World Dec 15 West Africa regional bloc approves exit timeline for 3 member nations hit by coups By Chinedu Asadu, Associated Press
World Dec 15 Israel decides to close its embassy in Ireland as tensions rise over Gaza war Israel said Sunday it will close its embassy in Ireland as relations deteriorated over the war in Gaza, where Palestinian medical officials said new Israeli airstrikes killed over 30 people including several children. By Wafaa Shurafa, Natalie Melzer, Associated Press
World Dec 15 Analysis: What to know about HTS, Hezbollah and Iran after Assad’s fall in Syria The ascendance of Sunni Islamist rebels in Syria should be viewed with great caution by Western powers, but the Assad regime’s collapse disables a critical node in Iran’s regional proxy network, a counterterrorism expert explains. By Bruce Hoffman, Council on Foreign Relations
World Dec 15 Pope Francis makes first-ever papal visit to French island of Corsica in the Mediterranean On the first papal visit ever to the French island of Corsica, Pope Francis on Sunday called for a dynamic form of laicism, promoting the kind of popular piety that distinguishes the Mediterranean island from secular France as a bridge between… By Paolo Santalucia, Silvia Stellacci, Associated Press
World Dec 15 Cyclone Chido causes hundreds of deaths on Mayotte islands in Indian Ocean, officials say The death toll in the French territory of Mayotte from Cyclone Chido is “several hundred” and may be close to 1,000, the island’s top government official told the local broadcaster Sunday. By Gerald Imray, Sylvie Corbet, Associated Press
Dec 14 Watch 8:36 Search continues for missing Syrians imprisoned by Assad regime By Simona Foltyn, John Yang, Kaisha Young Under the Assad regime, hundreds of thousands of Syrians were swept up by the government’s security apparatus, never to be seen again. Special correspondent Simona Foltyn gained access to one of the intelligence branches that orchestrated that brutal oppression and… Continue watching
Dec 14 Watch 2:27 News Wrap: Israeli airstrikes kill 10 people in central Gaza as ceasefire talks continue In our news wrap Saturday, medical teams in Gaza say an Israeli airstrike killed at least 10 people at a market, South Korean lawmakers voted to impeach their president, Pelosi underwent hip replacement surgery after a fall in Luxembourg, ABC… Continue watching
Dec 14 Ukraine strikes southern Russia with drones as Kyiv reels from consecutive aerial attacks By Associated Press The Ukrainian strikes came a day after Russia fired 93 cruise and ballistic missiles and almost 200 drones at its neighbor, further battering Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, around half of which has been destroyed during the war. Continue reading
Dec 14 Georgian ruling party candidate Kavelashvili becomes president with country’s EU bid in limbo By Sophiko Megrelidze, Associated Press Former soccer player Mikheil Kavelashvili became president of Georgia on Saturday, as the ruling party tightened its grip in what the opposition calls a blow to the country’s EU aspirations and a victory for former imperial ruler Russia. Continue reading
Dec 14 U.S. has been in direct contact with Syrian rebel group that ousted Assad, Blinken says By Matthew Lee, Associated Press Blinken is the first U.S. official to publicly confirm contacts between the Biden administration and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, which led a coalition of armed opposition groups that ousted Assad from power last Sunday. Continue reading