World
UN warns escalating Israel-Hezbollah violence risks devastating conflict
At UNSC, UN rights chief says Israel’s attacks on Hezbollah devices violated international law and could be a war crime.
A senior United Nations official has told the Security Council that further violence between Israel and Iran-aligned groups Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon risked igniting a far more damaging conflict.
“We risk seeing a conflagration that could dwarf even the devastation and suffering witnessed so far,” UN political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo told the 15-member council on Friday, which met about attacks this week on Hezbollah.
“It is not too late to avoid such folly. There is still room for diplomacy,” she said. “I also strongly urge member states with influence over the parties to leverage it now.”
As its war in Gaza nears one year old, Israel killed at least 14 people and wounded 66 in an air raid on the Lebanese capital Beirut on Friday.
The Israeli military claimed that a top Hezbollah commander and other senior figures in the Lebanese movement were among the dead, and pledged to conduct a new military campaign until it secures the area around the Lebanese border.
Hezbollah has not confirmed the deaths of any commanders on Friday.
Israel’s air raid followed two days of attacks in which Hezbollah pagers and walkie-talkies exploded, killing 37 people and wounding thousands. Those attacks were widely believed to have been carried out by Israel, which has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.
On Friday, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk told the Security Council that the attack on Hezbollah communications devices violated international law and could constitute a war crime.
Turk said it was “difficult to conceive” how the attacks on Hezbollah’s communications devices “could possibly conform with the key principles of distinction, proportionality, and precautions in attack, under international humanitarian law”.
He added that he was “appalled” by the attacks using communication devices.
“This has unleashed widespread fear, panic and horror among people in Lebanon, already suffering in an increasingly volatile situation since October 2023 and crumbling under a severe and longstanding economic crisis. This cannot be the new normal,” he said.
Turk called for an independent, thorough and transparent investigation and for those who ordered and carried out the attacks to be held to account.
Deputy US Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood told the council that the US expects all parties to comply with international humanitarian law and take all reasonable steps to minimise harm to civilians, especially in densely populated areas.
“It is imperative that even as facts emerge about the latest incidents – in which I reiterate, the United States played no role – all parties refrain from any actions which could plunge the region into a devastating war.”
Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from homes on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border since Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel in October in support of Gaza, where Israel is waging a devastating war that has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians.
Israel, which last fought an all-out war against Hezbollah 18 years ago, has said it will use force if necessary to ensure its citizens can return to their homes in northern Israel.
World
Kobalt Partners With India’s Madverse to Expand Publishing Reach
Independent music publisher Kobalt has formed a worldwide partnership with Madverse Music Group, an India-based company serving the South Asian independent music sector with distribution, publishing and marketing services.
Under the agreement, Madverse’s community of independent songwriters, composers and producers will gain access to Kobalt’s publishing administration network. Services include royalty collection in more than 180 markets, improved metadata tracking and expanded synchronization licensing opportunities. Madverse currently works with a client base exceeding 150,000 artists and labels throughout India and South Asia.
The partnership targets a gap in international royalty collection that has historically prevented South Asian creators from capturing overseas earnings.
Madverse CEO Rohan Nesho Jain said: “This partnership with Kobalt represents a pivotal moment in our mission to empower India’s independent music community. For too long, Indian creators have left money on the table simply because the infrastructure to collect global royalties was broken and almost nonexistent.
“Publishing royalties are essentially a musician’s pension fund – they generate income long after the initial release, sometimes for generations. Through this collaboration, we’re ensuring that Indian independent artists can finally access and protect these earnings seamlessly, no matter where in the world their music is played,” Jain added. “This is about more than just collecting royalties; it’s about building sustainable careers and giving our artists the financial foundation they deserve. When independent voices are properly compensated and protected, the entire music ecosystem becomes richer and more diverse.”
The deal supports Madverse’s “Independent, Not Alone” philosophy, which emphasizes creator ownership and control. The partnership will offer improved transparency and operational efficiency while allowing artists to retain their rights.
Simon Moor, Kobalt’s managing director for the Asia-Pacific region, said: “Madverse has built an impressive ecosystem that supports one of the most dynamic independent music communities in the world. By combining their creator-first approach with Kobalt’s global publishing infrastructure, we’re committed to ensuring Madverse songwriters and producers have the resources, accuracy, and reach they need to succeed on an international scale.”
Kobalt administers publishing for more than 1 million compositions through 10 international offices. The company’s songwriter and publisher clients include Roddy Ricch, Max Martin, Karol G, Phoebe Bridgers and Paul McCartney. Kobalt’s catalog accounts for roughly 35% of top 100 songs and albums in the U.S. and U.K.
World
Trump’s push to acquire Greenland sparks international media frenzy on remote island
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As President Donald Trump ramps up his effort to acquire Greenland, a surge of international journalists have rushed to the island to take the pulse of its political leaders and residents.
In recent weeks, media from around the world — including The Associated Press, Reuters, the BBC and Al Jazeera, as well as outlets from Scandinavian countries and Japan — have made their way to the semi-autonomous Danish territory, overwhelming its politicians and community leaders with interview requests.
While Trump has argued that controlling the roughly 800,000-square-mile island is necessary for national security purposes, its leaders have repeatedly insisted it’s not for sale.
Juno Berthelsen, a member of parliament for the Naleraq opposition party, said the media storm intensified last year when Trump first expressed interest in acquiring Greenland, adding that he has been doing multiple interviews a day for the past two weeks.
TRUMP TAPS REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR TO SERVE AS SPECIAL ENVOY TO GREENLAND
A journalist conducts an interview in Nuuk, Greenland, on Jan. 15. (AP Photo/Emma Burrows)
“We’re very few people and people tend to get tired when more and more journalists ask the same questions again and again,” Berthelsen told the Associated Press.
Greenland’s population is about 57,000 people, with roughly 20,000 living in Nuuk, the small capital city where the same collection of business owners are repeatedly asked to do news interviews, sometimes as many as 15 a day.
Many residents interviewed by the AP said they want the world to know that Greenlanders will decide their own future and expressed confusion about why Trump wants to control the island.
TRUMP ISSUES STERN WARNING TO NATO AHEAD OF VANCE’S HIGH-STAKES GREENLAND MEETING
Residents and officials in Nuuk face growing media attention as President Trump renews efforts to acquire the strategically located island. (AP Photo/Emma Burrows)
“It’s just weird how obsessed [Trump] is with Greenland,” Maya Martinsen, 21, told the AP.
She said Trump is “basically lying about what he wants out of Greenland,” asserting that the president is using U.S. national security as a means to take control of “the oils and minerals that we have that are untouched.”
The Americans, Martinsen continued, “only see what they can get out of Greenland and not what it actually is.”
EUROPEAN ALLIES WORKING ON PLAN IF US ACTS ON ACQUIRING GREENLAND: REPORT
Rows of houses in Nuuk, Greenland, on Jan. 13, 2026. (Marko Djurica/Reuters)
“It has beautiful nature and lovely people. It’s just home to me. I think the Americans just see some kind of business trade,” she added.
Americans, however, appear ambivalent about the acquisition, with 86% of voters nationwide saying they would oppose military action to take over Greenland, according to a Quinnipiac University poll. By a 55%-37% margin, voters surveyed said they opposed any U.S. effort to try to buy Greenland.
On Wednesday, Trump said in a social media post that “anything less” than U.S. control of Greenland is “unacceptable,” but Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said during a news conference this week that the island will not be owned or governed by the United States.
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Trump’s recent comments have sparked tension with Denmark and other NATO allies, and troops from several European countries, including France, Germany, Sweden and Norway, deployed to Greenland this week for a brief two-day mission to bolster the territory’s defenses.
Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
World
Israel continues deadly Gaza attacks as ceasefire deal moves into phase two
Israeli forces killed at least 10 Palestinians after the United States announced the launch of the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
Published On 16 Jan 2026
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