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Tehama County’s Oscar Morales recognized with statewide awardBEIRUT (AP) — Insurgents’ stunning march across Syria accelerated Saturday with news that they had reached the gates of the capital and that government forces had abandoned the central city of Homs. The government was forced to deny rumors that had fled the country. The loss of Homs is a potentially crippling blow for Assad. It stands at an important intersection between Damascus, the capital, and Syria’s coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus — the Syrian leader’s base of support and home to a Russian strategic naval base. The pro-government Sham FM news outlet reported that government forces took positions outside Syria’s third-largest city, without elaborating. Rami Abdurrahman who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said Syrian troops and members of different security agencies have withdrawn from the city, adding that rebels have entered parts of it. The insurgency announced later Saturday that it had taken over Homs. The city’s capture is a major victory for the rebels, who have already seized the cities of and , as well as large parts of the south, in a lightning offensive that began Nov. 27. Analysts said rebel control of Homs would be a game-changer. The rebels’ moves around Damascus, reported by the monitor and a rebel commander, came after the Syrian army withdrew from much of southern part of the country, leaving more areas, including several provincial capitals, under the control of opposition fighters. For the first time in the country’s long-running civil war, the government now has control of only three of 14 provincial capitals: Damascus, Latakia and Tartus. The were among the largest in recent years by opposition factions, led by a group that has its origins in al-Qaida and is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the United Nations. In their push to overthrow Assad’s government, the insurgents, led by the group, or HTS, have met little resistance from the Syrian army. The rapid rebel gains, coupled with the lack of support from Assad’s erstwhile allies, posed the most serious threat to his rule since the start of the war. The U.N.’s special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, on Saturday called for urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition.” Speaking to reporters at the annual Doha Forum in Qatar, he said the situation in Syria was changing by the minute. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, whose country is Assad’s chief international backer, said he feels “sorry for the Syrian people.” In Damascus, people rushed to stock up on supplies. Thousands went to Syria’s border with Lebanon, trying to leave the country. Many shops in the capital were shuttered, a resident told The Associated Press, and those still open ran out of staples such as sugar. Some were selling items at three times the normal price. “The situation is very strange. We are not used to that,” the resident said, insisting on anonymity, fearing retributions. “People are worried whether there will be a battle (in Damascus) or not.” It was the first time that opposition forces reached the outskirts of Damascus since 2018, when Syrian troops recaptured the area following a yearslong siege. The U.N. said it was moving noncritical staff outside the country as a precaution. Assad’s status Syria’s state media denied social media rumors that saying he is performing his duties in Damascus. He has had little, if any, help from his allies. Russia, is busy with its . Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which at one point sent thousands of fighters to shore up Assad’s forces, has been weakened by a yearlong conflict with Israel. Iran has seen its proxies across the region degraded by regular Israeli airstrikes. U.S. President-elect Donald on social media that that the United States should avoid engaging militarily in Syria. Pedersen said a date for talks in Geneva on the implementation a U.N. resolution, adopted in 2015, and calling for a Syrian-led political process, would be announced later. The resolution calls for the establishment of a transitional governing body, followed by the drafting of a new constitution and ending with U.N.-supervised elections. Later Saturday, foreign ministers and senior diplomats from eight key countries, including Saudi Arabia, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran, along with Pederson, gathered on the sidelines of the Doha Summit to discuss the situation in Syria. In a statement issued late Saturday, the participants affirmed their support for a political solution to the Syrian crisis “that would lead to the end of military activity and protect civilians.” They also agreed on the importance of strengthening international efforts to increase aid to the Syrian people. The insurgents’ march Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said insurgents were in the Damascus suburbs of Maadamiyah, Jaramana and Daraya. Opposition fighters were marching toward the Damascus suburb of Harasta, he added. A commander with the insurgents, Hassan Abdul-Ghani, posted on the Telegram messaging app that opposition forces had begun the “final stage” of their offensive by encircling Damascus. HTS controls much of northwest Syria and in 2017 set up a “salvation government” to run day-to-day affairs in the region. In recent years, has sought to remake the group’s image, cutting ties with al-Qaida, ditching hard-line officials and vowing to embrace pluralism and religious tolerance. The shock offensive began Nov. 27, during which gunmen captured the northern city of Aleppo, Syria’s largest, and the , the country’s fourth largest city. Opposition activists said Saturday that a day earlier, insurgents entered Palmyra, which is home to invaluable archaeological sites had been in government hands since being taken from the Islamic State group in 2017. To the south, Syrian troops left much of the province of Quneitra including the main Baath City, activists said. Syrian Observatory said government troops have withdrawn from much of the two southern provinces. The Syrian army said in a statement that it carried out redeployment and repositioning in Sweida and Daraa after its checkpoints came under attack by “terrorists.” The army said it was setting up a “strong and coherent defensive and security belt in the area,” apparently to defend Damascus from the south. The Syrian government has referred to opposition gunmen as terrorists since conflict broke out in March 2011. Diplomacy in Doha The foreign ministers of Iran, Russia and Turkey, meeting in Qatar, called for an end to the hostilities. Turkey is a main backer of the rebels. Qatar’s top diplomat, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, criticized Assad for failing to take advantage of the lull in fighting in recent years to address the country’s underlying problems. “Assad didn’t seize this opportunity to start engaging and restoring his relationship with his people,” he said. Sheikh Mohammed said he was surprised by how quickly the rebels have advanced and said there is a real threat to Syria’s “territorial integrity.” He said the war could “damage and destroy what is left if there is no sense of urgency” to start a political process. ____ Karam reported from London. Associated Press writers Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria; Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad; Josef Federman and Victoria Eastwood in Doha, Qatar; and Ellen Knickmeyer in Washington contributed to this report. Bassem Mroue And Zeina Karam, The Associated Press
Synopsys Inc. stock underperforms Wednesday when compared to competitorsSome media organisations are choosing to leave Musk’s divisive platform – but is migrating to alternatives, like Bluesky, really a solution? Recent decisions by major news outlets like The Guardian and La Vanguardia and more niche publications such as Sex Tech Guide to leave X put under the spotlight a new dilemma experienced by global media: Should they stay on a popular platform that has become a primary source of fake news and hate speech to maintain relevance, or should they leave to uphold ethical responsibilities? Once the go-to place for any and all global discourse, X (formerly Twitter) has seen its reputation turn to rubbish under South African multibillionaire and self-declared free-speech absolutist Elon Musk. The ethical decline of X has gained momentum in the run-up to the 2024 US presidential election, as Musk made his political alignment with Donald Trump and his Make America Great Again movement clear, turning the platform into a megaphone for hate, racism and xenophobia. As neo-Nazi, white-nationalist accounts started to gain prominence, and racist pile-ons, doxxing and other abuse became a daily occurrence on the platform, several media outlets – but also millions of everyday users – made the decision to leave X for good. For them, leaving X clearly represented a moral stand against racism and hate, and the misappropriation of a platform that was once accepted widely as the global public square. But is media organisations migrating to alternatives, like Bluesky, a genuine solution, or does it risk creating new problems, such as ideological bubbles, financial losses, and diminished influence? For many, remaining on X feels like tacit approval of the direction the platform took under Musk. For some news outlets, especially those whose corporate identity of progressive values take pride in their journalistic ethics, perceived association with the controversy-ridden platform of a far-right Trump surrogate is obviously unacceptable. However, X’s vast audience – still unrivalled by any other similar social media platform – remains an undeniable asset. The platform’s global reach and its ability to amplify messages cannot be ignored. Leaving it entirely may mean severing ties with a massive, global audience still relying on the platform for news, potentially leaving a vacuum that would be happily filled by less credible voices – or outright fake news machines. For those outlets fleeing X, Bluesky has emerged as an attractive alternative . A decentralised platform, it offers an environment where hate speech and misinformation are less prevalent. Its structure promises healthier, more values-aligned discourse. The point of Bluesky is not that it is free of disinformation, hate speech and fake news, but that its operation naturally reduces the reach of such content instead of promoting it – and that it offers additional tools to users to better control the information and content they consume. But Bluesky is not without flaws. Its user base is much smaller and its geographical reach much more moderate than X. Meanwhile, its design, critics say, risks creating ideological echo chambers: If Bluesky becomes a refuge primarily for liberal-leaning users and journalists, it could perpetuate the same insular dynamics critics say plague other alternative platforms. The argument, however, falls apart when one considers the alternative X offers to Bluesky’s supposed ideological bubbles: social media that is open to all ideologies, but is driven by hate. As journalist and professor Marcelo Soares wrote , X “is not a public square, it’s a shopping centre. There are no debates in a shopping centre.” Unlike X, which thrives on conflict to drive engagement, Bluesky lets users take control of their experience, and select what goes on their own feeds without algorithmic manipulation. If someone chooses a bubble, it’s a personal choice, not a structural imposition. Meanwhile, X’s so-called alternative to bubbles replaces connection with hostility, turning the platform into a battlefield rather than a space for dialogue. There are other arguments against a collective move by media from X to Bluesky. As journalist Sophia Smith Galer observed on LinkedIn , Bluesky is a platform designed to cater to journalists rather than their audiences. It recalls an earlier era when journalists dominated Twitter’s ecosystem, engaging primarily with one another. This dynamic, while comfortable for those in the media, might not translate to meaningful audience engagement in a world where users are moving towards video-driven platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. So opening up an account on Bluesky, where they could interact with like-minded colleagues directly, without facing much abuse from neo-Nazis and conspiracy theorists, would undoubtedly be a positive for journalists. Yet, does it offer a clear alternative to X for the organisations that want and need to share their content with wider and ever more diverse audiences? X, tragically, remains the only platform where media outlets can reach a vast – if not the best-behaved and receptive – global audience. Leaving X also has practical, monetary implications for media organisations. Musk’s platform is still a major advertising revenue generator. X’s vast reach and user base make it a critical platform for driving traffic to news sites and attracting advertisers. Abandoning it risks shrinking audience engagement, which could affect revenue streams. Bluesky, Threads, and other alternative platforms are still in their infancy. Their smaller audiences and limited advertising opportunities make them less viable for organisations that rely on scale to sustain their operations. Media outlets must navigate this trade-off carefully: prioritising ethics while finding ways to maintain financial viability. Luckily for ethically concerned but cash-poor media outlets – and the entire humanity – Musk’s behaviour on X, and on the global political stage, is driving a lot of people away from X. Many of these people are finding refuge on Bluesky, meaning one day this new platform may actually become as profitable and useful as X for media organisations. Once the migration out of X is complete, and everyone who has an objection to the passing of disinformation, propaganda and hate as “news” has left the platform, serious media organisations would have no reason to remain there either. The exodus from X represents more than just a shift in social media strategy — it’s a reflection of the broader challenges facing journalism in the digital age. As media outlets grapple with the ethical implications of staying on problematic platforms, they must also contend with changing audience behaviours, financial pressures, and the rise of content-driven ecosystems. While platforms like Bluesky offer a glimmer of hope, they are not the solution for all of the many issues journalism faces today. The path forward requires a delicate balance: embracing innovation without sacrificing the core values of journalism; and adhering to less-toxic social networks, but without abandoning the public. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.
The Juniata-Southern Lehigh football game, a PIAA Class 4A quarterfinal playoff game scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at Shamokin High School, was postponed due inclement wintry weather. • Sign up for PennLive’s daily high school sports newsletter More High School Sports Pa. high school football scoreboard: Live updates from the state’s top-ranked teams (11/22/24) Pennsylvania football records in play for two Mid-Penn Conference standouts District 3 5A football championship Bishop McDevitt vs. Exeter: Watch here Pa. High School Football Report podcast: The countdown to National Signing Day is onMADRID (AFP) – Venezuela’s opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia has ruled out forming a government in exile, saying in an interview published yesterday that he will return to his country as president in January. The 75-year-old, who the opposition insists beat Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a disputed July election, fled with his wife to Spain in September after being threatened with arrest. Asked if he planned to head a government in exile, he told Spanish daily El Pais, “No, no... I am going to be in Venezuela.” “I left Venezuela temporarily. I knew I was going to return... and the moment is January 10, the date of the inauguration,” he added. Gonzalez Urrutia said he was “confident” he will not be arrested if he returns and would not announce the date of his arrival so the authorities in Venezuela will not be able to prevent him from entering the country. Maduro insists he won the election even though the opposition says it can provide proof that he lost decisively. The United States has recognised Gonzalez Urrutia’s claim to victory but Spain and other European Union nations have only refused to accept that Maduro won and called on the Venezuelan government to release voting tally sheets. Maduro is accused of leading a harshly repressive leftist regime, with a systematic crackdown on the opposition.
Georgia QB Carson Beck's status for Sugar Bowl uncertain as he considers treatment options on elbowOctober PCE, Macy's earnings, Fed minutes: What to Watch
BLINCYTO® (BLINATUMOMAB) ADDED TO CHEMOTHERAPY SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVES SURVIVAL IN NEWLY DIAGNOSED PEDIATRIC PATIENTS WITH B-CELL PRECURSOR ACUTE LYMPHOBLASTIC LEUKEMIA (B-ALL)Stock markets waver as traders weigh Trump tariffs, inflation
NexOptic Technology Corp. ( CVE:NXO – Get Free Report )’s stock price dropped 20% during mid-day trading on Saturday . The company traded as low as C$0.02 and last traded at C$0.02. Approximately 480,200 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 387% from the average daily volume of 98,644 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$0.03. NexOptic Technology Trading Down 20.0 % The firm has a 50-day moving average of C$0.03 and a 200 day moving average of C$0.02. The company has a market cap of C$3.90 million, a P/E ratio of -1.00 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 56.33. NexOptic Technology Company Profile ( Get Free Report ) NexOptic Technology Corp., a technology company, develops artificial intelligence and imaging products. It engages in developing All Light Intelligent Imaging Solutions (ALIIS), a suite of intelligent imaging solution that processes raw images and video in real time; and NexCompress technological solutions. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for NexOptic Technology Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for NexOptic Technology and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .House Republicans will select new leaders for several powerful committees this week, with the chairmen inheriting both a gavel and the task of advancing President-elect Donald Trump 's agenda through a united GOP Congress . With the new members' swearing-in on Jan. 3, 2025, and Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2025, the newly selected House committee leaders will have the power to deliver on the president-elect's top priorities, including a tax bill, government spending , and border security, among other policies. The new chairmen will be selected by the House GOP Steering Committee, a panel of over 30 Republican leaders and regional representatives that recommend the committee chairs for approval from the full Republican conference. The Steering Committee is meeting Monday to make their selections, with some of the most influential committees attracting multiple challengers. Unless they receive a waiver, Republican committee leaders can not serve more than three consecutive terms as the head of the committee. Many current GOP committee leaders, such as Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), did not seek a waiver to remain chairman, while others, such as Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO), were approved to stay as the top GOP lawmaker on the committee. Several committees also have leaders who decided ahead of the 2024 election that they would retire or seek another office off Capitol Hill, leaving many vacancies . The Washington Examiner will update this story as the Steering Committee announces its selections. MEET THE NEW CONGRESS: THE HOUSE AND SENATE FRESHMEN ELECTED TO SERVE NEXT YEAR Foreign Affairs Committee - Brian Mast Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) defeated Darrell Issa (R-CA), Ann Wagner (R-MO), and Joe Wilson (R-SC) in a four-way contest to replace McCaul on Monday. With Mast's selection, House Republicans are on track to have zero chairwomen on any committee. The House Foreign Affairs Committee, which led the high-profile investigation of the United States's withdrawal from Afghanistan, had a vacant chairmanship because McCaul is terming out and did not seek a waiver to remain chairman. Mast, a Purple Heart recipient and U.S. Army veteran, became a staple in the GOP conference after he wore his Israeli military uniform to the Capitol to show solidarity for the Jewish state following the Hamas attacks. Sources told Punchbowl News he gave a great presentation to the Steering Committee to make his case that he should lead the committee next Congress. Wagner, who is the vice chairwoman of the committee, touted her foreign policy experience as U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg during former President George W. Bush’s administration and co-chairwoman of the Abraham Accords Caucus as a reason for seeking the gavel. She had vowed, as chairwoman, to crack down on Russia, Iran, and China, as well as touted a key GOP talking point about securing the border. Issa, however, had also campaigned on his foreign affairs experience, having visited over 100 countries, and his prior experience as chairman of the House Oversight Committee. Similar to Issa, Wilson had pitched himself as the senior lawmaker equipped to lead the committee after leading 70 congressional delegation trips to over 80 countries. The Hill reported that Wilson was giving members of the steering committee pieces from the Berlin Wall that he brought back from Germany in 1990. DEMOCRATS SEARCH FOR ANSWERS AS BARACK OBAMA’S INFLUENCE WANES Financial Services Committee Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-NC), who had a brief stint as speaker pro tempore during Kevin McCarthy's ouster, is retiring, with four contenders vying for the gavel. Reps. Andy Barr (R-KY), French Hill (R-AR), Frank Lucas (R-OK), and Bill Huizenga (R-MI) are all in the race to succeed McHenry as the top GOP lawmaker on Financial Services, a panel that holds hearings regarding the Federal Reserve, cryptocurrency, and Wall Street. All three areas, particularly the Fed and crypto, will likely be top priorities of the Trump administration. Barr is widely considered to be the favorite in the race. He is the chairman of the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy, stating in a letter to colleagues he can "build a bridge between those traditional Chamber of Commerce, Wall Street Republicans, and the America First populists who elected Donald Trump.” However, Hill is vice chairman of the Financial Services Committee and chairman of the Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Inclusion. He's become a leading GOP source on crypto, making him a key player in the gavel race. Lucas is the longest-serving GOP lawmaker on the committee, touting his three decades in the House, while Huizenga has campaigned on his relationship with Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), who is expected to become chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs next year. Energy and Commerce Committee Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), a powerhouse who led the influential House Energy and Commerce Committee, did not seek reelection in 2024, setting off a competitive race between Reps. Brett Guthrie (R-KY) and Bob Latta (R-OH). The Energy and Commerce Committee will be a key panel moving into the Trump administration, holding jurisdiction over healthcare, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Department of Energy — all areas that have been targeted by Trump and Republicans over the last two years due to Biden administration-era rules and regulations on everything from electric vehicles and appliances to the aftermath of COVID-19. Latta will be the most senior GOP lawmaker on the Energy and Commerce Committee, holding experience on all six subcommittees and having 33 bills signed into law. Guthrie has sat on five of the six subcommittees and is currently chairman of the Health Subcommittee, pitching his top priorities as permitting reform and the U.S. beating China to developing 6G, the latest wireless communication network expected to arrive in the 2030s. BIDEN ADMINISTRATION, CONGRESS, AND UNIONS TRY TO ‘TRUMP-PROOF SCIENCE’ Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Graves, the current chairman, will seek his fourth term as the top Republican on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee after the steering committee approved his waiver to surpass the third-term rule. Graves is facing a challenge from Rep. Rick Crawford (R-AR), who put out a blueprint focusing on investments in the most-used methods of transportation, including highways, railways, ports, and airways. Rumored to be in the running for Transportation Secretary for the incoming administration, Graves is campaigning on his experience in the role — particularly the five-year Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill that passed earlier this year. Education and the Workforce Committee Outgoing Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) received a waiver to seek a fourth term but declined to run for reelection, opening up the race for Reps. Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Burgess Owens (R-UT). Whoever serves as the next chair will play a significant role in the House GOP's reconciliation process to push bills to Trump's desk for approval, including on the subject of student loans. Walberg, as one of the senior Republicans on the committee, outlined his top priority as supporting parents' rights, as well as fighting back against antisemitism on campus, which has continued to rise during the Hamas-Israel war. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER Owens is also running on combatting antisemitism on campuses, as well as eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements in schools, hiring practices, and school choice. The Steering Committee will hear presentations from challengers Monday and Thursday, with selections expected by the end of Thursday. The full conference vote to approve the committee chairs-elect will likely be held next week.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's embattled President Yoon Suk Yeol avoided an opposition-led attempt to impeach him over his short-lived imposition of martial law , as most ruling party lawmakers boycotted a parliamentary vote Saturday to deny a two-thirds majority needed to suspend his presidential powers. The scrapping of the motion is expected to intensify protests calling for Yoon’s ouster and deepen political chaos in South Korea, with a survey suggesting a majority of South Koreans support the president’s impeachment. Yoon’s martial law declaration drew criticism from his own ruling conservative People Power Party, but the party is also determined to oppose Yoon’s impeachment apparently because it fears losing the presidency to liberals. After the motion fell through, members of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party rallied inside the National Assembly, chanting slogans calling for Yoon's impeachment or resignation. The party's floor leader, Park Chan-dae, said it will soon prepare for a new impeachment motion. Opposition parties could submit a new impeachment motion after a new parliamentary session opens next Wednesday. “We'll surely impeach Yoon Suk Yeol, who is the greatest risk to Republic of Korea,” party leader Lee Jae-myung said. “We'll surely bring back this country to normal before Christmas Day or year's end.” Many experts worry Yoon won’t be able to serve out his remaining 2 1⁄2 years in office. They say some PPP lawmakers could eventually join opposition parties’ efforts to impeach Yoon if public demands for it grow further. The ruling party risks "further public outrage and national confusion if they don’t find a formula fast for Yoon’s departure,” said Duyeon Kim, a senior analyst at the Center for a New American Security in Washington. PPP chair Han Dong-hun said his party will seek Yoon’s “orderly” early exit but didn’t say when he can resign. On Saturday, tens of thousands of people packed several blocks of roads leading to the National Assembly, waving banners, shouting slogans and dancing. Protesters also gathered in front of PPP’s headquarters near the Assembly, shouting for its lawmakers to vote to impeach Yoon. A smaller crowd of Yoon’s supporters, which still seemed to be in the thousands, rallied elsewhere in Seoul, calling the impeachment attempt unconstitutional. Impeaching Yoon required support from 200 of the National Assembly's 300 members. The Democratic Party and five other small opposition parties, which filed the motion, have 192 seats combined. But only three lawmakers from PPP participated in the vote. The motion was scrapped without ballot counting because the number of votes didn’t reach 200. National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik called the result “very regrettable” and an embarrassing moment for the country’s democracy. If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. If he is removed, an election to replace him must take place within 60 days. Earlier Saturday, Yoon issued an apology over the martial law decree, saying he won’t shirk legal or political responsibility for the declaration and promising not to make another attempt to impose it. He said would leave it to his party to chart a course through the country’s political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office.” “The declaration of this martial law was made out of my desperation. But in the course of its implementation, it caused anxiety and inconveniences to the public. I feel very sorry over that and truly apologize to the people who must have been shocked a lot,” Yoon said. Since taking office in 2022, Yoon has struggled to push his agenda through an opposition-controlled parliament and grappled with low approval ratings amid scandals involving himself and his wife. In his martial law announcement on Tuesday night, Yoon called parliament a “den of criminals” bogging down state affairs and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korea followers and anti-state forces.” The declaration of martial law was the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea. The turmoil has paralyzed South Korean politics and sparked alarm among key diplomatic partners like the U.S. and Japan. “Yoon’s credibility overseas has been undermined by declaring martial law, so he won’t be able to exercise leadership in his foreign policies especially when his days are numbered,” Kim, the analyst, said. “Its government bureaucracy will need to continue business as usual for existing alliance and foreign policy initiatives as best it can because there is a lot of important work to do globally.” Tuesday night saw special forces troops encircling the parliament building and army helicopters hovering over it, but the military withdrew after the National Assembly unanimously voted to overturn the decree, forcing Yoon to lift it before daybreak Wednesday. Eighteen lawmakers from the ruling party voted to reject Yoon’s martial law decree along with opposition lawmakers. PPP later decided to oppose Yoon's impeachment motion. Yoon’s speech fueled speculation that he and his party may push for a constitutional amendment to shorten his term, instead of accepting impeachment, as a way to ease public anger over the marital law and facilitate Yoon’s early exit from office. Lee told reporters that Yoon’s speech was “greatly disappointing” and that the only way forward is his immediate resignation or impeachment. His party called Yoon’s martial law “unconstitutional, illegal rebellion or coup.” Lawmakers on Saturday first voted on a bill appointing a special prosecutor to investigate stock price manipulation allegations surrounding Yoon’s wife. On Friday, Han, who criticized Yoon’s martial law declaration, said he had received intelligence that during the brief period of martial law Yoon ordered the country’s defense counterintelligence commander to arrest unspecified key politicians based on accusations of “anti-state activities.” Hong Jang-won, first deputy director of South Korea’s spy agency, told lawmakers Friday that Yoon had ordered him to help the defense counterintelligence unit to detain key politicians including Han, Lee and Woo. The Defense Ministry said Friday it suspended three military commanders including the head of the defense counterintelligence unit over their involvement in enforcing martial law. Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon Ho has told parliament that Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun ordered the deployment of troops to the National Assembly. Opposition parties accused Kim of recommending to Yoon to enforce martial law. Kim Yong Hyun resigned Thursday, and prosecutors imposed an overseas travel ban on him.