— In response to the United States raising taxes on Chinese tariffs, China will raise tariffs on $60 billion in U.S. goods. Beijing will increase tariffs on more than 5,000 products as high as 25%, some other goods will increase to 20%, which are raised from either 10% or 5%. The raise in tariffs on U.S. goods comes in response to President Donald Trump’s decision to raise tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. According to CNBC, the group who suffers the most is farmers. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said both sides were still negotiating. Trump has threatened to put tariffs on $325 billion in Chinese goods that remain untaxed. The president has said many times that China suffers the impact the most.
— Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib received harsh criticism from many Republican Congress members for her comment towards the Holocaust. President Donald Trump joined in the criticism of the freshman Congresswoman on Monday. The president tweeted, “Democrat Rep. Tlaib is being slammed for her horrible and highly insensitive statement on the Holocaust. She obviously has tremendous hatred of Israel and the Jewish people. Can you imagine what would happen if I ever said what she said, and says?” Republicans have called for Democratic leaders to “take action” against Tlaib. Tlaib, who is Palestinian-American, discussed the Holocaust on the podcast “Skullduggery. She said, “There’s always kind of a calming feeling, I tell folks, when I think of the Holocaust, and the tragedy of the Holocaust, and the fact that it was my ancestors — Palestinians — who lost their land and some lost their lives, their livelihood, their human dignity, their existence in many ways, have been wiped out, and some people’s passports. And, just all of it was in the name of trying to create a safe haven for Jews, post-the Holocaust, post-the tragedy and the horrific persecution of Jews across the world at that time. And, I love the fact that it was my ancestors that provided that, right, in many ways, but they did it in a way that took their human dignity away and it was forced on them.” According to Fox News, Tlaib’s use of the phrase “calming feeling,” was in reference to the aftermath of the Holocaust. She has accused Trump and other Republicans of having twisted her words to spread false information.
— Two oil tankers in Saudi Arabia were attacked while sailing toward the Persian Gulf. The tankers were damaged in “a sabotage attack” off the United Arab Emirates coast Sunday, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency. The vessels were approaching the Strait of Hormuz. The UAE foreign ministry reported on Sunday that four commercial ships near its territorial waters were attacked; no one has claimed responsibility. According to Fortune, the precise nature of the incident remained unclear with neither Saudi Arabia or the UAE knowing what happened. The report comes at a time of tension in the Gulf. The U.S. has deployed an aircraft carrier, bomber planes and defense missiles to the region amid friction with Iran. Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said the incident aims “to undermine the freedom of maritime navigation, and the security of oil supplies to consumers all over the world.” Antagonism between the U.S. and Iran intensified this month after President Donald Trump ended exceptions to U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil sales.
— Worry over conflict happening between Iran and the United States has many regional experts and government officials voicing concern. A senior policy Fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations said, “Both Iran and the United States are seemingly putting in place networks and infrastructure to deter military attacks against one another’s assets in the region.” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo emphasized all options, military and otherwise, were on the table in case Iran “makes a bad decision.” According to CNBC, analysts fear a miscalculation or misunderstanding following the White House pushing news of a U.S. strike group carrier in the Gulf to send an “unmistakable” message to Iran. In response to increase pressure from the Trump administration’s sanctions-heavy “maximum pressure” campaign, Iran announced last week that it will be ditching two of its obligations under the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal. Some regional watchers believe Washington is pushing the Middle Eastern country to breach the deal by removing all incentives to abide by it.
— The bodies of two women have been found in an apartment in Germany. The apartment belongs to one of three people who died in a hotel several hundred kilometers away in a mysterious case that involves crossbows. Police said there was no details of the identity of the women found during a search of the apartment in Wittingen. They said they are investigating a possible link to three found dead in Passau on Saturday. According to ABC News, the discovery added a new level of mystery to that case. Investigators were still trying to determine the relationship between the three people found shot with crossbows. All three victims are German citizens and were found at a hotel in Passau on Saturday morning. The man and older woman were found on the bed with several bolts in them while the younger woman had one bolt in her body. Two crossbows were found Saturday, and a third unused crossbow was found in a bag.
— Sweden is resuming its investigation of the director of WikiLeaks on rape allegations. Eva-Marie Persson said on Monday the country will issue a European warrant for his arrest. Julian Assange is serving a 50-week prison term for jumping bail; he is in a British prison for eluding a similar warrant in 2012. The U.S. is also seeking Assange’s extradition. Persson said it was up to British authorities to determine how to prioritize the multiple requests for his extradition or arrest. According to NPR, Swedish authorities initially issued a warrant for Assange in August of 2010 over allegations of rape and molestation. Assange has spoken to Swedish authorities previously about the sexual assault allegations against him. Persson says new questioning is needed and her office will speak to him via video link in the U.K. if he agrees. WikiLeaks issued a statement in response to the case being resumed. The company said Sweden is reopening the investigation after facing “considerable political pressure” following the director being forced out of Ecuador’s embassy. WikiLeaks says the pressure comes from the U.S., which has charged Assange with helping former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning crack a password on Department of Defense computers that allowed access to a network of classified documents and communications. Assange has vowed to fight extradition to the U.S.
— A 125-foot slide linking two streets in Estepona, Spain, was forced to close due to reports of multiple injuries. The stainless-steel chute was designed to give residents a faster way to travel between streets in a different elevation. Videos posted on Twitter show people sliding down at a high rate of speed and flying off at the end. According to Fox News, the town council said Friday it ordered the company that built the slide to carry out a thorough check and will close it in the meantime. It also said people needed to follow the slide’s instructions, which include not riding the chute while laying down, keeping arms in, and not using it at the same time as other people. The slide cost approximately $31,000 and was part of the development of a new green space in the town.
Compiled by Jenna Holley, TMN