💡 SPOTLIGHT
“Text me when you get home” — those thoughtful words that embody rape culture
Women are used to getting advice about how they're dressed, their unattended glass — and their route to get back home on Saturday night. This is what rape culture looks like. "Text me when you get home" is part of the silent sisterhood pact that we cherish, but also wish we didn't need, writes Claudia Torrisi in Italian weekly magazine Internazionale.
If only I were able, I could paint a portrait of him. Blond, clear eyes, and an Invicta backpack on his shoulders. Mid-30s. Not particularly tall or thin. I wonder if the image in my head really matches what he looks like.
I had met his gaze, along with that of dozens of other people, inside a crowded subway car. It was just after 10 p.m., I had finished a journalism workshop, and was heading to the home of a friend who was hosting me in a city where I don't live, in a neighborhood I had never visited. And where, more than a decade later, I have never returned.
I got out of the metro and took an underpass. The direction was obligatory, I believe, or in any case I hadn't bothered to find another way. It was dimly lit, with car headlights to my left, tall grass and weeds to my right. With one hand I held the phone to my ear, with the other I swung a closed umbrella, holding it by the lanyard.
I could hear footsteps behind me, and every now and then I had the perception that they were getting closer. Normal, I thought. Too close, it's what I didn't want to think. A voice in some remote area of my brain was telling me that as long as I talked on the phone I would be safe. And so, even that one time, I would get away with it.
Instead we hung up, and within seconds those too-close steps became a hand grabbing me by the waistband of my pants. The blond guy with the backpack was pushing me toward the dark side of the street. I screamed, a lot, and hit him with my umbrella. Then I ran, I couldn't tell how far or with what legs.
For quite a few years after, I avoided underpasses and preferred to take miles of alternative roads instead of walking through them. That made me furious.
I often think back to how I lived that experience. For a while, I told practically no one about it. I told myself that it was better not to create unnecessary worry, all in all it had gone well.
Part of me also thought that I somehow shared the blame. After all, I had not sought a different path than the dimly lit one. The course had ended in the late afternoon, but I had lingered around until evening. Had I perhaps returned his glance on the subway? [...]
— Read the full article by Claudia Torrisi for Internazionale, translated into English by Worldcrunch.
🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
• Palestinian Prime Minister resigns, U.S. man sets himself on fire protesting Gaza war: Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said on Monday during a press conference that he submitted his resignation to President Mahmoud Abbas due to the escalating violence in the occupied territory and the war on Gaza. Meanwhile, a member of the U.S. Air Force is in critical condition after setting himself on fire in front of the Israeli embassy in Washington. He said he would “no longer be complicit in genocide” and was heard shouting “Free Palestine” as he burned.
• Hungary set to ratify Sweden's NATO accession, clearing last hurdle: Hungary's parliament is set to vote on Sweden's bid to join NATO on Monday. The Hungarian parliament's vote, which is expected to pass smoothly after a visit by Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson last Friday during which the two countries signed an arms deal, will end months of delays to complete Sweden's entry into the military alliance.
• Aide says Navalny was about to be freed before he died: Alexei Navalny was about to be freed in a prisoner swap when he died, according to his ally Maria Pevchikh. She said the Russian opposition leader was going to be exchanged for Vadim Krasikov, a Russian hitman who is serving a life sentence for murder in Germany. Pevchikh added that two U.S. citizens currently held in Russia were also going to be part of the deal.
• Macron hosts EU leaders at Paris conference to bolster support for Ukraine: French President Emmanuel Macron is hosting European leaders Monday for a conference aimed at strengthening Western support for Ukraine, two years since the Russian invasion began. For more, read this analysis by France Inter’s Pierre Haski: Two Years On, Europeans Have Lost Faith In A Ukrainian Victory.
• Tuvalu names Feleti Teo as new prime minister: Lawmakers in Tuvalu have named former Attorney General Feleti Teo as the Pacific Island nation’s new prime minister. In a statement on Monday, Tuvalu’s government said Teo was the only candidate nominated by his 15 lawmaker colleagues and was declared elected without a vote. He is also known to be pro-Taiwan.
• Mauritius blocks Norwegian cruise ship over cholera fears: Mauritius has denied a Norwegian cruise ship permission to dock at the capital Port Louis over fears of a potential cholera outbreak on board. At least 15 people on the Norwegian Dawn have been in isolation over suspected illness. Mauritian authorities said the decision to block the ship was “taken in order to avoid any health risks.”
• SLIM to Earth: Japan's space agency said on Monday its SLIM Moon lander has unexpectedly survived a freezing lunar night and re-established communication with the Earth. The craft was put into sleep mode after an awkward landing in January left its solar panels facing the wrong way and unable to generate power. The Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) touched down on the lunar surface last month, making Japan the fifth country to put a probe on the Moon.
🗞️ FRONT PAGE
Brasília-based daily Correio Braziliense dedicates its front page to a rally of tens of thousands of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro in São Polo on Sunday. Bolsonaro claims he has been politically persecuted since leaving office and dismissed accusations that he incited a failed coup after the 2022 election loss. Though currently barred from running for office for eight years, he spoke about the 2026 presidential elections.
📰 STORY OF THE DAY
Kadyrov's gift to Putin: inside the unforgiving world of Chechen mobilization
In Russian independent media Vazhnyye Istorii, Alisa Kuznetsova and Lydia Mikhailchenko report on forced mobilization taking place in the Chechen Republic, where the regime of Ramzam Kadyrov, in an effort to gain Vladimir Putin's favor, is using pressure and blackmail to force its men to join the Russian war effort.
🇷🇺 From Day One, back in September 2022, Ramzan Kadyrov, the strongman leader of the North Caucasus republic of Chechnya, has been all-in responding to Russian President Vladimir Putin's call for the mobilization of 300,000 troops. By the end of that first month, even before the full-fledged invasion of Ukraine, Kadyrov said the republic had surpassed its volunteer target by 254%. That trend has continued. In December 2023, Kadyrov reported a 1,500% increase in volunteers. Yet all along, many have questioned the legitimacy of these numbers.
👤 Each month, NIYSO representatives receive reports of 10 to 15 cases of Chechens being forcibly sent to war. Yet many more cases remain undisclosed. According to a public figure who wished to remain anonymous, most Chechens do not seek publicity out of concern for their families: "Even if one person has already been taken, there are six more at home." Abubakar Yangulbaev, former lawyer for the Committee Against Torture, believes there are "numerous individuals, not thousands but hundreds," who have been forcibly sent to war. He views mobilization in Chechnya primarily as a tool of repression.
🚨 One member of Adam's family (name changed for security reasons), who had not responded to the summons, was taken to the police station allegedly over his religious beliefs. There, the police accessed his phone and found a video of him with a girl inside an apartment. "They told him that such behavior was not culturally accepted, and that he could either go to war or to prison. He refused and they fabricated a case, claiming they found 140 grams of hashish," Adam said.
➡️ Read more on Worldcrunch.com
📹 THIS HAPPENED VIDEO — TODAY IN HISTORY, IN ONE ICONIC PHOTO
#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS
43.4 miles
A 53-wagon freight train in India traveled over 43.4 miles (70km) without a driver, prompting an investigation by Indian Railways. The incident occurred when the train, carrying stone chips from Jammu to Punjab, stopped in Kathua for a crew change. After the driver and assistant disembarked, the train started moving downhill, reaching nearly 62 miles (100km) and passing five stations before being halted. No injuries were reported, and officials used wood blocks on the tracks to slow the train down. Authorities are investigating the incident to determine the cause and prevent similar incidents in the future.
📣 VERBATIM
“Each of these losses is a great sacrifice.”
— Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking at the “Ukraine. Year 2024” conference in Kyiv stated that 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed since Russia's invasion in February 2022. He saluted this sacrifice and emphasized the need for unity with Western allies. Zelensky also disclosed that Russia is gearing up for a new offensive against Ukraine, likely starting in late May or in the summer. He expressed confidence in the U.S. Congress approving significant military aid within a month. The recent capture of Avdiivka by Russia has heightened tensions and despite ongoing conflicts, he revealed a clear plan for a counteroffensive against Russian forces while keeping the details confidential. Zelensky expects a summit in Switzerland this spring to discuss Ukraine's peace vision, with plans to present the blueprint to Russia.
📸 PHOTO DU JOUR
(see above) South Korea's government told young doctors on Monday that they had until Thursday to return to work or risk being punished for staging a week-long protest that has disrupted services for patients at several major hospitals. Two-thirds of the nation's residents and intern doctors had walked off the job, like here in Seoul, to protest a government plan to increase the number of students admitted to medical school in a bid to address what authorities say is a shortage of doctors that is set to worsen in one of the world's fastest aging societies. — Photo: Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA/ZUMA
👉 MORE FROM WORLDCRUNCH
• Free Press Or Hamas Agent? Inside Israel's Campaign Targeting Al Jazeera Journalists In Gaza — DARAJ
• When Hackers Are Hacked, A Chinese Spy Story — FRANCE INTER
• This Bolivian Solar Plant Is A Clean Energy Boom — And A Bust For Locals Who Lost Their Land — CLIMATE TRACKER
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