Five people have died and 130,000 residents ordered to evacuate as multiple wildfires continue to rage in the Los Angeles area, destroying at least 2,000 structures. The Palisades fire, which is believed to be the most destructive ever recorded around Los Angeles, has burned more than 17,000 acres, razing homes and businesses along the iconic Pacific Coast Highway. The Eaton fire has burned over 10,000 acres, including many structures, in Altadena and Pasadena. Firefighters appear to have fought back much of the Sunset fire, which exploded late Wednesday, prompting evacuation orders around Hollywood.

Red flag fire warnings are expected to remain active in L.A. through Friday night as heavy wind gusts and dry air continue to fan the flames. But officials say the most erratic weather patterns are believed to be over for now. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass addressed the monumental scope of the wildfires at a press briefing on Wednesday.

Mayor Karen Bass: “This firestorm is the big one, in magnitude. Hurricane-force winds are usually accompanied by rainstorms, but these are hurricane-force winds that are combined with extremely dry drought conditions. To provide context, at 10:20 a.m. yesterday, the Palisades fire was at 10 acres. Twelve minutes later, it was at 200 acres. … I know the world is looking at images of our city’s devastation. I have seen the frontlines of the Palisades fire, and it is staggering.”

Mayor Bass has been criticized for leaving L.A. on a diplomatic trip to Ghana over the weekend as warnings about the imminent disaster were ramping up. L.A. residents are also directing ire at Bass and the L.A. City Council, which cut the fire department’s budget by over $17 million this fiscal year, while increasing the budget of the LAPD by nearly $126 million.

Meanwhile, housing advocates are urging officials to do more to assist the 70,000 unhoused people in L.A. who lack access to shelters and to personal protective equipment to protect their lungs from the thick smoke blanketing much of the city. Southern California faces year-round wildfire risks due to the worsening climate catastrophe. We’ll go to California for the latest later in the broadcast.

Gaza’s Health Ministry says Israeli attacks over the past 24 hours have killed at least 70 Palestinians and injured over 100 others. Among the dead are at least eight people killed in northern Gaza in an Israeli strike on a home in Jabaliya al-Balad.

Some of Gaza’s remaining hospitals are scaling back services amid Israel’s severe restrictions on fuel supplies. At Al-Aqsa Hospital, Doctors Without Borders reports 15 newborns in incubators could soon die unless Israel urgently allows the delivery of fuel to power the hospital’s generators.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Wednesday mocked President-elect Donald Trump’s proposal to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.” Sheinbaum was speaking to reporters at her daily news conference in front of a large map from 1607 that labeled much of the North American continent “América Mexicana,” or “Mexican America.”

President Claudia Sheinbaum: “The United Nations recognizes the name Gulf of Mexico. But next, why don’t we call it Mexican America? It sounds nice, doesn’t it? Since 1607, the Constitution of Apatzingán was Mexican America. So let’s call it Mexican America. It sounds nice, doesn’t it? Gulf of Mexico since 1607, and it is also internationally recognized.”

European leaders have reacted with alarm to Donald Trump’s proposal to seize control of the Panama Canal and Greenland, and vowed to defend the national sovereignty of European nations. On Wednesday, Denmark’s foreign minister said Greenland may become independent if its residents decide to, but it will not become part of the U.S. He made the remarks as Donald Trump Jr. visited Nuuk, Greenland, where at a news conference he promised residents, “We’re going to treat you well.”

The Justice Department says it plans to publicly release special counsel Jack Smith’s findings on Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 presidential election. But it will not release the part of special counsel Smith’s report concerning Trump’s mishandling of classified documents, as legal proceedings continue for two of Trump’s co-conspirators. Those findings will only be released to select lawmakers on the House and Senate Judiciary Committees. Both cases against Trump were dropped after Trump won reelection in November. It’s not clear when the partial report might become available, after Trump-appointed Judge Aileen Cannon, who last summer dismissed Trump’s classified documents case, temporarily blocked the release of Smith’s report on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Trump has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block sentencing, scheduled for Friday, in his New York hush money and 2016 election subversion conviction. ABC News reports Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito spoke to Trump on the phone shortly before Trump’s request. Alito claimed the call was related to a job reference for a former law clerk.

The White House on Wednesday announced another $500 million military aid package to Ukraine — its last before President Biden leaves office. The Biden administration is also expected to announce new sanctions on Russia this week.

In Ukraine, Russian shelling killed at least 13 people and wounded 32 others in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia Wednesday. Some of the dead were killed while headed home from work on a bus.

Volodymyr: “People were leaving from their shift through the main entrance of the building, and that’s when the attack came. There were two very loud explosions.”

Reporter: “I see that people were inside your bus.”

Volodymyr: “Yes, two people were killed, and two others were wounded. Two were killed.”

Reporter: “How many people were here? And how many were killed in total?”

Volodymyr: “There were a lot. It happened exactly when people ended their shift.”

The government of Chad says it repelled an armed attack on the presidential palace Wednesday, killing at least 18 assailants. One member of Chad’s security forces reportedly died. The perpetrators have not been identified, but early reports blamed the attack on Boko Haram.

The attack came hours after Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby met with China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi during an official visit to N’Djamena. It also comes just weeks after contested parliamentary elections. Déby seized power in Chad after his father, longstanding President Idriss Déby, was killed by rebel forces in 2021. Chad is among a growing number of former French colonies that have expelled French fighters in recent months.

Lebanon’s Parliament has voted to elect a president, filling a leadership vacuum for the first time in over two years. Joseph Aoun received 99 out of 128 votes, with support across Lebanon’s political spectrum, including among Hezbollah politicians. His election could help unlock funds from foreign donors as Lebanon seeks to rebuild from Israel’s weekslong bombing campaign and invasion last year.

The Italian journalist Cecilia Sala landed in Rome Wednesday after three weeks of detention in Iran. Italian media say Sala’s arrest may have been part of an Iranian plan to negotiate the release of one of their citizens who was recently detained by Italian authorities on a U.S. warrant. Mohammad Abedini is accused of being involved in an attack on a U.S. base in Jordan last year.

A wide-ranging strike that would have shut down East Coast and Gulf Coast ports next week has been averted for now as the longshoremen’s union reached a tentative deal Wednesday, guaranteeing job protections from automated technology and major wage increases. Union members must still vote on the agreement.

In other labor news, the SEIU, the Service Employees International Union, is joining the AFL-CIO, adding roughly 2 million members to the 13 million-strong group, which includes workers across more than 50 other unions. The move reunites the two powerful labor groups after they parted ways nearly two decades ago, and as the incoming Trump administration is expected to launch new attacks on workers’ rights.

In North Carolina, the Republican-dominated state Supreme Court has blocked election officials from certifying the reelection victory of Democratic Justice Allison Riggs. Riggs beat her Republican rival Jefferson Griffin in November’s election by 734 votes — a tally which was confirmed by two recounts. Griffin is attempting to disqualify the votes of some 60,000 North Carolinians in order to overturn his loss but has failed to provide any evidence the votes were unlawful.

Here in New York, hundreds of immigrant justice activists rallied at the state Capitol in Albany Wednesday to demand Governor Kathy Hochul and lawmakers immediately enact legislation to protect immigrant New Yorkers ahead of Trump’s return to office. The bills include measures preventing cooperation with ICE and providing legal services to those who need it. Angel Reyes Rivas, from the group Make the Road New York, says he fears for his mixed-status family.

Angel Reyes Rivas: “New York state cannot be reactive. We need to be proactive. We shouldn’t wait for Trump to be elected to start pushing for this, right? We need to make sure that New York state becomes a state that is an example to the nation on how to treat people, how to treat immigrants, how to uphold human rights.”

The funeral for President Carter is being held today at the National Cathedral. All five living presidents are attending. President Biden is delivering the eulogy.