International
Middle-East
Despite the US and allies' missile strikes in Yemen, Houthi rebels continued to launch more attacks in the Red Sea. The militant group claimed to have hit the US-owned bulk ship Gibraltar Eagle. Such attacks have closed the Red Sea, a major global trade route and hundreds of ships are now sailing around Africa to avoid attacks. A Houthi leader vowed to continue attacking ships.
Concerns over a larger Middle-Eastern conflict continue to grow as US officials blamed Iran-backed militia groups for attacking an American army base. Iran has also criticized Israel for killing an Iranian senior military leader in an airstrike.
US Politics
In a decisive victory, Donald Trump won the Iowa Caucuses by a 30-point margin. He received 51% of the votes. Ron DeSantis placed second with 21% of votes followed by Nikki Haley with 19%. After finishing last, Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out of the presidential race and immediately endorsed Donald Trump.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott refused to stop sending migrants to major cities like New York and Chicago “until President Biden steps up and does his job to secure the border.” Despite nation-wide freezing temperatures, thousands of migrants have been dropped off in major metropolitan areas as city officials struggle to provide adequate shelter.
Governor Kathy Hochul of New York put forth a state budget of $233 billion, which includes increased funding to assist New York City in addressing its migrant challenges.
A number of states are following Colorado in its lead to expel Trump from the ballots. In Washington, a similar case has been dismissed, allowing Trump to remain on the GOP primary ballot.
Other
The US Justice Department released a report saying that the Uvalde Shooting could have “stopped sooner” if law enforcement acted faster. It took police 77 minutes to respond and stop the gunman who killed 19 children and 2 teachers.
The first US spacecraft striving for a moon landing after 50 years has failed. Despite traveling vast distances in space, the Peregrine lunar lander developed a fuel leak and ultimately caught fire.
On Thursday, Mark Zuckerberg committed to developing artificial general intelligence (AGI) that matches or exceeds human intelligence in every field. Nearly all major tech companies like Meta and Google are now unveiling new AI tools.