News from January 20, 2025 at 2 PM

The ceasefire and prisoner swap agreement between Israel and Hamas took effect on Sunday after a three-hour delay, halting fighting in Gaza. Six hours after the agreement came into force, Hamas handed over three Israeli female hostages to the International Committee of the Red Cross, with each hostage exchanged for the release of 30 Palestinian prisoners by Israel. The agreement, originally scheduled to take effect at 8:30 AM, was delayed due to Hamas's failure to provide a timely list of individuals to be released. In the three hours before the ceasefire, Israeli airstrikes and artillery strikes killed 13 Palestinians. The agreement is divided into three phases, with the first six-week phase seeing Hamas release 33 hostages in exchange for Israel releasing nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Following the ceasefire, Gaza residents celebrated and returned home, and UN aid trucks quickly entered Gaza. Netanyahu described the agreement as a temporary measure, with Israel reserving the right to resume fighting if necessary.

In July 2024, a knife attack in the northern English town of Southport resulted in the murder of three young girls: Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, who were attending a Taylor Swift-themed dance event for children. Axel Rudakubana, 18, is charged with their murders, along with 10 counts of attempted murder, producing the deadly poison ricin, and possession of an Al-Qaeda training manual. His trial is set to begin on January 20, 2024, at Liverpool Crown Court and is expected to last between four and six weeks. Rudakubana did not speak during his December 2024 hearing, leading Judge Julian Goose to enter not guilty pleas on his behalf. Police have stated the incident is not being treated as terrorism-related. Following the attack, large disturbances erupted in Southport after false reports on social media claimed the suspect was a radical Islamist migrant. The riots spread across Britain, resulting in over 1,500 arrests. The Attorney General's office and local police have warned against publishing or posting anything that might prejudice the trial.

On January 19, 2024, the Yemen-based Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center (HOCC) announced that the Houthis would limit their attacks on commercial vessels to those linked to Israel, contingent on the full implementation of the Gaza ceasefire. In an email to shipping industry officials, the HOCC stated it was halting 'sanctions' against vessels owned by U.S. or British individuals or entities, as well as those sailing under their flags. The 'sanctions' would be reinstated if the U.S. or U.K. aggressed against Yemen. Since November 2023, the Houthis have conducted over 100 attacks on ships, resulting in at least four seafarer deaths. Major shipping companies have suspended routes through the Red Sea, rerouting via southern Africa to avoid attacks. On the first day of the ceasefire, Hamas released three Israeli hostages, and Israel freed 90 Palestinian prisoners.

On January 20, a fire broke out at a nursing home in the suburbs of Belgrade, Serbia, resulting in 8 deaths and 7 injuries. The blaze, suspected to be arson, occurred at 3:32 AM, with 30 people present in the facility. Serbian Minister of Labor, Employment, Veterans, and Social Affairs, Starovic, stated that emergency services responded swiftly but the fire had already spread, leading to the tragic loss of 8 lives. Preliminary investigations suggest the fire might have been deliberately set, with the prosecution set to release findings later in the day.

On January 11, 2025, Pope Francis extended well-wishes to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, praying for wisdom, strength, and protection as he assumes the presidency. Despite previously voicing strong disagreement with Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric, the pope expressed hope that under Trump's leadership, the American people would thrive and work towards a more just society free from hatred, discrimination, and exclusion. In an Italian television interview on Sunday, the pontiff criticized Trump's reported plan to intensify immigration enforcement as a 'disgrace'. Trump administration officials indicated they were reconsidering plans for immigration raids in Chicago. During the 2016 election campaign, Francis had labeled Trump 'not Christian' due to his views on immigration.

A fuel tanker overturned and exploded in the Suleja area of North Central Niger state, Nigeria, killing 77 people and injuring 25, including rescuers, as they rushed to collect spilled fuel. The incident occurred on Saturday. Nigeria has experienced several similar accidents recently, with a Delta state tanker explosion killing five two weeks ago and another explosion in October claiming 153 lives. Fuel prices in Nigeria have surged by over 400% in the last 18 months due to President Bola Tinubu's economic policies, pushing millions into poverty.

On January 20, 2025, Debra Tice, mother of American journalist Austin Tice, attended a press conference in Damascus, Syria, expressing hope that the new administrations in the U.S. and Syria would help find her missing son, who was captured near Damascus about 12 years ago. Debra criticized the outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden's administration for not negotiating hard enough for her son's release. She had visited Syria in 2015 but was later denied visas. Following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December, she was able to visit again. She noted the new Syrian leadership's dedication to bringing her son back but acknowledged that Assad's ousting complicated the search. The U.S. State Department stated there is no U.S. government organization currently in Syria to assist in the search.

Taliban's acting deputy foreign minister, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, called on senior leadership to open schools for Afghan girls, stating that restrictions on women's education are not in line with Islamic Sharia law. He highlighted that during the time of Prophet Muhammad, knowledge was accessible to both men and women, and currently, out of Afghanistan's 40 million population, 20 million females are being treated unjustly. This marks one of the strongest public criticisms by a Taliban official of the school closures, which were reportedly ordered by the supreme spiritual leader Haibatullah Akhundzada despite internal disagreements. The Taliban, who had promised to reopen high schools for girls in 2022 but later reversed the decision, have not provided a timeline for reopening. The policy has faced widespread international criticism, including from Islamic scholars, and Western diplomats have indicated that formal recognition of the Taliban is contingent upon changes in their policies towards women. A Taliban spokesman in Kandahar, where Haibatullah is based, did not immediately comment on Stanekzai's remarks.