Politics
The US Justice Department's newly released Epstein files named Microsoft co‑founder Bill Gates, prompted Melinda French Gates to demand answers and spurred a Metropolitan Police probe of Peter Mandelson.
Ukrainian, Russian and U.S. negotiators met in Abu Dhabi for a second round of U.S.-mediated peace talks on Wednesday, despite continued heavy Russian strikes across Ukraine.
Iran and the United States scheduled direct talks in Oman on Friday after Arab states persuaded the White House to accept a venue change that nearly derailed talks, officials said.
Keir Starmer agreed to release documents about Peter Mandelson’s US ambassadorship after revelations of ties to Jeffrey Epstein, prompting fury and leadership speculation among Labour MPs.
Palestinian officials said Israeli strikes killed at least 21 people in Gaza and halted patient crossings at Rafah after Israel said militants shot at its soldiers, wounding a reservist.
French prosecutors raided X’s Paris offices and summoned owner Elon Musk, prompting the company to call the search "abusive" and Musk to insult Spain’s prime minister.
Russia blamed the United States for letting the New START treaty expire on Feb. 5, 2026, and warned the lapse could spark a new nuclear arms race.
Tom Homan, the administration’s "border czar," announced that 700 federal immigration agents would leave Minneapolis, citing increased local cooperation amid backlash after two civilians were killed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said roughly 55,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed on the battlefield since Russia's full‑scale invasion, in an interview on France 2.
President Donald Trump attacked CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins in the Oval Office after she asked about newly released Jeffrey Epstein files, hurling personal insults and mocking the network’s ratings.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced plans to bar under‑16s from social media, prompting Elon Musk's insults and Telegram founder Pavel Durov to warn of surveillance and over‑censorship.
DOJ removed an ICE lawyer from her duties after she told a federal judge in Minnesota "this job sucks" and said the agency had failed to comply with court orders.
President Trump said he had a "very positive" call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping about Iran, Taiwan and trade, while Beijing warned the White House over arms sales to Taiwan.
EU member states agreed terms for a €90bn loan to Ukraine, allocating €30bn for budgets and €60bn for defence, with US arms allowed only in exceptional cases.
President Donald Trump planned to install a Christopher Columbus statue on the White House grounds, a move critics said would reinforce a contested, colonization-focused national narrative.
A federal judge in Florida sentenced Ryan Routh to life in prison for attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump at a West Palm Beach–area golf course in 2024.
President Donald Trump urged federal "nationalization" of U.S. elections, repeating unsubstantiated fraud and immigrant‑voter claims and prompting alarm among state election officials.
Russian and Ukrainian negotiators met in Abu Dhabi under U.S. mediation while Russia launched drone and missile strikes on Ukraine, prompting Kyiv to say Moscow was not taking diplomacy seriously.
The European Parliament resumed examination of the EU–US trade agreement in Strasbourg, restarting the ratification process after Donald Trump backed down over Greenland.
The United States shot down an Iranian drone near a U.S. aircraft carrier, which Washington called self‑defense, overshadowing planned U.S.–Iran talks in Oman Friday, Iran said.
Tom Homan, the Trump administration's border czar, said 700 federal immigration agents were withdrawn from Minnesota immediately, citing improved cooperation with state corrections authorities.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum rejected Donald Trump's claim Mexico was controlled by drug cartels, saying Mexico was governed by its people and relations remained respectful.
Human Rights Watch said in its World Report 2026 that President Donald Trump's return to the White House undermined core pillars of U.S. democracy and threatened human rights.
Alex Saab was arrested in Caracas in a joint operation by Venezuelan security forces and the FBI and was being held by intelligence agents pending extradition to the United States.
AfD leader Björn Höcke failed to unseat Thuringia's CDU Minister-President Mario Voigt in a constructive no-confidence vote in the Landtag, despite receiving one cross-party vote.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz traveled to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to pursue a strategic partnership with Gulf states, focusing on arms and energy cooperation.
Isabella and Rasmus Wranå gave Sweden a 10–3 opening victory over South Korea in curling at the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics.
French authorities arrested four people in Gironde on suspicion of spying for China after they installed a two metre satellite dish to intercept sensitive military data, prosecutors said.
The Supreme Court cleared the way for California’s new congressional map, allowing its use and potentially giving Democrats up to five additional seats in Congress.
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, son of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, was shot dead by masked assailants at his home in Zintan, authorities said.
Blume and Filosa urged Brussels to create incentives and a Made‑in‑Europe label for electric cars to protect EU production and safeguard jobs.
President Donald Trump floated buying Greenland, escalating Arctic tensions and coinciding with increased Swiss gold imports from Greenland while reigniting debate over U.S.–Danish Arctic cooperation.
Brothers of Renée Good, who was shot dead by ICE in Minneapolis, testified before a U.S. congressional forum at Democrats' invitation and urged lawmakers to take action against ICE violence.
French prosecutors in an appeal hearing on 3 February sought a five‑year ban on Marine Le Pen’s eligibility, casting doubt on her ability to stand in the 2027 presidential election.
Former general Vannacci, launching his new Futuro Nazionale in Modena, labeled Matteo Salvini "the traitor" and said his party would be a natural interlocutor for the center-right.
Longtime Indiana Rep. Lee H. Hamilton, who chaired the Sept. 11 commission and led the House Foreign Affairs and Intelligence committees, died at 94.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called a snap parliamentary election in Japan to expand her majority, ordering opponents only three weeks to mount a campaign.
Germany reduced its Bundeswehr presence in northern Iraq, withdrawing troops from Erbil amid rising U.S.–Iran tensions, officials said, citing concerns for personnel safety.
A judge at Spain's Audiencia Nacional released Francisco de Borbón on €50,000 bail, barred him from leaving Spain and ordered passport surrender and weekly court check‑ins.
German police arrested two men in Hamburg on suspicion of sabotaging German navy warships, and one Greek suspect was held in Greece pending extradition.
Italy's foreign minister said authorities foiled Russian-linked cyberattacks targeting Italian embassies and Milan-Cortina hotels, while hackers calling themselves NoName claimed strikes on consulates and hotels abroad.
Saxon AfD lawmaker Jörg Dornau was arrested in the Landtag after authorities lifted his immunity and opened probes into alleged EU-sanctions evasion linked to his Belarus onion farm.
Germany's KfW consolidated six housing‑support programs into two to simplify funding and speed loans for builders and renovators, and the federal housing ministry hailed rising building permits.
Former general Roberto Vannacci quit the Lega and launched a new far-right party in Italy, dealing a political blow to Matteo Salvini and creating competition for Giorgia Meloni.
President Donald Trump announced plans to close the Kennedy Center in Washington for a refit, prompting artists and performers to call it an effort to silence dissent.
Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin held a video call Wednesday and praised their "stable" bilateral ties, calling the Moscow–Beijing alliance a "stabilizing" factor for the world.
The German government rejected calls to boycott the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, calling such a boycott inappropriate despite U.S. threats against Greenland.
President Emmanuel Macron announced the cancer plan's budget would be renewed unchanged through 2030 and would fund an organized lung cancer screening pilot enrolling up to 20,000 people.
The British House of Lords approved an amendment to ban mobile phones in schools, sending the measure to Labour-dominated House of Commons, which opponents said did not go far enough.
Three U.S. warships arrived off Port-au-Prince, Haiti, the U.S. embassy said, deployed under an operation it called "Southern Spear" amid Haiti's political turmoil.
The Bundesnachrichtendienst said Russia had spent significantly more on its military than official figures showed, increasing capabilities near NATO’s eastern flank since the Ukraine war.
