• Guatemala to accept U.S. deportees: Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo said Feb. 5, after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, that his country will accept migrants from other countries being deported from the United States.
  • Related Monitor story: Migration is a chain reaction that the White House has sought to block, in part by sending asylum-seekers back to regions they fled. What awaits them there?
  • Also: Guatemala’s plan to welcome deportees as assets because of skills acquired in the U.S. may help alter narratives about migration. The Monitor’s View.
• USAID staff ordered home: President Donald Trump’s administration says it’s pulling almost all U.S. Agency for International Development workers off the job and out of the field worldwide. The order takes effect just before midnight Feb. 7.
• Military aircraft assists deportation: A U.S. military plane carrying 104 deported unauthorized Indian immigrants landed in India Feb. 5, authorities said. Although unauthorized Indian immigrants have been deported by previous administrations, it is the first time Washington has used a military aircraft for the purpose. 
  • Related Monitor story: President Trump has pushed to involve the military with border security. Are there limits to using troops?
• Evacuations from Greek island: Hundreds more people were leaving Greece’s Santorini island Feb. 5 as earthquakes shook the tourist destination for a sixth day. 

While President Donald Trump has ridiculed past U.S. military deployments and nation-building efforts, he has consistently been drawn to Mideast diplomacy. But his proposal to “own” and develop the Gaza Strip and displace its population has many questioning how serious he is. “It’s done to disrupt; it’s done to keep people off balance,” says Aaron David Miller, who has served as a senior adviser on Arab-Israeli issues to administrations of both parties. Mr. Miller also characterizes the move as “destructive.”

In November, the Monitor interviewed parents around the world after President Donald Trump’s win. Some hoped his unconventional style might bring their nations peace, and their children safety. Others feared for their prospects. Not every migrant in Mexico, for example, is giving up on an American dream. Many now adapt. “I feel like my wings have been clipped,” says a Venezuelan mother now eyeing Colombia. But being a mother means walking the path ahead, she adds, wherever that may lead.

Alcohol appears to be losing its place as a rite of passage for younger Americans. The share of people ages 18 to 34 who say they drink fell from 73% in the early 2000s to 59% in 2024, according to Gallup. Meanwhile, baby boomers’ drinking has jumped by double digits. What’s behind the generational switch? We charted some trends, with some important caveats, and looked at marijuana use, too.

Here’s another take on temperance. To much of the world, wine is as iconically French as the Eiffel Tower. But for an increasing number of young French people, wine has lost its appeal, especially when it is alcoholic. That’s having a trickle-up effect. “Making nonalcoholic wine has created a new opportunity for our wine industry,” says a spokesperson for a Loire Valley vintner. “It’s a revolution.”

“Rounding the corner of my neighborhood park the other morning,” our essayist writes today, “I noticed a part of the landscape for the first time, though I’d walked the route for years.” When it feels like the world has gone to pieces, we can find solace in our happy place. And, as today’s essay from The Home Forum reminds us, these blissful escapes are more than dots on a map – they can become a state of mind, accessible anytime, anywhere.

The Los Angeles area has begun to clean up debris from the January wildfires that destroyed more than 12,000 homes. Public utilities are being restored. Homeowners are starting negotiations with insurance companies. Yet amid the recovery, something else has stirred: a spirit of generosity within communities. Some in LA now wonder if the trust and compassion forged during the tragedy can be reflected in the way that neighborhoods and other public spaces are rebuilt.

One example of this postfire spirit is a new charitable foundation, Steadfast LA. It not only plans to speed the restoration and prevent a similar calamity but also work with schools and churches to help such gathering places reinforce the newly formed bonds.

That is a key lesson being offered to Los Angeles by residents in Northern California who survived the Tubbs wildfire in 2017. At the time, the fire in Sonoma County was the most destructive in California history. The city of Santa Rosa, for example, lost 5% of its housing stock. In January, many who led the city’s recovery have rushed to assist LA as well as offer advice.

The people of Santa Rosa “would say that, in some ways, their communities emerged stronger: safer from fire and more closely knit,” the Los Angeles Times reported last month.

After the fire in Santa Rosa, neighborhoods set up “block captains” to organize the recovery. Neighbors met weekly to support each other and share ideas. Rebuilding parks, playgrounds, and other public spaces became essential to fostering the new generosity. People took more interest in how sidewalks, public art, memorials, and streetlights contribute to gathering spots.

“People learned much about themselves during and after the calamity, often discovering previously untapped reserves of courage, patience, generosity and other qualities,” concluded The Press Democrat, a Santa Rosa newspaper, in 2022. No wonder they now want to share those reserves with the people of Los Angeles.