☰
HomeLiving Beyond BordersGZERO WorldSignalIn 60 SecondsPuppet RegimeGZERO World PodcastContact UsAbout UsCareersPrivacy PolicyTerms

HARD NUMBERS: Trump’s ICE arrests heat up, India agrees to take back illegals from US, Israel criminalizes 10/7 denial, New LA wildfires

January 22, 2025
Alex Kliment
​A child looks on as his father who illegally crossed into the U.S. from Mexico is arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents.
A child looks on as his father who illegally crossed into the U.S. from Mexico is arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents.
Photo by Qian Weizhong/VCG

308: On Tuesday, President Donald Trump’s first full day in office, US agents arrested at least 308 foreigners who were living illegally in the country, according to Border Czar Tom Homan. Those arrested were all “criminals,” Homan said, without providing more details.

18,000: India has agreed to take back an estimated 18,000 Indian citizens currently living illegally in the United States. The move is a goodwill gesture as Delhi looks to negotiate exceptions from the global import tariffs that Trump has pledged. If countries don’t agree to take back their nationals like this, the US must explore sending them to third countries. This issue will arise in US policy towards Venezuela, the home country of hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants currently in the US. Venezuela so far refuses to accept deportation flights.

5: Israel this week criminalized the denial, minimization, or celebration of the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on southern Israel. Anyone convicted of “defending the terrorist organization Hamas, expressing sympathy for them or identifying with them” will now face five years in prison under the measure, which is modeled on a 1986 law outlawing Holocaust denial.

5,000: A new Los Angeles wildfire broke out just north of the city on Wednesday afternoon. The so-called Hughes blaze is already spreading like, well, wildfire: In just two hours, it scorched more than 5,000 acres, forcing mass evacuations. LA is still reeling from the human, economic, and political fallout of the worst wildfires in its modern history, which destroyed more than 10,000 homes earlier this month. The two largest of those fires continue to burn.

More from GZERO Media

US may target Iranian tankers

The Liberian-flagged tanker Ice Energy, chartered by the US government, takes Iranian oil from Iranian-flagged Lana (formerly Pegas) as part of a civil forfeiture action off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, Greece, in May 2022.
REUTERS/Costas Baltas/File Photo

The Trump administration is reportedly considering a strategy to disrupt Iran’s oil exports by stopping and inspecting Iranian oil tankers at sea. The US would use the Proliferation Security Initiative, established in 2003 to prevent the trafficking of weapons of mass destruction, as a legal justification for the inspections.

Trump issues Hamas a “last warning”

Donald Trump issues a proclamation from the Oval Office
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

US presidents don’t typically talk to organizations the US government has labeled terrorist groups, but Donald Trump is not a typical US president.

Is the Trump revolution off to a good or bad start?

President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress at the US Capitol on March 4, 2025.

Win McNamee/Pool via REUTERS

You didn’t need to sit through all 99 minutes of Trump’s peroration to know that he gave himself an A++ on his first six weeks in office, writes GZERO Publisher Evan Solomon. But if Trump gets to grade himself, maybe it’s time for a more objective report card — one that looks at two criteria: Trump as a dealmaker and Trump as a manager.

Key findings on global energy security, innovation, and market viability

BMW Foundation

The Energy Security Hub at the 2025 Munich Security Conference featured in-depth discussions on energy innovation, security, and market viability. Fatih Birol, IEA executive director, discussed growing global energy demand, especially the rapid rise in electricity outpacing overall growth. He noted electricity demand is projected to increase six times faster than total energy in 10 years, underscoring the need for electrification and grid expansion. As energy systems become decentralized and digitalized, the CEO of E.ON, Leonhard Birnbaum, said: “You’re either fully digitized – or you’re done.” Key takeaways: Energy security requires developing and securing electricity grids Technological openness is a unifying element for getting to net zero Bridge the “Valley of Death” to scale markets New global partnerships will help Europe stay competitive Public acceptance will strengthen democracy You can read the full Executive Summary from the BMW Foundation here.

Supreme Court orders release of foreign aid funds

a crowd of people outside of a white building
Photo by Ian Hutchinson on Unsplash

In a 5-4 split decision, the US Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the Trump administration to disburse nearly $2 billion in foreign aid funds for work completed by contractors and grant recipients under the US Agency for International Development and the State Department. Does this tell us much about how the top court will handle future Trump-related cases?

Au revoir, Justin Trudeau

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau waves as he leaves after testifying at the Public Order Emergency Commission in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on Nov. 25, 2022.

REUTERS/Patrick Doyle

Justin Trudeau’s tenure as prime minister of Canada winds down this weekend, as his Liberal Party chooses a new leader and gets set for a transition of power. His near-decade as PM began in the fall of 2015 when he embodied youthful optimism and a progressive agenda. We look at his biggest achievements and controversies.

About UsCareers PressContact Us Privacy PolicyTerms of Use
© 2020 GZERO Media. All Rights Reserved | A Eurasia Group media company.