15 International News Stories You Missed In January

1.

While the US and Europe tighten immigration restrictions, Spain is granting legal status to approximately 500,000 undocumented migrants. Migration Minister Elma Saiz said beneficiaries can work “in any sector, in any part of the country.” PM Pedro Sánchez argues Spain needs migrants to fill jobs in agriculture, caregiving, and construction that Spaniards won’t take — even with 11% unemployment. The measure applies to those who’ve lived in Spain at least five months and applied for protection before December 31, 2025. Sánchez’s minority government passed it by decree to bypass parliament, where far-right Vox called it an “invasion.” Irregular migration to Spain actually fell 40% last year.

2.

The Dutch consumer watchdog has launched a formal investigation into Roblox over concerns it isn’t protecting children from violent and sexual content. The probe will examine “potential risks to underage users in the EU” and could take about a year. Regulators cited three concerns: minors exposed to explicit games, adults targeting children, and manipulative purchase techniques. That last point is key, as Roblox’s business model depends on children spending real money on virtual currency. The pressure to buy is structural, not incidental. Under the EU’s Digital Services Act, platforms must ensure minor safety or face penalties. Roblox says it’s “strongly committed” to compliance and plans to roll out age verification using facial recognition technology.

3.

Poland has quietly accumulated 550 tonnes of gold — more than the European Central Bank holds — valued at over €63 billion. Though the central bank is aiming for 700 tonnes, it currently has 506.5 tonnes. In just one year, gold jumped from 17% to 28% of Poland’s reserves, one of the fastest shifts among central banks worldwide. National Bank of Poland President Adam Glapiński calls gold “free of credit risk” and “resistant to financial shocks.” The largest purchases came during the market volatility of late 2025. Critics argue the funds could be earning interest in bonds, but Poland is clearly betting that gold is the ultimate insurance policy in an unstable world.

4.

Moscow just recorded its heaviest snowfall in over 200 years — nearly 92 mm of precipitation by January 29, the highest since record-keeping began. Snow reached 60 cm (two feet) in parts of the capital, paralyzing traffic and delaying trains for 13 million residents. Meteorologists attributed the event to “deep cyclones with sharp atmospheric fronts.” It follows another emergency earlier this month when the Kamchatka Peninsula was buried in snow up to the second story of buildings. One Moscow resident told AFP the snowfall reminded him of childhood winters, before they became noticeably milder in recent decades.

5.

Italy is facing a political firestorm after ICE confirmed that its agents will provide security support at the Winter Olympics in February, and the timing could not be worse. ICE recently killed two US citizens during raids in Minneapolis, sparking nationwide protests. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani tried to calm the backlash, insisting that only criminal investigation agents would attend, not deportation officers. “It’s not like the SS are coming,” he said, a comparison that itself drew sharp criticism. Milan’s mayor was more direct: “This is a militia that kills… They are not welcome.” Petitions calling for ICE to be barred from the Games have gathered more than 50,000 signatures. The Olympics begin February 6, with Vice President Vance and Secretary of State Rubio both planning to attend.

6.

The incoming Dutch government plans to add a surcharge to income and corporate taxes — branded as a “freedom tax” — that will generate €5 billion annually for defense. The goal is to raise military spending from 2% of GDP to 2.8% by 2030 and 3.5% by 2035. The total increase would eventually reach €19 billion a year, funded by the tax hike combined with cuts to healthcare and welfare programs. The plan comes from an unusual minority coalition — centrist-liberal D66, conservative Christian Democrats, and right-wing VVD — that controls just 66 of the Netherlands’ 150 parliamentary seats. At 38, D66 leader Rob Jetten will become the country’s youngest-ever prime minister, and notably, he’s from the centrist-liberal wing, not the right.

7.

Iran is planning to designate EU armed forces as “terrorists” in direct retaliation for the EU’s decision to blacklist Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Top security official Ali Larijani warned on X that “consequences will fall on European countries.” The EU’s IRGC designation, which took years of internal debate, was a response to Iran’s support for militant groups across the region, its violent crackdown on domestic protesters, and its supply of drones to Russia for use in Ukraine. Iran’s counter-designation escalates tensions at a moment when nuclear talks remain completely stalled, and regional conflicts continue to flare.

8.

Spanish police have detained a 38-year-old Chinese national who owned a hair salon near Barcelona, alleging he funneled €600,000 to Hamas through cryptocurrency transactions. Investigators traced 31 crypto transfers to addresses linked to the militant group. Police seized crypto wallets, cash, 9,000 cigars, jewelry, and computers, with total assets seized exceeding €370,000. Critically, this wasn’t the result of systematic counterterrorism monitoring. Authorities stumbled onto it during a completely unrelated fraud investigation. Police have declined to say whether the suspect knowingly collaborated with Hamas or was an unwitting intermediary.

9.

India’s electric bus rollout is turning deadly as cities deploy vehicles faster than they can train the people who drive them. In Bengaluru, e-buses were involved in 18 accidents over 15 months, six of them fatal. In Mumbai, two separate crashes killed a dozen people. The problem isn’t the technology — it’s the drivers. Human error accounts for roughly 60% of accidents. However, the problem is systemic. Private contractors provide minimal training, and aggressive bidding has created a race to the bottom on wages, leading to high turnover as drivers leave for better-paying gigs with Uber and Ola. More than 10,000 electric buses are now operating across 50 Indian cities, with another 20,000 on the way. While Western markets require rigorous driver training and real-time vehicle monitoring, India largely doesn’t.

10.

China has pledged to “protect the lawful rights” of Chinese companies after Panama’s Supreme Court voided CK Hutchison’s contracts to operate ports at both ends of the Panama Canal. The ruling throws into chaos a $23 billion deal to sell the port operations to BlackRock and MSC — a transaction Trump had publicly celebrated as wresting control of the canal from “Chinese hands.” China had opposed the sale and pushed for state-owned shipper COSCO to take a stake instead. Panama’s comptroller called the original contracts “unlawful” and “abusive.” Analysts say Panama has shrewdly created a “third option” — using its legal sovereignty to maintain leverage over both superpowers rather than simply picking a side.

11.

At least 170 people were killed in military airstrikes during Myanmar’s weeks-long election period, according to UN documentation of 408 aerial attacks between December and late January. The election itself has been widely denounced as a sham, as the military-backed party claimed victory while Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy was barred from participating. Voting was effectively impossible across large swaths of the country engulfed in civil war since the 2021 military coup. UN human rights chief Volker Türk called the election “staged by the military,” noting that many who did vote did so “purely out of fear.”

12.

Since Iran shut down the internet nationwide on January 8 amid a brutal crackdown on protests, roughly 50,000 smuggled Starlink terminals have become Iranians’ primary lifeline to the outside world. The protests have killed at least 2,600 people, though some estimates exceed 20,000, and more than 18,000 people have been arrested. Iran has criminalized Starlink possession and is actively jamming signals and hunting down users, though software updates have reportedly thwarted some of those efforts. SpaceX has made Starlink service free for Iranians. Meanwhile, the rial has become the world’s least valuable currency, with inflation running at 40%.

13.

An invasive lionfish from Asia is spreading rapidly through the Mediterranean as waters warm, and Greek environmentalists believe the solution is straightforward: eat it. The venomous fish has no natural predators, lays up to 2 million eggs annually, and feeds voraciously on smaller native species. Without intervention, scientists warn fish populations in affected areas could decline by 30% within a decade. “First, we saw one. Now we see thousands,” one NGO leader told reporters. Despite its venomous spines (which can be safely removed), lionfish is reportedly delicious. “You can cook it any way — raw, ceviche, sushi, grilled,” a Greek chef explained. As a result, fishermen have started selling it commercially, and advocates hope gastronomy can accomplish what policy alone can’t.

14.

Rob Schneider has appeared in a campaign video endorsing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán — and the timing is telling. For the first time since Orbán took power in 2010, polling shows he’s facing a genuine electoral challenge. The video features endorsements from a roster of international right-wing figures: Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, Argentina’s Javier Milei, and Germany’s AfD leader. Schneider — who won a “Worst Actor of the Decade” Razzie Award — has reinvented himself in recent years as a conservative culture warrior, making regular appearances on Fox News. At the same time, Hungary has quietly become an incubator and testing ground for global far-right movements.

15.

The US and Argentina are negotiating a deal that would allow America to deport immigrants from other countries to Argentina. Under the arrangement, people detained at the US border would be sent to Argentina, then offered flights to their home countries. The Milei administration worries about domestic backlash and lacks the infrastructure to process large numbers of deportees, but talks are advancing. Argentina’s security minister recently boasted that 5,000 immigrants were expelled in just two months, calling it a “national historical record.”