Los Angeles wildfire death toll surges to 24 as firefighters brace for more fierce winds
LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� After a weekend spent blocking the explosive growth of fires that destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people in the Los Angeles area, firefighters got a slight break with calmer weather but cast a wary eye on a forecast for yet more wind.
Should that happen, already burned homes and valleys could flare anew, sending embers to unburned territory miles downwind. New fires could add to the complication.
The death toll surged late Sunday with an update from the Los Angeles County medical examiner. At least 16 people were missing, a number authorities said was also likely to rise.
The relative calm Sunday allowed some people to return to previously evacuated areas, however.
The National Weather Service issued red flag warnings for severe fire conditions through Wednesday, with sustained winds of 50 mph (80 kph) and gusts in the mountains reaching 70 mph (113 kph). The most dangerous day will be Tuesday, warned fire behavior analyst Dennis Burns at a community meeting Sunday night.
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The California wildfires could be leaving deeper inequality in their wake
ALTADENA, Calif. (AP) 鈥� The sight of celebrity mansions and movie landmarks reduced to ashes can make it seem like the wildfires roaring through the Los Angeles area affected a constellation of movie stars.
But a drive through the charred neighborhoods around Altadena shows that the fires also burned through a remarkable haven for generations of Black families avoiding discriminatory housing practices elsewhere. They have been communities of racial and economic diversity, where many people own their own homes.
Some now fear the most destructive fires in California鈥檚 history have altered that for good. Recovery and rebuilding may be out of reach for many, and pressures of gentrification could be renewed.
Samantha Santoro, 22, a first-generation college student at Cal Poly Pomona, remembered being annoyed when the initial news coverage of the wildfires focused more on celebrities. She and her sister, who attends UC Berkeley, worry how their Mexican immigrant parents and working-class neighbors who lost their homes in Altadena will move forward.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 have like, 鈥極h, I鈥檒l just go to my second home and stay there,'" Santoro said.
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Ripples of Los Angeles fires continue as Meghan delays Netflix series launch, composer's works lost
LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� Weaker winds and intense firefighting efforts over the weekend boosted containment of fires burning in and around Los Angeles, but the effects of the blazes on the entertainment world continue.
Several projects and awards shows have been delayed, with the Producers Guild opting not to announce its nominations Sunday due to ongoing effects of the fire. Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, also announced she would not launch a Netflix lifestyles program until March.
After a fierce battle Saturday, firefighters managed to fight back flames in Mandeville Canyon, home to Arnold Schwarzenegger and other celebrities near Pacific Palisades not far from the coast, where swooping helicopters dumped water as the blaze charged downhill. While firefighters have been able to push the flames away from several populated areas, strong winds are expected to resume this week and last through Wednesday.
Thousands of homes have been destroyed, and 24 people have died as a result of the fires. More are reported missing and officials expect that number to increase.
Here's more on how the fires are affecting celebrities and the entertainment world.
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Progress made in talks over Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release, officials say
CAIRO (AP) 鈥� U.S. and Arab mediators made significant progress overnight toward brokering a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and the release of scores of hostages held in the Gaza Strip, but a deal hasn't been reached yet, officials said Monday.
Three officials acknowledged that progress has been made and said the coming days would be critical for ending more than 15 months of fighting that has destabilized the Middle East. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the talks.
One of the three officials and a Hamas official said that there were still a number of hurdles to clear. On several occasions over the past year, U.S. officials have said that they were on the verge of reaching a deal, only to have the talks stall.
One person familiar with the talks said there had been a breakthrough overnight and that there was a proposed deal on the table. Israeli and Hamas negotiators will now take it back to their leaders for final approval, the person said.
The person said that mediators from the Gulf country of Qatar had put renewed pressure on Hamas to accept the agreement, while U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, was pressing the Israelis. Witkoff recently joined the negotiations and has been in the region in recent days.
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Seoul's spy agency says North Korean soldiers captured in Ukraine haven't shown desire to defect
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) 鈥� South Korea鈥檚 spy agency told lawmakers on Monday that two North Korean soldiers who were captured by Ukrainian forces while fighting alongside Russian forces in Russia鈥檚 Kursk border region haven鈥檛 expressed a desire to seek asylum in South Korea.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he鈥檚 willing to hand over the soldiers to North Korea if the country鈥檚 authoritarian leader, Kim Jong Un, arranges for an exchange with Ukrainian prisoners of war in Russia. Zelenskyy said one of the North Korean soldiers wishes to stay in Ukraine while the other wants to return to his country, which was consistent with interview videos released by his government. 鈥淚f Kim Jong Un even remembers these citizens of his and is capable of organizing an exchange for our warriors being held in Russia, we are ready to transfer such soldiers. Undoubtedly there will be more POWs from North Korea,鈥� Zelenskyy said in an address late Sunday. He said in a separate posting on the social media platform X that "there may be other options鈥� for North Korean prisoners who don't wish to go back.
In a closed-door briefing at South Korea鈥檚 National Assembly, the National Intelligence Service confirmed its participation in the questioning of the North Korean soldiers by Ukrainian authorities. The agency said the soldiers haven鈥檛 expressed a request to resettle in South Korea, according to two lawmakers who attended the meeting.
The agency said it was willing to discuss the matter with Ukrainian authorities if the soldiers eventually do ask to go to South Korea. About 34,000 North Koreans have defected to capitalist rival South Korea to avoid economic hardship and political suppression at home, mostly since the late 1990s.
Koo Byoungsam, spokesperson of South Korea鈥檚 Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said facilitating the asylum of the North Korean soldiers would require 鈥渓egal reviews, including on international law, and consultations with related nations.鈥�
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Biden says he was the steady hand the world needed after Trump, who's ready to shake things up again
WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� President Joe Biden strode into the White House four years ago with a foreign policy agenda that put repairing alliances strained by four years of Republican Donald Trump's 鈥淎merica First鈥� worldview front and center.
The one-term Democrat took office in the throes of the worst global pandemic in a century and his plans were quickly stress-tested by a series of complicated international crises: the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and Hamas' brutal 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the ongoing war in the Middle East.
As Biden prepares to leave office, he remains insistent that his one-term presidency has made strides in restoring American credibility on the world stage and has proven the U.S. remains an indispensable partner around the globe. That message will be at the center of an address he will deliver Monday afternoon on his foreign policy legacy.
Yet Biden's case for foreign policy achievements will be shadowed and shaped, at least in the near term, by the messy counterfactual that American voters are returning the country鈥檚 stewardship to Trump and his protectionist worldview.
鈥淭he real question is: Does the rest of the world today believe that the United States is the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world when it comes to our reservoir of national strength, our economy, our innovation base, our capacity to attract investment, our capacity to attract talent?鈥� White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in an Associated Press interview. 鈥淲hen we took office, a lot of people probably would have said China. ... Nobody鈥檚 saying that anymore.鈥�
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A tough-on-crime approach is back in US state capitols
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) 鈥� Within minutes of his inauguration Monday, new Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe is expected to issue a variety of orders targeting crime. The tone-setting move reflects a national trend.
After a period of relaxed sentencing laws, a tough-on-crime approach is back in political favor in the U.S.
Republicans and Democrats alike are promoting anti-crime initiatives as a new year of lawmaking gets underway in state capitols. That comes after voters in several states approved ballot measures in the fall imposing stricter penalties for crimes ranging from shoplifting to deadly drug dealing.
Kehoe, a Republican who cruised to election, is set to take the oath of office at noon. He plans a 鈥淒ay One Action Ceremony鈥� shortly afterward.
鈥淎s soon as my hand comes off the Bible, the Kehoe administration will be relentless in our efforts to make Missouri safer,鈥� Kehoe pledged.
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What to know about the latest effort to bring an end to Turkey's 40-year Kurdish conflict
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) 鈥� Talks between politicians from Turkey鈥檚 pro-Kurdish party and jailed Kurdish leaders have been gathering steam as they try to end 40 years of fighting between the state and the Kurdistan Workers鈥� Party, or PKK.
The latest peace effort comes at a time of heightened instability and fundamental changes reshaping the region. These include the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, the weakening of the Hezbollah militant movement in Lebanon, and the reconfiguration of power in Syria after the toppling of President Bashar Assad.
The cautious process was initiated in October by Devlet Bahceli, a firebrand ultranationalist who has usually opposed any concessions to Kurdish identity or rights.
Since then, the fall of Assad in a lightning rebel offensive has triggered intensified fighting between Turkish-backed and Kurdish groups in northern Syria.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, who have controlled northeast Syria for the past decade, are under attack from the Syrian National Army, an umbrella of militias fighting on behalf of Turkey, which regards the SDF as an extension of the PKK and wants to neutralize it as an independent fighting force.
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Taiwan iPhone maker Foxconn sets its sights on the ever more crowded EV market
BANGKOK (AP) 鈥� Auto industry newcomers like Taiwan-based iPhone maker Foxconn and China's Huawei Technologies are maneuvering to gain an edge in the electric vehicle sector, prompting automakers like Japan's Nissan and Honda to announce plans to join forces against a flood of ambitious competitors.
Also known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, Foxconn has been snapping up links in the automotive supply chain, one of a growing number of technology companies that are leveraging their knowhow in electronics and communications.
Foxconn's auto venture with Taiwan automaker and importer Yulon Motor Co., Foxtron, showcased its Model B, a sleek EV hatchback, as well as its automotive electronics, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week.
Honda and Nissan announced in December that they plan to seek a merger, a move that reports said may have partly been driven by Foxconn's interest in Nissan.
Here's an update on Foxconn's auto ambitions.
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China's exports in December up 10.7%, beating estimates as higher US tariffs loom
HONG KONG (AP) 鈥� China鈥檚 exports in December grew at a faster pace than expected, as factories rushed to fill orders to beat higher tariffs that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose once he takes office.
Exports rose 10.7% from a year earlier, according to official customs data released Monday. Economists had forecast they would grow about 7%. Imports rose 1% year-on-year. Analysts had expected them to shrink about 1.5%. With exports outpacing imports, China鈥檚 trade surplus grew to $104.84 billion in December, and nearly $1 trillion for the year, at $992.2 billion.
Here are some highlights from the report.
Trump has pledged to raise tariffs on Chinese goods and close some loopholes that exporters now use to sell their products more cheaply in the U.S. If enacted, his plans would likely raise prices in America and squeeze sales and profit margins for Chinese exporters.
China's exports are likely to remain strong in the near-term, said Zichun Huang of Capital Economics, as businesses try to 鈥渇ront-run鈥� potentially higher tariffs.
The Associated Press
