10 things you need to know today: September 29, 2014

(Image credit: (AP Images/Omar Sobhani, Pool))

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1. Ghani inaugurated as Afghanistan's president
2. Obama says the U.S. misjudged ISIS' rise
3. Hong Kong democracy protests continue despite crackdown
4. California adopts "yes means yes" law on sexual consent
5. India's Modi gets raucous Madison Square Garden reception
6. Police say officer's shooting unrelated to Ferguson protests
7. Teens among 15 wounded in Miami nightclub shooutout
8. Kurdish refugees continue to flee ahead of ISIS advance
9. Search for volcano victims called off in Japan
10. Europe wins Ryder Cup... again

last updated 13 January 2015

1. Ghani inaugurated as Afghanistan's president

Ashraf Ghani took the oath of office as Afghanistan's new president on Monday, taking over the job from Hamid Karzai in the first democratic transfer of power in the country's history. Ghani, a former World Bank official, was sworn in under heavy security at the presidential palace in Kabul, with helicopters flying overhead and surrounding streets closed to traffic. Ghani is expected to quickly approve a bilateral security agreement with the U.S. that Karzai had refused to sign.

President Obama conceded that U.S. intelligence "underestimated" the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS. The U.S. put too much trust in Iraq's military's ability to handle the surging Sunni Muslim extremist group, giving it a chance to make the region "ground zero for jihadists around the world," Obama said in an interview broadcast Sunday on CBS' 60 Minutes. Obama said former Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki alienated Sunnis and "squandered" the chance to strengthen the country's fledgling democracy.

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Hong Kong riot police fired tear gas at thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators for a second day early Monday. The unrest — the worst since China regained control over the former British colony two decades ago — has been going on for days in protest against Beijing's restrictions on elections to pick Hong Kong's leader. Some protesters set up barricades as others clashed with police hours before business was set to open in the global financial center.

California on Sunday became the first state in the nation with a law defining sexual consent — when "yes means yes." Under the legislation, which Gov. Jerry Brown announced he had signed into law, consent is defined as "an affirmative, conscious, and voluntary agreement to engage in sexual activity," and it cannot be granted by somebody who is drunk, drugged, unconscious, or asleep. The law also requires colleges to take certain steps to investigate sexual assault reports on campus.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to have his first meeting with President Obama on Monday, after receiving a rock-star reception from 19,000 Indian Americans at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night. In a 70-minute address, Modi, a Hindu nationalist who was sworn in four months ago, promised cheering expatriates that he would foster economic growth and create "the India of your dreams." Before his election, he had been barred from entering the U.S. due to anti-Muslim riots in his home state.

Missouri police said Sunday that the shooting of a Ferguson officer the day before was not related to ongoing protests against the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, in August. Investigators were still searching overnight for a suspect who allegedly ran away and fired at a police officer who approached him outside a closed community center. The officer was wounded in the arm.

Fifteen people were wounded Sunday night in a shootout at a Caribbean nightclub in Miami. Up to 100 shots reportedly were fired inside the club, called The Spot, which is located near Miami-Dade College's North Campus. "Shots were flying everywhere," one witness said. A wounded 15-year-old boy was hospitalized in critical condition. The victims were all between the ages of 11 and 25. Five of them were girls between 11 and 17.

ISIS intensified its shelling of the Syrian border town of Kobani on Sunday, driving more Kurdish refugees into Turkey. More than 150,000 Kurds, fearing a massacre, have fled over the past week as the Islamist fighters began taking over nearby villages. Two airstrikes hit ISIS armored vehicles on Saturday but the advance continued, with Kurds asking why the U.S. and its allies were not targeting advancing ISIS forces more heavily. "Where's Obama?" one asked.

Rescuers in Japan on Monday called off a search for victims of a volcanic eruption that killed at least 36 people over the weekend, citing fears of rising levels of toxic gases. Mount Ontake erupted without warning on Saturday, raining ash and rocks on hikers who were near the 10,062-foot peak. Authorities said Japan's second-highest active volcano was crowded with climbers who were there to see autumn foliage.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.