QUICK HITS

1 R. Kelly trial moves to next stage: Prosecutors at the R. Kelly sex trafficking trial ended their case Monday after calling dozens of witnesses over the past month who detailed the government’s sweeping allegations against the singer in lurid detail.

2 N. Korea condemns arms deal: North Korea on Monday condemned a new defense pact by the United States, Australia and Britain, and a plan to share nuclear submarine technology with Australia, saying the deal could trigger a nuclear arms race and upset the balance in the AsiaPacific region.

3 Four trees safe: Four famous giant sequoias were not harmed by a wildfire that reached the edge of Giant Forest in California’s Sequoia National Park, authorities said. The Four Guardsmen, a group of trees that form a natural entryway on the road to the forest, were successfully protected from the KNP Complex fire by the removal of nearby vegetation and by wrapping fire-resistant material around the bases of the trees, the firefighting management team said in a statement Sunday.

4 Volcanic eruption: An estimated 5,000 residents fled their homes as a volcano on La Palma, one of Spain’s Canary Islands, erupted Sunday and sent streams of red molten lava downhill toward villages and a column of thick, dark smoke into the sky.

5 Takata airbags: The U.S. government’s highway safety regulator has opened an investigation into a potential problem that surfaced last year with 56 million Takata airbags but that the agency eventually deemed safe based on industry research. The agency said Monday its investigation will try to determine if there’s a defect in non-recalled frontal and passenger inflators manufactured by Takata, adding that “no present safety risk has been identified.”