👋 Halò!*
Welcome to Friday, where tensions are high in Moscow for the funeral for Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, the UN calls for a probe into the stampede that killed at least 110 Palestinians during an aid delivery in Gaza, and Mount Everest climbers will be required to wear a tracking chip from now on. Meanwhile, Daniel Zwick in Berlin-based daily Die Welt says the death of the Apple car is a major victory for German automakers.
[*Scottish Gaelic]
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🗞️ FRONT PAGE
“Alexei Navalny, his last words” — Amsterdam-based daily De Volkskrant dedicates its Friday front page to the Russian opposition leader ahead of his burial in Moscow. The Dutch newspaper analyzes the letters he wrote in penal colony days before his death, that retrace his last thoughts.
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• Foreign diplomats attend Navalny’s funeral: Hundreds and potentially thousands of people, including the French and American ambassadors to Russia, have turned up to say farewell to Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, whose funeral is underway at the Church of the Icon of Our Lady Quench My Sorrow in southeastern Moscow. The leading Vladimir Putin critic, who died in an Arctic prison, will be buried at Borisovskoye Cemetery, on the banks of the Moskva river. The Kremlin has refused to comment on his death or funeral. For more, check out this recent piece: A Christian Martyr Too? Navalny's Political Courage Was Also An Act Of Faith
• UN chief calls for probe into Gaza aid delivery massacre: UN Secretary General António Guterres said the deaths of more than 110 Palestinians during an aid delivery in Gaza will require an independent investigation. The Israeli military said a “stampede” occurred when thousands of civilians surrounded a convoy of 38 aid trucks, while an Israeli source acknowledged troops had opened fire on the crowd, believing it “posed a threat.” France’s President Emmanuel Macron condemned the incident and called for “truth and justice” regarding the role of Israeli soldiers.
• Iran votes in first elections since mass protests: Iran has held its first parliamentary election since the 2022 anti-government protests over mandatory hijab laws after the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini. While the elections are seen as a crucial test of legitimacy for Iran’s leadership, a low turnout is expected.
• U.S. Senate passes bill to avert government shutdown: The U.S. Senate has approved a short-term spending package to avoid a partial government shutdown, the fourth such stopgap measure in several months. The bill will have to be signed into law by President Joe Biden, who saluted its passage but warned it was “a short-term fix, not a long-term solution.”
• Shooting leaves four dead in Germany, soldier turns himself in: A Bundeswehr soldier turned himself in shortly after four people, including one child, were shot and killed in two locations overnight in Germany’s Lower Saxony. It is not clear if the shootings are related at this time.
• Bangladesh fire in shopping mall kills at least 45: A massive fire has ripped through a six-story shopping mall in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, late on Thursday, killing at least 45 and injuring dozens. A top fire service official said that the blaze could have originated from a gas leak or stove.
• Nepal mandates tracking chips for Mount Everest climbers: Nepal has announced ahead of the 2024 Mount Everest season that all climbers will have to rent and use tracking chips on their journey, in order to “cut down search and rescue time in the event of an accident.” This follows last year’s record of 478 climbing permits delivered by the country, proving extreme tourism is as popular as ever.
#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
1.04 billion
A study released by the Lancet medical journal reveals that more than 1 billion people worldwide are currently suffering from obesity. The World Health Organization (WHO) conducted the study, emphasizing that the obesity "epidemic" is disproportionately affecting poorer countries, and its prevalence is rising faster among children and adolescents than adults. The analysis, based on data from more than 220 million people in over 190 countries, estimates that there were 226 million obese individuals in 1990, rising to 1.04 billion in 2022.
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📰 STORY OF THE DAY
iSchadenfreude: The Apple car flop reminds us why German carmakers are built to last
Apple's announcement that it has discontinued its car project is bigger than it may seem. It is a serious admission that a car revolution is not as close as we thought — and really good news for German automakers, writes Daniel Zwick in Berlin-based daily Die Welt.
❌ The Apple Car was of course supposed to be a software-defined product, like an iPhone, and to possibly enable completely new forms of mobility. Apple has now canceled this revolution. According to reports in the U.S. media, the project has been stopped. After 10 years of research and development and billions in investment, it is clear that Apple will not be launching a car on the market.
🚙 More important is the entrepreneurial insight gained from Apple's withdrawal: the business model of car companies will not change in the foreseeable future. The technology giant was certainly aiming for this as much as for a technological leap. The minimum requirements for an Apple product can be seen from the iPhone: it must be easier and more intuitive to use from the user's point of view than the competition's products, it must look better. And customers must be prepared to pay far more for it.
⚠️ After the Apple exit, it has become even less likely that Elon Musk will overturn industry rules and unhinge global car markets. The Tesla boss likes to present himself as a revolutionary. In reality, however, his car company sets itself apart above all in the details. Just like Apple, Tesla has been working on autonomous driving for many years — and others are doing the same. Even though Musk is slightly faster than the competition — because he is taking greater risks — the technological lead will never be so great that Tesla can take over the entire market.
➡️ Read more on Worldcrunch.com
📹 THIS HAPPENED VIDEO — TODAY IN HISTORY, IN ONE ICONIC PHOTO
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📣 VERBATIM
“This looks to me like war in every bit of the constitutional sense.”
— U.S. Senator for Connecticut Chris Murphy has commented on U.S. President Joe Biden’s claim that retaliatory air strikes against targets in Yemen constitute acts of “self-defense” and could therefore dispense from Congressional approval. “We have engaged in multiple rounds of strikes, we have a limited number of boots on the ground, we have taken casualties, we have prisoners,” Murphy added. “I’m having a hard time understanding why this does not require a traditional, congressional war authorization.”
👉 MORE FROM WORLDCRUNCH
• Why Pro-Palestine Protests Have Been Fading In The Arab World — DARAJ
• Putin's Moldova Flex: Why The Time May Be Ripe For Russia To Take Transnistria — FRANCE INTER
• How Governments Around The World Keep Trying — And Failing — To Boost Birth Rates — WORLDCRUNCH
✍️ Newsletter by Anne-Sophie Goninet and Cory Agathe
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