Your Tuesday Briefing

View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Tuesday, October 17, 2017 [NYTimes.com »]( Europe Edition [Your Tuesday Briefing]( By PATRICK BOEHLER Good morning. Here’s what you need to know: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • Arab and Turkmen residents of Kirkuk fired weapons into the air in celebration, [welcoming the Iraqi government troops that ousted Kurdish forces]( from the contested city and nearby oil fields. According to reports from hospitals, 22 Kurdish pesh merga fighters were killed in the assault, along with seven Iraqi soldiers. The big question now is whether the remaining Kurdish forces will fight on or back off. Analysts said the United States would probably sit out the dispute between its two allies. _____ Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • In Malta, an investigative journalist [was killed in a car bombing]( that shocked the island nation and was widely condemned across Europe. The journalist, Daphne Caruana Galizia, exposed Malta’s links to offshore tax havens using the [leaked Panama Papers](. Her final blog post had been published about a half-hour before the explosion. _____ Juan Carlos Hidalgo/European Pressphoto Agency • Catalonia’s leader, Carles Puigdemont, [declined to clarify whether independence had been declared]( and asked Madrid to negotiate. The central government gave him until Thursday to clarify his position. Meanwhile, a judge ordered the leaders of Catalonia’s two biggest independence movements, above, to be detained without bail pending possible sedition charges. The main separatist movements said that they planned to demonstrate today and called for a work stoppage at noon to protest the detention of the two leaders. Our correspondent [explains the stakes of the dispute](. _____ Hans Punz/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • Europe’s new normal. That’s what our [correspondents see in the lurch to the right in Austria’s election]( on Sunday amid a more widespread resurgence of nationalism and populism in Europe. Still, [Sebastian Kurz, the 31-year-old likely to become Austria’s next chancellor]( is pro-European. And the populist Freedom Party, his probable coalition partner, has largely dropped its euroskepticism after losing last year’s presidential election. Above, the Freedom Party’s leaders celebrating the vote’s outcome. [Here’s a visual look]( at the rise of nationalist parties across the Continent. _____ Robin Dienel/Carnegie Institution for Science • Huge news from space: Astronomers have captured images of “the greatest fireworks show in the universe,” [the collision of two neutron stars](. The cosmic crash, which took place 130 million light-years from Earth, rattled space-time. Above, an artist’s depiction. Scientists around the world scrambled to document the event, a kilonova, which offered them a view into the kind of “cosmic forge” where elements like gold, silver, platinum and uranium were minted billions of years ago. Business Hurricane Energy • The geologist Robert Trice, above, is on a quixotic quest to prove that [undiscovered troves of oil still lie in British waters](. • Netflix [beat analysts’ earnings expectations]( and announced that it planned to spend up to $8 billion on content next year. • Kimbal Musk, whose brother Elon launches rockets, is betting millions of dollars on [millennials rejecting what he calls industrial food](. • Nike’s chief of design invited us into his office, where he [talked about his dyslexia, his doodling and the future of design](. • Here’s a snapshot of [global markets](. In the News Ricardo Graca/European Pressphoto Agency • At least 35 people have been killed and dozens more injured by wildfires in Portugal and northern Spain, as strong winds from the tropical cyclone Ophelia fanned blazes. [[The New York Times]( • In Ireland, Ophelia, one of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the northeastern Atlantic, unleashed strong winds and rain that killed at least three people. The storm moved on to hit western Scotland. [[The New York Times]( • In Russia, a gay man who said that he had been abducted and tortured in Chechnya has spoken out. A group helping people escape persecution there said that 15 gay men remained unaccounted for. [[The New York Times]( • Talk of sexual misconduct in the wake of the [Harvey Weinstein accusations]( has flooded social media as countless women, and men, are using the hashtag [#MeToo]( to recount their experiences. [[The New York Times]( • Twin bombings in Somalia on Saturday have raised concerns about the resurgence of the Shabab, an Islamist militia. [[The New York Times]( • American forces killed dozens of Islamic State members in a strike on two training camps in Yemen, the Pentagon said. [[Reuters]( • In Washington, a new détente between President Trump and Senator Mitch McConnell highlighted the importance of the [White House tax plan]( for Senate Republicans. [[The New York Times]( • Papa Massata Diack, a sports official wanted in France, met our reporter in Senegal to discuss accusations that he participated in one of the biggest corruption schemes in global sports. [[The New York Times]( Smarter Living Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life. Sarah Green • Attempts to create pristine environments for children [encourage allergies]( and asthma. • Tough workout? Try [these five cheap(ish) things]( to speed up recovery. • Recipe of the day: This [pumpkin bundt cake with a maple brown-butter glaze]( is full of warm fall spices. Noteworthy Chad Batka for The New York Times • Barack and Michelle Obama have [chosen the artists who will paint their official portraits](. Mr. Obama chose Kehinde Wiley, above, the art-world star who depicts his subjects with vibrant color and historical sweep. • Nicki Minaj, the queen of hip-hop, has fought her way to the top of the music industry [without compromise](. • Fish can get depressed, just like us, and that [could make them a good model organism]( for studying depression in people. • Finally, a writer shares the [emotional solace she found on some of Norway’s most scenic remote roads]( which feature unique installations conceived by young emerging architects. Back Story Clockwise, from top left: Lotte Hansen; Weidenfeld Nicolson; Hamish Hamilton; Sarah Wood; Bloomsbury Publishing and JM Originals The [Man Booker Prize]( which honors the best novel written in English and published in Britain, will be announced today. [The authors and titles on this year’s shortlist]( above, clockwise from top left, are: “[4 3 2 1]( by Paul Auster; “[History of Wolves]( by Emily Fridlund; “[Exit West]( by Mohsin Hamid; “[Autumn]( by Ali Smith; “[Lincoln in the Bardo]( by George Saunders; and “[Elmet]( by Fiona Mozley. First awarded in 1969, the Booker McConnell Prize was named for the multinational company that established it, as an effort [to rival the Prix Goncourt in France](. In 2002, sponsorship passed to the Man Group, an investment management firm, which added its name to the title. The award was initially open only to writers from Britain, Ireland, Zimbabwe and the Commonwealth. Eligibility expanded in 2014 to include any English-language novelist, [raising concerns that it would become dominated by Americans](. (Since then, one U.S. novel — [Paul Beatty’s “The Sellout”]( has won. Half of the authors on this year’s shortlist are Americans.) Winners receive 50,000 pounds, or about $66,000. Howard Jacobson, who won in 2010 for “[The Finkler Question]( [told The Guardian]( he was going to spend the prize money on his wife: “Have you seen the price of handbags?” Sara Aridi contributed reporting. _____ Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings and updated online. This briefing was prepared for the European morning. [Browse past briefings here](. We also have briefings timed for the [Australian]( [Asian]( and [American]( mornings. ([Here’s our colleague sharing]( his experience writing the U.S. edition.) You can sign up for these and other Times newsletters [here](. 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