World Briefing: January 14, 2025
Firefighters are in a critical stage of their almost week-long battle against deadly Los Angeles blazes. Crews report progress, but the National Weather Service has issued an expanded warning about winds that could gust up to 70 mph, causing extreme fire behavior in ongoing blazes or possibly turning any new spark into a raging inferno. At least 24 people have died, and with dozens still missing, there are “likely to be a lot more” deaths, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said. Here’s what we know about the victims. More than 92,000 Los Angeles County residents are under evacuation orders and some 89,000 are under evacuation warnings, according to authorities. The Eaton and Palisades Fires are likely the second and fourth most destructive in California history. The total area burned by the Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires is about 60 square miles, an area larger than Paris - CNN
Prosecutors charged nine people with looting Monday in areas wrecked by the devastating Palisades and Eaton fires, and accused another man of intentionally setting a blaze in an Azusa park during last week’s firestorm. One trio of men is accused of stealing $200,000 worth of valuables from a home in Mandeville Canyon early Thursday, while another group is accused of stealing personal property, including an Emmy award, from an Altadena home during the Eaton Fire, according to L.A. County Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman - LA Times
Gov. Gavin Newsom asked legislative leaders Monday to approve at least $2.5 billion in response to the wildfires that have ravaged Los Angeles County — a move that expands the focus of the special session in the California Capitol beyond strictly fighting President-elect Donald Trump. The aid request comes as Democrats at the Capitol find themselves under mounting pressure to spend less time waging a national political battle against Trump as unprecedented blazes have left at least 25 dead and a trail of destruction in their own state LA Times
An estimated 100,000 scores and parts by the groundbreaking 20th-century composer Arnold Schoenberg were destroyed last week when the wildfires in Southern California burned down the music publishing company founded by his heirs. The company rents and sells the scores to ensembles around the world. “It’s brutal,” said Larry Schoenberg, 83, a son of the composer, who ran the company, Belmont Music Publishers, from his home in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles and kept the firm’s inventory in a 2,000-square-foot building behind his house. “We lost everything.” Belmont’s catalog offered a wide range of Schoenberg’s music, from the lush, hyper-Romantic pieces of his youth to the challenging works he wrote after breaking from conventional tonal harmony and developing his 12-tone technique - NYT
EU shipyards are repairing Russian ice-class tankers and offering them dry dock facilities, enabling Moscow to continue moving gas through the Arctic despite western sanctions on its energy sector. Without the maintenance work — provided by Damen shipyard in Brest, France, and Fayard A/S in Denmark — Russia’s Yamal LNG plant would struggle to access crucial markets through winter when northern hemisphere gas prices are at their highest. The two yards have serviced 14 out of the 15-strong fleet of specialised Arc7 tankers that ship from Yamal LNG on Russia’s far northern coast, according to satellite imagery and port-call tracking data from Kpler, a data and analytics company. Some ships called multiple times. “If those two shipyards were off-limits, it would put the whole logistics operations in doubt,” said Malte Humpert, an Arctic shipping specialist at High North News who has tracked the vessels’ movements. “They could get the service somewhere else but that would mean going well off their route.” Eight of the tankers have called into Damen, while Fayard has serviced nine since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Most of the ships are owned by energy and shipping companies including Greece’s Dynagas. Damen confirmed it had repaired “several vessels involved in the transport of Russian LNG” but added that this “strictly adhered to European sanctions legislation” and that it was “not involved in the cargo choices made by the shipping companies operating these vessels”. FT
The terms of a deal between Israel and Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages are being finalised, a Palestinian official familiar with the negotiations has told the BBC. It comes as US President Joe Biden said a deal was "on the brink" of coming to fruition, and that his administration was working urgently on the matter. An Israeli official also told news agency Reuters that negotiations were in "advanced stages", with a deal possible in "hours, days or more" - BBC
The leaders of several NATO countries are to meet in Helsinki today to discuss increasing security in the Baltic Sea region following the suspected sabotage of several undersea cables. The leaders of Finland, Estonia, Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden are expected to attend the meeting and discuss measures required to secure critical underwater infrastructure. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and the executive vice president of the European Commission are also expected to attend. The meeting will focus on "strengthening of NATO's presence in the Baltic Sea and responding to the threat posed by Russia's shadow fleet," according to a statement. NATO said in late December it would increase its presence in the region following the suspected sabotage of cables between Finland and Estonia, but it has yet to announce an official operation. Several undersea telecommunications and power cables have been damaged in the Baltic Sea since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Experts and politicians have blamed vessels in Russia's so-called "shadow fleet" of aging oil tankers. The Kremlin denies any involvement - RFE/RL
For the first time ever, a Moscow court has ruled against the city and awarded housing financial compensation to a victim of the Stalinist “Great Terror.” During those political repressions, Yelizaveta Mikhaylova’s parents were forced to flee their home in the capital. Now 73 years old, Mikhaylova has been awarded her compensation to purchase 33 square meters (355 square feet) in local housing. The city must fulfill the court’s ruling within three months, though officials have the right to appeal the decision. According to BBC journalists, courts in other Russian cities, such as Oryol and Krasnodar, have sided with Stalinist repression victims in housing disputes before, but the ruling in Mikhaylova’s case is unprecedented in Moscow. “Great Terror” victims still alive and litigating in the capital today have typically spent decades “in line” for housing compensation - Meduza
Former Canadian finance minister Chrystia Freeland will announce her intention to run for the Liberal party leadership just before the U.S. presidential inauguration, a source close to her campaign team said. Freeland (who’s of Ukrainian descent) was a key player in responding to Trump tariffs during his first term in the White House. As the minister of foreign affairs she oversaw a dollar-for-dollar tariff response to Trump's imposition of import taxes on Canadian steel and aluminum in 2018. Freeland initially led Canada's cabinet committee working to mount the response this time but has not been at that table since she resigned from cabinet Dec. 16. That bombshell move set in motion the final chapter of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's tenure. It ignited a firestorm of criticism within his caucus that ultimately led him to step down as soon as a new leader is chosen. The party has now set the date for that as March 9, and candidates have until Jan. 23 to declare their intention to run - CP
The Philippines on Monday called on Beijing to desist from "escalatory actions" at a South China Sea shoal and said a protest has been lodged over the presence of Chinese coast guard, militia and navy in its exclusive economic zone. The protest stems from the presence of two coast guard vessels on Jan 5 and Jan 10 in and around the disputed Scarborough shoal, one of which was a 165m long boat referred to by the Philippines as "the monster". It said a Chinese navy helicopter was also deployed in the area. "The escalatory actions of these Chinese vessels and aircraft disregard Philippine and international laws," said the Philippines' national maritime council, an inter-agency group tasked with upholding the country's interests at sea. “China should direct its vessels to desist from conducting illegal actions that violate Philippines' sovereign rights in its EEZ," it said in a statement. China's embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment. China says the Scarborough Shoal is its territory and has accused the Philippines of trespassing - CNA
