15 billion: Nippon Steel and US Steel have filed a lawsuit challenging the Biden administration’s decision to block the Japanese company’s $15 billion takeover of the American company on national security grounds. It’s the first time a US president has blocked a deal like this with Japan, one of Washington’s closest allies.
50: Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro’s security services have arrested at least 50 foreign passport holders, including several Americans, since July. Most have been jailed on charges of terrorism or espionage. Analysts say Maduro aims to use them as bargaining chips in relations with adversaries, above all the US. Maduro, who declared victory in a highly suspect election six months ago, will be inaugurated later this week.
170: Congo has flown more than 170 death row inmates from the capital, Kinshasa, to a northern prison where they will be executed. The inmates have all been convicted of armed robbery and are known as “Kulunas,” or “urban bandits.” Some Congolese have welcomed the move as a way to restore order, but human rights observers have raised questions about the fairness of the trials and sentences.
32: At least 32 dolphins have washed up dead as a result of a massive oil spill several weeks ago in the Kerch Strait, a body of water that separates mainland Russia from the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula. Two tankers collided during a storm, releasing a torrent of crude oil and other petroleum products into the water.
