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In an increase in threats against the Jewish community that authorities referred to as terrorism, Australian police announced on Wednesday that they had stopped a planned antisemitic attack after finding a caravan filled with explosives. According to New South Wales Deputy Police Commissioner David Hudson, the caravan was found on January 19 in the district of Dural, around 36 kilometers (22 miles) northwest of Sydney's downtown, he said at a press conference. He said at a press conference that the caravan had a number of bombs and there were signs that they would be utilized in an antisemitic assault. He said that the Jewish community was no longer under danger because the threat had been completely eliminated. Hudson stated that there had been arrests, but he did not specify the number o...

After his Russian counterpart declined to hold peace talks with him and once again questioned his legitimacy, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Vladimir Putin of being reluctant to negotiate. President Donald Trump's increasing pressure on both sides to end the war coincided with the most recent exchange between the two leaders. Last week, Trump threatened to impose additional penalties on Moscow, claiming that Zelenskyy was willing to engage in negotiations to put an end to the nearly three-year-old conflict. In a late-Tuesday post on X, Zelenskyy said that Putin had once again reaffirmed his fear of strong leaders, his fear of discussions, and his determination to keep the war going. After Putin told state TV Rossiya 1 that the Ukrainian leader is illegitimate and therefore...

As they bounce back from pandemic-related setbacks, South Carolina schoolchildren continue to show incredible perseverance. WEST COLUMBIA, S.C. — The most recent findings from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also referred to as the Nation's Report Card, show that South Carolina children are still exhibiting exceptional resilience as they bounce back from pandemic-related setbacks. Fourth-graders in South Carolina are surpassing their national counterparts in reading and math, while the state's economically disadvantaged pupils are making significant strides in critical subjects, defying the national pattern of losses. State Superintendent Ellen Weaver remarked, "These outcomes are a testament to the dedication and perseverance of our students, educators, and familie...

Due to ongoing concerns about the kidnapping of actor Wang Xing, Chinese tourists are canceling their plans to visit Thailand over the Lunar New Year holiday. The marketing firm China Trading Desk reports that following the announcement of Wang's rescue from a scammer compound along the Thai-Myanmar border this month, net booking volume for travel to Thailand dropped 15.6% from January 13 to January 20 compared to the previous week. Data from the aviation analytics firm VariFlight indicates that Chinese tourists also canceled vacation vacations to Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia, albeit to a smaller extent, indicating that the repercussions is also reaching other Southeast Asian nations, according to Subramania Bhatt, CEO of the company. More from CNBC: Google reclassi...

Brittney Griner's 11-year stint with the Phoenix Mercury will come to an end when she signs with the Atlanta Dream. Griner's agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, confirmed to The Associated Press that the star center would sign a one-year contract with Atlanta after Griner made the announcement in a video posted to Instagram on Tuesday night. To be honest, free agency has been all I hoped it would be. In the video, Griner stated, "I was able to find where I wanted to go." To be honest, it was the players and the team that eventually influenced my choice. My family, too. I'm quite excited about this chapter. WNBA free agents have until February 1st to sign contracts. Since being selected first overall in the 2013 draft, the 6-foot-9 Griner had played her whole career with Phoenix. This offseason, ...

Confusion and legal issues surround the Trump administration's directive to stop federal financing. A Senate confirmation hearing is scheduled for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Additionally, the Year of the Snake officially begins today. What to know today is as follows. Trump s efforts to withhold federal funding sets up a constitutional showdown A buyout offer for some 2 million federal employees and an order to stop federal funding this week brought President Donald Trump's goal of reducing government spending into greater focus. With a few exceptions, all full-time federal employees are eligible for benefits and salary through the end of September under the Trump administration's offer. According to a senior administration official, they anticipate that between 5 and 10% of the workforc...

HONOLULU About a year after the deadliest U.S. wildfire in a century destroyed Lahaina in 2023, Hawaii Governor Josh Green announced a $4 billion settlement, highlighting the deal's haste to avoid drawn-out and agonizing legal proceedings. But five months later, as a court determines how to split the payout, a unique trial that begins Wednesday will explore challenging issues regarding survivors' losses. While some victims will testify in person, others have provided pre-recorded statements detailing their agony, which has been heightened by the recent devastation in Los Angeles. Fault will not be established by the trial. Large landowners, the state, and Hawaiian Electric, one of the defendants held responsible for the fire, have already consented to the settlement sum. The amount of mo...

As tens of millions gathered to take a sacred dip on the most auspicious day of the six-week Hindu festival, a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India on Wednesday resulted in at least seven fatalities and approximately ten injuries, according to an official. According to Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh state, which is home to the festival city of Prayagraj, the rush happened between 1 and 2 a.m. (2:30 and 3:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday) close to the ascetics' arena, where barricades had been erected to control people during their holy plunge. In a post on X, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his sympathies to followers who have lost loved ones, but he did not say how many people had died. According to him, the local government is working to assist the victims ...

When Fed policymakers conclude their first policy meeting of the second Trump administration on Tuesday, they are likely to leave interest rates unchanged. President Donald Trump, who has pushed the central bank to decrease interest rates, would probably be irritated by that. Trump made broad statements during a videoconference last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, saying, "I'll demand that interest rates drop immediately." Similarly, they ought to be dropping everywhere. Interest rates ought to track us everywhere. The comments continued Trump's practice of making his monetary policy opinions public, which American presidents have typically shied away from in order to preserve the Fed's independence from politics. In follow-up remarks following his Davos speech, he...

Immigration enforcement actions have begun to spread throughout major U.S. cities since President Donald Trump returned to office. According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), 956 persons were taken into custody on Sunday. However, according to an NBC News report, immigration officials made around 1,200 arrests that day, but only 613 of them—or roughly 52%—were classified as criminal arrests. The remaining individuals seemed to be either nonviolent criminals or those who had only crossed the border illegally. Being undocumented is not a criminal; rather, it is a civil offense. The following day, the number of arrests increased once further, according to the agency, which reported that 1,179 arrests and 853 detainers were made on Monday. There has been worry that law-abiding...