Mass Strikes Sweep France

Welcome to today’s Morning Brief, where we’re looking at France’s mass strikes, new intelligence about the mysterious explosions on the Nord Stream pipelines, and the Americans kidnapped and killed in Mexico.

If you would like to receive Morning Brief in your inbox every weekday, please sign up here.

Macron’s proposed reforms—a major platform in his reelection campaign—would increase the legal retirement age from 62 years to 64 years by 2030 and require people to work for longer to receive their full pension. 

But the plans have been deeply unpopular, with Tuesday’s strikes marking the latest in a spate of demonstrations that have rocked the country in recent months. In January, more than 1 million people also took to the streets to express their anger and opposition to Macron’s proposals. 

Following labor union leaders’ calls to “bring France to a standstill,” the demonstrators and strikers on Tuesday disrupted public transportation and flight departures across the country while many schools closed for the day. Demonstrators blockaded oil refineries, and some protesters and police reportedly clashed.

But Macron also appears intent on moving forward, and the stakes are high for the unions organizing the strikes. Although France’s unions may seem like they have never been stronger, they have actually been undergoing a “steady decline” that has left them fragmented and with shrinking membership numbers, as Michele Barbero reported for Foreign Policy from Paris. 

Tuesday’s demonstrations could therefore be a defining moment. “For the first time in decades, all major workers’ organizations have managed to set their differences aside in a show of unity that is revitalizing the movement,” Barbero wrote. “It’s either the last gasp of French labor—or the beginning of a rebirth.”

Intelligence on the Nord Stream explosions. U.S. officials have examined new intelligence that indicates the September 2022 explosions on the Nord Stream pipelines may have been perpetrated by a pro-Ukraine group—although the intelligence did not say who the individuals were or who else was involved, the New York Times reported. There is no evidence connecting the attacks to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky or top Ukrainian officials, according to U.S. officials. 

U.S. officials have stressed that the intelligence is not conclusive, and much remains unknown about the explosions.

Mexico kidnappings. Days after four Americans were abducted in Mexico, two people were found alive and have since returned to the United States, whereas two others were found dead, Mexican officials said on Tuesday. The group had gone to Mexico for cosmetic surgery, and officials said their kidnappers may have mistaken them for migrant smugglers.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased,” said U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price. “We thank our Mexican and U.S. law enforcement partners for their efforts to find these innocent victims, and the task forward is to ensure that justice is done.”

International Women’s Day. As the world celebrates International Women’s Day, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that “women’s sexual and reproductive rights are being rolled back,” stressing the example of Afghanistan under the control of the Taliban. “Gender equality is growing more distant. On the current track, U.N. Women puts it 300 years away,” he declared on Monday. 

Iran’s mysterious poisonings. Facing protests and growing outrage, Iranian officials said they have arrested individuals over the suspected poisonings that have impacted as many as 1,000 students, mostly schoolgirls. They did not offer more details. 

“Based on the intelligence and research measures of the intelligence agencies, a number of people have been arrested in five provinces, and the relevant agencies are conducting a full investigation,” Iranian Deputy Interior Minister Majid Mirahmadi told state media.

• A Private Company Is Using Social Media to Track Down Russian Soldiers by Jack Hewson

In the Australian state of Queensland, one kind of beer has been recalled for an unusual reason: It has too much alcohol. As a result of secondary fermentation, some cans of the beer may contain excess amounts of alcohol and carbon dioxide, the company, Your Mates Brewing, said in an Instagram post. 

“Mates, unfortunately we’ve had an issue with some of the tinnies from our recently released Watermelon Sour,” it wrote. “We’ve only seen this occur in a handful of unrefrigerated cans so far, but we take the safety of our mates and quality of our beer very seriously, so we’ve jumped onto this with the authorities to execute our first-ever product recall.”