Hard Numbers: The Netherlands nixes asylum-seekers, Sudan strife escalates, South Koreans agitate, Beijing condemns US-Taiwan arms deal, Bulgarians vote – again

October 27, 2024

Geert Wilders, leader of the Dutch Party for Freedom party, part of the hard-right coalition government.

Alessandro Bremec/ipa-agency.n/IPA/Sipa USA via Reuters

51,000: The Dutch nationalist government on Friday approved tough new migration measures in Parliament, including enhanced border checks, an end to mandatory municipal settlement of asylum-seekers, and limits on family reunification. The policy comes after 51,000 asylum applications were made in the past 12 months and reflects shifts in Italy, Sweden, and other EU nations towards tighter migration controls.

124: An attack by the Rapid Support Forces on Friday killed at least 124 people in Al-Sareeha village in Sudan, with reports of over 200 injured and 150 detained. The attack marked the latest escalation in the conflict between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces, which has displaced millions and triggered a severe humanitarian crisis.

230,000: South Korean Christians held a mass protest in Seoul on Sunday to oppose a court ruling granting same-sex partners spousal health benefits, fearing it paves the way for legalizing same-sex marriage. The protest disrupted traffic as organizers claimed over a million participants, while police estimated the crowd at 230,000.

2 billion: China on Saturday condemned a $2 billion US arms sale to Taiwan, the 17th of the Biden administration to the island, vowing “countermeasures” to defend its sovereignty. Beijing warns that the deal, which includes advanced air defense systems, “seriously damages China-US relations, and endangers peace and stability” in the strait.

7: Exit polls show Boyko Borisov's GERB party leading Bulgaria’s seventh election in three years, but forming a coalition could be difficult: The last election in June produced a hung Parliament. This time, the pro-Russian Vazrazhdane party underperformed, while the Reformist PP-DB exceeded expectations. Final results are expected on Monday.

Conservatives come first, far right second in German election

Christian Democratic Union party leader Friedrich Merz speaks at the party headquarters after the exit poll results are announced for the 2025 general election, in Berlin, Germany, on Feb. 23, 2025.

REUTERS/Angelika Warmuth

As expected, the conservative Christian Democratic Union and its sister party, the Christian Social Union, came out on top in Germany’s election on Sunday, with exit polls giving the CDU/CSU 28.5% of the vote. But the biggest celebrations were held by those supporting the far-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD, which scored a second-place finish with 20.7%, ahead of the centrist SPD’s 16.5%, and the Greens’ 11.7%.

Musk seeks productivity lists amid federal crackdown as discontent emerges

Elon Musk holds a chainsaw onstage as he attends the Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, on Feb. 20, 2025. The idea is that he's taking a chainsaw to the federal bureaucracy.

REUTERS/Nathan Howard

Mimicking a tactic he used to slash the size of Twitter’s workforce, White House senior adviser Elon Musk has instructed all 2.3 million federal employees to list five things they “accomplished last week" by midnight Monday. Some departments are instructing their employees to ignore the request.

Sudan’s RSF declares ‘Government of Peace,’ but war continues

Representatives of political and military groups in Sudan take part in a meeting to form a counter-government in the areas occupied by the Rapid Support Forces militia.

Reuters

After nearly two years of armed conflict, Sudan’s rebel Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, signed a charter with allied groups on Saturday to establish a “government of peace and unity” in territories now under their control.

The Ukraine war at three

People visit the graves of their relatives killed during Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A large-scale light installation "Lights of Memory" was held to mark the third anniversary of the full-scale Russian invasion at the Lychakiv cemetery in Lviv, Ukraine, on Feb. 23, 2025.

REUTERS/Roman Baluk

Monday marks three years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, triggering Europe’s largest and deadliest war since World War II. GZERO looks at where things stand on the battlefield, the state of Western support, and who supports a negotiated settlement.

Ukraine and European security in the Trump era: Insights from Sen. Elissa Slotkin

Listen: Three years into the invasion of Ukraine, and amid the Trump administration’s rapid shift in US-Russia relations, can European and NATO allies continue to rely on the United States for support? On the GZERO World Podcast, Ian Bremmer is on the ground in Germany on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference for a hard look at the future of European security with US Senator Elissa Slotkin.

Ukraine's military technology could benefit all of Europe — Deputy Minister Anna Gvozdiar

- YouTube

youtu.be

At the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine was already punching above its weight in technology—having one of the most powerful IT hubs and digitized governments in the world. Now, three years into the war, tech innovation in Ukraine has become a battlefield advantage, one that Anna Gvozdiar, Deputy Minister for Strategic Industries, says could benefit all of Europe.

Hard Numbers: The Netherlands nixes asylum-seekers, Sudan strife escalates, South Koreans agitate, Beijing condemns US-Taiwan arms deal, Bulgarians vote – again

GZEROMEDIA

More from GZERO Media

Hard Numbers: Nasrallah’s funeral crowds, Deadly French attack, Sudan’s cholera outbreak, Bulgarians protest to say “no to euro”

Conservatives come first, far right second in German election

Gaza ceasefire hits a snag

The Israeli government says it won’t return 600 Palestinian prisoners until Hamas commits to halting the hostage “ceremonies.” Moving beyond phase one of the ceasefire is dependent upon their return.

Musk seeks productivity lists amid federal crackdown as discontent emerges

Mimicking a tactic he used to slash the size of Twitter’s workforce, White House senior adviser Elon Musk has instructed all 2.3 million federal employees to list five things they “accomplished last week" by midnight Monday. Some departments are instructing their employees to ignore the request.

Pope Francis is in critical condition

Struck by “initial, mild kidney failure” and pneumonia in both lungs, the pontiff sought to soothe his faithful on Sunday morning with a message of gratitude for letters he had received.

GZEROMEDIA

Sudan’s RSF declares ‘Government of Peace,’ but war continues

After nearly two years of armed conflict, Sudan’s rebel Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, signed a charter with allied groups on Saturday to establish a “government of peace and unity” in territories now under their control.

The Ukraine war at three

Monday marks three years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, triggering Europe’s largest and deadliest war since World War II. GZERO looks at where things stand on the battlefield, the state of Western support, and who supports a negotiated settlement.

Can Europe defend Ukraine without US support?

Ukraine and European security in the Trump era: Insights from Sen. Elissa Slotkin

Ukraine's military technology could benefit all of Europe — Deputy Minister Anna Gvozdiar

Hard Numbers: The Netherlands nixes asylum-seekers, Sudan strife escalates, South Koreans agitate, Beijing condemns US-Taiwan arms deal, Bulgarians vote – again

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

More from GZERO Media

The Israeli government says it won’t return 600 Palestinian prisoners until Hamas commits to halting the hostage “ceremonies.” Moving beyond phase one of the ceasefire is dependent upon their return.

Struck by “initial, mild kidney failure” and pneumonia in both lungs, the pontiff sought to soothe his faithful on Sunday morning with a message of gratitude for letters he had received.

GZEROMEDIA

Subscribe to GZERO Media's newsletter: Signal

After nearly two years of armed conflict, Sudan’s rebel Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, signed a charter with allied groups on Saturday to establish a “government of peace and unity” in territories now under their control.

Monday marks three years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, triggering Europe’s largest and deadliest war since World War II. GZERO looks at where things stand on the battlefield, the state of Western support, and who supports a negotiated settlement.