Wednesday, January 25th, 2023 

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists declares an announcement that there is an announcement later this day about the Doomsday Clock which is a clock that is supposed to measure the figurative seconds until a apocalyptic global catastrophe. The announcement was that the Doomsday Clock has moved up to 90 seconds till midnight (midnight being a metaphor for the global catastrophe). The science and security board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists stated that a large part for this decision to move it was from the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. (NPR)

A new study by seismologists at Peking University in Beijing claims that Earth’s inner core stopped rotating faster than the rest of the planet in 2009. (Nature) (New Scientist) 

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announces that Germany will send Leopard 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine, and will also allow other operators of the tanks, such as Poland, to send them to Ukraine. (Reuters) 

Several senior Ukrainian officials, including deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Tymoshenko, four deputy ministers, and five regional governors, resign as a nationwide anti-corruption campaign is launched in Ukraine. (BBC News) 

A DRC Air Force Sukhoi Su-25 is hit by anti-aircraft fire over the Rwandan border. The Rwandan government says its forces took “defensive measures” against a plane that had “violated its airspace”. (BBC News) 

A Philippine Air Force SF.260 training flight from Sangley Point Airport in Cavite City, Philippines, crashes on a paddy field in Bataan, killing two people on board. (AP) 

Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins is sworn in as the 41st prime minister of New Zealand by Governor-General Cindy Kiro. (AFP via RFI) 

Tuesday,  January 24th, 2023 

Two British aid workers are killed during a humanitarian evacuation from Soledar in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. (BBC News) 

An ongoing tornado outbreak strikes the Gulf Coast of the United States, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a rare tornado emergency for areas east of Houston, Texas. (The New York Times) 

A Cessna 206 with 6 people on board goes missing in Isabela, Philippines. Rescue operations are being conducted. (Global China Daily) 

The death toll from the freezing temperatures across Afghanistan increases to 124. The majority of the victims are shepherds and people living in rural areas. (BBC) 

Monday,  January 23rd, 2023 

An Algerian Air Force Mi-171 helicopter crashes during a military exercise, killing three crew onboard. (MEHR) 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan rules out Turkish support for Sweden’s bid for NATO membership following the burning of a Quran outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm by Rasmus Paludan and a series of pro-Kurdish demonstrations where protestors waved PKK flags. (AP) 

Latvia asks Russian ambassador Mikhail Vanin [ru] to leave the country by February 24 in “full solidarity” with Estonia. (Politico) 

Seven people are killed and one other person is injured in a shooting spree in Half Moon Bay, California, United States. A suspect is taken into custody afterwards. (San Francisco Chronicle) 

Judge Tarek Bitar resumes his investigation into the explosion, 13 months after Hezbollah officials filed complaints against Bitar that prompted him to suspend the investigation. (AFP via Zawya) 

The Kumamoto district court orders the government to compensate two plaintiffs ¥22 million (US$170,000) worth of damages for their compulsory sterilization under the now-obsolete Eugenic Protection Act of 1948. (Kyodo News) 

A major power outage in Pakistan leaves nearly 220 million people without electricity after a failure at the national power grid. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had ordered a reduction of energy consumption as the country faces a severe energy crisis. (Reuters) 

the expulsion of the Russian ambassador in Tallinn to reciprocate Russia’s expulsion of the Estonian ambassador in Moscow due to a “downgrade” of relations. Both envoys will depart their respective assignments on February 7. (AFP via A News) 

The End 

Sunday, January 22nd, 2023 

German Foreign Affairs Minister Annalena Baerbock says that Germany will not prevent Poland from sending Leopard 2 main battle tanks to Ukraine which Ukrainian officials say are pivotal to defeating Russian forces on the battlefield. (Reuters) 

The Lebanese Army declares a “state of alert” after stopping Israeli bulldozers and accompanying soldiers from approaching a border fence in Southern Lebanon. Peacekeeping forces from UNIFIL have also been deployed to the area. (Anadolu Agency) 

Police in Cameroon find the mutilated body of prominent journalist Martinez Zogo who had been kidnapped by unknown assailants five days ago, amid increasing violence against reporters in the country. (Reuters) 

The ruling Labour Party unanimously elects education and public service minister Chris Hipkins to succeed Jacinda Ardern as the party’s leader following Ardern’s resignation three days ago. Governor-General Cindy Kiro is expected to appoint Hipkins as the 41st prime minister of New Zealand on January 25. (AP) 

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses health and interior minister Aryeh Deri from his cabinet after the Supreme Court ruled that Deri was barred from holding a position as a cabinet minister due to his conviction for tax offenses. (AFP via France 24) 

Saturday, January 21st, 2023 

The Russian military says that it has launched offensive operations in Zaporizhzhia Oblast and “taken more advantageous lines and positions”. (France 24) 

Peru indefinitely closes its iconic Machu Picchu historic site due to the ongoing unrest which has killed dozens of people. Around 500 foreign nationals are currently stranded in Peru. (BBC News) (AFP via France 24) 

Burkina Faso demands that French forces withdraw from its territory after suspending a 2018 military accord that allowed the presence of French troops in the country. The ruling military junta has given France one month to complete the withdrawal. (Reuters) 

RT France, the French arm of the Russian state media network RT, ceases operation following the freezing of their bank accounts by the Direction générale du Trésor. (AFP via News18) 

The Turkish defense ministry cancels Swedish defense minister Pål Jonson‘s upcoming visit to Turkey in response to an approval for far-right extremist Rasmus Paludan to protest in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm. (AFP via The Jordan Times) 

Ten people are killed and ten others are injured in a mass shooting at a dance studio after Lunar New Year celebrations in Monterey Park, California, United States. The suspect, 72-year old Huu Can Tran, escapes and later commits suicide. (Los Angeles Times) 

Slovakians head to the polls to vote in a referendum to determine whether early elections can be called before the customary end of the mandate. (AP) 

Commander of the Brazilian Army Júlio César de Arruda is fired by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the aftermath of the January 8 Congress attack and is replaced by Tomás Miguel Ribeiro Paiva. (AP) 

Tanzanian opposition party Chadema organizes a political demonstration in Mwanza. This is the country’s first demonstration since President Samia Suluhu Hassan abolished her predecessor John Magufuli‘s seven-year ban on political assembly earlier this month. (AFP via VOA) 

The End

Friday,  January 20th, 2023 

Swedish Defence Minister Pål Jonson announces that Sweden will send its self-propelled Archer Artillery System, 50 Combat Vehicle 90 IFVs, and NLAW anti-tank missiles to Ukraine as part of its latest military support package for the Ukrainian military. (Politico) 

Five Iraqis from Duhok, Kurdistan Region, Iraq, are shot and killed by gunmen on a road in Mardin Province, Turkey. Two of the victims were prominent imams in Duhok. (The National News) 

The United States reaches its debt ceiling of $31.4 trillion, requiring the Treasury Department to suspend the issuance of new Treasury securities and take extraordinary measures to prevent a default. (CNN) 

British catalog retailer Argos says that it will close all of its stores in the Republic of Ireland by June, with the loss of 580 jobs, saying that the investment needed to modernize its operations in the country was “not viable”. (BBC News) 

Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings steps down as co-CEO, having served in the position since its founding in 1997. Greg Peters is selected to succeed him. (BBC News) 

A judge in Bolivia rules that opposition figure Luis Fernando Camacho must remain in prison ahead of his trial. Camacho was arrested in December on charges of terrorism. (Reuters) 

Thursday, January 19th, 2023 

A protester is killed and a Georgia State Patrol trooper is injured after they exchange fire during a clearing operation against demonstrators attempting to prevent the construction of a police training facility at a forest in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution) 

French Catholic nun Lucile Randon, who had been the world’s oldest verified living person since April 2022 and the fourth verified oldest woman, dies at the age of 118. (AFP via Manila Bulletin) 

During a visit to Kyiv, Canadian National Defence Minister Anita Anand announces that Canada will send 200 Roshel Senator armoured personnel carriers to Ukraine. (CBC News) 

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States Mark Milley meet for the first time in person. (AFP via The Times of Israel) 

Fifteen servicemen are killed and seven others are injured after a fire breaks out at barracks in Azat, Armenia. (AP) 

At least one football fan has been killed and 60 others injured in a crowd crush outside a stadium in the southern Iraqi city of Basra, local media report.(BBC News) 

Iran and South Korea summon each other ambassadors in a deepening spat between the countries, after South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol called Iran “the enemy of the United Arab Emirates” while addressing South Korean troops stationed there. (Reuters) 

Jacinda Ardern announces her intention to resign as prime minister of New Zealand no later than 7 February. (The Guardian) 

A day of strikes and demonstrations is taking place throughout France against the government’s pension reform project, which plans to raise the retirement age to 64. (Le Point) 

Thousands of protesters march in Lima demanding the resignation of president Dina Boluarte as the number of fatalities from clashes between demonstrators and police exceeds 50. (Reuters) 

The United Nations reports the discovery of mass graves in Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, containing the bodies of 49 civilians. CODECO militants are suspected of being behind the killings. (AP) 

Despite a slight decrease in overall inflation at the end of last year, food prices in the United Kingdom increased by 16.9% in the twelve months to December, the highest rate since September 1977, according to the Office for National Statistics. (Evening Standard) 

Microsoft announces that it will cut 10,000 jobs, around 5% of its global workforce, amid a slowdown in consumer spending. (BBC News) 

At least 70 people and 70,000 cattle are killed due to freezing temperatures across Afghanistan. (Al Jazeera) 

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva dismisses 13 more military personnel from the presidential cabinet whom he blames for the January 8 attack in Brasília. (Reuters) 

The End