World

US says price increases eased last month but data may be distorted and Americans aren't feeling it

U.S. inflation slowed unexpectedly last month according to data that was delayed, and likely distorted, by the government shutdown. The Labor Department reported Thursday that its consumer price index rose 2.7% in November from a year earlier. The report was delayed eight days by the federal government’s 43-day shutdown, which also prevented the Labor Department from compiling overall numbers for consumer prices and core inflation in October.

Associated Press

US inflation slowed last month with consumer prices rising 2.7% from a year earlier

Associated Press

European Central Bank leaves rates unchanged with economy showing signs of modest growth

Associated Press

Trump Media to merge with nuclear fusion company that wants to power AI

Trump Media & Technology will merge with a fusion power company in an all-stock deal that the companies said Thursday is valued at more than $6 billion. Devin Nunes, the Republican congressman who resigned in 2021 to become the CEO of Trump Media, will be co-CEO of the new company with TAE Technologies CEO Michl Binderbauer. The combined company says it plans to find a site and begin construction next year on the “world’s first utility-scale fusion power plant,” with aims to provide the electricity needed for artificial intelligence.

Associated Press

Lifting of US sanctions on Syria could spur refugee returns, says UN official

The head of the U.N. refugee agency in Lebanon said Thursday that the move by the United States to lift sweeping sanctions on Syria could encourage more refugees to return to their country. The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to permanently remove the so-called Caesar Act sanctions after the administration of President Donald Trump previously temporarily lifted the penalties by executive order. Trump is expected to sign off on the final repeal Thursday.

Associated Press

Bit by bit, small US groups chip away at historic levels of social isolation

Associated Press

Explainer-How does the EU want to use Russia's frozen assets for Ukraine?

BRUSSELS, Dec 18 (Reuters) - The European Union is searching for a way to finance Ukraine's defence and budget needs in 2026 and 2027 with Russian central bank assets immobilised in the West after Moscow's invasion. Under international law, sovereign assets cannot be confiscated, so the European Commission has put forward a plan to allow EU governments ​to use up to 165 billion euros - most of the 210 billion euros worth of Russian sovereign assets currently frozen in Europe - without confiscat

Reuters

Indonesian court sentences an Australian to 12 years in prison for smuggling cocaine to Bali

An Indonesian court on Thursday sentenced an Australian citizen to 12 years in prison after finding him guilty of smuggling cocaine to the tourist island of Bali. Lamar Aaron Ahchee, 43, from Cairns in north Queensland, was arrested in May when police raided his rented house near Kuta beach, a popular tourist spot on the island. The arrest followed an investigation conducted by Bali police anti-drug surveillance teams who reported the man had received two suspicious packages sent by mail from England.

Associated Press

Pope names fellow Chicagoan, Bishop Ronald Hicks, as new archbishop of New York

Pope Leo XIV on Thursday made his most important U.S. appointment to date, naming a fellow Chicagoan as the next archbishop of New York to lead one of the biggest U.S. archdioceses as it navigates relations with the Trump administration and its immigration crackdown. Bishop Ronald Hicks, the current bishop of Joliet, Illinois, replaces the retiring Cardinal Timothy Dolan, a prominent conservative figure in the U.S. Catholic hierarchy. Hicks takes over after Dolan last week finalized a plan to establish a $300 million fund to compensate victims of sexual abuse who had sued the archdiocese.

Associated Press

Israel launches intense airstrikes in Lebanon as deadline looms to disarm Hezbollah

Israel carried out a series of airstrikes on southern and northeastern Lebanon on Thursday as a deadline looms to disarm the militant Hezbollah group along the countries' tense frontier. The strikes came a day before a meeting of the committee monitoring the enforcement of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that halted the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah a year ago. The gathering on Friday will be the second meeting of the mechanism after Israel and Lebanon appointed civilian members to a previously military-only committee.

Associated Press

Turkey warns Russia and Ukraine over Black Sea security after shooting down drone

Turkey has warned Russia and Ukraine to exercise greater caution regarding Black Sea security after its air force shot down a drone that entered Turkish airspace, the defense ministry said Thursday. F‑16 fighter jets were dispatched on Monday after an “out of control” drone approached Turkish airspace from the Black Sea. “Because of the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia, our counterparts have been warned that both sides need to be more careful regarding incidents that could negatively affect the security of the Black Sea,” the ministry said.

Associated Press

Rain creates a crimson spectacle on Iran's Hormuz Island for the first time this year

Rainfall on Iran's Hormuz Island briefly transformed the coastline of its famed Red Beach into a striking natural scene this week, as red soil flowed into the sea and turned the water shades of deep red. The beach is known for its vivid red sand and cliffs, created by high concentrations of iron oxide. When rain falls, as it did starting on Tuesday, streams of red soil flow toward the shoreline, coloring both the beach and the surrounding water and creating a sharp contrast with the blue waters of the Persian Gulf.

Associated Press

South Korea's Constitutional Court removes police chief over martial law involvement

South Korea’s Constitutional Court on Thursday formally removed the country’s impeached police chief for deploying hundreds of officers to support ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol's brief imposition of martial law in December 2024. The court said Cho Ji-ho “actively disrupted” legislative activities by sending police forces to the National Assembly and trying to block lawmakers from reaching the main chamber to vote to lift Yoon’s decree.

Associated Press

Rockets, howitzers and suicide drones: US and Taiwan announce one of their biggest-ever arms deals

The United States and Taiwan have announced an $11.1 billion arms package that if completed would be one of Washington’s biggest-ever military sales to the island.

CNN

Bondi attack suspects had no visitors and barely left hotel during month-long Philippines stay, employee says

The father and son suspected of carrying out Sunday’s Bondi Beach massacre holed up in a hotel for most of their almost month-long stay in the Philippines in November, rarely left their rooms and dined on fast food, a hotel employee has told CNN.

CNN

Loved and forever remembered. These are the victims of the Bondi Beach antisemitic massacre

A 10-year-old girl, a Holocaust survivor and a young French national were among at least 15 people killed when two gunmen opened fire on families celebrating the first night of Hanukkah at Sydney’s famed Bondi Beach on Sunday, an attack that police have declared a terrorist incident.

CNN

Unethical photography threatens these beautiful starlit frogs, report says, as entire group vanishes

One of the world’s most dazzling amphibians is under threat from unregulated photography trips, scientists have warned, after an entire group went missing from their rainforest home.

CNN

US stocks jump after an encouraging inflation update, as Micron helps AI stocks stop their slide

U.S. stocks are jumping on Thursday following an encouraging report on inflation that could help the Federal Reserve keep cutting interest rates next year. A strong profit report from Micron Technology also helped AI stocks halt their sharp slides, at least for now. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 315 points, or 0.7%, as of 10 a.m. Eastern time, and the strength for tech stocks had the Nasdaq composite up 1.4%.

Associated Press

Turning Point youth conference begins in Phoenix without founder Charlie Kirk

Turning Point USA, the conservative youth organization that Charlie Kirk turned into a political juggernaut, will convene its flagship conference on Thursday for the first time since the assassination of its charismatic founder, testing the durability of a fractious movement that helped return President Donald Trump to the White House. Kirk served as a unifying figure on the American right, marshaling college students, online influencers and Republican politicians. Vice President JD Vance, media personalities and a handful of Trump administration officials are slated to appear, plus Christian rock bands and pastors.

Associated Press

Key findings of an AP analysis examining federal prosecutions of protesters

The Justice Department has launched a months-long effort to prosecute people accused of assaulting or hindering federal officers while protesting President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and military deployments. Attorney General Pam Bondi has vowed such offenders will face “severe consequences.” In a review of scores of criminal prosecutions brought by federal prosecutors, The Associated Press found that the Justice Department has struggled to deliver on Bondi's pledge.

Associated Press

India signs deal with Oman as it tries to counter US tariffs by accelerating free trade agreements

India signed a comprehensive economic partnership agreement with Oman on Thursday as part of its broader strategy to offset the impact of steep U.S. import tariffs and widen export destinations during growing global trade uncertainties. This is the second free trade agreement signed by New Delhi in the past six months, the first one being inked with the United Kingdom in May. The India-Oman agreement was signed in Muscat in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Oman’s head of state, Sultan Haitham bin Tarik.

Associated Press

Rockets, howitzers and suicide drones: US and Taiwan announce one of their biggest-ever arms deals

The United States and Taiwan have announced an $11.1 billion arms package that if completed would be one of Washington’s biggest-ever military sales to the island.

CNN

DOJ vowed to punish those who disrupt Trump's immigration crackdown. Dozens of cases have crumbled

Associated Press

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