Pope Francis fell Thursday and hurt his arm, the Vatican said, just weeks after another apparent fall resulted in a bad bruise on his chin. Francis didn’t break his arm but that a sling was put on as a precaution, the Vatican spokesman said in a statement On Dec. 7, the pope whacked his chin on his nightstand in an apparent fall that resulted in a bad bruise. The 88-year-old pope has battled health problems and often has to use a wheelchair.

Negotiations between Israel and Hamas hit a last-minute snag on Wednesday, delaying the expected announcement of a ceasefire agreement to pause the devastating 15-month war in the Gaza Strip. Israel accused Hamas of trying to make changes to already agreed upon arrangements along Gaza’s border with Egypt and said it strongly rejected the move. Hamas called the claims “nonsense.” The finger-pointing forced Qatar, which has been mediating weeks of painstaking negotiations, to delay an expected announcement of a deal. The sides have been working on a phased agreement that would include the

Incoming U.S. President Donald Trump is moving forward with plans to implement tariffs and create a new federal agency called the External Revenue Service. This agency will handle the collection of tariffs, duties, and revenues from foreign sources. The agency is being established to address issues such as trade imbalances, illegal immigration, and drug trafficking. It is expected to put pressure on countries like Canada, Mexico, and China. Trump also plans to increase tariffs on products from multiple nations, including China, and may soon announce further hikes on goods imported from other

A wildfire in Los Angeles has claimed 25 lives, with about 30 people still missing. Authorities have arrested 50 individuals in the affected areas on charges including robbery, flying drones in fire zones, and curfew violations. The fire has been largely contained, except in Palisades and Eaton. However, the National Weather Service has issued red flag warnings for parts of Los Angeles and Ventura on Wednesday due to the risk of strong winds. While the winds are not expected to be as severe as last week, officials remain on alert. Over 12,000 buildings have been destroyed, and the fire has bu

Vancouver-born actor Joshua Jackson’s house was reduced to ashes in a Los Angeles fire. His home was destroyed in the Palisades fire, one of the four largest fires that broke out last week. So far, more than 20 people have died, and over 12,000 homes have been destroyed by the fire. Vancouver-born actress Cobie Smulders also lost her home in the blaze. Many prominent celebrities, including Paris Hilton and Billy Crystal, have lost their homes in the Los Angeles wildfires. Firefighters are still struggling to control the flames, with the fires burning in Eaton and Palisades being described a

A ban on TikTok in the US may take effect by the end of next week. President Biden signed a law in April of last year due to privacy concerns and gave TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, until January 19 to either sell its stake in its US business or face a ban. If the ban is implemented, TikTok will be removed from the App Store in the US. This would affect approximately 170 million US users. While people may still have the app on their phones, without updates, it will degrade over time, and the company may block users from accessing the app before that happens.

US President Joe Biden gave his final speech on foreign policy in Washington on Monday, stating that China will never be able to surpass America. In his address, Biden defended his decision to end the war in Afghanistan. He noted that while experts once predicted China's economy would surpass that of the US, current assessments suggest that the path China is on will prevent it from ever surpassing America. Biden discussed a range of issues in his speech, including the Russia-Ukraine war, the Gaza conflict, China, and Iran. However, throughout the speech, Biden did not mention former President

Firefighters scrambled Sunday to make further progress against wildfires that have destroyed thousands of homes and killed 24 people in the Los Angeles area as forecasters again warned of dangerous weather with the return of strong winds this week. At least 16 people were missing, and authorities said that number was expected to rise. 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, said weather service meteorol

A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.9 has hit southwestern Japan, the country's Meteorological Agency said Monday. Tsunami warnings were issued for Miyazaki Prefecture, where the temblor was centered, in the southwestern island of Kyushu, as well as nearby Kochi Prefecture, shortly after the quake struck at 9:19 p.m. local time, according to the agency. The extent of damage was not immediately clear. Japan is frequently hit by earthquakes because of its location along the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.