The Daily Folgen

Last week, the Russian authorities announced that Aleksei A. Navalny, Russia’s most prominent opposition leader and an unflinching critic of President Vladimir V. Putin, had died in a remote Arctic prison at the age of 47.Yevgenia Albats, his friend, discusses how Mr. Navalny became a political force and what it means for his country that he is gone.Guest: Yevgenia Albats, a Russian investigative journalist and a friend of Mr. Navalny.Background reading: Who was Aleksei Navalny?The sudden death of Mr. Navalny left a vacuum in Russia’s opposition. His widow, Yulia Navalnaya, signaled that she would try to fill the void.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Over the past few weeks, a growing sense of alarm across Europe over the future of the continent’s security has turned into outright panic.As Russia advances on the battlefield in Ukraine, the U.S. Congress has refused to pass billions of dollars in new funding for Ukraine’s war effort and Donald Trump has warned European leaders that if they do not pay what he considers their fair share toward NATO, he would not protect them from Russian aggression.Steven Erlanger, the chief diplomatic correspondent for The Times, discusses Europe’s plans to defend itself against Russia without the help of the United States.Guest: Steven Erlanger, the chief diplomatic correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: In Europe, there is a dawning recognition that the continent urgently needs to step up its own defense, especially as the U.S. wavers, but the commitments still are not coming.Europe wants to stand on its own militarily. Is it too little, too late?For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This episode contains strong language and descriptions of war.After months of telling residents in the Gaza Strip to move south for safety, Israel now says it plans to invade Rafah, the territory’s southernmost city. More than a million people are effectively trapped there without any clear idea of where to go.Two Gazans describe what it is like to live in Rafah right now.Guest: Ghada al-Kurd and Hussein Owda, who are among more than a million people sheltering in Rafah.Background reading: Israel’s allies and others have warned against an offensive, saying that the safety of the civilians who have sought shelter in the far south of Gaza is paramount.Palestinians in Rafah described a “night full of horror” as Israeli strikes pummeled the area during an Israeli hostage rescue operation.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.