👋 Azul!*
Welcome to Wednesday, where U.S. aid deliveries to Ukraine resume after Kyiv agrees to a 30-day ceasefire with Russia, Yemen’s Houthis vow to resume shipping attacks over Gaza aid cutoff, and our quiz question comes from Brazil. And for Les Echos, Véronique Pierron takes us to the top of the Eiffel Tower and Notre-Dame to meet the rope workers taking restoration works to new heights.
[*Tarifit, Northern Morocco]
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🗞️ FRONT PAGE
Argentine daily Rio Negro led today with images of protesters outside of the trial starting today of doctors accused for the alleged role in the death of Diego Maradona. Investigators have charged the doctors with involuntary manslaughter, accusing the medical staff of negligence in the 2020 death of the soccer legend from cardiac arrest. More than 100 witnesses are expected to give testimony at the trial, which will last until July.
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• U.S. military aid to Ukraine resumes. U.S. aid deliveries to Ukraine through Poland resumed early Wednesday. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski confirmed the news a day after Ukraine agreed to Washington's proposal for a 30-day ceasefire with Russia. U.S. President Donald Trump says he hopes to speak to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the next few days, as Washington officials prepare to travel to Moscow to discuss the offer.
• Global trade war escalates as U.S. tariffs on steel, aluminum imports launch. President Trump's action to bulk up protections for American steel and aluminum producers restores effective global tariffs of 25% on all imports of the metals, and extends the duties to hundreds of downstream products made from the metals, from nuts and bolts to bulldozer blades and soda cans. Read more: U.S. And China – Here's How A Trade War Could Stumble Into A Hot War
• Yemen’s Houthis vow to resume shipping attacks over Gaza aid cutoff. The armed group said late on Tuesday that it was “resuming the ban on the passage of all Israeli ships” in the Red Sea because Israel failed to honor the deadline the Houthis announced on Friday.
• Greenland's center-right opposition wins election. Greenland's pro-business opposition Demokraatit party, which favors a slow approach to independence from Denmark, won Tuesday's parliamentary election that was dominated by U.S. President Donald Trump's pledge to take control of the island. Read more: The Greenland Paradox: Rich In Resources, Frozen In Poverty
• Pakistan forces continue operation to free hundreds from hijacked train. Pakistani security forces said they have rescued 155 passengers from a train hijacked by separatist forces, as operations to free hundreds more continue. The military launched a major operation on Wednesday against the separatists from the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) that seized the train the previous day. About 300 hostages remain on board.
• Hungary targets dual citizens, LGBTQ+ community in proposed constitutional changes. This could mean a ban on an annual march celebrating the LGBTQ+ community and the expulsion of citizens with dual citizenship if they are deemed to pose a threat to the country's sovereignty. Prime Minister Viktor Orban has repeatedly criticized LGBTQ+ people and pledged to crack down on foreign funding of independent media and non-governmental organizations in Hungary in recent weeks.
• News Quiz! What is Brazil’s controversial building project in preparation for the COP30 climate summit slated for Belém in November?
A. A skyscraper to relocate indigenous communities
B. A highway in the rainforest
C. A zoo for endangered species
D. A floating airport on the Amazon
[Answer below]
#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
$10.82 billion
LEGO saw a 13% uptick in revenue in 2024 to $10.82 billion, up from only a 2% rise in 2023. The Danish toymaker credits partnerships with other companies — including Formula 1, Fortnite, and Nike — as well as the LEGO Botanicals sets that let people build plant-like models, for bringing new consumers to the company. The company said it plans to open 85 new stores this year, up from 70 last year. Read more in this piece translated from German by Worldcrunch: Can LEGO-Loving "Kidults" Give A Dwindling Toy Industry The Boost It Needs?
📹 ON THIS DAY VIDEO — 4 HISTORY-MAKING EVENTS, IN 57 SECONDS
➡️ Watch the video: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
📰 IN OTHER NEWS
✝️ Following Trump's creation of the White House Faith Office in early February, Loris Zanatta writes that religious politics is already on the verge of becoming political religion, and the 2020s are starting to look an awful lot like the 1920s. And we know where that led.
— CLARÍN
🇸🇾 We had believed that Bashar al-Assad’s downfall would be a chance to come together and heal the wounds of the victims’ families. It was not to be. The regime had left roots too deep and the new rulers failed to learn the lessons of our neighbors.
— DARAJ
🪢 From restoring the fire-ravaged Notre-Dame Cathedral to the Olympic Games, from industrial chimneys to nuclear power plants, rope access technicians are in demand everywhere. Meet the professionals in the thick of it.
— LES ECHOS
📣 VERBATIM
“I have committed no crime.”
— Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro lost a confidence vote over conflict-of-interest accusations tied to his family business, potentially triggering the country’s third election in three years. Despite claiming his innocence at the start of a parliamentary debate on a vote, Montenegro failed to reach a deal to avoid the motion. The controversy centers on payments received by the prime minister’s family firm from a government-linked company. President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa must now decide whether to dissolve parliament and call for new elections.
✍️ Newsletter by Emma Albright & Jacob Shropshire
Let us know what’s happening in your corner of the world!
Quiz Answer: Answer B. A new four-lane highway cutting through tens of thousands of acres of protected Amazon rainforest is being built for the COP30 climate summit in the Brazilian city of Belém. It aims to ease traffic to the city, which will host more than 50,000 people, including world leaders, at the conference in November. The state government is attempting to sell the highway's "sustainable" credentials, but some locals and conservationists are outraged at the environmental impact.