Overnight, Israel agreed to a cease-fire with the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah — a major turning point in one of the wars the country has been fighting since Hamas attacked it on Oct. 7. But the war in Gaza shows no sign of ending, and Israel’s conduct there is coming under increased scrutiny.

A New York Times investigation has examined one controversial tactic: the Israeli use of Palestinian detainees as human shields.

Natan Odenheimer, a contributing reporter for The Times, explains what the investigation revealed, and what the tactic says about the nature of the conflict.

Guest: Natan Odenheimer, a contributing reporter for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• gaza-military-human-shields.html">A Times investigation found that Israeli soldiers and intelligence agents, throughout the war in Gaza, have regularly forced captured Palestinians to conduct life-threatening reconnaissance missions to avoid putting Israeli soldiers at risk on the battlefield.
• As the cease-fire in Lebanon takes effect, follow live updates.

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Now that Matt Gaetz has withdrawn from consideration as attorney general, President-elect Donald J. Trump’s most controversial cabinet pick is his selection of Pete Hegseth as secretary of defense.

Dave Philipps, who reports on war and the military for The Times, discusses three major deployments that shaped how Mr. Hegseth views the military — and why, if confirmed, he’s so dead-set on disrupting its leadership.

Guest: Dave Philipps, who reports about war, the military and veterans for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• His military experienceshegseth-defense-department.html"> transformed Mr. Hegseth from a critic of war crimes into a defender of the accused.
• defense-pete-hegseth.html">What to know about Mr. Hegseth, Trump’s pick for defense secretary.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

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President-elect Donald J. Trump has promised a radically different approach to foreign policy from that of the Biden administration. In Ukraine, he has pledged to end the war in a day.

But just weeks before he’s set to take office, the war has taken an unexpected turn.

Anton Troianovski, the Moscow bureau chief for The New York Times, discusses the conflict’s dangerous new phase.

Guest: Anton Troianovski, the Moscow bureau chief for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• ukraine-missiles.html">Tit-for-tat moves this week included the use of American-made ballistic missiles to strike inside Russia, and new nuclear threats from Moscow.
• As Ukraine fires U.S. missiles, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russiarussia-us-trump-putin.html"> has sent a chilling message.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

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After the movie “Free Willy” became a hit, word got out that the star of the film, a killer whale named Keiko, was sick and living in a tiny pool at a Mexican amusement park. Fans were outraged and pleaded for his release. “The Good Whale” tells the story of the wildly ambitious science experiment to return Keiko to the ocean — while the world watched.

An epic tale that starts in Mexico and ends in Norway, the six-episode series follows Keiko as he’s transported from country to country, each time landing in the hands of well-intentioned people who believe they know what’s best for him — people who still disagree, decades later, about whether they did the right thing.

“The Good Whale" is a new show from Serial Productions and The New York Times. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts, or follow it at https://lnk.to/good-whale 

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After just nine days as Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, Matt Gaetz has withdrawn from consideration.

Michael S. Schmidt, an investigative reporter for The Times, discusses the revelations and the reporting that doomed the prospective nomination of Gaetz, a former representative of Florida.

Guest: Michael S. Schmidt, an investigative reporter for The New York Times, covering Washington.

Background reading: 

• gaetz-withdraws-trump-attorney-general.html">Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration for attorney general.
• A federal inquiry tracedgaetz-venmo-payments-sex.html"> payments from Gaetz to women.

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Warning: This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence and death.

On Wednesday afternoon, a guilty verdict was reached in the death of the Georgia nursing student Laken Riley. A 26-year-old migrant from Venezuela was convicted.

Rick Rojas, the Atlanta bureau chief for The Times, discusses the case, and how it became a flashpoint in the national debate over border security.

Guest: Rick Rojas, the Atlanta bureau chief for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• Ms. Riley, 22, was attacked in February while running on a trail on the University of Georgia campus in Athens. Her killer wasriley-murder-trial-jose-ibarra-guilty.html"> sentenced to life in prison.
• Lawmakers in Georgiaimmigration-law-laken-riley.html"> approved tougher rules on immigration after the killing.

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For decades, breast augmentations have been one of the most popular cosmetic surgeries in the United States. But in recent years, a new trend has emerged: the breast reduction.

Lisa Miller, who covers personal and cultural approaches to health for The Times, discusses why the procedure has become so common.

Guest: Lisa Miller, a domestic correspondent for the Well section of The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• Are womenreduction-trend.html"> asserting their independence or capitulating to yet another impossible standard of beauty?

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Warning: this episode contains strong language.

For the past two weeks, Lynsea Garrison of “The Daily” has been talking to people who were part of a movement, known as the resistance, that opposed Donald Trump’s first term as president.

With Mr. Trump preparing to again retake the White House, she asked those past protesters how they might react this time.

Background reading: 

• Was Mr. Trump’s election a setback for women?feminism-harris-trump.html"> Even women do not agree.
• Nonprofits havenonprofits-resistance.html"> vowed a new resistance. Will donors pay up?

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President-elect Donald J. Trump has picked Representative Matt Gaetz to be his attorney general.

Robert Draper, who covers domestic politics for The Times, discusses what the nomination reveals about Mr. Trump’s promise for retribution and how far Republicans might be willing to go to help him get it.

Guest: Robert Draper, who covers domestic politics for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• The attorney general pick has setgaetz.html"> a new bar for in-your-face nominations.
• A vendetta overmccarthy-johnson-ethics-report.html"> the congressional ethics investigation into Mr. Gaetz helped sink the last speaker. The new speaker has moved to quash the report.

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