What's going on: In a long-awaited breakthrough, Israel and Hamas reached an agreement to pause fighting and exchange Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. President Donald Trump, who helped facilitate the deal and plans to visit the region soon, announced on social media yesterday that both sides agreed to the first phase of his plan. In addition to the prisoner-hostage exchange, Israel would pull back its troops to an agreed-upon line. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he spoke with Trump and will meet with his government today to approve the agreement, calling it a “great day for Israel.” While details of the deal are still unclear, Hamas is expected torelease all 20 living hostages and the remains of 25 others in the coming days.
What it means: It’s still unclear whether the deal will help end more than two years of war, which began after Hamas militants killed roughly 1,200 people in Israel on Oct 7, 2023. Since then, more than 67,000 Palestinians — civilians and militants — have been killed in the war, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Qatar, which helped with negotiations, and Hamas indicated separately that the agreement would allow much-needed aid to enter Gaza. In the meantime, both Israel and Hamas will have to decide some sticking points, including Gaza’s future governing structure. For now, many hope the first phase of the deal holds and can lead to long-lasting peace.
What's going on: Federal authorities arrested a suspect in Florida for allegedly lighting a New Year’s Day blaze that became the Palisades Fire — reducing neighborhoods to ash and killing a dozen people. Prosecutors say 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht, an Uber driver and former Palisades resident, dropped off a passenger, drove to a trailhead, and used an open flame to start the blaze. A federal prosecutor called him “singularly focused” on fire, saying Rinderknecht watched a music video featuring burning objects and used ChatGPT to generate an image of a burning city before the incident. Rinderknecht faces up to 20 years in prison if he’s found guilty on a federal charge.
What it means: Strong, erratic winds that day helped the Palisades blaze spread fast — one of several fires that tore through LA, including the Eaton Fire in nearby Altadena, which leveled neighborhoods. State officials say both rank among the most destructive in California’s history. Rebuilding has since turned political: President Donald Trump accused Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) of trying to use rebuilding efforts to add low-income housing in the Palisades — a claim Newsom called “a straight-up lie.” For many still recovering from the fires, the arrest brings a rare sense of accountability and a small step toward moving on.
What's going on: Many workers agree — CEOs can feel like a different species. They talk about “synergy,” lay off employees in bulk, and make more than some departments combined. But lately, this elusive corporate creature has been evolving. A small but growing number of companies are naming co-CEOs — two people sharing the job, the power, and presumably one corner office. Spotify, Comcast, and Oracle have all recently announced pairs of men to take the helm (if only one of them picked a woman, she could probably handle the work of both). The title’s still fairly rare — only about 1% of the 3,000 largest public companies have two chief execs, but market watchers say more boards may soon decide that two heads really are better than one.
What it means: Boards that appoint co-CEOs say they like having double the brainpower. They also claim complementary skill sets make the partnership stronger — say, one’s the “vision guy” and the other’s the “execution guy.” And the data seems to back them up: One study found that companies with co-CEOs delivered higher returns and performed better on average than those with just one. Others say it’s simply smart to spread risk — don’t put all your eggs in one Patagonia vest, and all that. But there is a downside: sharing the top job can naturally lead to power struggles (Exhibit A: the drama at Selena Gomez’s mental health media startup Wondermind). That’s why some companies that try it eventually retreat to one CEO — because at the top of the corporate ladder, there’s only room for one ego.
