Los Angeles residents are bracing for further destruction as weather forecasts indicate that winds helping fuel the flames might pick up again.

Three fires continue to blaze. The largest, the Palisades Fire, has burned more than 23,000 acres and remained at 14% contained as of Monday evening.

LA Mayor Karen Bass said “urgent preparations” are being made in advance of near hurricane-force winds predicted to peak on Tuesday.

At least 24 people have died in the fires and 23 others are missing in the Eaton and Palisades fire zones.

On Monday, authorities also announced nine people were arrested for looting and one for arson.

At a news conference, LA District Attorney Nathan Hochman showed videos of some looting and outlined maximum sentences if the accused are convicted.

In some of the cases the suspects could face life in prison under California’s “three strikes” law – under which repeat offenders can be sentenced to 25 years to life after a third conviction.

The one arson suspect was arrested in the nearby city of Azusa, around 20 miles (32km) east of downtown Los Angeles.

The arson is not linked to any of the major fires but was allegedly started in a local park.

Law enforcement also warned against price gouging, internet scams, and flying drones, which can interfere with firefighting aircraft.

They said a number of ongoing investigations means more charges could be filed.

Blake Chow, the assistant chief of the Los Angeles Police Department’s office of special operations, issued a stern warning to looters: “You’re not going to get away with it.”

• What’s the latest on the fires and what caused them?
• Maps and images reveal scale of devastation
• Celebrities who have lost their homes

Also on Monday, two lawsuits were filed against power company Southern California Edison (SCE) by property owners who lost homes in the Eaton fire.

They alleged the company failed to de-energise its electrical equipment despite warnings of high winds.

A company spokesperson said that SCE had not yet been served with the complaint but that would review it once received.

“The cause of the fire continues to be under investigation,” the spokesperson said.

A separate lawsuit was filed against the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) by residents of the Pacific Palisades, accusing the utility company of failing to supply enough water to fight the fire there.

The complaint, filed by law firm Robertson & Associates in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims a reservoir that had been drained should have been maintained.

“The Palisades Fire has been a traumatic event for its victims, who through no fault of their own, went from homeowners to homeless in a matter of hours,” the complaint said, according to Reuters news agency.

The BBC has asked LADWP for comment.

In a statement on its website last week, LADWP said: “The water system serving the Pacific Palisades area and all of Los Angeles meets all federal and state fire codes for urban development and housing.”

It said it was launching its own investigation into water resiliency.

The Eaton Fire, the second-largest of the series of blazes that broke out across the city last week, has burned more than 14,000 acres, and is 33% contained, authorities said.

There had been “very little fire growth” of the Palisades blaze on Monday, said Jim Hudson, deputy chief of CalFire.

The BBC Weather Centre says Santa Ana winds – blowing in from the east or north-east – could reach gusts up to 70mph (112km/h) on Tuesday, potentially stoking further fires.

Weather officials say lighter winds are forecast to develop after Wednesday, bringing an opportunity for firefighters to further contain the blazes.

A curfew remains in place in evacuation areas between 18:00 and 06:00 local time.

Adam Schiff, the newly elected Democratic senator for California, told the BBC that he hoped that the incoming Trump administration would move quickly to provide disaster relief.

• Fact-checking criticism of California Democrats over fires

When asked whether wildfires had become increasingly politicised, Schiff said: “There has been people doing that since the moment the fires started.”

“It’s not helpful right now, let’s just focus on putting these fires out, getting people the help that they need.”

President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly planning to visit the area in the coming days.

Federal lawmakers are set to meet on Tuesday morning to discuss disaster aid for the state.

President Joe Biden said he has directed hundreds of federal personnel, aerial and ground support to California, and his team will “respond promptly” to any request for more help.

“Our hearts ache for the 24 innocent souls we have lost,” he said.

Meanwhile, as city fire crews continue to try to contain the blazes, local residents joined in relief efforts.

Actor and comedian Will Arnett told the BBC that he has friends who lost their homes.

“I think that everybody should help in ways they can,” said Arnett, who was helping to distribute water to those affected by the fires.

“It is nice seeing people coming together and volunteering the way that they are.”

Fardad Khayami, a 24-year-old restaurant owner in Pacific Palisades, was delivering hundreds of meals to people affected by the fires.

He told BBC Newsday: “If you look, outside, it seems to offer a normal city where we are. But if you drive five minutes to the west, it seems like a different world.”

He hoped to provide locals with 500 meals a day “for as long as they need them”.

Altadena resident Michael Storc, who lost his family home, said “rents have gone up a lot.”

“I grew up a poor kid who was renting, so going back to renting is a bit gutting,” he said.

His family wonders if they will ever be able to rebuild on the land where their home once stood, he said.

“We don’t know if it will ever be safe,” he told the BBC.

While many expensive mansions were lost in the fires, Pete Brown, a spokesman for a local council member in Pacific Palisades, said many owners bought the homes some 50 years ago, some for prices around $25,000 (£20,500).

He said those elderly homeowners are now left with nothing.

“Their wealth was in that home,” said Mr Brown.

The terms of a deal between Israel and Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages are being finalised, a Palestinian official familiar with the negotiations has told the BBC.

It comes as US President Joe Biden said a deal was “on the brink” of coming to fruition, and that his administration was working urgently on the matter.

An Israeli official also told news agency Reuters that negotiations were in “advanced stages”, with a deal possible in “hours, days or more”.

US President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, and with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar – who is mediating the negotiations – on Monday.

• Three things that could make a Gaza hostage deal more likely

The Palestinian official told the BBC that Hamas and Israeli officials were conducting indirect talks in the same building on Monday.

Revealing some potential details of the agreement, the official stated that “the detailed technical discussions took considerable time”.

Both sides agreed that Hamas would release three hostages on the first day of the agreement, after which Israel would begin withdrawing the troops from populated areas.

Seven days later, Hamas would release four additional hostages, and Israel would allow displaced people in the southern to return to the north, but only on foot via the coastal road.

Cars, animal-drawn carts, and trucks would be permitted to cross through a passage adjacent to Salah al-Din Road, monitored by an X-ray machine operated by a Qatari-Egyptian technical security team.

The agreement includes provisions for Israeli forces to remain in the Philadelphi corridor and maintain an 800-meter buffer zone along the eastern and northern borders during the first phase, which will last 42 days.

Israel has also agreed to release 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including approximately 190 who have been serving sentences of 15 years or more. In exchange, Hamas will release 34 hostages.

Negotiations for the second and third phases of the agreement would begin on the 16th day of the ceasefire.

The father of an Israeli-American hostage told the BBC’s Newshour that he “wants to believe” that Israel has “gotten to ‘yes'” on a deal.

Jonathan Dekel-Chen said he “lives in terror” every day because of his fears for his son, Sagui.

With increasing reports that a deal was close, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said a deal could be done “this week” – the final week of Biden’s presidency.

Biden was due to speak with Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, he added.

President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, was also present in Doha.

Trump previously threatened that “all hell” would break loose if the hostages were not released before he took office on 20 January.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told reporters that progress had been made and that the deal looked “much better than previously”.

But the latest developments come as Netanyahu faces fierce opposition to a potential deal from within his governing coalition.

Ten right-wing members, including some from Netanyahu’s own Likud party, have sent him a letter opposing a truce.

As talks took place, Gaza’s civil defence agency reported that a wave of Israeli air strikes on Gaza City on Monday had killed more than 50 people.

“They bombed schools, homes and even gatherings of people,” civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

The Israeli military said it was looking into these reports. Separately, it said five soldiers were killed on Monday in the north of the Gaza Strip.

The war was triggered by Hamas’s attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others taken to Gaza as hostages.

Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza to destroy Hamas in response.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says more than 46,500 people have been killed during the war.

Israel says 94 of the hostages remain in Gaza, of whom 34 are presumed dead, as well as another four Israelis who were abducted before the war, two of whom are dead.

Greenland wants to work more closely with the US on defence and exploring its mining resources, its prime minister said on Monday.

Mute Egede said his government was looking for ways to work with President-elect Donald Trump, who has in recent weeks shown renewed interest in taking control of the territory – without ruling out using military or economic force to do so.

Also on Monday, Denmark’s foreign minister said it was ready to work with Greenland to “continue talks” with Trump “to ensure legitimate American interests” in the Arctic.

Greenland, a largely autonomous Danish territory, lies on the shortest route from North America to Europe, making it strategically important for the US.

It is also home to a large American space facility and has some of the largest deposits of rare earth minerals, which are crucial in the manufacture of batteries and high-tech devices.

Trump tried to buy Greenland during his first term in 2019, and has placed the issue back on his agenda as his second term approaches – calling it an “absolute necessity” for both American and international security.

Prime Minister Egede previously said Greenland was not and would not be “for sale,” while emphasising the importance of staying open to “co-operation and trade with the whole world”.

• Trump wants to take Greenland: Four ways this saga could go
• Trump threats cast ominous shadow over icy fjords of Greenland
• Danes struggle with response to Trump Greenland threat

On Monday, he told a press conference in Copenhagen that his government was ready to start a dialogue with the incoming Trump administration.

But he added that the use of the territory’s land was “Greenland’s business”.

“It is… Greenland that will decide what agreement we should come to.”

Meanwhile, Denmark’s foreign minister also addressed Trump’s renewed interest in Greenland during a press conference in Jerusalem.

“I don’t want to get into any dispute with the incoming president Trump,” Lars Lokke Rasmussen said.

“He has a certain specific way to formulate requests, and what we are doing right now is getting into a more detailed dialogue with the incoming president.”

“We agree that the Americans have certain concerns about the security situation in the Arctic, which we share,” he said.

Rasmussen said Denmark, in close cooperation with Greenland, was ready to continue talks with Trump to ensure “legitimate American interests”.

Trump has also expressed his desire to acquire the Panama Canal, and vowed to use “economic force” to absorb Canada into the US.

Spain is planning to impose a tax of up to 100% on properties bought by non-residents from countries outside the EU, such as the UK.

Announcing the move, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the “unprecedented” measure was necessary to meet the country’s housing emergency.

“The West faces a decisive challenge: To not become a society divided into two classes, the rich landlords and poor tenants,” he said.

Non-EU residents bought 27,000 properties in Spain in 2023, he told an economic forum in Madrid, “not to live in” but “to make money from them”.

“Which, in the context of shortage that we are in, [we] obviously cannot allow,” he added.

The move was therefore designed to “priorit[ise] that the available homes are for residents”, he said.

Sánchez did not provide details on how the tax would work nor a timeline for presenting it to parliament for approval, where he has often struggled to gather sufficient votes to pass legislation.

But his government said the proposal would be finalised “after careful study”.

It is one of a dozen planned measures announced by the prime minister on Monday aimed at improving housing affordability in the country.

Other measures announced include a tax exemption for landlords who provide affordable housing, transferring more than 3,000 homes to a new public housing body, and tighter regulation and higher taxes on tourist flats.

“It isn’t fair that those who have three, four or five apartments as short-term rentals pay less tax than hotels,” he said.

TikTok has called a report that China is considering allowing a sale of the social media company’s US operations to Elon Musk “pure fiction.”

The firm’s comments came in response to a report by Bloomberg that Chinese officials are weighing an option that could see its business in America being sold to the world’s richest person if the US Supreme Court upholds a ban on the app.

Supreme Court justices are due to rule on a law that set a 19 January deadline for TikTok to either sell its US operations or face a ban in the country.

TikTok has repeatedly said that it will not sell its US operation.

“We can’t be expected to comment on pure fiction,” a TikTok spokesperson told BBC News.

Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that one possible scenario being considered by Chinese officials would see Musk’s X social media platform take control of TikTok’s US operations.

X did not immediately reply to a BBC request for comment.

Musk is a close ally of US president-elect Donald Trump, who is set to return to the White House on 20 January.

Last month, Trump urged the Supreme Court to delay its decision until he takes office to enable him to seek a “political resolution”.

His lawyer filed a legal brief with the court that says Trump “opposes banning TikTok” and “seeks the ability to resolve the issues at hand through political means once he takes office”.

That came a week after Trump met TikTok’s chief executive, Shou Zi Chew, at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

On Monday, two Democratic lawmakers, Senator Edward Markey and Representative Ro Khanna, also called on Congress and the President Joe Biden to extend the 19 January deadline.

During a Supreme Court hearing last week, justices appeared inclined to uphold the legislation and stick to the deadline.

During nearly three hours of arguments, the nine justices returned time and again to the national security concerns that gave rise to the law.

The Biden administration has argued that without a sale, TikTok could be used by China as a tool for spying and political manipulation.

The company has repeatedly denied any influence by the Chinese Communist Party and has said the law to ban it in the US violates the First Amendment free speech rights of its users.

Disturbing videos have emerged showing the dire situation at a disused gold mine in South Africa where scores of illegal miners have reportedly been living underground for months.

They have been there since police operations targeting illicit mining started last year across the country.

In one of the videos, which the BBC has not independently verified, corpses wrapped in makeshift body bags can be seen. A second shows the emaciated figures of some miners who are still alive.

A long-delayed rescue operation, that last week a court ordered the government to facilitate, began on Monday.

This story contains a video that some people may find distressing.

Last year, arguing that the miners had entered the shaft in Stilfontein deliberately without permission, the authorities took a hard line, blocking food and water supplies.

In November, one government minister said: “We are going to smoke them out.”

More than 100 of the illegal miners, known locally as “zama zamas”, have reportedly died underground since the crack down began at the mine some 145km (90 miles) south-west of Johannesburg.

The authorities however, have not confirmed this figure as it is yet to be “verified by an official source”, a spokesperson told the BBC.

Hundreds are thought to be still in the mine while more than 1,000 have surfaced in the past few months.

In one of the videos released by a trade union, the General Industries Workers of South Africa (Giwusa), dozens of shirtless men can be seen sitting on a dirty floor. Their faces have been blurred. A male voice off camera can be heard saying that the men are hungry and need help.

• Inside South Africa’s ‘ruthless’ gang-controlled gold mines

“We’re starting to show you the bodies of those who died underground,” he says.

“And this is not all of them… Do you see how people are struggling? Please we need help.”

In the other video, a man says: “This is hunger; people are dying because of hunger.” He then puts the death toll at 96 and begs for help, food and supplies.

The union says the footage was filmed on Saturday.

In a briefing held on Monday near the site of the rescue operation, Giwusa leadership, alongside community figures, said the videos shared “painted a very dire picture” of the situation underground.

“What has transpired here has to be called what it is; this is a Stilfontein massacre. Because what this footage does is show a pile of human bodies, of miners that died needlessly,” Giwusa president Mametlwe Sebei said.

He blamed the authorities for what he described as a “treacherous policy” that was deliberately pursued.

The department of mineral resources, leading the rescue effort, told the BBC that Monday’s operation included lowering down a cage that is then hoisted up once loaded with people.

This structure is designed to hold six or seven people, depending on their weight, according to Giwusa. It has been going down the shaft – descending about 2km – every hour. The union said that by the end of Monday 26 miners had been brought up alive, along with nine bodies.

Department of mineral resources spokesperson Makhosonke Buthelezi could not confirm whether the priority will be to retrieve those who had died or those in need of medical attention.

A briefing will be held by the department, together with the police ministry, on Tuesday to provide an update on the operation.

Ash-smeared naked Hindu holy men charged into India’s most sacred river Ganges at dawn on the first most significant bathing day of the Kumbh Mela festival (also known as Mahakumbh), in the northern city of Prayagraj.

The festival, held once every 12 years, started on Monday, with more than 16.5 million pilgrims bathing in the holy rivers.

On Tuesday, festival was ground was filled with devotees as tens of millions joined the Naga sadhus in the bathing ritual.

The ascetics chanted religious slogans, invoking Hindu gods and goddesses as they plunged into the icy waters.

Hindus believe that this ritual will cleanse them of sins, purify their soul and help them attain salvation by liberating them from the cycle of birth and death.

After coming out of the water, some holy men picked up fistful of the silver sand and rubbed it over their bodies.

Many carried swords and tridents and one held aloft a silver staff with a snake head.

Police struggled to manage the surging crowds at the festival on Tuesday as thousands managed to come into an arena meant for the ascetics.

Officials say more than 400 million are expected to participate in the 45-day spectacle which is described as humanity’s biggest gathering. It is so large that it can be seen from space.

Tuesday’s bathing rituals, called the Shahi Snan – or the royal bath – will see the ascetics arrive in batches at the Sangam – the confluence of India’s most sacred Ganges river with the Yamuna river and the mythical Saraswati – in colourful processions.

Their outing is a major draw for people from across India and around the world who come to seek their blessings.

Their presence also holds a special significance for the great masses who believe that the river waters get imbued with the purity of the saints’ thoughts and deeds when they bathe in the river.

There are six auspicious days to bathe this time, decided by astrologers, based on the alignment of specific planets and constellations. They are:

• 13 January: Paush Purnima
• 14 January: Makar Sankranti
• 29 January: Mauni Amavasya
• 3 February: Basant Panchami
• 12 February: Magh Purnima
• 26 February: Maha Shivaratri

Three of these – 14 and 29 January, and 3 February – have been designated as Shahi Snan days when the Naga sadhus will bathe.

The largest gathering is expected on 29 January when 50 to 60 million worshippers are expected to take to the waters.

Authorities have built a sprawling tented city on the river bank spread over 4,000 hectares to accommodate the holy men, pilgrims and tourists visiting the festival.

For the past few days, we have watched groups of saints arriving at the mela grounds in large noisy processions.

One group of ash-smeared holy men, some naked and some dressed in just a loin cloth or marigold garland draped around their necks, marched through the streets, holding tridents, swords and small two-headed drums.

• Millions start bathing in holy rivers at India’s biggest Hindu festival
• In photos: World’s biggest religious festival begins in India

Another group had its leaders on chariots escorted to their campsite in a large procession with music bands, dancers, horses and camels.

The groups – known as akharas – have set up sprawling camps which have been a hive of activity, with tens of thousands of pilgrims visiting to hear religious discourses or attend evening prayers.

The origin of the festival is rooted in the mythological story about a fight between the gods and demons over a Kumbh (a pitcher) of nectar that emerged during the churching of the ocean.

As the two sides fought over the pot of elixir, a few drops spilled over and fell in four cities – Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik.

The Kumbh mela is organised in all the four cities, but the biggest festivals are always held in Prayagraj.

The bathing dates and auspicious times are decided by astrologers, based on the alignment of specific planets and constellations.

Hindu seer Mahant Ravindra Puri says the rare planetary alignments at present make this year’s festival “extra special” and “a Maha [great] Kumbh”.

Mahant Puri will be leading tens of thousands of holy men from his akhara to Tuesday morning’s bath.

“We believe that during Kumbh Mela, the waters of the sacred river will be imbued with nectar,” he says.

“And those who have faith, Ganga maiyya [the river goddess] will bless them with whatever they want, whatever they need,” he adds.

Besides the saints and ascetics, Tuesday’s bathing will also see millions of ordinary pilgrims making their way to the river.

On Monday, in the mela ground, we met Chitiya Ahirvar who is visiting from her village in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

The 60-year-old who is travelling in a group of 20 bathed in the river in the morning and will be going back for a repeat on Tuesday .

“I prayed to the river goddess for my children’s well being and happiness,” she said.

Mavaram Patel, a businessman who is visiting from the southern state of Tamil Nadu, said he had heard a lot about the Kumbh Mela but did not have the opportunity to visit earlier.

“Kumbh Mela is part of our ancient tradition. It’s one of Hinduism’s most important festivals,” he told the BBC.

Mr Patel said he prayed to the river goddess for the “happiness and welfare” of his “family and the wider world” and plans to take a dip in the river on Tuesday morning too before leaving the city.

“Visiting Prayagraj and bathing during Kumbh was on my bucket list for a long time so I’m happy to be here,” he said.

The chart-topping K-pop band NewJeans may be prevented from signing advertising deals and other contracts, after their record label filed an injunction against them.

The five-piece are currently engaged in a fierce dispute with Ador, the entertainment company that formed their band in 2022.

Last November, the group claimed their contracts were invalid, due to what they alleged was a pattern of bullying, harassment and subterfuge at the company. Ador, which denied the allegations, sued to have their contracts upheld.

The company is now accusing NewJeans of trying to sign independent deals without its approval, and has taken further legal action in Seoul, South Korea.

“This decision was made to prevent confusion and potential harm to third parties, including advertisers,” Ador explained in a statement.

The agency also warned that there could be broader repercussions for South Korea’s lucrative music industry if NewJeans’ actions went unchecked.

“Allowing unilateral terminations of exclusive contracts and independent activities without legal procedures could undermine investment in the entertainment industry and destabilise the K-pop sector,” Ador said in its injunction application, according to the Yonhap News Agency.

NewJeans were considered one of the brightest new bands in K-Pop, thanks to a playful blend of 1990s R&B and sugar-coated pop melodies.

In 2023, they were the eighth biggest-selling act in the world. Last year, they picked up a nomination for best group at the MTV Awards.

But their relationship with Ador soured after its parent company Hybe allegedly forced out their mentor, Min Hee-Jin.

The band issued an ultimatum demanding that Min should be restored. When Hybe refused, the group went public with a number of complaints against the label, including the claim that Hybe had deliberately undermined their careers.

In a press conference last November, the five members – Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin and Hyein – announced their departure from the company, saying Hybe and Ador had lost the right to represent them as artists.

They subsequently filed court papers seeking a legal separation from the agency, but the case has yet to be heard.

Ador argues that the band’s contract, which runs until 2027, should be upheld.

The label has already finalised a schedule for the quintet’s next 12 months, which includes releasing a new album and hosting fan meetings, amongst other activities.

However, the band members have continued to assert their independence, creating a new Instagram account under the name “jeanzforfree“, where they have been hosting regular live-streams with fans.

The band say they will fight to keep their name, and their career, and will remain “NewJeans at heart” even if they lose that fight.

It is not the first time that a K-pop band has tried to terminate a contract.

The popular groups TVXQ and Fifty Fifty have both taken their labels to court – but the cases have had mixed results, and both bands have seen their line-ups change as a result.

The biggest problem facing NewJeans is that their case against Ador could take two or three years to settle if it goes to trial. During that time, they’re unlikely to be able to record or promote new music, unless the projects are created in conjunction with the label.

If the court eventually finds Hybe was at fault, the members will be able to walk away – and may even be able to hold on to the band’s name.

But if the decision goes against the band, they may face a financial penalty.

In October, the K-pop news site Koreaboo estimated that the members would have to pay about 300bn South Korean Won (about £170m) to walk away from their contract early.

Police have charged a man who allegedly sent multiple threats and sexually explicit messages to WNBA star Caitlin Clark over social media with stalking.

The man, 55-year-old Michael Lewis from Texas, was arrested on Sunday at a hotel in Indianapolis, the city where Clark’s team Indiana Fever is based.

Law enforcement officials identified messages sent to Clark from Mr Lewis on X that allegedly contained threatening and sexually explicit messages, police said.

Mr Lewis is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday morning and, if convicted, could face up to six years in prison and a $10,000 (£ 8,211) fine.

According to court documents, one of the messages allegedly sent to Clark read: “@CaitlinClark22 been driving around your house 3x a day..but don’t call the law just yet, the publc is allowed to drive by gainbridge..aka Caitlin’s Fieldhouse.”

“I’m getting tickets. I’m sitting behind the bench,” another message read.

Messages were sent between 16 December and 2 January, according to court documents.

Clark, the 2024 Women’s National Basketball Association rookie of the year, had reported the messages to police and said she feared for her safety.

According to sports network ESPN, the 22-year-old athlete made police aware of the them before Mr Lewis arrived in Indianapolis. She had taken to altering her appearance in public due to safety concerns.

The social media posts “caused Caitlin Clark to feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated, or threatened”, prosecutors said in court documents.

Mr Lewis was found by FBI after they tracked the IP addresses of the messages to a hotel in downtown Indianapolis, Marion County prosecutor Ryan Mears said.

The man told police his messages were “an imagination, fantasy type thing and it’s a joke, and it’s nothing to do with threatening”, according to court documents.

In a press release on Monday, Mr Mears said “it takes a lot of courage for women to come forward in these cases, which is why many don’t”.

“In doing so, the victim is setting an example for all women who deserve to live and work in Indy without the threat of sexual violence.”

The incident occurred just weeks after a man from Oregon was arrested and charged with stalking and harassment of women’s college basketball star Paige Bueckers.

As crews battle devastating wildfires in southern California, vivid images have emerged of air tankers dropping bright red and pink powder on Los Angeles suburbs.

The eye-catching substance – fire retardant – is now a common sight in the area, blanketing driveways, rooftops and cars.

Officials said thousands of gallons of the substance were dropped in the last week to stop the flames from spreading.

But what exactly is in it, and how does it help fight the wildfires?

The flame retardant is a product called Phos-Chek, which is sold by a company called Perimeter.

It has been used to fight blazes in the US since 1963, and is the main long-term fire retardant used by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. It is also the most-used fire retardant in the world, according to a 2022 report in the Associated Press.

With wildfires raging in southern California over the last week, images have since surfaced of the pink powder-like substance covering vehicles and driveways.

Perimeter, the company behind Phos-Chek, has advised in the past cleaning the powder off as soon as it is safe to do so.

“The longer the retardant dries, the more difficult it is to remove completely,” they cautioned.

Warm water and mild detergent are effective in removing it from small surfaces, the company has said. For larger surfaces, pressure washers can be used.

The exact formula of Phos-Chek is not public knowledge but the company has said in previous filings that the product is 80% water, 14% fertiliser-type salts, 6% colouring agents and corrosion inhibitors.

As for its color, the company said it is “a visual aid for pilots and firefighters alike.” After a few days of exposure to sunlight, the colour fades to earth tones, it said.

The retardant is typically sprayed around a wildfire on vegetation and land that is fire-prone to stop the flames from spreading to that area.

According to the US Forest Service, retardants “slow the rate of spread by cooling and coating fuels, depleting the fire of oxygen, and slowing the rate of fuel combustion as the retardant’s inorganic salts change how fuels burn.”

Its use has been controversial in the past over its potential effects on the environment.

A lawsuit filed in 2022 by the Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics, an organisation made up of current and former employees of the US Forest Service, accused the federal agency of violating the country’s clean water laws by dumping chemical fire retardant from planes onto forests.

It argued that the chemical kills fish and is not effective.

The following year, a US District judge agreed with the employees, but in her ruling allowed the Forest Service to continue using the retardant as it seeks a permit to do so from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

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The case drew the attention of communities devastated by wildfires in the past, including the town of Paradise, California, which was destroyed by fire in 2018.

Its then-mayor, Greg Bolin, hailed the judge’s ruling, saying it ensures communities “have a fighting chance” in the face of fires.

The Forest Service told NPR that this year, it phased out the use of one type of Phos-Chek formula – Phos-Chek LC95 – in favour of another – MVP-Fx – saying that the latter is less toxic to wildlife.

The Forest Service also has a mandatory ban in place on dropping fire retardant in sensitive environmental areas, like waterways and habitats of endangered species. There are exceptions to the ban, however, in cases “when human life or public safety are threatened.”

The special prosecutor who led a years-long investigation into Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, has criticised the president for making “baseless accusations” about the case and defended his investigation in a final report.

In the report, released Monday, David Weiss called his prosecution of the president’s son on gun and tax crimes “impartial” and “not partisan politics”.

Hunter Biden’s lawyer said the report showed Mr Weiss’s investigation “was a cautionary tale of the abuse of prosecutorial power.”

Biden issued an official pardon for his son, who was facing sentencing for two criminal cases, in early December.

While issuing the pardon, the president said his son had been “singled out” and called his cases “a miscarriage of justice” and “raw politics”.

Mr Weiss called those statements “gratuitous and wrong”.

“I prosecuted the two cases against [Hunter] Biden because he broke the law,” he wrote in his report.

Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges earlier in September, and was found guilty of being an illegal drug user in possession of a gun in June.

His father’s full and unconditional pardon for his son came after the president had repeatedly said he would not give him clemency.

It was not the first time a US president has pardoned a family member.

Bill Clinton pardoned his younger half-brother, Roger Clinton, for a 1985 cocaine-related offence in 2001.

In 2020, Donald Trump pardoned Charles Kushner, the father-in-law of his daughter, Ivanka, who pled guilty to federal charges of tax evasion and illegal campaign donation payments in 2005.

In his report, Mr Weiss acknowledged that, but added: “none have taken the occasion as an opportunity to malign the public servants at the Department of Justice based solely on false accusations”.

Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to nine counts of federal tax fraud in September, for which he had been facing up to 17 years in prison.

He was also convicted of three felonies in connection with a gun purchase in June, for which he had been facing up to 25 years in prison.

The investigations into the president’s son had resurfaced uncomfortable and embarrassing details about his personal life, including his addiction to crack-cocaine and alleged payments to escorts.

President Biden had mostly kept quiet during the investigations into his son but came fiercely to his defence in his pardoning.

“There has been an effort to break Hunter – who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution,” President Biden said.

“In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me – and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough.”

He added: “I hope Americans will understand why a father and a president would come to this decision.”

The pardon covers the period from 1 January 2014 to 1 December 2024, “including but not limited to” the tax and gun crimes for which he was found guilty.

Mr Weiss said due to that unconditional pardon, he could not make any “additional charging decisions” relating to Hunter Biden over that period.

“It would be inappropriate to discuss whether additional charges are warranted,” he said.

Mr Weiss has previously defended his inquiry into the president’s son.

In 2023, he told the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee there had never been political pressure or interference in his work from the justice department.

Mr Weiss’s investigation into Hunter Biden was heavily scrutinised on both sides of the political spectrum.

Democrats said it was politically charged and felt that Hunter Biden had an unfair target on his back.

Republicans believed the justice department was not pursuing charges aggressively enough and showing the president’s son unfair favouritism.

Hunter Biden’s guilty convictions came after a collapsed plea deal in 2023.

A judge declined to approve the deal – which Republicans had branded a “sweetheart deal” – that would have had Hunter Biden plead guilty to the tax evasion charges to avoid the more serious gun-related charges.

In a statement released Monday, Hunter Biden’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, criticised Mr Weiss for the failed deal.

“Mr. Weiss also fails to explain why he reneged on his own agreement, a reversal that came at the 11th hour in court as he and his office faced blistering attacks from Republicans,” Mr Lowell said.

An 18-year-old Dalit woman from the southern India state of Kerala has accused 64 men of sexually abusing her since she was 13 years old.

Police have arrested 28 people in connection with the case so far – the men are in custody and have not made any public statement.

The accused, who range between 17 and 47 years of age, include the woman’s neighbours, sports coaches and her father’s friends, police told the BBC.

The woman reported the alleged abuse after a team of counsellors working under a government scheme visited her house.

Police have registered about 18 cases under India’s various crime laws as well as the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act – which is a law to prevent crimes against people belonging to lower castes and tribes in India.

Dalits lie at the bottom of the Hindu caste hierarchy and face widespread discrimination in India despite laws to protect them.

Cases have also been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, since the abuse took place when the woman was a minor, senior police official Nandakumar S told BBC Hindi.

More cases are expected to be registered in the coming days as the police are still investigating the matter. A 25-member team has been set up.

Police say that the alleged abuse began when the girl was 13 years old. Her neighbour allegedly molested her and took sexually explicit photographs of her, the News Minute website reported.

Her neighbour allegedly sexually abused her again when she was 16 years old, recorded videos of the abuse and shared it with several others who continued to assault the woman over many years.

A lawyer who heads the district’s Child Welfare Committee (CWC) told the Indian Express newspaper that the woman was an athlete and attended various sports camps, which could have facilitated further abuse.

Police say that the woman was allegedly gangraped three times in the past five years.

Her alleged abusers reportedly used her father’s phone number to contact her and the woman stored their contacts in the phone. The police are now using the phone to trace the accused.

The woman’s family was reportedly unaware of the alleged abuse.

The matter came to light when a team of counsellors visited the woman’s home last month. The counsellors alerted the CWC about the matter and the woman was asked to appear before the committee along with her mother.

“She was given counselling, and she opened up before a psychologist, narrating the sexual abuse she has been facing since the age of 13,” the CWC chief told the Indian Express.

He added that the woman had been shifted to a shelter associated with the CWC for her protection.

The woman’s allegations have sent shockwaves across the country. She is expected to give a detailed statement about the alleged abuse to a woman police officer.

A bright comet could be visible in skies across the globe over the coming days for the first time in 160,000 years.

Nasa said the future brightness of a comet is “notoriously hard” to predict, but that Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) could remain bright enough to be seen by the naked eye.

On Monday, the comet was at perihelion, the point at which it is closest to the Sun, which influences how bright it appears. Experts say it could be visible from Monday night.

While the exact locations for possible visibility are unknown, experts believe the comet, which could shine as bright as Venus, may be best observed from the southern hemisphere.

The comet was spotted last year by Nasa’s Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System.

Dr Shyam Balaji, researcher in astroparticle physics and cosmology at King’s College London, said “current orbital calculations indicate it will pass about 8.3 million miles from the Sun”, which classifies it as a “sun-skirting” comet.

The university described the comet as a once-in-160,000-years event.

Dr Balaji said opportunities to spot the comet may occur “in the days around perihelion, depending on local conditions and the comet’s behaviour”.

“As with all comets, its visibility and brightness can be unpredictable,” he added.

Mr Balaji said people who live in the southern hemisphere – where the comet is predicted to be best observed from – should “look toward the eastern horizon before sunrise, [and] after perihelion, try the western horizon after sunset.”

But Mr Balaji added that while it is expected to be “quite bright”, predictions on comet brightness are “notoriously uncertain”, with many ending up fainter than initially predicted.

For the northern hemisphere – including the UK – viewing may be challenging do to the comet’s relativity to the Sun.

You can check with BBC Weather online to see if the skies are clear enough for a possible sighting where you are.

Mr Balaji advised people wanting to spot the comet to find a location away from light pollution and use a pair of binoculars or a small telescope.

He warned observers to be cautious around sunrise and sunset, and said to track the comet’s position to find where it may appear in the sky.

Meanwhile, astronomers have been following the comet’s path.

On Saturday, Nasa astronaut Don Pettit, shared a photograph on social media of the comet taken from the International Space Station.

“It is totally amazing to see a comet from orbit. Atlas C2024-G3 is paying us a visit,” he wrote.

At least 24 people have died in the Los Angeles fires as two major blazes continue to burn across the sprawling Californian city.

Firefighters made progress over the weekend in containing the Palisades and Eaton fires but warn that the return of high winds – forecast until Wednesday – could see them spread again.

They are already among the most destructive in LA’s history in terms of buildings destroyed.

The largest fire is in the Palisades and it has burnt through more than 23,000 acres. But over the weekend thousands of firefighters made progress in containing about 14% of it.

The blaze is moving east, threatening the exclusive neighbourhood of Brentwood, home to the Getty Center, a world-famous art museum that has now evacuated its staff.

A red flag warning – indicating a high level of fire danger – will be in place until 18:00 (02:00 GMT) on Wednesday, with the strongest Santa Ana winds expected on Tuesday.

• Follow live updates
• What are Santa Ana winds?

The other fire, Eaton, is more deadly than Palisades so far – responsible for 16 of the 24 dead, with many more still missing.

The number of people under evacuation orders in LA County has decreased since Saturday, but the destruction is immense.

More than 12,000 structures – homes, outbuildings, sheds, mobile homes and cars -have been destroyed, including 7,000 in the Eaton fire.

The fires could turn out to be the costliest in US history, with damage projected at up to $150bn, according to a preliminary estimate by AccuWeather.

Celebrities who have lost their homes include Mel Gibson, Leighton Meester and Adam Brody, who attended the Golden Globes last week, and Paris Hilton.

Tens of thousands of homes are also without power.

There are two active fires in the wider area, while a smaller fire is nearly contained, say California fire officials:

• Palisades: The first fire to erupt a week ago and the biggest in the region. It has scorched 23,713 acres as of Monday, including the upmarket Pacific Palisades neighbourhood. It was 14% contained as of Monday
• Eaton: Affecting the northern part of LA, blazing through areas such as Altadena. It is the second biggest fire in the area, burning more than 14,000 acres. It is 33% contained
• Hurst: Located just north of San Fernando, it began burning last Tuesday night. It has grown to 799 acres, and is almost fully contained

The earlier Kenneth, Archer, Sunset, Lidia, Woodley and Olivas fires have been contained.

Containment describes the progress firefighters make in controlling the spread of flames.

It’s often listed as a percentage – for example the most recent update on the massive Palisades fire has it as 14% contained.

This means fire crews have established barriers around 14% of the fire’s perimeter.

Natural barriers include roads, rivers and oceans. Firefighters can also create barriers using equipment such as bulldozers, hoses and shovels to remove vegetation down to the bare soil, meaning there is nothing for the fire to burn.

A fire being 100% contained doesn’t mean it has been extinguished, but rather that the flames have been fully encircled and the spread has been effectively stopped.

A political row about the city’s preparedness has erupted after it emerged some fire crews’ hoses ran dry.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has called for an independent investigation into the loss of water pressure to hydrants and why the Santa Ynez Reservoir was closed for maintenance and empty when the fire broke out.

“Losing supplies from fire hydrants likely impaired the effort to protect some homes and evacuation corridors,” he wrote.

• Fact-checking criticism of California Democrats over fires

Mayor Karen Bass, who was on a previously arranged trip to Ghana when the fires began, has faced intense questions about the region’s preparedness and the water issues.

On Saturday, she deflected questions about her handling of the emergency, telling a news conference: “Right now, our first and most important obligation to Angelenos is to get through this crisis.”

Before the fires broke out, the city of LA’s fire chief warned in a memo that budget cuts were hampering the department’s ability to respond to emergencies.

But LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone has denied that his department had been unprepared.

“I did everything in my power to make sure that we had enough personnel and resources before the first fire started,” he said.

LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said detectives are continuing to investigate the possible causes.

“Everything is absolutely on the table,” he said.

Lightning – the most common source of fires in the US – has been ruled out as a cause for the Palisades and Eaton fires.

• ‘I have nothing to go back to’ – heartbreak in LA
• How one street went up in flames

There has been no official indication so far that arson or utility lines – the next two biggest culprits in sparking fires – caused any of the conflagrations.

However, in the Eaton Fire’s case, a law firm filed a complaint on Monday against the electrical company, Southern California Edison Company (SCE), claiming there is “evidence” that the blaze – one of the largest – was ignited due to negligence.

A statement from law firm Bridgford, Gleason & Artinian said it believed the Eaton Fire was ignited because of SCE’s “failure to de-energize its overhead wires which traverse Eaton Canyon – despite a red flag PDS wind warning issued by the national weather service the day before the ignition of the fire”.

The law firm said it bases its claim on its own investigation, discussions with various consultants, the public statements of SCE, and video evidence of the fire’s origin.

The origins of the wildfires are currently under investigation and no cause has been officially determined.

SCE said in a statement it “understands that a lawsuit related to the Eaton fire has been filed but has not yet been served with a complaint.”

Spokeswoman Gabriela Ornelas told the BBC it will review the complaint once received, and added the company “remains committed” to supporting communities affected by the fires.

On Friday, SCE said LA fire authorities were investigating whether its infrastructure was involved in the ignition of the Hurst Fire.

California’s very wet years of 2022-23 brought about a huge growth of vegetation, which dried out in the drought of last year, creating abundant kindling.

A combination of an exceptionally dry period – downtown LA has only received 0.16 inches (0.4cm) of rain since October – and powerful offshore gusts known as the Santa Ana winds have also created ripe conditions for wildfires.

Although strong winds and lack of rain are driving the blazes, experts say climate change is altering the background conditions and increasing the likelihood of such fires.

Much of the western United States including California experienced a decades-long drought that ended just two years ago, making the region vulnerable.

“Whiplash” swings between dry and wet periods in recent years created a massive amount of tinder-dry vegetation that was ready to burn.

US government research is unequivocal in linking climate change to larger and more severe wildfires in the western US.

“Climate change, including increased heat, extended drought, and a thirsty atmosphere, has been a key driver in increasing the risk and extent of wildfires in the western United States,” the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says.

Fire season in southern California is generally thought to stretch from May to October – but the governor has pointed out earlier that blazes had become a perennial issue. “There’s no fire season,” he said. “It’s fire year.”

• A simple guide to climate change
• Stuck in traffic as flames approached: Why LA is hard to evacuate

No one can say when the Los Angeles fires will finally go out.

In the next few days, the city is bracing for continued burning and a possible spread.

The Santa Ana winds that fanned the flames are set to strengthen, with strong gusts on Tuesday, with the severity then decreasing. There are now new red flag warnings for dangerous wind storms.

The other conditions that fed the fire – dry brush and lack of precipitation – continue, as well.

Have you been affected by the fires in California? Get in touch here.

Sign up for our Future Earth newsletter to get exclusive insight on the latest climate and environment news from the BBC’s Climate Editor Justin Rowlatt, delivered to your inbox every week. Outside the UK? Sign up to our international newsletter here.

The hum of sewing machines is a constant in parts of Guangzhou, a thriving port on the Pearl River in southern China.

It rattles through the open windows of factories from morning until late at night, as they finish the t-shirts, shorts, blouses, pants and swimwear that will be shipped to fill wardrobes in more than 150 countries.

This is the sound of Panyu, the neighbourhood known as the “Shein village”, a warren of factories that power the world’s largest fast fashion retailer.

“If there are 31 days in a month, I will work 31 days,” one worker told the BBC.

Most said they only have one day off a month.

The BBC spent several days here: we visited 10 factories, spoke to four owners and more than 20 workers. We also spent time at labour markets and textile suppliers.

We found that the beating heart of this empire is a workforce sitting behind sewing machines for around 75 hours a week in contravention of Chinese labour laws.

These hours are not unusual in Guangzhou, an industrial hub for rural workers in search of a higher income; or in China, which has long been the world’s unrivalled factory.

But they add to a growing list of questions about Shein, once a little-known Chinese-founded company that has become a global behemoth in just over five years.

Still privately-owned, it was valued at about £54bn ($66bn) in a fundraising round in 2023. It is now eyeing a potential listing on the London Stock Exchange.

Its meteoric rise, however, has been dogged with controversy about its treatment of workers and allegations of forced labour.

Last year it admitted to finding children working in its factories in China.

The company declined to be interviewed but told the BBC in a statement that “Shein is committed to ensuring the fair and dignified treatment of all workers within our supply chain” and is investing tens of millions of dollars in strengthening governance and compliance.

It added: “We strive to set the highest standards for pay and we require that all supply chain partners adhere to our code of conduct. Furthermore, Shein works with auditors to ensure compliance.”

Shein’s success lies in volume – the inventory online runs into the hundreds of thousands – and deep discounts: £10 dresses, £6 sweaters, prices that hover below £8 on average.

Revenue has soared, outstripping the likes of H&M, Zara and the UK’s Primark. The cut-price sales are driven by places like the Shein village, home to some 5,000 factories, most of them Shein suppliers.

The buildings have been hollowed out to make way for sewing machines, rolls of fabric and bags brimming with cloth scraps. The doors to their basements are always open for the seemingly endless cycle of deliveries and collections.

As the day passes, the shelves fill up with warehouse-bound, clear plastic bags labelled with a now-distinctive five-letter noun.

But even past 22:00, the sewing machines – and the people hunched over them – don’t stop as more fabric arrives, in trucks so full that bolts of colour sometimes tumble onto the factory floor.

“We usually work, 10, 11 or 12 hours a day,” says a 49-year-old woman from Jiangxi unwilling to give her name. “On Sundays we work around three hours less.”

She is in an alleyway, where a dozen people are huddled around a row of bulletin boards.

They are reading the job ads on the board, while examining the stitching on a pair of chinos draped over it.

This is Shein’s supply chain. The factories are contracted to make clothes on order – some small, some big. If the chinos are a hit, orders will ramp up and so must production. Factories then hire temporary workers to meet the demand their permanent staff cannot fulfil.

The migrant worker from Jiangxi is looking for a short-term contract – and the chinos are an option.

“We earn so little. The cost of living is now so high,” she says, adding that she hopes to make enough to send back to her two children who are living with their grandparents.

“We get paid per piece,” she explains. “It depends how difficult the item is. Something simple like a t-shirt is one-two yuan [less than a dollar] per piece and I can make around a dozen in an hour.”

Examining the stitching on the chinos is crucial for making that decision. All around her, workers are calculating how much they will get paid to make each piece of clothing and how many they can make in an hour.

The alleys of Panyu function as labour markets, filling up in the mornings as workers and scooters rush past the breakfast dumpling cart, the cups of steaming soybean milk and the hopeful farmer selling chicken and duck eggs.

Standard working hours appear to be from 08:00 to well past 22:00, the BBC found.

This is consistent with a report from the Swiss advocacy group Public Eye, which was based on interviews with 13 textile workers at factories producing clothes for Shein.

They found that a number of staff were working excessive overtime. It noted the basic wage without overtime was 2,400 yuan (£265; $327) – below the 6,512 yuan the Asia Floor Wage Alliance says is needed for a “living wage”. But the workers we spoke to managed to earn anywhere between 4,000 and 10,000 yuan a month.

“These hours are not unusual, but it’s clear that it’s illegal and it violates basic human rights,” said David Hachfield from the group. “It’s an extreme form of exploitation and this needs to be visible.”

The average working week should not exceed 44 hours, according to Chinese labour laws, which also state that employers should ensure workers have at least one rest day a week. If an employer wants to extend these hours, it should be for special reasons.

While Shein’s headquarters are now in Singapore, there is no denying the majority of its products are made in China.

And Shein’s success has drawn the attention of Washington, which is increasingly wary of Chinese firms.

In June, Donald Trump’s pick for US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said he had “grave ethics concerns” about Shein’s “deep ties to the People’s Republic of China”: “Slave labour, sweatshops, and trade tricks are the dirty secrets behind Shein’s success,” he wrote.

Not everyone would agree with Rubio’s choice of words to describe the conditions at Shein’s suppliers. But rights groups say that the long working hours, which have become a way of life for many in Guangzhou, are unfair and exploitative.

The machines dictate the rhythm of the day.

They pause for lunch and dinner when the workers, metal plates and chopsticks in hand, file into the canteen to buy food. If there is no more space to sit, they stand in the street.

“I’ve been working in these factories for more than 40 years,” said one woman who spent just 20 minutes eating her meal. This was just another day for her.

Inside, the factories we visit are not cramped. There is enough light and industrial-sized fans have been brought in to keep workers cool. Huge posters urge staff to report underage workers – likely a response to finding two cases of child labour in the supply chain last year.

The BBC understands that the company is keeping a closer eye on its suppliers ahead of plans to go public on the London Stock Exchange.

“This is about their reputation,” says Sheng Lu, a professor in Fashion and Apparel Studies at the University of Delaware. “If Shein can successfully achieve an IPO then it means they are recognised as a decent company. But if they are to keep the confidence of investors, they have to take some responsibility.”

One of the biggest challenges Shein faces is accusations that it sources cotton from China’s Xinjiang region.

Once touted as among the world’s best fabric, Xinjiang’s cotton has fallen out of favour after allegations that it is produced using forced labour by people from the Muslim Uyghur minority – a charge that Beijing has consistently denied.

The only way to get around this criticism is to be more transparent, Prof Sheng says.

“Unless you fully release your factory list, unless you make your supply chain more transparent to the public, then I think it’s going to be very challenging for Shein.”

A major advantage, he adds, is that Shein’s supply chain is in China: “Very few countries have a complete supply chain. China has this – and nobody can compete.”

Aspiring rivals like Vietnam and Bangladesh import raw materials from China to make clothes. But Chinese factories rely entirely on local sources for everything, from fabric to zippers and buttons. So it’s easy to make a variety of garments, and they are able to do it quickly.

That especially works for Shein whose algorithm determines orders. If shoppers repeatedly click on a certain dress, or spend longer looking at a wool sweater, the firm knows to ask factories to make more – and fast.

For workers in Guangzhou, this can be a challenge.

“Shein has its pros and cons,” one factory owner told us. “The good thing is the order is eventually big, but profit is low and it’s fixed.”

Shein, given its size and influence, is a hard bargainer. So factory owners have to cut costs elsewhere, often resulting in lower staff wages.

“Before Shein, we produced and sold clothes on our own,” said an owner of three factories. “We could estimate the cost, decide the price and calculate the profit. Now Shein controls the price, and you have to think about ways to reduce the cost.”

When orders peak, however, it’s a bonanza. The company ships around one million packages a day on average, according to data from ShipMatrix, a logistics consultancy firm.

“Shein is a pillar of the fashion industry,” said Guo Qing E, a Shein supplier.

“I started when Shein started. I witnessed its rise. To be honest, Shein is an awesome company in China. I think it will become stronger, because it pays on time. This is where it is most trustworthy.

“If payment for our goods is due on the 15th, no matter whether it’s millions or tens of millions, the money will be paid on time.”

Shein, with its gruelling hours and sometimes lower wages, may not be a source of comfort to all its workers. But it is a source of pride for some.

“This is the contribution we Chinese people can make to the world,” said a 33- year-old supervisor from Guangdong, who didn’t want to give her name.

It’s dark outside and workers are filing back into factories after their dinner for the final stretch. She admits the hours are long, but “we get on well with each other. We are like a family”.

Hours later, after many workers head home for the night, the lights in several buildings stay on.

Some people work until midnight, one factory owner told us. They want to earn more money, he said.

After all, in London, Chicago, Singapore, Dubai and so many other places, someone is hunting for their next bargain.

Some of Donald Trump’s key allies will face a grilling by senators this week, as part of a tense process that will see them either approved or rejected for the roles the president-elect has nominated them for.

The hearings, which begin on Tuesday, are the first chance for senators to publicly quiz some of Trump’s more controversial picks.

They will then need to be confirmed to their roles by a vote. And while the upper chamber of Congress is now controlled by Trump’s Republican Party – just three defections could be enough to deny a nominee a job.

Here are some of the difficult questions those nominees are likely preparing to face.

One of the first confirmation hearings is set to be one of the most closely watched.

Trump’s nominee for defence secretary is expected to face questions on Tuesday about his lack of management experience, his alleged heavy drinking, as well as his previous opposition to women serving in combat roles in the military.

Hegseth could also be asked about an accusation that he sexually assaulted a woman in a California hotel room in 2017.

He denies the claim and maintains the encounter was consensual.

The allegation was investigated, but Hegseth – a Fox News host and military veteran – was never arrested or charged.

• Why Trump’s defence pick surprised Washington

Hegseth and the unnamed accuser then reached a confidential financial settlement in 2023. His lawyer later told the Associated Press that the payment was intended to prevent a baseless lawsuit.

Trump has stood by his pick, who is among the nominees who have been busy courting senators in recent days to try and shore up the necessary votes.

In the spotlight on Wednesday will be the woman who could be tasked with carrying out one of Trump’s top campaign pledges – billed by his team as the largest mass deportation of illegal immigrants in American history.

As the president-elect’s choice for homeland security secretary, Noem could be quizzed on the logistics of enacting this pledge. A mass deportation programme on the scale proposed would likely face logistical or legal difficulties, experts say.

Noem could also face questions on other potential immigration policies, such as Trump’s vow to end birthright citizenship.

She has been a loyal and vocal backer of the president-elect’s pledges, which is consistent with other nominees and appointees for Trump’s second term in the White House.

The man picked to lead Trump’s foreign policy agenda was once on the other side of a confirmation hearing for a Trump nominee for secretary of state.

During the session in 2017, he needled Rex Tillerson – urging him to describe Russian President Vladimir Putin as a war criminal which Tillerson refused to do.

If that session signalled a divergence in views between Rubio and Trump – who were then rivals – the two appear much more closely aligned eight years later.

Rubio is now in the frame for one of the most coveted jobs in Trump’s administration and is expected to encounter relatively little resistance in his path to confirmation.

But senators on Wednesday could test his loyalty with a line of questioning about future American support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. Trump has cast this as a drain on US resources – a view that could jar with Rubio’s hawkish views on foreign policy.

Another nominee facing a possible test of loyalty to Trump in his Senate committee hearing (which is yet to be scheduled) is one of the officials who would be tasked with delivering Trump’s sweeping tariffs.

Trump has threatened import taxes on a variety of goods arriving in the US – including from some of its top trade partners – in what he says is as an effort to protect US jobs.

Lutnick, the billionaire chief executive of financial firm Cantor Fitzgerald, has embraced this proposal – despite this position being at odds with others in his industry and some leading economists.

He is likely to face direct questions over the impact of sweeping new tariffs on the US economy and consumers.

Trump’s choice for national intelligence director could be asked by Republicans and Democrats alike about her past comments on American adversaries such as Russia and Syria.

Gabbard, another military veteran, has routinely opposed American interventionist foreign policy. In 2017, while still Democratic congresswoman, she met the then-president of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, and cast doubt on US intelligence assessments blaming him for using deadly chemical weapons.

And after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine five years later, she blamed Nato and echoed a Kremlin claim that there were US-funded biolabs in Ukraine.

Gabbard has spoken of the necessity of talking to country’s such as Russia.

Democrats are reported to be delaying her hearing until background checks are complete.

• Who is Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s intelligence pick?

One of Trump’s most unconventional picks has, like Gabbard, been on a political journey that actually began in the Democratic Party.

Kennedy has since become a supporter of Trump and has been rewarded with this nomination.

He has no medical qualifications – which could present a tricky initial line of questioning from both sides of the political divide.

And his past statements on established science could also be put under scrutiny. He has repeatedly stated widely debunked claims about vaccine harm, but has denied being anti-vaccine more generally.

• Fact-checking RFK Jr’s views on health policy

On other issues – such as scrutinising food additives – Kennedy enjoys broader support.

Some critics of Trump’s pick to lead the FBI have voiced doubts that Patel is qualified to run America’s main law enforcement agency. Others have shared concerns that he could work to exact revenge on Trump’s opponents.

“We’re going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens, who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections,” he has previously said, citing a baseless Trump claim about the 2020 election.

• Trump pick plans to shake up FBI – but critics doubt his suitability

Although former law enforcement officials have questioned his ability to lead the agency, Patel’s experience as a lawyer and in a number of national security roles has been praised by Trump’s team and some Republicans.

Patel has a stated aim to dramatically refashion how the FBI works, including with a clear-out of some of its top staff.

• What Trump can and can’t do on day one
• The chosen ones: Ten people trusted to deliver for Trump
• How undocumented migrants feel about deportations
• What Trump’s Ukraine envoy has said about war

North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher makes sense of US politics in his twice weekly US Election Unspun newsletter. Readers in the UK can sign up here. Those outside the UK can sign up here.

Despite being vilified, threatened and humiliated in public, veteran Cameroonian lawyer Alice Nkom is determined to uphold the rights of homosexual people in her country.

A human rights NGO that she runs, Redhac, was recently suspended by the government and she is due to appear before investigators to answer accusations of money laundering and funding terror groups – which she denies.

The 80-year-old says the authorities are obstructing her work and believes she is being targeted because of her legal advocacy with the LGBT community.

“I will always defend homosexuals because they risk their freedom every day, and they are thrown into prison like dogs,” she tells the BBC in a firm tone, speaking in her office in the city of Douala.

“My job is to defend people. I don’t see why I would say I’m defending everyone except homosexuals.”

Dressed in a black gown, Ms Nkom delivers her stark message in a measured voice that reflects years of thoughtful legal argument.

According to the country’s penal code, both men and women found guilty of homosexual sex can be sentenced to up to five years in prison and made to pay a fine. Members of the LGBT community also face being ostracized by their families and wider society.

As a result, Ms Nkom has been viewed as a surrogate parent to some in her country who have been open about their sexuality with their family.

The legal expert has children of her own, but hundreds, maybe thousands, of others look up to her as their protector following her work over more than two decades to defend those accused of homosexuality.

“She’s like our father and our mother. She’s the mother we find when our families have abandoned us,” says one LGBT activist, Sébastien, not his real name.

Committed to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which is included in Cameroon’s constitution, Ms Nkom argues that freedom from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation should be seen as a fundamental right that supersedes the penal code.

“You shouldn’t jail fundamental rights, you shouldn’t repress them – you should protect them,” she says.

This is a struggle that has landed Ms Nkom in difficulties.

She says she has been physically threatened several times in the street, and reveals that when she first started out in this area of law, she hired bodyguards to help protect her.

But her journey to become one of Cameroon’s most outspoken legal figures began well before that.

In 1969, aged 24, she became the country’s first black female lawyer, after studying in both France – the former colonial power – and Cameroon.

She says she was encouraged to pursue her studies by her then boyfriend, who later became her husband.

Her earlier legal work involved representing the less well-off and disadvantaged but it was a chance encounter in 2003 that led her to become involved in the fight to decriminalise homosexuality.

She was at the public prosecutor’s office in Douala when she observed a group of young people handcuffed in pairs, who did not have the courage to look up.

“When I checked the court docket, I realised that they were being prosecuted for homosexuality,” she says.

This offended her sense of human rights and she was very clear that sexual minorities should be included among those whose rights were protected by the constitution.

“I decided to fight to ensure that this fundamental right of freedom was respected,” Ms Nkom adds.

She went on to found the Association for the Defence of Homosexuality (Adefho) in 2003.

Since then she has been involved in dozens of cases. One of the most high-profile in recent years was her defence of transgender celebrity Shakiro and a friend, Patricia, in 2021.

The two were arrested while eating in a restaurant and then charged with “attempted homosexuality”.

They were sentenced to five years for contravening the penal code and outraging public decency.

“It’s a hammer blow. It’s the maximum term outlined in the law. The message is clear: homosexuals don’t have a place in Cameroon,” Ms Nkom was quoted as saying at the time.

Shakiro, along with Patricia, was later released pending an appeal and has since fled the country.

Since then the situation for LGBT people has not improved. LGBT activist Sébastien, who runs a charity to support families with homosexual children, feels things have got worse recently.

Last year, a song based on the popular mbolé rhythm with a title and lyrics that encouraged people to target and kill homosexuals, was released. It is still being widely shared, and is regularly played in the trendiest places in the country’s major cities.

“People attack us because of this song, which glorifies crime,” says Sébastien.

LGBT people have to hide their sexual identities but “some people set traps to get close to us and attack us or report us to the police”, he says.

Ms Nkom says that when Brenda Biya, the daughter of President Paul Biya, came out in public to say that she was a lesbian last year, she thought it might help to change the law.

Ms Biya – who spends most of her time outside Cameroon – has been quoted as saying she hoped that her openness could alter things at home.

Ms Nkom senses an opportunity. “I’m using the Brenda case as a precedent. Now I have a case on which I can challenge the president,” she says.

The lawyer also asked Ms Biya to do more for the cause of the LGBT community in Cameroon.

“Brenda hasn’t replied to me yet, since I made the statement in the media, but I know that she will.”

For now, though, she will continue her legal work.

She views the latest attempt to restrict her efforts as just another obstacle – certainly not enough to make her stop the battle she has been waging since 2003.

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The outline of the Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal currently being discussed by Israel and Hamas at indirect talks in Doha has been on the table since May. So why is there fresh anticipation that it could work, after being frozen for eight months of the war?

There are several things that have shifted – both politically and on the ground.

The first is the election of Donald Trump as the next US president.

He has threatened that “all hell” would break loose if the hostages were not released before he took office on 20 January.

Hamas may well read that as a sign that even the flimsy brakes the Biden administration used to try and rein in the Israeli government would be lifted, though it is hard to imagine what that might mean for a territory already so shattered by 15 months of war.

Israel too is feeling the pressure from the incoming president to end the conflict in Gaza, which threatens to interfere with Trump’s hopes to secure a wider regional deal, and his desired image as a president who ends wars.

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On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces continued pressure from his far-right coalition allies to continue the war.

But Trump could also be an asset for him in persuading his allies to swallow the deal and stay in the government; the new US president and the man he picked as Israeli ambassador are seen as supportive of Israel’s settlements in the occupied West Bank, which Israel’s far-right Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, has said he wants to annex.

But after a meeting with the prime minister last night, Smotrich appeared unconvinced, writing on social media that the current deal was “a catastrophe” for Israel’s national security and that he would not support it.

Some in Israel, though, believe that both Smotrich and his far-right ally, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, see their current role in Israel’s government as their best chance to cement control over the West Bank, especially with Trump returning to the White House, and that they are unlikely to follow through with their threats to quit.

The second thing that has shifted is growing pressure on Netanyahu from his own military establishment.

Key figures are widely reported to have challenged him repeatedly on the dwindling military goals in continuing the war, after the killing of the top Hamas leadership, and the decimation of Gaza.

Last week, 10 Israeli soldiers were killed in Gaza, shining a fresh spotlight on the costs of the war to Israel, and on the perennial question of whether the “total victory” over Hamas that Netanyahu has promised is achievable.

Some analysts now suggest that Hamas is rebuilding faster than Israel is defeating it, and therefore Israel needs to reconsider its strategy.

And there’s a third – regional – shift playing into the shift in expectations here too: the weakening and erosion of Hamas allies in Iran’s “Axis of Resistance”, from Hezbollah in Lebanon to Bashar al-Assad in Syria, along with killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza.

For all these reasons, now is seen as the best chance in months to bridge the gaps between Israel and Hamas and bring an end to the war.

What has not shifted in the eight months since they were last negotiating are the gaps between them.

Key among them is a direct conflict between the key concern of Hamas, which wants to end the war, and that of Israel, which wants to keep the door open to resuming the conflict, whether for political or military reasons.

The deal, as outlined by President Joe Biden in May, is divided into three phases, with a permanent ceasefire only coming into effect in phase two.

Success now will likely depend on whether guarantees can be found to allay Hamas fears that Israel will pull out of the deal after the first phase of hostage releases.

Questions over how to administer territory that Israel pulls back from are also unclear at this stage.

But the web of diplomacy criss-crossing the region over the past week, and the fact that Netanyahu has sent the heads of Israel’s security agencies to the talks in Doha, along with a key political adviser, are encouraging signs.

So too is the departure for Doha of the Palestinian detainee co-ordinator, Qadoura Fares.

The deal is not yet done – and talks have fallen apart before.

This old deal is fuelling fresh hopes partly because negotiations are taking place in a new regional context, with growing pressures both internally and from key allies abroad.

Millions of people are gathering in the northern Indian city of Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh state to participate in the Mahakumbh Mela, the world’s largest gathering of humanity.

Devout Hindus from all parts of the world have arrived here (and will continue to do so) over the course of six weeks to take a holy dip at Sangam – the confluence of India’s most sacred Ganges river with the Yamuna river and the mythical Saraswati.

Hindus believe taking a dip in the sacred waters cleanses people of sins.

Authorities have set up a sprawling tent city spread across 4,000 hectares of open land along the banks of the rivers to accommodate the visitors, who are arriving at the grounds in colourful large processions, singing and dancing along the way.

Photojournalist Ankit Srinivas brings you some sights from the festival:

Traffic in New York City has fallen since a congestion charge scheme for vehicles came into effect on 5 January, transport officials say.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) said 273,000 fewer cars entered the central business district from Monday to Friday, with traffic falling by 7.5% compared with estimates for January week days without the scheme in place.

The congestion fee – the first of its kind in the US – charges car drivers up to $9 (£7) a day, with varying rates for other vehicles.

The congestion zone covers an area south of Central Park, taking in such well-known sites as the Empire State Building, Times Square and the financial district around Wall Street.

“The early data backs up what New Yorkers have been telling us all week – traffic is down, the streets feel safer, and buses are moving faster,” said Janno Lieber, who heads the MTA.

Motorists are also saving time, while local and express buses are moving faster, especially in the morning commute, the MTA posted on X.

The scheme aims to ease New York’s notorious traffic problems and raise billions for the public transport network.

Most drivers are charged $9 once per day to enter the congestion zone at peak hours, and $2.25 at other times.

Small trucks and non-commuter buses pay $14.40 to enter Manhattan at peak times, while larger trucks and tourist buses pay a $21.60 fee.

While the charge has been welcomed by many, it has encountered plenty of opposition.

The most high-profile opposition has come from President-elect Donald Trump, a native New Yorker who has vowed to kill the scheme when he returns to office this month.

Last year, New York City was named the world’s most-congested urban area for the second year in a row, according to INRIX, a traffic data analysis firm.

Ghana’s government will investigate controversial plans to build a $400m (£330m) national cathedral, new President John Mahama has said.

Pressure has been mounting on authorities to drop the project, which has divided opinions in a country experiencing an economic crisis.

Former President Nana Akufo-Addo, whose party was voted out during December’s elections, had pledged to build the cathedral after crediting God for his party’s success in 2016.

Akufo-Addo’s government said the cathedral would be privately funded, but $58m of taxpayers’ money has so far been spent on the project.

There is nothing to show for this sum but a huge crater in a plot of valuable land in central Accra, previously occupied by state buildings, judges’ homes and financial firms.

Ghana is a deeply religious country, where 70% of people are Christians.

The National Cathedral of Ghana was envisioned to be a sacred space for all Christians, where national religious services could take place. It is also intended to house a Bible museum and a national conference centre.

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At a thanksgiving service on Sunday, Mahama said: “The commission on human rights and administrative justice (CHRAJ) directed government to audit the project and investigate any misuse of public funds. We would soon activate such an investigation into the project.”

However, he did not rule out finishing the cathedral.

“We can reach a more reasonable figure for achieving such a project and together we can raise the funding for it,” he said.

“Such a reconsideration of this project might even include changing the current site that was chosen for the project. The project must be achieved at a reasonable cost, in the current circumstances that Ghana is going through, it makes no sense to achieve a project at a whopping sum of $400m.”

On Monday, new Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson suggested public money would no longer be used for the project, telling a parliamentary committee that the government “would work to cut off wasteful expenditure and the national cathedral project is one of them”.

Ghana has been hit by its worst economic crisis in a generation and last year received a $3bn (£2.5bn) bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The rate at which the price of goods is rising, or inflation, has improved significantly since the bailout, but is still high at 23.8%.

Work on the cathedral had stalled after contractors wrote to the government, saying they were unwilling to continue due to a lack of payment.

Prior to December’s elections, Mahama had hinted that if he became president, he would launch an investigation into the project and decide whether or not to continue with it.

But while his NDC party was in opposition, its caucus in parliament urged Akuffo-Addo to completely “terminate the contract for the project”.

NDC lawmaker Kwabena Mintah Akandoh had asked: “Where is the wisdom in building a cathedral when there are more pressing needs in the country across sectors like health and education?

“I do not think any reasonable person expects John Mahama to build a cathedral. People are dying from cholera and other diseases, why focus on a cathedral?”

The building has also sparked concern among senior clergymen involved with the project.

Five members of the cathedral’s board of trustees have resigned amid calls for the government to halt the project and conduct an audit.

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Nawaf Salam, the president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague, has been named as Lebanon’s new prime minister.

Two thirds of the 128 members of parliament nominated the 71-year-old judge for the post – reserved for a Sunni Muslim under a sectarian power sharing system – during consultations with newly elected President Joseph Aoun. Caretaker PM Najib Mikati got nine votes.

The presidency said Salam would return to Lebanon on Tuesday.

His appointment is another blow to Hezbollah, which had sought to reappoint Mikati but ended up nominating no candidate. The Iran-backed Shia Muslim militia and political party has been significantly weakened by its recent war with Israel.

Senior Hezbollah lawmaker Mohammed Raad accused its opponents of working for fragmentation and exclusion.

He complained that his group had “extended its hand” by supporting Aoun’s election only to find the “hand cut”, and warned that “any government at odds with coexistence has no legitimacy whatsoever”.

However, Christian and Sunni allies of Hezbollah did back Salam.

Gebran Bassil, the leader of Lebanon’s biggest Maronite Christian bloc, called him the “face of reform”. Sunni lawmaker Faisal Karami meanwhile said he had nominated the ICJ chief due to the demands for “change and renewal” as well as promises of international support for Lebanon.

Salam is a member of a prominent Sunni family from Beirut. His uncle, Salam, helped Lebanon gain independence from France in 1943 and served several terms as prime minister. His cousin, Tammam, was also prime minister from 2014 to 2016.

He holds a doctorate in political science from Sciences Po university in France, a doctorate in history from the Sorbonne and a Master of Law degree from Harvard Law School.

Salam worked as a lawyer and a lecturer at several universities before serving as Lebanon’s permanent representative to the United Nations in New York from 2007 to 2017.

He became a member of the ICJ – the UN’s top court – in 2018, and was elected president for a three-year term last February. He took over as the ICJ heard a case brought by South Africa that accused Israeli forces of committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Israel dismissed the allegation as baseless.

Now that he has been designated prime minister by President Aoun, Salam must agree a cabinet line-up that can win a confidence vote in Lebanon’s deeply-divided parliament.

Former Lebanese army chief Aoun’s candidacy for the presidency – a role reserved for a Maronite Christian – was backed by many key political parties in parliament as well as the United States, France and Saudi Arabia.

Hezbollah and its ally, Amal, voted for him in the second round of last Thursday’s presidential election following the withdrawal of their preferred candidate.

After the election, Aoun declared that “a new phase in Lebanon’s history” had begun and vowed to work to ensure that the Lebanese state had “the exclusive right to bear arms” – a reference to Hezbollah, which had built a force considered more powerful than the army to resist Israel before their 13-month conflict in violation of a UN Security Council resolution.

The army was not involved in the war and has a key role under the ceasefire deal agreed between the Lebanese and Israeli governments at the end of November. It is required to deploy soldiers in southern Lebanon as Israeli troops withdraw and to ensure Hezbollah ends its armed presence there by 26 January.

Aoun also promised to help the new government push through the political and economic reforms widely seen as necessary in a country that has been affected by multiple crises.

Besides the Hezbollah-Israel conflict, they include a six-year-long economic depression that is one of the worst recorded in modern times, and the 2020 Beirut port explosion that killed more than 200 people.

Fashion photographer Oliviero Toscani, known for his shock ad campaigns for Italian clothing brand Benetton, has died aged 82, his family has confirmed.

The brand’s former art director revealed least year he had amyloidosis, a rare incurable condition that affects the body’s vital organs and nerves.

“It is with great sorrow that we announce the news that today, 13 January 2025, our beloved Oliviero has embarked on his next journey,” Toscani’s wife Kirsti said in a post on Instagram.

Toscani was admitted to hospital on Friday in Cecina, near his Tuscan country home, in a serious condition.

In an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera last year he said he had unintentionally lost 40kg (88lb) in weight.

“I don’t know how long I have left to live, but I’m not interested in living like this anyway,” he added.

His work drew attention to social themes, such as the Aids pandemic, racism, war and the death penalty.

Paying tribute to his work, Benetton released a photograph he had taken for the brand in 1989.

“In order to explain certain things, words simply don’t suffice. You taught us that,” a spokesperson said on Monday.

“Farewell Oliviero. Keep on dreaming.”

Born on 28 February 1942 in Milan, Toscani was the son of a well-known Corriere photographer and attended art school in Zurich.

Throughout his career, he worked for leading fashion magazines including Vogue and GQ and helped to launch the career of model Monica Bellucci.

He photographed cultural icons such as Andy Warhol, John Lennon and Federico Fellini.

But it was during his tenure as director at Benetton, a position he held for 18 years, that saw him achieve world recognition.

His use of models of all races became the label’s calling card and popularised the “United Colours of Benetton” logo – but his provocative photos stoked controversy.

Images of the blood-drenched clothes of a soldier killed in Bosnia were featured on Benetton billboards around the world.

His graphic use of a photo depicting David Kirby, a man dying of Aids, also prompted a boycott of the brand.

Three identical human hearts labelled black, white and yellow hinted at the racism in fashion, while another of his adverts – featuring a priest and nun kissing – were eventually banned.

He parted company with the brand in 2000 following disputes over his last campaign, which featured images of death row prisoners, captioned “sentenced to death”.

He has said that his campaigns, which touched on subjects such as human rights, religion and racism, were designed to raise awareness of certain issues.

“I exploit clothing to raise social issues,” Toscani told Reuters in an interview at the time, as debate erupted over whether the campaign had gone too far.

“Traditional advertising says if you buy a certain product, you will be beautiful, sexually powerful, successful. All that doesn’t really exist,” he said.

In 2007, his photo of French model Isabelle Caro for a fashion label’s anti-anorexia campaign made headlines.

Her gaunt face and emaciated body, ravaged by the eating disorder, was featured on billboards and in newspapers during Milan fashion week. The campaign coincided with the rise in concern about the use of excessively thin models on the catwalk.

The image, shot for fashion house Nolita, was banned in several countries including Italy, but provoked fierce debate online after going viral.

Toscani resumed working for Benetton in 2017, but three years later, the group cut ties with him after he played down the significance of the Morandi Bridge disaster which killed 43 people.

He is survived by his wife and three children Rocco, Lola and Ali.

As crews battle devastating wildfires in southern California, vivid images have emerged of air tankers dropping bright red and pink powder on Los Angeles suburbs.

The eye-catching substance – fire retardant – is now a common sight in the area, blanketing driveways, rooftops and cars.

Officials said thousands of gallons of the substance were dropped in the last week to stop the flames from spreading.

But what exactly is in it, and how does it help fight the wildfires?

The flame retardant is a product called Phos-Chek, which is sold by a company called Perimeter.

It has been used to fight blazes in the US since 1963, and is the main long-term fire retardant used by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. It is also the most-used fire retardant in the world, according to a 2022 report in the Associated Press.

With wildfires raging in southern California over the last week, images have since surfaced of the pink powder-like substance covering vehicles and driveways.

Perimeter, the company behind Phos-Chek, has advised in the past cleaning the powder off as soon as it is safe to do so.

“The longer the retardant dries, the more difficult it is to remove completely,” they cautioned.

Warm water and mild detergent are effective in removing it from small surfaces, the company has said. For larger surfaces, pressure washers can be used.

The exact formula of Phos-Chek is not public knowledge but the company has said in previous filings that the product is 80% water, 14% fertiliser-type salts, 6% colouring agents and corrosion inhibitors.

As for its color, the company said it is “a visual aid for pilots and firefighters alike.” After a few days of exposure to sunlight, the colour fades to earth tones, it said.

The retardant is typically sprayed around a wildfire on vegetation and land that is fire-prone to stop the flames from spreading to that area.

According to the US Forest Service, retardants “slow the rate of spread by cooling and coating fuels, depleting the fire of oxygen, and slowing the rate of fuel combustion as the retardant’s inorganic salts change how fuels burn.”

Its use has been controversial in the past over its potential effects on the environment.

A lawsuit filed in 2022 by the Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics, an organisation made up of current and former employees of the US Forest Service, accused the federal agency of violating the country’s clean water laws by dumping chemical fire retardant from planes onto forests.

It argued that the chemical kills fish and is not effective.

The following year, a US District judge agreed with the employees, but in her ruling allowed the Forest Service to continue using the retardant as it seeks a permit to do so from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

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The case drew the attention of communities devastated by wildfires in the past, including the town of Paradise, California, which was destroyed by fire in 2018.

Its then-mayor, Greg Bolin, hailed the judge’s ruling, saying it ensures communities “have a fighting chance” in the face of fires.

The Forest Service told NPR that this year, it phased out the use of one type of Phos-Chek formula – Phos-Chek LC95 – in favour of another – MVP-Fx – saying that the latter is less toxic to wildlife.

The Forest Service also has a mandatory ban in place on dropping fire retardant in sensitive environmental areas, like waterways and habitats of endangered species. There are exceptions to the ban, however, in cases “when human life or public safety are threatened.”

Spain is planning to impose a tax of up to 100% on properties bought by non-residents from countries outside the EU, such as the UK.

Announcing the move, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the “unprecedented” measure was necessary to meet the country’s housing emergency.

“The West faces a decisive challenge: To not become a society divided into two classes, the rich landlords and poor tenants,” he said.

Non-EU residents bought 27,000 properties in Spain in 2023, he told an economic forum in Madrid, “not to live in” but “to make money from them”.

“Which, in the context of shortage that we are in, [we] obviously cannot allow,” he added.

The move was therefore designed to “priorit[ise] that the available homes are for residents”, he said.

Sánchez did not provide details on how the tax would work nor a timeline for presenting it to parliament for approval, where he has often struggled to gather sufficient votes to pass legislation.

But his government said the proposal would be finalised “after careful study”.

It is one of a dozen planned measures announced by the prime minister on Monday aimed at improving housing affordability in the country.

Other measures announced include a tax exemption for landlords who provide affordable housing, transferring more than 3,000 homes to a new public housing body, and tighter regulation and higher taxes on tourist flats.

“It isn’t fair that those who have three, four or five apartments as short-term rentals pay less tax than hotels,” he said.

Los Angeles residents are bracing for further destruction as weather forecasts indicate that winds helping fuel the flames might pick up again.

Three fires continue to blaze. The largest, the Palisades Fire, has burned more than 23,000 acres and remained at 14% contained as of Monday evening.

LA Mayor Karen Bass said “urgent preparations” are being made in advance of near hurricane-force winds predicted to peak on Tuesday.

At least 24 people have died in the fires and 23 others are missing in the Eaton and Palisades fire zones.

On Monday, authorities also announced nine people were arrested for looting and one for arson.

At a news conference, LA District Attorney Nathan Hochman showed videos of some looting and outlined maximum sentences if the accused are convicted.

In some of the cases the suspects could face life in prison under California’s “three strikes” law – under which repeat offenders can be sentenced to 25 years to life after a third conviction.

The one arson suspect was arrested in the nearby city of Azusa, around 20 miles (32km) east of downtown Los Angeles.

The arson is not linked to any of the major fires but was allegedly started in a local park.

Law enforcement also warned against price gouging, internet scams, and flying drones, which can interfere with firefighting aircraft.

They said a number of ongoing investigations means more charges could be filed.

Blake Chow, the assistant chief of the Los Angeles Police Department’s office of special operations, issued a stern warning to looters: “You’re not going to get away with it.”

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Also on Monday, two lawsuits were filed against power company Southern California Edison (SCE) by property owners who lost homes in the Eaton fire.

They alleged the company failed to de-energise its electrical equipment despite warnings of high winds.

A company spokesperson said that SCE had not yet been served with the complaint but that would review it once received.

“The cause of the fire continues to be under investigation,” the spokesperson said.

A separate lawsuit was filed against the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) by residents of the Pacific Palisades, accusing the utility company of failing to supply enough water to fight the fire there.

The complaint, filed by law firm Robertson & Associates in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims a reservoir that had been drained should have been maintained.

“The Palisades Fire has been a traumatic event for its victims, who through no fault of their own, went from homeowners to homeless in a matter of hours,” the complaint said, according to Reuters news agency.

The BBC has asked LADWP for comment.

In a statement on its website last week, LADWP said: “The water system serving the Pacific Palisades area and all of Los Angeles meets all federal and state fire codes for urban development and housing.”

It said it was launching its own investigation into water resiliency.

The Eaton Fire, the second-largest of the series of blazes that broke out across the city last week, has burned more than 14,000 acres, and is 33% contained, authorities said.

There had been “very little fire growth” of the Palisades blaze on Monday, said Jim Hudson, deputy chief of CalFire.

The BBC Weather Centre says Santa Ana winds – blowing in from the east or north-east – could reach gusts up to 70mph (112km/h) on Tuesday, potentially stoking further fires.

Weather officials say lighter winds are forecast to develop after Wednesday, bringing an opportunity for firefighters to further contain the blazes.

A curfew remains in place in evacuation areas between 18:00 and 06:00 local time.

Adam Schiff, the newly elected Democratic senator for California, told the BBC that he hoped that the incoming Trump administration would move quickly to provide disaster relief.

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When asked whether wildfires had become increasingly politicised, Schiff said: “There has been people doing that since the moment the fires started.”

“It’s not helpful right now, let’s just focus on putting these fires out, getting people the help that they need.”

President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly planning to visit the area in the coming days.

Federal lawmakers are set to meet on Tuesday morning to discuss disaster aid for the state.

President Joe Biden said he has directed hundreds of federal personnel, aerial and ground support to California, and his team will “respond promptly” to any request for more help.

“Our hearts ache for the 24 innocent souls we have lost,” he said.

Meanwhile, as city fire crews continue to try to contain the blazes, local residents joined in relief efforts.

Actor and comedian Will Arnett told the BBC that he has friends who lost their homes.

“I think that everybody should help in ways they can,” said Arnett, who was helping to distribute water to those affected by the fires.

“It is nice seeing people coming together and volunteering the way that they are.”

Fardad Khayami, a 24-year-old restaurant owner in Pacific Palisades, was delivering hundreds of meals to people affected by the fires.

He told BBC Newsday: “If you look, outside, it seems to offer a normal city where we are. But if you drive five minutes to the west, it seems like a different world.”

He hoped to provide locals with 500 meals a day “for as long as they need them”.

Altadena resident Michael Storc, who lost his family home, said “rents have gone up a lot.”

“I grew up a poor kid who was renting, so going back to renting is a bit gutting,” he said.

His family wonders if they will ever be able to rebuild on the land where their home once stood, he said.

“We don’t know if it will ever be safe,” he told the BBC.

While many expensive mansions were lost in the fires, Pete Brown, a spokesman for a local council member in Pacific Palisades, said many owners bought the homes some 50 years ago, some for prices around $25,000 (£20,500).

He said those elderly homeowners are now left with nothing.

“Their wealth was in that home,” said Mr Brown.

At least 24 people have died in the Los Angeles fires as two major blazes continue to burn across the sprawling Californian city.

Firefighters made progress over the weekend in containing the Palisades and Eaton fires but warn that the return of high winds – forecast until Wednesday – could see them spread again.

They are already among the most destructive in LA’s history in terms of buildings destroyed.

The largest fire is in the Palisades and it has burnt through more than 23,000 acres. But over the weekend thousands of firefighters made progress in containing about 14% of it.

The blaze is moving east, threatening the exclusive neighbourhood of Brentwood, home to the Getty Center, a world-famous art museum that has now evacuated its staff.

A red flag warning – indicating a high level of fire danger – will be in place until 18:00 (02:00 GMT) on Wednesday, with the strongest Santa Ana winds expected on Tuesday.

• Follow live updates
• What are Santa Ana winds?

The other fire, Eaton, is more deadly than Palisades so far – responsible for 16 of the 24 dead, with many more still missing.

The number of people under evacuation orders in LA County has decreased since Saturday, but the destruction is immense.

More than 12,000 structures – homes, outbuildings, sheds, mobile homes and cars -have been destroyed, including 7,000 in the Eaton fire.

The fires could turn out to be the costliest in US history, with damage projected at up to $150bn, according to a preliminary estimate by AccuWeather.

Celebrities who have lost their homes include Mel Gibson, Leighton Meester and Adam Brody, who attended the Golden Globes last week, and Paris Hilton.

Tens of thousands of homes are also without power.

There are two active fires in the wider area, while a smaller fire is nearly contained, say California fire officials:

• Palisades: The first fire to erupt a week ago and the biggest in the region. It has scorched 23,713 acres as of Monday, including the upmarket Pacific Palisades neighbourhood. It was 14% contained as of Monday
• Eaton: Affecting the northern part of LA, blazing through areas such as Altadena. It is the second biggest fire in the area, burning more than 14,000 acres. It is 33% contained
• Hurst: Located just north of San Fernando, it began burning last Tuesday night. It has grown to 799 acres, and is almost fully contained

The earlier Kenneth, Archer, Sunset, Lidia, Woodley and Olivas fires have been contained.

Containment describes the progress firefighters make in controlling the spread of flames.

It’s often listed as a percentage – for example the most recent update on the massive Palisades fire has it as 14% contained.

This means fire crews have established barriers around 14% of the fire’s perimeter.

Natural barriers include roads, rivers and oceans. Firefighters can also create barriers using equipment such as bulldozers, hoses and shovels to remove vegetation down to the bare soil, meaning there is nothing for the fire to burn.

A fire being 100% contained doesn’t mean it has been extinguished, but rather that the flames have been fully encircled and the spread has been effectively stopped.

A political row about the city’s preparedness has erupted after it emerged some fire crews’ hoses ran dry.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has called for an independent investigation into the loss of water pressure to hydrants and why the Santa Ynez Reservoir was closed for maintenance and empty when the fire broke out.

“Losing supplies from fire hydrants likely impaired the effort to protect some homes and evacuation corridors,” he wrote.

• Fact-checking criticism of California Democrats over fires

Mayor Karen Bass, who was on a previously arranged trip to Ghana when the fires began, has faced intense questions about the region’s preparedness and the water issues.

On Saturday, she deflected questions about her handling of the emergency, telling a news conference: “Right now, our first and most important obligation to Angelenos is to get through this crisis.”

Before the fires broke out, the city of LA’s fire chief warned in a memo that budget cuts were hampering the department’s ability to respond to emergencies.

But LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone has denied that his department had been unprepared.

“I did everything in my power to make sure that we had enough personnel and resources before the first fire started,” he said.

LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said detectives are continuing to investigate the possible causes.

“Everything is absolutely on the table,” he said.

Lightning – the most common source of fires in the US – has been ruled out as a cause for the Palisades and Eaton fires.

• ‘I have nothing to go back to’ – heartbreak in LA
• How one street went up in flames

There has been no official indication so far that arson or utility lines – the next two biggest culprits in sparking fires – caused any of the conflagrations.

However, in the Eaton Fire’s case, a law firm filed a complaint on Monday against the electrical company, Southern California Edison Company (SCE), claiming there is “evidence” that the blaze – one of the largest – was ignited due to negligence.

A statement from law firm Bridgford, Gleason & Artinian said it believed the Eaton Fire was ignited because of SCE’s “failure to de-energize its overhead wires which traverse Eaton Canyon – despite a red flag PDS wind warning issued by the national weather service the day before the ignition of the fire”.

The law firm said it bases its claim on its own investigation, discussions with various consultants, the public statements of SCE, and video evidence of the fire’s origin.

The origins of the wildfires are currently under investigation and no cause has been officially determined.

SCE said in a statement it “understands that a lawsuit related to the Eaton fire has been filed but has not yet been served with a complaint.”

Spokeswoman Gabriela Ornelas told the BBC it will review the complaint once received, and added the company “remains committed” to supporting communities affected by the fires.

On Friday, SCE said LA fire authorities were investigating whether its infrastructure was involved in the ignition of the Hurst Fire.

California’s very wet years of 2022-23 brought about a huge growth of vegetation, which dried out in the drought of last year, creating abundant kindling.

A combination of an exceptionally dry period – downtown LA has only received 0.16 inches (0.4cm) of rain since October – and powerful offshore gusts known as the Santa Ana winds have also created ripe conditions for wildfires.

Although strong winds and lack of rain are driving the blazes, experts say climate change is altering the background conditions and increasing the likelihood of such fires.

Much of the western United States including California experienced a decades-long drought that ended just two years ago, making the region vulnerable.

“Whiplash” swings between dry and wet periods in recent years created a massive amount of tinder-dry vegetation that was ready to burn.

US government research is unequivocal in linking climate change to larger and more severe wildfires in the western US.

“Climate change, including increased heat, extended drought, and a thirsty atmosphere, has been a key driver in increasing the risk and extent of wildfires in the western United States,” the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says.

Fire season in southern California is generally thought to stretch from May to October – but the governor has pointed out earlier that blazes had become a perennial issue. “There’s no fire season,” he said. “It’s fire year.”

• A simple guide to climate change
• Stuck in traffic as flames approached: Why LA is hard to evacuate

No one can say when the Los Angeles fires will finally go out.

In the next few days, the city is bracing for continued burning and a possible spread.

The Santa Ana winds that fanned the flames are set to strengthen, with strong gusts on Tuesday, with the severity then decreasing. There are now new red flag warnings for dangerous wind storms.

The other conditions that fed the fire – dry brush and lack of precipitation – continue, as well.

Have you been affected by the fires in California? Get in touch here.

Sign up for our Future Earth newsletter to get exclusive insight on the latest climate and environment news from the BBC’s Climate Editor Justin Rowlatt, delivered to your inbox every week. Outside the UK? Sign up to our international newsletter here.

The chart-topping K-pop band NewJeans may be prevented from signing advertising deals and other contracts, after their record label filed an injunction against them.

The five-piece are currently engaged in a fierce dispute with Ador, the entertainment company that formed their band in 2022.

Last November, the group claimed their contracts were invalid, due to what they alleged was a pattern of bullying, harassment and subterfuge at the company. Ador, which denied the allegations, sued to have their contracts upheld.

The company is now accusing NewJeans of trying to sign independent deals without its approval, and has taken further legal action in Seoul, South Korea.

“This decision was made to prevent confusion and potential harm to third parties, including advertisers,” Ador explained in a statement.

The agency also warned that there could be broader repercussions for South Korea’s lucrative music industry if NewJeans’ actions went unchecked.

“Allowing unilateral terminations of exclusive contracts and independent activities without legal procedures could undermine investment in the entertainment industry and destabilise the K-pop sector,” Ador said in its injunction application, according to the Yonhap News Agency.

NewJeans were considered one of the brightest new bands in K-Pop, thanks to a playful blend of 1990s R&B and sugar-coated pop melodies.

In 2023, they were the eighth biggest-selling act in the world. Last year, they picked up a nomination for best group at the MTV Awards.

But their relationship with Ador soured after its parent company Hybe allegedly forced out their mentor, Min Hee-Jin.

The band issued an ultimatum demanding that Min should be restored. When Hybe refused, the group went public with a number of complaints against the label, including the claim that Hybe had deliberately undermined their careers.

In a press conference last November, the five members – Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin and Hyein – announced their departure from the company, saying Hybe and Ador had lost the right to represent them as artists.

They subsequently filed court papers seeking a legal separation from the agency, but the case has yet to be heard.

Ador argues that the band’s contract, which runs until 2027, should be upheld.

The label has already finalised a schedule for the quintet’s next 12 months, which includes releasing a new album and hosting fan meetings, amongst other activities.

However, the band members have continued to assert their independence, creating a new Instagram account under the name “jeanzforfree“, where they have been hosting regular live-streams with fans.

The band say they will fight to keep their name, and their career, and will remain “NewJeans at heart” even if they lose that fight.

It is not the first time that a K-pop band has tried to terminate a contract.

The popular groups TVXQ and Fifty Fifty have both taken their labels to court – but the cases have had mixed results, and both bands have seen their line-ups change as a result.

The biggest problem facing NewJeans is that their case against Ador could take two or three years to settle if it goes to trial. During that time, they’re unlikely to be able to record or promote new music, unless the projects are created in conjunction with the label.

If the court eventually finds Hybe was at fault, the members will be able to walk away – and may even be able to hold on to the band’s name.

But if the decision goes against the band, they may face a financial penalty.

In October, the K-pop news site Koreaboo estimated that the members would have to pay about 300bn South Korean Won (about £170m) to walk away from their contract early.

Ash-smeared naked Hindu holy men charged into India’s most sacred river Ganges at dawn on the first most significant bathing day of the Kumbh Mela festival (also known as Mahakumbh), in the northern city of Prayagraj.

The festival, held once every 12 years, started on Monday, with more than 16.5 million pilgrims bathing in the holy rivers.

On Tuesday, festival was ground was filled with devotees as tens of millions joined the Naga sadhus in the bathing ritual.

The ascetics chanted religious slogans, invoking Hindu gods and goddesses as they plunged into the icy waters.

Hindus believe that this ritual will cleanse them of sins, purify their soul and help them attain salvation by liberating them from the cycle of birth and death.

After coming out of the water, some holy men picked up fistful of the silver sand and rubbed it over their bodies.

Many carried swords and tridents and one held aloft a silver staff with a snake head.

Police struggled to manage the surging crowds at the festival on Tuesday as thousands managed to come into an arena meant for the ascetics.

Officials say more than 400 million are expected to participate in the 45-day spectacle which is described as humanity’s biggest gathering. It is so large that it can be seen from space.

Tuesday’s bathing rituals, called the Shahi Snan – or the royal bath – will see the ascetics arrive in batches at the Sangam – the confluence of India’s most sacred Ganges river with the Yamuna river and the mythical Saraswati – in colourful processions.

Their outing is a major draw for people from across India and around the world who come to seek their blessings.

Their presence also holds a special significance for the great masses who believe that the river waters get imbued with the purity of the saints’ thoughts and deeds when they bathe in the river.

There are six auspicious days to bathe this time, decided by astrologers, based on the alignment of specific planets and constellations. They are:

• 13 January: Paush Purnima
• 14 January: Makar Sankranti
• 29 January: Mauni Amavasya
• 3 February: Basant Panchami
• 12 February: Magh Purnima
• 26 February: Maha Shivaratri

Three of these – 14 and 29 January, and 3 February – have been designated as Shahi Snan days when the Naga sadhus will bathe.

The largest gathering is expected on 29 January when 50 to 60 million worshippers are expected to take to the waters.

Authorities have built a sprawling tented city on the river bank spread over 4,000 hectares to accommodate the holy men, pilgrims and tourists visiting the festival.

For the past few days, we have watched groups of saints arriving at the mela grounds in large noisy processions.

One group of ash-smeared holy men, some naked and some dressed in just a loin cloth or marigold garland draped around their necks, marched through the streets, holding tridents, swords and small two-headed drums.

• Millions start bathing in holy rivers at India’s biggest Hindu festival
• In photos: World’s biggest religious festival begins in India

Another group had its leaders on chariots escorted to their campsite in a large procession with music bands, dancers, horses and camels.

The groups – known as akharas – have set up sprawling camps which have been a hive of activity, with tens of thousands of pilgrims visiting to hear religious discourses or attend evening prayers.

The origin of the festival is rooted in the mythological story about a fight between the gods and demons over a Kumbh (a pitcher) of nectar that emerged during the churching of the ocean.

As the two sides fought over the pot of elixir, a few drops spilled over and fell in four cities – Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik.

The Kumbh mela is organised in all the four cities, but the biggest festivals are always held in Prayagraj.

The bathing dates and auspicious times are decided by astrologers, based on the alignment of specific planets and constellations.

Hindu seer Mahant Ravindra Puri says the rare planetary alignments at present make this year’s festival “extra special” and “a Maha [great] Kumbh”.

Mahant Puri will be leading tens of thousands of holy men from his akhara to Tuesday morning’s bath.

“We believe that during Kumbh Mela, the waters of the sacred river will be imbued with nectar,” he says.

“And those who have faith, Ganga maiyya [the river goddess] will bless them with whatever they want, whatever they need,” he adds.

Besides the saints and ascetics, Tuesday’s bathing will also see millions of ordinary pilgrims making their way to the river.

On Monday, in the mela ground, we met Chitiya Ahirvar who is visiting from her village in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

The 60-year-old who is travelling in a group of 20 bathed in the river in the morning and will be going back for a repeat on Tuesday .

“I prayed to the river goddess for my children’s well being and happiness,” she said.

Mavaram Patel, a businessman who is visiting from the southern state of Tamil Nadu, said he had heard a lot about the Kumbh Mela but did not have the opportunity to visit earlier.

“Kumbh Mela is part of our ancient tradition. It’s one of Hinduism’s most important festivals,” he told the BBC.

Mr Patel said he prayed to the river goddess for the “happiness and welfare” of his “family and the wider world” and plans to take a dip in the river on Tuesday morning too before leaving the city.

“Visiting Prayagraj and bathing during Kumbh was on my bucket list for a long time so I’m happy to be here,” he said.

The terms of a deal between Israel and Hamas for a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages are being finalised, a Palestinian official familiar with the negotiations has told the BBC.

It comes as US President Joe Biden said a deal was “on the brink” of coming to fruition, and that his administration was working urgently on the matter.

An Israeli official also told news agency Reuters that negotiations were in “advanced stages”, with a deal possible in “hours, days or more”.

US President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, and with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar – who is mediating the negotiations – on Monday.

• Three things that could make a Gaza hostage deal more likely

The Palestinian official told the BBC that Hamas and Israeli officials were conducting indirect talks in the same building on Monday.

Revealing some potential details of the agreement, the official stated that “the detailed technical discussions took considerable time”.

Both sides agreed that Hamas would release three hostages on the first day of the agreement, after which Israel would begin withdrawing the troops from populated areas.

Seven days later, Hamas would release four additional hostages, and Israel would allow displaced people in the southern to return to the north, but only on foot via the coastal road.

Cars, animal-drawn carts, and trucks would be permitted to cross through a passage adjacent to Salah al-Din Road, monitored by an X-ray machine operated by a Qatari-Egyptian technical security team.

The agreement includes provisions for Israeli forces to remain in the Philadelphi corridor and maintain an 800-meter buffer zone along the eastern and northern borders during the first phase, which will last 42 days.

Israel has also agreed to release 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including approximately 190 who have been serving sentences of 15 years or more. In exchange, Hamas will release 34 hostages.

Negotiations for the second and third phases of the agreement would begin on the 16th day of the ceasefire.

The father of an Israeli-American hostage told the BBC’s Newshour that he “wants to believe” that Israel has “gotten to ‘yes'” on a deal.

Jonathan Dekel-Chen said he “lives in terror” every day because of his fears for his son, Sagui.

With increasing reports that a deal was close, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said a deal could be done “this week” – the final week of Biden’s presidency.

Biden was due to speak with Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, he added.

President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, was also present in Doha.

Trump previously threatened that “all hell” would break loose if the hostages were not released before he took office on 20 January.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told reporters that progress had been made and that the deal looked “much better than previously”.

But the latest developments come as Netanyahu faces fierce opposition to a potential deal from within his governing coalition.

Ten right-wing members, including some from Netanyahu’s own Likud party, have sent him a letter opposing a truce.

As talks took place, Gaza’s civil defence agency reported that a wave of Israeli air strikes on Gaza City on Monday had killed more than 50 people.

“They bombed schools, homes and even gatherings of people,” civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

The Israeli military said it was looking into these reports. Separately, it said five soldiers were killed on Monday in the north of the Gaza Strip.

The war was triggered by Hamas’s attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others taken to Gaza as hostages.

Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza to destroy Hamas in response.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says more than 46,500 people have been killed during the war.

Israel says 94 of the hostages remain in Gaza, of whom 34 are presumed dead, as well as another four Israelis who were abducted before the war, two of whom are dead.

A bright comet could be visible in skies across the globe over the coming days for the first time in 160,000 years.

Nasa said the future brightness of a comet is “notoriously hard” to predict, but that Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) could remain bright enough to be seen by the naked eye.

On Monday, the comet was at perihelion, the point at which it is closest to the Sun, which influences how bright it appears. Experts say it could be visible from Monday night.

While the exact locations for possible visibility are unknown, experts believe the comet, which could shine as bright as Venus, may be best observed from the southern hemisphere.

The comet was spotted last year by Nasa’s Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System.

Dr Shyam Balaji, researcher in astroparticle physics and cosmology at King’s College London, said “current orbital calculations indicate it will pass about 8.3 million miles from the Sun”, which classifies it as a “sun-skirting” comet.

The university described the comet as a once-in-160,000-years event.

Dr Balaji said opportunities to spot the comet may occur “in the days around perihelion, depending on local conditions and the comet’s behaviour”.

“As with all comets, its visibility and brightness can be unpredictable,” he added.

Mr Balaji said people who live in the southern hemisphere – where the comet is predicted to be best observed from – should “look toward the eastern horizon before sunrise, [and] after perihelion, try the western horizon after sunset.”

But Mr Balaji added that while it is expected to be “quite bright”, predictions on comet brightness are “notoriously uncertain”, with many ending up fainter than initially predicted.

For the northern hemisphere – including the UK – viewing may be challenging do to the comet’s relativity to the Sun.

You can check with BBC Weather online to see if the skies are clear enough for a possible sighting where you are.

Mr Balaji advised people wanting to spot the comet to find a location away from light pollution and use a pair of binoculars or a small telescope.

He warned observers to be cautious around sunrise and sunset, and said to track the comet’s position to find where it may appear in the sky.

Meanwhile, astronomers have been following the comet’s path.

On Saturday, Nasa astronaut Don Pettit, shared a photograph on social media of the comet taken from the International Space Station.

“It is totally amazing to see a comet from orbit. Atlas C2024-G3 is paying us a visit,” he wrote.

The hum of sewing machines is a constant in parts of Guangzhou, a thriving port on the Pearl River in southern China.

It rattles through the open windows of factories from morning until late at night, as they finish the t-shirts, shorts, blouses, pants and swimwear that will be shipped to fill wardrobes in more than 150 countries.

This is the sound of Panyu, the neighbourhood known as the “Shein village”, a warren of factories that power the world’s largest fast fashion retailer.

“If there are 31 days in a month, I will work 31 days,” one worker told the BBC.

Most said they only have one day off a month.

The BBC spent several days here: we visited 10 factories, spoke to four owners and more than 20 workers. We also spent time at labour markets and textile suppliers.

We found that the beating heart of this empire is a workforce sitting behind sewing machines for around 75 hours a week in contravention of Chinese labour laws.

These hours are not unusual in Guangzhou, an industrial hub for rural workers in search of a higher income; or in China, which has long been the world’s unrivalled factory.

But they add to a growing list of questions about Shein, once a little-known Chinese-founded company that has become a global behemoth in just over five years.

Still privately-owned, it was valued at about £54bn ($66bn) in a fundraising round in 2023. It is now eyeing a potential listing on the London Stock Exchange.

Its meteoric rise, however, has been dogged with controversy about its treatment of workers and allegations of forced labour.

Last year it admitted to finding children working in its factories in China.

The company declined to be interviewed but told the BBC in a statement that “Shein is committed to ensuring the fair and dignified treatment of all workers within our supply chain” and is investing tens of millions of dollars in strengthening governance and compliance.

It added: “We strive to set the highest standards for pay and we require that all supply chain partners adhere to our code of conduct. Furthermore, Shein works with auditors to ensure compliance.”

Shein’s success lies in volume – the inventory online runs into the hundreds of thousands – and deep discounts: £10 dresses, £6 sweaters, prices that hover below £8 on average.

Revenue has soared, outstripping the likes of H&M, Zara and the UK’s Primark. The cut-price sales are driven by places like the Shein village, home to some 5,000 factories, most of them Shein suppliers.

The buildings have been hollowed out to make way for sewing machines, rolls of fabric and bags brimming with cloth scraps. The doors to their basements are always open for the seemingly endless cycle of deliveries and collections.

As the day passes, the shelves fill up with warehouse-bound, clear plastic bags labelled with a now-distinctive five-letter noun.

But even past 22:00, the sewing machines – and the people hunched over them – don’t stop as more fabric arrives, in trucks so full that bolts of colour sometimes tumble onto the factory floor.

“We usually work, 10, 11 or 12 hours a day,” says a 49-year-old woman from Jiangxi unwilling to give her name. “On Sundays we work around three hours less.”

She is in an alleyway, where a dozen people are huddled around a row of bulletin boards.

They are reading the job ads on the board, while examining the stitching on a pair of chinos draped over it.

This is Shein’s supply chain. The factories are contracted to make clothes on order – some small, some big. If the chinos are a hit, orders will ramp up and so must production. Factories then hire temporary workers to meet the demand their permanent staff cannot fulfil.

The migrant worker from Jiangxi is looking for a short-term contract – and the chinos are an option.

“We earn so little. The cost of living is now so high,” she says, adding that she hopes to make enough to send back to her two children who are living with their grandparents.

“We get paid per piece,” she explains. “It depends how difficult the item is. Something simple like a t-shirt is one-two yuan [less than a dollar] per piece and I can make around a dozen in an hour.”

Examining the stitching on the chinos is crucial for making that decision. All around her, workers are calculating how much they will get paid to make each piece of clothing and how many they can make in an hour.

The alleys of Panyu function as labour markets, filling up in the mornings as workers and scooters rush past the breakfast dumpling cart, the cups of steaming soybean milk and the hopeful farmer selling chicken and duck eggs.

Standard working hours appear to be from 08:00 to well past 22:00, the BBC found.

This is consistent with a report from the Swiss advocacy group Public Eye, which was based on interviews with 13 textile workers at factories producing clothes for Shein.

They found that a number of staff were working excessive overtime. It noted the basic wage without overtime was 2,400 yuan (£265; $327) – below the 6,512 yuan the Asia Floor Wage Alliance says is needed for a “living wage”. But the workers we spoke to managed to earn anywhere between 4,000 and 10,000 yuan a month.

“These hours are not unusual, but it’s clear that it’s illegal and it violates basic human rights,” said David Hachfield from the group. “It’s an extreme form of exploitation and this needs to be visible.”

The average working week should not exceed 44 hours, according to Chinese labour laws, which also state that employers should ensure workers have at least one rest day a week. If an employer wants to extend these hours, it should be for special reasons.

While Shein’s headquarters are now in Singapore, there is no denying the majority of its products are made in China.

And Shein’s success has drawn the attention of Washington, which is increasingly wary of Chinese firms.

In June, Donald Trump’s pick for US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said he had “grave ethics concerns” about Shein’s “deep ties to the People’s Republic of China”: “Slave labour, sweatshops, and trade tricks are the dirty secrets behind Shein’s success,” he wrote.

Not everyone would agree with Rubio’s choice of words to describe the conditions at Shein’s suppliers. But rights groups say that the long working hours, which have become a way of life for many in Guangzhou, are unfair and exploitative.

The machines dictate the rhythm of the day.

They pause for lunch and dinner when the workers, metal plates and chopsticks in hand, file into the canteen to buy food. If there is no more space to sit, they stand in the street.

“I’ve been working in these factories for more than 40 years,” said one woman who spent just 20 minutes eating her meal. This was just another day for her.

Inside, the factories we visit are not cramped. There is enough light and industrial-sized fans have been brought in to keep workers cool. Huge posters urge staff to report underage workers – likely a response to finding two cases of child labour in the supply chain last year.

The BBC understands that the company is keeping a closer eye on its suppliers ahead of plans to go public on the London Stock Exchange.

“This is about their reputation,” says Sheng Lu, a professor in Fashion and Apparel Studies at the University of Delaware. “If Shein can successfully achieve an IPO then it means they are recognised as a decent company. But if they are to keep the confidence of investors, they have to take some responsibility.”

One of the biggest challenges Shein faces is accusations that it sources cotton from China’s Xinjiang region.

Once touted as among the world’s best fabric, Xinjiang’s cotton has fallen out of favour after allegations that it is produced using forced labour by people from the Muslim Uyghur minority – a charge that Beijing has consistently denied.

The only way to get around this criticism is to be more transparent, Prof Sheng says.

“Unless you fully release your factory list, unless you make your supply chain more transparent to the public, then I think it’s going to be very challenging for Shein.”

A major advantage, he adds, is that Shein’s supply chain is in China: “Very few countries have a complete supply chain. China has this – and nobody can compete.”

Aspiring rivals like Vietnam and Bangladesh import raw materials from China to make clothes. But Chinese factories rely entirely on local sources for everything, from fabric to zippers and buttons. So it’s easy to make a variety of garments, and they are able to do it quickly.

That especially works for Shein whose algorithm determines orders. If shoppers repeatedly click on a certain dress, or spend longer looking at a wool sweater, the firm knows to ask factories to make more – and fast.

For workers in Guangzhou, this can be a challenge.

“Shein has its pros and cons,” one factory owner told us. “The good thing is the order is eventually big, but profit is low and it’s fixed.”

Shein, given its size and influence, is a hard bargainer. So factory owners have to cut costs elsewhere, often resulting in lower staff wages.

“Before Shein, we produced and sold clothes on our own,” said an owner of three factories. “We could estimate the cost, decide the price and calculate the profit. Now Shein controls the price, and you have to think about ways to reduce the cost.”

When orders peak, however, it’s a bonanza. The company ships around one million packages a day on average, according to data from ShipMatrix, a logistics consultancy firm.

“Shein is a pillar of the fashion industry,” said Guo Qing E, a Shein supplier.

“I started when Shein started. I witnessed its rise. To be honest, Shein is an awesome company in China. I think it will become stronger, because it pays on time. This is where it is most trustworthy.

“If payment for our goods is due on the 15th, no matter whether it’s millions or tens of millions, the money will be paid on time.”

Shein, with its gruelling hours and sometimes lower wages, may not be a source of comfort to all its workers. But it is a source of pride for some.

“This is the contribution we Chinese people can make to the world,” said a 33- year-old supervisor from Guangdong, who didn’t want to give her name.

It’s dark outside and workers are filing back into factories after their dinner for the final stretch. She admits the hours are long, but “we get on well with each other. We are like a family”.

Hours later, after many workers head home for the night, the lights in several buildings stay on.

Some people work until midnight, one factory owner told us. They want to earn more money, he said.

After all, in London, Chicago, Singapore, Dubai and so many other places, someone is hunting for their next bargain.

Greenland wants to work more closely with the US on defence and exploring its mining resources, its prime minister said on Monday.

Mute Egede said his government was looking for ways to work with President-elect Donald Trump, who has in recent weeks shown renewed interest in taking control of the territory – without ruling out using military or economic force to do so.

Also on Monday, Denmark’s foreign minister said it was ready to work with Greenland to “continue talks” with Trump “to ensure legitimate American interests” in the Arctic.

Greenland, a largely autonomous Danish territory, lies on the shortest route from North America to Europe, making it strategically important for the US.

It is also home to a large American space facility and has some of the largest deposits of rare earth minerals, which are crucial in the manufacture of batteries and high-tech devices.

Trump tried to buy Greenland during his first term in 2019, and has placed the issue back on his agenda as his second term approaches – calling it an “absolute necessity” for both American and international security.

Prime Minister Egede previously said Greenland was not and would not be “for sale,” while emphasising the importance of staying open to “co-operation and trade with the whole world”.

• Trump wants to take Greenland: Four ways this saga could go
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On Monday, he told a press conference in Copenhagen that his government was ready to start a dialogue with the incoming Trump administration.

But he added that the use of the territory’s land was “Greenland’s business”.

“It is… Greenland that will decide what agreement we should come to.”

Meanwhile, Denmark’s foreign minister also addressed Trump’s renewed interest in Greenland during a press conference in Jerusalem.

“I don’t want to get into any dispute with the incoming president Trump,” Lars Lokke Rasmussen said.

“He has a certain specific way to formulate requests, and what we are doing right now is getting into a more detailed dialogue with the incoming president.”

“We agree that the Americans have certain concerns about the security situation in the Arctic, which we share,” he said.

Rasmussen said Denmark, in close cooperation with Greenland, was ready to continue talks with Trump to ensure “legitimate American interests”.

Trump has also expressed his desire to acquire the Panama Canal, and vowed to use “economic force” to absorb Canada into the US.

Police have charged a man who allegedly sent multiple threats and sexually explicit messages to WNBA star Caitlin Clark over social media with stalking.

The man, 55-year-old Michael Lewis from Texas, was arrested on Sunday at a hotel in Indianapolis, the city where Clark’s team Indiana Fever is based.

Law enforcement officials identified messages sent to Clark from Mr Lewis on X that allegedly contained threatening and sexually explicit messages, police said.

Mr Lewis is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday morning and, if convicted, could face up to six years in prison and a $10,000 (£ 8,211) fine.

According to court documents, one of the messages allegedly sent to Clark read: “@CaitlinClark22 been driving around your house 3x a day..but don’t call the law just yet, the publc is allowed to drive by gainbridge..aka Caitlin’s Fieldhouse.”

“I’m getting tickets. I’m sitting behind the bench,” another message read.

Messages were sent between 16 December and 2 January, according to court documents.

Clark, the 2024 Women’s National Basketball Association rookie of the year, had reported the messages to police and said she feared for her safety.

According to sports network ESPN, the 22-year-old athlete made police aware of the them before Mr Lewis arrived in Indianapolis. She had taken to altering her appearance in public due to safety concerns.

The social media posts “caused Caitlin Clark to feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated, or threatened”, prosecutors said in court documents.

Mr Lewis was found by FBI after they tracked the IP addresses of the messages to a hotel in downtown Indianapolis, Marion County prosecutor Ryan Mears said.

The man told police his messages were “an imagination, fantasy type thing and it’s a joke, and it’s nothing to do with threatening”, according to court documents.

In a press release on Monday, Mr Mears said “it takes a lot of courage for women to come forward in these cases, which is why many don’t”.

“In doing so, the victim is setting an example for all women who deserve to live and work in Indy without the threat of sexual violence.”

The incident occurred just weeks after a man from Oregon was arrested and charged with stalking and harassment of women’s college basketball star Paige Bueckers.