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Traffic came to a standstill in Damascus as Syrians raced to Sednaya jail, one of the Assad regime’s most notorious prisons, in the hope of rescuing loved ones imprisoned in the vast underground complex.
The prison, which is locally known as “the human slaughterhouse”, and where survivors have told of extensive use of torture, was the center of swirling rumours that there were 1,500 prisoners trapped underground. But among the chaos in and around the prison after prisoners were freed at the weekend, Syrian civil defence on Monday released a statement saying that despite an intensive search, it had not found any prisoners in the lower levels.
Meanwhile, key powers in the region, Israel, Turkey and the US, have all carried out military strikes within Syria as Bashar al-Assad’s former supporters Russia and Iran have also tried to shape the country’s political future. The Israeli foreign minister, Gideon Saar, said Israel had struck “strategic weapons systems” to prevent them falling “into the hands of extremists”, while the Kremlin confirmed Assad was in Moscow.
Meanwhile, crowds in Damascus have celebrated the dictator’s fall, pulling down statues and portraits of the president and his father, as ‘disappeared’ Syrians were finally freed from the regime’s notorious prisons and reunited with loved ones.
Why is Assad in Moscow? Vladimir Putin personally approved his asylum there, according to the Kremlin’s spokesperson – but said there were no plans for now for the pair to meet.
South Korea’s president banned from leaving country as ruling party accused of ‘second coup’
South Korea’s president, Yoon Suk Yeol, has been banned from leaving the country as the opposition accused his party of launching a “second insurrection” by blocking his impeachment over his botched declaration of martial law last week.
Bae Sang-up, a ministry of justice official, confirmed during a parliamentary hearing on Monday that Yoon was the subject of a travel ban. Despite his short-lived attempt to impose martial law last Tuesday, Yoon’s ruling People Power party (PPP) has attempted to keep him in post and boycotted his impeachment vote.
“This is an unlawful, unconstitutional act of a second insurrection and a second coup,” said Park Chan-dae, the floor leader of the opposition Democratic party, referring to a boycott. PPP politicians have claimed Yoon can continue as in his role while delegating his powers to the prime minister – which the opposition disputes.
What else can the opposition do? Parties have said they will introduce another impeachment motion this week.
Donald Trump promises to pardon January 6 rioters on ‘day one’
Donald Trump has once again pledged to pardon rioters involved in the January 6 attack on the US Capitol in 2021, renewing the promise in his first sit-down television news interview since being re-elected.
“I’m going to be acting very quickly. First day,” the president-elect said in the interview, claiming convicted Capitol attackers had been put through a “very nasty system”. Trump also reiterated his promises to introduce mass deportations and tariffs in his interview with NBC’s Meet the Press host, Kristen Welker.
What did he say about tariffs? Trump acknowledged that they may mean Americans would be forced to pay more, saying he could not guarantee that would not be the case.
In other news …
Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs have been accused of raping a drugged 13-year-old girl during a party in 2000. Both men deny the allegations.
Donald Trump has called for an “immediate ceasefire” and negotiations in Ukraine a day after meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, claiming both sides “would like to make a deal”.
Progressive congressperson Ro Khanna has called the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson “horrific”, but said he was unsurprised that the incident sparked a national conversation about US healthcare inequalities.
Irish actor Barry Keoghan has accused fans of “crossing a line” and sitting outside the homes of his grandmother and two-year-old son after a reported break-up with the US singer Sabrina Carpenter.
Stat of the day: Drylands ‘now make up 40% of land’ on Earth, excluding Antarctica
Drylands now make up 40% of all land on Earth, excluding Antarctica, as global heating transforms conditions in huge swathes of countries, creating arid areas where agriculture is challenging. Research found that an area of land almost a third larger than India has changed from humid to arid in the past three decades.
Don’t miss this: Is doom scrolling really rotting our brains?
“Brain rot” – a term popularized online by young people – is the Oxford English Dictionary’s word of the year. But far from just being a throwaway term that nods at the increasing lengths of time many of us are spending on our devices, Siân Boyle writes, there is a wealth of scientific data to suggest “the internet is shrinking our grey matter, shortening attention spans, weakening memory and distorting our cognitive processes”. Boyle explores the costs – and outlines the reasons for hope.
Climate check: 2024 ‘certain’ to be hottest year on record
The average temperature on Earth will surpass 1.5C (2.7F) above pre-industrial levels for the first time in 2024. Data shows that it is almost certain to be the hottest year on record, with scientists finding that the average temperature so far is expected to be 1.6C above pre-industrial levels, exceeding the record set in 2023 of 1.48C. Extreme weather events are already being intensified by this heating.
Last Thing: From X’s users to bugs under a rock: Edith Pritchett’s week in Venn diagrams
If you’ve stuck around on X, you may have noticed a certain … vibe shift. Here’s Edith Pritchett’s week in Venn diagrams, finding the overlap between bugs, X users, climate breakdown and teenage house parties.
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