Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at deadly mass flooding in Spain, North Korea’s enduring war support for Russia, and a historic election victory for Botswana’s opposition.
Ominous Forecast
Heavy rainfall battered southern Spain on Friday, and meteorologists forecast more severe weather to come. With the death toll now exceeding 200 people and dozens more still missing, this week’s flooding marks the deadliest natural disaster in Spain’s history.
Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at deadly mass flooding in Spain, North Korea’s enduring war support for Russia, and a historic election victory for Botswana’s opposition.
Sign up to receive World Brief in your inbox every weekday.
Sign up to receive World Brief in your inbox every weekday.
Ominous Forecast
Heavy rainfall battered southern Spain on Friday, and meteorologists forecast more severe weather to come. With the death toll now exceeding 200 people and dozens more still missing, this week’s flooding marks the deadliest natural disaster in Spain’s history.
Some areas have recorded several months’ worth of rain in a single day. According to Spain’s meteorological agency, a year’s worth of rain fell on the southern region of Valencia in less than eight hours on Tuesday. Most of those killed have been in Valencia, though the regions of Andalusia and Huelva as well as the Balearic Islands have also been hit hard.
Madrid deployed an additional 500 soldiers on Friday to assist the 1,200 national police, civil guard, and other security officers already overseeing rescue operations. Authorities urged locals to stay home and avoid celebrating All Saints’ Day, which took place on Friday, and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited the national meteorological agency’s office in Madrid to show solidarity with the agency’s work.
However, many residents have begun to blame the government for what they say is its insufficient and delayed response to the disaster. Spain’s AEMET weather center in Valencia first warned of heavy rainfall at 7:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday. By 10:30 a.m., firefighters were rescuing trapped residents, and by 5 p.m., Valencia’s emergency services were swamped with calls for help. Yet a public alert warning people to stay indoors did not come until 8 p.m.—more than 12 hours after scientists first warned of dangerous weather.
To make matters worse, regional Valencian President Carlos Mazón appeared to downplay the crisis around noon on Tuesday by having his office post on X that the storm was subsiding—a direct contradiction to experts’ warnings. His post has since been deleted.
“There are people living with corpses at home. It’s very sad. We are organizing ourselves, but we are running out of everything,” Alfafar Mayor Juan Ramón Adsuara said regarding the lack of government aid. Some opposition leaders have condemned Sánchez’s decision to centralize the response efforts rather than have each region lead their own services.
The flooding has been particularly damaging for Spain’s roughly 3,000 seasonal workers, many of whom live in makeshift homes in Valencia. With debris blocking streets and hundreds of homes destroyed, rights groups are urging Madrid to provide better on-the-ground support, including more shelters.
Today’s Most Read
What We’re Following
Allies in war. North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui promised Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Friday that Pyongyang will back Moscow until it achieves victory in its war against Ukraine. She described the two countries’ partnership as “rising to a new level of relations of invincible military comradeship” and said North Korea has no doubts that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s leadership will help defeat Kyiv.
Around 8,000 North Korean troops are deployed in Russia’s Kursk region, according to Robert Wood, the deputy U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Ukraine and its allies have called the deployment a clear violation of international law, but North Korea has defended its decision to send forces to Russia. The Kremlin has not yet confirmed or denied their presence there.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that North Korean soldiers are preparing to enter Ukraine “in the coming days” and will become legitimate military targets once they do so.
New party in power. Botswanan President Mokgweetsi Masisi conceded defeat on Friday after his Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) lost Wednesday’s general election by a landslide for the first time in nearly 60 years. The opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change coalition, led by presidential candidate Duma Boko, won 32 seats in parliament, according to preliminary results—one more than is needed for a majority. The BDP only secured four seats, coming in dead last out of four parties.
“Although I wanted to stay on as your president, I respect the will of the people, and I congratulate the president-elect. I will step aside, and I will support the new administration,” Masisi said. The BDP has ruled Botswana ever since it gained independence in 1966.
Experts cite the country’s financial woes as the reason why public support for the BDP has soured. Botswana is the world’s No. 1 producer by value of diamonds, and the industry makes up more than 80 percent of its exports. But a decrease in global demand for the jewels has plummeted the nation’s economic growth to just 1 percent this year and skyrocketed unemployment to 28 percent, with young people most affected.
Election stakes. Pro-Western Moldovan President Maia Sandu faces off against pro-Russia opposition candidate Alexandr Stoianoglo in a presidential runoff on Sunday. Whoever wins will likely determine how the Eastern European nation sways at a time when both Moscow and the European Union are vying for greater influence.
During the first round of voting on Oct. 20, officials accused Russian-backed oligarch Ilan Shor of paying off roughly 300,000 voters (or more than 10 percent of Moldova’s population) to oppose Sandu. The Kremlin and Shor deny any wrongdoing. Despite the alleged meddling, on Thursday, Moldova’s top court recognized the results of the referendum held during the first round, which narrowly affirmed that Moldova should enshrine EU membership into its constitution. This is a “historic step” for the country, Sandu posted on X, and the result is optimistic news for her campaign ahead of Sunday’s vote.
What in the World?
Which Argentine minister did President Javier Milei fire on Wednesday?
A. Foreign Minister Diana MondinoB. Defense Minister Luis PetriC. Health Minister Mario LugonesD. Security Minister Patricia Bullrich
Odds and Ends
April Fools’ Day came a bit early to Ireland. Hundreds of people gathered in Dublin’s city center late Thursday for a Halloween parade, only for no floats or performances to show. Officials believe that a website generating fake ad revenue created the hoax. That is, unless, all of the parade participants were ghosts. Spoooooky!
And the Answer Is…
A. Foreign Minister Diana Mondino
The move came after Argentina voted at the United Nations to condemn the U.S. embargo on Cuba, a move taken by every country except the United States and Israel. Cuba is currently facing a humanitarian crisis aggravated by hurricanes and frequent electrical grid blackouts, William M. LeoGrande writes.
To take the rest of FP’s weekly international news quiz, click here, or sign up to be alerted when a new one is published.
The post Spain Suffers Worst Natural Disaster in Its History appeared first on Foreign Policy.
