World Briefing: January 18, 2025
Israel is preparing for the return of the hostages from Gaza with the expectation that many are likely to have severe, life-threatening complications after more than a year in captivity in Gaza. While it’s impossible to know the exact conditions in which hostages have been held, the Health Ministry and the Hostages Family Forum, which represents families of the hostages, are preparing for several different scenarios based on information gathered from hostages previously released or rescued. Hamas militants kidnapped about 250 people during a cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that also left 1,200 people dead. About 100 hostages are still being held, though Israel believes a third of them are no longer alive. The war that followed the attack has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and militants but say women and children make up more than half of those killed. Hagai Levine, who heads the health team at the Hostages Families Forum, said he expects the hostages to return with cardiovascular and respiratory issues due to lack of ventilation in the tunnels. Among multiple other afflictions Levine expects are vitamin deficiencies, starvation, dramatic weight loss, vision problems due to a lack of sunlight, broken bones, cognitive impairment and mental health trauma - AP
TikTok is set to be removed from app stores on Sunday, when a new U.S. law goes into effect. President Biden signed a law that would ban TikTok unless the app’s owner, ByteDance, sold it to a non-Chinese company. On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld it. The ban will end a remarkable eight-year roller-coaster ride for TikTok in the United States. The company wriggled its way out of political danger time and again. The threats to its very existence came so often, from so many directions, dealing with them became almost second nature for executives — perhaps to the point of complacency. All the while, TikTok reached new heights of popularity and public influence. It boasts 170 million monthly U.S. users, giving the company confidence that those masses could help beat back whatever regulators aimed its way. Behind the scenes, TikTok conducted secretive negotiations with government officials and advertising blitzes aimed at rescuing it. But in the end, the company ran into a well-organized and focused effort among Washington officials that it could not stop. Its biggest gamble yet was that it could overturn the law and avoid a sale altogether — a bet that failed - NYT
As Donald Trump takes office promising to end the war in Ukraine, Taiwan is watching closely how Washington will treat its frontline partners. Eager to win Trump over, Taipei is looking to preempt concerns raised by the U.S. preident-elect over military aid and the island's semiconductor industry, as the prospect of Chinese military intervention seems more likely than it once did - RFE/RL
The widely-regarded as deranged US congresswoman, Marjorie Taylor Greene, hinted at a more dangerous reason behind the inauguration of Donald Trump being moved indoors. After news broke of the change, the representative tweeted her conspiracy theory for the cause: A possible security threat. “I have personally attended countless rallies where President Trump spoke in extreme weather conditions from cold to rain to heat,“ Greene wrote on X. ”Is there a security threat other than extreme cold temperatures? Not only for him but for the people?” Minutes later, Greene posted Donald Trump’s statement on the inauguration, which he clarified was due to freezing cold temperatures. “The weather forecast for Washington, D.C., with the windchill factor, could take temperatures into severe record lows,” Trump wrote to Truth Social. “There is an Arctic blast sweeping the Country. I don’t want to see people hurt, or injured, in any way.” The swearing in ceremony will be moved into the Capitol Rotunda, whilst the parade will take place in the Capitol One Arena. Monday’s weather forecast is shaping out to be the coldest inauguration in 40 years - Daily Beast
Former Canadian finance minister and deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland is entering the Liberal leadership race. In a sparsely worded post on the social media platform X on Friday morning, the Ukrainian-Canadian journalist-turned-politician said simply that she's "running to fight for Canada." Her official campaign launch will be on Sunday, but the post provided no details of when or where it will take place, CBC News reported. The Liberals are expected to take an extraordinary beating at the polls and Freeland, being so closely associated with her former boss, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, won’t be able to escape the thrashing. In addition, former Bank of Canada governor, Mark Carney, has thrown his hat into the ring - making a leadership race win by Freeland even more unlikely.
The presidential election in Belarus later this month cannot be free or fair because of a "repressive environment" in the country, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on January 17 in a statement. “The United States joins many of our European allies in assessing that elections cannot be credible in an environment where censorship is ubiquitous and independent media outlets no longer exist," Blinken said. The presidential election is scheduled to take place on January 26, and authoritarian leader Alyaksandr Lukashenka, who has run the country since 1994, is expected to win. The election will take place in an environment in which only regime-approved candidates can appear on the ballot and members of the opposition are either imprisoned or in exile, Blinken said - RFE/RL
A grounded massive Russian cargo jet — almost as long as three tennis courts — has racked up more than $1 million in parking fees at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport. But the federal government said it is paying the fees for the large white and blue plane to be parked on an unused swath of the airfield. The airplane, which was delivering a shipment of COVID-19 rapid tests, arrived at Pearson Airport on Feb. 27, 2022. On the same day, it was banned from departing as Canada announced the closure of its airspace to all Russian aircraft in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Since then, the federal government added Volga-Dnepr Airlines LLC and Volga-Dnepr Group, the operators of the Russian-registered Antonov 124, to the sanction list, paving the way for an order to seize the airplane in June 2023. While Canada said it planned to surrender the plane to Ukraine as financial aid, little progress has been reported since. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is in the middle of the legal process to claim ownership of the plane while juggling disputes filed by the Russian airline seeking to overturn the seizure, including a $100 million claim. Global Affairs, Transport Canada and Public Services and Procurement Canada declined to say when the plane will be removed from Pearson or given to Ukraine - Toronto Star
Singapore’s government is “not averse” to implementing more property cooling measures if needed, the Straits Times newspaper reported, citing Minister for National Development Desmond Lee. In recent years, Singapore authorities have sought to tame the local housing market by implementing multiple rounds of measures, including raising stamp duties for second-home buyers and doubling those on foreigner purchases to 60%. Yet home prices have rebounded, climbing 3.9% for the year, according to preliminary estimates, while 2024 home sales beat forecasts. Housing affordability has become a major concern for Singaporeans after price surges during the pandemic. Private home valuations have jumped more than 30% since the end of 2019. That’s posing a challenge to the country’s ruling People’s Action Party, which is seeking a sixth decade in power at elections that have to be held before the end of 2025. "It’s not yet time to roll back curbs that have been imposed to keep property prices under control," Lee said. “Let the supply and demand side measures work their way through,” he said in an interview with local media outlets. Most of Singapore’s population lives in public flats, the prices of which have also climbed. Lee said the housing authority plans to launch more than 50,000 new flats from 2025 through 2027, as part of a multiyear ramp up of supply to meet increased housing demand. Values of second-hand units, known as resale flats, jumped 9.6% last year, according to preliminary estimates. That’s nearly double the rate of 2023, when they rose 4.9%. - Bloomberg
