Tuesday: Boeing 737 Max 8s grounded

India, Brexit, Turkey View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Tuesday, March 12, 2019 [NYTimes.com »]( Asia Edition [Your Tuesday Briefing]( By ALISHA HARIDASANI GUPTA Good morning. Many airlines take their Boeing 737 Max 8 models out of service, Indians rally behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Turkey enters an economic recession. Here’s the latest: [Wreckage piled at the crash site of an Ethiopian Airlines flight south of Addis Ababa.]Wreckage piled at the crash site of an Ethiopian Airlines flight south of Addis Ababa. Mulugeta Ayene/Associated Press Many Boeing 737 Max 8s grounded after Ethiopian crash What brought an Ethiopian Airlines flight down just minutes after takeoff on Sunday, killing all 157 aboard, has not been determined. But while the investigation proceeds, at least 22 carriers have taken the Boeing model involved out of service, including all those operating in China and Indonesia. Follow our live coverage of the latest developments [here](. The accident was the second in recent months involving Boeing’s new 737 Max 8. In October, [a Lion Air flight crashed into the Java Sea]( shortly after takeoff. Aviation authorities have been looking into the possibility that incorrect data might have activated new anti-stall software that [kept pushing the nose downward]( — and that pilots may not have been made fully aware of. On the ground: The plane’s flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder have been recovered, Ethiopian Airlines said. The pilot sent out a distress call and was cleared to return to the airport shortly before the crash. Victims: The [passengers on the plane were from all parts of the world]( including professors from Kenya, an underwater archaeologist and U.N. workers from a variety of countries. Traveling soon? Here’s how to [find out if your next flight is on a Max 737](. And you can [send your questions about the plane]( to our reporters. ______ [Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a ceremony on the outskirts of Ahmedabad last week.]Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a ceremony on the outskirts of Ahmedabad last week. Sam Panthaky/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Conflict with Pakistan boosts Indian leader’s standing A month ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s chances of winning a second term seemed weakened. But after a suicide bombing in Kashmir set off weeks of military brinkmanship with Pakistan, even once-critical Indians have [started rallying behind him](. That India’s airstrikes probably missed their targets, and that a fighter jet was shot down by Pakistan, don’t seem to matter. “Whatever our criticisms about him regarding the economy and jobs, at the end of the day he has done an incredible job of delivering justice for the martyrs,” said a law student and first-time voter. Context: India has a Westminster-style parliamentary system. For Mr. Modi to return to power in the coming general elections, which start on April 11, he and his Bharatiya Janata Party need to win a majority of the 543 electable seats in the lower house, the Lok Sabha. The opposition Congress Party is trying to sway the conversation back toward domestic issues, like the sputtering economy and a spike in hate crimes against minority groups. ______ [Caracas, the Venezuelan capital, amid a large-scale power blackout that plunged large segments of the country into darkness.]Caracas, the Venezuelan capital, amid a large-scale power blackout that plunged large segments of the country into darkness. Meridith Kohut for The New York Times No end in sight for Venezuela’s power blackout The country’s electric system has been down for more than four days, plunging most of the country into sporadic darkness and adding [further uncertainty]( to the country’s economic and political crises. The country’s largest power producer went down on Thursday, and no date has been set to restart the plant. [Looting and protests have broken out]( and desperate patients have been begging doctors to be kept alive. Finger-pointing: President Nicolás Maduro blames U.S. sabotage and cyberattacks for the blackout, without providing evidence. Energy experts and Venezuelan power sector contractors dismiss that explanation, instead pointing to mismanagement and corruption. Related: The U.S. claimed that Mr. Maduro’s supporters had set fire to a convoy of humanitarian aid, but [an investigation by The Times]( found that the actual cause was more likely a Molotov cocktail thrown by an anti-government protester. ______ [Prime Minister Theresa May in London on Monday, a day before a critical vote in Parliament.]Prime Minister Theresa May in London on Monday, a day before a critical vote in Parliament. Jack Taylor/Getty Images May tries to salvage her Brexit plan Prime Minister Theresa May flew to Strasbourg, France, to attempt to [rescue her unpopular withdrawal plan](. It’s unclear what kind of concessions she can win in the 11th hour meeting that would prevent Parliament from voting the plan down today. What next? If she loses, Mrs. May has promised to offer a vote on whether Britain should leave the E.U. without a deal — a scenario that could brutally upend the country’s economy and one that a majority of lawmakers oppose. Related: A protest by customs officers in France has delayed Eurostar trains and backed up trucks for miles, providing Britain with [a cautionary tale of a post-Brexit world](. ______ Here’s what else is happening Afghanistan: As its peace talks with the U.S. in Doha, Qatar, entered an extraordinary third week, the Taliban pressed its offensive in the western Badghis Province, [killing 16 Afghan National Army soldiers and capturing 40]( — an entire company — in a large-scale attack. U.S.-China trade war: In a high-stakes diplomatic negotiations with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un, President Trump’s strategy of relying heavily on his own personality and ability to read people failed. The same strategy [faces a serious test with Mr. Xi](. Malaysia: An Indonesian woman who was accused two years ago of smearing a lethal nerve agent on Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half brother of the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport was [released without explanation](. The fate of a second suspect in the killing remains uncertain. [Turkish flags at an election rally by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week.]Turkish flags at an election rally by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week. Erdem Sahin/EPA, via Shutterstock Turkey: The country is officially [entering a recession]( with government figures showing two consecutive quarters of falling economic growth. The currency has tumbled and investor concerns are rising, a damaging combination for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of crucial elections at the end of the month. U.S. budget: President Trump sent Congress the largest spending plan in federal history, [requesting $4.75 trillion for the next fiscal year](. His proposal — which would increase military spending and fund a border wall with Mexico while sharply cutting domestic programs, like education and environmental protection — was declared dead on arrival by Democrats in the House and Senate. Tesla: Days after its chief executive, Elon Musk, announced that the carmaker would shut most of its dealerships, the company reversed course, saying that it [would keep “significantly more stores open”]( and that it would raise prices for most of its cars worldwide by 3 percent. Super bloom: Forest fires followed by heavy rains in California this year have [spurred colorful wildflowers to blossom]( across the state, turning arid landscapes into explosions of purples, yellows and greens. The internet: The memes, Wikipedia pages and emails that you look at every day travel to your device via nearly [750,000 miles of extremely thin cables strung across the ocean floor](. And now a few tech giants, notably Google, are working to lay their own cables to keep pace with demand for higher and higher data speeds. Smarter Living Tips for a more fulfilling life. Linda Xiao for The New York Times Recipe of the day: With [spaghetti carbonara]( the main goal is creaminess. Expensive smart home gadgets are still niche and of limited use. Smart lights, on the other hand, [are useful to just about everyone](. Wheelchair users offer [tips on air travel for other wheelchair users](. Back Story Charles Boycott couldn’t buy food. He couldn’t find employees. He could hardly walk down the street in peace. Boycott, [born on this day in 1832]( wasn’t the first person shunned as a form of protest, but it’s his name that signifies the practice. [Charles Boycott in an 1867 image.]Charles Boycott in an 1867 image. Sean Sexton/Getty Images In 1880, residents of County Mayo, Ireland, were facing potential famine after several failed harvests, and many could not pay their rent. Boycott, the land agent for a wealthy nobleman, was responsible for evicting those on [his employer’s 40,000 acres](. When he tried, the Irish National Land League suggested [nonviolent protest](. Boycott’s neighbors shunned him. Stores declined to serve him, his laborers quit and jeering mobs followed him. Boycott’s plight attracted international attention, including [front-page stories in The New York Times](. [Boycott left Ireland]( but his name remained, reportedly popularized by a priest who thought “ostracize” would confuse common people. Within months, The Times was [using it to describe events]( elsewhere in the world. Aodhan Beirne wrote today’s Back Story. ______ This briefing was prepared for the Asian morning. You can also [sign up]( to get the briefing in the Australian, European or American morning. [Sign up here]( to receive an Evening Briefing on U.S. weeknights. And our Australia bureau chief offers [a weekly letter]( adding analysis and conversations with readers. 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