News Wrap: Sam Bankman-Fried pleads not guilty to fraud charges related to FTX collapse

Amna Nawaz:

In the day's other headlines: The founder of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, Sam Bankman-Fried, pleaded not guilty to cheating investors and looting deposits.

Bankman-Fried arrived at federal court in New York for his arraignment after being extradited from the Bahamas. He remains free on bond pending trial next October.

Political fallout spread today from a Ukrainian missile strike on Saturday that killed scores of Russian troops. In Moscow, Russian nationalists blamed commanders for housing soldiers next to an ammunition dump.

Meanwhile, crews sifted through the wreckage of the attack in Makiivka, a town in the Russian-occupied Donetsk region of Eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainians who have lost power in Russian attacks are getting relief from the cold, as a New Year's heat wave engulfs Europe. But the winter warmup is also stoking worries about climate change, with temperatures topping 65 degrees from Switzerland to Poland.

Sejal Karia of Independent Television News has our report.

Sejal Karia:

Winter appears to be disappearing on the lower slopes of the Swiss Alps, hillsides blanketed in the green of grass, rather than the white of snow.

And when the white stuff stops falling, it's time to make your own, these skiers beating down on snow made by machines, which are topping up all the slopes and keeping the season going. But, in parts of France, the snow being a no-show meant some results being forced to close, as remarkable warm January weather is breaking records across Europe, from Berlin to here in Bucharest, where people were plunging into outdoor pools, rather than the usual trudging through feet of snow.

One of the most striking temperatures for January was here in Warsaw, five degrees higher than the previous record.

Chris Brierley, Climate Scientist:

The record goes up by five degrees. That's an awful lot. And it's climate change that's making these occurrences happen more.

Sejal Karia:

For France, a year marked by heat waves ended with springlike temperatures in midwinter. And scientists warn, this warming is likely to become more common.

Amna Nawaz:

At the Vatican today, another 70,000 mourners paid respects to Pope Emeritus Benedict, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was among this steady stream of people filing through St. Peter's Basilica. This was the second of three days of Benedict's lying in state. He passed away Saturday at the age of 95.

Brazilian soccer legend Pele has been laid to rest in his hometown of Santos. A funeral mass was celebrated today at the stadium where he played for most of his career. A procession then carried his casket through the city streets to a cemetery for the private burial. Pele was 82 when he died of colon cancer last week.

China is warning it will retaliate against nations that require negative COVID-19 test results for travelers from China. The U.S., India and several European governments are among those imposing test requirements. But, in Beijing today, the Foreign Ministry rejected the new restrictions.

Mao Ning, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman (through translator):

The entry restrictions adopted by some countries targeting China lack scientific basis, and some excessive practices are even more unacceptable. We are firmly opposed to attempts to manipulate the COVID-19 measures for political purposes and will take countermeasures based on the principle of reciprocity.

Amna Nawaz:

COVID infections in China have been spreading rapidly, with new video showing hospitals in Shanghai overwhelmed by patients needing care.

The country's strict anti-COVID measures abruptly ended in December.

Back in this country, the number of young children accidentally eating marijuana-laced treats has risen sharply, as pot becomes legal in more places. A study in the journal "Pediatrics" finds more than 7,000 confirmed cases between 2017 and 2021. On an annual basis, cases rose from 200 to more than 3,000 a year. They involve children eating — under 6 eating candies, cookies and chocolates containing marijuana.

And, on Wall Street, the new year began as the old year had ended, with stocks losing more ground. The Dow Jones industrial average gave up 11 points to close at 33136. The Nasdaq fell 79 points. The S&P 500 slipped 15.

Still to come on the "NewsHour": examining football's health risks after a Buffalo Bills player suffers cardiac arrest on the field; Israel's new far right national security minister sparks controversy with a visit to a holy site in Jerusalem; and mismanagement complicates Pakistan's long recovery from deadly floods.