Morning Mail: first hostages released in Gaza ceasefire, Chinese imports linked to forced labour, Trump offers TikTok lifeline | Australia news

Good morning. Three women held hostage in Gaza over 15 months of devastating conflict have been freed by Hamas and are now back in Israel in the first tentative steps of a ceasefire deal aimed at ending the fighting. Palestinians have taken to Gaza’s ruined streets to celebrate – but many are worried the fragile agreement will break down and war will resume.

Meanwhile, the Australian government has been urged to intervene over revelations that thousands of products from Chinese firms blacklisted by the US over alleged forced Uyghur labour are continuing to flow into Australia.

And there’s tension at the Australian Open, with Novak Djokovic boycotting on-court interviews over what he called “insulting comments” from a Channel Nine reporter.

Australia

World

• Gaza ceasefire | The first three hostages are back in Israel, after being released by Hamas as part of the Gaza ceasefire deal; can the Israel-Hamas agreement hold?, asks Peter Beaumont; “Should we grieve, rejoice or cry?”: Palestinians in Gaza react to the ceasefire; and Palestinian prisoners’ families say their houses were raided by Israeli forces.

• TikTok ban | TikTok is restoring its services in the US after the president-elect, Donald Trump, pledged to give the Chinese-owned video app additional time to find a buyer before facing a total shutdown.

• US politics | Deportations, tariffs, pardons: what Donald Trump has planned for day one of his presidency; the world braces for Trump, hoping for the best, unprepared for the worst, writes Patrick Wintour; Joe Biden posthumously pardons civil rights leader Marcus Garvey.

• California wildfires | Buoyed up by an outpouring of support, Angelenos who lost their homes are preparing to rebuild their lives. But LA’s housekeepers, construction workers and gardeners – many of whom are undocumented immigrants – are watching their jobs go up in flames.

• Baltic tensions | A Nato naval flotilla likened to “the security camera of the Baltic” has assembled off the coast of Estonia as it seeks to protect European undersea cables and pipelines from sabotage.

Full Story

Do multivitamins work?

Multivitamins offer the promise of guiding us to ultimate health. But are all vitamins created equal, and is there any proof behind the wellness claims? Reged Ahmed speaks with science writer Donna Lu about the multi-promises of multivitamins.

In-depth

At a remote outpost in Antarctica, the Million Year Ice Core project is hunting for ice that formed more than a million years ago. Bubbles of air trapped in that ancient ice could unlock secrets about Earth’s past climate, and help scientists understand our future. Donna Lu looks at the work of Australian scientists racing to find the world’s oldest ice – and unlock the secrets it holds.

Not the news

The adage about days feeling long when you’re a parent never feels truer than during the summer holidays, when the bickering, screen addiction and complaints of boredom seem unending. Sarah Ayoub cast around for tips from parents of school-age kids for their tips for surviving the final stretch of the school holidays: this is what they came up with.

Sport

New South Wales is the only state in Australia with optional preferential voting – and Labor is now thinking about tweaking the system, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Reports of assaults at Victorian schools have surged by about 50% in the past two years, the Age reports. The olive perchlet, a tiny translucent native fish last seen in the wild in Victoria a century ago, is back from the brink of extinction, ABC News reports.

What’s happening today

• Fiji | A man charged over the alleged sexual assault of a Virgin Australia crew member in Fiji is expected to seek bail.

• NSW | Sentencing is due in Sydney for three people over an attempted $21m NAB fraud.

• NSW | The Tamworth Country music festival continues.

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Brain teaser

And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow.