👋 Daag!*
Welcome to Wednesday, where 100+ aid groups warn of “mass starvation” in Gaza, Japan welcomes the signing of a major trade deal with the U.S. and our daily quiz is about a 13-million-year old death battle. Meanwhile, Apolline Convain for French daily Le Figaro looks at how agriculture could help revive Palmyra’s oasis and bring back tourists in Syria.
[*Limburgish – Netherlands, Belgium and Germany]
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🗞️ FRONT PAGE
German daily Frankfurter Rundschau headlines “No Mercy For Gaza” as famine is spreading in the territory. At least 15 Palestinians, including four children, starved to death Tuesday in besieged Gaza, according to health officials, bringing the total number of malnutrition-related deaths up to 101 since Israel’s war began. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is under pressure to take a firmer stance on Israel, with members of his own coalition calling for Berlin to join a statement by dozens of Western nations condemning the “inhumane killing” of Palestinians. Germany was notably absent from the statement issued on Monday by the European Union and 28 Western countries, including Britain and France, that called on Israel to immediately end the war.
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• More than 100 aid groups warned on Wednesday of “mass starvation” throughout Gaza. This comes as their staff are severely impacted by shortages. Israel faces growing global pressure over the enclave’s humanitarian crisis. Meanwhile, Israeli strikes in Gaza killed at least 21 people late Tuesday and early Wednesday. For more read a La Stampa piece translated from Italian: Desperate Testimony As Israel Launches Assault On Gaza Humanitarian Zone.
• Zelensky signs bill weakening anti-corruption agencies. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a bill that critics say weakens the independence of Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies, sparking the first anti-government protests since the war began in 2022 and drawing international criticism. Meanwhile, officials from Ukraine and Russia are set to meet for a third round of talks in Istanbul on Wednesday, though Zelensky said the focus is likely to be on another round of prisoner of war swaps rather than trying to agree on a ceasefire.
• Trump says the U.S. has agreed to a “massive” trade deal with Japan. Japan has agreed to invest $550 billion in the U.S. while its goods sold to America would be taxed at 15% when they reach the country, below the 25% tariff Trump had threatened. Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba denied reports he plans to announce his resignation over a historic defeat of his ruling party in a weekend election, saying instead he wanted to make sure a new tariff agreement with the United States is appropriately implemented. For more, read this piece on what the rest of the world is willing to risk to stand up to Trump over his tariffs.
• Tariffs and conflicts loom over Merz and Macron meeting. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will host French President Emmanuel Macron for talks over dinner in Berlin on Wednesday, with Europe’s battle to soften incoming U.S. tariffs and support for Ukraine expected to top a packed agenda.The meeting will bring together the leaders of Europe’s two largest economies as trade negotiations approach President Donald Trump’s August 1 deadline.
• The UN’s highest court will decide Wednesday on the climate obligations of countries. This decision could set a legal benchmark for action around the globe to the climate crisis. After years of lobbying by vulnerable island nations who fear they could disappear under rising sea waters, the U.N. General Assembly asked the International Court of Justice in 2023 for an advisory opinion, a non-binding but important basis for international obligations.
• Malaysia Prime Minister announces cash aid, fuel price cut to address rising living costs. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has announced a package of measures aimed at easing the cost of living, including a 100 ringgit ($24) cash handout for all adult citizens. In a televised address on Wednesday, Anwar said the assistance would benefit 22 million Malaysians and be redeemable at more than 4,000 stores from August 31 to December 31.
• News Quiz! Palaeontologists in Colombia have reconstructed a “battle to the death” that took place 13 million years ago between two of the era’s top predators, an avian reptile known as a terror bird and a crocodile-like reptile called a caiman. What evidence did they find to show the bird was killed?
A. A broken beak
B. Teeth marks on its leg bone
C. Smashed wings
D. Traces of venom
[Answer below]
#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
106,048
South Korea registered record birth rate growth during the first five months of the year, according to Statistics Korea. “The number of newborns for the January–May period stood at 106,048, a 6.9% increase, the highest growth rate since such data collection began in 1981,” said the statistics agency. The country has had one of the world’s longest life expectancies and lowest birth rates, a combination that presents a looming demographic challenge. Seoul has invested billions of dollars to encourage women to have more children and maintain population stability, with results starting to show. The number of births had risen for the first time in about a decade in February’s report.
📰 IN OTHER NEWS
🇮🇱 Israel is attacking an area that had been designated as a “humanitarian zone.” This comes after scores of civilians had been killed by Israeli troops while attempting to get food and other basic supplies for their families.
— LA STAMPA
🌴 Less well-known than its archaeological site, Palmyra’s oasis, located in the middle of the desert, suffered just as much during the Syrian civil war. Its rehabilitation is essential to bring back tourists.
— LE FIGARO
💻 Millions have been spent to catch plagiarism and AI with tools from education company Turnitin. Is the tech worth it?
— UNDARK
📣 VERBATIM
“If you want to talk about heavy metal, first up it’s Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath. Everyone else comes after.”
– Henry Rollins, former frontman of hardcore band Black Flag, paid tribute to rock star Ozzy Osbourne who died Tuesday at age 76 in Birmingham, England, just weeks after reuniting with his former band Black Sabbath for a final show in England. Tributes poured from music celebrities worldwide following the death of the British heavy metal icon nicknamed the “Prince of Darkness,” who also became famous on reality TV show The Osbournes in the early 2000s.
✍️ Newsletter by Emma Albright & Cecilia Laurent Monpetit
Quiz Answer: B. Teeth marks made on the leg bone of a large avian reptile known as a terror bird 13 million years ago suggest an even bigger predator may have killed it, scientists say. Terror birds were top predators as they could be taller than a human and had powerful legs and flesh-ripping beaks. Palaeontologists in Colombia matched teeth marks on the fossilised leg bone of one of these birds to a caiman, or a crocodile-like reptile.
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