Hard Numbers: Ukraine fights back, Croatia joins eurozone, Senegalese MPs sentenced, depopulating Tokyo, Israel strikes Syrian airport
63: That's how many Russian troops Moscow admitted were killed on Monday in eastern Ukraine after Kyiv used US-supplied HIMARS missile systems to attack a temporary barracks near the city of Makiivka. The Ukrainians and some Russian military bloggers claim the death toll was much higher from one of the war’s deadliest strikes so far because ammo was stored at the same site.
20: Croatia rang in the New Year by becoming the 20th EU member state to adopt the euro and by joining the Schengen ID-free travel zone. The single currency is expected to help shield the Croatian economy from high inflation.
6: A Senegalese court sentenced two MPs to six months in prison for assaulting a pregnant lawmaker during a brawl in parliament. They also must pay her $8,200 in compensation. Political tensions have risen in Senegal since the ruling party lost its parliamentary majority in July, and President Macky Sall is refusing to rule out an unconstitutional bid for a third term in 2024.
7,600: Japan will more than triple — to $7,600 per child — the financial sweetener for young families to move out of Tokyo. Those who take the money will have to stay in underpopulated areas outside of big cities for at least five years or refund the state.
2: Israeli airstrikes early Monday killed at least two Syrian soldiers and briefly shut down the Damascus airport. It's the second time Israel has put the airport out of service in less than a year and comes just days after Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in as leader of the most right-wing coalition government in Israeli history.