Donald Trump proposed that America “take over” the war-ravaged Gaza Strip after its 2m Palestinians are “permanently” resettled in neighbouring countries. Speaking alongside Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, America’s president suggested the enclave, which he earlier called a “demolition site”, could be developed into “the riviera of the Middle East”. Mr Trump did not directly answer how and under what authority America could occupy the territory.
Alphabet’s shares tumbled after its fourth-quarter earnings fell short of analysts’ expectations. Revenues rose by 12% in the three months to December, down from 13% a year earlier. Google’s parent company announced plans to invest around $75bn to grow its artificial-intelligence operations.
China’s central bank showed its willingness to support the yuan in the face of American tariffs. As markets reopened following the lunar-new-year break it maintained the pre-holiday rate of 7.2 yuan to the dollar. Meanwhile the US Postal Service temporarily stopped accepting parcels from China and Hong Kong, without explaining why. (It may be tied to the ending of “de-minimis” exemptions.)
Police said that 11 people were killed in a shooting at a community college in the Swedish city of Orebro. They said that the lone attacker, who is thought to have died at the scene, was not previously known to them, and that they do not believe he had links to an armed group. There have been occasional knife attacks at schools in recent years.
Spotify reported its first full year of profitability since its launch in 2008. The number of monthly users of the Swedish streaming service rose to 675m in the fourth quarter. In recent years Spotify has made cuts to its workforce, raised subscription prices, and diversified into audiobooks and podcasts, in addition to music.
America began sending detained migrants to Guantánamo Bay, the White House confirmed. One military plane, carrying about a dozen people, left from Texas, according to the Wall Street Journal. Last week Mr Trump ordered the expansion of a migrant detention camp at America’s naval base in Cuba, with the goal of housing 30,000 of the “worst criminal illegal aliens”.
The Aga Khan, a dazzlingly rich philanthropist, horse-racing aficionado and spiritual leader of the world’s 15m Ismaili Muslims, died aged 88. The 49th hereditary imam, considered by his followers to be a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, “passed away peacefully” in Portugal, according to his charity. His fortune was estimated to be worth around $1bn in 2008, according to Forbes magazine.
Figure of the day: 460, the number of words in the average British parliamentary speech, down from almost 1,000 in 1938. Read the full story.
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