Hard Numbers: India vs Rihanna, the loneliest girl in America, Iran caves on South Korean ship ransom, cost of a Glock in Congress

February 03, 2021

File photo of Rihanna at the 4th Annual Diamond Ball in New York.

Reuters

286,000: Pop superstar Rihanna's "Why aren't we talking about this?" tweet referring to the months-long Indian farmer protests had been retweeted more than 286,000 times by Wednesday at 2pm EST. India's government has lashed out against Rihanna, Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, and other celebrities who have voiced support for the #FarmersProtest.

532: As of February 3rd, a nine-year-old girl from El Salvador has spent 532 days alone in US immigration detention facilities after being separated from her parents while trying to cross the border. This violates a rule limiting the detention of minors to only 20 days, and comes as the Biden administration takes executive action to overturn former president Donald Trump's harsh policies to stem the influx of Central American migrants.

7 billion: Iran has agreed to free the crew of a South Korean tanker impounded for allegedly causing environmental pollution in the Persian Gulf. Following this "humanitarian" gesture, Tehran expects Seoul to cough up over $7 billion in Iranian funds frozen by South Korea's banks under US sanctions over Iran's nuclear program.

5,000: US representatives caught carrying a firearm on the House floor will now have to pay a minimum fine of $5,000. Speaker Nancy Pelosi approved the new rule to ensure the safety of all members in the wake of the recent Capitol insurrection and one GOP lawmaker's pledge to take her Glock to Congress.

The next era of global superpower competition: a conversation with the New York Times' David Sanger

Listen: In 2019, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin met at a summit and described their “friendship without limits.” But how close is that friendship, really? Should the US be worried about their growing military and economic cooperation? On the GZERO World Podcast, Ian Bremmer sits down with Pulitzer prize-winning national security correspondent for The New York Times David Sanger to talk about China, Russia, the US, and the 21st century struggle for global dominance.

South Africa still struggles with inequality 30 years after apartheid

Members of the armed wing of Nelson Mandela's African National Congress line up waiting to vote in a military base north of Pretoria, on April 26, 1994.

REUTERS/Corinne Dufka

On April 27, 1994, Black South Africans went to the polls, marking an end to years of white minority rule and the institutionalized racial segregation known as apartheid. But the “rainbow nation” still faces many challenges, with racial equality and economic development remaining out of reach.

"Patriots" on Broadway: The story of Putin's rise to power

"Patriots" on Broadway: The story of Putin's rise to power | GZERO Reports

youtu.be

“Putin was my mistake. Getting rid of him is my responsibility.” It’s clear by the time the character Boris Berezovsky utters that chilling line in the new Broadway play “Patriots” that any attempt to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rise would be futile, perhaps even fatal. The show opened for a limited run in New York on April 22.

Supreme Court divided over Trump’s absolute immunity claims

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with Judge Amy Coney Barrett after she was sworn in as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, U.S. October 26, 2020.

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Some of the conservative justices (three of whom were appointed by Trump) expressed concern that allowing former presidents to be criminally prosecuted could present a burden to future commanders-in-chief.

New chapter for Haiti as Henry steps down

Haiti's new interim Prime Minister Michel Patrick Boisvert holds a glass with a drink after a transitional council took power with the aim of returning stability to the country, where gang violence has caused chaos and misery, on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince, Haiti April 25, 2024.

REUTERS/Pedro Valtierra

Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry formally resigned on Thursday as a new transitional body charged with forming the country’s next government was sworn in.

Hard Numbers: India vs Rihanna, the loneliest girl in America, Iran caves on South Korean ship ransom, cost of a Glock in Congress

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The next era of global superpower competition: a conversation with the New York Times' David Sanger

South Africa still struggles with inequality 30 years after apartheid

On April 27, 1994, Black South Africans went to the polls, marking an end to years of white minority rule and the institutionalized racial segregation known as apartheid. But the “rainbow nation” still faces many challenges, with racial equality and economic development remaining out of reach.

"Patriots" on Broadway: The story of Putin's rise to power

How campus protests could influence the US presidential election

From the inside out: Is Columbia’s campus crisis calming down?

An agreement late Thursday night to continue talking, disagreeing, and protesting – without divesting or policing – came in stark contrast to the images of hundreds of students and professors being arrested on several other US college campuses on Thursday.

GZEROMEDIA

Supreme Court divided over Trump’s absolute immunity claims

Some of the conservative justices (three of whom were appointed by Trump) expressed concern that allowing former presidents to be criminally prosecuted could present a burden to future commanders-in-chief.

Rafah braces for Israeli invasion as famine looms

“We are afraid of what will happen in Rafah. The level of alert is very high,” Ibrahim Khraishi, the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, said Thursday.

New chapter for Haiti as Henry steps down

Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry formally resigned on Thursday as a new transitional body charged with forming the country’s next government was sworn in.

Hard Numbers: Russia shoots down space resolution, US economy sputters, Nigerian prisoners make slippery escape, Ecuador gets lifeline

Blinken meets with Xi, but no breakthroughs

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken brought up concerns over China's support for Russia with his counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Friday, before meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Hard Numbers: India vs Rihanna, the loneliest girl in America, Iran caves on South Korean ship ransom, cost of a Glock in Congress

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

More from GZERO Media

On April 27, 1994, Black South Africans went to the polls, marking an end to years of white minority rule and the institutionalized racial segregation known as apartheid. But the “rainbow nation” still faces many challenges, with racial equality and economic development remaining out of reach.

An agreement late Thursday night to continue talking, disagreeing, and protesting – without divesting or policing – came in stark contrast to the images of hundreds of students and professors being arrested on several other US college campuses on Thursday.

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

Some of the conservative justices (three of whom were appointed by Trump) expressed concern that allowing former presidents to be criminally prosecuted could present a burden to future commanders-in-chief.

“We are afraid of what will happen in Rafah. The level of alert is very high,” Ibrahim Khraishi, the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, said Thursday.

Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry formally resigned on Thursday as a new transitional body charged with forming the country’s next government was sworn in.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken brought up concerns over China's support for Russia with his counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Friday, before meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.