Death toll in Gaza from the Israel-Hamas war tops 45,000 Palestinians, health officials say
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Health officials in the Gaza Strip say more than 45,000 Palestinians have now been killed in the war between Israel and Hamas militants. Gaza’s Health Ministry doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count but has said more than half of the dead are women and children. It said over 50 dead were brought to hospitals in the past 24 hours. Meanwhile, often-stalled ceasefire negotiations appear to be gaining ground again with mediators Qatar, Egypt and the United States. Mediators have said there appears to be more willingness from both sides after 14 months of war.
Middle East latest: Assad says he wanted to stay in Syria but Russia evacuated him
Ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad says he had no plans to leave the country after the fall of Damascus a week ago but the Russian military evacuated him after their base in western Syria came under attack. The comments are the first by Assad since he was overthrown by insurgent groups. Assad said in a statement on his Facebook page that he left Damascus on the morning of Dec. 8, hours after insurgents stormed the capital. He said he left in coordination with Russian allies to the Russian base in the coastal province of Latakia, where he planned to keep fighting but was evacuated to Moscow after the base came under a drone attack.
Trump calls on Biden to stop selling unused portions of the border wall
PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump has called on the Biden administration to stop selling off unused portions of border wall that were purchased but not installed during the first Trump administration. Trump threatened legal action Monday, saying he has spoken to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and other Texas officials about a potential restraining order. He called the Biden administration’s steps “almost a criminal act.” Congress last year required the Biden administration to dispose of the unused border wall pieces.
Germany’s Scholz loses a confidence vote, setting up an early election in February
BERLIN (AP) — Chancellor Olaf Scholz has lost a confidence vote in the German parliament, putting the European Union’s most populous member and biggest economy on course to hold an early election in February. Scholz won the support of 207 lawmakers in the 733-seat lower house, or Bundestag, while 394 voted against him and 116 abstained. That left him far short of the majority of 367 needed to win. Scholz leads a minority government after his unpopular and notoriously rancorous three-party coalition collapsed on Nov. 6. Leaders of several major parties then agreed that a parliamentary election should be held on Feb. 23. Germany’s president must now decide whether to dissolve parliament and call the election.
France rushes aid to Mayotte, with hundreds feared dead and hunger rising after Cyclone Chido
MAMOUDZOU, Mayotte (AP) — France is using ships and military aircraft to rush rescue workers and supplies to its Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte. The island group was battered by its worst cyclone in nearly a century. Authorities fear hundreds and possibly thousands of people have died. Cyclone Chido leveled entire neighborhoods when it hit Mayotte on Saturday. The island group is France’s poorest department. Destruction was heavy in the capital. A local television station reported that the official death toll was 20. But France’s health minister has warned that any estimates were likely major undercounts “compared to the scale of the disaster.” French President Emmanuel Macron was set to host a meeting at the Interior Ministry’s crisis center in Paris on Monday.
Drone sightings lead to airspace shutdown at Ohio military base, arrests near Boston airport
BOSTON (AP) — More suspected drone sightings in the eastern United States have led to a temporary airspace shutdown around an Air Force base in Ohio and arrests near Boston’s Logan International Airport. Reports of the mysterious flights have ballooned in recent weeks, especially in New Jersey. Elected officials including U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York are increasing their calls for action by federal authorities. Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, closed its airspace for about four hours late Friday into early Saturday after drones were spotted flying around. Boston police say they arrested two people on Saturday night for flying a drone too close to Logan International Airport.
Prince Andrew’s Chinese spy drama again pushes King Charles III to rein in scandal-prone brother
LONDON (AP) — How do you solve a problem like Prince Andrew? That’s the question facing King Charles III as the drama surrounding his 64-year-old brother roils Britain and the monarchy once again. In the latest episode, a Chinese businessman has been barred from the U.K. because of concerns he cultivated links with Andrew in an alleged effort to influence British elites on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party. The businessman who was identified Monday says he wasn’t involved in espionage and had “done nothing wrong or unlawful.”
Schools are cutting bus service for children. Parents are turning to ride-hailing apps
CHICAGO (AP) — Reliance on school buses has been waning for years as districts struggle to find drivers and more students attend schools far outside their neighborhoods. As responsibility for transportation shifts to families, the question of how to replace the traditional yellow bus has become an urgent problem and a spark for innovation. Several startup companies have begun working with school systems to provide rideshare services. A 2023 Federal Highway Administration survey says only about 28% of U.S. students take a school bus. That is down from about 36% in the previous survey conducted in 2017.
Survivors seek a reckoning as FBI investigates child sex abuse in little-known Christian sect
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A small Christian sect that for decades was little noticed by the outside world has found itself riven by a very public child sex abuse scandal. In the past year, news stories and a documentary have focused on the misdeeds of predator preachers in the religious community known as the “Two by Twos,” as well as the leaders who sent them to live with unsuspecting families. Survivors say leaders pressured victims to keep quiet and sometimes failed to make legally required reports to police. The FBI is investigating, and a website, a hotline and social media pages established by victims have documented allegations against more than 900 abusers, with survivors in more than 30 countries.
How old are Saturn’s rings? Study suggests they could be as old as the planet
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — New research suggests that Saturn’s rings may be older than they look — possibly as old as the planet. Instead of being a youthful 400 million years old as commonly thought, the icy, shimmering rings could be 4.5 billion years old just like Saturn. A Japanese-led team reported Monday that Saturn’s rings may be pristine not because they are young but because they are dirt-resistant. Through computer modeling, the scientists show that micrometeoroids vaporize once striking the rings, creating charged particles that get sucked away from the rings, keeping them clean. Results were published in Nature Geoscience.