Hard Numbers: Migratory species face extinction, Dutch court halts shipments of F-35 parts to Israel, RFK’s Super Bowl ad debacle, Suspected separatist attack in Cameroon

 Wild geese fly over the Elbe meadows in the light of the setting sun on November 4, 2020, in Brandenburg, Wittenberge.
Wild geese fly over the Elbe meadows in the light of the setting sun on November 4, 2020, in Brandenburg, Wittenberge.
Soeren Stache/REUTESR

22: A new report from the UN warns that over a fifth (22%) of the world’s migratory species are at risk of extinction due to climate change and human encroachment. The report, which focuses on 1,189 kinds of animals, emphasized that 44% have already declined in number.

7: An appeals court in the Netherlands on Monday ruled the government must halt shipments of F-35 jet components to Israel within seven days, citing concerns that they could be used to commit war crimes in Gaza. The Netherlands is home to a large warehouse of F-35 parts that are exported to countries that operate the US-made jet. The Dutch government said it will comply with the ruling but that it has appealed because these exports are a matter of foreign policy, which is up to the state.

7,000,000:Robert Kennedy Jr., who is running for US president in 2024 as an independent, on Monday apologized to family members for a campaign ad that ran during the Super Bowl. The commercial drew from a 1960 campaign ad for Kennedy’s assassinated uncle, President John F. Kennedy, and cost an estimated $7 million. Kennedy tweeted the ad was created by a Super Pac without his involvement or approval — but the 30-second commercial was simultaneously pinned to his profile on Monday.

1: At least one person was killed and dozens more injured by an explosion at a children’s Youth Day celebration in Cameroon on Sunday, as the Central African country continues to contend with separatist violence in its English-speaking regions. The unrest is linked to longtime Anglophone grievances alleging discrimination by the Francophone majority.

More from GZERO Media

Most small and medium-size business owners believe that mentoring improves their chances of success, yet few of them actually have a mentor. Mastercard’s new generative AI chatbot tool called Mastercard Small Business AI democratizes mentorship by delivering tailored guidance to small-business owners no matter their field or where they are on their entrepreneurial journey. The tool is designed to help entrepreneurs move seamlessly from ideation to sustaining and growing their business, empowering them to thrive in the digital economy.

House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks to the media following the passage of spending legislation to avert a government shutdown, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, on Dec. 20, 2024.
REUTERS/Nathan Howard

US lawmakers early Saturday struck an 11th-hour deal to avert a government shutdown. On Friday, the House voted overwhelmingly to pass a stopgap spending bill after a week of chaos on Capitol Hill in which President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk intervened to scuttle two earlier bipartisan bills. The Senate followed suit shortly after midnight.

Listen: Outgoing US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan joins Ian Bremmer in front of a live audience at the 92nd Street Y in New York City for a rare and wide-ranging GZERO World interview about the biggest geopolitical threats facing the United States, Joe Biden’s foreign policy legacy, and how much will (or won’t) change when the Trump administration takes office in 2025.

- YouTube

Why is the EU investigating TikTok over the elections in Romania? What is the new French prime minister doing in order to resolve the political crisis of the country? Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden and co-chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations, shares his perspective on European politics from Northern Italy.

Victorville joined the nationwide Amazon workers strike as employees there demand higher wages, better benefits and safer working conditions.
Reuters

7: Thousands of members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters went on strike at seven Amazon facilities in the US on Thursday, demanding better working conditions.

Representatives on Capitol Hill spent all day Thursday scrambling to cobble together a deal to keep the government open, after pressure from President-elect Donald Trump sank must-pass legislation on Wednesday.

REUTERS/Leah Millis

Representatives on Capitol Hill spent all day Thursday scrambling to cobble together a deal to keep the government open, after pressure from President-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk sank must-pass legislation on Wednesday.