World Briefing: January 16, 2025
Israel and Hamas have agreed to a deal that will pause fighting in Gaza after 467 days at war and lead to the phased release of hostages and Palestinian prisoners. In all, 98 Gaza hostages are set for gradual return home after 15 months in Hamas captivity. Outgoing US President Joe Biden confirmed American citizens will be released in first phase, Israeli media reported. Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners are set to be released from Israeli jails at the same time. The release of the hostages would be the first phase of the deal being finalized. Negotiations to reach the second phase – which is intended to end the war – would begin on the 16th day of the implementation of the deal. An Israeli source told Haaretz that only 'small technical details' are delaying the deal. If confirmed, the deal would go down as a huge foreign policy win by Biden, just days before the swearing in of arch rival Donald Trump. The president elect had made it clear that he had intended to bring the conflict between the two warring sides to a quick end
The cease-fire was set to take effect on Sunday, Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani of Qatar, a mediating country, told reporters. A senior U.S. official said that five female Israeli soldiers are expected to be released that same day
Commenting about a potential deal, Haaretz writer Amos Harel said: “The emerging deal means Israel will forgo the obliteration of Hamas' regime, leaving the terror group free to entrench its position in Palestinian society – but there is no choice: the hostages and soldiers being killed in Gaza for no reason are out of time
The first phase of the deal will last 42 days, and implementation of the agreement will begin two or three days after its signing. The IDF will withdraw from the Netzarim corridor and all populated areas of the enclave to about 700 meters from the border, except in five specified areas, where it will be 400 meters. The IDF will reportedly reduce its presence on the Philadelphi corridor and then withdraw from it completely over the course of the first 50 days - Jerusalem Post
The Hostage Families Forum, which represents 98 captives, expressed “immense joy and relief” at the agreement, thanking Presidents Biden and Trump as well as international mediators. “After more than 460 days in Hamas tunnels, we are closer than ever to reuniting with our loved ones,” the statement said. While calling the agreement a "significant step," the families expressed concern about its full implementation and called for "rapid arrangements" to ensure all phases are carried out. "We will not rest until the last hostage is home," they concluded - Israel 24
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will issue an official statement regarding the hostage deal "only after the completion of the final details of the agreement," the Prime Minister's Office announced in a statement. Where this leaves Netanyahu politically remains to be seen, but the deal is unlikely to earn him much reprieve from troubles at home - plummeting support and pending legal troubles that could land him in prison
The President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric, confirmed the ICRC's readiness to help implement the agreement reached by the parties to reunite families across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory and deliver more aid into Gaza. Speaking in Jerusalem during a five-day visit to Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank, she said: “There are no words to describe the level of suffering that Palestinians and Israelis are enduring on a daily basis. This nightmare has gone on for far too long. The suffering must end. Civilians in Gaza need protection and humanitarian aid. The hostages need to come home. This is only possible with political commitment from all sides to put humanity first and respect the rules of war. I hope this agreement marks a new beginning. Civilian lives must be protected and their needs prioritised. The coming days are critical and we are counting on the parties to hold to their commitments. While the agreement is welcome, it is not the end. There are immense humanitarian needs that must be addressed, which will take months, if not years.”
A panel of journalists and experts, gathered at Hong Kong’s iconic Foreign Correspondents’ Club on Wednesday, painted a bleak picture of what lies ahead in 2025 - especially when it comes to kickstarting the slowing Chinese economy. Tariff threats from Donald Trump add to the gloomy outlook. It was noted that Chinese bureaucrats quietly gave themselves a salary rise recently without extending the same to workers. However there were some encouraging predictions, including stimulus policies from Beijing that could help improve the economy, the more active engagement of influential Gulf states in the Ukraine peace process and the expected declining influence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the region. It was stated Hong Kong needed to do more to promote itself as a business center, tourism attraction and center for media and creative industries. Panelists were CNN’s Juliana Liu, veteran journalist Wang Xiangwei and Michael Bociurkiw.
The Biden administration rolled out a flurry of new restrictions on Chinese companies and their access to advanced chips, part of a last-gasp clampdown on the adversary’s ability to harness artificial intelligence for its military and tech sector. The move on Wednesday tightened oversight on chip makers that ship advanced semiconductors to China, requiring them to seek licenses for transactions - unless the chips’ performance falls below a technical threshold. The restrictions apply to non-U.S. companies like Taiwan Semiconductor because they use American technology when they make chips. The rules, which came out in a deluge Wednesday morning, also put more than two dozen new entities on a trade blacklist - WSJ
Southeast Asians reacted with a mix of laughter, dismay and disbelief at a viral clip of US president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defence failing to name a single member of the Asean bloc when asked about the alliance in a confirmation hearing at US Congress. Pete Hegseth, a veteran of the Army National Guard and a Fox News host with no diplomatic or administrative experience, was asked how many countries are in Asean – the Association of Southeast Asian Nations – and to name a member nation. “I could not tell you the exact amount of nations in that, but I know we have allies in South Korea, in Japan, and in AUKUS, in Australia where we are trying to work on submarines with them,” he replied to Senator Tammy Duckworth’s question - SCMP
The most extreme level of a red flag fire warning, a “particularly dangerous situation,” returned to parts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties Wednesday morning, heightening concerns about the potential for new fires to start. The period of highest risk was expected to begin just before sunrise through midday. Mountain wind gusts were expected to rise to 45 mph to 55 mph, with local gusts up to to 60 mph, according to the National Weather Service office in Oxnard. Forecasters expect Wednesday will be noticeably windier than Tuesday - LA Times
Former Georgian Prime Minister and opposition party leader Giorgia Gakharia has been treated in hospital after he came under attack at a hotel, reportedly by members of the ruling Georgian Dream party. Gakharia is said to have suffered a broken nose in the incident in Batumi on the Black Sea coast. His party said it was "politically motivated" and aimed at intimidating the opposition. The southern Caucasus state has seen political turmoil and repeated attacks on opposition figures and protesters in the months since Georgia's contested elections in late October. Protests have taken place every night since Georgian Dream's leaders announced a month later they were freezing the issue of opening talks on joining the European Union - BBC
It’s bad news for TikTok users in the U.S.—the app’s parent company ByteDance is gearing up to shut off access to the social media platform nationwide “immediately” on Sunday, Jan. 19, when a federal ban is set to take effect, The Information reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Unless the Supreme Court blocks the federal ban, users will be unable to open the app on Sunday and instead will be redirected to a website with information about the shutdown. Users will also be able to download their personal data, The Information reported. Congress passed a bill last year stating that ByteDance must sell TikTok by Jan. 19 or comply with a nationwide ban. The looming closure has led some TikTokers to look for alternative apps. Many have already moved to the Chinese app Xiaohongshu, or Red Note, where censorship rules have allegedly led to scores being banned
There’s little reason to expect the global tourism tide to recede by summer 2025, which could shape up to be as chaotic and saturated as the 2024 season. In Spain, tourism was projected to grow by 5% in 2024 — that’s more than double the rate for the overall economy – with more than 90 million visits expected from overseas tourists. Meanwhile, milestone year-long events in Amsterdam and Rome — the 750th anniversary and the Catholic Jubilee celebration, respectively — will undoubtedly bring more visitors to these already crowded capitals (a projected 35 million in Rome alone) - CNN
The beleaguered coffee chain, Starbucks, is rolling out a jaw dropping, strict code of conduct at its locations across North America. It will no longer let people hang out around the cafes or use the bathroom without making a purchase. The new chain policies also include adding signs banning harassment, violence, threatening language, outside alcohol, smoking and panhandling in its stores. It remains to be seen how the policy will be enforced, given that most of its outlets are woefully understaffed. Also questionable is the consumer reaction to what’s best described as a reactionary or impulsive response to sagging foot traffic.
