Duty Editor: Sarah Titterton
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— TOP STORIES —
+ Trump says world ‘not secure’ until US has Greenland
+ Spain in mourning as high-speed train crash kills 39
+ Trump to charge $1 bn for ‘peace board’ membership
+ Syria deploys army in former Kurdish-held areas
+ Ukrainians defy cold, Russia at sub-zero street party
Denmark-US-diplomacy-EU-Norway,WRAP
NUUK
Donald Trump says he no longer needs to think “purely of peace” since being snubbed for a Nobel, adding the world will not be safe until Washington controls the Danish territory of Greenland.
700 words 1530 GMT by Pierre-Henry Deshayes.
Spain-train-accident,WRAP
ADAMUZ, Spain
Officials in Spain say the death toll from a high-speed train collision in the south of the country, currently at 39, could rise further, as rescuers work on the mangled wreckage.
650 words 1500 GMT by Imran Marashli with Marie Giffard in Madrid. Picture. File picture. Video
Israel-Palestinians-conflict-Gaza-US-board-members-diplomacy,WRAP
WASHINGTON
US President Donald Trump’s government has asked countries to pay $1 billion for a permanent spot on his “Board of Peace” aimed at resolving conflicts, its charter seen by AFP states.
500 words moved
Syria-conflict-Kurds
DAMASCUS
Syria’s army deploys in formerly Kurdish-led areas in the country’s east and north after a ceasefire, as Syria’s president and the Kurds’ leader are set to hold talks.
800 words 1700 GMT by Maher al-Mounes with Bakr Alkasem in Raqa. Picture. Video
Ukraine-Russia-conflict-energy-party,REPORTAGE
KYIV
Music blasts from speakers and lights strobe in the dark as revellers, clad in puffer jackets and bobble hats, brave Kyiv’s freezing cold at an outdoor party despite blackouts triggered by Russian strikes.
450 words moved by Sergei Gapon. Picture. Video
— EUROPE —
Britain-royals-Harry-court-media,WRAP
LONDON
A UK newspaper group accused of phone hacking and hiring private investigators “knew they had skeletons in their closet”, a lawyer for Prince Harry tells the opening of a High Court trial brought jointly with six other high-profile claimants.
700 words 1600 GMT by Caroline Taix and Joe Jackson. Video. Picture
Also moved: Britain-court-royals-media-Harry-cases, FACTS
Turkey-Syria-conflict-Kurds,FOCUS
ISTANBUL
Turkey’s Kurds are hoping that Ankara’s bid to end the decades-long PKK conflict will not be hampered by Damascus’ lightning offensive against Kurdish fighters in northern Syria that was backed by Turkey.
550 words 1500 by Anne Chaon with Mahmut Bozarslan in Diyarbakir
— AFRICA —
CAfrica-vote,WRAP
BANGUI
The president of the Central African Republic Faustin Archange Touadera won a third term in last month’s election with 78 percent of the vote, the constitutional court says, announcing final results.
430 words moved
— AMERICAS —
Venezuela-US-conflict,EYEWITNESS
CARACAS
As the first explosions rocked his military base in Caracas, 18-year-old Saul Pereira Martinez sent his mother a simple message: “I love you. It has begun.”
700 words moved by Paula Ramon. Picture
— MIDDLE EAST —
Syria-conflict-Kurds-minorities,REPORTAGE
QAMISHLI, Syria
Residents of Syria’s main Kurdish city Qamishli express disillusionment after the announcement of a deal with Damascus that struck a fatal blow to long-held aspirations of autonomy, with some accusing the community’s backers in Washington of abandoning them.
600 words 1600 GMT by Delil Souleiman and Jihad Darwish. Picture. Video
Israel-accident-children,WRAP
JERUSALEM
Israeli doctors declare two babies dead after medics evacuate 55 children from a daycare centre in Jerusalem, with local media reporting the incident may have been linked to the facility’s heating system.
450 words 1500 GMT by Louis Baudoin-Laarman. Video. Picture
Sudan-conflict-lifestyle-economy,REPORTAGE
KHARTOUM
The hustle and bustle of buyers and sellers has returned to Khartoum’s central market, but “it’s nothing like before”, fruit vendor Hashim Mohamed tells AFP, streets away from where war first broke out nearly three years ago.
500 words moved by Sophie Pons with Abdelmoneim Abu Idris Ali. Picture. Video
Iran-Saudi-US-rights-UN-executions,2ndlead
GENEVA
Iran appears to be using executions “as a tool of state intimidation”, the United Nations says, as it denounces a jump in capital punishment globally in 2025.
500 words moved by Nina Larson
Yemen-conflict-UN-aid-health,lead
GENEVA
The humanitarian situation in Yemen is set to get much worse in 2026 as food insecurity ramps up and international aid evaporates, the United Nations warns.
500 words 1500 GMT by Robin Millard
— ASIA —
TOKYO
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi says she will dissolve parliament this week ahead of a snap election on February 8, hoping for a stronger mandate to push through her ambitious policy agenda.
600 words 1030 GMT by Kyoko Hasegawa. Live video
Also moved:
Japan-politics-Takaichi,PROFILE
Japan-politics-party,Q&A
China-demographics-birth,WRAP
BEIJING
China’s birth rate plunged last year to its lowest level on record, official data shows, as its population shrank for a fourth straight year despite efforts to curb the decline.
500 words moved
Cambodia-Indonesia-cybercrime-fraud,WRAP
PHNOM PENH
Cyberscam networks in Cambodia have freed more than 400 Indonesians this month, Jakarta says, after Phnom Penh announced a fresh crackdown on the illicit industry.
650 words moved by Suy Se with Dessy Sagita in Jakarta and Matt Surrusco in Bangkok. Picture. Video
Afghanistan-explosion-Kabul,2ndlead
KABUL
A deadly explosion hit central Kabul, city police and the Afghan government say, and an AFP journalist saw firefighters near the scene.
300 words 1600 GMT
Pakistan-fire,lead
KARACHI, Pakistan
A fire that ripped through a shopping mall in Pakistan’s biggest city has killed at least 21 people, rescuers in Karachi say.
300 words moved. Picture. Video
Australia-shark-animal,WRAP
SYDNEY
A shark mauled a surfer off an ocean beach in Sydney in the Australian city’s third shark attack in two days, authorities say.
500 words moved
— BUSINESS/ECONOMY —
China-economy-growth,WRAP
BEIJING
China’s economy grew at one of the slowest rates in decades last year, according to official data, as authorities struggle to overcome low consumer spending and a debt crisis in the property sector.
800 words moved by Peter Catterall and Mary Yang, with Jing Xuan Teng in Shanghai. Picture. Video. Graphic
— SPORT —
Fbl-Afr-2025,WRAP
RABAT
FIFA president Gianni Infantino condemns “some Senegal players” for the “unacceptable scenes” which overshadowed their victory in Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations final when they left the pitch in protest at a penalty awarded to Morocco.
650 words moved by Andy Scott. Picture. Video
Fbl-Afr-2025,FOCUS
RABAT
The chaotic scenes which tarnished the Africa Cup of Nations final will forever overshadow a tournament that had up until that point been a great success for hosts Morocco, on and off the pitch.
600 words 1430 GMT by Andy Scott. Picture. Video
Fbl-GER-Bundesliga-Klopp,AFPInterview
LEIPZIG
Despite leaving Liverpool as one of the most highly regarded coaches in world football in 2024, Jurgen Klopp said he never thought of himself as amongst the game’s best.
720 words moved by Daniel Wighton. Picture. Video
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