The Evening: More Epstein turmoil

February 9, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

Britain’s leader faces pressure to resign
California tries to help its mountain lions
Plus, a new Olympic record

Keir Starmer speaks at a lectern in front of an audience.

Pool photo by Peter Nicholls

Britain’s prime minister faces pressure over Epstein turmoil

Several top officials in Britain’s government rushed today to declare their support for Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose grip on power appeared to be under threat.

Yesterday, Starmer’s chief of staff resigned over his role in the appointment of Peter Mandelson, the ambassador to the U.S. whom Starmer fired in September over his ties with the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Today, another one of Starmer’s top aides stepped down, and a senior member of his Labour movement publicly called on the prime minister to resign.

Recently released documents appear to show that in 2009, when Mandelson was a member of the government, he shared confidential information with Epstein. Mandelson is one of several high-profile figures whose ties to Epstein have received renewed scrutiny after the Justice Department released an enormous batch of documents last month.

The New York real estate mogul Andrew Farkas, for example, now says he regrets his longtime friendship with Epstein, whom he once called “one of the blessings” in his life. The new documents also show that Epstein’s companion, Ghislaine Maxwell, played an extensive role in supporting one of Bill Clinton’s signature post-White House endeavors, and reveal more about Epstein’s relationship to the president of Bard College.

In related news:

Maxwell, who is serving a federal sex-trafficking sentence, refused to answer questions from the House Oversight Committee.
Several members of Congress reviewed unredacted versions of the Epstein files. Representative Jamie Raskin, a Democrat, accused the Justice Department of “trying to sweep the entire thing under the rug” after viewing the files.

A convoy of olive-colored military vehicles with blue and white flags and people in uniform moves on a dirt road. The surrounding landscape is rocky and arid, with sparse trees and distant buildings.

Israeli soldiers near a settler outpost in the occupied West Bank village of Turmus Ayya in October. Daniel Berehulak/The New York Times

Israel gives itself more control over the West Bank

Israel’s security cabinet made unilateral changes yesterday that could allow Jewish settlers to more easily buy West Bank land and undercut the Palestinian Authority in parts of the territory that it administers. The measures appear to violate the Oslo Accords and challenge President Trump’s opposition to Israeli annexation of the territory.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is set to meet with Trump in Washington on Wednesday, did not announce the changes. That role went to Bezalel Smotrich, the far-right finance minister, and another official. “We are deepening our roots in all parts of the Land of Israel and burying the idea of a Palestinian state,” Smotrich said.

A hand holding an iPhone whose display shows the home screen of a website called Gab AI. “Ask Me Anything,” the screen invites, advertising “All the Top A.I. Models in One Place.”

Andria Lo for The New York Times

A.I. bots are often wrong, but they’re set to reshape medicine

A new study published today found that A.I. chatbots were no better than Google at guiding users toward correct or helpful health advice. The technology sometimes presented false information or dramatically changed its advice depending on slight changes in the wording of the questions.

But A.I. has already proved quite good at other tasks, like at reading scans and images — better than many doctors, in fact. That has forced many physicians to think about what human doctors will continue to be needed for.

Scenes from a reporter’s video about mountain lions, showing them in the whild and being tagged by scientists.

The New York Times

Can mountain lions survive as humans close in?

California officials are expected to declare this week that the state’s mountain lions are threatened under the state’s endangered species law. Their populations have become so beleaguered in part because of the highways built in their habitat.

We followed the story of P-121, a mountain lion who offers a glimpse into the challenges. One potential solution, a $114 million wildlife crossing that would be the largest of its kind in the world, is set to arrive near Los Angeles later this year.

More top news

Health: Mehmet Oz, who oversees Medicare and Medicaid, urged Americans to get vaccinated against measles.
New York: Workers at two hospital systems reached a tentative deal to end a monthlong strike involving thousands of nurses.
San Francisco: Teachers went on strike today for the first time in nearly half a century, closing public schools for roughly 50,000 students.
Weather: The Eastern U.S. is forecast to start coming out of its long cold snap today.
Iran: The authorities detained at least five prominent figures from the reformist opposition.
Japan: Sanae Takaichi, the country’s first female prime minister, led her party to its biggest electoral victory ever. Here’s how.
Caffeine: A couple of cups of coffee or tea a day can lower the risk of dementia, a large new study found.
Africa: A year ago, the rebel group M23 took over the city of Goma in Democratic Republic of Congo. We found people there struggling to regain a sense of normalcy.
Arizona: The “Today” anchor Savannah Guthrie released a video asking for the public’s help in the disappearance of her mother, Nancy.

THE LATEST FROM THE OLYMPICS

A woman in an orange and blue speedskating uniform that reds “NED” closes her eyes and cups her hands in front of her face.

Vincent Alban/The New York Times

At the Winter Games in Italy today, Jutta Leerdam set an Olympic record in women’s 1000-meter speedskating. Follow our live coverage, and check out the medal results.

Several athletes have had their medals fall off their ribbons while celebrating. Organizers are trying to find the problem.
Only one skater in history has landed the quad axel in competition. Slow-motion video shows how Ilia Malinin does it, and our profile shows how he got here.

TIME TO UNWIND

Bad Bunny, wearing all white, performs on top of a car at the Super Bowl halftime show as backup dancers surround the car and wave their arms.

Doug Mills/The New York Times

A showcase of Puerto Rican pride at the Super Bowl

Last night’s Super Bowl was a one-sided affair: The Seattle Seahawks bullied their way to a title. But the halftime performance from the Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny left plenty for people to talk about.

The 13-minute performance was almost entirely in Spanish. It included a real wedding, laborers chopping down sugar cane — once Puerto Rico’s cash crop — and sparking utility poles, a nod to the 2017 blackouts that crippled the territory. It was a novel decision, our critic wrote, for Bad Bunny to turn the show into an intimate history lesson. Here’s a rundown of the best and worst parts of the show.

A brown plastic baby figurine sits on top of a braided cake covered in purple, green and yellow sprinkles.

Annie Flanagan for The New York Times

What’s inside a king cake? Not everyone agrees.

New Orleans’s famous king cakes — churned out by the thousands between Three Kings’ Day on Jan. 6 and Mardi Gras — are filled with sugar, butter and cinnamon, drizzled with icing and dusted with purple, green and gold sugar.

The final ingredient is a small plastic baby. Tradition dictates that whoever finds the baby is crowned queen or king of the party and tasked with providing the next king cake. Many people believe the baby symbolizes Jesus. But others in New Orleans, including the man who popularized the practice, insist that’s not the case: “It was just a trinket that happened to be a baby.”

Wallace Shawn, wearing a black top, sits at a table in a restaurant with a glass of juice and a red place mat in front of him.

Sean Donnola

Dinner table topics

Wallace Shawn: He’s often recognized for screen roles like “The Princess Bride,” but his work as a playwright shows more of his true self.
“Iron Lung”: A YouTuber’s movie beat “Melania” at the box office. Here’s how.
Wild for Harry Styles: The singer is doing a 30-night residency in New York City. Fans have made their travel plans.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Rows of macaroons, dipped in chocolate and coated with almonds, sit on parchment paper.

Kelly Marshall for The New York Times

Cook: These coconut almond macaroons are a joyful winter treat.

Watch: “Eko” is one of the