A devastating fire at the Grand Kartal Hotel in Kartalkaya, a ski resort in Turkey’s Bolu province, claimed 10 lives and left 32 others hospitalised early Tuesday. The blaze began around 3:30 a.m. in the hotel’s restaurant, spreading quickly due to its wooden chalet-style cladding. Panic ensued as guests tried to escape, with two victims tragically jumping from windows. Some used sheets and blankets to climb down from the 12-storey building. The hotel was near full capacity, hosting 234 guests during the busy school holiday period. Efforts to contain the flames were hindered by the hotel’s cliffside location. A massive emergency response, including 30 fire trucks and 28 ambulances, worked to manage the situation. Nearby hotels were evacuated as a precaution, with displaced guests relocated. Authorities have appointed six prosecutors to investigate the cause of the fire. Kartalkaya, located 300 kilometres east of Istanbul, is a popular winter destination in the Koroglu mountains.

The United Hearts Movement (MCU), the ruling party of Central African President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, has entered into a cooperation agreement with United Russia, the political party of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The agreement, signed remotely on Monday, symbolizes the growing partnership between Bangui and Moscow.

President Touadéra had just returned from a three-day official visit to Russia when the announcement was made.

From Moscow, Andrei Klimov, a senior member of United Russia and a Russian senator under Western sanctions for his support of the Ukraine invasion, represented the Russian side.

In Bangui, Simplice Mathieu Sarandji, a longtime ally of President Touadéra, served as the Central African representative. Sarandji, who is also the president of the National Assembly and the MCU’s executive secretary, signed the document with a ceremonial scarf featuring the president’s image draped over his shoulders.

Russian officials, including Ambassador Alexandre Bikantov, Consul Vladislav Ilin, and Dimitri Sityi, director of the Russian House in Bangui, witnessed the signing. Sityi is a key figure in Wagner Group’s local operations, overseeing economic and informational activities.

The Russian Embassy described the agreement as a step toward “new horizons” in cooperation which aims to deepen ties between the two parties through joint projects and legislative exchanges.

The timing of the agreement is significant. It follows President Touadéra’s Moscow visit and coincides with the early mobilization of his political supporters ahead of the presidential election scheduled for the end of the year.

Meanwhile, critics of the government have raised concerns about the implications of the deal. Opposition leader Crépin Mboli-Goumba expressed alarm, stating, “The MCU wants to mimic United Russia—sprawling, oppressive, blending with state institutions and the judiciary, and silencing any dissent.”

This partnership highlights the increasingly close relationship between the Central African Republic and Russia, raising questions about its impact on the country’s political landscape and sovereignty.

Donald Trump was sworn in as America’s 47th president on Monday, after surviving impeachments, criminal indictments and two assassination attempts.

He got to work quickly after the ceremony, after announcing his plans to sign a slew of executive orders

Addressing supporters, he pledged to change the country for the better.

“The golden age of America begins right now. From this day forward our country will flourish and be respected again all over the world,” Trump said.

Among the orders he has pledged to sign are implementing a mass deportation programme, ending birthright citizenship, ramping up oil drilling in the country, and hiking tariffs for Canada, Mexico and China.

Due to cold weather, Trump’s ceremony was moved indoors to the Capitol Rotunda, the first time that has happened in four decades.

Shouts, flags and jubilant crowds.

This is how 90 Palestinian prisoners were greeted in the West Bank city of Beitunia after being released from an Israeli prison early on Monday.

There were fireworks and whistles, and shouts of “God is great.”

The release is part of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas following 15 months of war.

Having started at 11:15 a.m. local time, it is the first step toward ultimately ending the conflict, although the truce is still fragile.

Although the release took place after 1am, huge crowds thronged the buses after departing from the prison.

Relatives hugged the released and celebrated their return.

Over the next six weeks, it is expected that Israel will release another 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and Palestinians detained in Gaza, in exchange for the return of 33 Israeli hostages held captive in the Gaza strip.

On Sunday afternoon, Hamas released the first three Israeli hostages.

The three hostages are Romi Gonen, 24, kidnapped from the Nova music festival, Emily Damari, 28, and Doron Steinbrecher, 31, kidnapped from Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

According to footage from the Israeli military, the three women were handed over to the Red Cross and greeted by military personnel, before being taken for medical assessment.

Around 100 hostages remain in Gaza.

It is believed that 60 are still alive.

The Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel killed some 1,200 people and left some 250 others captive.

Israel responded with an offensive that has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials.

With Donald Trump having taken office for his second term as President of the United States on Monday, the Uk’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he “looks forward” to working with Donald Trump over the next four years

Lammy said: “We have a special relationship with the United States. It doesn’t matter who’s in the White House or number ten. And we look forward to working with Donald Trump over the next four years.”

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer congratulated Trump ahead of the inauguration and equally underlined the “special relationship” between the US and the UK in his statement.

His party, the Labour party, previously had some tensions with the previous Trump administration, and several challenges lie ahead, notably in the form of Trump’s threat of imposing trade tariffs.

Lammy suggested that Starmer could visit Trump in Washington within weeks.

The Republican became the 47th president of the US on Monday, overcoming impeachments, criminal indictments and a pair of assassination attempts.

The price of bitcoin surged to over $109,000 early Monday, just hours ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, as a pumped-up cryptocurrency industry bets he’ll take action soon after returning to the White House.

Once a sceptic who said a few years ago that Bitcoin “ seems like a scam,” Trump has embraced digital currencies with a convert’s zeal. He’s launched a new cryptocurrency venture and vowed on the campaign trail to take steps early in his presidency to make the U.S. into the “crypto capital” of the world.

His promises included creating a U.S. crypto stockpile, enacting industry-friendly regulation and event appointing a crypto “czar” for his administration.

“You’re going to be very happy with me,” Trump told crypto-enthusiasts at a Bitcoin conference last summer.

Bitcoin is the world’s most popular cryptocurrency and was created in 2009 as a kind of electronic cash uncontrolled by banks or governments. It and newer forms of cryptocurrencies have moved from the financial fringes to the mainstream in wild fits and starts.

The highly volatile nature of cryptocurrencies as well as their use by criminals, scammers and rogue nations, has attracted plenty of critics, who say the digital currencies have limited utility and often are just Ponzi schemes.

But crypto has so far defied naysayers and survived multiple prolonged price drops in its short lifespan. Wealthy players in the crypto industry, which felt unfairly targeted by the Biden administration, spent heavily to help Trump win November’s election. Bitcoin has surged in price since Trump’s victory, topping $100,000 for the first time last month before briefly sliding down to about $90,000. On Friday, it rose about 5%. It jumped more than $9,000 early Monday, according to CoinDesk.

Two years ago, bitcoin was trading at about $20,000.

Trump’s picks for key cabinet and regulatory positions are stocked with crypto supporters, including his choice to lead the Treasury and Commerce departments and the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Key industry players held a first-ever “Crypto Ball” on Friday to celebrate the first “crypto president.” The event was sold out, with tickets costing several thousand dollars.

Here’s a look at some detailed actions Trump might take in the early days of his administration:

CRYPTO COUNCIL

As a candidate, Trump promised that he would create a special advisory council to provide guidance on creating “clear” and “straightforward” regulations on crypto within the first 100 days of his presidency.

Details about the council and its membership are still unclear, but after winning November’s election, Trump named tech executive and venture capitalist David Sacks to be the administration’s crypto “czar.” Trump also announced in late December that former North Carolina congressional candidate Bo Hines will be the executive director of the “Presidential Council of Advisers for Digital Assets.”

At last year’s Bitcoin conference, Trump told crypto supporters that new regulations “will be written by people who love your industry, not hate your industry.” Trump’s pick to lead the SEC, Paul Atkins, has been a strong advocate for cryptocurrencies.

Crypto investors and companies chafed as what they said was a hostile Biden administration that went overboard in unfair enforcement actions and accounting policies that have stifled innovation in the industry — particularly at the hands of outgoing SEC Chairman Gary Gensler.

“As far as general expectations from the Trump Administration, I think one of the best things to bet on is a tone change at the SEC,” said Peter Van Valkenburgh, the executive director of the advocacy group Coin Center.

Gensler, who is set to leave as Trump takes office, said in a recent interview with Bloomberg that he’s proud of his office’s actions to police the crypto industry, which he said is “rife with bad actors.”

STRATEGIC BITCOIN RESERVE

Trump also promised that as president he’ll ensure the U.S. government stockpiles bitcoin, much like it already does with gold. At the Bitcoin conference earlier this summer, Trump said it the U.S. government would keep, rather than auction off, the billions of dollars in Bitcoin it has seized through law enforcement actions.

Crypto advocates have posted a draft executive order online that would establish a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve” as a “permanent national asset” to be administered by the Treasury Department through its Exchange Stabilization Fund. The draft order calls for the Treasury Department to eventually hold at least $21 billion in bitcoin.

Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming has proposed legislation mandating the U.S. government stockpile bitcoin, which advocates said would help diversify government holdings and hedge against financial risks. Critics say Bitcoin’s volatility makes it a poor choice as a reserve asset.

Creating such a stockpile would also be a “giant step in the direction of Bitcoin becoming normalized, becoming legitimatized in the eyes of people who don’t yet see it as legitimate,” said Zack Shapiro, an attorney who is head of policy at the Bitcoin Policy Institute.

ROSS ULBRICHT

At the Bitcoin conference earlier this year, Trump received loud cheers when he reiterated a promise to commute the life sentence of Ross Ulbricht, the convicted founder of the drug-selling website Silk Road that used crypto for payments.

Ulbricht’s case has energized some crypto advocates and Libertarian activists, who believe government investigators overreached in building their case against Silk Road.

Tanzania’s ruling party has nominated Samia Suluhu Hassan as its candidate for president, ahead of the country’s general elections in October.

Hassan has called for unity ahead of the vote, stating “I urge all to maintain our unity as we go to the elections. The polls can seriously divide us but I believe we will remain united now that we have candidates.”

The 64 year old took office in 2021 following the sudden death of John Magufuli, who was accused of curbing certain freedoms and stamping out dissent.

Initially, she was hailed for easing restrictions Magufuli had implemented on the opposition and media.

However rights groups and Western governments have since denounced what they view as renewed repression of the opposition.

Politicians from the main opposition Chadema party have been detained, and a series of opposition figures have been abducted and murdered.

The Chadema party is yet to select its candidate for president.

Last year, the party threatened to boycott elections if reforms to the electoral system had not been put in place.

That long-standing request has been repeatedly ignored by Hassan’s party.

Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, on Friday to formalize a significant agreement between Moscow and Tehran.

According to the Kremlin, this “comprehensive strategic partnership” aims to elevate the collaboration between the two nations to unprecedented heights.

As detailed by the Iranian embassy in Russia via Telegram last week, this pact focuses on “economic and commercial cooperation in the fields of energy, environment, and defense and security issues.”

While the specifics of the agreement remain somewhat vague, it is noteworthy that Moscow had previously established a treaty with North Korea under the same title in 2024.

Their existing relationship is based on a document from 2001, which they have updated at regular intervals.

Russia asserts that its forthcoming agreement with Iran, along with the already established treaty with Pyongyang, is “not aimed at any nation.”

“The treaty … is of a constructive nature and seeks to enhance the capabilities of Russia, Iran, and our allies across different regions of the globe,” stated Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday.

The treaty is set to be valid for 20 years, Russia’s TASS news agency reported on Tuesday, citing the Iranian ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made building ties with Iran, China and North Korea a cornerstone of his foreign policy as he seeks to challenge what he calls as a US-led “global hegemony”.

Both Russia and Iran are under heavy Western sanctions that include restrictions on their vital energy industries.

At a summit of the BRICS group in Kazan last year, Putin told Pezeshkian he valued “truly friendly and constructive ties” between Russia and Iran.

Iran has also sought closer ties with Russia, after suffering a series of foreign policy setbacks last year.

Historically, Russia and Iran have had a tumultuous relationship, marked by conflicts in the 18th and 19th centuries, during which the Russian Empire seized extensive territories in the Caucasus and Caspian regions from Persian rulers.

In the early 20th century, Russian forces occupied significant portions of northern Iran, but their presence ended with the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution.

The Soviet Union, alongside Britain, invaded Iran during World War II, an event that still stirs painful memories in Tehran.

During the Cold War, tensions escalated as Tehran aligned with the U.S. under the Shah.

Following his overthrow in the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini condemned the U.S. as the “Great Satan” and labeled the USSR as the “Lesser Satan.”

However, relations between Russia and Iran began to improve after the dissolution of the USSR in 1991.

Moscow emerged as a vital trade partner and a major supplier of weapons and advanced technologies to Iran, which was grappling with the effects of extensive international sanctions.

Erling Haaland has officially extended his contract with Manchester City for an impressive seven more years.

This means the 24 year old Norwegian striker who has scored 111 goals in 125 games since joining the club from Borussia Dortmund in 2022 will remain with the reigning Premier League champions until June 2034.

The new deal for Haaland comes as City awaits a verdict after being charged with 115 breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules.

This move is a significant statement from City, especially considering that Haaland had been on Real Madrid’s radar for quite some time.

This new agreement eliminates any potential release clauses that were included in his previous contract.

The Norway striker will be age 34 when the contract expires.

With this long-term deal, Manchester City sends a strong message to their rivals in the transfer market.

While Real Madrid had been envisioning a future with Haaland, the English champions have secured the talented forward’s services for the foreseeable future.

The Athletic confirms that this new agreement eliminates any potential release clauses that were included in his previous contract.

Sierra Leone has recalled its ambassador to Guinea after a vehicle belonging to the country’s embassy was found with seven suitcases containing suspected cocaine.

Guinea’s authorities impounded the vehicle on Monday and detained its occupants, suspecting them of trafficking drugs.

According to Sierra Leone’s Foreign Minister, Alhaji Musa Timothy Kabba, Ambassador Alimamy Bangura, who was not present in the vehicle, has been called back to Freetown to clarify the situation.

Kabba emphasized that the ambassador is not under investigation for involvement in the trafficking. He also confirmed that $2,000 in cash was found along with the drugs, although the exact weight of the cocaine has not been disclosed.

The two nations are cooperating on a thorough investigation, with Sierra Leone pledging to ensure accountability for anyone found breaking drug trafficking laws.

The discovery comes as West Africa remains a key transit zone for cocaine trafficking from Latin America to Europe. The region is grappling with increasing local drug abuse, with Sierra Leone’s president declaring drug misuse a national emergency last year.