Good Morning Australia!! - Trump's "bigger" tweet may have caused noticeable shrinkage with US influence - Iran claims anti-government demonstrations are over - Germans agape as escapees seem to pour out of a Berlin jail - And more in your CareerSpot Global News Briefs:

Donald Trump's idiotic "mine's bigger!" tweet aimed at North Korea seems ominously muted in official international circles, which are now examining the reality of an extremely needy and insecure bigot with size issues and a stunted intellect in charge of the world's most formidable nuclear arsenal.  London, Paris, Berlin, Canberra, Tokyo, Ottawa - no one had much to say in public.  In fact, one of the only statements came from the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize winning group the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), whose director Beatrice Fihn called out the glaringly Freudian aspect:  "I remember the people who've told to me that gender analysis of nuclear weapons was pointless.  They were wrong, gender and nuclear weapons matters because toxic masculinity literary can kill us all." 

While Trump flailed on Twitter, North Korea re-established contact with the South via a hotline that's been dormant for almost two years.  It's a major diplomatic breakthrough following a year of escalating hostility and a move that could pave the way for future talks.  In the short term, Kim Jong-un wants a North Korean delegation to have some participation in the upcoming Winter Olympics in South Korea. 

Not only is there deafening silence from US allies on Trump's idiotic "mine's bigger" tweet, but they also visibly are keeping an arm's length from Trump's ranting about anti-government protests in Iran - refusing to take part in a joint condemnation of the deaths of protesters.  Ellie Geranmayeh of the European Council on Foreign Relations told the New York Times, "The Europeans see an erratic response by Trump to the situation and believe that his messaging is playing right into the hands of the more radical elements in Iran, and they don’t want to add fuel to the fire."  They're also keen on preserving the international deal keeping Iran from developing nuclear weapons, which for moronic reasons Trump opposes.

Iran staged massive pro-government demonstrations on Wednesday to counter the anti-government protests that rocked the country earlier.  The head of Iran's Revolutionary Guard claims that with this, the anti-government rallies are over:  "Today, we can say it is the end of 'Sedition 1396'," said Mohammad Ali Jafari, using the year in the Iranian calendar.  "With the help of God, their defeat is definite," he added, without providing evidence of his claim.  The protests began a week ago over rising food and petrol prices, but seemed to quickly change into anti-government actions specifically aimed at supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who blamed outside influences for churning up dissent.

There is outrage in Turkey after the country's directorate of religious affairs implied girls as young as nine-years old could marry under Islamic law.  Opposition parties and Women's groups are demanding a parliamentary inquiry of the Diyanet after the stunningly awful comments and into the practice of child marriage - which is widely practiced, under-the-radar.  The directorate later tried to walk back its interpretation, noting that Turkish law states the legal marriage age is 18.

At least one person is dead and twenty are injured as Europe is battered by Winter Storm Eleanor - so named by the recent agreement by the UK and Ireland to give designations to such storms.  Hundreds of thousands of households and businesses were without power as it moved from the British Isles through Northern France, Germany, and the Alps.  Powerful wind forced the closure of the Eiffel Tower, knocked over trains and trucks in Switzerland, and tore up roofs all over.  Link here to pics.

Nine prisoners escaped from the same German prison in five days, prompting calls for the resignation of Senator of Justice Dirk Behrendt - who is thus far refusing.  The most embarrassing incident involved violent offenders who were caught on video tunneling through a concrete wall to the outside.  Two of the four were recaptured.  Other escapees walked away from furloughs or climbed out of windows.  In opposition, Mr. Behrendt won acclaim for calling for a more humane prison system but critics now say he's gone too far.  Online jokers liken the prison to an exclusive Berlin nightclub where it is easier to get out than to get in.

A middle-aged guy is in trouble after losing his temper on a RyanAir jet, opening up the emergency exit, and going out to sit on the wing in protest of a flight delay.  The plane was supposed to go from Malaga, Spain to England - he stayed in spain.  In Jail.