👋 Da'anzho!*
Welcome to Monday, where Donald Trump says new sweeping tariffs may cause “short-term” pain for Americans, Volkswagen sues India over a huge tax demand, and Beyoncé finally wins a Grammy for best album. And for Worldcrunch, a yearning for hummus inspires Egyptian-born writer Hagar Farouk to reflect on gastrocolonialism in the Middle East.
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[*Eastern Apache]
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🗞️ FRONT PAGE
Saudi Arabian daily Okaz headlined with Syria’s interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa’s arrival in Saudi Arabia to meet with Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman just months after toppling the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria. The visit, al-Sharaa’s first abroad since beginning to lead the country, is another step in the apparent strategy to gain support from Western and Arab leaders and move away from the regional power that is Iran.
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• Trump says Americans could feel “some pain” from trade war, threatens tariffs on EU. The U.S. president said that the sweeping tariffs that he has imposed on Mexico, Canada and China, which are expected to come into effect Tuesday, may cause “short-term” pain for Americans and that it “will definitely happen with the European Union.” The announcement prompted fears of a global trade war, with stock markets in Asia and Europe suffering heavy drops Monday.
• Netanyahu travels to U.S. for Gaza talks with Trump. The Israeli prime minister is on his way to Washington, DC, where he’s expected to meet with the U.S. president on Tuesday to discuss the second phase of the ceasefire agreed with Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza. The talks will be Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his return to the White House. Meanwhile, the Israeli military reported on Sunday that it had killed at least 50 militants during more than two weeks of operations “to thwart terrorism” in the occupied West Bank. Read more in this analysis translated from Arabic by Worldcrunch: The War In Gaza Is Far From Over — And Netanyahu Has Trump's Green Light.
• EU leaders meet for defense talks in Brussels. European leaders are gathering Monday to discuss how to bolster the continent’s defenses against Russia, as the war with Ukraine is about to complete its third year. The EU leaders will also talk about how they will handle U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to impose major new tariffs on goods from the bloc. The leaders will meet with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte as well as Keir Starmer, marking the first time a British prime minister has joined a gathering of EU leaders since Brexit. For more, check this Les Echos piece: To Europe, Trump's America Looks As Threatening As Putin's Russia.
• Bomb in Moscow apartment building kills one. At least one person was killed and four others injured after a bomb Monday morning tore through the lobby of the “Scarlet Sails” complex, a luxury apartment block in the capital. The state TASS news agency reported that the attack was targeting a pro-Russian paramilitary leader from eastern Ukraine.
• Trial of Spain’s former soccer boss over World Cup kiss begins. Luis Rubiales is standing trial in Madrid on Monday, accused of sexual assault for the unsolicited kiss he gave to player Jenni Hermoso during the 2023 World Cup victory ceremony. Spanish prosecutors are seeking a prison term of two and a half years. Hermoso appeared as a witness on the opening day of the trial, which will run until Feb. 19. The case, which sparked backlash against sexism in sport, was the latest example of how the male-dominated sport hasn't changed with the times, as this La Marea analysis shows.
• Volkswagen sues India over $1.4 bn tax notice. The German carmaker has filed a lawsuit against Indian authorities to quash an “impossibly enormous” tax demand of $1.4 billion, saying that it violates New Delhi’s import taxation rules for car parts. India had slapped Volkswagen with the tax notice in September 2024 for using a strategy to break down imports of some VW, Skoda and Audi cars into many individual parts to pay a lower duty.
• News Quiz! One hundred years ago on February 2nd, 1925, a team transported life-saving diphtheria serum to the isolated Alaskan town of Nome across 674 miles in less than a week — an epic journey known as the “Great Race of Mercy.” Which animals helped transport the serum?
A. Caribous
B. Sled dogs
C. Wild horses
D. Bison
[Answer below]
🔢 BY THE NUMBERS
35
Beyoncé, the winningest artist in Grammys history, finally won best album on Sunday after years of missing the top award, bringing her award total to a whopping 35. Her eighth album, Cowboy Carter, won best album at the awards show, beating out Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, and Chappell Roan. The win came months after the artist was snubbed by the Country Music Awards in September, not receiving a single nomination from the awards show despite having one of the biggest country hits of the year with “Texas Hold ‘Em.”
📹 ON THIS DAY VIDEO — 4 HISTORY-MAKING EVENTS, IN 57 SECONDS
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📰 IN OTHER NEWS
🤝 The post-liberal world needs an added dose of cautious and realistic diplomacy, and the United States remains its natural promoter. Yet there is little evidence, for now, that the Trump administration has an interest in diplomacy to keep the collective peace.
— CLARÍN
🍽️ Food is more than nourishment; it carries the stories of a people. For Palestinians, cuisine holds a profound connection to their heritage, but the trendy rise of Israeli food is putting that at risk.
— WORLDCRUNCH
🧒 The idea may sound callous, bordering on irresponsible, but sometimes what you need is to let your kids figure it out. They'll thank you later.
— DIE ZEIT
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📣 VERBATIM
“It was a moment that stained one of the happiest days of my life.”
— Spanish soccer player Jenni Hermoso testified in court against former Spanish football chief Luis Rubiales, recounting his kissing of her after the Spanish win at the 2023 FIFA World Cup. The sexual assault and coercion trial began in Madrid on Monday, with Hermoso being the first witness that prosecutors brought in their call for Rubiales to receive two and a half years in prison for the incident. Rubiales has said the outrage by some over the incident was “fake feminism,” but resigned his position not long after the kiss.
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Quiz Answer: B. The 1925 serum run to Nome involved the combined efforts of 20 mushers and more than 150 dogs to complete the trip in record time, saving countless lives in the town and surrounding communities. The exploit inspired many references in popular culture and literature, with lead sled dog Balto becoming the most famous canine celebrity of the era.