The World This Hour - The World This Hour for 2026/01/02 at 19:00 EST

Episode Date: January 3, 2026

The World This Hour for 2026/01/02 at 19:00 EST

This ascent isn't for everyone. You need grit to climb this high this often. You've got to be an underdog that always over-delivers. You've got to be 6,500 hospital staff, 1,000 doctors, all doing so much with so little. You've got to be Scarborough. Defined by our uphill battle and always striving towards new heights. And you can help us keep climbing.

Donate at lovescarbro.cairbo. from cbic news the world this hour i'm kate mcgilfrey the fire that killed 40 people in switzerland was likely started by sparklers attached to champagne bottles that fatal fire tore through a ski resort bar on new year's eve injuring nearly 120 people many of them critically john northcott reports for the first time we're getting a true sense of the breadth of countries affected by this tragedy. 71 of the victims are from Switzerland, but there are many from France, Italy, as well as Serbia, Bosnia, Poland, and Luxembourg. One woman at the scene is pleading for anyone who may have seen her son.

If you've seen him in hospitals or at the morgue, she says, please contact me. I don't know how severe his burns are or if he's recognizable. All I want is my son. We're also getting some greater clarity as to the cause of the fire, with officials saying what eyewitnesses have been saying all along that large lit sparklers in champagne bottles being carried through the club got too close to the ceiling, setting off a fire that spread rapidly. John Northcott, CBC News, London. The UN Secretary-General says he is deeply concerned by Israel's move

to ban dozens of aid groups from Gaza in the New Year. In a statement on Friday, Antonio Gutierrez, called for the measures to be reversed. Via a spokesperson, he said the move will exacerbate the humanitarian crisis already playing out for Palestinians. Israel says the band groups failed to comply with new registration rules, which aimed to prevent Hamas from infiltrating aid organizations. Officials in North Carolina say they've foiled a terrorist plot inspired by ISIS.

He was preparing for jihad and innocent people were going to die. U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson says the 18-year-old suspect had been radicalized online. They say he planned an attack on a grocery store and a fast food restaurant. Ferguson says the suspect then shared his plans with two FBI agents who he believed were ISIS operatives. He said he was going to wear a Kevlar vest and attack people with knives and hammers. And of course he talked about when he was going to carry out this attack, which was New Year's Eve. The suspect was arrested on Wednesday and was charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terror organization.

Tesla has lost the crown as the world's best-selling electric vehicle maker. The biggest EV producer is now China's B.Y.D. Tesla's sales dropped 9% last year compared to the year before. That declines being chalked up to expiring tax breaks, stiff competition, and customers turned off by Elon Musk's right-wing politics. Musk had earlier dismissed those softening numbers. He says Tesla's future lies with other ventures, like energy storage and robots. Venezuela's president appears to be offered.

offering an olive branch to the U.S. government. If you want to conversar seriamente, del an accord of combat contrafico, we're ready. Nicholas Maduro says Venezuela's ready to have serious talks about combating drug trafficking. For months, the Trump administration has been attacking alleged drug boats

in the Caribbean in a pressure campaign. Maduro insists his government is friendly to the U.S., adding that the country's ready to accept American investment in Venezuelan oil. And as the New Year, begins, Canadians will have to adjust to a few very minor tax changes. Peter Zemaniich has the details. When I talk to my colleagues in the tax community, it's for individuals like you and me. It is a snooze fest.

That was Daniel Rogazinsky, a tax expert with the University of Waterloo. He says in 26, there will be only minor tax changes for individuals. The most significant, a 1% cut to the lowest rate of taxation. It will save a two-income family about $800 annually. As well, eligible personal support workers will be able to claim a new refundable tax credit worth up to $1,100 a year. And there is an increase in the lifetime capital gains exemption from just over $1 million to $1.25 million on the sale of eligible shares, farms, or fishing property. I mean, that's a big incentive for people to go out and start businesses and create jobs. Peter Zamagnetsch, CBC News, Ottawa.

That's the world this hour. For CBC News, I am Kate McGilfrey. Thank you.