Storm, Imprisonment, and Tech Dominate Headlines

Thousands of people were forced to evacuate their homes in Spain and Portugal due to Storm Marta, which battered the Iberian Peninsula with heavy winds and rain, according to Sky News. The storm, described as a "storm train" of consecutive weather events, has already caused at least one death in Portugal and a second body was found in Malaga, Spain, as reported by Sky News.

The severe weather has led to widespread flooding, particularly in the southern Alentejo region of Portugal, where a man in his 70s died after his car was swept away by floodwaters, according to local authorities cited by Sky News. In Malaga, a second body was discovered near where a woman was previously swept away by a river. The storm has prompted the evacuation of approximately 11,000 people.

In other news, Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi was sentenced to over seven additional years in prison, according to Euronews. This sentence was handed down by a Revolutionary Court in Mashhad, Iran, after Mohammadi began a hunger strike on February 2nd. Her lawyer, Mostafa Nili, confirmed the sentence on X, as reported by Euronews.

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, a march supporting California's billionaires drew a small crowd of around three dozen attendees, according to TechCrunch. The demonstration, organized by Derik Kauffman, was held to protest the Billionaire Tax Act, a proposed state ballot measure. Journalists nearly outnumbered demonstrators at the event, which saw marchers carrying signs with messages like "We ❤️ You Jeffrey Bezos."

Finally, Apple is preparing to launch the iPhone 17e, almost exactly one year after the iPhone 16e, according to The Verge. The new phone will feature an upgraded A19 chip and MagSafe, with updated iPad and iPad Air models expected to launch around the same time.