Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani has been sworn in as New York City mayor. He has made history as New York’s first Muslim, first South Asian and first African-born mayor, and, at the age of 34, the city’s youngest mayor in generations. At midnight on January 1, New York Attorney General Letitia James swore in Mamdani in a small private ceremony in a decommissioned subway station below City Hall. Mamdani took the oath placing his hand on two Qur’ans held by his wife, the Syrian American artist Rama Duwaji. On Thursday afternoon, Senator Bernie Sanders swore in Mamdani again in a large public ceremony outside City Hall in below-freezing temperatures. During his inaugural address, Mamdani repeated his campaign vow to make the city more affordable.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani: “We will answer to all New Yorkers, not to any billionaire or oligarch who thinks they can buy our democracy. We will govern without shame and insecurity, making no apology for what we believe. I was elected as a democratic socialist, and I will govern as a democratic socialist.”

After the inauguration, Mamdani traveled to a Brooklyn housing complex, where he signed three executive orders designed to tackle the city’s housing crisis.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani: “In doing so, we will protect tenants, already long neglected, from further neglect, and we will mitigate the significant risk of displacement they currently face. For too long, bad landlords have been allowed to mistreat their tenants with impunity. That ends today.”

Mamdani also revoked all executive orders signed by former Mayor Eric Adams that were issued after Adams was indicted on federal bribery charges on September 26, 2024. We will air more highlights from Mamdani’s inauguration after headlines.

The world’s 500 richest people added a record $2.2 trillion to their collective fortunes in 2025. That’s according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which found just eight billionaires accounted for about a quarter of those gains.

Meanwhile, millions of U.S. residents have been hit by soaring health insurance premiums, after Republican lawmakers thwarted Democrats’ efforts to extend Affordable Care Act tax subsidies, which expired on December 31. The Urban Institute and Commonwealth Fund forecast the higher premiums will force some 4.8 million people to drop coverage this year; this, as Reuters reports at least 350 branded medications will likely see price increases this year, including vaccines against COVID, RSV and shingles, and a blockbuster cancer treatment.

On Thursday, minimum wage increases took effect across 19 states, averaging 67 cents an hour. But the federal minimum wage remained unchanged with the start of the new year, as it has for the past 16 years. In response, Vermont independent Senator Bernie Sanders wrote, “A $7.25 federal minimum wage is a national disgrace. No one who works full time should live in poverty. We must keep fighting to guarantee all workers a living wage — not starvation wages.”

President Trump rang in the new year by throwing a lavish party at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. The event featured caviar, champagne and an artist who rapidly painted a picture of Jesus on stage, which was auctioned off for over $2.7 million, with proceeds benefiting a children’s charity and the local sheriff’s department. Among those in attendance were Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who was filmed dancing with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller as the rapper Vanilla Ice performed his 1990 hit “Ice Ice Baby.”

Vanilla Ice: “Ice, ice, baby. Who’s in the house? Ice, ice, baby. Little bit of lovin’. Little bit of lovin’.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem: “Ice, ice, baby!”

Joining the party as a guest of honor was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He’s on his fifth visit to the United States since the International Criminal Court issued a warrant seeking his arrest for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza. President Trump was asked what his New Year’s resolution will be for the coming year, to which he responded, “peace on Earth.”

In Gaza, another Palestinian child has died of exposure due to cold, wet weather and a lack of proper shelter. Malak Rami Ghneim was just a few weeks old, one of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians forced to shelter in flimsy tents offering little to no protection from the elements. Separately, the United Nations reported a Palestinian boy drowned in floods that inundated the tent camp where his family lived; this, as the Palestinian Meteorological Department warned of even more cold and wet weather ahead.

Meanwhile, a ban by Israel on 37 international NGOs, including Doctors Without Borders, took effect with the new year. Aid groups, the United Nations and at least 10 foreign ministers have condemned the move, warning it will exacerbate Gaza’s already catastrophic humanitarian crisis. This is Ramiz Abu al-Neel, a displaced Palestinian living in Khan Younis.

Ramiz Abu al-Neel: “Even with the presence of humanitarian organizations, the situation is already tragic. If their support and presence are removed, God knows what will happen. Many children will die, lives will be destroyed, and many families will be devastated by this decision.”

In the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces intensified demolition operations in the Nur Shams refugee camp this week, flattening homes that housed about 100 Palestinian families. Israel’s military claimed the home demolitions targeted Palestinian resistance groups; residents say they were an illegal form of collective punishment.

Kefah Haykal: “Nine people live in the house. My husband is disabled. We don’t have a way to get money. The house was our home, and now we don’t have any other place to live in. No one is supporting us financially or helping us. I have nobody helping me. What can I say?”

The home demolitions came as Israeli authorities approved plans to build 126 new housing units for Jewish settlers in a northern West Bank outpost that Israel had evacuated in 2005.

In Turkey, hundreds of thousands of protesters rang in the new year on Thursday with a protest march demanding an end to Israel’s genocide in Palestine. Turkish media report more than 400 civil society organizations participated in the protests, which saw over a half a million people march across Istanbul’s Galata Bridge.

The U.S. military has blown up at least five more boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, reporting it killed at least eight people. Since September, the U.S. has claimed credit for striking 36 boats in the region. The Pentagon claims all of the boats were carrying drugs, but has not provided evidence. Meanwhile, Russia has asked the United States to stop pursuing an oil tanker which had been sailing toward Venezuela to pick up oil. In recent days, the vessel was added to Russia’s ship registry, and a Russian flag has been painted on its side. The developments come as the U.S. intensifies military pressure on Venezuela. On Thursday, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said he was open to holding talks with the U.S.

Russia has accused Ukraine of killing 24 people and wounding 50 in drone strikes on a cafe and hotel in a Russian-occupied village in Ukraine’s Kherson region. This comes amid a renewed push to end the war. In a New Year’s address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said a peace deal is 90% ready.

President Volodymyr Zelensky: “What does Ukraine want? Peace? Yes. At any cost? No. We want the end of the war, not the end of Ukraine. Are we tired? Extremely. Does that mean we are ready to surrender? Those who think so are deeply mistaken.”

President Trump has announced he is withdrawing National Guard troops from Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon — at least for now. The announcement came a week after the Supreme Court blocked the deployment of hundreds of National Guard troops to the Chicago area.

Officials at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE, are planning to spend $100 million over a one-year period to recruit gun rights supporters and military enthusiasts through online influencers and a geotargeted advertising campaign. That’s according to The Washington Post, which reports it’s part of what the agency called a “wartime recruitment” strategy aimed at hiring thousands of new deportation officers nationwide. The recruitment drive is targeted at people who have attended UFC fights, listened to far-right podcasts or shown an interest in guns and tactical gear. It uses the ad-industry technique known as “geofencing” to send ads to people who set foot near military bases, NASCAR races, college campuses or gun shows.

The Trump administration has frozen federal child care funding to all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. The Department of Health and Human Services says it’ll only restore federal grants under the Child Care and Development Fund to states that provide more verification and administrative data about the funds they receive. The nationwide freeze comes after HHS officials cut off funding to Minnesota, citing a series of fraud schemes uncovered in that state, and after Vice President JD Vance and other Trump administration officials amplified a deceptively edited video posted by the far-right influencer Nick Shirley, who recently visited Somali-owned daycare sites in Minnesota and alleged — with little evidence — he’d uncovered over $100 million in fraud.

In Iran, mass protests are continuing over the country’s dire economic situation. At least seven people have been killed amid clashes with security forces and paramilitary groups. Early this morning, President Trump warned on social media the United States may intervene, writing, “If Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue. We are locked and loaded and ready to go.” Iranian officials warned U.S. interference could destabilize the entire region. Speaking on Thursday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian acknowledged the Iranian government bears responsibility for the country’s economic problems.

President Masoud Pezeshkian: “People are dissatisfied. We are at fault. You are at fault. Do not go after America as the one to blame. Do not go after — I don’t know — some other person. It is we who must serve, and they must be satisfied with us.”