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Seoul presidential arrest, Cuban detente and Hegseth hearing

 
Today's INTERNATIONAL story

South Korea arrests impeached president

What happened
Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was detained for questioning today, six hours after more than 3,000 police officers staged a predawn raid on the barricaded presidential compound in Seoul. An attempt to arrest Yoon on Jan. 3 was thwarted when about 100 anticorruption police were turned back by his presidential guard. Yoon, 64, had been holed up in the presidential residence since the opposition-led parliament impeached him last month over his short-lived effort to impose martial law. A Seoul court issued a detention warrant for Yoon after he ignored three summonses.

Who said what
Yoon, who is being investigated for attempting an insurrection with his martial law decree, is the first sitting South Korean president detained on criminal charges. In a video released soon after his detention, he criticized the "invalid warrant" and "illegal investigation" but said he would go with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials to "prevent any unsavory bloodshed." The recently formed CIO is leading the investigation in conjunction with the police and military. 

Deputy Prime Minister Choi-Sang-mok — the acting president after the prime minister was also impeached — early today urged the police and presidential security service to avoid "physical violence" in the raid. Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the liberal opposition Democratic Party, called Yoon's detention the "first step toward restoring constitutional order, democracy and realizing the rule of law."

What next?
The CIO can question Yoon for 48 hours before either securing an arrest warrant to detain him for up to 20 more days, or setting him free. The Constitutional Court, charged with upholding or reversing his removal from office, will hold a second hearing tomorrow; a hearing yesterday lasted less than 5 minutes after Yoon refused to attend.

 
 
Today's NATIONAL story

Biden removes Cuba from terrorism blacklist

What happened
President Joe Biden informed Congress yesterday he was removing Cuba from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism and easing other sanctions on the island nation. An hour after Biden's announcement, Cuba said President Miguel Díaz-Canel had agreed to "gradually" release 553 prisoners following talks with Pope Francis. U.S. officials suggested the two decisions were linked. 

Who said what
Biden's last-minute moves are the "latest in a series of conflicting U.S. approaches to Cuba by different administrations," The New York Times said. President-elect Donald Trump put Cuba on the terrorism blacklist "in the final hours of his first term," Reuters said, cutting Havana off from international banking and leading to a "deep economic crisis" that "stoked a record-breaking exodus off the island" and mostly to the U.S.

Biden officials have "long acknowledged there has been little justification for Cuba's presence on a list that will now include only North Korea, Iran and Syria," The Washington Post said. An administration official said a recent policy review had found "no credible evidence" of "ongoing support by Cuba for international terrorism." 

What next?
Trump has "filled his team with officials hawkish on Cuba," so Biden's Cuba detente is "not likely to last," CNN said.

 
 
Today's POLITICS Story

Hegseth boosts hopes for confirmation amid grilling

What happened
The Senate held confirmation hearings yesterday for Pete Hegseth, the former Fox News host and Army National Guard combat veteran who President-elect Donald Trump has nominated to be Defense Secretary. Hegseth was the first of Trump's Cabinet picks to go before the Senate.

Who said what
Hegseth "endured fierce Democratic grilling over everything from his inexperience, alleged drinking and his past opposition to women in combat" but emerged "largely unscathed among Republicans," Reuters said. His strategic "pattern of denials, memory holes and attacking the 'left-wing' media" may "work for him," Politico said, and serve as a template for Trump's "other troubled nominees."

Democrats said Hegseth lacks the basic qualifications and judgment to lead the "sprawling Pentagon," with "3 million military and civilian personnel, the vast U.S. nuclear arsenal and an annual budget of more than $800 billion," The Washington Post said. Republicans took "turns shoring up the nominee," calling him an "unconventional" pick who would "bring energy and fresh ideas" to the military, The Associated Press said.

What next?
The Senate Armed Services Committee was expected to vote on Hegseth's nomination Monday. An endorsement last night from Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) — a veteran and key GOP swing vote on the controversial nominee — suggested Hegseth's nomination would advance to the full Senate and pass by a narrow margin. 

 
 

It's not all bad

Australian researchers report that a blood test is showing "strong predictive accuracy" in diagnosing endometriosis, a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside of it, causing pain and heavy periods. Endometriosis is typically diagnosed through laparoscopic surgery, and a non-invasive test would make it easier — and much quicker — for patients to receive an accurate diagnosis. Globally, endometriosis affects about 10% of reproductive-age women and girls, the World Health Organization said.

 
 
Under the radar

With Indonesia officially joining the BRICS group, Southeast Asia's largest economy and most populous country is now part of the economic and political bloc founded by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2009. The move bolsters the international alliance, seen as a counterweight to the G7 group, and marks the latest chapter in Indonesia's bid to become a more influential player on the global stage. 

In 2023, then-President Joko Widodo refused to join BRICS, saying the government was still mulling its options and did not want to "rush into it." But Prabowo Subianto, who succeeded him last year, "has no such concerns," said DW. 

As a "middle power," Indonesia's membership in BRICS offers it "leverage in the global order," said Teuku Rezasyah, an international relations expert from Padjadjaran University in West Java. And with the U.S. "veering toward unilateralism" under the incoming Trump administration, the move will "bolster" Indonesia's "multilateral credentials," said Alexander Raymond Arifianto, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. 

Indonesia produces nearly half of the world's refined nickel and two-thirds of its mined nickel, which could significantly help the nation's economy and global standing in the years to come, said The Economist. And as its market share has grown, "so too has the grandeur of its politicians' ambitions" — for example, they plan to build a completely electric vehicle supply chain, something only China has managed to do thus far. This vision underpins Prabowo's "ambitious target" for Indonesia’s GDP to grow by 8% each year.

 
 
On this day

January 15, 1759

The British Museum opened to the public in London. The first public national museum, the British Museum's collection of artifacts is the largest in the world, with at least 8 million total objects. However, the museum has also come under fire for keeping artifacts stolen by the British Empire, such as Greece's Elgin Marbles.

 
 
TODAY'S newspaperS

Former Fox News host Pete Hegseth was "under fire at hearing" to be confirmed as defense secretary, The Washington Post says on Wednesday's front page. For Democrats, it was "advise and dissent," The Boston Globe says. "You're not qualified," the Chicago Sun-Times quotes one Democrat telling Hegseth. But "GOP embraces" him at "testy hearing," The New York Times says. "Hegseth weathers fiery hearing, denies misconduct allegations," The Wall Street Journal says. In the Middle East, "Hamas accepts draft of cease-fire," The Dallas Morning News says. "Gaza cease-fire talks reach 'final stages,'" the Post says. In California, "wildfire evacuees scrambling to find shelter," the Times says. And "fire crews soldier on," the Los Angeles Times says. 

► See the newspaper front pages

 
 
Tall tale

Modern love

People seeking companionship who are open to finding it with an AI robot will soon have a few options. Realbotix is designing a line of robots able to "fulfill a variety of roles," Forbes said, including serving as romantic partners. For $12,000, customers can purchase a "talking head and shoulders that you might place on a table," while the full-size Aria model, able to move its limbs, costs $175,000. Robots can be male or female, and Realbotix claims it can "even replicate historical figures or celebrities."

 
 

Morning Report was written and edited by Theara Coleman, Nadia Croes, Catherine Garcia, Scott Hocker, Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, Justin Klawans, Chas Newkey-Burden, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz and Peter Weber, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek.

Image credits, from top: Jung Yeon-Je / AFP via Getty Images; Yamil Lage / AFP via Getty Images; Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post via Getty Images; Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images