Wrongfully Detained Americans Arrive Home: Inside the Prisoner Swap
The GOATs: Biles and Ledecky win big in Paris
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Good morning,
Letโs go girls! Yesterday US gymnast Simone Biles and swimmer Katie Ledecky both broke records in Paris.
Biles became just the third woman in history to win the women's individual all-around twice! And she secured her title as the most decorated American gymnast. At 27, she is also the first woman over age 20 to do it in the last 50 years.
She started strong with a massive 15.766 on vault, struggled on uneven bars briefly putting her in second place, but bounced back on beam and put up a massive performance on floor to win! Brazilโs Rebeca Andrade took second and American Suni Lee won bronze.
Ledecky won her 13th medal when grabbing the silver on the 4x200 relay team. That makes her the most decorated American female Olympian in history!
Have a great weekend!
Mosheh, Jill, & Lauren
PS: Donโt forget to refer friends & family to subscribe to the Mo Newsletterโฆ you could get free Mo News merch โ DETAILS at the bottom of this newsletter!
๐ MASSIVE SEVEN COUNTRY PRISONER SWAP BRINGS WRONGLY DETAINED AMERICANS HOME
In the biggest prisoner swap since the Cold War, three wrongly detained Americans are home. Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former US Marine Paul Whelan, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist Alsu Kurmasheva were freed on Thursday from Russian captivity.
President Biden and VP Harris greeted them as they landed just before midnight at Joint Base Andrews.
The multi-country exchange involved 24 prisoners (and two children of Russian spies who were in foster care) who had been in seven different countries. It took place at an airport in Ankara, Turkey, after years of negotiations.
President Biden said the elaborate deal between the US, Germany, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Belarus and Russia demonstrates the importance of American allies and diplomacy.
THE ELABORATE OPERATION
โThe deal that secured their freedom was a feat of diplomacy,โ Biden said, adding that it showed the importance of allies (Germany and others had to give up legitimately held Russian spies, hackers and assassins as part of the exchanges). It follows years of painstaking negotiations involving the leaders of multiple governments. The whole time, the families of the detainees never gave up their fight.
The tick tock: An hour before Biden announced he was going to step down from the 2024 presidential raceโ and while recovering from Covid-19โ he called Sloveniaโs prime minister to secure the pardons of two convicted Russian spies needed in the swap.
Germany and the US drafted the deal by paper, and hand-delivered copies from White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan's office to his counterpart in Germany.
The key to the deal: Vadim Krasikov. The Russian hit man was serving a life sentence in a German prison since he shot and killed a former Chechen rebel in broad daylight at a park in Berlin in 2019 on the order of the Kremlin. His release was critical to any deal.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview earlier this year that he was interested in freeing a โpatriotโ held in Germany.
Itโs personal: In a thoroughly-reported piece on the exchange, the WSJ says that Gershkovichโs mother met with German Chancellor Scholzโs chief of staff seeking help in January. โYou have the key,โ she said.
That same day, Scholz and Biden met in the White House to discuss the matter. By Feb. 2, Scholz told Biden, โFor you, I will do this.โ
RELEASED BY RUSSIA
On the American side, those three American citizens were released along with US green card holder Vladimir Kara-Murza, a British-Russian dissident and Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist. Hereโs some info about the others:
Leaving Russia: Multiple people released from Russia worked with opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in February at an Arctic penal colony.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Thursday that the US wanted Navalny to be a part of the exchange, before he died under mysterious circumstances.
Others include activists, opposition figures, a 19-year-old accused of taking photos of military sites, a lawyer and an artist.
Shooting his shot: When filling out a formal Russian clemency request to finalize his release, Gershkovich โ ever the journalist โ added a direct interview request for Putin.
Going Back To Russia: Other Russian prisoners being returned include a person at the center of a nearly $100 million hacking scheme, smugglers, and spies.
HOW WE GOT HERE
Gershkovich, detained in March of last year while reporting, and Whelan, detained in 2018 while attending a friendโs wedding, both faced 16-year prison sentences in Russia on espionage charges.
Kurmasheva was charged with spreading false information after being detained in June of 2023 while visiting her aging mother and sentenced to 6.5 years in prison.
They were all sham trials, held in secret.
WIN FOR BIDEN
Biden took a dig at former President Trump on Thursday saying, โFor anyone who questions [whether] allies matter: They do. They matter. And today is a powerful example of why itโs vital to have friends in this world.โ
Trump has criticized US membership in NATO. The four countries that helped the US secure the deal are all members of the alliance with the US. He has also said that he would get a deal for detained Americans without a swap. Though, in several prisoner deals during his presidency, Trump did green light the return of Iranians, Houthis and Taliban prisoners for Americans.
Bidenโs response to the fact that he got Whelan out: โWhy didnโt he do it when he was president?โ
โณ SPEED READ
๐จNATION
๐ Senate GOP blocks bill aimed at expanding child tax credit (ABC NEWS)
๐ Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer rolls out 'No Kings Act' to eliminate presidential immunity (NBC NEWS)
๐ Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro becomes odds-on betting favorite to become Kamala Harris' vice president (USA TODAY) The Harris vetting team has met with 6 potential VP picks as the selection process nears its end (NBC NEWS)
๐ Sonya Masseyโs mom called 911 to report her daughter was having a mental breakdown the day before she was killed (CNN)
๐ AROUND THE WORLD
๐ Diplomatic efforts are underway to persuade Maduro to release Venezuela election vote tallies (AP)
๐ Hamas military leader Mohammad Deif, one of the architects of Oct. 7 attack, confirmed killed by Israel (NBC NEWS)
๐ 'Enough is enough' : Nigerians take to street in protest over a cost-of-living crisis (NPR)
๐ British prime minister announces policing plan to deal with violence after fatal stabbing of girls (BBC)
๐ฑBUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH
๐ California wildfire activity is nearly 3,000% higher this year as "increasingly critical" conditions fan the Park Fire (CBS NEWS)
๐ Dow closes nearly 500 points lower Thursday as investors recession fears awaken (NBC NEWS)
๐ US proposes ban on airline fees for seating parents next to kids (NPR)
๐ Soaring coffee prices foretell a financial grind (REUTERS)
๐ฌ SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
๐ How Snoop Dogg became a fixture at the Paris Olympics (NBC)
๐ Cardi B reveals she's pregnant, expecting her third baby after filing for divorce from Offset (PEOPLE)
๐ Carrie Underwood joining โAmerican Idolโ as judge, replacing Katy Perry (TODAY)
๐ Britney Spears memoir The Woman in Me headed to the big screen (GUARDIAN)
๐ Chrissy Teigen and John Legendโs son Miles diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (CNN)
๐ CHEERS TO THE FREAKIN WEEKEND
WHAT WEโRE WATCHING: Mosheh: The Olympics ~ Peacock; Jill: Lady in the Lake on Apple TV; Lauren: Deadpool & Wolverine
WHAT WEโRE READING: Mosheh: The Movement, How Womenโs Liberation Transformed America ~ Clara Bingham; Lauren: A Swim In A Pond In The Rain ~ George Saunders; Jill: The Winner ~ Teddy Wayne
WHAT WEโRE EATING: Mosheh (just back from Montana): Sweet Peaks Ice Cream; Big Dipper Ice Cream; Huckleberry Jam Lauren: Doozieโs ice cream in Mt. Pleasant, MI; Jill: A one pan chicken thigh recipe