January 4-5
- The children victims of Yemen war
- NYE grapes shortage
- Wearable power station
- … and much more.
⬇️ STARTER
Syria’s new rulers are trying to cozy up to Trump — by going soft on Israel
What tenderness and understanding! Maher Marwan, the newly appointed governor of Damascus, was beyond kind towards the Israeli government, in his recent interview with U.S. public radio network NPR, saying he completely comprehends the Israeli army’s decision to seize additional Syrian territory across the border, as well as its bombing of Syria’s military assets.
It's true that nobody expected the new Turkish-backed regime to raise the banner of the struggle against Zionism just a month after it led the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad, culminating a 14-year popular revolution the regime.
Nonetheless, the way the governor of the Syrian capital — a brother-in-law of Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, head of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, HTS forces — is quite stunning. His responses to the NPR interviewer reflected naivety and a kind of cheap begging toward the United States, doubled down on the approach of some other Arab governments that seek warm ties with the U.S. through avoiding conflict with Israel.
Marwan, who received the American radio team in a large office adorned with arabesque decorations, expressed his understanding of the Israeli aggression in Syria that began the same day Assad was overthrown. He said it was "understandable"" that Israel was concerned because of certain factions affiliated with the HTS rebels.
“Israel may have been fearful" Marwan said. "So it advanced a little, bombed a little,” adding that such fear is “natural,” according to NPR transcripts.
He added that "our problem is not with Israel.” He urged the U.S. to facilitate better ties with Israel.
“There exists a people who want co-existence. They want peace. They don't want disputes. We want peace, and we cannot be an opponent to Israel or an opponent to anyone,” Marwan said.
What caught the attention of the American journalist who conducted the interview was that the governor made no mention of Israel's bloody war against the Palestinians in Gaza for the past 15 months, not even a basic remark of human solidarity. [...]
— Read the full article by Khaled Dawoud for Al-Manassa, translated from Arabic by Worldcrunch.
🎲 OUR WEEKLY NEWS QUIZ
What do you remember from the news this week?
1. A man ploughed his truck into a crowd of revellers in the early hours of Jan. 1, killing at least 15 on which iconic street of New Orleans?
2. A dispute over Russian natural gas transit has been escalating between Ukraine and which other European country?
3. The Taliban have banned the construction of what, over concerns that it can “lead to obscene acts”?
4. Apple has agreed to pay $95 million to settle a court case alleging its virtual assistant Siri was:
eavesdropping / using racial slurs / spreading fake news / mocking Elon Musk
[Answers at the bottom of this newsletter]
#️⃣ TRENDING
The Spanish tradition of eating 12 grapes at midnight on New Year’s Eve has become a viral sensation on social media. Some users on X are even reporting about supermarkets running out of grapes. The custom dates back to the 19th century and is believed to bring luck and prosperity, with each grape representing a wish or resolution for a month in the coming year. At the stroke of midnight, revelers eat one grape with each clock chime, aligning their hopes with the new year. Another viral twist suggests eating grapes under a table to somehow boost romantic prospects. Popularized by the TV show Modern Family, where the ritual brought life-changing luck to one of the characters, the doce uvas tradition might soon move to being a global trend.
🎭 5 CULTURE THINGS TO KNOW
• UNESCO increases efforts to protect Ukrainian cultural heritage. UNESCO, the cultural arm of the United Nations, has granted two new Ukrainian sites enhanced protection status, the highest level of immunity, which prohibits direct attacks or their use for military purposes. The Babyn Yar site, a Holocaust memorial, and the Odesa Literary Museum, join the list of sites safeguarded by this special status. Since the beginning of the war in 2022, more than 340 cultural sites have been damaged in Ukraine.
• In memoriam: Jimmy Carter, the 39th U.S. president, died at 100 years old on Dec. 30, 2024. U.S. President Joe Biden paid tribute to an "extraordinary leader" and "a man of principle, faith, and humility". Jocelyne Wildenstein, Swiss socialite known for her numerous plastic surgeries, passed away at 79 on Jan. 1. Former Hungarian gymnast and Holocaust survivor Ágnes Keleti died at the age of 104 on Jan. 2; Keleti was the world's oldest Olympic champion. Marie-Claude Beaud, a renowned European museum curator, died on Dec. 29 in France at 78 years old. And South African dancer and choreographer Dada Masilo died suddenly at 39 years old after a short illness on Dec. 29.
• Justin Baldoni to sue The New York Times after Blake Lively accusations. American actor Justin Baldoni filed a $250 million libel suit against The New York Times for publishing an article containing "inaccuracies, misrepresentations and omissions.” The newspaper published an exposé of fellow American actor Blake Lively's complaint against Baldoni for sexual harassment on the set of the movie It Ends With Us. Lively claimed that Baldoni and his team launched a smear campaign against her in the press and on social media after she raised concerns during the production.
• Season 2 of Squid Game becomes Netflix's biggest TV debut. The second act of Squid Game drew more than 68 million views in the first four days, beating the 50.1 million views record held by the show Wednesday since 2022. Squid Game 1 and 2 rank amongst the most popular non-English language TV titles of all time on the streaming platform.
• Neil Young confirms he will headline Glastonbury. The 79-year-old Canadian rock star had announced earlier this week that he was pulling out of the English music festival because it was “now under corporate control.” He cited the festival’s partnership with the BBC, which has been a partner since 1997. On Friday, Young explained on his blog that “an error in information” had prompted him to pull out, and confirmed that he and his new band, The Chrome Hearts, would be headlining the festival this June. His last Glastonbury performance was in 2009.
📰 IN OTHER NEWS
🍷🤖The vineyards around Bordeaux, France are known for preserving the region's traditions. But they are also on the cutting-edge among French winemakers, leading the way in using new technologies, such as electric robots and AI monitoring, which allow them to reduce CO2 emissions and solve labor shortages. — LES ECHOS
🇸🇾🇺🇲 The new governor of the Damascus region has articulated a surprisingly soft stance on Israel's aggressive action in both Syria and Gaza in hope that this would lead to U.S. recognition of the new regime. — AL MANASSA
🇮🇱 The radical far-right in Israel's government is demanding to build settlements in the Gaza Strip. Israel's army is creating the conditions for this. — DIE ZEIT
💻 Two years after ChatGPT, China has released its own answer: DeepSeek 3, whose performance is comparable or even superior to that of its rival, but which costs less and is free to access. It's a sign that artificial intelligence is now the preferred arena for the Chinese-American showdown. — FRANCE INTER
📵 We are drowning in digital hyper-production, or the vast torrent of pictures and data coming out of our screens. There is no room for mystery or creativity. The art of delay, essential for contemplative thought, is definitively lost in the culture of digital immediacy. So what can we do about this? — CLARIN
🐕 SMILE OF THE WEEK
No need to call the paw-lice! A dog became the first to cross the Hungary-Romania border freely on Jan. 1, marking the latter’s entry into Europe’s Schengen area, along with Bulgaria. Land border checks between the two countries and their EU neighbors officially ceased at midnight, providing travelers free access to the rest of the 27-member bloc. Already EU members, Romania and Bulgaria partially joined the Schengen area in March, but open travel was restricted to those arriving only by air or sea.
🥵⚡️ BRIGHT IDEA
The next sustainable energy source could be... you. A group of researchers at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, have developed a wearable technology that turns body heat into electricity. The ultra-thin, flexible thermoelectric film can be worn on the skin and "effectively turn the temperature difference between the human body and surrounding air into electricity," said Professor Zhi-Gang Chen. The potential uses could include managing personal temperature or cooling chips in computers or smartphones to make them more efficient.
⏩ LOOKING AHEAD
• U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit South Korea on Jan. 9-10, amid rising political instability in the region that saw protests over President Yoon Suk Yeol’s recent impeachment. The visit will focus on security issues, including North Korea’s threats, regional economic cooperation, and strengthening the U.S.-South Korea alliance.
• A state funeral for Jimmy Carter will be held on Jan. 9, at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. President Joe Biden is expected to deliver the eulogy. Carter’s body will lie in state at the U.S. Capitol from January 7 to 9, offering a chance to honor the legacy of the 39th U.S. president who died Dec. 29 at age 100.
• The 82nd Golden Globe Awards will be held on Jan. 5, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Hosted by Ricky Gervais, the ceremony will honor the best in film and television, with heavyweights Brutalist and Conclave battling for best drama, while Anora and Wicked are competing with Emilia Pérez (in the nominations lead with 10 nods) in the best musical/comedy category.
News quiz answers:
1. In the early hours of Jan. 1, a man rammed his pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, killing 14 and injuring dozens, before being fatally shot by police. The FBI identified the driver as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, an American-born resident of Houston, Texas, and a convert to Islam. The attack is being investigated as an act of terrorism.
2. Slovakia has threatened to cut financial support for more than 130,000 Ukrainian refugees as a dispute with Ukraine over Russian gas supplies escalates. On Jan. 1, Kyiv shut off a pipeline that had long been used to supply Central Europe with Russian natural gas, a move described by Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico as “sabotage”. Last month, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Slovakia of helping Russian President Vladimir Putin "fund the war and weaken Ukraine".
3. The Taliban have banned the construction of windows that overlook places where women can be seen while at home. The order applies to new residential buildings as well as existing ones, and states that new buildings should not have windows where you can see “the courtyard, kitchen, neighbor’s well and other places usually used by women”. The decree argues that “Seeing women working in kitchens, in courtyards or collecting water from wells can lead to obscene acts.”
4. Apple has agreed to pay $95 million to settle a California lawsuit accusing the company of using its virtual assistant, Siri, of eavesdropping on iPhone users. The lawsuit claims that recorded conversations were shared with advertisers for targeted marketing, despite Apple's assertions of prioritizing user privacy.
✍️ Newsletter by Worldcrunch
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