Javier Milei surprised many by winning Argentina’s run-off presidential election in a victory over opponent Sergio Massa, according to BBC News. However, The New York Times reported that while Milei captured a large sector of the youth vote, his campaign faced a considerable enemy: Taylor Swift fans — Swifties for short.
On Sept. 8, 2023, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco, killing thousands in the Al Haouz, Ouarzazate and Marrakech provinces, NBC News reported. Marrakech is the country’s most visited tourist attraction and home to a UNESCO World Heritage site. Video footage shared by NBC News showed people evacuating city establishments and attempting to find safety from crumbling buildings.
On April 14, 2023, Jack Teixeira, who was charged with releasing classified government documents, appeared in federal court for a hearing, NBC Boston reported. According to BBC News, the documents contained information describing how the United States government views Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, along with information about allies of the U.S. and their involvement in the war. The leaked documents have raised concerns about how safe classified information is in the U.S..
On March 30, 2023, the Russian Federal Security Service announced that they had detained Evan Gershkovich, an American reporter for The Wall Street Journal, and were opening an espionage case against him, The Guardian reported. According to CNN, the FSB has charged Gershkovich with attempting to “obtain state secrets.” Almar Latour, chief executive of Dow Jones, the company that publishes The Wall Street Journal, has staunchly denied this allegation.
Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party, to resign. Photo courtesy of First Minister of Scotland via Flickr.
Jendayi Leben-Martin ’24
Global Editor
On Feb. 15, 2023, First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon announced her resignation from the role, a New York Times article said. According to BBC News, Sturgeon is the longest-serving first minister in Scottish history, as well as the first woman to ever hold the position.
The announcement of Sturgeon’s resignation comes amid controversy in Scottish politics. The New York Times article explained that in recent weeks proposed Scottish legislation aimed at making gender transitions easier was shot down by Britain’s Parliament. However, Sturgeon maintains that the recent controversy is not the reason for her resignation, a CNN article said. Sturgeon reassured skeptics that “[the] decision is not a reaction to short-term pressures.”
As the leader of the Scottish National Party, Sturgeon has spent the past eight years working towards Scottish independence, the party’s founding goal, a BBC News article explained. In fact, according to the SNP website, Sturgeon has been advocating for Scottish independence since she was sixteen, and over the duration of her career, she has worked toward making Scotland an active participant in world politics.
In a press conference addressing her resignation, Sturgeon said that a new leader will be better equipped to achieve Scottish independence, as Sturgeon herself believes that she has become too polarizing of a figure. According to BBC News, Sturgeon’s resignation leaves Scotland without a decisive leader in ongoing discussions surrounding Scottish independence and the prospect of future referendums. As reported by CNN, a majority of Scottish voters expressed that they wanted to remain a part of the U.K. in 2014. However, after Brexit in 2016, popular Scottish opinion on independence may have changed. According to CNN, support for independence had grown since Scotland was forced out of the European Union by the U.K. in 2016, but hopes for a referendum have faced some recent obstacles.
CNN reported that in November 2022 the British Supreme Court barred the Scottish government from holding a second referendum on its own, meaning that any referendum plans must now be approved by the U.K. government. BBC News explained that the SNP is holding a conference in March to figure out how to address these restrictions and move toward a second referendum, but Philip Sim, a political correspondent for the BBC, stated that “with no clear successors waiting in the wings if Ms. Sturgeon isn’t running the independence campaign, it’s not clear who will be placed to call the shots.”
According to BBC News, Kate Forbes, a current parliament member, is one of the front runners to take over Sturgeon’s role. Some of Forbes’s ideas conflict with the political precedent that Sturgeon has set, however. For example, Forbes, who was on maternity leave during the vote that passed the self-identification legislation in the Scottish Parliament, has said that she would not have voted in favor of the bill, and that, as first minister, she will not fight the U.K. government on their block of the legislation. Nick Eardley of the BBC reports that this conflict reflects an upcoming change in the direction of the SNP. BBC News reported that Sturgeon will remain in office until her successor is elected.
An earthquake starting in Kahramanmaraş has caused over 40,000 recorded deaths as of Feb. 14. Photo courtesy of IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation via Flickr.
Jendayi Leben-Martin ’24
Global Editor
On Feb. 9, 2023, an earthquake and subsequent tremor with magnitudes of 7.8 and 7.5 respectively started in Kahramanmaraş, Turkey and rocked southeastern Turkey and northwestern Syria, Al Jazeera reported. BBC News explained that the earthquake, which seismologists say is one of the largest ever recorded in Turkey, was widespread, resulting in the mass destruction of thousands of buildings across the region. Chris Elders, professor at the School of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Curtin University in Australia, told Al Jazeera that the aftershocks stretched “a distance of about 100 km to 200 km (62 to 124 miles)” from the epicenter in Kahramanmaraş.
According to James Elder, a spokesperson for the United Nations, the 10 provinces affected by the earthquake are home to approximately 4.6 million children, while the affected areas in Syria housed 2.5 million children, CNN reported. Days after the quake, people buried under rubble are still being rescued, but the death toll is still expected to increase. According to Al Jazeera, as of Feb. 14, over 40,000 deaths have been recorded, and UNICEF confirmed that the number will continue to grow according to a CNN article.
Adele Akbulut ’24, who is part of a small group of students affiliated with nudasyria.org at Mount Holyoke that have begun organizing fundraisers to help provide relief for those displaced by the earthquake, spoke about the resources that Turkey and Syria have lost, stating, “Many of the people there are now homeless —the ones that are alive — they are all outside.” The student group will be fundraising outside of Blanchard Dining Commons until Feb. 17.
In the wake of the earthquake, the U.N. has begun funneling aid into the region through Bab Al-Salam and Al Ra’ee, two points between Turkey and Syria.On Feb. 13, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad opened the cross points, and they will remain open for at least a three-month period to allow aid into the countries.According to U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths via CNN, 11 trucks have carried resources into the region through Bal Al-Salam, and 26 more have passed into the region through the Bab Al-Hawa crossing, as of Feb. 14.
