News

The BBC reports: Sydney’s Lord Mayor has defended the decision to press ahead with the city’s New Year’s Eve fireworks display, despite calls it should have been cancelled due to the bushfire crisis. Speaking earlier on Tuesday, Clover Moore said the celebration would “give hope to people”. Parts of Australia have been ravaged by bushfires intensified by high temperatures and …

The New York Post reports: New York City’s counterterrorism czar expects Times Square to be “the safest place on the planet Earth” on New Year’s Eve. Thousands of police officers will be on duty for Tuesday night’s festivities, along with specialized units armed with long guns, bomb-sniffing dogs and other measures. For the first time, police drones are expected to …

From a new op-ed by James Comey: The longer it goes on, the less it means. The impact diminishes, the power of it shrinks. It no longer feels as though the most powerful human on the planet is after you. It feels as though a strange and slightly sad old guy is yelling at you to get off his lawn, …

New data from the US Census Bureau: According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s national and state population estimates released today, forty-two states and the District of Columbia had fewer births in 2019 than 2018, while eight states saw a birth increase. With fewer births in recent years and the number of deaths increasing, natural increase (or births minus deaths) has …

The New Straits Times reports: Saudi Arabia has arrested more than 200 people for violating “public decency” – including by wearing immodest clothing – and “harassment“, police said, in the first such crackdown since the ultra-conservative kingdom began easing social norms. Some 120 men and women have been arrested over the past week for offending public morals, including wearing “inappropriate …

CNN reports: The man accused of barging into a rabbi’s Monsey, New York, home and stabbing five people at a Hanukkah party has a “long history of mental illness and hospitalizations,” according to a family statement issued by his attorney. “We believe the actions of which he is accused, if committed by him, tragically reflect profound mental illness for which …

Reuters reports: Erik Prince, the controversial private security executive and prominent supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, made a secret visit to Venezuela last month and met Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, one of socialist leader Nicolas Maduro’s closest and most outspoken allies, according to five sources familiar with the matter. The visit, described by one source as “outreach” by Prince …

Haaretz reports: Immunity from prosecution is a cornerstone of democracy, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was indicted in three corruption cases, said Sunday. Netanyahu added that he would make a decision on whether he would ask the Knesset for immunity within two days. “Immunity isn’t against democracy; immunity is a cornerstone of democracy,” the prime minister told the audience at …

The Associated Press reports: The new year will bring new charges for some owners of electric vehicles, as an increasing number of states seek to plug in to fresh revenue sources to offset forgone gas taxes. In Hawaii, the charge will be $50. In Kansas, $100. In Alabama and Ohio, $200. For the first time, a majority of U.S. states …

NBC News reports: Five people were stabbed Saturday night at a rabbi’s home in Monsey, New York, and a suspect was later arrested in New York City, police said. Ramapo Police Chief Brad Weidel said a man armed with a blade attacked around 10 p.m., on the seventh night of Hanukkah. The attacker was arrested by the NYPD nearly two …

The New York Times reports: Don Imus, who tested the limits of shock radio with his irreverent attacks on celebrities, politicians, racial and ethnic groups, women, gay people and practically anyone whose head stuck up out of the foxhole, died on Friday in College Station, Texas. He was 79. The cause was not specified. On his “Imus in the Morning” …

The Independent reports: The Netherlands is gearing up to drop the moniker “Holland” as it rebrands itself in 2020. Holland is a region of the Netherlands, but the two names are often used interchangeably to describe the northern European country. From January, the Netherlands will officially drop “Holland” from all literature and marketing materials, so the country will only be …

As of today, the new smoking age is in effect: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has officially raised the legal age to buy tobacco products in the United States from 18 to 21. The move applies to all tobacco products, e-cigarettes and vaping cartridges, and comes after President Trump last week signed a $1.4 trillion spending package that included …

Reuters reports: The FBI is investigating British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and several other people linked to U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, according to two law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation. They said a principal focus of the FBI’s investigation is Maxwell, a longtime associate of Epstein, and other “people who …

Reuters reports: The Philippines has banned two U.S. lawmakers from visiting and will introduce tighter entry restrictions for U.S. citizens should Washington enforce sanctions over the detention of a top government critic, the president’s spokesman said on Friday. President Rodrigo Duterte will impose a requirement on U.S. nationals to get visas should any Philippine officials involved in the incarceration of …

France 24 reports: Embattled Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared victory in a leadership primary in his right-wing Likud party Friday, ensuring he will lead it into March elections. “A huge win! Thank you to Likud members for their trust, support and love,” Netanyahu tweeted. Initial results showed Netanyahu comfortably beating rival Gideon Saar, though a final tally was expected …

Haaretz reports: The Israeli military said it struck in the Gaza Strip early Thursday morning, targeting Hamas military posts in the coastal enclave in retaliation for a rocket that was launched at Israel’s south earlier on Wednesday, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was attending an election campaign event there. Netanyahu, who had been making an address at a gathering in …

The BBC reports: Ari Behn, the former son-in-law of Norway’s king, has died aged 47, his spokesman has said. Behn, the author of several novels and plays, married Princess Martha Louise in 2002 but the couple divorced two years ago. His spokesman told Norway’s NTB agency that Behn had taken his own life. In December 2017, Behn accused the disgraced …

USA Today reports: France’s Notre Dame Cathedral, which failed to host Christmas services Wednesday for the first time in more than 200 years, may never recover from the devastating fire that collapsed the roof and an iconic spire, its rector said. Monsignor Patrick Chauvet said the church, which dates back more than 800 years, has been left so fragile that …

Reuters reports: For the first time in more than 200 years, worshippers will not be able to attend Christmas mass at Notre-Dame cathedral, still being restored after a devastating fire. “There won’t be a midnight mass at Notre-Dame. The last time this happened was during the French Revolution. Since 1803, there have always been Christmas masses at Notre-Dame,” a Paris …