US government starts likely brief shutdown

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2026-01-31 13:00

Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Hello, we've reached the end of January at last. This week's On Assignment podcast goes behind the scenes with Reuters journalists in Minneapolis. Elsewhere, Cubans are under siege as a U.S. stranglehold sets in.

Plus, our latest City Memo heads to Milan.

US government shutdown in effect as House fails to act in time

Minneapolis, Minnesota. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

A national day of protest: Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Minneapolis and students across the United States staged walkouts to demand the withdrawal of federal immigration agents from Minnesota following the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens. The US government has shut down again as lawmakers debate immigration enforcement tactics.
Central casting Fed chief: President Donald Trump chose former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh to head the U..S. central bank when Jerome Powell's leadership term ends in May. Warsh, a frequent Fed critic, now has a chance to put his idea of monetary policy "regime change" into practice just as the White House pushes for more control over the setting of interest rates. Here are five things to know about Warsh.

World discovers it can hedge US trade risk

Pivot to China: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's visit to China is the latest win for Beijing in its rivalry with Washington. But the deal Starmer brings back to London also shows the limits as middle powers balance their approach to the two global powers. He follows Canadian counterpart Mark Carney, who struck a trade deal on a similar visit.
"We're drowning." Cubans from all walks of life are hunkering into survival mode, navigating lengthening blackouts and soaring prices for food, fuel and transport as the U.S. threatens a stranglehold on the communist-run nation. Trump has said tariffs will be imposed on imports from countries that supply Cuba with oil, ratcheting up the pressure on Washington's long-time foe.

Envoys to Israel blocked warning of 'Apocalyptic Wasteland' in Gaza

Leaving the rubble: Israel carried out its heaviest airstrikes in Gaza in weeks, killing 26 people according to local health authorities. Israel will reopen the Rafah border crossing on Sunday for people to travel between Gaza and Egypt, a government agency said, the first opening of effectively the sole route in or out of the Palestinian territory since May 2024.
Blame game: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said that U.S., Israeli and European leaders had exploited Iran's economic problems, incited unrest and provided people with the means to "tear the nation apart” in recent protests. Trump has said he planned to speak with Iran, even as the U.S. dispatched another warship to the Middle East.

Russia and Ukraine halt energy strikes

Lights out: Parts of Ukraine and Moldova, including the capitals of both neighbouring countries, were plunged into blackouts caused by malfunctions to high-voltage power lines, officials said.
Power move: U.S. and European officials are growing increasingly worried as hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. energy assistance previously pledged for Ukraine remain unreleased, even as a bone-cold winter pushes the nation's war‑damaged power grid to the brink, said several sources familiar with the matter.

Before I forget…

Tens of thousands of people have fled a remote mountainous region in northwestern Pakistan in recent weeks, residents said, after warnings broadcast from mosques urged families to evacuate ahead of a possible military action against Islamist militants.
Paramilitary fighters kidnapped children during their takeover of the Sudanese city of al-Fashir in October and in other attacks in the Darfur region over the course of Sudan's civil war, in some cases killing their parents first, witnesses say.
Luigi Mangione will not face the death penalty after a U.S. judge dismissed murder and weapons charges against the accused killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, in a major blow to federal prosecutors.
A cable car intended to carry spectators to the women's Olympic Alpine skiing events in Cortina will not be ready in time, prompting Games organisers to request school closures to ease the pressure on the Dolomite resort's transport system. Read our exclusive.
Activist investors initially saw little to get excited about in Toyota's plan to take an affiliate private. But the bid for Toyota Industries quickly ignited a battle between shareholders demanding top dollar and a Japanese corporate culture that prizes stakeholder harmony over shareholder returns.
Catherine O'Hara, the Emmy-winning actor who brought the eccentric Moira Rose of "Schitt's Creek" to global acclaim, has died at 71, said a representative from the office of her manager Marc Gurvitz.
India's new luxury symbol is water: At an Indian gourmet food store, Avanti Mehta is organising a blind tasting of drinks sourced from France, Italy and India. Participants use tiny shot glasses to check the minerality, carbonation and salinity in samples of water.

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