wikinews

2025 January 13

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Somali Civil War
  • War against the Islamic State
    • Islamic State insurgency in Puntland
      • Twenty-six Islamic State militants are allegedly killed, including a female combatant and two soldiers, and several others are injured when Puntland forces capture eight Islamic State bases during ongoing offensive military operations in Bari, Puntland, Somalia. (Idil News) (AFP)
• Gaza war
  • Gaza war hostage crisis, Calls for a ceasefire during the Gaza war
    • According to two Israeli officials, Hamas is expected to release 33 hostages during the first phase of an emerging ceasefire agreement being finalized by negotiators in Doha, Qatar. (CNN)
• Israeli invasion of Lebanon
  • 2024 Israel–Lebanon ceasefire agreement
    • The Israel Defense Forces strike several Hezbollah sites in Lebanon, alleging that the targets violated the terms of the ceasefire agreement. (The Times of Israel)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Russia accuses Ukraine of targeting the Russkaya compressor station in the Krasnodar Krai, which feeds gas for the TurkStream pipeline, in a failed drone attack two days ago. (S&P Global)
• Sudanese Civil War
  • Battle of Khartoum
    • The shelling of an area of Omdurman, Khartoum State, Sudan, results in the death of at least 120 civilians, according to volunteer rescuers. (Al Arabiya News)

Business and economy

• A general strike by Belgian unions to protest against government plans for pension reform occurs, with the work stoppages severely disrupting public transport in Brussels as well as rail and air travel throughout the country. (Politico)

Disasters and accidents

• 2025 California wildfires
  • January 2025 Southern California wildfires
    • AccuWeather releases a preliminary estimate of the total physical and economic losses caused by the ongoing wildfires in Southern California of between $250–275 billion, a figure attributed to exceptionally high property values in and near Santa Monica, which would surpass their estimates of the costs of the entire 2020 United States wildfire season as well as Hurricane Helene in 2024. (NBC News)
• Twelve people are killed and many others are missing in a landslide in Hpakant, Kachin State, Myanmar. (AP)

Law and crime

• Venezuelan attorney general Tarek Saab asks for an arrest warrant and a red notice from Interpol against opposition figure Leopoldo López, who is currently in exile. Venezuela accuses López of instigating the use of arms against the state and treason, among other charges. (Reuters)
• A judge in Peru dismisses charges of money laundering against Popular Force leader and former presidential candidate Keiko Fujimori. (Reuters)

Politics and elections

• Impeachment of Sara Duterte
  • Members of the Iglesia ni Cristo hold a nationwide National Rally for Peace in the Philippines to express their disapproval of impeachment efforts against Vice President Sara Duterte. (Rappler)
• International Court of Justice President Nawaf Salam becomes the prime minister-designate of Lebanon after winning an absolute majority of votes from parliament, while stepping down from the ICJ. (TVN24)(CNN)

2025 January 12

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Gaza war
  • Gaza war hostage crisis
    • An Israeli security delegation arrives in Qatar for talks regarding a ceasefire deal and the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. (Reuters)
  • Israel–United States relations, Calls for a ceasefire during the Gaza war
    • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Joe Biden discuss efforts to reach a deal to solve the hostage crisis as well as a ceasefire to end the war. (USA Today)
  • Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip
    • At least eight Palestinians are killed in Israeli airstrikes on areas of the Gaza Strip. (Xinhua)
• Kivu conflict
  • M23 offensive
    • The Army of the Democratic Republic of the Congo says that over the days it has recaptured several towns that fell to M23 rebels and other armed groups in North Kivu and South Kivu provinces.(AP)
• Nigerian bandit conflict
  • At least 40 people are killed during an attack by Boko Haram gunmen in Dumba, Borno State, Nigeria. (AP)
  • At least 16 civilians are killed in an airstrike conducted by the Nigerian Air Force in Zamfara State, apparently after being mistaken for criminal gangs. (BBC News)

Disasters and accidents

• 2025 California wildfires
  • January 2025 Southern California wildfires
    • California Governor Gavin Newsom states that the ongoing wildfires impacting Los Angeles County could become the worst natural disaster in American history “in terms of the scale and scope”, amid current estimated damages of more than US$135 billion. (The Independent) (NBC News)
    • The death toll from the wildfires increases to 24. (BBC News)
    • Officials say that the Kenneth Fire has been contained. (KCAL-TV)
• Ten people are killed and several others are injured after large floods engulf the city of Ipatinga in Minas Gerais, Brazil. (BBC)
• Three people are killed and two others are injured in an avalanche in Trasquera, Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Italy. (Rai News)
• At least 17 miners are trapped in a gold mine in La Libertad Department, Peru, after a group of illegal miners attacked the mine. (Xinhua)

Health and environment

• HMPV seasonal outbreak in China
  • The Bangladeshi IEDCR reports the country’s first case of HMPV in Bhairab, Dhaka Division, Bangladesh. (New Age)

International relations

• Germany–Syria relations
  • German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock pledges €50 million in food, emergency shelters, and medical care to Syria following talks with the Syrian transitional government in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (DW)
• Foreign ministers and senior officers of Arab countries, the European Union, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States hold a series of diplomatic meetings focused on Syria in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Saudi Gazette)

Politics and elections

• 2024–25 Croatian presidential election
  • Croatians vote in the second round to elect the president between incumbent Zoran Milanović and former science and education minister Dragan Primorac. (The Dubrovnik Times) (Sarajevo Times)
• 2025 Comorian parliamentary election
  • Voters in Comoros elect the 33 members of the Assembly of the Union. (Reuters)
• Ilza Amado Vaz unexpectedly resigns as Prime Minister of São Tomé and Príncipe three days after being appointed Prime Minister by President Carlos Vila Nova. The ruling Independent Democratic Action party then proposes Adelino Pereira to replace Vaz, but Vila Nova appoints Américo d’Oliveira dos Ramos. (Xinhua 1), (Xinhua 2)

2025 January 11

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Gaza war
  • Israel–United States relations, Calls for a ceasefire during the Gaza war
    • Incoming U.S. Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an effort to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20. (Sky News)
    • Netanyahu sends Mossad director David Barnea to ceasefire talks in Doha, Qatar. (ABC News)
  • Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip
    • An Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced civilians in Jabalia, northern Gaza, kills at least eight Palestinians and leaves 30 others injured. (Middle East Monitor)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Eastern Ukraine campaign
    • The Russian Army says that it has gained control of the settlement of Shevchenko in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. (Anadolu Agency)
  • Kursk offensive, North Korean involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announces that Ukraine has captured two North Korean soldiers in healthy condition in Kursk Oblast, Russia, for the first time since North Korea entered the war, as the two previous North Korean prisoners of war died of their injuries shortly following their capture. (Reuters)
• Somali Civil War, War against the Islamic State
  • Islamic State insurgency in Puntland
    • The Puntland Security Force discover a cave used to store food by ISIL in the Cal Miskaad mountains, while killing and capturing insurgent fighters and destroying improvised explosive devices and hideouts. The security force also took down three drones armed with explosives as they continue their offensive into Bari region, Puntland. (Garowe Online) (The Somali Digest) (VOA)
• Sudanese civil war
  • Battle of Wad Madani
    • The Sudanese Armed Forces say that they liberated Wad Madani, the capital of Gezira State, Sudan, from the Rapid Support Forces. (Al Arabiya)
• Myanmar civil war
  • At least fifteen civilians are killed and 10 others are wounded in a Tatmadaw airstrike on a market, targeting Kachin Independence Army fighters, in Tanai Township, Kachin State, Myanmar. (The Defense Post) (Daily Post)
• Nigerian bandit conflict
  • Twenty-one government-backed fighters are killed during an ambush against a convoy in Baure, Katsina State, Nigeria. (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

• 2025 California wildfires
  • January 2025 Southern California wildfires
    • At least 939 CDCR inmates are deployed to fight the ongoing wildfires in Los Angeles County, California, United States. (BBC News)
    • The number of deaths in the California wildfires rises to 16. (NBC)
• 2024–25 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • France places the Indian Ocean island of Mayotte on red alert due to approaching Tropical Cyclone Dikeledi, roughly one month after the French overseas department was devastated by Cyclone Chido. (Reuters)
• Al-Bayda gas station explosion
  • At least fifteen people are killed and 67 others are injured, including 40 critically, in an explosion at a gas station in Al Bayda Governorate, Yemen. (CTV News)
• Most restaurant explosion
  • Six people are killed and eleven injured when a propane-butane cylinder explodes in a restaurant in Most, Czech Republic. (Reuters) (DW)
• Two people are killed and eleven others are injured when a bus flips on its side on a highway near Prenzlau, Brandenburg, Germany. (CTV News)
• At least 50 people are injured when two trams collide in a tunnel in Strasbourg, France. (DW)

International relations

• Ethiopia–Somalia relations
  • Ethiopian prime minister Abiy Ahmed and Somali president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud meet in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, as part of a Turkey-brokered rapprochement to restore bilateral relations after a yearlong dispute due to the 2024 Ethiopia–Somaliland memorandum of understanding. (Bloomberg News)
• Lebanon–Syria relations
  • Lebanese prime minister Najib Mikati and Syrian de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa hold a meeting in Damascus, Syria, the first time that the two countries have met since the Syrian civil war began in 2011. (24 Digital) (MTV)

Law and crime

• A person throws a Molotov cocktail at the consulate of Venezuela in Lisbon, Portugal. No injuries are reported. (Euronews)

Politics and elections

• 2024 South Korean martial law crisis
  • Thousands of people demonstrate in Seoul, South Korea, to protest against President Yoon Suk Yeol as he defies an arrest warrant from his attempt to institute martial law in December 2024. (Al Jazeera) (TRT World)
• At least 12,000 people gather in Riesa, Saxony, Germany, to protest an Alternative for Germany convention as well as the party’s far-right views. (Al Jazeera)

2025 January 10

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Somali Civil War, War against the Islamic State
  • Islamic State insurgency in Puntland
    • Puntland forces fight against ISIS in the IL-Ameira mountains, stopping seven drones loaded with bombs and removing ten landmines. The forces also destroy five ISIS bases. They capture military bases, including a water well in Jeceel Valley near Cal Miskaad mountains of Balidhidhin District, Bari, Puntland. (Horseed Media) (Hiiraan Online)
• Red Sea crisis
  • The Israeli Air Force launches airstrikes on a power station and two ports in Houthi-controlled Yemen in retaliation for Houthi drone and missile attacks on Israel, with pro-Houthi media reporting that at least three people were injured. (Al Arabiya)

Disasters and accidents

• 2025 California wildfires
  • January 2025 Southern California wildfires
    • Amid ongoing wildfires, authorities in Los Angeles County, California, United States, impose a curfew and announce the deployment of the California National Guard in order to protect homes in evacuated areas from looting. (KNBC-TV)
    • The United States Department of Health and Human Services issues a public health emergency for California in response to injuries and mental health impacts caused by the ongoing wildfires. (CNN)
• Three of the twelve miners that were reported missing yesterday in an explosion at a coal mine in Singidi, Balochistan, Pakistan, are found dead by rescue workers. (CTV News)
• Three women are killed and five children are injured in a stampede at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria. (Reuters)
• Three people on the ground are killed and three others are injured when a Cessna 172 aircraft crashes into a road near Malindi, Kenya. (AP)

Health and environment

• 2024 in climate change
  • The Copernicus Climate Change Service confirms that 2024 was the warmest calendar year since records began in 1850, with the average global temperature reaching 1.6 °C above pre-industrial levels, surpassing the 1.5 °C warming benchmark set in 2016 by the Paris Agreement for the first time. (C3S) (Politico) (BBC News)

International relations

• 2025 Moldovan energy crisis
  • Moldova’s unrecognized breakaway region of Transnistria extends its state of emergency for another month due to an energy crisis following the suspension of Russian gas supplies. (Reuters)
• Colombia–Venezuela relations
  • The government of Venezuela closes the border with Colombia ahead of the swearing-in of Nicolás Maduro for a third term as President of Venezuela. (Le Monde)
• Denmark–United States relations, Proposals for the United States to purchase Greenland
  • The Prime Minister of Greenland, Mute Bourup Egede, says that his country “has a desire for independence” and he, in particular, is ready to speak with US President-elect Donald Trump. (Bloomberg)
• International sanctions during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia–United States relations
  • The United States government imposes a new series of sanctions targeting Russia’s energy sector, including the Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas oil companies. (CNN)
• Italy–Syria relations
  • The Italian Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, meets in Damascus with Ahmed al-Sharaa, de facto leader of Syria. (Euronews)

Law and crime

• Indictments against Donald Trump
  • Prosecution of Donald Trump in New York
    • U.S. president-elect Donald Trump is sentenced for falsifying business records, with judge Juan Merchan ordering an unconditional discharge, stating that imprisonment or fines could cause Trump to eventually have his convictions overturned. (AP)
• Death and funeral of Alexei Navalny
  • Russia financial watchdog Rosfinmonitoring rejects requests to remove former opposition leader Alexei Navalny from their state sponsor of terrorism list despite his death a year ago. (Reuters)
• International reactions to the 2024 Venezuelan presidential election, United States–Venezuela relations, Sanctions during the Venezuelan crisis
  • U.S. authorities announce an increased $25 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. (BBC News)
• Vince McMahon sex trafficking scandal
  • The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announces that former WWE CEO Vince McMahon has agreed to pay a $400,000 fine and reimburse $1.3 million to WWE as part of a settlement to drop accounting fraud charges. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Venezuelan political crisis
  • Third inauguration of Nicolás Maduro
    • Nicolás Maduro is sworn in for a third six-year term as President of Venezuela in Caracas. The ceremony takes place under heavy security measures with the opposition boycotting and protesting the ceremony while continuing to insist that the legitimate president-elect is Edmundo González Urrutia. Many countries and international organizations also consider the election to be fraudulent. (CNN)
• 2024 Austrian legislative election
  • Austrian president Alexander Van der Bellen appoints foreign minister Alexander Schallenberg as acting chancellor to succeed Karl Nehammer, who resigned six days ago. (Reuters)

2025 January 09

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Somali Civil War, War against the Islamic State
  • Islamic State insurgency in Puntland
    • Puntland forces carry out drone strikes on Islamic State targets in the Cal Miskaad mountains near Balidhidhin District, Bari, Puntland, Somalia, killing several militants. (Idil News) (VOA)
    • Puntland counterterrorism forces capture four foreign Islamic State fighters from Ethiopia, Yemen, and Tanzania, while intercepting and destroying multiple explosive-carrying drones in Bari, Puntland. (Idil News) (VOA) (Garowe Online)
• Gaza war
  • Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip
    • Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip kill at least 22 people. (Al Jazeera)
  • A study published in The Lancet claims that around 3% of the Gaza Strip population has died from traumatic injury due to the conflict with Israel, with the death toll from other causes due to the military campaign likely higher. (CNN)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Attacks on civilians in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Russian artillery strikes kill two people in Siversk, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, according to the region’s governor. In the Russian-controlled area of Kamianka-Dniprovska, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine, the region’s Russia-appointed governor says that two people were killed by Ukrainian artillery strikes. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2025 California wildfires
  • January 2025 Southern California wildfires
    • At least six people are killed due to spreading wildfires in Los Angeles County, United States.
    • The Kenneth Fire ignites in Woodland Hills, adding to the 179,000 people placed under evacuation orders. (NBC News)
• 2024–25 European winter
  • Two people are killed and 20 others are injured in a snowstorm in northern France. (AP)
• Twelve miners are trapped in a collapsed coal mine in Balochistan, Pakistan, following a methane gas explosion. (AP)

International relations

• Armenia–European Union relations
  • The Armenian government approves a bill to launch a bid for the country to join the European Union. (Reuters)
• Azerbaijan–Russia relations
  • Russia declines to confirm whether Russian forces accidentally shot down Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243, despite calls by Azerbaijan to do so. (The Straits Times)
• Guyana–Venezuela territorial dispute
  • Guyana says that it will resort to the United Nations to deter Venezuela from unilaterally appointing a governor for the Essequibo, a region under Guyanese control but claimed by Venezuela. (AP)

Law and crime

• International Criminal Court arrest warrants for Israeli leaders
  • Poland’s government confirms that it will not comply with an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes if he chooses to attend a ceremony at Auschwitz concentration camp later this month. (Times of Israel) (Notes from Poland)
  • The U.S. House of Representatives votes 243 to 140 to sanction the ICC for issuing arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. (Reuters) (Middle East Eye) (Haaretz)
  • U.S. Senate majority leader John Thune promises swift consideration of the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act so President-elect Donald Trump can sign it into law shortly after taking office. Under the act, any foreigner who investigates, arrests, detains or prosecutes U.S. citizens or those of an allied country, including Israel, not under ICC jurisdiction would be sanctioned along with their family members. (Reuters) (The New York Times)
• 2024 Venezuelan political crisis
  • Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado makes her first public appearance in 133 days and is briefly arrested when her convoy is intercepted by security forces as it departs an anti-government protest in Caracas. The incident occurs the day before the ruling party-controlled National Assembly is scheduled to swear in Nicolás Maduro for a third term as president. (AP) (The Guardian)
• The Democratic Republic of the Congo bans Al Jazeera from operating in the country and revokes its press credentials, citing the network’s interview with M23 rebel leader Bertrand Bisimwa as an endorsement of terrorism. Authorities warn against reporting on the group, with the justice minister threatening to invoke the death penalty, although no formal law bans such coverage. (AP)
• The Kuwaiti public prosecution detains media personality Fajer Al-Saeed for 21 days and after investigating charges related to “calling for normalization with the Israeli occupation and harming the state’s interests”. (Al Jazeera)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Mozambican general election
  • 2024 Mozambican protests
    • PODEMOS presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who alleges that the October election was rigged, returns to Mozambique from exile in South Africa amid protests. (Reuters)
• 2022–2025 Lebanese presidential election
  • Military commander Joseph Aoun is elected as President of Lebanon, ending the power vacuum that began in October 2022. (AP)
• Death and state funeral of Jimmy Carter
  • The state funeral for former U.S. president Jimmy Carter is held at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. All five living presidents, including incumbent president Joe Biden and president-elect Donald Trump, attend the funeral. (CBS News)
• President of São Tomé and Príncipe Carlos Vila Nova rejects a proposal by his Independent Democratic Action party to elect Hélio Vaz de Almeida as prime minister. Vila Nova instead appoints Ilza Amado Vaz. (RFI), (Xinhua)

2025 January 08

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Boko Haram insurgency
  • 2025 N’Djamena attack
    • Gunfire and military vehicles are reported near the Presidential Palace in N’Djamena, Chad, with the Chadian government accusing Boko Haram of being behind the attack. The Chad National Army has reportedly regained stable control of the capital, with 18 insurgents and one security force member being killed in the attack. (Devdiscourse) (Deutsche Welle)
• Gaza war
  • Israeli bombing of the Gaza Strip
    • Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip kill at least 27 people. (Arab News)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Zaporizhzhia strikes, Attacks on civilians in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Russian forces attack an industrial facility in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, killing 13 people and injuring 18 others. Further strikes on Zaporizhzhia with guided aerial bombs kill 13 more people and injure 32 others. (Ukrainska Pravda) (Ukrainska Pravda 2)
• Insurgency in the Maghreb
  • 2025 Point Triple attack
    • Twenty-eight soldiers are killed during a mass shooting in northern Benin near the border with Burkina Faso. (Punch)
• Myanmar civil war
  • At least 40 people are killed and 12 others are injured in Tatmadaw airstrikes on Ramree, Rakhine State, Myanmar. (Al Jazeera) (India Today)

Disasters and accidents

• 2025 California wildfires
  • January 2025 Southern California wildfires
    • Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire, Hurst Fire
      • More than 100,000 people are evacuated from approaching wildfires in the Pacific Palisades and Hollywood neighborhoods of Los Angeles and Altadena, California, United States, that have burnt more than 3,000 acres, aggravated by an ongoing extreme windstorm and drought conditions. Five people are killed, dozens of others are injured, and around 1,000 structures are destroyed. (AP) (The Independent) (NBC News) (Reuters)
    • The CALNEV Pipeline connecting oil refineries in southern California to Clark County, Nevada, shuts down due to power outages, temporarily cutting off the gasoline supply to Las Vegas and Nellis Air Force Base. The Kinder Morgan SFPP Pipeline connecting southern California to Phoenix, Arizona, also shuts down. (KTNV) (Reuters)
• Deadly human stampedes in Hindu temples
  • Six people are killed and over forty others are injured in a stampede at the Hindu Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India. (AP) (Business Today)

International relations

• Iran–Italy relations
  • The Iranian government releases Italian journalist Cecilia Sala from prison, with Sala arriving back in Rome later that day. (Euronews) (Yahoo! News)
• Lithuania–Russia relations
  • Lithuanian prime minister Gintautas Paluckas deploys the police to secure the country’s electricity link with Poland in response to reported attempts to disrupt the planned decoupling of the Baltic states’ power systems from the grid shared with Belarus and Russia. (Reuters)
• Azerbaijan protests Eritrea’s detention of three Azerbaijani-flagged vessels and 18 crew members since November 2024, stating the ships entered Eritrean waters due to adverse weather en route to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• The British government freezes the assets of neo-Nazi music network Blood & Honour, becoming the first far-right group in the UK to be sanctioned by the government. (BBC News)

Politics and elections

• Politics of New Caledonia
  • Alcide Ponga of the pro-France The Rally party is elected President of New Caledonia by six of the eleven government ministers. (Radio New Zealand)
• The ruling party in São Tomé and Príncipe, Independent Democratic Action, proposes Hélio Vaz de Almeida as Prime Minister to replace Patrice Trovoada, who was fired by President Carlos Vila Nova two days ago. (RFI)

2025 January 07

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
  • Three Pakistani soldiers and 19 Taliban insurgents are killed in shootouts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. (AP)

Business and economy

• Argentine debt restructuring
  • Argentina’s country risk index, measured by the JPMorgan GBI-EM Index, briefly drops to 444 points, its lowest level since 2018, before closing at 561 points due to technical adjustments linked to upcoming bond payment amid improved market sentiment driven by cooling inflation and signs of economic recovery. (Reuters)
• International flights resume from Damascus International Airport in Syria for the first time since the fall of the Assad regime. (France 24)
• The merger of the providers of stock photography Getty Images and Shutterstock, by the acquisition of the latter by the former, is announced. (AP News)

Disasters and accidents

• 2025 California wildfires
  • January 2025 Southern California wildfires
    • An exceptional Santa Ana wind event reaching hurricane-force in some locations in southern California, United States, cause multiple power outages and wildfire outbreaks, including a rapidly-spreading >2,900 acre wildfire in Los Angeles County which causes several burn injuries and forces 30,000 people to evacuate. (CNN) (NBC News)
• 2025 Tibet earthquake
  • At least 126 people are killed and dozens of others are injured when a magnitude Mw 7.1 (Ms 6.8) earthquake strikes Tingri County, Shigatse, Tibet Autonomous Region, China. (Al Jazeera) (AP)
• A light aircraft crashes near Rottnest Island, Western Australia, killing the pilot and two tourists from Denmark and Switzerland while injuring three other passengers. (Reuters)
• Thirteen Cuban soldiers go missing after explosions at an arms and ammunition depot in Holguín Province. (CNN)

Health and environment

• HMPV outbreak in East Asia
  • India confirms their first cases of the human metapneumovirus disease. (CBS News)

International relations

• Denmark–United States relations, Proposals for the United States to purchase Greenland, Panama–United States relations
  • U.S. president-elect Donald Trump refuses to rule out using military force to take control of Greenland and the Panama Canal, declaring U.S. control of both to be “vital to American national security”. (AP)
  • Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. makes a personal visit to Greenland weeks after Trump announced that “ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity”. In response to the visit, Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen states that “Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders”. (BBC News)
  • Panamanian foreign minister Javier Martínez-Acha asserts that only Panamanians operate the Panama Canal and that its sovereignty is non-negotiable, dismissing Trump’s claims that China operates the canal and his suggestion of potential U.S. military action to regain control. (DW)
• Hungary–United States relations
  • The U.S. Treasury imposes sanctions on Hungarian cabinet minister Antal Rogán for alleged corruption, accusing him of using his position to secure financial benefits for himself and political allies. (Reuters)
• Sudan–United States relations
  • The United States accuses the Rapid Support Forces of committing genocide in Sudan during the ongoing civil war and imposes sanctions on the group’s leader Hemedti. (AP)

Law and crime

• 2024 Venezuelan political crisis
  • Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González reports the kidnapping of his son-in-law Rafael Tudares by masked men in Caracas, as political tensions persist following González’s contested claim of victory in the country’s July presidential election. (Al Jazeera)
• Former Cambodian opposition lawmaker Lim Kimya is shot dead by a gunman on a motorcycle in Bangkok, Thailand. Cambodian officials deny allegations of involvement in Lim’s death. (The Guardian)
• Lebanon approves the extradition of Abdul Rahman Yusuf, the son of late Egyptian ulama Yusuf al-Qaradawi, to the United Arab Emirates following his detention on December 28 after returning from Syria. (Reuters)
• Mauritius issues an arrest warrant for former finance minister Renganaden Padayachy over alleged embezzlement involving the disbursement of Rs. 45 million (US$1 million) from the Mauritius Investment Corporation. (Reuters)
• Two people are killed and one is injured in a mass shooting at Zahnradfabrik Hanel in Bad Friedrichshall, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The perpetrator is arrested. (DW)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Venezuelan political crisis
  • Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro announces the arrest of seven foreign individuals, whom he accuses of planning terrorist acts to disrupt his upcoming inauguration, with security forces conducting a nationwide deployment. (Al Jazeera)
• Death and state funeral of Jimmy Carter
  • The body of former U.S. president Jimmy Carter arrives in Washington, D.C. for a three-day mourning period, including a lying in state at the Capitol. (Reuters)
• Libyan crisis
  • The House of Representatives of Libya approves a national reconciliation and transitional justice law aimed at unifying the country after over a decade of conflict. (Reuters)
• John Mahama is sworn in for a second term as President of Ghana, having previously served as president from 2012 to 2017. (Reuters)

Science and technology

• Meta Platforms announces an end to its third-party fact-checking program and a transition to a crowd-sourced model similar to X’s Community Notes. (AP)

Previous Page: 30 of 31 Next