TWO SURVIVORS FOUND AMID TAIWAN RUBBLE
Photo: Zhang Guojun/Xinhua
Taiwan rescuers have found two survivors in the rubble after Saturday’s magnitude 6.7 quake in which at least 37 people were killed, Xinhua reports. The two rescued victims were both found today, the beginning of the Chinese New Year. One of them, a woman, was found under the dead body of her husband and was said to be “conscious but in critical condition.” Authorities have warned that the death toll could exceed 100, as many more people are believed to be buried under the rubble of a 17-story building.
VERBATIM
“I would bring back waterboarding, and I’d bring back a hell of a lot worse than waterboarding,” a typically alarming Donald Trump said at the GOP debate in New Hampshire Saturday, ahead of tomorrow’s primaries. The real estate mogul continues to lead the polls comfortably.
SYRIANS FLEE ALEPPO REGION
The Syrian army, backed by Russian airstrikes, continued to gain ground north of Aleppo, and in other parts of the country, “eliminating the last terrorist positions,” state-backed news agency SANA reports. According to weekend reports, some 35,000 people have fled the areas near Aleppo and have tried to enter Turkey, which kept its borders closed, the BBC says.
- German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara today for talks expected to focus on the refugee crisis and solutions to stem the flow. The Turkish government believes that the $3.35 billion in EU aid for its cooperation in helping Europe protect its external borders won’t be sufficient.
- The United Arab Emirates said it would be ready to send ground troops to Syria, echoing similar statements from Saudi Arabia, but explained such an intervention would need to be led by the United States. But such a move, officially to fight ISIS, would have huge ramifications, with Saudi-backed fighters likely to face Iran-backed troops, The Independent explained.
