It appears that a US strike on Iran may be imminent.
US President Donald Trump, over the past few weeks, has continued to issue threats against Tehran over its crackdown on protesters.
Also, were you wondering how easily the United States managed to capture longtime Venezuelan leader Nicholas Maduro? Trump has seemingly spilled the beans. The US president continued to unsettle many around the world, including some of his own allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato), with his desire to annexe Greenland.
Meanwhile, in China, the country’s top general was purged in a development that left many political watchers stunned. Also, former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan’s condition continues to deteriorate in prison. We cover all this and more in our weekly roundup.
1. After Maduro’s capture by elite US Delta Forces in Caracas, rumours were rife that the United States had used some sort of weapon to disable the defenders. After all, Maduro and his wife were on a military base in the Venezuelan capital. They were also under heavy guard.
Captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is escorted, as he heads towards the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse in Manhattan for an initial appearance to face US federal charges at Downtown Manhattan Heliport, in New York City, US. Reuters
And yet the United States Special Forces seemed to cut through the Venezuelan defences with astounding ease. Now, US President Donald Trump may have revealed the secret of the US operation – a mysterious weapon he has dubbed the “Discombobulator”.
“The discombobulator, I’m not allowed to talk about it,” Trump told the New York Post, adding that it “made [enemy] equipment not work”.
But what do we know about this weapon? What do experts say?
2. Trump this week continued his how-not-to-make-friends-and-influence-people strategy.
The United States president, through his combination of bluster and tariffs, has been pushing away allies of Washington. India this week, for example, signed the ‘mother of all deals’ with the European Union.
Meanwhile, Trump’s Greenland remarks left many, including several Nato allies, unnerved and caused a diplomatic backlash across Europe. Some, including Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, also took aim at the United States at Davos, albeit indirectly.
This piece recaps how it all went down.
3. News emerged out of China this week that made the world wonder what was going on. Zhang Youxia, the top general in China, was taken into custody for “suspected serious violations of discipline and law”.
A bombshell report in The Wall Street Journal suggested that Zhang was being investigated for selling nuclear secrets to the United States.
Zhang, 75, interestingly, was a close ally of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The two hailed from the same village, and their fathers even served together in the Communist Party.Zhang wasn’t the only one. Zhang Youxia, another Central Military Commission (CMC) member, is also seemingly under the scanner for corruption.
China’s Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission Zhang Youxia has been purged. File image/AFP
Experts say the magnitude of the development cannot be underestimated. Neil Thomas, a fellow on Chinese politics at the Asia Society think-tank, told The Guardian, “This is easily the most significant People’s Liberation Army (PLA) purge in the post-Mao era. It’s hard to overstate how rare this is … it would be like arresting the chair of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff for corruption.”
But who is Zhang? How did he go from
an ally of Xi to being investigated by the party? This article gives you the lowdown.
4. Will the US go to war with Iran?
That’s on the top of the mind for many political watchers – and for good reason. After all, Trump has repeatedly threatened Iran over its handling of protesters over the past few weeks.
Though Trump somewhat backed off his threats after Iran cancelled the execution of hundreds of protesters, the president is capable of changing his mind at a moment’s notice.
The United States has already sent its USS Abraham Lincoln, a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier, as well as three accompanying warships under Carrier Strike Group 3 (CSG-3), to West Asia.
“Hopefully Iran will quickly ‘come to the table’ and negotiate a fair and equitable deal — no nuclear weapons — one that is good for all parties,” Trump said on social media, adding that “time is running out”. Iranian authorities have already said that any action by the US will be considered an act of war
. But what are Tehran’s options when it comes to hitting back at Washington?
5. The United States is in turmoil.
President Trump’s immigration crackdown is not going well. After an agent from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) killed Renee Nicole Good, a mother of three, in Minneapolis, federal agents shot and killed intensive care nurse Alex Pretti.Pretti, who also happened to be 37 years old, had come to the aid of a woman who had been pepper-sprayed by ICE agents. His last words were: “Are you okay?”
Alex J. Pretti, the man who was shot dead by a federal officer in Minneapolis on Saturday. AP
Pretti was then tackled by ICE agents himself and taken to the ground. Videos of the incident show the ICE agents pumping bullets into Pretti’s body as one of them screams, “Where is the gun?”While the administration was quick to dub both Good and Pretti as ‘domestic terrorists’, Americans have reacted badly upon seeing the videos of their killings.
The White House is set to come under pressure, with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem claiming she was only ‘following orders’ issued by Trump and Stephen Miller.
But Pretti and Good aren’t the only ones who have been killed by ICE. Let’s take a look at the growing number of victims and their stories.
6. Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan seems to be in poor health.
Imran, who has been behind bars since 2023, is currently being held at Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail. His political party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), is now sounding the alarm about its founder’s health.
Imran, who is said not to have had any contact with his family or lawyers since December, is reportedly suffering from an eye infection.
But what do we know about Imran’s deteriorating physical condition? What is his family saying?
Will Imran be released from jail and taken to a hospital?
7. The famed Doomsday Clock is back in the news.
The clock, which was created in the aftermath of World War II, has been moved to just 85 seconds to midnight. According to the scientists who run the clock, this is the closest humanity has ever been to the annihilation of our species.
Jon Wolfsthal, director of global risk at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS), Asha George, executive director of the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense, and Steve Fetter, professor of public policy and former dean at the University of Maryland, reveal the location of the minute hand on its Doomsday Clock. Reuters
They lay the blame for this move, the third such one in four years, on nuclear brinkmanship, geopolitical conflict, climate breakdown, technological misuse, and a failure of global leadership.
But what do we know about the Doomsday Clock, founded by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, a Chicago-based non-profit that counted among its members Albert Einstein and J Robert Oppenheimer? Why does it matter for humanity?
8. For many, part-time work has become a lifestyle choice. Fewer hours, more leisure time, less burnout – there are many benefits of working part-time, if you can afford to do so.
However, not everyone is happy with such arrangements. Some in Germany, for example,
are looking to outlaw part-time work, with a few exceptions.
German workers are currently given the legal option of working part-time. But why are some, including the business wing of Germany’s ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU), so vehemently against this right?
That’s all from us this week as far as world news goes. You can find more such
explainers here.
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