The Evening: Iran defiant at U.N.
Also, hackers say they stole thousands of sensitive F.B.I. records.
The Evening
September 23, 2026
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Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.

  • Iran’s president delivers a defiant speech
  • Hackers say they stole F.B.I. records
  • Plus, a 6-year-old virtuoso
Masoud Pezeshkian, wearing a dark jacket and black shirt, speaks from a lectern. Papers and a glass of water are on the lectern, and a uniformed person stands in the background.
President Masoud Pezeshkian at the U.N. General Assembly today. Dave Sanders for The New York Times

At the U.N., Iran says it will not give up its nuclear program

Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, delivered a defiant speech today in front of the U.N. General Assembly in Manhattan. He accused the U.S. of flouting international law by targeting civilian infrastructure, he said that Iran would never accept limits on its civilian nuclear program and he promised that his country would defend itself until “its last breath.” Pezeshkian left the door open, though, for peace talks.

As he spoke, the lone American diplomat sitting in the hall left. It was the first time in the U.N.’s 81-year history that the president of a country at war with the U.S. had set foot in New York City to address the Assembly. Earlier this year, Pezeshkian was helping run his country from an underground bunker, shielding himself from American aerial attacks. Now, he is being protected by the Secret Service, allowing him to cruise through the city in convoys of S.U.V.s.

“Iran must be powerful to avoid being threatened,” Pezeshkian said, promising that his country would not be bullied by the U.S. His speech, unlike those by many other leaders over the years, only barely exceeded the U.N.’s 15-minute limit. (Fidel Castro, for example, spoke for four and a half hours in 1960.)

For more:

  • Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, warned in his speech to the U.N. body that Russia’s “ridiculous and never-ending war” would soon spread to other parts of Europe. He also called for increased economic pressure on Moscow.
  • Police increased security around the U.N. headquarters after three people emerged from a manhole.
Xi Jinping and Donald Trump, both wearing blue suits, shake hands. They stand before a grand building with prominent columns and windows.
Xi Jinping and President Trump in Beijing in May. Kenny Holston/The New York Times

A.I. is on the agenda when Trump and Xi meet

Around the time this newsletter arrives in your inbox, President Xi Jinping of China is expected to arrive in the U.S. at a military base outside the nation’s capital. President Trump is planning to offer the Chinese leader a rare greeting on the tarmac and a state dinner tomorrow night.

When Trump and Xi sit down to meet, there will be no shortage of items to discuss. But no topic has captured global fascination like the possibility of a deal between the countries on the development of artificial intelligence. My colleagues explain why U.S. A.I. models have an edge, and where China has other advantages.

For more:

The F.B.I. building in Washington seen from the sidewalk, with green tree branches and American flags in front of it.
The F.B.I. building in Washington, D.C. Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times

Hackers say they stole thousands of F.B.I. records

A prolific criminal hacking group said that it had stolen sensitive personnel information belonging to thousands of F.B.I. officials. The breach, if confirmed, would amount to a stunning theft of private data for the nation’s top law enforcement agency.

The hackers, who call themselves ShinyHunters, said the records had been stolen from an online jobs portal. Cybersecurity experts said the breach appeared authentic: Yesterday, the F.B.I. jobs website featured a banner that read, “THIS SITE HAS BEEN SEIZED BY SHINYHUNTERS.”

Four Indigenous Guna men in jeans and wearing no shirts stand around a giant tree covered in vines in the jungle.
Federico Rios for The New York Times Magazine

Change is coming for an Indigenous group in Panama

As a child, Ben Ryder Howe joined his father in his studies of the Guna people, who live in the vicinity of the forbidding Darién Gap in Panama. For 500 years, they have kept outsiders at a remove, despite their region’s potential as a trade route. Now, though, they’re considering a highway that would run through their land. For the Times Magazine, Ryder Howe traveled to Panama to figure out why.

More top news

THE EVENING QUIZ

This question comes from a recent edition of the newsletter. Click an answer to see if you’re right. (The link is free.)

For the first time in 15 years, which school was knocked off the top of the U.S. News & World Report’s rankings?

TIME TO UNWIND

Seated in a row of chairs along a metal railing, three men sit among children, including one with a child in his lap.
Timothy O’Connell for The New York Times

Weird Al shows are a father-son paradise

Alfred Yankovic — affectionately known as Weird Al — has been America’s foremost song parodist since the 1980s, when he memorably transformed Michael Jackson's “Beat It” into “Eat It.” Now, many men of that era are flocking to Weird Al’s new tour, along with their sons.

Our Culture reporter Melena Ryzik recently experienced it first hand, along with her 9-year-old son. One father she spoke with brought three sons, who all enjoyed Weird Al’s parodies, even though they weren’t very familiar with the original tunes. One 73-year-old dad brought his 42-year-old son. Another noticed that he and his 12-year-old both related to the music: “We don’t get any more mature,” he told Melena. “We just get bigger.”

Gulzar wearing a white garment and sitting at a dark, cluttered wooden desk.
Atul Loke for The New York Times

At 92, the bard of Bollywood is still writing about love

Over six decades in Mumbai, the poet known as Gulzar has had an outsize role in shaping the idea of tender romance in India. He has funneled his imagination into children’s books and short stories, and has provided lyrics to more than 150 Bollywood musicals. Now, at 92, he sat down with our South Asia bureau chief for a rare interview, and reflected on his continued wonder at the beauty in the mundane. It’s a great read.

A model in a black sleeveless top and an off-white knee length skirt on a clear catwalk.
Simbarashe Cha/The New York Times

Dinner table topics

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

A cast-iron skillet with a salmon filet atop scalloped potatoes, with slices of orange on top.
Bobbi Lin for The New York Times

Cook this