“Some of the world’s most important shipping nations backed a flat tax on the industry’s carbon emissions. Liberia and Panama, home to the world’s biggest shipping registries, along with 43 other jurisdictions — accounting between them for 66% of the world’s total tonnage — agreed to the proposed levy on shipowners. Brazil, China, and the US opposed the deal, but the wide support boosts the chances that a global agreement could be reached. The shipping industry produces around 3% of total emissions, equivalent to the airline sector, and proponents hope a flat tax will push shipowners to use low-emission fuels or other clean alternatives.” (01/09/25)
“Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has asked the Georgia Supreme Court to reverse her disqualification in the election interference case against President-elect Trump, according to a court filing. … The Georgia Court of Appeals ruled in December to disqualify Willis over a conflict of interest stemming from a romantic relationship she had with the lead prosecutor on the case, whom she hired.” (01/09/25)
“The pound has fallen to its lowest level in over a year, while UK borrowing costs hit their highest for 16 years. Economists have warned that the rising costs could lead to further tax increases or spending cuts as the government tries to meet its self-imposed rule not to borrow to fund day-to-day spending. In response to an urgent question in the Commons, Treasury minister Darren Jones said there was ‘no need for an emergency intervention’ and markets ‘continue to function in an orderly way’. But shadow chancellor Mel Stride said: ‘Higher debt and lower growth are understandably now causing real concerns among the public, among businesses and in the markets.’ Jones said: ‘It is normal for the price and yields of gilts to vary when there are wider movements in global financial markets, including in response to economic data,’ adding that the government’s decision to only borrow for investment was ‘non-negotiable’.” (01/09/25)
“A spacecraft has beamed back some of the best close-up photos yet of Mercury’s north pole. The European and Japanese robotic explorer swooped as close as 183 miles (295 kilometers) above Mercury’s night side before passing directly over the planet’s north pole. The European Space Agency released the stunning snapshots Thursday, showing the permanently shadowed craters at the top of of our solar system’s smallest, innermost planet. Cameras also captured views of neighboring volcanic plains and Mercury’s largest impact crater, which spans more than 930 miles (1,500 kilometers). This was the sixth and final flyby of Mercury for the BepiColombo spacecraft since its launch in 2018. The maneuver put the spacecraft on course to enter orbit around Mercury late next year. The spacecraft holds two orbiters, one for Europe and the other for Japan, that will circle the planet’s poles.” (01/09/25)
“Lebanon’s parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun as head of state on Thursday, filling the vacant presidency with a general who enjoys US approval and showing the diminished sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group after its devastating war with Israel. … The presidency, reserved for a Maronite Christian in Lebanon’s sectarian power-sharing system, has been vacant since Michel Aoun’s term ended in October 2022, with deeply divided factions unable to agree on a candidate able to win enough votes in the 128-seat parliament. … Aoun fell short of the 86 votes needed in a first round vote, but crossed the threshold with 99 votes in a second round, according to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, after lawmakers from Hezbollah and its Shiite ally the Amal Movement backed him.” (01/09/25)
“An airstrike by Myanmar’s army on a village under the control of an armed ethnic minority group killed about 40 people and injured at least 20 others, officials of the group and a local charity said Thursday. They said hundreds of houses burned in a fire triggered by the bombing. The attack occurred Wednesday in Kyauk Ni Maw village on Ramree island, an area controlled by the ethnic Arakan Army in western Rakhine state, they said. The military has not announced any attack in the area. … The military government has stepped up airstrikes over the past three years on armed pro-democracy groups collectively known as the People’s Defense Force and on armed ethnic minority groups that have been fighting for decades for greater autonomy. ” (01/09/25)
“What is probably the world’s oldest ice, dating back 1.2m years ago, has been dug out from deep within Antarctica. Working at temperatures of -35C, a team of scientists extracted a 2.8km-long cylinder, or core, of ice – longer than eight Eiffel Towers end-to-end. Suspended inside the ice are ancient air bubbles which scientists hope will help solve an enduring mystery about our planet’s climate history. The European scientists worked over four Antarctic summers, racing against seven nations to be first to reach the rock under the frozen continent. Their work could help unravel one of the major mysteries in our planet’s climate history – what happened 900,000-1.2 million years ago when glacial cycles were disrupted and some researchers say our ancestors came close to extinction. ‘It’s an amazing achievement,’ says Prof Carlo Barbante at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice who coordinated the research.” (01/09/25)
“Poland’s President Andrzej Duda is asking the country’s government to ensure that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can attend observances marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz later this month without the risk of being arrested, a Polish presidential aide said Thursday. Netanyahu became an internationally wanted suspect after the International Criminal Court, the world’s top war crimes court, issued an arrest warrant for him and others in connection with the 15-month war in Gaza, accusing them of crimes against humanity. … As a signatory to the treaty of the International Criminal Court, which issued the warrant for Netanyahu’s arrest, Poland would have an obligation to arrest him. Israel is not a member of the ICC and disputes its jurisdiction.” (01/09/25)
