👋 Yumalundi!*
Welcome to Wednesday, where thousands return to Lebanon as the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah takes effect, a Ukraine delegation visits Seoul to ask for weapons aid after North Korean troops joined Russia’s war effort, and France is home to the first-ever “joint” Burger King/KFC product. Meanwhile, Dani Domínguez in La Marea looks at the overtourism war the Spanish resort town of Malaga wages on short-term rentals.
[*Ngunnawal, New South Wales and ACT, Australia]
✅ SIGN UP
This is our daily newsletter Worldcrunch Today, a rapid tour of the news of the day from the world's best journalism sources, regardless of language or geography.
It's easy (and free!) to sign up to receive it each day in your inbox: 👉 Sign up here
🗞️ FRONT PAGE
Mexican daily AM highlights growing concerns over U.S. political developments as President-elect Donald Trump’s recent statements have sparked “distress,” as the front page reads, both domestically and internationally. In a series of posts to his Truth Social account, Trump has vowed to impose sweeping tariffs on major trading partners Mexico, Canada and China, promising duties of 25% on all imports from the former two and 10% on goods from China. Experts predict significant economic repercussions, with analysts noting that the tariffs could push up inflation and strain cross-border ties.
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• Thousands head back to south Lebanon as Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire takes effect. People displaced from southern Lebanon are returning home as the ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanon-based militant group came into effect early Wednesday, after both sides accepted an agreement brokered by the U.S. and France, ending 13 months of fighting. The Israeli military has warned though that it wasn’t safe yet to return to certain areas. Lebanon’s army said it was preparing to deploy an expected 5,000 troops to the south as part of the deal.
• Ukraine delegation visits Seoul to ask for weapons aid. A Ukrainian delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov met South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday, with media reports saying the visit aimed to seek arms support in Kyiv’s war against Russia. Recent polls show however that South Koreans remain widely opposed to directly supplying arms to Ukraine. Die Zeit’s Steffan Richter writes that North Korean troops fighting for Russia raises bigger questions about China.
• Trump picks COVID lockdown skeptic to lead top health agency. The U.S. president-elect has chosen Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a Stanford University-trained physician and economist who was critical of pandemic lockdowns and vaccine mandates, to be the next director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the world’s biggest government-funded biomedical research entity. Read more about Trump’s pick to make the U.S. government more efficient, in this analysis translated from Spanish by Worldcrunch.
• ICC prosecutor requests arrest warrants for Myanmar military leader. The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has asked judges on Wednesday to issue an arrest warrant for senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing for crimes against humanity over the alleged persecution of the Rohingya Muslim minority. The general, who took power from elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi in a coup in 2021, is accused of launching an ethnic cleansing campaign that forced nearly a million people to escape in neighboring Bangladesh.
• Pakistan ends lockdown of capital after Imran Khan supporters call off protest. Authorities reopened roads linking Islamabad with the rest of the country on Wednesday, ending a four-day lockdown, after the party of the jailed former prime minister suspended the protests seeking his release due to the “government’s brutality.” This followed media reports of hundreds of arrests by security forces in a sweeping midnight raid in the capital, after the protests resulted in the deaths of at least six people, including four security officers and two civilians.
• Bolsonaro directly involved in 2022 coup plot, police report says. Brazilian federal police have published a 884-page report on Tuesday that says that former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro was “fully aware” of and actively participated in a coup plot to remain in office after his defeat in the 2022 election. The report highlights eight main pieces of evidence against Bolsonaro, including meetings he held with key allies to discuss the plot. Brazil’s top prosecutor has yet to decide whether to bring charges against the former president.
• BFF Burger launched in France. Burger King and KFC are collaborating to offer a common “BFF Burger” made out of a “sesame seed bun, exclusive white BBQ sauce, onion rings, melted cheddar, iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, crispy onions” but with the franchises’ own flagship meat. The unique collaborative chicken and beef burgers are available in the brands’ restaurants across France starting this Wednesday and until Dec. 16. Read more about the surprising love affair between French people and fast-food chains in this Les Echos reportage, translated by Worldcrunch.
#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
$2.2 million
A record-breaking sale in New Zealand on Tuesday has made Thoughts of a Tohunga, a 1938 painting by Charles Frederick Goldie, the most valuable artwork of its kind in the country. The oil portrait of Wharekauri Tahuna, a revered Māori priest, sold for NZ$3.75 million ($2.2 million), setting a new high for New Zealand’s art auction market. This sale comes at a time of heightened cultural and political sensitivity, with recent debates surrounding Māori rights and the Treaty of Waitangi. Meanwhile in Australia, late Sydney artist Bronwyn Oliver’s monumental 4-meter artwork Tide broke the sales record for Australia sculpture, fetching $1 million at auction on Wednesday.
📹 ON THIS DAY VIDEO — 4 HISTORY-MAKING EVENTS, IN 57 SECONDS
➡️ Watch the video: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
📰 IN OTHER NEWS
💰 In wartime Russia, women are behaving in starkly different ways: some are fighting desperately to bring their men home, while others are actively encouraging them to go to the front — for the promise of good money.
— DIE ZEIT
🎥 “When I was a child, I didn’t entirely understand what exactly happened in our family.” Many Holocaust survivors’ descendants are returning to Poland to learn about their family history and transform it into artistic works.
— GAZETA WYBORCZA
🚫 Malaga has announced plans to ban the registration of new holiday accommodation in up to 43 neighborhoods of the city, joining a long list of Spanish municipalities fighting mass tourism and its impact on real estate and rent prices.
— LA MAREA
📣 VERBATIM
“We cannot have our girls passing and this continuing to happen.”
— The families of two Australian teenagers killed in a suspected methanol poisoning in Laos speak out after police detained eight members of staff at a backpacker hostel. Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, both 19, were among six foreign tourists who died after consuming methanol, commonly added to bootleg alcohol. The tragedy has prompted discussions about new international safety standards for alcohol distribution and monitoring, with the families of victims expressing hope that such measures will ensure no other family suffers the same loss.
✍️ Newsletter by Anne-Sophie Goninet & Ella Nigro
Let us know what’s happening in your corner of the world!