“American Airlines announced on Thursday that it intends to restart daily flights to Venezuela for the first time since 2019, pending government approval and subject to security review. This comes weeks after US forces [abducted] former president Nicolas Maduro during Operation Absolute Resolve. On Thursday, US President Donald Trump directed the Transportation Department to lift the current limitations that bar US flights following a conversation with Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodríguez, according to Reuters.” (01/29/26)
“Canada, facing U.S. tariffs that threaten its auto industry, announced on Thursday an agreement with South Korea to explore establishing a Korean automotive footprint in the country. Though scant on details, the accord was another move by Prime Minister Mark Carney to diversify Canada’s trade away from the United States in response to Mr. Trump’s volley of tariffs. The agreement also fits with Mr. Carney’s widely hailed call at the World Economic Forum last week for middle power nations to band together after what he characterized as an irreversible ‘rupture’ to the world order by Mr. Trump’s aggressive economic and diplomatic policies.” (01/29/26)
“Burkina Faso’s military-led government has dissolved all political parties and scrapped the legal framework governing their operations, according to a decree approved by the West African nation’s council of ministers on Thursday. The decision by the military rulers who seized power in September 2022 is the latest move to tighten control following the suspension of political activities after the coup. Burkina Faso’s Interior Minister Emile Zerbo said the decision was part of a broader effort to ‘rebuild the state’ after what he said was widespread abuses and dysfunction in the country’s multiparty system.” (01/29/26)
“A federal judge has rejected for now Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger ‘s bid to gain more spending power in the state’s race for governor, upholding campaign finance rules that some Republicans argue give certain candidates an unfair advantage. Raffensperger’s independent political action committee, Safe Affordable Georgia, filed a federal lawsuit in December asking permission to raise unlimited funds for his campaign. One of his opponents in the GOP primary, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, has been able to do that under a 2021 state law that created leadership committees like the one he chairs, which can raise unlimited funds for candidates. Attorneys for Safe Affordable Georgia argued current law violates Raffensperger’s First Amendment rights by subjecting him to different rules than his opponent and requested that the limits for his committee be waived during the ongoing campaign.” (01/29/26)
“French lawmakers on Wednesday unanimously approved a bill seeking to end the notion of ‘marital duty’ after criticism from women’s rights groups about how it ignores the idea of sexual consent in marriage and marital rape. The text – backed by more than 120 MPs in the lower house National Assembly – clarifies in the civil code that cohabitation does not create any obligation for spouses to have sexual relations. The cross-party bill will now have to go through the Senate upper chamber. The French civil code lists four duties attached to marriage – fidelity, support, assistance and cohabitation – but it does not mention sexual obligation.” (01/29/26)
“The average life expectancy in the United States hit a record high of 79 in 2024, a report from the Centers for Disease Control said Thursday. The average 79-year mark is an increase of more than a half year over 2023. The National Center for Health Statistics ‘Mortality in the United States, 2024’ report found that the age-adjusted death rate decreased by about 3.8%. … The increase in life expectancy was greater for males than for females, up 0.2 compared to 0.1. The average life expectancy for a female born in 2024 is 81.4 and for a male it is 76.5. Average life expectancies also increased for every race and ethnicity recorded.” (01/29/26)
“A raging Illinois teen has been accused of stabbing a pregnant mother to death and knifing her pet dog during a Facebook Marketplace meetup — then setting her home ablaze, according to authorities and reports. Nedas Revuckas, 19, has been hit with a slew of charges for allegedly murdering 30-year-old Eliza Morales in her suburban Downers Grove apartment unit on Monday evening, according to police. … Revuckas faces first-degree murder, intentional homicide of an unborn child, armed robbery, aggravated arson, and animal cruelty charges in connection with the tragic killing, according to court records.” (01/29/26)
“U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said Thursday that immigration officials have ceased their ‘enhanced operations’ in the state, the site of a [gang activity] surge and more than 100 [abductions] since last week. Collins, a Republican, made the announcement after saying she had several direct communications with Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. ‘There are currently no ongoing or planned large-scale ICE operations here,’ Collins said in a statement. ‘I have been urging Secretary Noem and others in the Administration to get ICE to reconsider its approach to immigration enforcement in the state.’ The announcement came after President Donald Trump seemed to signal a willingness to ease tensions in Minneapolis after a second [murder] by federal immigration agents.” (01/29/26)
“Deutsche Bank’s offices in Frankfurt and Berlin have been raided by officials as part of an inquiry into money laundering. In a statement, the Office of the Federal Prosecutor said it was conducting an investigation, involving the Federal Criminal Police Office, into ‘unknown individuals and employees’ at Germany’s largest bank. It said Deutsche Bank had ‘maintained business relationships in the past with foreign companies’ which were suspected of ‘having been used for money laundering purposes as part of further investigations.’ … German media reported that the case carries possible links to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, a claim his lawyers say is ‘entirely false and inaccurate.'” (01/29/26)
“A federal appeals court ruled late Wednesday that the Trump administration acted illegally when it ended legal protections that gave hundreds of thousands of people from Venezuela permission to live and work in the United States. A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling that found Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem exceeded her authority when she ended temporary protected status for Venezuelans. The decision, however, will not have any immediate practical effect after the U.S. Supreme Court in October allowed Noem’s decision to take effect pending a final decision by the justices.” (01/29/26)
