While U Slept

THAI PM DISSOLVES PARLIAMENT, CALLS FOR NEW ELECTIONS
Thailand’s Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra announced this morning the dissolution of the country’s parliament, a move that paves the way for new elections on Feb. 2, The Bangkok Post reports. Shinawatra will remain PM until a new cabinet is formed. Anti-government protests have resumed after last week’s truce for th king’s birthday. According to local media, an estimated 200,000 people were marching in the streets this morning.
For more on Thailand, we offer this Le Monde/Worldcrunch piece: Unrest In Bangkok Reveals Thailand's Deep Social Divide.

“HISTORIC” AGREEMENT BETWEEN ISRAEL, JORDAN AND PALESTINIANS
Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority are closing in on a “historic” agreement to distribute desalinated water from the Red Sea via pipeline to the Dead Sea, whose water level has been dropping, The Jerusalem Post reports. Environmental activists have denounced the project, which will cost around $9.97 billion, as destructive.

TECH COMPANIES DEMAND PROFOUND REFORM OF SPYING LAWS
In a bid to preserve the public’s “trust in the Internet,” tech giants Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, LinkedIn, Twitter and AOL are demanding that President Obama and Congress profoundly reform surveillance laws. Read more fromThe Guardian.

MADURO WINS ELECTION
Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro’s United Socialist Party won yesterday’s election with 49.2% of the vote, news agency EFE reports.

RIOTS IN SINGAPORE
The death of a migrant worker from India in an accident with a Singapore bus ignited the most violent riots there in over 40 years. Four hundred South Asian migrant workers clashed with police and set vehicles on fire. According to Al Jazeera, 27 were arrested after the fights, which left 15 people injured, including 10 policemen.

FOTO

One man plays piano for Ukranian riot police during the Kiev protests. For more on Ukraine, we offer this Kommersant/Worldcrunch article.

ON AUSTERITY AND MERKEL
Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar was awarded a honorary prize in Berlin and seized the opportunity to criticize austerity policies in his country … and explain in which movie he would picture Angela Merkel.

BY THE NUMBERS
The current French President François Hollande and his predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy are both attending the funeral of Nelson Mandela, but they’re taking separate state-financed planes.

CRIME INT’L
Fans started a violent brawl at a Brazilian soccer match as helpless players could only look on. One fan was seriously injured, and players and coaches spoke out against the violence.

BOHEMIAN STARS
Ever wondered what a Star Wars version of Queen’s classic “Bohemian Rhapsody” would sound like? Here’s one possibility in a expand=1] video clip that pushes the boundaries of the Star Wars universe far far away.