It’s been a week of huge headlines! Have you followed them all? And if not, what’s your excuse? (Mine is that I’ve been planning a 1-year-old’s birthday party.)
1. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Sunday announced his intention to resign from office, as well as from the leadership of the conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). What prompted his decision?
The LDP has struggled in the social media age to court young voters, who have increasingly turned to far-right parties, William Sposato wrote in July.
2. Also on Sunday, South Korea reached an agreement with the United States that allowed the arrested Korean workers of a recent U.S. immigration raid on a Georgia battery plant for electric vehicles to be flown home. Which carmaker co-owned the facility?
The Trump administration’s severe immigration crackdown threatens U.S. national interests and global alliances, FP’s Howard W. French argues.
3. In further political turbulence, French Prime Minister François Bayrou lost a confidence vote on Monday after failing to secure enough support for legislation concerning what issue?
The fall of yet another prime minister puts France in a difficult political position, with some asking whether it’s time for President Emmanuel Macron to resign, Arthur Goldhammer writes.
4. Who or what were the stated targets of Israel’s airstrike in Qatar on Tuesday?
Qatar has played a central role in cease-fire and hostage deal negotiations throughout Israel’s war in Gaza, FP’s John Haltiwanger reports.
5. Ethiopia on Tuesday unveiled Africa’s largest hydroelectric dam, which aims to double the country’s power generation and increase electricity access. But fellow Nile country Egypt is not happy with the development. Why?
Some 80 percent of the Nile’s waters originate in Ethiopia, FP’s Nosmot Gbadamosi writes in Africa Brief.
6. Why did the Nepali military impose a curfew in the capital, Kathmandu, on Wednesday?
Protesters set fire to the parliament building and the homes of politicians amid demonstrations that began in protest of the government’s decision to ban 26 social media platforms, FP’s Michael Kugelman reports in South Asia Brief.
7. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk invoked NATO’s Article 4 on Wednesday after Russian drones entered Poland’s airspace. What action does that article call for?
NATO should provide Ukraine with long-range weapons to strike deep into Russia and act to squeeze the Russian economy, Christian Caryl argues.
8. A panel on Brazil’s Supreme Court on Thursday convicted former President Jair Bolsonaro of attempting a coup following his loss in a presidential election. When did that election take place?
The justices decided that Bolsonaro’s repeated insinuations of fraud, as well as his meetings with top military commanders on how to hang on to power, amounted to a plot to undermine Brazilian democracy, FP’s Catherine Osborn reports in Latin America Brief.
9. British authorities on Monday announced that a new mural by street artist Banksy would be removed from the side of the Royal Courts of Justice because it was painted on a historic building. But the artwork itself is also controversial. What does it depict?
Activists saw it as a reference to the U.K. government’s ban on the group Palestine Action following weekend protests against the measure that saw almost 900 people arrested, The Associated Press reports.
10. For the first time, Australian scientists on Wednesday announced the approval of a vaccine to treat chlamydia in which of the country’s iconic mammals?
The sexually transmitted disease accounts for up to half of all koala deaths in the wild, Reuters reports.
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