Opinion: Fountains of sleaze and ‘elite’ trash — Epstein files show the reality


By Paul Wallis
EDITOR AT LARGE

DIGITAL JOURNAL

February 7, 2026


Several photographs in the newly released trove of so-called Epstein files show former US president Bill Clinton, as well as Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger, Virgin Group chairman Richard Branson and convicted child sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell - Copyright AFP Mandel NGAN

The Epstein saga, now in its seventh year, has shown a scale of criminality beyond caricatures. A seemingly endless parade of untouchable sleazebags infests the news like a much longer pandemic.

Let’s clarify – This isn’t about the rich geriatrics having a good time. These allegations all relate to extremely serious crimes against a lot of people. They all carry heavy-duty jail time. There’s no “immunity”.

God’s gift to scatology, sometimes known as Donald Trump, isn’t anything like the whole story; he’s just hogging the headlines as usual. Anyone else with a name worth mentioning is popping up monotonously as the story goes on.

I’ve never understood why these people were ever called ‘elite’. Elite means something. It means top professionals.

That definitely does not describe the vast majority of these guys. Even at top levels, they’re mainly business, media, and political networkers, insiders in the boys’ clubs. Not heavy hitters. Not standalone tough guys. Just rich brat nothings as people.

It’s a procession of personal mediocrity that has led to this unsightly horror story.

Epstein got his start in finance. At the soon-to-fail Bear Stearns, he made contacts and eventually became a “limited partner”. Bear Stearns was one of the first big crashes in the subprime disaster that destroyed the US middle class and caused the Great Recession.

Epstein sailed serenely through the crisis. At some point, he formed J. Epstein & Company, managing financial assets. He was still very much involved in the finance sector. This sector is effectively a mega-network, connecting with big money and big names.

A well-known, long, and turgid list of criminal cases related to sex trafficking began in 2008. After he died in 2019, the flood of details emerged of his other activities, soon dragging in names like a fishing trawler scraping the bottom of the sea.

It’s almost pointless to recite the names involved. Suffice to say it’s a picture of the ‘leadership’ of this catastrophically mismanaged world. Epstein is a common factor.

Pretty cute so far, isn’t it?

A few questions at this point:

How do so many underage kids get so easily involved with the ‘elite’ for so long?

Who does the physical trafficking and moves people from A to B?

How does a guy who started barely one step up from an office boy suddenly become best friends with the richest of the rich and political powerbrokers?

You need connections. You need introductions. You need traffickers. You need direct communications. That’s exactly what’s coming out of the Epstein files.

These people don’t communicate with just anyone. They filter out just about everybody. They routinely delegate almost all contacts. The entire Epstein operation was clearly based on an almost incredible range of inside contacts. Who has so many contacts that just spring to life when required?

How was it all funded? By Epstein? There’d be vast records of housekeeping at least. Even the catering for parties should have generated at least some information. Anyone trace the money? There’s no noticeable mention of how any money and so many people moved around in this operation. Enforcement doesn’t seem to be looking.

Enforcement has also mysteriously failed systematically and infallibly missed every shot on the board. That’s been pretty common in corrupt governments at all levels in the US since Prohibition and Tammany Hall. Sound familiar? It’s folklore in the US. Does the expression ‘organized crime’ ring a bell? How and to what extent are they involved?

The most basic example of failure of enforcement is indicative. There are famous laws in the US about transporting minors over state lines and related laws. It looks like most of that enforcement simply never tried to happen, and if it did, it did nothing.

Other countries are now getting conspicuously involved in investigations. That’s tricky, because jurisdictions matter. Whoever is charged with what will reverberate through other jurisdictions. Justice may come from outside the US.

Says a lot about the state of America, doesn’t it?

The fountains of sleaze are overflowing. The pipelines can’t handle it.

__________________________________________________

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed in this Op-Ed are those of the author. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of the Digital Journal or its members.

Davos forum opens probe into CEO Brende’s Epstein links


By AFP
February 5, 2026


World Economic Forum president and chief executive Borge Brende at the annual summit in Davos, eastern Switzerland - Copyright AFP Fabrice COFFRINI

The World Economic Forum, which organises the Davos summit, said Thursday that it would conduct an independent review into its chief executive’s interactions with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Former Norwegian foreign minister Borge Brende, 60, has since 2017 been president of the WEF, which organises the annual gathering of the super-rich and powerful in the Swiss ski resort of Davos.

“The WEF seeks to clarify recent disclosures regarding its president and CEO, Borge Brende, and his participating in three business dinners with Jeffrey Epstein, along with subsequent email and SMS communications,” the forum said.

“In light of these interactions, the governing board requested the audit and risk committee to look into the matter, which subsequently decided to initiate an independent review.”

The forum said it was committed to transparency and aimed to handle the matter thoughtfully and efficiently.

The Geneva-based organisation said Brende would continue to fulfil his roles at the WEF, without involvement in the review process.

Brende was mentioned more than 60 times in the millions of new Epstein documents released last week by the US Justice Department.

Appearing in the released Epstein files does not in itself imply wrongdoing.

Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to procuring a child for prostitution and served 13 months of an 18-month sentence.

Epstein was facing charges of alleged sex trafficking when he killed himself in detention in 2019.

Brende said in a statement that during a visit to New York in 2018, he received an invitation for former Norwegian deputy prime minister Terje Rod-Larsen to join him for dinner with several other leaders, plus “someone who was presented to me as an American investor, Jeffrey Epstein”.

“The following year, I attended two similar dinners with Epstein, alongside other diplomats and business leaders. These dinners, and a few emails and SMS messages, were the extent of my interactions with him,” he said.

“I was completely unaware of Epstein’s past and criminal activities.”

He said that had he known about Epstein’s background, he would have declined the initial invitation for dinner and any other subsequent invitations or communications.

Brende said he recognised that he could have conducted a more thorough investigation into Epstein’s history, and regretted not doing so.

He welcomed the independent review, “which I indeed requested”.


France detects Russia-linked Epstein smear attempt against Macron: govt source


By AFP
February 6, 2026


Much of the Jeffrey Epstein document trove released by the US Justice Department has been blacked out - Copyright AFP Mandel NGAN

Pierre MOUTOT, Tiphaine LE LIBOUX

France has detected a Russia-linked disinformation effort alleging President Emmanuel Macron’s involvement with convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a government source told AFP on Friday.

Politicians, celebrities and royals have been caught up in the turmoil after the US Justice Department last week published a new cache of nearly three million documents related to the investigation of Epstein, who died in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.

France’s Viginum agency, which counters foreign disinformation campaigns, detected Wednesday the operation involving a fabricated video report “accusing President Emmanuel Macron of being involved in the ‘Epstein affair'”, the source said.

The fake report was posted on a site fraudulently using the identity of a French media organisation, France-Soir, said the source, adding that the Storm-1516 project spreading fabricated content was behind the operation.

The fake report, allegedly by Le Parisien journalist Victor Cousin, claims to reveal “documents” incriminating Macron.

The Department of Justice’s files about Epstein do not contain the alleged documents.

Writing for Le Parisien, Cousin, 26, said he went to a police station to file a complaint.

“I had to explain how pro-Russian individuals had stolen my identity to attack the French president,” he wrote.

“The police officer in front of me stared at me with wide eyes, unable to comprehend what I was saying.”

– ‘Brand theft’ –

On Wednesday, France-Soir sought to distance itself from the fabricated report.

“Warning: brand and content theft,” it said. “The website http://france-soir.net has no connection with France-Soir.”


French President Emmanuel Macron has warned the public over Russian disinformation campaigns in Europe – Copyright POOL/AFP Ludovic MARIN

According to the government source, the site was linked “with a high degree of confidence to the CopyCop information operation.”

CopyCop is linked to John Mark Dougan, an American fugitive living in Russia. The latter “maintains part of the digital infrastructure of the Storm-1516 information operation,” the source added.

On X, the first account to share the fake video report was “@LoetitiaH, a frequent relay for Storm-1516 information operations,” the source added.

The video content was then “picked up and amplified by numerous other accounts monitored by Viginum,” said the source.

The source said that “this operation is very similar” to other Storm-1516 campaigns targeting political figures.

The posts targeting Macron began appearing online on Wednesday, shared simultaneously by several social media accounts identified as regular sources of pro-Russian disinformation. The accounts have a following of several thousand internet users.

The posts cite an alleged email exchange between Epstein and the controversial French modelling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, who was found dead in his cell in a Paris prison in 2022 after being charged with raping minors. The alleged email does not exist in the files.

According to the false narrative, Brunel allegedly told Epstein in May 2017 that he would take “a few boys” to a party that Macron was organising.

Like previous disinformation operations on social media, they rely on a video with audio dubbed by artificial intelligence, screenshots of altered documents, and links to a website impersonating another media outlet to lend credibility to their narrative.

The posts share a link to the clone of the France-Soir media site, launched on Sunday, whose domain name is registered as .net instead of the .fr of the authentic site.

The French government has repeatedly warned the public over Russian disinformation campaigns in Europe that have grown in intensity since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in 2022.

– Missing link –

According to Antibot4Navalny, a collective that monitors pro-Kremlin bot networks, Storm-1516 and Matryoshka launched simultaneous campaigns targeting Macron in early February.

However, the group said there was no proven “direct link beyond the timing and topics” between the two operations.

“No strong connections between sites or distribution accounts can give us grounds to make that claim,” Antibot4Navalny told AFP.

According to Viginum, Storm-1516 was behind at least 77 disinformation operations targeting Western countries between late 2023 and March 2025.

After the publication of the Epstein files, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was also targeted by false posts.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said this week the Epstein files demonstrate “how the Western elite treats children” and such officials “stand behind the Kyiv regime”.

tll-nl-am-pim-as/ah/st

‘Burned inside their houses’: Nigerians recount horror of massacre


By AFP
February 5, 2026


Nigerian chief Umar Bio Salihu says attackers killed scores of people and torched homes and businesses in his village, Woro - Copyright AFP Light Oriye Tamunotonye

John Okunyomih in Kaiama with Leslie Fauvel in Lagos

First, the jihadists sent a letter saying they were coming to the village to preach, said Nigerian chief Umar Bio Salihu.

When no one attended, they went on a rampage, killing people and torching houses, he said.

Salihu is the traditional chief of Woro, a small, Muslim-majority village in west-central Nigeria where alleged jihadist gunmen perpetrated a massacre late Tuesday.

Details are still emerging from the attack in Kwara State, but it is one of the country’s deadliest in recent months. According to the Red Cross, the death toll stands at 162 people, and the search for bodies is ongoing.

Badly shaken, Salihu recounted the night of terror he survived as the attackers killed two of his sons and kidnapped his wife and three daughters.

Around 5:00 pm, the gunmen “just came in and started shooting”, the 53-year-old chief told AFP Thursday, clutching his Muslim prayer beads in his hand.

“All those shops that are within the road, they burnt them… Some people have been burned inside their houses,” he said.

“They killed two of (my sons) standing at the front of my house. They took away my second wife with some three (daughters). They are with them presently in the bush.”

Salihu survived by hiding in a house, then fled to the neighbouring town of Kaiama, where he has a home, after the attackers left.

The attack lasted until 3:00 am, he said.

“When the day breaks, the corpses we see, it’s too much,” he said.



– ‘Don’t want their ideology’ –



Woro, a village of several thousand people, sits near a forest region known as a hideout for jihadist fighters and armed gangs, groups that have fuelled nearly two decades of violence in Africa’s most populous country.

It is a Muslim community, but its residents want nothing to do with radicalised jihadist groups, said Salihu.

“People don’t want to follow their ideology,” he said.

When a radical group sent a letter saying they planned to come to Woro to preach, no one attended, he said.

Salihu alerted the local security services.

“I think that is what brought the anger to come and just kill people like that in the community,” he said.

The governor of Kwara gave the death toll from the attack as 75.

Sa’idu Baba Ahmed, a member of the local assembly, said 78 bodies had been buried Wednesday afternoon.

“More dead bodies are being recovered and brought from the bush,” he said.

The attackers kidnapped another 38 people, mostly women and children, he said.



– ‘Beastly attack’ –



Nigerian President Bola Tinubu condemned the “beastly attack”, deploying an army battalion to the troubled region and blaming Islamist movement Boko Haram — though the name is often used generically for jihadist groups in Nigeria.

Kwara is racked by violence by armed “bandit” gangs and jihadist groups that have been extending their range from northwestern Nigeria farther south.

In October, the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) claimed its first attack on Nigerian soil in the state, near Woro.

Nigeria’s northeast is meanwhile the scene of long-running violence by Boko Haram and a rival offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

Nigeria is broadly split between a Christian-majority south and Muslim-majority north.

US President Donald Trump has alleged there is a “genocide” of Christians in Nigeria — a claim rejected by the Nigerian government and many independent experts, who say the country’s security crises claim the lives of both Christians and Muslims, often without distinction.

Washington has alternately pressured and aided the Nigerian government in its fight against jihadist violence.

On Christmas Day, the United States launched strikes targeting jihadist militants in northwestern Nigeria, and Washington has deployed a small military team to the country, according to the head of the US Africa Command.

GREY LADY D0WN

Washington Post CEO out after sweeping job cuts

By AFP
February 8, 2026


The sweeping job cuts at The Washington Post left hundreds of journalists without work - Copyright AFP/File Oliver Contreras

Nicholas ROLL

The Washington Post said Saturday its CEO and publisher Will Lewis was leaving effective immediately, just days after the storied newspaper owned by billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos made drastic job cuts that angered readers.

Though newspapers across the United States have been facing brutal industry headwinds, Lewis’s management of the outlet was sharply criticized by subscribers and employees alike during his two-year tenure as he tried to reverse financial losses at the daily.

Lewis, who is English, has been replaced by Jeff D’Onofrio, a former CEO of social media platform Tumblr who had joined the Post as chief financial officer last year, the paper announced.

In an email to staff shared on social media by one of the newspaper’s reporters, Lewis said it was “the right time for me to step aside.”

A statement from the Post said only that D’Onofrio was succeeding Lewis “effective immediately.”

Hundreds of Post journalists — including most of its overseas, local and sports staff — were let go in the sweeping cuts announced on Tuesday.

The Post did not disclose the number of jobs being eliminated, but The New York Times reported approximately 300 of its 800 journalists were laid off.

The paper’s entire Middle East roster was let go as was its Kyiv-based Ukraine correspondent as the war with Russia grinds on.

Sports, graphics and local news departments were sharply scaled back and the paper’s daily podcast, Post Reports, was suspended, local media reported.

Hundreds turned out Thursday at a protest in front of the paper’s headquarters in downtown Washington.

– Editorial interference –

Newspapers across the country have cratered under falling revenues and subscriptions as they compete for eyeballs with social media, and as internet revenue pales in comparison to what print advertising once commanded.

However, national papers like The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have managed to weather the storm and come out financially solid — something the Post, even with a billionaire backer, has failed to do.

In Lewis’s note to staff, shared on X by White House bureau chief Matt Viser, Lewis said “difficult decisions have been taken” during his tenure “in order to ensure the sustainable future of The Post so it can for many years ahead publish high-quality nonpartisan news.”

Bezos, one of the world’s richest people, and Lewis have come under scrutiny for intervening directly in the paper’s editorial processes.

Bezos reined in the newspaper’s liberal-leaning editorial page and blocked an endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris days before the 2024 election — breaking the so-called firewall of editorial independence.

He was widely seen as bowing to Trump.

The Wall Street Journal reported last month that 250,000 digital subscribers left the Post after it refrained from endorsing Harris, and the paper lost around $100 million in 2024 as advertising and subscription revenues fell.

Marty Baron, the Post’s executive editor until 2021, said that the job cuts ranked “among the darkest days in the history of one of the world’s greatest news organizations.”

‘Save the Post’: Hundreds protest cuts at famed US newspaper

By AFP
February 5, 2026


Copyright AFP Ina FASSBENDER

Several hundred people rallied outside The Washington Post headquarters Thursday to protest its decision to lay off hundreds of journalists, including most of its overseas staff.

“Democracy dies in darkness. And you, Jeff Bezos, have turned off the lights,” a sign at the demonstration read, referring to the newspaper’s front-page slogan and its billionaire owner, who has become close to President Donald Trump during the Republican’s second term.

The sweeping cuts at the Post announced Wednesday came as major traditional media outlets in the United States face intense pressure from Trump, who routinely denigrates journalists as “fake news” and has launched multiple lawsuits against media organizations.

“In a time where we’ve seen unprecedented attacks on the press, and anti- or negative sentiment toward journalists for just doing their jobs, it’s dangerous to cut staff this way,” said Michael Brice-Saddler, who covered the US capital for the Post and has now been laid off.

“These cuts are not the fault of our staff, yet they are the ones who bear the brunt of the cost. They lose resources, they lose the ability to tell stories that are meaningful to Washington,” Brice-Saddler said.

The Post did not disclose the number of jobs being eliminated but The New York Times reported approximately 300 of its 800 journalists were laid off.

Most of the paper’s journalists overseas were let go, including its entire Middle East roster and its Kyiv-based Ukraine correspondent as the war with Russia grinds on.

Sports, graphics and local news departments were sharply scaled back and the paper’s daily podcast, Post Reports, was suspended, local media reported.

Bezos reined in the newspaper’s liberal-leaning editorial page and blocked an endorsement of Democratic candidate Kamala Harris days before the 2024 election — breaking the so-called firewall of editorial independence. He was widely seen as bowing to Trump.

The Wall Street Journal reported last month that 250,000 digital subscribers left the Post after it refrained from endorsing Harris and the paper lost around $100 million in 2024 as advertising and subscription revenues fell.

Marissa J. Lang, an enterprise reporter who was fired by the Post, said the full effect of the layoffs remains to be seen.

“A lot of people have been asking me about the impact of these cuts, and I have very honestly been telling them, I don’t think we know yet,” Lang said.

“The impact of losing 300 journalists who hold power to account, who investigate corruption, who tell you about what’s happening in war zones overseas, and whether your kids’ schools will be open because it snowed, is immeasurable,” Lang said.

 WHITE SUPREMACY IS GOOD FOR YOU 

New Zealand deputy PM defends claims colonisation good for Maori


By AFP
February 5, 2026


New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour at a ceremony to commemorate Waitangi Day in Waitangi on February 5, 2026 - Copyright AFP Ina FASSBENDER
Ben STRANG

New Zealand’s deputy prime minister brushed off criticism on Friday of his claims that colonisation had been positive for the country’s Indigenous population and labelled hecklers “muppets”.

David Seymour, who leads the right-wing ACT Party, made the comments on Thursday in a speech marking national Waitangi Day celebrations, an annual political gathering that gives Indigenous tribes a chance to air grievances.

Rising to offer a prayer during the dawn service Friday at the Waitangi Upper Treaty Grounds where New Zealand’s founding document was signed in 1840, dozens of people started booing and shouting for him to stop.

Another person blew into a conch shell in an attempt to drown out Seymour’s speech.

“The silent majority up and down this country are getting a little tired of some of these antics,” Seymour said.

The deputy prime minister’s administration has been accused of seeking to wind back the special rights given to the country’s 900,000-strong Maori population.

And he told journalists the hecklers were “a couple of muppets shouting in the dark”.

On Thursday, Seymour, who himself is Maori, told those assembled at Waitangi that colonisation had been a net positive for the Indigenous people of New Zealand.

“I’m always amazed by the myopic drone that colonisation and everything that’s happened in our country was all bad,” he said.

Maori today remain far more likely to die early, live in poverty or be imprisoned than New Zealand Europeans.

Following Seymour’s prayer Friday, left-wing Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins was also loudly jeered by those in attendance.

The previous day indigenous leader Eru Kapa-Kingi told parliamentarians “this government has stabbed us in the front,” and the previous Labour government had “stabbed us in the back”.

“Why do we continue to welcome the spider inside the house?”

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M TOO

The banking fraud scandal rattling Brazil’s elite


By AFP
February 5, 2026


A passer-by walks past the Banco Master building after the Central Bank ordered its liquidation - Copyright AFP Ina FASSBENDER

Facundo Fernández Barrio

When Brazilian businessman Daniel Vorcaro was arrested last year over what may be the country’s biggest ever banking fraud scandal, he boasted to police that he had friends in high places.

The collapse of his Master Bank and a snowballing fraud investigation are becoming an ever-bigger headache for authorities, exposing a web of links between financiers, top judges and politicians across the spectrum in an election year.

The case has gripped local media in a country that is still sensitive to elite corruption scandals after the so-called Lava Jato fraud probe from 2014 to 2021 ensnared dozens of senior politicians and executives.

Vorcaro, 42, a banker with a flashy lifestyle, was the major shareholder in the small private Master Bank which operated in Faria Lima — Sao Paulo’s financial hub.

His bank offered investment products that were more profitable than those of his competitors and in 2024, the Central Bank realized Master did not have the resources to meet its obligations.

In November 2025, police arrested Vorcaro over an alleged fraudulent scheme between Master and BRB, a state-owned bank in Brasilia.

Authorities liquidated Master Bank, leaving more than $7 billion in debt due to some 800,000 investors who have received payouts from Brazil’s deposit guarantee fund.

Several other executives have since been arrested and Vorcaro is on supervised release pending the outcome of the investigation.

In a statement given to police, Vorcaro said he had “friends in all branches of government.”



– High-profile connections –



Not long after Vorcaro’s arrest, the names of several high-profile officials began cropping up in the media.

The businessman’s lawyers requested that the case be transferred directly to the Supreme Court.

One of the justices in the court, Jose Dias Toffoli, ordered that the proceedings be kept secret and that all investigative steps be conducted under his supervision.

Local media revealed that in the same month that Vorcaro was arrested, Dias Toffoli had shared a private jet with the lawyer of another Master executive arrested in the case, to travel to the 2025 Copa Libertadores final in Peru.

It then emerged that Vorcaro’s brother-in-law, who is also under investigation, had purchased part of a resort in 2021 from Dias Toffoli’s brothers, through a management company also under suspicion in the Master case.

Media outlets also reported that powerful Supreme Court justice Alexandre Moraes — who is involved in virtually every high-profile case in Brazil — had met with the director of the Central Bank to discuss the Master case in the months before it collapsed.

It later came to light that Moraes’ wife’s law firm had a multi-million dollar contract with Vorcaro’s bank.

The judge admitted to the meetings but denied that “any matter” concerning the case was discussed.



– ‘Largest financial scandal’ –



In 2024, at a time when the bank’s liquidity problems were already known, Vorcaro held a meeting with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Lula said Vorcaro had complained there were “people trying to bring me down.”

“I told him (Vorcaro): there will be no political position for or against Master bank, but a technical investigation by the Central Bank,” Lula said Thursday in an interview with the UOL news portal.

“Anyone involved in this will have to pay the price for the irresponsibility of causing …perhaps the largest financial scandal in this country’s history,” Lula said.

Master also contracted a multi-million dollar consulting service in 2023 from the law firm of Ricardo Lewandowski, who served as Lula’s justice minister from 2024 until January 2025.

The government said that Lewandowski had terminated his contracts before taking office.

It then said that Vorcaro’s brother-in-law, an evangelical pastor, had been the largest donor to far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro’s failed re-election campaign in 2022.

“If we see the Bolsonaro movement, the center, and part of Lula’s PT (Workers’ Party) trying to downplay the case, it’s because they understand the potential impact,” said political scientist Marco Antonio Carvalho Teixeira of the Getulio Vargas Foundation.

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M

Undercover probe finds Australian pubs short-pouring beer


By AFP
February 5, 2026


Inspectors say many Australian beer drinkers are getting less than they pay for at the bar - Copyright AFP Ina FASSBENDER

Australian undercover inspectors have found pubs fail to pour enough beer and other alcohol into customers’ glasses for nearly a third of the drinks they serve.

The government sent “secret shopper” officials to 436 licensed venues across the country in October to check if they were filling glasses high enough.

Preliminary findings showed 32 percent of the drinks they served failed to deliver the “correct amount”, said the National Measurement Institute’s audit report released this week.

The regulator issued 130 non-compliance notices, and said common issues included inaccurate measuring instruments, unapproved glasses, and “spillage during pouring, meaning customers got less than they paid for”.

Beer consumption in Australia has declined in the past five decades, but for many the drink remains an important part of the culture.

Official figures show drinkers in Australia downed an estimated 82 litres (173 pints) of beer per person in the 2019-20 financial year.

Hoteliers said they were working hard to ensure every pour of beer passed the pub test.

“Unfortunately, issues sometimes arise due to incorrect measuring devices and spillage — especially when things are busy at the bar,” the Australian Hotels Association said in a statement Friday.

“We are working with our membership to ensure we fix any shortcomings to ensure all patrons receive exactly what they have paid for.”

GUNRUNNER U$A

Taiwan’s political standoff stalls $40 bn defence plan

By AFP
February 5, 2026


Taiwan has spent billions upgrading its military in the past decade, but is under intense US pressure to do more to protect itself 

- Copyright AFP/File Anthony WALLACE

Allison Jackson and Joy Chiang

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s ambitious $40 billion defence spending plan is caught in a political deadlock as opposition lawmakers refuse to consider the proposal without government concessions, sparking criticism in Washington.

Taiwan has spent many billions of dollars upgrading its military in the past decade, but is under intense US pressure to do more to protect itself against the growing threat from China, which claims the island is part of its territory and has not ruled out using force to annex it.

Lai, whose Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost its parliamentary majority in elections that swept him to power in 2024, has vowed to increase defence spending to more than three percent of GDP this year.

But bitter divisions between the DPP and opposition parties, which hold the most seats in parliament, have culminated in the government’s proposal being blocked 10 times since early December.

“We must continue to strengthen our national defence,” Lai insisted Thursday, repeating calls for the opposition to review the government’s $40 billion special defence budget and its 2026 general budget, which is also languishing in parliament.

Unveiled in November, the plan for extra defence spending comes as the island seeks to deter a potential Chinese invasion.

Lai said the military wanted a “high level” of joint combat readiness against China by 2027 — which US officials have previously cited as a possible timeline for a Chinese attack on the island.

The funds would be spread over eight years and go towards paying for new arms from the United States — including some of the $11 billion worth of purchases announced in December — and enhancing Taiwan’s ability to wage asymmetrical warfare.

Taiwan has said it wants to develop a so-called “T-Dome” — a multi-layered air defence system — and buy long-range precision strike missiles, counter-drone systems and anti-ballistic missiles.

The opposition parties, Kuomintang (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), insist they support strengthening Taiwan’s defences but are frustrated over ongoing delays in US deliveries, including 66 F-16V fighter jets.

They are demanding, among other things, more details from the government about the planned purchases and also want Lai to appear in parliament to take questions from lawmakers, which he has refused.

“While multi-year defence budgets may support strategic continuity, they must be accompanied by detailed planning, clear allocations, and effective oversight to prevent waste and inefficiency,” said the KMT, which favours closer ties with Beijing.



– ‘Rising Chinese threats’ –



The TPP successfully submitted for review a stripped-down version of the defence bill on January 30 — the day before a weeks-long parliamentary recess began — allocating $12.6 billion for military purchases.

The KMT is drawing up its own plans to carve out up to $28.4 billion from the government’s proposal and allocate that portion for US arms procurement, KMT lawmaker Huang Jen told AFP.

Lai has warned that the continued blocking of the government’s plan and approval of the TPP’s version will “inevitably delay the improvement of defence capabilities and may lead the international community to misunderstand Taiwan’s determination to defend itself.”

China has ramped up military pressure on Taiwan in recent years, deploying warships and fighter jets around the island on an almost daily basis, and has launched six rounds of large-scale drills since 2022, most recently in December.

The political impasse is already causing frustration in Washington, which has given full-throated support to Lai’s defence plan and has been lobbying opposition parties to get on board.

“I’m disappointed to see Taiwan’s opposition parties in parliament slash President Lai’s defense budget so dramatically,” Republican Senator Roger Wicker posted on social media platform X.

“The original proposal funded urgently needed weapons systems. Taiwan’s parliament should reconsider — especially with rising Chinese threats.”



– ‘No one wants to compromise’ –



Some observers fear the budgetary standoff could continue for months, even extending beyond district elections in November, unless the KMT starts to feel domestic pressure.

“For the moment, there’s impunity for the KMT in the strategy that they have been implementing in the past 18 months,” a diplomat in Taipei told AFP on the condition of anonymity.

Taiwan is known for its raucous politics, but longtime watchers say they have never seen it so messy.

“It’s not that William Lai doesn’t want to compromise, it’s that no one really wants to compromise,” Lev Nachman, a political science professor at National Taiwan University, told reporters.

But Deputy Foreign Minister Chen Ming-chi said he was “cautiously optimistic” the opposition would eventually come round.

“We hope that in the new (parliamentary) session there will be more opportunity to cooperate,” Chen told AFP in an interview on Thursday.

Japan taps Meta to help search for abuse of Olympic athletes


By AFP
February 6, 2026


Kao Miura competes in Beijing ahead of the Olympics - Copyright AFP GREG BAKER

Japan’s Olympic committee said on Friday it was working with tech giant Meta to monitor social media around the clock to protect athletes from online abuse at the Milan-Cortina Games.

The Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) has designated six staff members in Milan and a further 16 in Tokyo to scour social media 24 hours a day, using artificial intelligence tools to help detect malicious material.

The JOC said it was partnering with both Facebook parent Meta Platforms and Japanese tech company LINE Yahoo to combat online abuse.

“With the proliferation of social media, defamatory comments and malicious posts targeting athletes have become a serious social issue,” the JOC said in a statement.

“Such behaviour not only places significant mental and physical strain on athletes, but also risks impacting their ability to perform.”

The JOC’s monitoring operation began in mid-January and Japanese media said officials had identified roughly 2,000 potentially inappropriate posts before Friday’s opening ceremony.

Reports said the JOC had requested the removal of 380 social media posts. Kyodo News said “dozens” were deleted.

Japanese figure skater Kao Miura said online abuse was “unacceptable because it hurts and saddens people”.

The 20-year-old said he had received a barrage of abusive messages at last month’s Four Continents Championships in Beijing, which he went on to win.

“The notifications were annoying,” he said.

The head of Japan’s delegation at the Milan-Cortina Games, Hidehito Ito, asked people to “support the athletes”.

“The athletes have worked incredibly hard to get this far, and thoughtless words can take a big toll on their mental state,” he said.

EU tells TikTok to change ‘addictive’ design


By AFP
February 6, 2026


The European Commission launched the probe into TikTok under its content law, the Digital Services Act, in February 2024 - Copyright AFP Adnan Beci

Raziye Akkoc

The EU said Friday that it had told TikTok it needs to change its “addictive design” or risk heavy fines, after the Chinese-owned platform was found in breach of the bloc’s digital content rules.

The European Commission, announcing preliminary conclusions of a probe opened two years ago, said it found TikTok was not taking effective steps to address negative impacts from some of its features, especially for young people and children.

It said TikTok was believed to be “in breach of the Digital Services Act for its addictive design”, including through features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications, and a highly personalised recommender system.

The commission said its probe so far indicated that TikTok did too little to “assess how these addictive features could harm the physical and mental wellbeing of its users, including minors and vulnerable adults”.

To address the concerns — and avoid the risk of hefty fines — EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen told reporters that “TikTok has to take actions, they have to change the design of their service in Europe to protect our minors and their wellbeing.”

The commission gave examples of what the platform could alter, such as:

— the platform’s “infinite scroll” offering users an uninterrupted feed

— implementing effective “screen time breaks”, including during the night

— adapting its recommender system, the algorithms used by platforms to feed users more personalised content.

– ‘Compulsive use’ of TikTok –

The February 2024 investigation was the first opened into TikTok under the DSA, the bloc’s powerful content moderation law that has faced the wrath of the US administration under President Donald Trump.

The DSA is part of a bolstered legal armoury adopted by the EU in recent years to curb Big Tech’s excesses, and officials have said TikTok has been cooperating with the bloc’s digital regulators so far.

The commission findings raised concerns about TikTok design features that “fuel the urge to keep scrolling”.

Brussels accused TikTok of disregarding “important indicators of compulsive use of the app” such as the time spent on the platform by children at night.

It also said TikTok had not implemented effective measures to mitigate risks, taking particular aim at screen time management and parental control tools.

The commission found that TikTok’s time management tools were “easy to dismiss” including for young users, while parental controls required “additional time and skills from parents to introduce” them.

– ‘Extremely cooperative’ –

The findings come as several European countries move to curb access to social media for younger teenagers — with officials weighing whether it is time to follow suit at EU level.

Briefing reporters Friday, Virkkunen said her priority was to make platforms safe for all users, children included.

“Social media should be so safe by design that we shouldn’t have that kind of very high age restriction,” she said.

TikTok may now access the EU’s files and defend itself against the claims.

If the regulator’s views are confirmed, the commission can impose a fine of up to six percent of the company’s total worldwide annual turnover.

The EU began a separate probe into TikTok in December 2024 on alleged foreign interference during the Romanian presidential elections.

EU digital affairs spokesman Thomas Regnier said Wednesday that TikTok had been “extremely cooperative” with regulators during that investigation and had been taking measures to address the commission’s concerns.

Regnier added that while the probe remained open, regulators could monitor how TikTok behaves during other elections.

Opinions of Zuckerberg hang over social media addiction trial jury selection

By AFP
February 7, 2026


Instagram and its parent company Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, have been accused of addicting young users of the social media app, to the detriment of their mental health - Copyright AFP DAVID GRAY

Benjamin LEGENDRE

A jury has been confirmed in a landmark social media addiction trial in the US state of California, a process dominated by references to tech giant Meta’s divisive founder Mark Zuckerberg.

Meta’s lawyers fought for six days in court to remove jurors who they deemed overly hostile to Facebook and Instagram, two of the social media platforms involved in the case.

The plaintiff’s lawyers sought to dismiss people, mostly men, who believed that young internet users’ mental health issues are more attributable to parental failures rather than tech platform designers.

With the jury of 12 members and six alternates approved on Friday, arguments in the case are now scheduled to begin Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court.

The case is being called a bellwether proceeding because its outcome could set the tone for a tidal wave of similar litigation across the United States.

Defendants at the trial are Alphabet and Meta, the tech titans behind YouTube and Instagram. TikTok and Snapchat were also accused, but have since settled for an undisclosed amount.

The trial focuses on allegations that a 20-year-old woman identified by the initials K.G.M. suffered severe mental harm because she became addicted to social media as a child.

She accuses Meta and YouTube of knowingly designing addictive apps, to the detriment of her mental health.



– ‘Start fairly’ –



Jury selection was dominated by recurring references to Zuckerberg, the head of Meta and co-founder of Facebook who reached global fame after the Hollywood film “The Social Network.”

“I feel impartial toward the plaintiff, but based on things Mark Zuckerberg has done objectively — I have strong feelings about — and I think the defendant would start further behind,” said one young woman.

Many potential jurors criticized Facebook’s early days — it was designed as a platform for college students to rate women’s looks — and cited the Cambridge Analytica privacy breach of 2018.

They also said it would be difficult for them to accept the billionaire’s testimony — expected in the next two weeks — without prejudice.

Meta’s lawyer, Phyllis Jones, raised frequent objections to such jurors.

She said it was “very important that both sides start fairly, with no disadvantage, that you look at the evidence fairly and decide.”

Others were dismissed for the opposite reason.

“I like this guy,” said one rare Zuckerberg fan. “I regret not owning Meta shares.”

He was dismissed by the plaintiff’s lawyer, Mark Lanier.

Others to be removed included a man who expressed his anger against psychiatrists, and several people whose loved ones suffered from social media addiction or harassment.



– Seeking distance –



Alphabet’s lawyers were keen to ensure that their platform YouTube was not lumped in with Meta.

“Does everybody understand that YouTube and Meta are very different companies? Does everyone understand that (Zuckerberg) doesn’t run YouTube?” asked Luis Li, a lawyer for Google’s video platform.

One man said he saw the potential for YouTube to seek to trigger “immediate dopamine” rushes among users through its “Shorts” feature.

He said his niece spends too much time on TikTok, which popularized a platform that provides endless scrolling of ultra-short-format videos.

The case will focus not on content, on which front platforms are largely protected by US law, but on the design of algorithms and personalization features.

The plaintiffs allege that the platforms are negligent and purposely designed to be harmful, echoing a strategy successfully used against the tobacco industry.

Meta and YouTube strongly deny the allegations, and also unsuccessfully argued on Friday for the judge to declare statements comparing their platforms to tobacco and other addictive products to be illegitimate.

The debate on the platform’s level of responsibility for their effect on users was already underway, even at this early stage of the trial.

Alphabet’s lawyer Li asked the panel if people spend too much time on phones, with the majority nodding in agreement.

“As a society, is it a problem?” he asked, with most hands again going up.

He then asked if this is “because of YouTube?” prompting hesitation from the jurors.

Telegram founder slams Spain PM over under-16s social media ban


By AFP
February 4, 2026


Telegram founder Pavel Durov warned a proposed social media ban for under-16s 'could turn Spain into a surveillance state' - Copyright AFP/File Yuri KADOBNOV

Telegram founder Pavel Durov on Wednesday joined fellow tech tycoon Elon Musk in slamming Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez over his “dangerous” plan to ban social media for under-16s.

The Socialist leader announced a series of measures in Dubai on Tuesday to protect Spanish minors from harmful social media content such as violence and pornography.

As well as the ban, Sanchez pledged to change Spanish law to make the chief executives of tech platforms “face criminal liability for failing to remove illegal or hateful content”.

Durov spoke of “dangerous new regulations that threaten your internet freedoms” in a Wednesday post on his Telegram messaging app, which has an estimated billion users and is known for its privacy features.

“These measures could turn Spain into a surveillance state under the guise of ‘protection’,” he wrote, saying mass data collection and censorship would result from their enforcement.

Musk reacted to the announcement with a string of posts on his social media platform X on Tuesday, calling Sanchez “dirty”, a “tyrant and traitor to the people of Spain” and “the true fascist totalitarian”.

The SpaceX and Tesla boss had already been embroiled in a public spat with Sanchez over his government’s regularisation of hundreds of thousands of undocumented migrants.

Spain’s move to ban social media for under-16s came after Australia became the first country to introduce such a measure in December.

France, Greece and Denmark have been leading a push for similar steps in the European Union.

Next in Putin’s sights? Estonia town stuck between two worlds


By AFP
February 6, 2026


Two medieval fortresses face each other across the Narva River separating Estonia from Russia on Europe's eastern edge - Copyright AFP STR

Anna Smolchenko

Two medieval fortresses face each other across the Narva River separating Estonia from Russia on Europe’s eastern edge.

Once a symbol of cooperation, the “Friendship Bridge” connecting the two snow-covered banks has been reinforced with rows of razor wire and “dragon’s teeth” anti-tank obstacles on the Estonian side.

“The name is kind of ironic,” Eerik Purgel, the regional border chief, told AFP in the Russian-speaking town of Narva.

Some fear the border town of over 50,000 people — a mixture of Estonians, Russians and people left stateless after the fall of the Soviet Union — could be Vladimir Putin’s next target.

On the Estonian side of the bridge, the NATO flag flutters in the wind beside those of Estonia and the European Union.

People in cars used to queue up to cross the Narva River to go shopping and see relatives in Russia. But today the crossing is closed to traffic and travellers pull their luggage across on foot.

“Maybe there should not be a bridge at all,” said Purgel.

As Moscow’s war against Ukraine approaches its fourth anniversary, the mood in Narva is gloomy.

“Here at the edge of Europe the war feels different,” said mayor Katri Raik. “We see Russia across the border every day.

“We’re all thinking about what comes next,” she added inside a freshly renovated 17th-century town hall, surrounded by drab Soviet-era buildings.



– ‘Most difficult period’ –



Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Estonia — along with the fellow Baltic nations of Latvia and Lithuania — has reinforced its defences.

Estonia’s army is tiny. The defence ministry says a force of just under 44,000 people can be deployed to defend the country if necessary, alongside around 2,000 troops from allied NATO countries in the country.

The Estonian authorities have also sought to enhance national security with other measures. They have stripped Russians and stateless residents of the right to vote in local elections, and are switching to teaching in Estonian in dozens of schools.

Those reforms have hit Russian-speaking Narva hard.

The changes, combined with high unemployment, soaring energy bills, a collapse in ties with Russia and fear of conflict, have heightened tensions in the border town.

“This is the most difficult period in our history in about 40 years,” said Mihhail Stalnuhhin, chairman of the town council, denouncing policies targeting Russian speakers.

“It’s compounded by the constant talk of war, war, war, war, war. People are going through a very difficult moral, economic and social situation.”



– Russian passports –



In Narva, around half of all residents are Estonian, a third hold Russian citizenship, and roughly 7,000 people are stateless.

Strategically located, the town has in past centuries been ruled by the Danes, Germans, Russians, Swedes, and Estonians.

Much of the historic baroque Old Town was destroyed during World War II, and under Soviet rule Narva became predominantly Russian-speaking.

Thirty-five years after Estonia won independence, Narva is still struggling with its sense of identity.

Vladimir Aret, a 32-year-old hotel manager and member of the town council, said many in Narva felt caught between two worlds.

“I am European, but we sometimes joke that we do not understand what our homeland is,” he said.

While many — including Aret — call themselves Estonian patriots, some praise Putin.

Some people in Narva speak only Russian. They watch Russian television and are nostalgic for the Soviet past.



– ‘Russophobic madness’ –



Russia regularly rails against the Estonian government.

Russia’s foreign ministry slammed “Estonia’s growing Russophobic madness” and the authorities’ “neo-Nazi” policies in a report released in December.

The ministry, in its report on the rights of Russians abroad, also said that the large number of stateless people in Estonia was a major problem.

Some back the Moscow view.

“We, Russian speakers, are being discriminated against,” a woman in her mid-50s said in Narva on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

Olga Kolesnikova, a stateless 64-year-old, disagreed.

“I don’t feel disadvantaged,” said the retired baker, adding that three of her four children were Estonian citizens.

Aleksandr Gruljov, a 59-year-old construction worker, said he was even considering giving up Russian citizenship.

“Nobody is oppressing anyone here,” he added.



– ‘Perfect gateway’ –



But German political scientist Carlo Masala said depriving Russian citizens in Estonia of the right to vote in local elections was “a perfect gateway for Russian propaganda”.

As in Donbas in eastern Ukraine, “Russia can argue that the rights of its minorities living abroad are under threat, providing a reason to protect them, if necessary by military means,” he told AFP.

In his best-selling book “If Russia Wins: A Scenario”, he imagines Russian troops capturing Narva in 2028 in order to launch a broader attack on the Baltic States and trigger a possible collapse of NATO.

Under such a scenario, Russians troops would conquer Narva within hours, aided by “parts of the local civil population,” who would be supplied with small arms and machine guns ahead of the assault.

Masala told AFP several other cities with sizable Russian communities including Kirkenes in Norway and Daugavpils in Latvia could also be vulnerable to a possible Russian attack.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has cast the political sympathies of Estonia’s Russian-speaking population into the spotlight.

“Will they support the state in the event of war, possibly against Russia?” asked a 2023 study of the country’s Russian-speaking minority.

According to its findings, 65 percent of Estonia’s Russian speakers said they were “rather or definitely patriots of Estonia,” whereas 28 percent said that they were “rather or definitely not.”



– ‘We are ready’ –



Jelisei Solovjov knows where his loyalties lie.

The 18-year-old fatigue-clad member of the Kaitseliit, a voluntary national defence organisation, already knows how to dig trenches and shoot.

“We are ready to defend our country, we are not afraid,” he said.

Masala, the analyst, said that Narva today resembled a “fortress.”

“This would make military action much more difficult than it would have been a few years ago.”

Estonian border chiefs dismiss the idea that Narva is particularly vulnerable to a Moscow assault.

Egert Belitsev, the head of the country’s border service, said Berlin also had a large Russian population.

With such a pretext, “you can also invade Berlin,” he said.

Back at the Narva border crossing, Purgel was defiant.

“It’s our town, we will protect it with our lives,” he said.

DON'T MINE, DEMINE!

In Finland’s forests, soldiers re-learn how to lay anti-personnel mines


By AFP
February 6, 2026


Finnish soldiers are exploring the most effective way to use mines

 - Copyright AFP STR

Mathieu RABECHAULT

Finland is barely out of the treaty banning them but the country’s armed forces are already training soldiers to lay anti-personnel mines, citing a threat from neighbouring Russia.

Trudging through snow, a young Finnish conscript carefully draws a thin blue wire between two pine trees. The other end is attached to a hidden mine some 20 metres (65 feet) away.

“We are in the process of figuring out what’s the most effective way to use them,” said Lieutenant Joona Ratto, who teaches military service conscripts how to use the devices that Finland had banned in 2012.

Stationed with the Kainuu Brigade, which is responsible for defending 700 of the 1,340-kilometre (833-mile) border Finland shares with Russia, Ratto and his colleagues are gearing up to train the 500 active-duty soldiers, 2,500 conscripts, and 5,000 reservists who pass through the garrison each year.

Dropping decades of military non-alignment, Finland applied to join NATO in the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and became a member in 2023.

Like the nearby Baltic states and Poland, it also decided to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention, which prohibits the use, stockpiling, or production of anti-personnel mines.

No longer bound by the international treaty since January 10, Finland is now free to bury or conceal the small, inexpensive devices, which have been criticised for causing injuries to civilians long after conflicts end.

From a military perspective, antipersonnel mines are a necessary evil, according to Ratto.

“We can use them to either stop the enemy or maybe alarm our own troops in the defensive positions”, giving troops time to prepare for “the firefight”, he told AFP among the wintery landscape of pine and spruce trees.

While the war in Ukraine has cemented the role of drones, the trench war had demonstrated that, although old, “they are still effective and they have an important role on the battlefield”, said Colonel Riku Mikkonen, inspector of engineering for the Finnish Army.

Nearby, other soldiers train on a road.

A warning sign has been put up reading “Miinoja, mines”, depicting a skull in a downward-pointing red triangle — the international symbol for a mined area.

A powerful drill is used to penetrate the frozen ground to bury training anti-tank mines, which were never banned.



– One million mines –



For now, the Finnish army has no caches of antipersonnel mines. It therefore trains with the directional Claymore mine, which projects shrapnel up to 50 metres.

Mikkonen believes the situation will be resolved within two years as Finland’s defence industry needs to resume its domestic production of simple, low-cost mines.

Having them produced in Finland guarantees that they can be supplied “also in wartime”, he explained.

With 162 states still party to the Ottawa Convention — but not the United States or Russia — there also are not enough sellers around internationally to satisfy Finland’s needs, he added.

But what those needs are exactly has not yet been finalised.

“We used to have one million infantry mines before the Ottawa Convention in our stocks, that’s a good amount, but let’s see,” he said.

Currently, Finland’s army does not intend to deploy mines along its eastern border and it will be a decision for the government to make in a crisis.

Mikkonen hoped that the decision will be made months in advance of actual hostilities, ideally six months out.

Detailed minefield plans would then have to be drawn up, on paper and via a smartphone app which is in development.

With the risk of leftover mines posing a hazard after the end of fighting, some modern mines include a self-neutralising mechanism, but Mikkonen said he would “rather not have them”.

“Because the war can last for a long time while the self-destruction happens after three to four months. It makes sense of the humanitarian side, not on the military side.”