Michael Brown, an 18-year-old Black man, was shot and killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, leading to nationally galvanizing civil unrest in the St. Louis suburb. The shooting kicked off a new reckoning over racism allegations in law enforcement. That reckoning has continued following recent incidents including the death of Sonya Massey in Springfield, Illinois, last month.

 
 
TODAY'S newspaperS

After Taylor Swift canceled three concerts in Austria due to a terrorist threat, "Swifties trade tears, and bracelets, in Vienna," The New York Times says on Friday's front page. The Washington Post also recounts tales of the "Eras Tour heartbreak," while the New York Post captions the Vienna incident "teeny bombers." In economic news, "Wall Street claws back with another sharp rally" after losses earlier this week, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says. The Wall Street Journal notes that "mortgage rates hit lowest level" in more than a year. "Jitters aside," USA Today says, the "economic stats" are "not so bad."

► See the newspaper front pages

 
 
Tall tale

Nobody expects the Spanish renovation!

The recent renovation of a historic Spanish church near Madrid sparked outrage among locals and restoration experts. Several features of the Ermita de Nuestra Señora del Mirón church were "crudely repainted," including a cherub that now has "simple facial features and bright red lips," Britain's Daily Mail said. This was not a "failed restoration" but more of an "attack on our heritage," said Francisco Manuel Espejo, the president of Spain's association of conservators and restorers.

 
 

Morning Report was written and edited by Theara Coleman, Nadia Croes, Catherine Garcia, Scott Hocker, Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, Justin Klawans, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz and Peter Weber, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek.

Image credits, from top: Joe Raedle / Getty Images; Matan Golan / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images; Jewel Samad / AFP via Getty Images; Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images