Gaza tunnels, Doug Burgum, Spotify, ESG backlash, Adidas’s Euro 2024 ball, plus 1,000 more actionable insights.
ITK Daily is geopolitical business intelligence for communications pros.
Happy Tuesday.
Here’s today’s ITK Daily.
To be ITK, know this:
*** Globalization + Statecraft ***
Israel weighs plan to flood Gaza tunnels with seawater: WSJ reports the move could drive out Hamas fighters but threatens to foul Gaza’s freshwater supply and damage infrastructure.
Military briefing: How Israel is attacking Hamas’s vast tunnel network: Subterranean labyrinth thought to be larger than London Underground holds key to Israel’s offensive in Gaza. FT
Binyamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial resumed on Monday, after a suspension expired that had halted work at Israel’s courts following Hamas’s attack on October 7th.
WP: US ship shoots down drones in Red Sea, Central Command says
US considers task force to guard Red Sea ships from Iranian proxy forces: NYT reports the discussions come after a US destroyer downed three drones targeting commercial ships on Sunday, part of a series of attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia tied to Israel’s war against Hamas.
Why Yemen’s Houthis are attacking ships in the Red Sea: The risk to shipping from the Iran-backed rebels has increased significantly. Economist
Protesters now chant and challenge Biden over Gaza at every chance: WSJ reports from holiday events to memorial services, demonstrators now show up at almost all of President Biden’s appearances.
Miscalculations and divisions marked offensive planning by the US and Ukraine WP
US funding for Ukraine set to run out by end of the year, White House warns: FT reports budget official says failure by Congress to approve further aid will ‘kneecap’ Kyiv.
French fighter jets join the Baltic mission: How to intercept Russian aircraft approaching NATO airspace. Economist
NATO has three years to prepare for Russian attack, warns Poland The Times
NHK: Putin to make rare overseas trips to UAE, Saudi Arabia this week
Keir Starmer breaks the great Labour taboo: Praising Margaret Thatcher: Starmer is just the latest Labour leader to attempt to tap into the Thatcher legacy in order to woo Tory voters. Politico
OTD: In 1989, Margaret Thatcher won a leadership election after being challenged by Conservative backbencher Sir Anthony Meyer, objecting to policies on Europe and the community charge
Bloomberg: Helsinki, Amsterdam named best cities for urban transportation
37: The number of nuclear reactors China has built in the past decade.
Investors hope for road map for China’s economy: Annual policy-setting conference due this month expected to signal how much help government is prepared to give. FT
Global factory inventories up 30% in 4 years as China slows: Nikkei reports industrial machinery among sectors hit hardest by falling demand.
Bloomberg: US to deploy anti-ship missiles on subs in 2024 to counter China
US to deploy new ground-based missiles to Indo-Pacific in 2024: Nikkei reports intermediate-range fires, previously banned by INF, to counter China buildup.
France urges Beijing to avert 'crisis' in South China Sea: AFP reports after China ramped up military drills in the strategically important Taiwan Strait, the French foreign minister urged for 'calm and stability.'
NHK: Xi welcomes Lukashenko back to Beijing
Bloomberg: Singapore aims to triple AI workforce to 15,000, Wong says
Bears have injured or killed 212 people in Japan since April, a record number of attacks.
Narendra Modi’s party sweeps in north and central India: Economist reports a bundle of state polls suggests the Bharatiya Janata Party is well-placed for next year’s general election.
Mumbai leads world in number of IPOs as new China listings fall: Hong Kong's equity fundraising proceeds drop below India's in sign of waning appeal. Nikkei
Nepal same-sex marriage a milestone for LGBTQ rights in Asia: DW reports in Nepal, a cisgender man and a transgender woman, legally considered a man, became the first couple in South Asia to have their "same-sex" marriage legally recognized.
Guinea-Bissau: President dissolves parliament after coup bid: DW reports the leader of the West African nation has descibed a "grave political crisis," neccessitating the move, but the opposition says President Embalo is himself conducting a "constitutional coup d'etat."
CNBC: Venezuelans vote to claim sovereignty over a part of oil-rich nation Guyana
+ Venezuela approved a referendum by President Nicolas Maduro’s government to claim sovereignty over a large part of its oil-rich neighbor Guyana.
+ This marks the latest escalation in a long-standing territorial dispute between both countries.
+ The 61,600 square-mile Essequibo region makes up two-thirds of Guyana, and holds enormous oil reserves off its coast.
Venezuela’s autocrat, Nicolás Maduro, threatens to annex Guyana: An unpopular president holds a referendum to distract voters from his failings. Economist
Ex-US ambassador charged as secret agent for Cuba: WSJ reports ex-diplomat Victor Manuel Rocha, who served in US embassies across Latin America, is accused of spying for Havana’s secret intelligence service for decades.
+ Victor Manuel Rocha, 73, allegedly told federal agents posing as Cuban operatives that he had spent 40 years spying for Cuba as he rose through the State Department, ultimately serving as ambassador to Bolivia.
+ The case is “one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the United States government by a foreign agent,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said.
America and a crumbling global order: Political division and turmoil at home are undermining US leadership overseas. Gideon Rachman
*** Politics + Elections ***
WP: Doug Burgum suspends longshot presidential campaign
Some Republicans have a blunt message for Chris Christie: Drop out: NYT reports several anti-Trump Republican donors and strategists are pushing Mr. Christie to end his presidential campaign and back Nikki Haley.
Joe Biden shunts Bidenomics to the sidelines: The president has quietly stopped using the phrase since the Republicans weaponized it against him in the run-up to the US elections. The Times
CNBC: Alaska-Hawaiian billion-dollar merger faces a DOJ that has been skeptical of airline deals
*** Disruption + Innovation ***
Amy Edmondson wins FT and Schroders Business Book of the Year: Management title ‘Right Kind of Wrong’ praised as ‘highly readable and relevant.’ FT
WSJ: Spotify to lay off 17% of workforce
Canada's CBC to cut workforce by 10%: AFP reports the Canadian public broadcaster announcement on Monday comes at a time when many media outlets in Canada – as in other parts of the world – are currently in dire financial straits.
Bloomberg: Twilio to cut another 5% of workforce in third round of layoffs
CNBC: Virgin Galactic shares plunge after Branson rules out further investment
CNBC: Uber shares pop as company is slated to join S&P 500
FT: IBM claims quantum computing research milestone
Bloomberg: AT&T taps Ericsson for $14 billion network revamp, ousting Nokia
23andMe says health data was included in hack: Bloomberg reports some 6.9 million customers had their data compromised.
WP: Red Lobster called its endless shrimp deal ‘irresistible.’ Then it lost $11m.
Bitcoin surges past $42,000.
Gold price hits $2,100 for a record high.
Bloomberg: Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels to hit record peak in 2023
The renewables business faces a make-or-break moment: Supply-chain dysfunction, rising interest rates, and protectionism are making life tough. Economist
The real impact of the ESG backlash: As opinions shift, asset managers like BlackRock are talking more about maximizing returns than about saving the world. FT
OTD: In 1621, a letter sent from London confirmed the importation of honey bees to North America. The native species did not produce honey, unlike Apis mellifera, the European honey bee.
*** Culture ***
HBO is developing a movie about George Santos.
After a five-year renovation, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York presents a fresh take on a core part of its collection.
*** Sport ***
Only way to honor Washington fans is to bring football back to DC.: A game at FedEx Field is a miserable experience. Maryland gets the Ravens, DC gets the Commanders. Petula Dvorak
Bloomberg: Senator Scott questions Florida State’s exclusion from College Football Playoff
The 10 worst things about the Florida State travesty Will Leitch
Premier League announces record $8.45 bn domestic TV deal: AFP reports the Premier League announced on Monday it had agreed a record £6.7 billion ($8.45 billion) domestic television rights deal for a four-year period starting from the 2025/26 season.
Adidas’s Euro 2024 ball will have microchip to detect handballs: The device in the Fussballliebe, combined with limb-tracking technology, will reveal where a ball hit a player and also help with offside decisions next summer. The Times
Enjoy the ride + plan accordingly.
-Marc
Marc A. Ross | Chief Communications Strategist @ Caracal
Caracal produces ITK Daily.
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