Friday,  January 31st, 2025 

Apollo-type asteroid 2024 YR4 triggers global planetary defence procedures for the first time and rises to the top of the Palermo Technical Impact Hazard Scale after recent observations confirmed it has a 1-in-77 (1.3%) chance of impacting Earth on 22 December 2032. Follow up observations in 2028 will provide a more refined estimation of the likelihood of impact in 2032. (The Guardian) 

Encouraged by similar boycotts in Croatia on January 24, and in conjunction with a follow-up boycott in the country, residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, and North Macedonia embark on a boycott of retail stores in response to skyrocketing prices. (Intellinews) 

President Bongbong Marcos issues a statement that he is deeply disturbed by possible surveillance of the country’s air and naval bases as well as movement of vessels supplying Philippine garrisons in the South China Sea following a series of arrests of suspected Chinese spies in the Philippines. (CNA) 

The Hellenic Parliament fails to elect the new President of Greece in the second round. A third round is called for 6 February. (Greek City Times) 

The United States Federal Drug Administration approves Vertex Pharmaceuticals‘ new Journavx drug, a non-opioid analgesic used to treat acute pain and potentially eliminate the risks of opioid addiction and overdose. (AP) (FDA) 

The Nicaraguan National Assembly votes unanimously to pass several constitutional reforms that grants the government influence over the media, extend the presidential term to 6 years, and makes President Daniel Ortega‘s wife Rosario Murillo co-President. (Al Jazeera) 

Following weeks of unsuccessful negotiations, the Centre Party withdraws from the Norwegian government over disagreements over the implementation of three directives in the European Union’s fourth energy package, with the Labour Party continuing as a single party minority government. (NRK) 

Thousands of people gather in Berlin, Germany, to protest against Chancellor-candidate Friedrich Merz and the Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union parties after they collaborated with the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party on a non-binding motion to restrict immigration. Members of the Bundestag debate on motions to ban the AfD, alleging that its beliefs and legal practices are unconstitutional. (DW) 

Uganda confirms an outbreak of Ebola, with the first death, a nurse at Mulago National Specialised Hospital in Kampala, being confirmed yesterday. (Reuters) 

Thursday, January 30th, 2025 

The French Armed Forces returns their last military base in Chad to the Chad National Army, bringing an end to French military presence in the country. (AP) 

After establishing a new administration in Goma, Congo River Alliance leader Corneille Nangaa confirms his forces now plan on overthrowing president Félix Tshisekedi. He also says services in the city will return to normal soon as the United Nations warns of a humanitarian crisis. (BBC News) 

The End Friday 

Former U.S. Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey is sentenced to 11 years in prison, following his conviction on bribery and corruption charges. (BBC) 

The District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department says no survivors are expected after the midair collision between an American Airlines airliner and a military helicopter last night over Washington, D.C., United States, making it the deadliest aviation disaster in the U.S. since the September 11 attacks in 2001. (CNN) 

A PSA Airlines Bombardier CRJ-700 operating as American Eagle Flight 5342 collides with a U.S. Army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk over the Potomac River near Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., United States, killing at least 28 people between both aircraft and causing a shutdown of flights in and out of the airport.  (NBC NEWS) 

A crowd crush occurs at a Hindu festival in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, with at least 30 people dead. (BBC) 

Google confirms that it will rename the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America on Google Maps for US users in line with the official position of the Trump administration. (The Guardian) 

Following the meeting between Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing, China and India agree to resume direct air travel between the two countries after a five-year hiatus. (CNA) 

Hamas free eight hostages: three Israelis and five Thai nationals. (The Times of Israel) 

Israel says it’s holding up the release of Palestinian prisoners until safety of future releases can be guaranteed in protest of the chaotic scenes at the handover of several hostages in Khan Younis earlier today. (The Times of Israel) 

Israel announces it will cease all contact with the United Nations relief agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, after a ban on the organization’s work on Israeli territory goes into effect on January 30. (DW) 

Hamas confirms that Israel killed Mohammed Deif along with Marwan Issa, Raed Thabet, Rafa Salama, Ayman Nofal and Ghazi Abu Tamaa. (Al Arabiya) 

A shootout between the Pakistan Army and Pakistani Taliban in North Waziristan District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, leaves two soldiers and six militants dead. (AP) 

Islam critic and quran burner Salwan Momika is assassinated at his apartment in Södertälje, Sweden. (BBC News) 

M23 forces advance into South Kivu, capturing several towns and villages, including Kalungu in Kalehe Territory. (MSN) 

Rwandan-backed M23 rebels say they will march on the DRC capital Kinshasa and install a new government as Congolese president Félix Tshisekedi calls for a mobilization of young males to reclaim lost territory. Congolese Defence Minister Guy Kabombo Muadiamvita says there will be no peace talks with the rebels. (AP) 

SSC Khaatumo has claimed victory over Somaliland forces after heavy fighting erupted and undisclosed casualties early Thursday in the Shangeed area, located between Qoorlugud and Buuhoodle of Cayn region. Somalia. (Hiiraan Online) 

Wednesday, January 29th, 2025 

A global selloff of technology stocks (Monday) on Nasdaq, prompted by the release of the DeepSuck-R1 model, leads to record losses in the market capitalizations of AI and computer hardware companies. (Reuters) 

Boom Technology‘s XB-1 trijet supersonic demonstrator becomes the first privately-funded jet-powered plane to break the sound barrier at Mojave Air and Space Port. (Reuters) 

A United States Air Force F-35 pilot ejects during a crash at Eielson Air Force Base in Fairbanks, Alaska United States. The aircraft is destroyed. (CBS News) 

President Trump announces plans to transform the United States detention facility in Cuba’s Guantánamo Bay into a holding center for undocumented immigrants, capable of hosting 30,000. (Al Jazeera) 

Ahmed al-Sharaa is declared the president of Syria during the transition period, a month after Bashar al-Assad was ousted by rebel forces. (Reuters) 

Mongolian sumōtori Hōshōryū Tomokatsu becomes the 74th yokozuna. (NHK) 

Russian forces have captured the city of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, after a year of intense fighting for control of the front line city. (The Moscow Times) 

U.S. Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff visits the Gaza Strip and meets with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu to assure that the ceasefire remains intact. (NPR) 

Israel announces it will cease all contact with the United Nations relief agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, after a ban on the organization’s work on Israeli territory goes into effect on January 30. (DW) 

Around 280 Romanian mercenaries fighting alongside the Congolese military in North Kivu surrender to the M23, according to the Rwandan military. They are now being transported to Kigali after being handed over to Rwandan authorities. (BBC News) 

In an emergency address to the nation, Congolese president Félix Tshisekedi calls for calm and says “a vigorous and coordinated response against these terrorists and their sponsors is underway” by the armed forces, and also cancels participation in a regional summit with Rwandan president Paul Kagame. (Foreign Policy) (Le Monde) 

M23 rebels solidify control of Goma and are confirmed to be holding captured Congolese troops and allied Wazalendo militiamen at the Stade de l’Unité. They also begin advancing on Bukavu, capital of the South Kivu Province, according to senior Congolese officials and a Rwandan diplomat.  (Reuters) 

Five people (four from Norway and one from Switzerland) are killed in two separate avalanches while off-piste skiing in the French Alps. (BBC) 

Puntland deports around a thousand undocumented  Ethiopians  from  Bosaso, Galkayo, Qardho and the state’s capital, Garoowe, as part of an ongoing crackdown on foreigners without legal status, following the discovery of foreign fighters acting as Islamic State recruiters in the Cal Miskaad mountains of the Bari Region.  (Horseed Media) 

A Beechcraft 1900D carrying employees of an oil company crashes in Unity, South Sudan, killing 20 of the 21 people onboard, including one Indian and two Chinese nationals. (CNN) (Reuters) 

A Venezuelan Ministry of Interior, Justice and Peace Cessna Citation II aircraft crashes shortly after takeoff from Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda Air Base in Caracas, Venezuela, killing all three people on board. (Caraota Digital) 

U.S. President Donald Trump signs the Laken Riley Act into law, the first legislation of Trump’s second term. (NBC News) 

Police in Stuttgart, Germany, arrest 59 French fans of the Paris Saint-Germain football club for hooliganism before a match against German club VfB Stuttgart. (DW) 

The United States Office of Management and Budget rescinds a memo from Monday that would have paused federal financial assistance programs implicated by select executive orders of President Donald Trump, following a temporary block of the order on Tuesday by a federal judge. Following the recission, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt states that the Trump administration will continue to pursue a freeze of federal funds. (BBC) 

Wednesday, January 29th, 2025 

Boom Technology‘s XB-1 trijet supersonic demonstrator becomes the first privately-funded jet-powered plane to break the sound barrier at Mojave Air and Space Port. (Reuters) 

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announces that the Doomsday Clock has been moved up to 89 seconds before midnight. (Reuters) 

UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves approves the construction of a third runway at Greater London’s Heathrow Airport after decades of delays. (Sky News) 

A plane carrying employees of an oil company crashes in Unity, South Sudan, killing at least 20 people. One person survives the crash. (Reuters) 

Seven people are injured when an Air Busan Airbus A321-200 aircraft catches fire before taking off from Gimhae International Airport in Busan, South Korea. All 169 people on board are evacuated from the aircraft. (Korea Herald) 

Tuesday,  January 28th, 2025 

The United States Senate votes to confirm Scott Bessent as U.S. Treasury Secretary, making him the highest rank LGBTQ official to run the U.S. Treasury. (Time) 

United States federal judge Loren AliKhan temporarily blocks President Donald Trump’s executive order to pause funding for federal assistance in the country. (DW) 

President Trump signs an executive order eliminating “gender radicalism in the military”, targeting transgender troops in the military, and another executive order that mandates a process to develop an American Iron Dome. (France 24) 

Following the heist of multiple Dacian artifacts last Saturday at the Drents Museum in Assen, the Netherlands, Romanian Minister of Culture Lucian Romașcanu fires the director of the National History Museum of Romania in Bucharest. (NOS) 

Puntland authorities ban illegal foreign entries and direct telecom firms to deactivate SIM cards linked to undocumented individuals and Islamic State operatives, aiming to disrupt the group’s financial networks amidst ongoing anti-IS offensives by Puntland forces. (VOA) 

Puntland’s highest military court sentences two influencers to prison terms in abstentia for promoting Islamic State propaganda and spreading disinformation intended at discrediting Puntland forces’ ongoing operations. (Hiiraan Online) 

At least four civilians are killed in an airstrike by an unknown combat drone in the Sihan area of Qandala district in Puntland’s Bari region. (Garowe Online) 

M23 rebels take full control of Goma International Airport, according to senior diplomatic and Congolese security officials. (Reuters) 

Four more South African peacekeepers are killed after M23 forces launch a mortar attack on their position at Goma Airport, bringing the total number of foreign peacekeepers killed in recent clashes to 17. (Anadolu Ajansi) 

Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe says Congolese president Félix Tshisekedi “will have to accept talks with M23 to end the situation once and for all”. (The Hill) 

Mass rioting takes place in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, amid public outrage over the loss of Goma to Rwandan-backed rebels. Multiple embassies are stormed and attacked by anti-government protesters, including the embassies of France, Rwanda and Uganda. Widespread looting is also reported in the capital. (Reuters) 

Verdi, Germany’s second-largest trade union, calls for a one-day labor strike for workers at logistics and courier company DHL, which also manages Deutsche Post. (DW) 

The Senate of Pakistan passes a bill to criminalize the spread of disinformation in Pakistan, with the possibility of up to 3 years imprisonment and fines of up to Rs. 2 million (US$7,121). (DW) 

Ontario Premier Doug Ford announces that a new general election in the Canadian province of Ontario will be held on February 27, 2025. (Reuters) 

Three people, including the perpetrator, are killed and two police officers are injured in a mass shooting at a Martin’s Supermarket in Elkhart, Indiana, United States. (AP News) 

M23 rebels take full control of Goma International Airport, according to senior diplomatic and Congolese security officials. (Reuters) 

Two Pakistan Army soldiers and five insurgents are killed in a shootout in Killa Abdullah District, Balochistan, Pakistan. (AP) 

Serbian prime minister Miloš Vučević resigns following protests prompted by the Novi Sad railway station canopy collapse. (BBC) 

Monday,  January 27th, 2025 

A joint INTERPOL and AFRIPOL operation of eight East African nations leads to the arrest of 37 suspects and the seizure of small and heavy weapons in Kenya, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia and Tanzania. (INTERPOL) 

The Kyoto District Court finalizes the death sentence for Shinji Aoba, the perpetrator of the arson attack on a Kyoto Animation studio in 2019, after he withdrew his appeal to the court’s ruling. (The Japan Times) 

M23 rebels claim to have captured the city of Goma in North Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. The government says its troops still hold the Goma International Airport and other key locations, and that Rwandan army soldiers are present in Goma. Congolese and Rwandan forces exchange fire along the border. (Al Jazeera) (BBC)

Following the meeting between Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing, China and India agree to resume direct air travel between the two countries after a five-year hiatus. (CNA). 

Local authorities of Teorama, Norte de Santander, Colombia, find the bodies of thirteen FARC combatants. (El Espectador) 

United States Office of Management and Budget acting director Matthew Vaeth orders federal government agencies to temporarily pause all federal financial assistance programs, with the exception of Medicare and Social Security, that could be implicated by select executive orders from President Donald Trump. (Politico) 

Sunday, January 26th, 2025 

Saudi Arabia announces that it will invest 600 billion USD in the United States economy. (Al Arabiya) 

The Syrian newspaper Enab Baladi announces it will return to Syria after a decade in exile following the Syrian civil war. (The New Arab) 

A heist at the Drents Museum in Assen, Netherlands, results in the loss of valuable Dacian gold and silver artifacts, including the Helmet of Coțofenești. (Dutch News) 

Spirit Airlines announces a ban on passengers who wear “lewd” clothing or have “offensive” tattoos. (The Hill) 

Newly confirmed U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announces the release of American citizen Anastasia Nufer from a prison in Belarus. (Rferl.org) 

A vote is held in Belarus for president, with President Alexander Lukashenko expected to extend his rule, in an election that the Belarusian opposition, the United States, and the European Parliament have called a sham election. (Al Jazeera) 

Israeli forces open fire on a crowd of displaced Palestinians waiting at the Netzarim Corridor, killing two people and wounding seven others, including a child. Israeli authorities allege that the shooting was due to the delayed release of Israeli hostage Arbel Yahud. (Anadolu Ajansi) 

Israeli soldiers open fire against the Lebanese Army and civilians in two villages in southern Lebanon, killing 22 people and wounding at least 124 more. (Al Jazeera)

Israel reneges on part of its ceasefire deal and blocks Palestinians from returning to North Gaza through the Netzarim Corridor. Israel said that Hamas breach the deal first when it didn’t releases civilians first including Arbel Yehud as part of the deal. (BBC News) 

Hamas frees four Israeli hostages, including Naama Levy, in exchange for 200 Palestinian prisoners, including 121 people serving life sentences after being convicted of carrying out deadly attacks against Israelis, as part of the ceasefire deal. (AP) 

President of Colombia Gustavo Petro blocks two US military aircraft carrying deported Colombians as part of Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown from landing in his country. (The Guardian) 

United States president Donald Trump enacts a 25% tariff on all goods traded to the US from Colombia, which will be raised to 50% in one week. (CNN) 

The dispute was settled following Trump’s actions, when President Petro agreed to accept repatriated deportees, and even offered his presidential plane to fly them from the U.S. to Columbia.(Fox News) 

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is formally indicted on insurrection charges over his declaration of martial law in December 2024. (The Washington Post) 

The End

Sunday, January 26th, 2025 

Saudi Arabia announces that it will invest 600 billion USD in the United States economy. (Al Arabiya) 

The Syrian newspaper Enab Baladi announces it will return to Syria after a decade in exile following the Syrian civil war. (The New Arab) 

A heist at the Drents Museum in Assen, Netherlands, results in the loss of valuable Dacian gold and silver artifacts, including the Helmet of Coțofenești. (Dutch News) 

Spirit Airlines announces a ban on passengers who wear “lewd” clothing or have “offensive” tattoos. (The Hill) 

Newly confirmed U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announces the release of American citizen Anastasia Nufer from a prison in Belarus. (Rferl.org) 

A vote is held in Belarus for president, with President Alexander Lukashenko expected to extend his rule, in an election that the Belarusian opposition, the United States, and the European Parliament have called a sham election. (Al Jazeera) 

Israeli forces open fire on a crowd of displaced Palestinians waiting at the Netzarim Corridor, killing two people and wounding seven others, including a child. Israeli authorities allege that the shooting was due to the delayed release of Israeli hostage Arbel Yahud. (Anadolu Ajansi) 

Israeli soldiers open fire against the Lebanese Army and civilians in two villages in southern Lebanon, killing 22 people and wounding at least 124 more. (Al Jazeera)

Israel reneges on part of its ceasefire deal and blocks Palestinians from returning to North Gaza through the Netzarim Corridor. Israel said that Hamas breach the deal first when it didn’t releases civilians first including Arbel Yehud as part of the deal. (BBC News) 

Hamas frees four Israeli hostages, including Naama Levy, in exchange for 200 Palestinian prisoners, including 121 people serving life sentences after being convicted of carrying out deadly attacks against Israelis, as part of the ceasefire deal. (AP) 

Russian forces capture the village of Velyka Novosilka. (Mathrubhumi) 

At least 27 Nigerian soldiers, including the commanding officer of the 149th Battalion, are killed and dozens of others wounded in a suicide bombing carried out by an Islamic State fighter in the Malam-Fatori, Borno State, Nigeria. (Al Jazeera) 

President of Colombia Gustavo Petro blocks two US military aircraft carrying deported Colombians as part of Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown from landing in his country. (The Guardian) 

United States president Donald Trump enacts a 25% tariff on all goods traded to the US from Colombia, which will be raised to 50% in one week. (CNN) 

The dispute was settled following Trump’s actions, when President Petro agreed to accept repatriated deportees, and even offered his presidential plane to fly them from the U.S. to Columbia.(Fox News) 

March 23 Movement rebels begin their advance into the city of Goma. (Al Jazeera) 

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres urges Rwanda to end its support for rebels in DR Congo and withdraw Rwandan soldiers from Congolese territory. (Al Jazeera) 

Congolese foreign minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner called Rwanda’s military support for M23 rebels a “declaration of war.” (DW) 

DR Congo severed its diplomatic relations with Rwanda as Rwandan-backed rebels advance on the city of Goma, the capital of the DRC’s North Kivu province. (The Guardian) 

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is formally indicted on insurrection charges over his declaration of martial law in December 2024. (The Washington Post) 

In tennis, Jannik Sinner defeats Alexander Zverev 6-3, 7(7)-6(4), 6-3, in the men’s singles final to win his second Australian Open title and his third Grand Slam overall. (The Guardian) 

Chelsea F.C. Women sign American defender Naomi Girma coming from San Diego Wave FC for a world-record fee of $1.1 million making her the most expensive women player and the first million-dollar transfer in women’s soccer history. (CBS Sports) 

In motor racing, the Porsche Penske Motorsport team wins the 63rd 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race with drivers Felipe Nasr, Nick Tandy, and Laurens Vanthoor. 

Saturday, January 25th, 2025 

Pete Hegseth is confirmed as U.S. Secretary of Defense in a 51–50 vote, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tie-breaking vote. (NBC News) 

The U.S. State Department freezes nearly all foreign aid except military aid to Israel and Egypt, as well as emergency food programs. (Global News) 

Mexico denies a request from the United States to allow a military aircraft deporting migrants from the U.S. to land in Mexico. (Reuters) 

Hamas frees four Israeli hostages including Naama Levy in exchange for 200 Palestinian prisoners including 121 people serving life sentences after being convicted of deadly attacks against Israelis. The exchange is part of the ceasefire deal. (AP) 

30 people are killed in a drone attack on the Saudi Hospital, one of the last functioning hospitals in El-Fasher, Sudan. (Al Arabiya) 

Eighty-four ELN combatants surrender to Colombian authorities as offensive operations resume in the Catatumbo region. Colombian authorities also rescue 20 child soldiers from ELN’s 33rd Front. (El Colombiano) 

A police officer was shot dead by a sniper from the National Liberation Army (ELN), in Río Iró, Chocó Department.(El Tiempo) 

Six peacekeepers, three from South Africa and three from Malawi, are killed as fighting intensifies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo between government forces and M23 rebels. (24news) 

A Pakistani court sentences four people to death for blasphemy, allegedly because they posted sacrilegious material on social media about Islamic religious figures and the Quran. (Al Arabiya) 

In tennis, Madison Keys wins her first major title after defeating the two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka, 6–3, 2–6, 7–5, to win the women’s singles title at the Australian Open. (CNN) 

Henry Patten and Harri Heliövaara defeat Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori 6(16)-7(18), 7(7)-6(5), 6-3, in the men’s doubles final to win their first Australian Open title and their second joint Grand Slam title. (BBC News) 

Friday,  January 24th, 2025 

The US Department of State ban consular posts from flying any flags other than that of the United States Flag as part of the Trump administration targeting several instances during the Biden administration when LGBTQ pride and Black Lives Matters flags were flown at embassies abroad. (The Guardian) 

US Federal law enforcement and ICE agents have arrested nearly 500 undocumented migrants with arrest warrants in sanctuary cities, including New York and New Jersey. The arrests include an alleged El Salvadorian MS-13 gang member, a Jamaican citizen who had been arrested for alleged sexual exploitation of a minor, and a Honduran citizen. (CTV News) 

U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order to declassify files related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. (Axios) 

Ukraine finalizes military reforms aimed at recruiting 18- to 25-year-olds to the armed forces, penalizing draft dodgers, and lowering the minimum compulsory military service age to 25 from 27. (The Kyiv Independent) 

The Ukrainian Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War announces that, with assistance from the International Committee of the Red Cross, the bodies of 757 Ukrainian soldiers have been returned to Ukraine. (The Kyiv Independent) 

A Ukrainian drone strike targets an oil refinery in Ryazan Oblast, Russia, in one of the largest Ukrainian drone attacks inside Russia of the conflict to date. The Russian military says it shot down at least 121 drones over 13 regions overnight. (BBC News) 

Over 60,000 people demonstrate across Slovakia in protest of Prime Minister Robert Fico‘s anti-Ukrainian, pro-Russian, and Eurosceptic policies. (AP) 

Mass protests and a general strike are held across Serbia, in an escalation of months of anti-government protests. (France24) 

A Russian drone strikes a ten-storey apartment building in Fastiv, Kyiv Oblast, killing at least three people. (Euronews) 

Hamas confirms that an Israeli airstrike last summer killed Rawhi Mushtaha, according to Israel “head of the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip“, along with Sameh al-Siraj, who held the security portfolio in Hamas’s political bureau, and Sami Odeh, the head of Hamas’s “general security mechanism”. (Al Sharq AlAwsat) 

The Colombian National Army and National Police begin offensive operations across eleven municipios of the Catatumbo region. (El Tiempo) 

At least thirteen Islamic State militants are allegedly killed in heavy fighting as Puntland forces claim they successfully took over the towns of Turmasaale and Janno-Jiifta in the Bari region, Puntland, Somalia. (The Somali Digest) (Idil News) 

I’m Still Here becomes the first Brazilian movie to be nominated for Best Picture. (The Washington Post) (Reuters) 

The Canadian Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship department announces a limit of 437,000 study permits for 2025, a 10% reduction from 2024, as part of efforts to address pressures on housing, healthcare, and other public services caused by the country’s rapid population growth. (Reuters) 

At least 140 dolphins are found stranded on the shores of Mareero Beach near Bosaso, Puntland, Somalia, with 60 confirmed dead and 30 returned to the sea. ( (Reuters) 

The Cabinet of Hun Manet approves a bill that strengthens penalties for Cambodian genocide denial, proposing prison terms of one to five years and fines of US$2,500 to $125,000. (AP) 

A wind gust provisionally measured at 183 km/h was recorded in Connemara in County Galway, which would surpass Ireland’s record wind gust of 182 km/h set in 1945. A mean wind speed of 135 km/h was also measured, which would surpass Ireland’s sustained wind record also set in 1945. (The Irish Times) 

Thursday, January 23rd, 2025 

The International Criminal Court prosecutor requests arrest warrants against Afghanistan’s Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and Taliban chief justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani, accusing them of crimes against humanity. (Reuters) 

U.S. district judge for Washington John C. Coughenour temporarily blocks President Donald Trump’s executive order attempting to end birthright citizenship, calling it “blatantly unconstitutional”. (Reuters)

Four people are killed and five more injured in a stampede at a delivery of food and money amid Lunar New Year celebrations in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. (AP) 

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael form a coalition government with the backing of several independent TDs. Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin is elected as Taoiseach, with Fine Gael leader Simon Harris as Tánaiste. (Politico) 

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