Tuesday morning news - January 2, 2024

Israel reserve forces » Israel is pulling thousands of troops off the front lines in Gaza, hinting at what could be a new, scaled back phase of the war with Hamas.

GALLANT: [Speaking Hebrew]

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says while many troops are heading home or back to bases, the end of the war is not yet in sight.

Gallant says Israeli Defense Forces are focusing now on Hamas strongholds.

With Palestinians facing a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the U.N. and some global leaders have called for Israel to end the war.

NETANYAHU: [Speaking Hebrew]

But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vows to keep up the fight until Hamas is crushed and hostages are released.

NETANYAHU: [Speaking Hebrew]

He also says Israel must maintain control of the buffer zone that runs along Gaza's border with Egypt, known as the Philadelphi Corridor. He said that’s the only way to ensure a demilitarized Gaza.

Israel high court » Meantime, in Jerusalem, Israel's Supreme Court delivered a heavy blow to Netanyahu, overturning a key part of his controversial judicial overhaul. WORLD’s Lauren Canterberry has more.

LAUREN CANTERBERRY: The court's narrow 8-to-7 decision scraps a law that stopped judges from striking down government actions they find "unreasonable."

The overhaul, aimed at limiting the Supreme Court's powers, sparked mass protests, with critics saying it would lead to corruption and cronyism.

But Netanyahu and his allies argued the change was needed to rein in a judiciary that they say has grown too powerful.

Monday’s ruling is a dramatic twist in the power struggle which could spark a constitutional crisis in Israel.

For WORLD, I’m Lauren Canterberry.

PUTIN: [Speaking Russian]

Ukraine-Russia » Vladimir Putin is vowing to ramp up attacks against Ukraine.

PUTIN: [Speaking Russian]

Putin heard there at the Kremlin after Russian forces bombarded Ukrainian cities over the weekend with more than 100 missiles and 90 Iranian-made drones. The attacks killed dozens of civilians.

Putin accused Ukraine of carrying out an attack last week in the Russian border city of Belgorod. Local officials said shelling in the city killed 21 people.

Meanwhile, in Kyiv:

ZELESNSKYY: [Speaking Ukrainian]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a New Year’s video address vowed to wreak “wrath” against invading Russian forces in 2024. He added that Ukraine will have a million drones in its arsenal this year.

Japan earthquake » Thousands of people are without power in Japan after a series of earthquakes rocked the country’s central west coast yesterday.

SOUND: [Rattling sound and crowd]

The strongest quake hit 7.5 on the Richter scale, prompting a tsunami warning along the shoreline. And more aftershocks are possible over the next few days.

Tokyo resident Daniel Smith was visiting a shrine in Toyama City.

SMITH: All of the sudden there was shaking and people just started, you know, they were asking around what to do and then finally one of the priests came out and said 'run', you know. And then basically everybody just started running.

Many older buildings crumbled amid the violent tremors. The quakes also damaged infrastructure and killed several people, according to local media.

U.S. border » With migrant traffic at the U.S. southern border toppling another record, the vice president of the labor union that represents Border Patrol agents is speaking out.

Art Del Cueto pushed back Monday against remarks by Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. The Democratic mayor blasted Texas for busing a small fraction of the migrants crossing the border to sanctuary cities like Chicago. But Del Cueto said Monday,

DEL CUETO: Every single year that this administration has been in office, the numbers keep getting bigger and bigger. And that’s who the finger needs to be pointed at because you’re seeing way too many individuals that are coming across from all over the world.

Migrant encounters reportedly set another new record with more than 300,000 in the month of December.

New state laws » New laws are now in effect across the country for 2024. Among those changes, doctors and pharmacists in California who mail abortion pills to people in other states where those pills are banned will be shielded from prosecution.

And in Illinois, any library that chooses not to expose children to LGBT materials will not be eligible for state funds.

By contrast, a new Indiana law makes it easier for parents to challenge books in school libraries.

Idaho, Louisiana, and West Virginia have enacted new laws protecting minors from transgender procedures.

I'm Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: why electric vehicles aren’t taking over the roads. Plus, Classic Book of the Month.

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