👋 Nyob zoo!*
Welcome to Wednesday, where Hamas confirms it is considering a truce deal, Imran Khan gets his second long prison sentence in two days and there may be a breakthrough in the 87-year-long Amelia Earhart mystery. Meanwhile, Arabic-language independent digital media Daraj looks into the black market flourishing in Gaza for those who have the money to pay their way out of the war-torn enclave.
[*Nyaw zhong - Hmong, China, Vietnam, Laos]
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🗞️ FRONT PAGE
“Will Erdogan divide us?” asks Tagesspiegel on its front page, after it was announced that a German branch of the Turkish leader’s AKP party is expected to be on the ballot in the upcoming European elections. As the Berlin-based daily reports, several politicians and experts have warned against what they see as Ankara’s attempts to sway EU politics, and on a domestic level, are worried about potential consequences for Germany’s considerable Turkish community.
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• Hamas studying proposal for a new pause in Gaza fighting: Hamas's political leader has confirmed it is studying a new proposal to pause the fighting in Gaza. Ismail Haniyeh said the group had been invited to discuss a framework set out by Israel, the U.S., Qatar and Egypt. It reportedly proposes a six-week truce, when more Israeli hostages would be exchanged for Palestinian prisoners.
• Kataib Hezbollah announces halt of attacks on U.S. forces: Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah has announced the suspension of hostile operations against U.S. troops after a drone strike in Jordan killed three American soldiers. The group said its attempt to de-escalate late on Tuesday was motivated by a desire not to “embarrass” the Iraqi government, but the U.S. dismissed the announcement, alleging that there have been three further attacks since the attack in Jordan on January 28.
• Imran Khan given second jail sentence in two days: Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi have been given 14 years of prison time, making it the second sentence handed to Khan in two days. The two sentences come just a week before the country is due to hold an election in which he is barred from standing. Khan, who was ousted by his opponents in 2022, is already serving a three-year jail term for corruption.
• Farmer protests continue to spread in Europe: French and Belgian farmers angry about rising costs, EU environmental policies and competition from cheap food imports, blocked highways and access roads to a major container port on Tuesday as the protests spread across Europe. In France, farmers, who have been protesting for over two weeks, stepped up their pressure on the government by blocking highways with their tractors near Paris. Meanwhile, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal has said he is implementing controls on foreign food products in order to guarantee “fair competition.”
• Sultan Ibrahim becomes Malaysia's 17th king: Malaysia's Sultan Ibrahim from the southern state of Johor was installed as the country's 17th king on Wednesday, taking the oath of office in a ceremony at the national palace in Kuala Lumpur. The monarchy plays a mostly ceremonial role in Malaysia, but its influence has grown in recent years, prompting the king to use rarely-used powers to put an end to political instability.
• Universal vs. TikTok: Universal Music is set to pull millions of songs from TikTok after a breakdown in talks over payments. The move would mean the social media platform would no longer have access to songs by artists including Taylor Swift, The Weeknd and Drake. Universal accused TikTok of “bullying” and said it wanted to pay a “fraction” of the rate other social media sites do to access its catalog.
• Amelia Earhart wreckage spotted?: A former U.S. Air Force intelligence officer says he believes he has spotted the wreckage of American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart's plane, which disappeared nine decades ago. Hoping to solve an 87-year-old mystery, explorer Tony Romeo plans to launch a mission later this year or next to search in the location identified on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.
#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
$55.8 billion
That’s the amount of the pay deal — awarded to tech entrepreneur Elon Musk back in 2018 by electric car company Tesla — that a Delaware judge has just canceled, as part of a lawsuit filed by a shareholder who argued that it was an overpayment. Judge Kathaleen McCormick called the compensation “an unfathomable sum” that was not fair to shareholders and said the process leading to the package being approved was “deeply flawed.”
📰 STORY OF THE DAY
Inside the Egyptian-run black market for escaping out of Gaza
As the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza continues unabated after nearly four months, brokers and travel agents are now charging Palestinians who want to leave the besieged strip up to $10,000 to get them out. Arabic-language independent digital media platform Daraj speaks with Palestinians and Egyptians trapped in the coastal enclave, who can’t afford to get out.
🇵🇸🇪🇬 After the war was triggered by Hamas’ unprecedented ambush on southern Israel that killed more than 1,200 people, Israel's punishing bombing campaign that's killed some 27,000 Palestinians has turned much of the coastal strip into rubble and forced most of Gaza’s 2.3 million people to flee their homes. More than 1 million Gazans have amassed in or around Gaza's southernmost town of Rafah on the border with Egypt.
💸 For years, a network of travel agents and brokers based in Egypt and Gaza have offered fast-track visas through Rafah for a price ranging from several hundred to several thousand dollars. Such a network flourishes in war times like the ongoing Hamas-Israel one which has raged since Oct. 7. Brokers are now charging Palestinians between $4,500 and $10,000 for a transit permit, according to interviews with 15 Palestinians and Egyptians who want to leave the Strip.
🛃 From Gaza, the official process of obtaining a free crossing permit required “internal coordination” by submitting an application with the General Administration of Crossings and Borders of the Hamas-run Interior Ministry. Approvals often take up to two months in the winter and six months in the summer, while those traveling for medical purposes may see their applications processed faster. However, even obtaining a permit was not a guarantee — the Egyptian authorities might return Palestinians at the border for a variety of unexpected reasons.
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📹 THIS HAPPENED VIDEO — TODAY IN HISTORY, IN ONE ICONIC PHOTO
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📣 VERBATIM
“All of Venezuela rejects the rude and improper blackmail and ultimatum expressed by the U.S. government.”
— Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodriguez accused the United States of “blackmail” for reimposing oil and gas sanctions on the country after the Venezuelan top court upheld a ban on the opposition in the upcoming elections. Presidential candidate Maria Corina Machado faced a 15-year ban on running for office after alleged corruption involvement and conspiracy charges, despite winning the opposition's presidential primary with over 90% of the votes. President Nicolás Maduro, in power since 2013, is expected to seek a third term in 2024. The U.S. in response, imposed sanctions on Venezuela’s state-owned miner and may not renew the license allowing its oil to flow freely.
✍️ Newsletter by Emma Albright and Cory Agathe
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