The Brief

As the Palisades Fire roared to life a year ago, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was nowhere to be found in the city.

She was on a diplomatic trip to Ghana, the guest of the Biden Administration, when the wind-whipped flames swept into the Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025. After her return to Los Angeles the next day, she stared stone faced and silent when a reporter from the British outlet Sky News quizzed her at LAX about why she had left the city amid warnings of historic winds and fire danger.

Later, she said the fire chief, whom she terminated six weeks after the fire, did not properly warn her of the impending extreme and dangerous conditions. Bass later called it a “mistake” to have left the city.

From day one of the Palisades Fire, which burned nearly 7,000 homes and killed 12 people, Bass has been under intense scrutiny for her response to the disaster.

And it will likely be a big issue in her reelection campaign this year.

The mayor is politically vulnerable when it comes to fire response, said Fernando Guerra, who directs the Center for the Study of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University.

“The fires are the major issue in this election,” Guerra said.

Among the criticisms: The mayor introduced a plan to waive new building permit fees for Palisades residents, an effort to help fast-track rebuilding, but it is languishing in the City Council. Some residents say the rebuilding process has gone too slow and blame the mayor.

Additionally, The Los Angeles Times reported last month that an after-action report by the L.A. Fire Department, which the mayor oversees, was toned down to avoid being too critical of the agency’s response. The Times reviewed multiple drafts of the report and learned that the revisions amounted to “an effort to downplay the failures of city and LAFD leadership.”

The fumbles have left many in the Palisades frustrated. Some in the Palisades have called on her to resign.

Larry Vein of Pali Strong, a fire survivors group, acknowledges the anger some in the Palisades have expressed toward Bass, but he is careful about criticizing the mayor.

“I have a saying which is I don’t do politics, I do Palisades,” he said. “ But “certainly mistakes were made.”

“As of today, there is a lot of anger and there is a lot of upset at the mayor, thinking that she should have done more,” he continued. “She has been making strides with trying to get the rebuild done, but there have been the standard hurdles that happen in any bureaucracy.”

The mayor has defended her administration’s response to the fire, saying debris cleanup and the issuing of permits to rebuild have happened at “lightning speed” and that thousands of people have used the city’s one-stop centers that provide relief. She has urged banks to extend forbearance of mortgage payments to residents who lost their homes, and banned projects that split lots zoned for single-family homes — an effort to retain community character in the Palisades.

In an interview with LAist, Bass acknowledged the criticism.

“You certainly have Palisadians who say that it's going too slow. But it's going too slow for a variety of reasons,” she said. “It might be financial, it might be insurance. If it's the city process — and it might be — and we find out about it, we jump on it and move whatever obstacle that’s in the way out of the way.

“We have a long ways to go, but I am hoping that progress will even speed up more, and more homes will be under construction,” Bass said.

Fire Department report criticized

Much the criticism has focused on the fire department, which Bass oversees.

The Times has reported the department downplayed some of the problems in the response, including the agency’s failure to fully extinguish the Lachman Fire a week before the Palisades Fire. It is believed that high winds reignited the Lachman Fire and caused the Palisades Fire.

“There was an effort to minimize errors in judgment that were made,” City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez told LAist.

Maryam Zar, founder of the Palisades Recovery Coalition, echoed the sentiment.

“The lack of accountability, the lack of ability to say, ‘Hey Pacific Palisades we really got this wrong’...that leads to this community’s inability to let go,” Zar added.

Bass wouldn’t say if there was a cover-up by the fire department. She said another report ordered by Gov. Gavin Newsom is due out later this month.

“That is an independent report,” she said. “ It had nothing to do with the Fire Department. And you can judge at that point.”

According to the Mayor’s Office, more than 1,400 construction permits have been issued for more than 680 addresses in the Palisades as of this week. At least 417 projects are confirmed to have started construction

The office says Palisades rebuilding plans are being approved in half the time compared to single-family home projects citywide before the wildfires.

In April, Bass introduced a proposal to waive construction permit fees for people who wanted to rebuild in the Palisades. But the proposal needs approval from the City Council, which has delayed any action citing concerns about the effect it would have on the cash-strapped city.

The cost will run into the tens of millions of dollars. The council approved a $13 billion budget in June that included little wiggle room for additional spending.

The council is scheduled to take up the issue again this month.

Some blame Bass for not pushing the council hard enough.

“We think she’s lost that sense of urgency — that this is an important part of L.A. city that has burned down and been completely devastated,” said Zar, from the Palisades Recovery Coalition.

Vein, from the fire survivors group, said knowing whether the city will waive potentially tens of thousands of dollars in permit fees per home is important because many residents are still on the fence about whether to rebuild.

And the delays have been frustrating to many.

“A year later, we’re still waiting on permit fee waivers,” said Jessica Rogers, vice chair of the Palisades Long Term Recovery Group.

Back to square one

The city also still has no overall plan to rebuild city infrastructure. The mayor hired one firm to develop a plan then switched to another, AECOM, which is conducting listening sessions with residents, according to Zar.

“We think there’s been enough of a listening tour and too little output,” said Zar. “Over and over again we feel like we’re back to square one.”

Rodriguez said it's important to move things faster for the residents of the Palisades.

“With every false start, you’re delaying a plan for the families that were affected to be able to recover,” the council member said.

At the same time, Zar said she thinks some of the criticism of the mayor has been overblown. Zar said she isn’t convinced it’s such a big deal that Bass was out of town the day the fire started.

“The mayor being in town would not have meant that she would have shown up with a hose in her hand,” she said.

Some in the Palisades say any mayor would have struggled to respond to such a large-scale wildfire.

“For a disaster of our size, it would be hard for anybody to do a very good job at assisting with recovery,” Rogers said.

Bass faces reelection bid

Bass announced her reelection bid Dec.13, touting on her website that L.A.’s fire cleanup was the fastest in U.S. history.

Former Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent and investment banker Austin Beutner is among those challenging her. He’s also a Palisades resident whose home was badly damaged by smoke.

“She keeps announcing recovery strategies only for them to get bogged down in details or abandoned altogether,” Beutner said.

Guerra, from Loyola Marymount, said many voters perceived that Bass had “underperformed” during and after the fires.

“I think we’re picking that up not only in the public narrative but also in public opinion polls,” he said.

According to a UCLA/Luskin School Quality of Life Index survey conducted in February and March of last year, her total unfavorable rating was 49% compared to 23% during her first year in office.

Still, she commands a strong coalition that includes labor unions and business groups like the Valley Industry Commerce Association, said Guerra. He predicted Bass would “probably win in the June primary.”

Guerra said Bass will be tough to topple, despite her missteps on fire recovery.

One of the outstanding questions is whether billionaire businessman Rick Caruso will enter the race. Caruso, who ran against Bass in 2022, has been a sharp critic of the mayor’s recovery response.

He spent more than $100 million trying to defeat Bass the first time.

Caruso won’t say whether he plans to mount a challenge to Bass.

The filing deadline is Feb. 7.

The Los Angeles County fires last year drove up insurance costs for many Californians. Now, a proposed settlement means some State Farm policyholders whose premiums rose won’t see additional increases, and others should even get refunds.

State Farm, the largest insurer in the state with about 20% market share, received approval for unprecedented emergency insurance rate increases in California last May. The company told the state that the billions of dollars it expected to pay out after the deadly fires placed it in financial peril.

The proposed deal among the state Insurance Department, consumer advocacy group Consumer Watchdog and State Farm, disclosed late last week, comes after months of public hearings convened by the insurance department and settlement talks.

Consumer Watchdog, which questioned the rate increases State Farm asked for, says the settlement saves the company’s California policyholders a total of $530 million. From the proposed settlement:

• Homeowners’ rate hikes will stay at the previously approved interim rate of 17% instead of the 30% the company sought.
• Condo owners who saw interim rate hikes of 15% will see their rates drop to an increase of 5.8%, and get refunds with interest dating back to June 1, 2025.
• Rental unit owners with interim rate hikes of 38% will see those increases drop to 32.8%, and receive refunds with interest. 
• Renter policyholders will see an increase of 15.65% vs. the interim rate hike of 15%.

In addition, State Farm has agreed not to cancel any new policies this year, and it won’t be canceling some policies it had planned not to renew in wildfire-affected areas. The insurance department characterized those provisions as important to the continued stability of the state’s insurance market, which has been beset with availability and affordability issues.

“When consumer advocates are able to challenge the data and present their own analysis, excessive requests are reduced and consumers are protected,” said Harvey Rosenfield in a statement. Rosenfield founded Consumer Watchdog and wrote Proposition 103, the voter-approved law that governs insurance in California.

State Farm has paid out more than $5 billion in claims from the L.A.-area fires so far, said spokesperson Tom Hartmann.

After consumer complaints and lawsuits, the insurance department is investigating the company’s handling of claims from the fires and expects results from that examination later this spring.

The agreement, which must be approved by an administrative law judge, also requires State Farm to undergo additional review of its rates in 2027. The company will be required to make a one time 2.5% premium discount available to renewing policyholders if its ratio of premiums to available cash reaches a certain level; Consumer Watchdog litigation director Will Pletcher said the deal will give the group more timely access to the company’s annual financial statements to help keep it accountable.

The insurance department expects the judge to decide on the settlement by April 7. Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara will then review the judge’s decision and have the final say.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

Iran's state media issued what it said was a statement by Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, vowing to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed and keep up attacks on U.S. bases in the region, as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran entered its 13th day.

It was purported to be the new leader's first statement since he succeeded his father Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an Israeli strike on the first day of the war.

The statement said Iran will avenge the blood of its "martyrs," including the victims of a March 1 attack on a girls school in the city of Minab, which Iranian officials say killed at least 165 people, many of them children. NPR has confirmed the U.S. military is investigating how it could have targeted the school.

The Iranian statement said the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route for a fifth of the world's oil supply, should remain closed. It said Iran continues to believe in friendship with its neighbors but will continue targeting U.S. bases in the region.

"The lever of blocking the Strait of Hormuz must undoubtedly continue to be used.," the statement said, according to an English version published by Tasnim News Agency, run by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

It's unclear if the statement was from Mojtaba Khamenei himself. Another person was heard reading out the remarks on Iranian state media, with a photo of Khamenei posted on the TV screen, as it was broadcast around the world.

There's been speculation about the leader's current condition and whereabouts. An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly, told NPR that Khamenei was lightly injured early in the war.

This is a developing story that will be updated.

Here are other major updates about the conflict.

To jump to specific areas of coverage, use the links below:

Attacks on vessels | Oil stockpiles | Strikes across the Gulf | Israel-Hezbollah escalation | Iranian school attack

Two oil tankers hit in Iraqi waters

Two oil tankers were hit in Iraqi territorial waters near the southern port area of Basra, Iraqi officials said Thursday. It is the first oil-related strike reported in Iraq's waters during more than a week of war, in another sign of the conflict's escalation.

Iran, a critical ally of Iraq, took responsibility for attacking one of the tankers, which it said was owned by the U.S.

A port official said the attack targeted vessels near Basra's port approaches, and Iraq's security spokesman described it as sabotage.

Iraqi officials said one person was killed, and 38 crew members were rescued, with search operations continuing.

Iran has stepped up attacks on energy infrastructure and commercial shipping in response to U.S. and Israeli strikes, warning that the world should brace for oil prices to double.

— Jane Arraf

U.S. and allies to release record oil stockpiles  

The U.S. confirmed it will release 172 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as part of a coordinated International Energy Agency (IEA) release of 400 million barrels from emergency stockpiles.

The U.S. contribution amounts to roughly 40% of the total, to be released gradually over about four months.

The IEA's executive director, Fatih Birol, said the goal is to keep the supply of oil flowing as the conflict disrupts shipping routes and energy infrastructure. But analysts warn stockpile releases can only partially offset prolonged disruption in the Gulf, where roughly a fifth of global oil consumption normally transits the Strait of Hormuz.

On Wednesday, President Trump said the price spike is temporary and said the reserve release would push prices down.

According to the popular app Gas Buddy, the current average cost of regular unleaded is now up to $3.61 a gallon.

- Camila Domonoske

Iran continues attacks on Gulf States

Countries in the Gulf reported new incoming threats and interceptions Thursday, as Iran continued firing drones and missiles across the region – including at U.S. military bases.

The UAE's defense ministry said air defenses were responding to Iranian missile and drone attacks, and that sounds heard in parts of the country were from intercepts.

Kuwait's defense ministry said its air defenses intercepted ballistic missiles and drones that penetrated the northern and southern parts of the country's airspace.

Saudi Arabia said it intercepted and destroyed drones headed toward the Shaybah oil field.

The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution on Wednesday condemning Iran for recent attacks across the Persian Gulf region, calling them a "breach of international law" and "a serious threat to international peace and security."

- Rebecca Rosman

Israel launches large strikes on Hezbollah sites in Beirut after rocket fire into Israel

People inspect homes damaged by a projectile launched from Lebanon, in Haniel central Israel, on Thursday.

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Baz Ratner

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AP

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The militant group Hezbollah launched its biggest rocket attack against Israel since the start of the war with Iran. The Israeli military said the Iranian-backed group fired heavy volleys toward northern Israel overnight into Thursday, triggering interceptions and sending residents repeatedly into shelters.

The Israeli military responded by launching more attacks against what it said were Hezbollah launch sites and command infrastructure.

Huge booms were heard across the capital and large black smoke billowed from the Dahieh neighborhood in south Beirut, while an attack in central Beirut – where thousands of people are displaced – killed 8 people and injured 31, according to Lebanese officials.

Wide evacuation orders for south Lebanon and Beirut's southern suburbs have displaced at least 800,000 people so far, according to the Lebanese government.

Lebanon, which does not have diplomatic ties with Israel, has unusually called for direct talks with Israel to end the escalating fighting with Hezbollah. Israel has not officially responded.

Israeli strikes on Iran have continued, with Iran firing missiles at Israel intermittently, including overnight.

Israeli military officials say about half of the missiles Iran has launched at Israel have carried cluster warheads, which spread out into smaller bombs over a wider area – increasing the risk to civilians.

- Daniel Estrin, Hadeel Al-Shalchi and Rebecca Rosman

Pentagon: Preliminary assessment suggests U.S. likely responsible for strike on Iranian school

The Pentagon has opened a formal investigation into the missile strike on an Iranian girls school that killed at least 165 civilians, many of them children, after a preliminary assessment suggested the U.S. was at fault, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly. The investigation is expected to take months and will include interviews with all those involved, from planners and commanders to those who carried out the strike.

If a U.S. role in the attack is confirmed, it would rank among the military's most deadly incidents involving civilians in decades. Congress created a special Pentagon office to prevent the accidental targeting of civilians but it was dramatically scaled back by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth soon after he took office last year.

"This investigation is ongoing. As we have said, unlike the terrorist Iranian regime, the United States does not target civilians," said White House spokesperson Anna Kelly.

The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment.

NPR previously reported — based on commercial satellite imagery and independent expert analysis — that the strike was more extensive than initially reported and appeared consistent with a precision strike on a nearby military complex, raising questions about whether outdated targeting information contributed to the tragedy.

- Tom Bowman, Kat Lonsdorf, Geoff Brumfiel

Rebecca Rosman contributed to this report from Paris, Jane Arraf from Erbil, Iraq, Hadeel Al-Shalchi from Beirut, Daniel Estrin from Tel Aviv and Camila Domonoske, Tom Bowman, Kat Lonsdorf and Geoff Brumfiel from Washington.
Copyright 2026 NPR

The story first appeared on The LA Local.

If you’re a soccer fan — or just a fan of South Korean phenom Son Heung-min — you may have heard that the Los Angeles Football Club planned to put up a larger-than-life mural of the footballer in Koreatown last month. But the mural has yet to appear. 

LAFC planned to reveal the mural during the launch of their 2026/2027 jersey at The LINE Hotel. Now the reveal has been pushed back to sometime in June. 

The delay stems from issues with the city’s mural approval process, at least according to city officials. 

Gabriel Cifarelli, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, said they received a mural registration application for the site. But the department said it could not issue a notice to proceed because the application was “ineligible and incomplete” under the city’s mural ordinance and administrative rules.

“DCA staff offered the applicant advice and further guidance, and remains available for questions,” Cifarelli said. 

If a mural includes a team logo it is considered an advertisement and not original artwork, according to the city department. In that case, the permit must be issued through the city’s Building and Safety Department.

A new application has not been submitted through the mural program, Cifarelli said, and it was not immediately clear whether LAFC applied for a permit through the Building and Safety Department. 

LAFC spokesperson Danny Sanchez didn’t confirm if a new permit has been submitted.

“The mural unveil was rescheduled to June to better align with World Cup festivities,” Sanchez said. 

Dave Young Kim was commissioned to paint the mural and previously painted a Son mural on the side of the Crosby building in Koreatown in October, but that was only up for a few weeks.

He still plans to paint the mural on The LINE Hotel in June.

“I’m assuming at this point, LAFC is likely trying to line it up for a more opportune time,” said Kim. “The mural was originally supposed to line up with the launch of the new jersey so something similar.”

Leo Hernandez, 35, said he hopes the mural goes up before the World Cup.

“I didn’t know it was pushed back all the way to June,” he said. “I’ll be in Mexico for the World Cup.”

Hernandez, who goes by “El Soccer Guy” on Instagram and has nearly 50,000 followers, has been attending LAFC games since 2018. He said Son’s arrival to L.A. has brought a new wave of fans to the club.

“I’ve never seen so many Koreans,” he said. “He’s bringing a whole new community to LAFC. I don’t know if they love soccer or they love Son or both, but it’s amazing to see.”

“Son is starting to be my favorite on the team,” he added. “He’s so good. He wants the team to shine. And I love his positivity and energy.” 

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is all about people with superpowers living in a world very much like our own.

And there’s a lot of real Los Angeles mixed into the recent MCU series “Wonder Man,” now on Disney+, which makes for a version of the MCU that feels a little more grounded in reality, especially for Angelenos.

It's an action-comedy about two struggling actors also dealing with superhuman forces and secret government agencies. Think The Studio meets Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Sir Ben Kingsley reprises his Iron Man 3 character Trevor Slattery, the messy British actor hired to play a bad guy called The Mandarin. And Yahya Abdul-Mateen II plays Simon Williams, aka Wonder Man.

Through their adventures trying to book the gig-of-a-lifetime while surviving the perils of the MCU, L.A. landmarks and cultural references abound, and ground the series in a relatability for many Angelenos, including lots of inside jokes for those working in the entertainment industry.

3 cultural references that make Wonder Man feel like real Los Angeles

Historic places, some we’ve had to part with

There’s a series of roughly 100-year-old small, independent movie houses used as locations in Wonder Man — the Eagle Theatre now home to Vidiots, Westwood's Village Theater now operated by American Cinematheque (with views of The Bruin Theater across the street), and the Highland Theatre which closed in 2024.

A scene from 'Wonder Man' on Disney +.

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Speaking of iconic L.A. spots breaking local hearts, the vintage bar within Echo Park’s Taix French Restaurant was used as an interior location for the series. Taix is closing at the end of the month to make way for new development.

“Taix, the Highland Park Theatre — these places that it was only three years ago were there,” Wonder Man showrunner Andrew Guest told LAist, “a lot of these establishments sadly, are not surviving. And this town is in a rough, rough place.”

(Though actor/director Kristen Stewart recently said in an interview with Architectural Digest that she bought The Highland Theatre and is restoring the building.)

L.A. traffic (especially around the Hollywood Bowl on a performance night)

Traffic is part of life in Los Angeles and with so many scenes shot in Hollywood, even the main characters of Wonder Man must experience that bumper-to-bumper frustration.

Though, because it is a TV show, they were able to indulge in the fantasy of beating that traffic in a way that in reality would be highly dangerous (and illegal).

“We got to shut down Sunset Boulevard for a little while to shoot a car going onto the sidewalk in front of the Palladium,” said Guest. And surprisingly, he explained, they didn’t have to shoot in the middle of the night to make the shot happen: “That was Friday night…. We didn't close all lanes of traffic. The street was open. We were shooting while Los Angeles was still going strong.”

The scene also references the frequent traffic back up during big shows at the Hollywood Bowl, even earning the show a social media repost of the scene from Chaka Khan.

Having family and friends 45 minutes away, who you rarely visit

Wonder Man includes an episode titled Pacoima where the main character visits his family and childhood home.

“My wife grew up in Chatsworth, and one of the things I found fascinating about her experience growing up there was that many of her friends and their families never went to Los Angeles,” said Guest.

“The idea that Simon grew up close to, but far enough away that Hollywood and Los Angeles did not feel like they were part of his life…so when he moved to the city, Pacoima is not a place he goes to a lot. And I feel like that's a part of L.A. that is true to this city. That doesn't get explored a lot and felt like it was another detail that we got to sort of throw into the show.”

There’s lots of other Southern California. references to enjoy from the Talmadge Apartments, an historic renaissance revival building on Wilshire Blvd., a mural of Danny Trejo, and even a cameo from Gisellle Fernandes, real-life L.A. broadcaster for Spectrum 1 News.

Should you get lost in the multi-verse, at least this L.A will be pretty familiar.

BONUS: Could there be a Season 2 of Wonder Man? And would it still be set in L.A.?

Guest couldn’t confirm anything about a possible Season 2, but told LAist, “It’s still on the table as an option, potentially."

As for whether a potential Season 2 would also film in Los Angeles and continue to highlight the city in new ways, Guest said it’s occurred to him that one of the best ways to write about Hollywood could be “ to send our show somewhere else because everybody in this town who's working has to move — whether it be Budapest or London or Ireland or Vancouver — very little is actually happening in this town. And that’s a story that I don’t think is being told right now about L.A.”

Season 1 of ‘Wonder Man’ is now streaming on Disney+.

Watch Julia Paskin's interview with actor/comedian X Mayo, who plays Simon Williams' agent in 'Wonder Man':