Author: NY TIMES

A physical relationship is nearly impossible for a hard-working Bangladeshi taxi driver and his wife, who longed for each other. Source link

Toyota said it has halted the global shipments of 10 vehicles after it discovered that a subsidiary had “irregularities” with testing of diesel engines used in the automobiles, the latest embarrassing problem to hit one of the world’s biggest automakers in recent months.A Toyota unit used software to measure horse power output that made “values appear smoother with less variation,” Toyota, the parent company, said in a statement. The vehicles “meet engine output standards,” and there is no need to stop using the engines or vehicles, the company said. The company named the affected models and engines, but did not…

If you were bored enough — a stultifying job, living with Mom after a bad breakup — you, too, might climb into a mysterious limo carrying Andy Samberg. You might even consider the offer: outwit assassins for 30 days and win $1 million.It’s a risk that Tommy, played by Jake Johnson, is willing to take in “Self Reliance,” the dark comedy on Hulu that he also wrote and directed.Johnson, 45, was antsy during the pandemic when he decided the time for this project was now.“When you get on this roller coaster, you don’t know how long you’re going to be…

Britain’s foreign secretary, David Cameron, raised the pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Wednesday to allow more channels for humanitarian relief to enter Gaza.Mr. Cameron made the case during a private meeting with Mr. Netanyahu in Jerusalem. In a statement Thursday morning, he said he had told Mr. Netanyahu that more crossings into Gaza needed to be opened to allow more trucks to enter.“The scale of suffering in Gaza is unimaginable,” Mr. Cameron said. “We need an immediate humanitarian pause to get aid in and hostages out, followed by a sustainable cease-fire, without a return to hostilities.”After…

Drone strike kills three U.S. service members in JordanThree U.S. service members were killed in Jordan yesterday and 25 others were injured in what the U.S. said was a drone strike from an Iran-backed militia. The deaths were the first U.S. military fatalities from hostile fire in the turmoil spilling over from Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza.The attack happened at a base near the Syrian border. Few details were immediately available, but the deaths of U.S. service members will almost certainly put more pressure on President Biden to respond more forcefully as turmoil grows in the Middle East after…

Who says you have to live in one place? Maybe a few tiny homes would be preferable.That’s what Robert Losonsky and Edith Wassenaar discovered when they traded a typical home in the Netherlands for several smaller ones, adopting a peripatetic lifestyle — one that prioritizes activities like surfing over work — in the process.Oddly enough, their embrace of small-scale living began with a hunt for more space.In 2017, they were living in a 1,500-square-foot apartment in an upscale neighborhood in The Hague. “But we started to work more and more from home,” said Mr. Losonsky, now 54, who had a…

In June 2021, the insurance plan for North Carolina state employees was paying for 2,800 people to take weight-loss drugs.Last year, it paid for nearly 25,000. Medications like Wegovy cost the North Carolina State Health Plan $100 million last year, rising seemingly out of nowhere to represent 10 percent of its spending on prescription drugs.“This is something we never anticipated,” said Dale Folwell, the state treasurer, whose office runs the health plan.Alarmed by the ballooning costs, the health plan’s governing board voted on Thursday to end all coverage of medications for weight loss, including Wegovy, which accounts for the vast…

On Tuesday, after days of tramping around Park City, Utah, griping about the movies and the logistical headaches this mountain resort town presents, I was transported into the Sundance Film Festival that I always hope for, the one in which a movie surprises and moves and maybe delights me, and so successfully makes good on its promise that, after the lights come up, the crowd delivers the festival version of hallelujah with a floor-shaking standing ovation. I admit, I wasn’t expecting that to happen when I walked into the new Will Ferrell joint.That would be “Will & Harper,” a documentary…

The director of the C.I.A. is set to make a renewed push for negotiations over the release of hostages held in Gaza and an extended cease-fire, according to U.S. officials, who said he would meet with senior Israeli, Egyptian and Qatari officials in Europe.The officials hope to close a wide gap between Israel and Hamas, especially on two issues: the length of any pause in fighting and the fate of Hamas leaders in Gaza, according to officials briefed on the talks.Here is a look at where the talks stand.How are the negotiations going?A weeklong truce in November allowed the release…

The derelict rail bridge stretches across a busy north London street, green foliage peeking out of the gaps between the beams overhead, where bright blue paint flakes from rusting steel.Farther east, the railway’s grand Victorian-era arches span a small slice of park wedged between two streets, where tents belonging to homeless people, a discarded mattress and broken bottles are scattered about.While the elevated train line and some of the areas it cuts through may look neglected now, if all goes according to plan, it will become the site of the Camden Highline, a planned public park that aims to turn…