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TL/DR: “This investment network is directed by the highest levels of Hamas leadership and has allowed Hamas senior officials to live in luxury while ordinary Palestinians in Gaza struggle in harsh living and economic conditions.” The U.S. Treasury said in a statement.
Hamas is running a network of construction companies worth hundreds of millions, a Newsweek investigation has found. By examining business records and cross-referencing them with sanction lists, Newsweek discovered how Hamas uses key personnel to fuel its financial empire—often in places where it may find tacit approval. Extensive new links between companies and individuals that the U.S. says are funding Hamas operations have been discovered and include businesses in the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan—possibly expanding into Western Europe.
Why it matters: Despite sanctions, Hamas' web of companies is remarkable in size and complexity while enriching senior figures. The Israeli embassy says that Hamas Political Bureau deputy chair Moussa Abu Marzouk is worth $3 billion, while senior leaders Khaled Mashal and Ismail Haniyeh are worth about $4 billion each. Israel's assault on Gaza is unlikely to stop the flow of funds from abroad. Expert in terrorism financing Stephen Reimer told Newsweek financial crime regulation of construction, property development, and real estate industries is "fairly weak globally," as Hamas-connected developers fund and sell property units to homeowners unaware that their purchases helped grow the militant organization.
Read more in-depth coverage:
Hamas Hostage Families Say Politics Cloud Goal of Saving Loved Ones
Israel's War on Hamas: How Many Palestinian Deaths Is Too Many?
Clock Ticking for Israel With Victory Elusive
What happens now? On January 5, the Biden administration offered a reward of up to $10 million for information to dismantle the group’s economic foundations. The Rewards for Justice Program aims to disrupt the broader network that sustains Hamas, including targeting any source of revenue, significant donors, financial facilitators, and financial institutions that facilitate transactions for the group. The program also focuses on businesses or investments owned or controlled by Hamas or its financiers and front companies engaged in procuring dual-use technology and criminal schemes that benefit the organization financially.
TL/DR: "Finding competent counsel has plagued Donald for many years now due to his erratic legal requests and delinquent payment history, " Michael Cohen, a former Trump attorney, told Newsweek.
Donald Trump losing three lawyers involved in his legal cases is "bleak" news for the former president, Michael Cohen said. Joe Tacopina and his two partners, Chad Seigel and Matthew DeOreo, withdrew after representing Trump in a case in which he is accused of falsifying business records over a hush money payment to former adult film star Stormy Daniels to keep an alleged affair secret during the 2016 campaign. Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts. They also withdrew from a damages trial after a New York City jury awarded E. Jean Carroll, a journalist, $5 million in damages in May, ruling that Trump had sexually assaulted her and was liable for defamation.
Why it matters: Tacopina's firm withdrew services only two months before the hush money trial was set to start in March. Legal analysts said the lawyers' sudden departure could be a huge problem for Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. Trump critics were quick to mock him, with Occupy Democrats writing on X, formerly Twitter: "It look like the rats are fleeing the sinking ship." The lawyers' exit is just the latest bad news for the former president. Yesterday, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected an appeal from X, formerly Twitter, that asked the court to rehear the matter of a search warrant that was granted to Special Counsel Jack Smith so he could access Trump's Twitter feed as part of the federal election interference case.
Read more in-depth coverage:
Donald Trump's Legal Battles 'Wearing Him Down'—Defense Attorney
Donald Trump Mocked After Losing Three Lawyers in a Day: 'Sinking Ship'
Donald Trump Gets Bad News About One Case While in Court for Another
What happens now? Trump was in court yesterday as the second E. Jean Carroll defamation trial began Tuesday. Jurors may hear from him as he is on the defense's witness list. However, he is not required to testify. If he does, he likely will do so on Monday, Jan. 22, which happens to be the day before the New Hampshire primary — where he is expected to be a frontrunner.
TL/DR: "Neither [Putin] nor his team has experience in a long and tedious war," Russian political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin told The Moscow Times.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is facing a deluge of domestic difficulties as Moscow's military struggles nearly two years after invading Ukraine. Putin, who is up for reelection in March, has been the focus of an increasing amount of criticism at home over issues that include inflation, winter blackouts, and the treatment of soldiers in Ukraine.
Why it matters: Despite a recent series of relentless Russian air and ground attacks against Ukraine, Moscow has seen diminishing returns following a notable period of success that began in late December. On Tuesday, the British Defense Ministry said that Russia and Ukraine were essentially deadlocked after Moscow failed to capitalize on its advances, with neither side having "taken any significant ground" over the past week. Meanwhile, needed utility repairs may have been sidestepped due to a lack of available funding as Russia focuses all of its resources on the war effort, according to a Moscow Times opinion article by Foreign Policy Research Institute fellow András Tóth-Czifra. Thousands of Russians were still battling brutally cold weather following mass power outages that hit multiple parts of the country, eventually affecting more than 25% of residents in the Moscow region.
Read more in-depth coverage:
Putin Warns Ukraine of 'Irreparable Blow' if War Continues
'Clan War' Breaking Out Inside Putin's Close Circle: ISW
Russian State TV Pundit Warns Life 'Keeps Getting Worse' Amid Ukraine War
What happens now? Although Putin is expected to remain in office after an election that few observers expect to be a real contest, his margin of victory in March could also turn out to be smaller than expected due to domestic discontent over the rising price of groceries. Regardless, a poll released by Russia's Levada Center on December 21 measured Putin's approval rating at a massive 81%. However, the figure was down 2% from a survey taken one month earlier, and some researchers have questioned the accuracy of polling in Russia.
TL/DR: A so-called "Disease X" emerging into the human population "could result in 20 times more fatalities than the coronavirus pandemic,” the World Economic Forum (WEF) has said.
World leaders and experts will gather today at the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, to discuss "Disease X" and the threats that another pandemic could pose. "X" isn't a particular disease– instead, another pandemic-causing virus that could emerge and should be planned for. The forum warns such a disease could result in "20 times more fatalities than the coronavirus pandemic."
Why it matters: When the coronavirus pandemic first took hold, some scientists suggested it should be considered the first Disease X. Nearly 7 million people have died worldwide from COVID-19, nearly 1.2 million of them in the U.S. Marion Koopmans, a Dutch virologist and World Health Organization (WHO) adviser, said in early 2020 that the then-novel virus was "rapidly becoming the first true pandemic challenge that fits the disease X category."
Read more in-depth coverage:
'Disease X': The Mystery Malady That Could One Day Kill Millions
Zelensky Slams 'Weakness' of West Over Lack of Russian Nuclear Sanctions in Davos
Painful Disease on the brink of Spreading, Health Officials Warn
What happens now? The forum has calculated that preparing the global health system for another pandemic would require "close to a trillion dollars," WEFs’ Head of Healthcare Shyam Bishen told CNBC. WHO's Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus will be joined by policymakers and health industry members Wednesday to consider how to prepare for the emergence of an unknown pathogen. The function of the Disease X placeholder is to help researchers assess what viruses were most likely to cause a deadly spillover into humans and to allow policymakers to prepare accordingly for such scenarios, Koopmans said.
TL/DR: “Unearthing the techniques that go into making such a momentous figure of our time is not only fascinating but meaningful,” Crystal Haryanto, behind UC Berkeley’s new Swift course, told Newsweek.
UK Berkeley is offering a new course on the genius behind Taylor Swift this semester. The class, Artistry, and Entrepreneurship: Taylor's Version, explores the techniques behind the star's success-- from marketing and business to connection building. Recent Berkeley grad and lifelong Swiftie Crystal Haryanto is teaching the elective, saying Swift is more than worth studying "due to her multidimensional roles" in society.
Why it matters: Students across several universities have raced to enroll in Swift courses, including at Havard, Stanford, and Arizona State, among others. Intercultural strategist Annalisa Nash Fernandez called Swift the "perfect case study" across the interdisciplinary courses. "It's a repackaging of contemporary history for maximization of engagement," she told Newsweek. Haryanto says her course is designed to analyze Swift's success and how it may apply to their field of work. Want more Taylor Swift news? Sign up for our For the Culture newsletter here.
Read more in-depth coverage:
Taylor Swift Is Latest Addition to Shakespeare Scholar's Course Offerings
New Celebrity College Courses to Put Your Knowledge to the Test
How This Third-Grade Teacher Uses Taylor Swift To Help Pupils Learn Math
What happens now? College admissions expert Eric Eng says the landscape of what colleges and post-grad employers seek has become far more current. Elective courses like Swift’s can elevate a student's CV by showing additional interests and a willingness to explore other areas of cultural significance, he told Newsweek.
Americans Can No Longer Afford Their Cars
For decades, car ownership has been a trademark of the American lifestyle, with vehicles becoming symbols of freedom, independence and even rebellion, as well as a necessity. But in 2024, the country's legendary love story with the automobile appears to have reached a crucial point of potential no return, as cars have become unaffordable to millions.
Life has generally gotten more expensive in the aftermath of the pandemic, including the cost of cars, car insurance and car repairs.
Both new and used car prices rose to record highs during the pandemic, as the car industry was experiencing supply chain disruptions and chip shortages. Since 2020, new car prices have risen by 30 percent, according to data shared by AI car shopping app CoPilot with Newsweek. Within the same timeframe, used car prices have jumped by 38 percent.
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