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Israel-Hamas War: At least 12 employees of the U.N.’s Palestinian refugee agency had connections to Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel and around 10% of all of its Gaza staff have ties to Islamist militant groups, according to intelligence reports reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. The agency had said it could be forced to suspend its operations if donor states don’t reinstate funding that several countries paused when the allegations first surfaced.

Biden and Haley, the former South Carolina governor, spent the weekend campaigning in the Palmetto State ahead of coming primaries, reports Ken Thomas. Biden is seeking to draw Black voters in the state’s Feb. 3 Democratic primary, where he faces minor competition. The Feb. 24 GOP contest could serve as a tipping point for Haley, who has never lost an election in her home state but is confronting a make-or-break moment against former President Donald Trump.

If the GOP primary contest ends quickly, the Biden-Trump face-off would present an endurance challenge for both candidates. WSJ's Annie Linskey offers perspective on how the 2024 presidential race is shaping up.

Sen. James Lankford (R., Okla.), the GOP’s lead negotiator, said critics of the bill are relying on “internet rumors” to trash the bill before they have seen it, and he characterized the legislation as an intervention to force the Biden administration to stem the flow of people across the southern border, report Paul Kiernan and Michelle Hackman. The Republican-led House is also gearing up to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas this week, laying out its formal charges against him Sunday ahead of a Tuesday committee vote.

▶️Video: Military space capabilities are critical for U.S. troops in the Middle East, and that includes satellites that can detect missile launches with infrared sensors. Space Force’s Gen. Chance Saltzman spoke to the Journal about how the technology works.

President Biden’s 2021 declaration that “America is back” was welcomed by Europeans eager to move past their trade troubles with the Trump administration, report Andrew Duehren and Kim Mackrael. But instead of reversing protectionist policies, Biden has kept trade barriers in place, left European companies out of subsidies designed to bolster U.S. manufacturing and surprised allies with tighter restrictions on Chinese access to American technology. Diplomats and officials across Europe are wondering whether the bloc can rely on the U.S. to continue backing the rules-based trading system—or if they face possible economic conflict. 

• Eager for Economic Wins, Biden to Announce Billions for Advanced Chips (Read)

In other economic news...

• The Outlook: Plummeting Inflation Raises New Risk for Fed (Read)

• 🎧Take On the Week podcast: What This Week’s Fed Rate Decision and Tax Season Means for Investors (Listen)

A U.S. official said the strike by an Iran-backed militia took place overnight at a small outpost near the Syrian border, reports Michael R. Gordon. It was the first time American service members have been killed in hostile action since the start of the Hamas-Israeli conflict in Gaza and marks a major escalation in fighting in the region. Yemen’s Houthi rebels are carrying out audacious attacks to disrupt global commerce and draw the U.S. military into direct conflict, using Israel’s war in Gaza to transform themselves from a marginal player among Iran-aligned forces into one of the Middle East’s most formidable militant groups, report Stephen Kalin and Saleh al-Batati.

• Israel Struggles to Destroy Hamas’s Gaza Tunnel Network (Read)

• Arab Mediators Propose New Hostage-Release Plan to End Israel-Hamas War (Read)

In other world news...

• Argentina’s President Promised a Free-Market Revolution, and Says He’s Delivering (Read) (▶️Video)

• Why More Chinese Workers Are Settling for Less Pay (Read)

Tesla, Volvo, and BMW are among the companies that have already stopped providing AM tuners in some models. Last year Ford said it would join them—until CEO Jim Farley reversed course “after speaking with policy leaders.” Lawmakers say most car companies are noncommittal about the future of AM tuners in vehicles, so they want to require them by law to keep making cars with free AM radio, report Julie Bykowicz and Ted Mann. Supporters argue it is a critical piece of the emergency communication network, while the automakers say Americans have plenty of other ways, including their phones, to receive alerts and information.

In other regulatory news...

• Signs Suggest Alaska Airlines Plane Lacked Bolts When It Left Boeing Factory (Read)

• The Outspoken Safety Chief Probing the Alaska Airlines Blowout (Read)

Investigators had few leads to chase when the New York Times published details in September 2020 from two decades of then-President Trump’s tax-return data, highlighting his debts and low income-tax payments, report Aruna Viswanatha, C. Ryan Barber and Richard Rubin. Their probe went nowhere until early last year—beyond the three-year statute of limitations from when the returns were leaked. Only as they homed in on a suspect in an entirely different but equally explosive Internal Revenue Service breach did investigators learn how the returns came to light, allowing them to sweep that leak into their charge against former IRS contractor Charles Littlejohn.

• Legislative efforts in Missouri and Mississippi are attempting to keep abortion-rights measures off the ballot, building on anti-abortion strategies seen in other states, including last year in Ohio. (AP)
• The conservative media ecosystem is piggybacking on Americans’ fascination with air travel to stir up opposition to corporate diversity programs, an effort that may raise the salience of culture war issues at the start of the 2024 election year. (NBC News)
• Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s backsliding on his promise of free and fair elections is likely to prompt the return of some U.S. sanctions, though the stiffest penalties related to oil are unlikely to be among them. (Bloomberg News)

Should Congress stop carmakers from dropping AM radio tuners in new vehicles?

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