An Arctic blast is freezing the US. The government is trying to lower overdraft fees and what a 93 year old rower can teach us about aging magnificently.

That's some of what we'll get to on the seven from the Washington Post.

I'm Hannah Jewel.

It's Wednesday, January 17th.

Let's get you caught up with today's seven stories. Number one, a new deal between Israel and Hamas will allow medicine deliveries to

hostages.

The deal was mediated by Qatar and France. It was announced yesterday and is already underway.

It will allow for the delivery of medication to Israeli hostages who were taken by Hamas during

its deadly attack on Israel in October.

In exchange, Israel will allow for more deliveries of aid and medicine for civilians in

Gaza.

The deal is a signal of progress in talks between the two sides, which appeared to have stalled, and U.S. officials

are still working to secure the release of the remaining hostages.

The deal comes as violence continues to flare up across the Middle East.

The U.S. launched more strikes on Yemen yesterday, targeting sites related to recent attacks on

ships in the Red Sea. Number two, Congress took a step toward preventing a government shut down this weekend.

Money for about 20% of the federal government runs out at the end of Friday, just after midnight.

That includes funding for things like the Transportation Department, some veterans assistance, and food and drug safety programs.

And the rest of the funding expires February 2nd.

If a shutdown isn't avoided, it could leave millions of federal workers without pay.

But yesterday, there were signs of progress.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer advanced legislation to move the two deadlines to March 1st and 8th.

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