Today's news LIVE! Trump blasts Canada: 'China will eat you up'

A leopard that strayed into a human settlement and attacked domestic animals was captured in a cage trap in Palakkad on Saturday (January 24), forest officials said. According to officials, the presence of the leopard was confirmed after it attacked a calf in the Thachampara area recently.

The incident triggered concern among residents. Fearing further attacks on people and livestock, they demanded that the animal be captured. Following this, the Forest Department began monitoring the movement of the wild cat in the area, an official said.

A cage trap was set up in an isolated location on Friday (January 23), and the leopard was caught in it on Saturday morning, officials added. The animal will be shifted to a nearby forest station. After assessing its health condition, a decision will be taken on releasing it into a forest area elsewhere, officials said.

Delhi on Saturday (January 24) witnessed sharp drop in temperatures and a slight improvement in air quality after the spell of rain a day ago. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Safdarjung station recorded a minimum temperature of 7.6 degrees Celsius, 0.1 degrees above the season's normal, marking a sharp fall from Friday's low of 13.7 degrees Celsius, which was the highest in four years.

Among the other major stations, Palam and Lodhi Road both saw minimum temperatures of 6.8 degree Celsius, while The Ridge recorded 6.6 degrees and Ayanagar 6 degrees Celsius, the coldest.

The air quality saw a slight improvement on Saturday morning, with the average Air Quality Index (AQI) settling at 256, in the 'poor' category, against 293 on Friday, according to the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) Sameer app.

The Air Quality Early Warning System has forecast Delhi's air quality to remain in the 'poor' category for the next two days. The outlook for the subsequent six days shows that it is likely to be in the 'poor' to 'very poor' category. The IMD has also predicted generally cloudy sky and shallow to moderate fog during morning hours, with strong surface winds with speeds ranging from 10-20 kilometres per hour.

An Indian national was among the victims of a shooting incident linked to an alleged family dispute in the US state of Georgia, according to the Indian mission in Atlanta. The shooting left four people dead early Friday morning (January 23) while three children were inside the home during the incident in Lawrenceville city, local media reported.

The Consulate General of India in Atlanta, expressing grief over the shooting, said the alleged shooter has been arrested and all possible assistance was being extended to the bereaved family.

“We are deeply grieved by a tragic shooting incident linked to an alleged family dispute, in which an Indian national was among the victims. The alleged shooter has been arrested, and all possible assistance is being extended to the bereaved family,” it said on X.

Read the full story here.

Four construction workers, including a minor, were held in Sikkim's Gyalshing district for allegedly murdering a contractor with a hammer following a dispute over wages, police said on Saturday (January 24). The incident happened in Dentam Tar on Friday evening (January 23), and the accused persons and the victim were all from West Bengal, they said.

Rajiv Mandal (27), a resident of Raiganj in West Bengal's Uttar Dinajpur district, was working as a contractor at a construction site, while the four accused were working as masons and carpenters under him. Superintendent of Police Tshering Sherpa said the accused and the victim were drinking and having dinner at their rented accommodation when a war of words started over payment of wages.

"The argument escalated into a scuffle, during which one of the accused allegedly assaulted the contractor with an iron hammer, resulting in his death. The accused persons then reserved a vehicle and attempted to flee. Acting on a tip-off, police intercepted the vehicle at Legship and nabbed them," he said. Tshering said an investigation is underway into the incident.

A large cache of arms and ammunition were recovered in Manipur's Imphal East district, police said on Saturday (January 24). Security forces made the recovery from the foothills of the Chanung Range, they said.

Among the weapons found were a .303 rifle with a magazine, an SLR without a magazine, eight Single Barrel Breech Loading (SBBL) rifles, a revolver, and a .22 pistol with a magazine. Twenty-four rounds of different calibres, five walkie-talkie sets with batteries, and multiple camouflage attires were also recovered in the operation on Friday, police said.

In a separate operation, a militant was arrested in Moreh in Tengnoupal district. Waikhom Athoi, 28, was a member of the banned National Revolutionary Front of Manipur, they said. A 9 mm pistol, along with two magazines and 30 live rounds, was recovered from him, they added.

The Mumbai police arrested actor Kamaal Rashid Khan, known as KRK, on Friday (January 23) in connection with a firing incident on January 18 when two rounds were fired at a residential building in Oshiwara, Andheri. The police said that KRK in his statement accepted responsibility for the firing, and that it was done using his licensed gun. The police have seized his gun, and said the process is underway for further action.

The Pentagon has been sending US military assets into the Middle East this week, including an aircraft carrier group and its thousands of troops, as President Donald Trump indicates he is maintaining the possibility of strikes on Iran amid its crackdown on protests.

“We have a massive fleet heading in that direction, and maybe we won't have to use it,” Trump told reporters on Thursday (January 22), saying they were going “just in case".

The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and three accompanying destroyers left the South China Sea and began heading west earlier this week, a Navy official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military movements, said on Friday (January 23) that the Lincoln strike group was in the Indian Ocean. When they arrive in the region, those warships would join three littoral combat ships, which were in port in Bahrain on Friday, as well as two other US Navy destroyers, which were at sea in the Persian Gulf.

The arrival of the carrier strike group would bring roughly 5,700 additional service members. The US has several bases in the Middle East, including Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, which hosts thousands of American troops and is the forward headquarters for US Central Command.

The world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, was ordered in October to sail from the Mediterranean Sea to the Caribbean along with several destroyers. The carrier USS Nimitz, which helped conduct the June strikes on Iran's nuclear sites, also departed the region in October.

Central Command said on social media that the Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle now has a presence in the Mideast, noting the fighter jet “enhances combat readiness and promotes regional security and stability".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the future of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region will be a key focus as negotiators from Ukraine, Russia, and the United States meet in Abu Dhabi for talks to end Russia's nearly four-year full-scale invasion.

The UAE's foreign ministry said the talks commenced on Friday (January 23) and are scheduled to continue over two days “as part of ongoing efforts to promote dialogue and identify political solutions to the crisis.” The three-way talks come hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the settlement in Ukraine with US President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner during marathon overnight talks. The Kremlin insisted that to reach a peace deal, Kyiv must withdraw its troops from the areas in the east that Russia illegally annexed but never fully captured.

Zelenskyy, meanwhile, reiterated his openness to establishing a free trade zone under Ukraine's control in the country's east. He said he discussed the proposal with Trump in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, and told reporters: “I think it will be positive for our business."

Friday is the first known time that officials from the Trump administration simultaneously meet with negotiators from both Ukraine and Russia. While it's unclear how the talks will unfold and many obstacles to peace remain, some see it as a sign that the parties are making headway in closing a deal.

Zelenskyy said after meeting with Trump that while the future status of land in eastern Ukraine currently occupied by Russia remains unresolved, the peace proposals are “nearly ready.”

Police on Friday (January 23) provided prompt assistance to people in distress across Kashmir, including pregnant women and patients, amid heavy snowfall in the valley.

In central Kashmir's Budgam district, Police Station Khag received a distress call regarding a pregnant woman from Kokerbagh who had developed severe pain and required immediate medical attention. Acting promptly, a team rushed to the location and safely evacuated the woman to Khag Hospital for medical treatment, a police spokesperson said.

In another instance, Police Station Charar-i-Sharief responded swiftly to the request for the urgent shifting of a pregnant woman. The police team evacuated her to the nearest healthcare facility for necessary medical care.

Furthermore, Police Post Pakherpora received information about nomadic families stranded near Nallah Sangerwani due to heavy snowfall. A police team reached the spot and safely relocated the families to Government Middle School, Pakherpora.

About 70 km away, in Kulgam district, a distress call from Uppermunda, Qazigund, was received for assistance, stating that one woman and her newborn baby were stuck on the way at Chango Crossing and the family members were unable to bring them home because of incessant snowfall and slippery roads. A police team was constituted and, despite adverse weather conditions, shifted the woman and her newborn baby on foot to their residential place at Uppermunda Gujjar Basti, Qazigund.

In a separate case, police received a call for help that a pregnant woman residing in Rangtraji (Widkhud) Devsar needed immediate medical attention. Subsequently, a police party rushed to the spot and evacuated her to PHC Devsar on foot for medical treatment, the police spokesperson said.

In south Kashmir's Shopian, police helped a COPD patient in need of oxygen.