The Headlines - Gazans Trek Home, and Trump's Tariff Spat With Colombia

Episode Date: January 27, 2025

Plus, a Super Bowl three-peat?   On Today’s Episode:Gaza and Lebanon Truces Are Fragile, but All Sides May Keep Them Going, by Patrick KingsleyColombia Agrees to Accept Deportation Flights After Trump Threatens Tariffs, by Genevieve Glatsky, Simon Romero and Annie CorrealAt Auschwitz, a Solemn Ceremony at a Time of Rising Nationalism, by Andrew HigginsSouthern California Rainstorms Raise Risks of Mudslides, by Tim BalkSuper Bowl LIX Projections: Chiefs Meet Eagles in Rematch, by Jeff Howe and Austin Mock Tune in every weekday morning. To get our full audio journalism and storytelling experience, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter.Tell us what you think at: [e-mail]. 

From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today is Monday, January 27th. Here's what we're covering. In Gaza this morning, tens of thousands of Palestinians have set out on foot, walking back toward their homes in the northern part of the Strip. They're walking along the coastal road, steps from the beach, with bags, mattresses, anything they can carry on their backs.

It's the first time in 16 months that Israel has allowed people to go back to the north after forcing them to evacuate. Their return was part of Israel's ongoing ceasefire deal with Hamas, but it wasn't clear what actually happen. The whole agreement nearly fell apart this weekend. Israel and Hamas both accused each other of reneging on it. The dispute centered on one hostage, Arbel Yehud, the last female civilian in captivity who's thought to be alive. Hamas was expected to release her Saturday. Instead, they released four other hostages. Israel,

in response, held off on letting anyone go north. Just after midnight, they came to an agreement though. Yehud is expected to be released this week, and Israel is now allowing those who've been displaced to start the journey back. Meanwhile, in Lebanon, Israel's truce with Hezbollah was also pushed to the limit this weekend. Israeli troops opened fire as thousands of displaced people there poured onto the roads to try and return home. The Israeli military said it was firing warning shots. At least 22 people were killed and more than 120 injured, according to Lebanon's health ministry. Despite the violence, the White House issued a statement saying the truce between Hezbollah and Israel will continue, though neither Israel nor Hezbollah have confirmed

that publicly. President Trump and the President of Colombia got into a furious back and forth yesterday as they clashed over deportation flights. Two U.S. military cargo planes carrying deported Colombians were in the air when Colombian officials refused to let them land, forcing the planes to turn around and fly back to the U.S. In a series of posts on social media, President Gustavo Petro said he would only accept deported

Colombians if they were treated with dignity and respect and said they should be transported on passenger jets, not military aircraft. That kicked off what was basically an hours-long trade war with Trump and then Petro announcing 25 percent tariffs on each other's countries. Trump also announced financial sanctions and a travel ban on Colombian government officials. One foreign policy expert told the Times it was a bold and daring escalation on both sides, given that the U.S. and Colombia have historically been strong allies. By the end of the day, Colombia backed down and the White House took a victory lap, saying

in a statement that it was, quote, clear to the world that America is respected again. The clash may serve as an example to other countries across South and Central America of the consequences they could face if they try to push back against Trump's deportation plans. Today marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the Nazi death camp in Poland where more than a million people, mostly Jews, were killed during World War II. Dozens of world leaders will attend the ceremony, which will take place near a former gas chamber. And survivors of the camp will lay wreaths. Fewer than 50 of them will be there today, a number that's shrinking each year.

I spoke to the president of the World Jewish Congress and he said this year's anniversary was probably the most important because the number of survivors of Auschwitz is dwindling rapidly due to old age and also because of what is happening in the world today, particularly the rise of extreme nationalism accompanied by anti-Semitism. My colleague Andrew Higgins is covering the ceremony. Around Europe, we see a rise of nationalism, sometimes extreme forms of nationalism. And the most disturbing and prominent example of that is Germany, where alternative for Germany, a party that wants to do mass deportation of foreigners

and sometimes echoes almost Nazi-era propaganda, is doing very well in the polls ahead of an election less than a month away now. I mean, they're not going to win the election, but they could get 20% of the vote. Just this weekend, AFD held a rally in eastern Germany. Fight for a great future for Germany. Fight for a great future for Germany. Go, go, go. And Elon Musk spoke by video link and told Germans that they should not feel guilty for the Nazi-era crimes of their grandparents. I think there's frankly too much of a focus on past guilt and we need to move beyond that. And this alarm was the Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk who said that this sounded all too

familiar and ominous, especially only hours before the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. I think that, you know, the rise of extremism and extremist nationalist parties in Europe is one of the reasons why there will be such a big turnout by world leaders today. They're there because they want to show that in their view there should be no place in Europe today for the rhetoric of extreme nationalism, which obviously is what led to Auschwitz in the 1940s. In Southern California, a rainstorm finally broke the dry spell that had fueled the recent wildfires. But the National Weather Service is warning the rain could lead to significant mudslides, especially in areas scarred by the fires.

The charred dirt essentially acts like slick pavement. The rain just runs off of it. And the resulting rush of water can cut through the landscape, uprooting trees and dislodging anything else in its path. There's a flood watch in effect in Los Angeles County until this afternoon. And finally, get your jerseys, get your guacamole. The Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles will face off next month in Super Bowl 59.

The teams clinched their spots for football's biggest game yesterday, setting up a repeat of the 2023 Super Bowl, which Kansas City won. If the Chiefs pull it off again, they will make NFL history, becoming the first team ever to win three straight Super Bowls. But to do that, they will have to beat a team that breaks the mold of modern NFL strategy. But to do that, they will have to beat a team that breaks the mold of modern NFL strategy. Most teams rely on passing the ball to drive down the field and score. The Eagles largely run it. The big game is in New Orleans this year on February 9th. For people who don't care how they get the ball down the field,

the halftime show is Kendrick Lamar. Those are the headlines. Today on The Daily, a look at Stephen Miller, one of Trump's most influential policy advisors, and the man behind his immigration policy. That's next in the New York Times audio app, where you can listen wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Tracy Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow.