Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire deal that aims to end the war in Gaza. The first phase of the agreement, which is set to take effect on Sunday, includes a six-week truce and a withdrawal of Israeli forces from populated areas. Hamas will initially release 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. The deal’s announcement led to celebrations in the region, but Israel warned that some details still need to be finalised.
Joe Biden warned that an “oligarchy” is emerging in America, which risks hurting the country’s democracy. In his farewell address as president, Mr Biden said that power is in the hands of a “very few ultra-wealthy people”. He also raised concerns about a “tech-industrial complex” that is burying Americans under an “under an avalanche of misinformation”.
Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’s rocket firm, reached orbit with the first launch of its New Glenn rocket. Entering orbit with a new rocket is a rare feat, but Mr Bezos, who stepped down from running Amazon in 2021, believes his firm’s progress has been much slower than he would like. Blue Origin hopes that New Glenn will allow it to compete with SpaceX in the commercial launch market.
The founder of Hindenburg Research said he would disband the activist short-selling firm. Nathan Anderson explained that his team had “finished the pipeline of ideas” it had been working on. Over the past seven years, Hindenburg has published reports accusing several companies of committing fraud. The short-seller has profited when the companies’ shares subsequently plummeted. Notable targets included Adani Group, an Indian conglomerate, and Nikola, an electric-lorry firm.
Lawyers representing Yoon Suk Yeol said the South Korean president would again refuse to answer investigators’ questions when his interrogation resumes on Thursday. Mr Yoon, who attempted to introduce martial law last month, is accused of insurrection. He was arrested on Wednesday. He considers his detention to be illegal and reportedly kept schtum during hours-long questioning, before spending the night in a cell.
Donald Tusk, Poland’s prime minister, accused Russia of planning “acts of terrorism” on aircraft around the world. Mr Tusk did not provide more details, but said Polish officials had been countering Russian sabotage. Security experts believe Russia to be behind mysterious explosions at logistics depots in Europe last year, which were thought to be a precursor to attacks on cargo planes.
Nearly 80 bodies have been recovered from an illegal gold mine in South Africa since a court-ordered rescue mission began on Monday. Police had been in a standoff with miners for months, blocking access to food and water to force them to surface. Hundreds of miners have emerged since the operation began; they were arrested for illegal mining and immigration offences.
America’s Food and Drug Administration banned Red 3, a dye, from food. Studies on animals have linked the colouring, made from petroleum, to cancer. It is found in some 9,000 American food items. It is already prohibited in the European Union, and was banned from American cosmetics in 1990.
Figure of the day: 2.7%, Argentina’s monthly inflation rate in December, down from 25.5% a year earlier. Read the full story.
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