The World This Hour - The World This Hour for 2025/01/26 at 08:00 EST

Episode Date: January 26, 2025

The World This Hour for 2025/01/26 at 08:00 EST

What does a mummified Egyptian child, the Parthenon marbles of Greece and an Irish giant all have in common? They are all stuff the British stole. Maybe. Join me, Mark Fennell, as I travel around the globe uncovering the shocking stories of how some, let's call them ill-gotten, artifacts made it to faraway institutions. Spoiler, it was probably the British. Don't miss a brand new season of Stuff the British Style. Watch it free on CBC Gem. From CBC News, the world this hour. I'm Gina Louise Phillips.

US President Donald Trump is calling Gaza a mess that he wants cleaned up. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, he suggested a plan for the Palestinians caught in the 15 months long war. His solution? He says Jordan and Egypt should take them. It's literally a demolition site right now. Almost everything's demolished and people are dying there so I'd rather get involved with some of the Arab nations and build housing at a different location where they can maybe live in peace for a change.

Trump says he has already spoken with Jordan's king on the matter and he will be meeting with Egypt's president today. The CIA believes the COVID-19 pandemic started with a leak from a laboratory in China. That assessment was made public Saturday with the disclaimer the spy agency has low confidence in that conclusion. The report was ordered released by Donald Trump's newly appointed director of the CIA, John Ratcliffe, who says the agency should end its neutral stance on COVID's origins. A change in Alberta's coal mining policy is getting a lot of pushback. Earlier this month, the provincial government lifted a ban on coal exploration in parts of the Rocky Mountains, allowing suspended projects to resume.

Sam Sampson has more. This crowd of about 200 does not want coal mining in the Rocky Mountains eastern slopes. In 2020, Alberta tried to scrap the original coal exploration ban from the 70s. That angered ranchers, First Nations and environmentalists. So the province reinstated the policy. Alberta's government says the move was housekeeping, aligning with the previously announced modernized coal policy. Nigel Banks, professor emeritus of law at the University of Calgary, says the province

made an immediate policy shift without debate in the legislature. He also says this move could lessen the blow of lawsuits against Alberta. When asked recently how those court cases factored into the decision, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said, It's $16 billion with the potential liability. We have to make sure that the taxpayers are protected. At the same time, a metallurgical coal is incredibly valuable. Sam Sampson, CBC News, Edmonton.

After three days, a frozen Canadian freighter has been freed. The Manitouan had delivered a load of wheat near Buffalo, New York when it got trapped Wednesday in meter-thick ice. It's broken through now and is en route to Sarnia, Ontario. The 17 people on board are likely very relieved. It's known as the world's biggest annual migration, the travel rush during Lunar New Year, where just a few days from the Year of the Snake and millions of people have already started traveling to different parts of China. Authorities are estimating 90 million plane

trips over the next month. But the country's economic slowdown has already downgraded many people's travel plans as Yina Li reports. At Shanghai's main railway station throngs of people are clutching suitcases, queuing up to leave the country's economic capital and return to their hometowns. For Chang Huan Huan, home is some 650 kilometers away in Anhui province. I'm so happy and so excited, she tells us. The 36-year-old works for an air conditioning company. Despite the festive mood, she has some concerns about the future. Every year it's becoming harder and harder to earn money, she says. So far the government's

stimulus measures in the past year have done little to remedy the economy's troubles. Alicia Garcia, chief economist for Asia Pacific at Natasix Bank, says a Donald Trump presidency creates even more challenges for Beijing. What really drives the Chinese economy now is just exports. So of course, tariffs from Trump would massively impact the Chinese economy. The US president is threatening China with a 10 percent tariff starting next month, though a steep drop from the 60 percent he promised on the campaign trail. Any new levies could complicate authorities' recovery plans.

Yen-A-Lee for CBC News, Beijing. And that is your World This Hour. For news anytime, go to our website, cbcnews.ca. For CBC News I'm Gina Louise Phillips.