--:-- Yasmin Khan: Good morning. It's Thursday, October 9th. I'm Yasmin Khan in for Shamita Basu. This is Apple News Today.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: On today's show, the National Guard arrives in Illinois, Trump's war with wind energy, and why it's been such a good year for your favorite condiment. But first, to major news coming from the Middle East.
--:-- Host: Hamas has agreed to release all 48 remaining Israeli hostages, raising hopes that an end to the war in Gaza might finally be in sight.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Trump was hosting a roundtable yesterday on an unrelated topic when he learned a deal was imminent. I was just given a note by the Secretary of State saying that we're very close to a deal in the Middle East and they're going to need me pretty quickly.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Soon after leaving the roundtable, he published on social media that both Israel and Hamas had signed off on the first phase of the proposed ceasefire deal. He said Israel would withdraw to an agreed-upon line and that hostages would return home very soon.
--:-- Host: Trump described the agreement as a great day for the Arab world.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked Trump and said that, quote, with God's help, together we will continue to achieve all our goals and expand peace with our neighbors.
--:-- Host: Hamas confirmed their agreement in a statement. It also thanked Trump and called on him to ensure Israel fully implemented the ceasefire.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Soon after the announcement, videos began circulating online of Palestinians in Gaza celebrating.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: On Fox News later in the evening, Trump gave his reaction to Sean Hannity.
--:-- Sean Hannity: The whole world came together, to be honest. So many countries that you wouldn't have even thought of, they came together. The world has come together around this deal.
--:-- Trump: And that's something I would say that without that wouldn't happen. And so many countries that you wouldn't have thought of have wired their best wishes and their commitment to do whatever is necessary.
--:-- Sean Hannity: The families of some of the hostages have been expressing joy and relief. Liron Berman was one.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The brother of hostages Gali and Ziv Berman, he posted on social media, My Gali and Zivy, I love you so much. You're coming back home.
--:-- Host: This agreement comes a week after Trump unveiled a 20-point peace plan alongside Netanyahu.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Many analysts believe Israel's recent strike on Hamas militants inside Qatar proved to be a turning point.
--:-- Host: It reportedly infuriated the Qataris and enraged Trump. Netanyahu was forced to apologize and accept a deal with elements he had previously rejected.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: But Trump's plan has two phases. There's agreement on the first, which involves Israel pulling back from Gaza and Hamas delivering the hostages.
--:-- Host: But the second phase is more complicated. It involves a disarmament of Hamas and the formation of a committee to administer Palestine, ultimately chaired by Trump and potentially involving former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Faraz Maksad is an associate fellow at the Washington-based Middle East Institute.
--:-- Faraz Maksad: He told the BBC that Trump deserved a lot of credit, but this was not yet an end to the war.
--:-- Host: We have to be clear, the deal that has been struck today does not achieve an end to the occupation.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: My understanding is the compromise that was struck still has the Israelis holding on to some 42 of the Gaza Strip.
--:-- Faraz Maksad: Obviously phase two would involve a full withdrawal perhaps some you know minute buffer zone but that would also necessitate the full dismantlement and disarmament of Hamas.
--:-- Host: And Hamas is completely silent on that.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: ABC News correspondent Selena Wang told the network that those larger parts of the peace deal have yet to be discussed.
--:-- Selena Wang: But look, the president today, he did not touch on those thornier issues, including the process for disarming Hamas, the future governing structure of Gaza, all of that still unclear.
--:-- Host: What we're hearing from U.S. officials, though, is that the negotiations have really been focused on these next few days, these next few weeks.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: As for the next few days, Trump told Fox News that he expected the hostages to be released on Monday.
--:-- Host: It would be part of an exchange that involves the release of some Palestinian prisoners.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The news comes just after the two-year anniversary of October 7th, the day in which more than 1,200 Israelis were killed by Hamas militants.
--:-- Host: The war that followed has left over 67,000 Palestinians dead, many more displaced, and left much of Gaza in ruins.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Yotam Cohen's brother is one of the remaining hostages.
--:-- Host: Earlier this week, Yotam reflected on the last two years with CBS.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The Israeli people are tired of fighting. The Israeli people want this war to end, want to get the hostages back, our soldiers back, want to stop this bloodshed between Israelis and Palestinians, want to simply grow from this.
--:-- Host: And the only way to do so is to end the war, to get the hostages back and to rehabilitate and to rebuild the region.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Now to Illinois, where hundreds of members of the National Guard have arrived on the orders of President Trump.
--:-- Host: Around 200 troops from the Texas National Guard and 300 from within Illinois have been mobilized into Chicagoland.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: U.S. Northern Command said they'll, quote, protect immigration and customs enforcement and other government personnel performing federal functions.
--:-- Host: But the troops will not have arresting or policing powers, and local law enforcement say they've been given little details as to what the troops will be doing specifically or where they're set to be based.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The move comes against the staunch opposition of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, who has described it as an unconstitutional invasion.
--:-- Host: It's unconscionable. This has never happened before.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: They're calling out troops onto the streets of a state that doesn't want them.
--:-- Host: And they're not even telling us where they're going to go, what they're going to do.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: This hasn't happened, I don't think, since the Civil War.
--:-- Host: The governor and president's public feud escalated yesterday when Trump suggested both Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson should be in jail.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Johnson gave this response.
--:-- Brandon Johnson: This president is unstable, unhinged, a double-minded individual that, quite frankly, is a threat to our democracy.
--:-- Host: And I'm going to stay firm as the mayor of this amazing city, which was voted nine years in a row the best big city in America, and we're going to defend all of Chicago.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Protests and arrests have become a regular occurrence in Chicago since ICE began its Operation Midway crackdown.
--:-- Host: The Department of Homeland Security reports over 900 arrests.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: As part of that, U.S. citizens have been arrested without cause, and a Mexican immigrant was fatally shot by agents.
--:-- Host: Local police have also opened a criminal investigation after federal agents fired a pepper ball at CBS Chicago reporter Asel Rezai as she drove away from a quiet scene outside a facility.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Here's Rezai describing it.
--:-- Asel Rezai: The scariest part about this is I could have been anybody and I could have been killed.
--:-- Host: I was driving my vehicle was moving when they shot directly at my car.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: And earlier this week we talked on the show about an incident where officials shot a woman after they alleged she had rammed her car into federal vehicles
--:-- Host: There have been some legal setbacks for DHS in recent days.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Yesterday, a grand jury refused to indict two protesters accused of assaulting ICE officials, and a Chicago federal judge found that ICE repeatedly violated a consent decree over warrantless arrests.
--:-- Host: And these rising tensions have begun to affect activity in the city.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: A soccer match between Argentina and Puerto Rico was due to take place next week, but soccer officials briefed the Associated Press that the situation in the city had forced them to move the game to Florida.
--:-- Host: Governor Pritzker has brought a lawsuit against this mobilization, and a hearing is scheduled for today.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: A bipartisan group of former Illinois governors, including five who served as Republicans, have told the judge in that case they oppose Trump's move.
--:-- Host: Yesterday, Trump again threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act if the courts ultimately blocked him.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: This is an 1807 law that gives the president emergency powers to deploy troops on U.S. soil to quell what the president deems an insurrection.
--:-- Host: This was last invoked by former President George H.W. Bush in 1992 in response to riots, but was done with the support of local leaders.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Last week, the Energy Department canceled more than $7 billion in funding for clean energy projects and other climate-friendly technologies.
--:-- Host: It's part of broader efforts to cut back on renewable energy, which President Trump has described as, quote, a joke.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: This is all happening at a time when electricity prices have surged, rising faster than the rate of inflation.
--:-- Host: While these specific cuts targeted largely Democratic-run states, the Wall Street Journal reports that a number of Republicans in states that voted for Trump are now voicing concern about how his attacks on wind projects could impact their economies and residents.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: States like Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa, and Kansas backed Trump, but they also happen to be the country's top wind energy producers.
--:-- Host: John McCormick is a national political reporter with the Wall Street Journal.
--:-- John McCormick: His actions threaten jobs in those states, tens of billions of dollars of potential investment.
--:-- Host: There are turbine factories, one in Iowa, for example, that is under threat.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: And the company that actually owns it recently declared bankruptcy, not entirely related to the Trump administration, but certainly that has been an impact on their business and the prospects for the future.
--:-- Host: The Journal reports that Iowa alone has more than 100 large wind farms.
--:-- John McCormick: And the state's Republican governor, Kim Reynolds, said that wind actually helps keep Iowans' electricity bills low.
--:-- Host: Especially in the era of growing artificial intelligence, there's just more and more demand for electricity.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: So wind and solar have been an important source for additional energy.
--:-- Host: In Iowa, for example, wind provides close to 60 percent of the electrical generation.
--:-- John McCormick: In the U.S. overall, it's just above 10 percent.
--:-- Host: Wind turbines bring down local property taxes and make tens of millions in annual lease payments to farmers.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The government is now requiring it be consulted on how wind projects would impact endangered species and wetlands, which makes the prospect of permitting more uncertain.
--:-- Host: People who are supporters of wind energy, supporters of solar, say the president's actions and this administration's actions are short-sighted.
--:-- John McCormick: China and other countries are continuing to invest in wind and solar.
--:-- Host: And ultimately, you know, that could mean that they have a significant advantage when it comes to power generation.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Some Iowa Republicans like Senator Chuck Grassley have quietly pushed Trump to change his tune and allow for a slower phase of some wind and solar tax credits that were in the spending bill Trump signed over the summer
--:-- Host: Yet, McCormick said Grassley's criticism seemed to have its limitations.
--:-- John McCormick: He declined an interview with The Wall Street Journal on this topic, and that maybe gives you a little bit of a sense for just how sensitive Republicans are in terms of challenging Trump in public.
--:-- Host: The Journal reports that some Iowa Republicans are thinking about how the president's stance on wind energy and its impact in the state could influence voters in next year's midterm elections.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Before we let you go, a few other stories we're following.
--:-- Host: Authorities have arrested a man for allegedly starting the fire that destroyed the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles earlier this year.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The Los Angeles Times reports 29-year-old Jonathan Rindernacht was detained in Florida yesterday in connection with the blaze.
--:-- Host: If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The fire initially started on New Year's Day, and authorities were able to contain it.
--:-- Host: But days later, it rekindled and would ultimately kill 12 people, burn 23,000 acres, and damage or destroy nearly 8,000 homes.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The Palisades Fire was the largest of a series of wildfires that devastated Los Angeles earlier this year.
--:-- Host: As the government shutdown continues for the ninth day, monthly jobs numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which typically come out the first Friday of the month, are currently delayed.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: But some alternative sources suggest the employment market continues to show signs of cracking.
--:-- Host: The Wall Street Journal reports data from institutions, including Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and ADP, suggest unemployment is on the rise, growth is sliding, and employers are shedding jobs.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: While the journal notes this information doesn't provide a complete picture of the labor market, the narrative remains the same.
--:-- Host: Not many companies are hiring.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: There is some good news.
--:-- Host: It appears companies are not laying more people off and the unemployment rate remains low.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: And finally, when was the last time you took stock of the bottles lining your refrigerator door?
--:-- Host: Bloomberg Businessweek reports that sales of condiments, we're talking flavored mayos, alt ketchups, different types of mustards and other sauces, has experienced explosive growth since 2019.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The sector was valued at $12 billion last year and could grow by another billion by 2029.
--:-- Host: Even fast food chains and legacy companies like Heinz are getting into the diverse condiment craze.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Bloomberg Businessweek reports a number of factors are at play, like the current obsession with protein and what to dip it in, as well as Americans making fewer restaurant visits because of higher menu prices.
--:-- Host: There's also the Gen Z trend of little tree culture, an inexpensive way to indulge.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: This all requires the need of a well-stocked condiment shelf.
--:-- Host: So don't feel bad about that $12 bottle of fancy mayo the next time you need a little mood boost.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app.
--:-- Host: And if you're already listening in the News app right now, stick around for a narrated article.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Wired has the story of one man's vendetta against 5G and how he came to believe the cellular technology was at the center of a worldwide plot to zombify humanity.
--:-- Host: If you're listening in the podcast app, follow Apple News Plus Narrated to find that story.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: And we'll be back with the news tomorrow.
