News from February 2, 2025 at 2 AM

US President Donald Trump announced on February 1 that starting February 4, 25% tariffs would be imposed on imports from Canada and Mexico, and 10% on goods from China, to address a national emergency over fentanyl and illegal immigration. Canadian energy products will face a 10% duty, while Mexican energy imports will be subject to the full 25%. Trump declared the national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to support the tariffs. White House officials stated there would be no exclusions and canceled the US tariff exemption for small Canadian shipments. The move, which follows through on Trump's repeated threats, could trigger a trade war and cause widespread economic disruption. Trump set the February 1 deadline to halt the flow of fentanyl and precursor chemicals into the US via Mexico and Canada, and to stop illegal border crossings. EY chief economist Greg Daco predicts the tariff plan will reduce US growth by 1.5 percentage points this year, push Canada and Mexico into recession, and lead to stagflation domestically.

On January 29, Palestinians walked past rubble in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip. On February 1, the Palestinian militant group Hamas released three Israeli hostages, and in exchange, dozens of Palestinian prisoners and detainees were freed, marking the latest stage of a truce aimed at ending the 15-month war in Gaza. French-Israeli dual national Ofer Kalderon and Yarden Bibas were handed over to Red Cross officials in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis before being transferred to Israel. Israeli-American Keith Siegel was handed over separately a few hours later at the Gaza City seaport. The first of 183 Palestinian prisoners and detainees were released in Ramallah, greeted by large crowds. Bibas is the father of the two youngest hostages, kidnapped by Hamas-led gunmen on October 7, 2023. Hamas claimed the boys and their mother were killed in an Israeli airstrike. The newly reopened Rafah crossing saw the first Palestinian patients, including children with cancer and heart conditions, expected to cross to Egypt in a WHO-provided bus. The February 1 handover was orderly, unlike the chaotic scene on January 30. The total number of hostages released so far is 18. Israel has released 583 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Crowds in Tel Aviv's Hostage Square watched the release, mixing cheers with tears. French President Emmanuel Macron expressed relief over Kalderon's release. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to meet US President Donald Trump on February 4 to discuss the ceasefire and potential normalization with Saudi Arabia. The initial six-week ceasefire, agreed with Egyptian and Qatari mediators and backed by the US, remains on track despite accusations of violations. The war, which began with a Hamas-led attack, has killed over 47,000 people and left Gaza in ruins, with reconstruction expected to take 10 to 15 years.

The UN reports that at least 700 people have been killed and 2,800 injured in intense fighting in Goma, the largest city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), since Sunday. M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, have captured the capital of North Kivu province, Goma, and are now advancing towards Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu. The DR Congo government claims the rebels aim to control the region's vast mineral wealth. UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric warned that the death toll could rise further. To halt the rebels' progress, the DR Congo military has set up defenses on the road between Goma and Bukavu, with hundreds of civilian volunteers enlisted to defend Bukavu. South Kivu Governor Jean-Jacques Purusi Sadiki stated that government forces and allies are holding back the rebels, though this claim remains unverified. Earlier this week, M23 vowed to continue its offensive until reaching the capital Kinshasa, 2,600km to the west. DR Congo's Foreign Minister Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner accused Rwanda of illegal occupation and regime change attempts, which Rwanda denies. The Southern African Development Community (Sadc) declared support for DR Congo at a summit in Zimbabwe, deploying peacekeeping troops. Sixteen soldiers from southern African countries have been killed in clashes with M23 in the past week, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in eastern DR Congo, with over 400,000 people displaced since the start of 2025.

Ukraine accused Russia of killing four people in a strike on a boarding school in the town of Sudzha, Kursk region, on February 1. The town has been under Ukrainian control since August 2024. The Ukrainian army stated that Russian aviation deliberately targeted the school with a guided aerial bomb while dozens of residents were inside preparing to evacuate. During rescue operations, 84 civilians were rescued, with four in serious condition. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of attacking its own civilians and shared a video showing severe damage to the building. A local military spokesman said most of those inside were elderly. Russian officials have not yet publicly commented on the accusation.

On February 1 local time, US President Donald Trump announced that Venezuela has agreed to receive illegal immigrants detained in the United States. On January 31, a special envoy of Trump visited Venezuela, met with President Nicolas Maduro, and brought back six US citizens previously detained by Venezuelan authorities. The White House stated that the visit primarily discussed the repatriation of Venezuelans in the US and the release of detained Americans, but it did not imply US recognition of the Maduro government. Venezuela expressed hope for continued engagement with the US.

On February 1st, former German President Horst Köhler passed away. Born on February 22, 1943, Köhler was a renowned German politician and economist. He served as the President of Germany from July 1, 2004, to May 31, 2010. His death has garnered widespread attention and mourning both within Germany and internationally. Köhler's political and economic contributions have been widely recognized. The news was reported by journalist Kang Yubin.

The Ukrainian military stated that North Korean troops assisting Russia have withdrawn from the Kursk frontline. Ukrainian special forces spokesman Kenderatenko revealed that no North Korean soldier activity has been detected in the past three weeks, suggesting a withdrawal due to heavy casualties. The Kremlin has not confirmed this information. In August last year, Ukrainian forces invaded Kursk Oblast, controlling numerous settlements. Intelligence indicates that Pyongyang sent about 11,000 soldiers to support Russian forces in November. Currently, Russian forces have recaptured some lost territory, but Ukrainian forces still control large areas. Ukraine claims to have captured and killed several North Korean soldiers, with President Zelensky releasing interrogation videos of captured troops. Ukrainian officials note that North Korean soldiers, lacking organization and armored support, suffered high casualty rates. The New York Times reported that half of the North Korean forces aiding Russia were lost in just three months.

Sudan's health ministry reported that at least 54 people were killed and 158 wounded in a strike by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on a market in the city of Omdurman on Saturday. The RSF denied targeting the market in a statement, instead accusing the Sudanese army of launching attacks against civilians. Both the army and RSF have targeted densely populated areas since the conflict erupted in April 2023 over the integration of the two forces. The conflict has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, displaced millions, and left half the population in hunger.

On February 1, US President Donald Trump's Special Envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, stated that resolving the Ukraine conflict is in the national security interests of the United States. He expressed hope to achieve progress within the next 100 days, emphasizing that this is beneficial not only for the involved nations but also for the US and the world. Kellogg was confident in Trump's ability to persuade both parties to negotiate. Earlier, Trump had indicated his intention to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the conflict, while Putin confirmed Moscow's openness to dialogue with the new US administration.

Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) issued a statement on Saturday urging US companies to comply with US export controls and local laws. This follows market disruptions after China's DeepSeek claimed its large language model outperforms OpenAI's at a fraction of the training cost. Questions arose about the origin of semiconductors used in DeepSeek's R1 reasoning model, given US restrictions on exporting advanced AI chips to China. Bloomberg reported on Friday that US officials are investigating whether DeepSeek acquired advanced semiconductors from Nvidia through third parties in Singapore. A Nvidia spokesperson told CNBC on Monday that the chips used by DeepSeek were fully export-compliant. MTI emphasized in its statement that Singapore will work closely with US law enforcement agencies to enforce compliance. Nvidia had previously stated that Singapore accounts for nearly 22% of its revenue, but most shipments are destined for locations other than Singapore.

On February 1, the Democratic National Committee elected Ken Martin, the leader of the Minnesota state party, as its new chairman, aiming to revitalize the party after its November election loss to Donald Trump. Martin is tasked with reversing the Democratic Party's fortunes, having lost control of the White House and failing to win either chamber of Congress. Since the election loss, the party has struggled to respond to Trump's series of executive orders, many of which reversed policies of former President Joe Biden. A longtime Democratic strategist, Martin called for restoring and enhancing the party's national infrastructure to compete in races across the country. He defeated Wisconsin Democratic chair Ben Wikler in the first ballot. In a statement, Martin said the election marks a new chapter in DNC leadership and vowed to hold Trump and his billionaire allies accountable and defeat them at the ballot box.

On the evening of January 31, the Trump administration announced the removal of The New York Times, National Public Radio, NBC News, and Politico from their dedicated office spaces in the Pentagon to make room for The New York Post, One America News Network, Breitbart News Network, and HuffPost News. The new annual media rotation program stipulates that one outlet from print, online, television, and radio will rotate out each year to allow new outlets the opportunity to become resident members. NBC News expressed disappointment but vowed to continue reporting. The Pentagon Press Association expressed serious concern over the move. John Ullyot stated that the outlets losing their spaces will remain full members of the Pentagon Press Corps, only giving up their physical work areas.

The UK government has announced four new laws aimed at combating child sexual abuse images generated by artificial intelligence (AI). The Home Office stated that the UK will be the first country in the world to make it illegal to possess, create, or distribute AI tools designed to create child sexual abuse material (CSAM), with penalties of up to five years in prison. Possessing AI paedophile manuals will also be criminalized, with offenders facing up to three years in prison. Additionally, running websites where paedophiles can share CSAM or provide grooming advice will be an offence, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The Border Force will have the authority to instruct individuals suspected of posing a sexual risk to children to unlock their digital devices for inspection upon entering the UK. The National Crime Agency makes around 800 arrests monthly related to online threats to children, with 840,000 adults nationwide posing a threat. Experts suggest the government could do more, such as banning 'nudify' apps and addressing the normalization of sexual activity with young-looking girls on mainstream porn sites.

The U.N. Palestinian relief agency UNRWA warned that if its humanitarian work in Gaza is forced to halt, it would jeopardize the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. The agreement has paused a 15-month-old war between Israel and Gaza's rulers Hamas, which has decimated the Gaza Strip, killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, and destabilized the Middle East. The deal has facilitated a surge in humanitarian aid and enabled the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza and Palestinian detainees from Israeli jails. Juliette Touma, director of communications of UNRWA, told a Geneva press briefing that if UNRWA is not allowed to continue bringing and distributing supplies, the fragile ceasefire will be at risk. Despite an Israeli ban due to take effect on Jan. 30, UNRWA's work in Gaza and elsewhere continues. However, she noted that its Palestinian staff in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are facing difficulties, including stone-throwing and delays at checkpoints, amid a fierce disinformation campaign against UNRWA.

Russian Ambassador to Denmark Vladimir Barbin stated that the United States is undergoing a comprehensive modernization of its Pituffik Space Base in Greenland, including the establishment of airfield infrastructure for P-35 fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear and high-precision weapons. Russia will consider these new security challenges in its military planning, including the feasibility of implementing additional military-technical response measures. Previously, former US President Donald Trump, on January 7, argued that Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, should become part of the United States for national security reasons and protection against Chinese and Russian threats.