European Union agrees on a new 50 billion-euro aid package for Ukraine despite Hungary's veto threat (apnews.com)
The leaders of the 27 European Union countries sealed a deal Thursday to provide Ukraine with a new 50-billion-euro ($54 billion) support package despite Hungary’s weeks of threats to veto the move....
Donor countries voice support for the U.N. agency for Palestinians despite Israel’s accusations. (www.nytimes.com)
Key donors to the United Nations agency that aids civilians in Gaza have signaled that they will continue to support the organization under the right conditions despite Israeli accusations that some of its employees were involved with terrorist attacks in Israel on Oct. 7....
US military stockpiling supplies in Australia in readiness for any confrontation with China (www.theguardian.com)
'Hamas tore off my clothes, threatened to shoot': Gaza hostage tells her story. Mia Regev said Hamas abused her by hitting her injured leg, laughed, and mocked her. (www.jpost.com)
PA launches reforms aimed at revitalization, but structural changes remain elusive (www.timesofisrael.com)
Under international pressure to tee up to rule Gaza, Ramallah announces package to restructure various branches of its administration, but some see the step as merely cosmetic...
Uproar Over ‘Crack Pipes’ Puts Biden Drug Strategy at Risk (Published 2024) (www.nytimes.com)
Biden and Xi to announce deal cracking down on fentanyl export due to hunter's creeping addiction (www.theguardian.com)
Hunter Biden smokes crack while driving at high speed, says report (2024) (www.google.com)
The Silence Of The Damned (countercurrents.org)
Our leading humanitarian and civic institutions, including major medical institutions, refuse to denounce Israel’s genocide in Gaza. This exposes their hypocrisy and complicity....
Switzerland adopts latest EU sanctions against Russia (www.swissinfo.ch)
The new measures, which come into force on February 1, include a gradual ban on the purchase and import of Russian diamonds, as announced by the Swiss government on Wednesday....
Highly paid Sydney Metro contractors 'replaced' in wake of 'serious' allegations (www.abc.net.au)
Defence Intelligence unit sinks Russian corvette Ivanovets in Crimea – video (www.pravda.com.ua)
Gunmen take seven staff hostage at Procter & Gamble factory in Turkey (www.theguardian.com)
Two gunmen have taken seven people hostage at a factory in Turkey owned by the US company Procter & Gamble, according to media reports, in an apparent protest over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza....
France farmers protests see 79 arrested as tractors snarl Paris traffic (www.cbsnews.com)
French farmers angry over increased taxes and European agriculture policies they say threaten their livelihoods were on the roads well before dawn Wednesday, blocking highways and access roads to Paris. The protests, now about two weeks old, brought traffic to a standstill in many places as tractors blocked lanes or entire...
Thailand deports dissident Russian rock band to Israel (www.reuters.com)
25% of New Car Sales in China Were 100% Electric in 2023! (cleantechnica.com)
Russia and Ukraine exchange PoWs after plane crash prevented last swap (www.theguardian.com)
Russia and Ukraine have conducted a major prisoner-of-war exchange a week after a previous swap was prevented when a Russian Il-76 transport plane was shot down and exploded near the border between the two countries....
Figure skater Valieva disqualified in Olympic doping case. Russians set to lose team gold to US (apnews.com)
Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva was disqualified from the 2022 Olympics on Monday, almost two years after her doping case caused turmoil at the Beijing Games....
Rock band critical of Putin is detained in Thailand, fearful of deportation to Russia (apnews.com)
Israel’s Controlled Demolitions Are Razing Neighborhoods in Gaza (www.nytimes.com)
The damage caused by Israel’s aerial offensive in Gaza has been well documented. But Israeli ground forces have also carried out a wave of controlled explosions that has drastically changed the landscape in recent months....
Budget 2024 | India plans to expand EV ecosystem, pushes for greener public transport (www.cnbctv18.com)
Protesters throw soup at Mona Lisa in Paris (www.theguardian.com)
Visitors at Louvre look on in shock as Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece attacked by environmental protesters...
How a Game of Good Cop-Bad Cop Sealed the E.U. Ukraine Fund Deal (www.nytimes.com)
Some European leaders jested they’d send Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary their hotel bills for the extra nights they had to spend in Brussels to convince him to support funding for Ukraine....
Political pressure builds on Biden to strike Iran after US deaths (news.yahoo.com)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The killing of three U.S. troops and wounding of dozens more on Sunday by Iran-backed militants is piling political pressure on President Joe Biden to deal a blow directly against Iran, a move he’s been reluctant to do out of fear of igniting a broader war....
