Skip to content
Search
Human content, AI powered search.

Latest Stories

News

What We're Watching: ISIS Attacks in Syria

Willis Sparks
By Willis SparksJanuary 18, 2019
Willis Sparks
Willis Sparks is a senior editor for GZERO Daily. He is also a Director in the Global Macro practice at Eurasia Group, where he has worked since 2005. He has made speeches on international politics on every continent except Antarctica. Willis holds degrees from Brown University, the Juilliard School, Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, and the Institut d'Etudes Politiques in Paris. He also holds an honorary degree from the Moscow Art Theatre School. A native of Macon, Georgia, Willis has worked as a stuntman at New York's Metropolitan Opera. As a child, he declined an opportunity to spend an afternoon riding the Great American Scream Machine, a rollercoaster, with Ronald McDonald, for money. He has never regretted that decision.
See Full Bio
Make us preferred on Google

Syria ISIS attack — A suicide bombing in Syria claimed by ISIS killed 14 people including four Americans this week. Two questions we'll be watching: Will this attack impact the pace of President Trump's ordered withdrawal of US troops from Syria, and is the bombing part of a broader ISIS strategy to launch a wave of new attacks as US troops depart?

DNA tests — The airline Aeromexico wants more Americans to visit Mexico. So it's come up with an interesting promotion. Just click the link.

What We're Ignoring:

An End to World War II — Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will meet next week. On their agenda: an end to World War II. Russia and Japan have never signed a formal peace treaty to end the conflict, and many in Japan continue to hope that, as part of a peace deal, Russia will return a group of Pacific islands seized at the end of the war. Russians call them the Kuril Islands, and Japan still refers to them as the Northern Territories. We're ignoring this story, because we doubt Putin will ever willingly give away a single acre of Russian land.

North Korean beaches — Fans of Puppet Regime know all about those North Korean beaches that will "leave you speechless." Satellite photos suggest a giant beach resort in the Wonsan-Kalma Coastal Tourist Area, a strip of land once used for artillery drills and missile launches, is almost ready for summer fun. We'd love to sneak a peek at the new water slides, but we'll ignore this development until Kim Jong-un feels its fully ready for inspection.

Latest Videos

How America's retreat from foreign aid is changing the worldplay icon
GZERO World with Ian Bremmer

How America's retreat from foreign aid is changing the world

The collapse of the aid system
Ian Explains

The collapse of the aid system

Aliens invade the Regime!
Puppet Regime

Aliens invade the Regime!

Is the US-China relationship reaching a breaking point?
Quick Take

Is the US-China relationship reaching a breaking point?

What happens when global power goes unchecked?
GZERO World Clips

What happens when global power goes unchecked?

Why Trump keeps backing down on Iran
Quick Take

Why Trump keeps backing down on Iran

More For You

Mexico’s newest export boom

Mexico’s newest export boom
Natalie Johnson
Mexico’s top export to the US might surprise you. For decades, cars dominated trade, but computer servers have taken the top spot, according to a Financial Times analysis. Over the past year, Mexico has rapidly increased exports to the US of servers used in AI data centers. As in the auto industry, many core components come from Asia, particularly [...]

Zambia awaits presidential results, US to let companies hack cybercriminals back, Chile transfers hundreds to high-security prison

A person casts a vote at a polling station during Zambia's general elections, including a presidential election, in Lusaka, Zambia.

A person casts a vote at a polling station during Zambia's general elections, including a presidential election, in Lusaka, Zambia, August 13, 2026.

REUTERS/Jean Mandela
Zambians want their slice of the copper piePolls closed in Zambia’s presidential election on Thursday as voters in one of Africa’s most stable democracies weighed whether the country’s economic turnaround has actually affected their wallets. President Hakainde Hichilema, who is seeking a second term, has overseen a successful debt restructuring, [...]

South Africa wants other African countries to write it a check, The Pentagon prepares to zap drones, Putin visits islands seized from Japan in WWII

Nearly 5,000 protesters took part in a march against illegal immigration in Pretoria.

June 30, 2026 , Pretoria, South Africa: Nearly 5,000 protesters took part in a march against illegal immigration in Pretoria. The demonstrations were reportedly organized by more than 20 anti-migrant organizations and civil society groups, including the March and March movement.

© Manash Das/ZUMA Press Wire
South Africa bills other nations for deportationsSouth Africa is asking other African countries to reimburse them for the costs of deporting their citizens, after spending nearly $18 million on a massive deportation campaign. In recent months, the government has deported or helped other nations repatriate more than 80,000 migrants as it responds [...]

Japan’s outside-the-icebox way to stay cool

Japan’s outside-the-icebox way to stay cool
Will Fitzpatrick
A Japanese company has come up with a novel way to beat the heat: a human-sized refrigerator. The “Do Hiemon” personal cooling booth blasts users with cold air and claims it can lower body temperature in just minutes. The product comes as Japan endures another punishing summer marked by temperatures over 104 degrees and a surge in heat-related [...]