Axios

The U.S. "fully anticipated" that Yemen's Houthi rebels would conduct retaliatory strikes after the U.S. and U.K. conducted airstrikes against the group last week, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Tuesday.

Why it matters: Amid fears of an escalation in the Red Sea and growing U.S. military involvement, Kirby stressed that the U.S. is "not looking for a war."

DAVOS, Switzerland — White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said at the World Economic Forum on Tuesday that the Biden administration's strategy for post-war Gaza is to link normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia to the creation of a pathway for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Why it matters: Sullivan's comments echoed Secretary of State Tony Blinken's private message to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv last week. The Biden administration is hoping to use a potential historic peace deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia as leverage for getting Israel on board with its plan for what happens in Gaza after the war.

Accelerator programs — in the business world and increasingly the activism space — are helping Latinos thrive in their fields

The big picture: A lack of access to funding along with underrepresentation have made it difficult for Latinos to rise in these spaces.

The war in Gaza is testing the historically strong support evangelical Latinos have given to Israel.

The big picture: Divisions over the Hamas-Israel war highlight bubbling tensions among Latino evangelicals in the U.S. as congregations grow in numbers and become more diverse.

Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo's bumpy start to his term points to the difficulties he's likely to face while in office, but there are also glimpses of a path forward for his party and his agenda, a political analyst tells Axios Latino.

State of play: Arévalo and Vice President Karin Herrera of the party Movimiento Semilla were inaugurated in the early hours of Monday after a nine-hour delay caused by the outgoing opposition-held Congress.

U.S. Navy SEALs seized a cache of Iranian-supplied missile parts and other weaponry bound for Yemen's Houthi rebels, U.S. Central Command announced Tuesday.

Driving the news: Search and rescue operations are ongoing for two Navy SEALs who went missing during the mission, CENTCOM said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned those at Davos on Tuesday that Russia's military ambitions extend beyond Moscow's brutal invasion of Ukraine, opening his speech by recounting conflicts around the world in which Russia has been involved.

Why it matters: Amid growing pressure to make concessions to bring the war to a close, Zelensky in part used the speech to assert that a semblance of peace in Ukraine would not last and would not bring an end to Russian aggression around the world.

China's premier Li Qiang assured investors and politicians gathered at Davos on Tuesday that the world's second-largest economy has "huge potential" and remains an "important engine" of global growth, despite the serious economic headwinds the country has seen over the past year.

Why it matters: The remarks come as confidence in China's economy among global investors has fallen to a historic low amid a real estate crisis, heavy local government debt, unemployment, deflation, and weak consumer demand. At the same time, the U.S. and like-minded democracies have sought to delink sensitive supply chains from Chinese manufacturing.

The Biden administration denounced Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for launching missile strikes near the U.S. Consulate in Erbil in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region on Monday night.

The big picture: National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in an emailed statement Monday evening that U.S. officials had seen the report of the IRGC's claims that it took aim at an Israeli "espionage center" and other targets and noted no American personnel or facilities were targeted.

Accessibility is an unstated goal of this year's World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

Driving the news: After a trial period last year, the non-governmental organization is relying on the metaverse in an official capacity to bring in more participants from around the world.

A missile fired by Iran-backed Houthi rebels struck a U.S.-owned ship near the coast of Yemen on Monday, U.S. Central Command said.

The big picture: The move comes after the U.S. and U.K. conducted airstrikes against the Houthis last week in response to the group's attacks on merchant and commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi is urging the world to "not forget" Ukraine as the country prepares to mark two years since Russia's invasion began.

The big picture: Grandi told Axios that until last year, the UN was "trying to say Ukraine should not take all the space." As the war rages on and other conflicts emerge, "now, we have to say the opposite."

Chaos and delays marked the inauguration of new Guatemala President Bernardo Arévalo, who has vowed to root out corruption.

The big picture: Arévalo wasn't sworn in until just after midnight on Monday — nine hours after he was set to assume the presidency. The chaotic inauguration signals what is expected to be a bumpy road ahead for the new president.

Bernardo Arévalo was sworn in as Guatemala's new president early Monday after a nine-hour delay caused by opposing lawmakers.

The big picture: The inauguration's delay — which took place as ex-presidents and dignitaries from across the Americas, including from the U.S., waited for the ceremony — illustrates the challenges to democracy Guatemala faces. The challenges Arévalo has faced since the election also signal what's to come for the new president, who ran on an anti-corruption platform.

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke in support of Israel and against militarism as he became a leader of America's Civil Rights Movement. Today, with the Middle East in turmoil, both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict say his remarks show that he'd favor them.

Why it matters: King's words from the middle of the 20th century often are cited to bolster contemporary political positions without historical context — and debates about the Middle East are no different.

President Biden vowed Sunday his administration would continue efforts to free the hostages Hamas seized 100 days ago in the militant group's attack on Israel.

The big picture: Hamas seized some 240 hostages on Oct. 7 and more than 130 remain in captivity, including six Americans.