(Would you like to receive this briefing by email? Here is the registration.)

Good Morning.

We cover that Travel bans Great Britain imposed, a early elections in Israel and the rehabilitation of Gibbons in Thailand.

The UK and France reopened their border on Tuesday to select travelers and are closer to an agreement that would allow trucks to resume travel between the two countries.

France closed its borders for 48 hours on Sunday amid fears of the spread of a new and potentially more communicable variant of the coronavirus that has emerged in the UK. More than 1,500 trucks were stranded and some drivers slept in their trucks for two nights.

The European Commission called on the bloc members to lift blanket bans and ensure essential travel with the UK. More than 50 governments have taken action to close the doors on the UK. Experts are skeptical that travel bans can stop the spread of new coronavirus variants – especially if they are already widespread.

Here are the latest updates and maps of the pandemic.

In other developments:

A new political crisis puts Israel in fourth place early election in two years. The Israeli parliament dissolved at midnight local time after missing the deadline for approving a new budget, and forced a new election on March 23.

At the center of the crisis is the deep mutual distrust of the so-called unity government, a troubled coalition sworn in just seven months ago that brings Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s conservative Likud party together with the centrist blue-white party of his main rival Benny Gantz.

Pointer: Mr Netanyahu, whose corruption process is expected to enter an intensive phase in early 2021, and Mr Gantz have blamed each other for the crisis.

President-elect Joe Biden insisted that there would be further relief after his inauguration next month, calling the latest stimulus laws a “down payment” on a larger bill. “Congress has done its job this week,” he said, adding, “I can and I must ask them to do it again next year.”

Mr Biden said he plans to come up with a plan to Congress in the New Year that would include more funding to distribute the coronavirus vaccine to 300 million people, expand the tests, and give Americans a new round of stimulus checks send. But he said the details are a matter of negotiation.

Opinion: Will the auxiliary bill do enough? “As someone who has spent many years as a macroeconomic forecaster at the Federal Reserve, I have my worries,” writes economist Claudia Sahm, the architect of the Sahm rule, of a recession indicator.

Gibbons, the smallest of the monkeys, were once common in much of Asia, but deforestation and hunting have greatly reduced their numbers. In the 1990s and early 2000s, when displaying wild animals in bars was part of Thai nightlife, young gibbons were sometimes taught to smoke, drink alcohol, and eat human food.

Now there is hope for the species. Our reporter examined how at least a dozen rehabilitation centers in countries across Southeast Asia are undertaking the slow process of socializing and liberating gibbons salvaged from the illegal wildlife trade.

Russian hack: The hackers who broke into US government agencies were given access to the email system used by the top management of the Treasury Department. It was the first detail of how deeply Moscow was embedded in the networks of the Trump administration.

Journalist murders: According to the Committee for the Protection of Journalists, the number of journalists killed as a result of their work more than doubled in 2020. Armed conflict and gang violence made Mexico and Afghanistan the deadliest countries for reporters worldwide.

Morandi Bridge: The collapse of a bridge in 2018, killing 43 people in Genoa, Italy, was a consequence of problems with its conception, design, construction and eventual maintenance, according to an independent report released Monday the structure.

Drilling in Norway: The country’s Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a lawsuit from environmental groups seeking to invalidate licenses to explore new oils in the Arctic. The activists had invoked Norway’s constitutional right to a clean environment. The ruling paves the way for further drilling.

Snapshot: Europe’s frontline workers, like those who work upstairs at the Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital in Paris, have been the heroes and pillars of a stressful year for the continent. These photos tell the story of the infections that nearly destroyed European hospitals – exhausting, infecting and killing doctors and nurses.

Keeping tradition alive: The Holy Choir of King’s College Cambridge rehearsed for months for its Christmas Eve service, which is broadcast worldwide. His hope was to play it live.

What we read: This report from Columbia Journalism Review of a billing at Magnum Photos, the world’s most prestigious photo agency, is highly recommended by Amelia Kidneyberg from the briefing team.

To do: By the end of 2020 and as the vaccination against the coronavirus increases, we know how travel will change in the coming year.

We can help celebrate the holidays with our collection of ideas to read, cook, watch and do while staying safe at home.

A seemingly more contagious variant of the coronavirus identified by scientists in the UK has raised alarms around the world. Here’s what scientists have learned about it so far.

Is the British variant some kind of new supervirus?

No. It’s just one variation among many that arose when the coronavirus spread around the world. Mutations occur when a virus replicates, and this variant – known as B.1.1.7 – has acquired its own distinctive set of them.

Is it more contagious than other viruses?

It seems so. In preliminary work, researchers in the UK found that the virus was spreading rapidly in parts of southern England, displacing a crowded field of other variants that have been around for months.

However, the increasing spread of a line of viruses is not evidence that the line is spreading faster than others. It could just spread further through luck. For example, a variant could start in the middle of a crowded city where broadcasting is easy and more copies of yourself can be made. However, the epidemiological evidence so far gathered from England seems to suggest that this variant is spreading very well.

Does it cause more serious illnesses?

There is no strong evidence for this, at least not yet. However, there is reason to take the opportunity seriously. In South Africa, another line of the coronavirus has received a certain mutation, which can also be found in B.1.1.7. This variant spreads quickly in the coastal areas of South Africa. In preliminary studies, doctors there have found that people infected with this variant carry an increased viral load. In many viral diseases, this is associated with more severe symptoms.

Will the variant make the new vaccines ineffective?

No. Most experts doubt this will have a major impact on vaccines, although it is not yet possible to rule out an effect.

That’s it for this briefing. Until tomorrow.

– Natasha

Many Thanks
Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh took the break from the news. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

PS
• We listen to “The Daily”. Our final episode reflects the lives of four people we lost to Covid-19.
• Here is our mini crossword puzzle and a clue: The elf in “Elf” (five letters). You can find all of our puzzles here.
• The word “Vaxications” – vacation some people are rushing to book for after the pandemic – first appeared in The Times yesterday, the Twitter bot @NYT_first_said discovered.
• Poynter recently spoke to our visual journalist Stuart Thompson about his interactive article showing when you can expect a vaccination.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR