👋 Bonġu!*
Welcome to Thursday, where Ukraine says Moscow has fired an intercontinental missile on Dnipro, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israel’s prime minister and Hamas’ military leader, and viral banana art goes under the hammer for $6.2 million. And in El Espectador, Catalina Ruiz-Navarro lays out what’s wrong with male feminists.
[*Maltese]
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🗞️ FRONT PAGE
Netherlands daily NRC features cardboard cutouts of world leaders submerged in the bay of Rio de Janeiro, where the G20 summit took place this week. At both the G20 and the COP29 — which closes tomorrow in Baku, Azerbaijan —, tensions have run high over the failure to agree on climate finance: “a sustainable economy,” as NRC writes on its front page, “is only possible if rich countries contribute.”
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• ICC issues arrest warrant for Netanyahu. Judges at the International Criminal Court have issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense chief, as well as Hamas’ military commander Ibrahim Al-Masri, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. This comes as U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein will meet with Netanyahu in Israel on Thursday to present a draft deal for a cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah. Meanwhile, rescue operations are underway in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya, where Israeli forces bombed at least five crowded homes early on Thursday. Hamas media said the attack killed at least 66 people. Read more about the dire situation in Gaza in this reportage translated from Arabic by Worldcrunch.
• Russia launches intercontinental ballistic missile on Ukraine, Kyiv says. Ukraine’s military has accused Moscow of firing an intercontinental missile (ICBM) in a Thursday morning attack on the city of Dnipro, in the first known use in the war of such a powerful weapon with a range of thousands of kilometers. The missile targeted enterprises and critical infrastructure in the central-eastern city, but it is not clear yet whether it caused any damage. This comes after Kyiv reportedly launched British-French-made Storm Shadow missiles at targets inside Russia for the first time. Follow our coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war.
• Indian billionaire Gautam Adani charged in U.S. for alleged bribery. The chair of Indian conglomerate Adani Group and one of the world’s richest people has been indicted by U.S. prosecutors in New York on Wednesday for his alleged role in a $265-million scheme to bribe Indian officials to obtain solar energy supply contracts. The Adani Group has denied the allegations and said in a statement: “All possible legal recourse will be sought.”
• Mali junta sacks prime minister after he criticizes military regime. The West African country’s junta leader Colonel Assimi Goita fired Prime Minister Choguel Maïga and the government on Wednesday. This comes days after Maïga publicly condemned the lack of clarity regarding the end of the transition to civilian rule in a rare criticism of the military rulers. The prime minister was appointed in 2021 by the military, which had led Mali since back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021. The junta had promised to hold elections by the end of March 2024 but later postponed the polls indefinitely.
• Australia launches “landmark” bill to ban social media for under-16s. The country’s communication minister introduced the world-first law into Parliament on Thursday, which would propose fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars ($32 million) for social media platforms for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts. Australia plans to trial an age-verification system that could include government identification to enforce the ban, which marks one of the toughest controls imposed by any country to date. From the Worldcrunch vault, here’s an analysis by French philosopher Gaspard Koenig reflecting on social media bans for teenagers.
• Fourth tourist dies in suspected mass methanol poisoning in Laos. Australian backpacker Bianca Jones, 19, died on Thursday after reportedly drinking tainted alcohol in Vang Vieng. Her death is the latest in a spate of suspected methanol poisonings of foreigners in the town, a popular destination for young international backpackers. The U.S. State Department confirmed on Thursday that an American citizen had died in the town, while Danish authorities also said two Danish women, aged 19 and 20, died there last week.
• Viral duct-taped banana fetches $6.2 million at auction. Maurizio Cattelan’s viral artwork was bought by Chinese-born crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun on Wednesday evening at Sotheby’s New York, besting initial estimates of between $1 million and $1.5 million. “I never thought I’d say ‘$5 million for a banana,’” the auctioneer quipped as the bid was approaching its climax. Sun said he plans to eat the banana “as part of this unique artistic experience.”
#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
$344
Who needs rent when you can have coffee? Mossgiel Organic Dairy in Scotland is offering what’s being billed as the UK’s priciest coffee, $344 (£272) for a flat white — a perk for investors who buy 34 shares in the farm’s crowdfunding campaign. Upon purchase, investors receive a certificate for the coffee that can be redeemed at any of the 13 coffee shops in Scotland carrying the farm’s dairy products. The funds will help expand their organic dairy operation, known for its rich, creamy milk and sustainable practices.
📹 ON THIS DAY VIDEO — 4 HISTORY-MAKING EVENTS, IN 57 SECONDS
➡️ Watch the video: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
📰 IN OTHER NEWS
🇺🇸 With the exception of Qatar, the pro-Washington Arab regimes had something to celebrate with Trump’s victory. That is: until the president-elect began announcing his choices for the symbols of his new administration.
— AL-MANASSA
🎬 The release of the film Bucha by Ukrainian director Stanislav Tiunov, based on true events during the Russian invasion in spring 2022, raises questions about the ethics and exploitation of war on film.
— LIVY BEREG
♀️ “It's not that we do not want men to be feminists, but we want them to stop publicizing their feminism to earn themselves brownie points.”
— EL ESPECTADOR
📣 VERBATIM
“He saw everything from the perspective of the property developer he was before entering politics.”
— Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel reveals tricks for dealing with Donald Trump in her upcoming memoir Freedom: Memories 1954-2021, extracts of which were published in German daily Die Zeit. Merkel describes Trump’s “winner-or-loser” mentality, which shaped his view of global politics, including his desire to leave the Paris climate accords. “Each parcel of land could only be sold once,” Merkel writes. “If he didn’t get it someone else did.” When the ex-chancellor sought advice from Pope Francis on handling Trump, the pontiff responded: “Bend, bend, bend, but make sure it doesn’t break.”
✍️ Newsletter by Anne-Sophie Goninet & Ella Nigro
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