Britain, the Vatican, Traveler Cyberattack: Your Tuesday Briefing

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Good morning,

We’re covering the race for Britain’s prime minister, the Justice Department’s decision to turn over Mueller documents, and a rowdy event at the London Zoo that is stirring some controversy.

Boris Johnson, the former foreign secretary, is a front-runner, but he divides opinion. He flopped in his previous role, but he has star quality and is seen as capable of winning back party supporters. Mr. Johnson, like other contenders, wants to keep open the option of a no-deal Brexit.

Next: The contest will be fought among 313 Conservative lawmakers, who will narrow the field to two candidates in a series of ballots. The final choice will then be made by about 150,000 members of the Conservative Party by the end of July.

Drugs issue: While you might think Brexit would be the key issue, what has dominated part of the contest is the revelation that the environment secretary, Michael Gove, used cocaine a couple of decades ago. (Other candidates have admitted past drug use.)

Vatican rejects gender fluidity

The Vatican rejected the notion that individuals can choose their own sexual identity, a blow to communities that had hoped for a more tolerant message.

In its first extensive document on gender theory, the church argues that the increasing acceptance of fluid definitions of gender poses a threat to traditional families. The document says that “ideas of ‘intersex’ or ‘transgender’ lead to a masculinity or femininity that is ‘ambiguous.’”

Pope Francis had raised expectations that the church was changing when he memorably responded “Who am I to judge?” when asked in 2013 about a priest working at the Vatican who was said to be gay. But despite a short section warning against discrimination, the new church document immediately disappointed advocates who had hoped for greater acceptance.

Related: Evangelical churches have long distanced themselves from the Catholic Church’s abuse crisis. But a reckoning may be at hand.

Justice Department to turn over Mueller evidence

Congress will gain access to information collected by the special counsel, Robert Mueller III, that could shed light on possible obstruction of justice and abuse of power by President Trump.

Because the Trump administration blocked other relevant witnesses from appearing before Congress, John Dean, a former White House counsel who turned against President Richard Nixon during the Watergate affair, testified on Monday.

Details: The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee said the material would include “interview notes, firsthand accounts of misconduct and other critical evidence” collected by Mr. Mueller from the White House and former officials.

Go deeper: Attorney General William Barr has become an influential figure in the Trump administration. A Times examination of Mr. Barr’s record found that he is neither as apolitical as his defenders claim, nor as partisan as his detractors fear.

Traveler images stolen in cyberattack

Tens of thousands of images of travelers and license plates stored by Customs and Border Protection have been stolen in a cyberattack, officials said.

A U.S. government official said no more than 100,000 people had their information compromised by the attack.

The agency collects passport and visa photographs for a database used for a facial recognition program at airports that department officials say is aimed at expediting movement among travelers.

Details: A Customs and Border Protection official said the agency learned on May 31 that a federal subcontractor transferred copies of the images to the subcontractor’s network, which the agency said was done without its knowledge and in violation of the contract. The subcontractor’s network was then hacked.

The arrest of a respected investigative journalist on dubious drug charges has hit a nerve in Russia, sparking growing protests on Monday and statements from a wide circle of celebrities criticizing abuse by the security services.

In an extraordinary move, three important newspapers printed the same large front-page headline: “I/We are Ivan Golunov.” Mr. Golunov, who works for the Meduza online news service, is well known for exposing corruption in Moscow’s city hall.

Here’s what else is happening

Helicopter crash: A helicopter crashed onto the roof of a 51-story building in Midtown Manhattan, killing the pilot, the only person aboard. The accident unsettled the city, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo said there was no indication it was linked to terrorism.

U.S.-Mexico deal: President Trump claimed a “fully signed and documented” agreement regarding immigration between the U.S. and Mexico would be revealed soon. But a top Mexican official said no such agreement existed.

Nissan-Renault relationship: The Japanese carmaker criticized its French partner’s vow to block its overhaul effort, further straining the troubled auto alliance.

Germany: Deutsche Bank acknowledged a lapse in its money laundering controls, underlining the bank’s continuing struggle to move beyond a series of scandals that helped push its stock price to a record low.

Climate change: A new study warns that global warming is poised to increase the spread of dengue fever to the U.S., China, Japan and Australia. The deadly disease, carried by mosquitoes, is common in warmer climates like Brazil and India.

Moldova: Two of the country’s three largest parties formed a new coalition government on Saturday to oust the third from power. But the Democratic Party of Moldova has refused to leave office.

Iran: The authorities have barred The Times’s Tehran-based correspondent, Thomas Erdbrink, from working for the past four months.

Kazakhstan: Lopsided election results were released confirming the victory of the old order’s handpicked candidate in a tightly controlled vote marred by hundreds of detentions.

Snapshot: Above, the London Zoo, which is defending the return of its adults-only, late-night parties. They are billed as a way to bring people closer to the animals, but past iterations have resulted in chaos and potential risk to the animals — including a man who tore off his shirt and attempted to enter the penguin pool.

World Cup: As the U.S. women’s national soccer team defends its World Cup title in France, its members are preparing for a courtroom battle.

Mindy Kaling: David Marchese, The Times Magazine’s Talk columnist, interviewed the writer, producer, and actor about her career, motherhood and her new film, “Late Night,” which she wrote.

What we’re reading: This article in The New Yorker. “Some growers have seen the future, and it has robotic farm workers,” says Kevin McKenna, a deputy business editor. “This recent piece tells how GPS and A.I. are being tapped to design machines that pick crops — day and night.”

Now, a break from the news

Smarter Living: So you’ve made a terrible mistake. The first step to correcting a monumental blunder is to acknowledge to yourself that it was indeed a mistake. Then, don’t allow it to define you or your self-worth. From there, the way out comes in low-risk baby steps. If it happens to be a mistake you continue to make, do whatever you can to stop making the situation worse.

And we also have suggestions for a week’s worth of simple, science-based steps you can take to foster a deeper connection with your partner.

And now for the Back Story on …

The E3 games convention

Thousands of video game industry workers, fans and journalists will fill the Los Angeles Convention Center today as the Electronic Entertainment Expo, known as E3, begins its three-day run.

The annual trade show, once described as “35 football fields filled with video games,” is far from the largest games convention in terms of attendance.

However, since its inception in 1995, it has anchored a frenzied period of the year for the industry.

The pre-show news conferences are often a spectacle. In 2006, Bill Gates directly appealed to the gamers. This year, Keanu Reeves greeted a roaring crowd from the Xbox stage after revealing his casting in CD Projekt Red’s coming release, Cyberpunk 2077.

Sony, which promoted its original PlayStation console at the inaugural E3, is absent from the event for the first time, while Google furthered its inclusion in the gaming landscape by detailing its Stadia streaming service.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.

— Melina

Thank you
To Mark Josephson, Eleanor Stanford and Kenneth R. Rosen for the break from the news. Brian Hoerst, a senior staff editor in the London newsroom, wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” This week’s episodes are about the rise of nationalism and populism in Europe.
• Here’s today’s Mini Crossword puzzle, and a clue: Women’s World Cup highlights (5 letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• Our journalists traveled to more than 160 countries last year.