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Montana Grizzlies quarterback Logan Fife plans to enter transfer portalFailing Joe Biden has brutally exposed the limits of American power and left the world in chaos. It's time for 'Trumpian realism' - and the return of diplomacy to Washington Game Changer: Trump Card - Erdogan &Turkey by Erbil Gunasti is available here By ERBIL GUNASTI Published: 17:25 EST, 2 December 2024 | Updated: 18:16 EST, 2 December 2024 e-mail View comments According to Secretary of State Antony Blinken , America is in a ‘much stronger geopolitical position today than it was four years ago’. Few outside Biden’s increasingly bizarre bubble will agree with that thought– or could possibly agree because this claim is, to use a technical term, a truck-load of tosh. Ever since he arrived in the Oval Office in January 2017, Biden and his advisers have assumed with the neocons that America is ruler of the world and that its president is king - which defies all logic, of course. From Afghanistan to Gaza , the Donbas to Damascus, the certainties that held the post-war world together are fast unraveling. And with Biden in the White House , the limits of American power have been brutally exposed. That’s why, for all the many contradictions about what his true position might be when he takes office in January, I’m confident that Donald Trump will change things for the better. According to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, America is in a ‘much stronger geopolitical position today than it was four years ago’ A car burns after an airstrike next to a hospital in Idlib, Syria. A push by Islamist rebels has brought fresh chaos to the region Whatever he says about ‘America First’ (and which president is not America First) the bigger point is this: Trumps knows there are limits to US power. Aside from Biden and Blinken, does anyone honestly believes that Washington can fight Putin, defend Taiwan, protect Europe, restrain China and settle the Middle East all at the same time? Trump understands that America must pick its battles wisely. Merely by accepting the harsh realities of power, he is ahead. There is more to Trump than that, of course. Like the predecessors he so much admires, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, he knows there is a place for personal diplomacy - threats if necessary. Last week, Trump raised the specter of an all-out trade war with the BRICS grouping of middle ranking powers – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – should they dare to establish an alternative global currency and threaten the primacy of the Dollar. Is he serious? Who knows – that’s part of the point. But the intervention acknowledges another key reality: the world has changed. The rise of China with its multi-billion dollar trade and investment programs means other nations no longer feel obliged to do whatever Washington says. Former ‘client states’ are restive, all too aware that past US promises of prosperity came to nothing. There will be no let-up in Iranian aggression so long as India and China buy Russian and Iranian oil – in the teeth of US sanctions. There is little America and Europe can do about Russia so long as China and the ‘global south’ refuse to condemn Putin’s bloodshed. It might seem a statement of the obvious but after the last four years, it needs saying: diplomacy matters. Whatever we think about Russia's Putin and Xi of China, it is surely better to meet them face-to-face and attempt to build some rapport, as Trump did last time he was in office. He had warm relations with India’s President Narendra Modi, too. It has even been suggested that his advisers at Mar-a-Lago have opened back-channel negotiations with the Iranians. Turkey is another power worth throwing into the mix – is already in the mix, in fact. While other currencies suffer under the threat of US trade sanctions, readers of the financial pages might have noticed that the Turkish Lira is gaining ground. That’s because Trump admires Recep Tayyip Erdogan, president of Turkey. It’s understood the two men have already held discussions via intermediaries – and about time. Under the Biden regime, Turkey, a key player in its region and a huge manufacturer of drones and other weaponry, has been allowed to grow closer to Russia. Given the sensitivity of Turkey's location between Europe, Russia and the Middle East, and bearing in mind its vast network of oil and pipelines, this counts as a mistake. The last few days have seen a fresh outbreak of Islamist inspired fighting in Syria – more sparks flying in a tinder-dry region. Yet there will be no peace deal without Turkey, which already controls much of northern Syria, including a 30-mile buffer zone on its border. It is likely that Turkey will have much to say about the future of Israel, as one of the few powers capable of bridging the gulf between Jerusalem and Gaza. Whatever we think about Russia's Putin and Xi of China, it is surely better to meet them face-to-face and attempt to build some rapport, as Trump did last time he was in office President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey has a good relationship with Donald Trump - and the Turkish Lira has strengthened since Trump's re-election How to re-establish influence in Africa, a continent fast spinning out of control thanks in part to Russian meddling? How to persuade the BRICS nations to take a more positive view of the West? Or to address the world migration crisis and much else besides? America needs help with all these things – from Turkey, from India, Mexico, China, Canada, Venezuela and the EU. It will have to learn to give a little in return and maybe even take a risk or two. There will certainly be losers – I would hate to be Ukrainian right now. But the alternative is pretending with Anthony Blinken and Pangloss that all has been for the best in the best of all possible worlds. And that the past four years have been a roaring success. They haven’t. It’s time to bring this fantasy to an end. India Antony Blinken Russia China Turkey Share or comment on this article: Failing Joe Biden has brutally exposed the limits of American power and left the world in chaos. It's time for 'Trumpian realism' - and the return of diplomacy to Washington e-mail Add comment
Vance takes on a more visible transition role, working to boost Trump’s most contentious picks
Daily Post Nigeria I was almost killed in Israeli strikes on Yemen airport – WHO Chief, Tedros Home News Politics Metro Entertainment Sport News I was almost killed in Israeli strikes on Yemen airport – WHO Chief, Tedros Published on December 28, 2024 By Matthew Atungwu The leader of the World Health Organization, WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Saturday said he narrowly escaped death in fatal Israeli strikes on the airport in Yemen’s Huthi rebel-held capital. Speaking to BBC radio, Tedros said his ears were still ringing following Thursday’s attack as he prepared to board a flight in Sanaa, stressing that the protection for civilian installations under international law must be respected. DAILY POST recalls that Israeli air strikes hit Sanaa’s international airport and other targets in Yemen on Thursday. The attacks against what Israel’s military described as rebel military targets marked the second time since December 19 that Israel has hit targets in Yemen after rebel missile fire towards Israel. The UN health agency chief described the scene as the first strike hit. “We heard a heavy explosion nearby, and then I think repeated. The sound was so, so loud... So deafening, actually. Still my ear rings. It’s already more than 24 hours now. I don’t know if it affected my ear. The explosion was so heavy. “It was the departure lounge next to us that was hit, and later on the control tower. “It was very chaotic. People were in disarray and running everywhere and no shelter: we were completely exposed. “It’s a matter of luck. Otherwise, if the missile deviated just slightly, it could have been on our heads... my colleague actually said after all that, we escaped death narrowly,” Tedros said. Related Topics: Tedros wHO Don't Miss Soku Oil Wells: Rivers, Bayelsa governors agree to resolve differences You may like Diabetes: WHO projection raises concerns in Nigeria Billions of malaria cases have been prevented since 2000 – WHO WHO approves Codix group package prequalified rapid diagnostic test in Nigeria WHO Africa regional director-elect, Faustine Ndugulile dies at 55 Borno flooding: WHO presents cholera, malnutrition kits Cholera cases, deaths surge globally – WHO confirms Advertise About Us Contact Us Privacy-Policy Terms Copyright © Daily Post Media LtdOn the afternoon of Oct. 12, 2017, a nurse at Kaiser Permanente called the Monterey Police Department to report that a patient had come in for a sexual assault exam. The woman, the nurse told police, said she had been sexually assaulted four days earlier while at a Republican women’s conference at the Hyatt Regency Hotel and Spa in the coastal California resort town. The alleged assailant — though his name wouldn’t be revealed immediately — was a popular Fox News Channel host and the keynote speaker at the conference. The woman, identified only as Jane Doe in police reports, told the nurse she wasn’t sure she wanted to involve authorities and didn’t want to disclose the person’s name at that point. She had been suffering from nightmares and bouts of sobbing after returning home from the conference, but had little memory of the sexual encounter. She feared she had been drugged. The woman, who has not been identified publicly, could not be reached for comment by the Los Angeles Times. The nurse referred the woman to an emergency room for a sexual assault forensic exam. But the nurse’s call — made as a mandated reporter — triggered a law enforcement probe that included interviews with hotel staff, a review of surveillance video, discussions with several of the woman’s associates and a conversation with the alleged perpetrator, Pete Hegseth, who assured police the encounter had been consensual. No charges were ever filed. Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine M. Pacioni said no charges were supported by proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The two parties eventually reached a private settlement, after which Doe signed a nondisclosure agreement. The story seemed to end there — until Donald Trump nominated Hegseth to be defense secretary. Now that night in Monterey has become the centerpiece in what could be one of the most contentious confirmation fights in years. In recent days, a police report on the incident and other details have offered a clearer picture about the allegations. But much remains unknown, including why local prosecutors decided not to file charges against Hegseth. Shortly after the president-elect’s announcement of Hegseth’s nomination, a friend of the woman wrote a memo to Trump’s transition team saying that Hegseth had raped the then-30-year-old conservative group staffer in his hotel room in the early morning hours following a banquet dinner at the California Federation of Republican Women conference. In response, Hegseth confirmed the financial settlement, saying through his lawyer that he had agreed to pay the woman to protect his job at Fox. But he vehemently denied committing assault. The woman, Hegseth’s lawyer said in a statement, “was the aggressor in initiating sexual activity.” Hegseth had been “visibly intoxicated” at the after-party in the hotel bar, the lawyer said, and the woman had “led him by the arm to his hotel room.” “The matter was fully investigated, and I was completely cleared, and that’s where I’m gonna leave it,” Hegseth told reporters at the Capitol on Thursday. Revelations of the incident have set off a firestorm, both in Washington and among the members of the California Federation of Republican Women. The federation, which is a nonprofit advocacy group, is an organization comprised mostly of retirees. Its members gather for luncheons, conferences and fundraisers to hear Republican politicians speak about conservative issues. Many in the group were horrified that a beloved conservative Republican Cabinet pick could be hurt by allegations. “This thing is so f------ bogus,” one of the organization’s officers yelled before hanging up on a Times reporter who called for comment. This week, the Monterey Police Department released a redacted 22-page report detailing its investigation, including accounts of the recollections of Doe and Hegseth, along with several other attendees. Though police reports are typically not public in California, the document had been released because Hegseth had previously asked for a copy. The police report offers the most complete picture yet of what occurred at the Monterey hotel on Oct. 7 and 8. On the second day of the three-day gathering, Doe took a break in her hotel room where she was staying with her husband and at least one of her small children before the banquet dinner and keynote speech — the last major scheduled event of the conference — began at 6 p.m., according to text messages and sources with knowledge of the event. Forty-five minutes later she texted with her husband from the banquet. The conversation turned to Hegseth. “Our ladies are freaking drooling over him,” she wrote. She sent a photo of Hegseth standing at a podium holding a microphone and gesturing with his hand as he spoke. “He doesn’t look even remotely familiar,” she said. “But apparently all the women know who he is.” She continued: “He wears a ring on his pointer finger. It creeps me out.” She lamented that the event was taking so long. After the banquet, the woman went to an after-party in another federation member’s hotel suite, where she had a glass of champagne. Hegseth was there too. A federation member who was there told police later that the woman “did not seem intoxicated, but had a buzz” at the event. Around midnight, Doe, Hegseth and a second woman walked toward Knuckles, the sports bar in the hotel. Inside the bar, which has since closed, televisions and football helmets lined the walls. She texted her husband an update, saying that she was headed to the bar with a group of ladies. “Omg I have so much to tell you. This Pete dude is a ... toooool,” she wrote. While they were drinking at the bar, Hegseth allegedly put his hand on another woman’s knee. She told police that she made it clear it was “not acceptable,” but he still invited her to his room. She declined, according to the report. The same woman tried to get Doe’s attention so she could act as a “crotch blocker” to deter Hegseth’s sexual advances, according to the report. Doe told police that her memory started to get “fuzzy” while she was at the bar. Around 1:30 a.m., Doe argued with Hegseth near the hotel pool about his behavior with women at the conference. He responded that he was a “nice guy,” according to the report. She later told investigators that Hegseth would rub women on their legs and she thought his actions were inappropriate. A hotel employee who had been working that night told an investigator that guests had called the front desk to complain about two people causing a disturbance by the swimming pool about 1:30 a.m. The employee said that when he approached Hegseth and Doe, Hegseth cursed at him and said that he “had freedom of speech.” The woman intervened and said that “they were Republicans and apologized for Hegseth’s actions,” the report states. The staffer said the woman was “standing on her own and very coherent,” while Hegseth was “very intoxicated,” according to the report. Doe placed her hand and arm on Hegseth’s back and escorted him toward the building where his room was, the employee told police. Hegseth later told an investigator he didn’t remember being chastised by the pool. In the early morning hours, Doe’s husband sent her a text message: “Holy smokes lady ... I don’t remember the last time you were socializing at nearly 2:00 a.m.” She responded, “Hahaha I know. I gotta make sure that to” — ending midsentence — and then stopped texting. Her husband wrote back: “Doing ok? My love? Worried about you.” Around 2 a.m. her husband went looking for Doe at Knuckles but no one was there, he told investigators. Doe next recalled being in a hotel room alone with Hegseth. She had her phone in her hand and Hegseth asked her who she was texting before taking her phone, she told police. She tried to leave the room, according to the report, but Hegseth blocked the door. She remembered saying “no” a lot, she told police. Her next memory, she told police, was lying on a bed or couch with Hegseth’s dog tags hovering over her face. She said he ejaculated on her stomach, threw a towel at her and said to “clean it up” before asking her whether she was OK, according to the report. Hegseth recalled the situation differently in an interview with authorities. He told police that Doe led him to his hotel room, where things progressed between the two of them, according to the report. There was “always” conversation and “always” consensual contact between himself and Doe, he told police. Hegseth recalled Doe displaying “early signs of regret” after the incident and said she would tell her husband she fell asleep on a couch in someone else’s room, according to the report. Around 4 a.m., Doe returned to her hotel room and explained to her husband that she “must have fallen asleep.” She told police she didn’t start remembering what happened between her and Hegseth until she returned home the next day. ©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.None
Human remains have been found inside the wreckage of a small plane recovered from the North Sea. The aircraft was found at about 2.20pm on Friday (December 6) in waters north east of Lerwick in Shetland. The plane was brought ashore on Sunday (December 8) by Peterhead fishing boat Barnakle II and was found to contain human remains. Police met the trawler at the port and the wreckage loaded onto a truck. It is understood to have been taken for further examination. According to reports, Police Scotland said: "Police received a report of a small aircraft having been recovered from the water in the North Sea, north-east of Lerwick, around 2.20pm on Friday December 6. "The aircraft was brought to shore on Sunday December 8, and human remains were found within." Investigations into the discovery are ongoing but it is being linked to an aircraft from Germany with the 62-year-old pilot on board which lost contact over the North Sea last September 30. It took off at 10.27am and is understood not to have filed a flight plan. The pilot was reported to be experienced and in good health. The last radar contact with the plane was recorded by Norwegian air traffic control at 4.45pm, around seven minutes after it began descending at a rate of 1,000 feet per minute. A search was launched after the Cessna was reported missing by its owner on October 1, when the pilot did not return at the agreed time. The coastguard supported German authorities in searching for the Cessna 172S Skyhawk between Shetland and Norway, in the UK search and rescue region. However, HM Coastguard said at the time there was no sign of the plane and the search was stood down on October 2. The incident was investigated by the Bundesstelle für Flugunfalluntersuchung, or the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation. Following the discovery of the wreckage, one well-wisher in Shetland posted on social media: "Hopefully closure for family of the pilot and plane that went missing last October."
Total number of Texas fans caught and punished for throwing bottles in Georgia game: ZeroHezbollah fired into a disputed border zone held by Israel on Monday after multiple Israeli strikes inside Lebanon since a ceasefire took hold last week. The militant group said the volley, its first during the truce, was a warning shot in response to what it called repeated Israeli violations . Israeli leaders threatened to retaliate, and within hours, Israel’s military carried out a string of strikes in southern Lebanon, state media reported. There was no immediate word on casualties or what was struck. Israel has said its strikes in since the ceasefire began Wednesday have been in response to unspecified Hezbollah violations, and that under the truce deal it reserves the right to retaliate. Hezbollah began launching its attacks in solidarity with Hamas militants who are fighting Israel in the Gaza Strip. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage . Israel’s blistering retaliatory offensive has killed at least 44,429 Palestinians , more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were combatants. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The war in Gaza has destroyed vast areas of the coastal enclave and displaced 90% of the population of 2.3 million, often multiple times . Here’s the Latest: WASHINGTON — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is demanding the immediate release of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza, saying that if they are not freed before he is sworn into office for a second term there will be “HELL TO PAY.” “Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social site . He added that, “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!” It was not immediately clear whether Trump was threatening to directly involve the U.S. military in Israel’s ongoing campaign against Hamas in Gaza. Trump allies have said he hopes there will be a ceasefire and hostage release deal before he returns to office early next year. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 people hostage on Oct. 7, 2023. Some 100 are still held inside Gaza , around two-thirds believed to be alive. WASHINGTON — Senior American officials have had conversations with Israelis to raise questions about some of the strikes they have carried out against Hezbollah since a ceasefire went into place but have not found the Israelis to be in gross violation of the terms of the ceasefire, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter. The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly about the sensitive conversations with the Israelis, said those conversations were part of a mechanism that was created to ensure that ceasefire agreement is implemented. “This is that mechanism working,” the official added. White House national security spokesman John Kirby on Monday that “largely speaking the ceasefire is holding.” “We’ve gone from, you know dozens of strikes, you know, down to one a day maybe two a day,” Kirby told told reporters aboard Air Force One as President Joe Biden made his way for a visit to Angola. “That’s a tremendous, tremendous reduction. And we’re going to keep trying and see what we can do to get it down to zero so that both sides are fully implementing it. But, this is, this is the only it’s only a, a week or so old.” — By Aamer Madhani JERUSALEM — Hezbollah fired into a disputed border zone held by Israel on Monday, the militant group’s first attack since its ceasefire with Israel took hold last week, after Lebanon accused Israel of violating the truce more than 50 times in recent days. The Israeli military said two projectiles were launched toward Mount Dov, a disputed Israeli-held territory known as Shebaa Farms in Lebanon, where the borders of Lebanon, Syria, and Israel meet. Israel said the projectiles fell in open areas and no injuries were reported. Hezbollah said in a statement that it fired on an Israeli military position in the area as a “defensive and warning response” after what it called “repeated violations” of the ceasefire deal by Israel. It said complaints to mediators tasked with monitoring the ceasefire “were futile in stopping these violations.” The U.S.- and French-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Wednesday calling for a 60-day halt in fighting, aiming to end more than a year of exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel. Since then, Israel has carried out a number of strikes in Lebanon, most recently on Monday, when a drone strike killed a man on a motorcycle in southern Lebanon and another hit a Lebanese army bulldozer in the northeastern town of Hermel, wounding a soldier. The Lebanese army had stayed on the sidelines of the war between Israel and Hezbollah. Israel says the strikes are in response to Hezbollah violations of the ceasefire, without giving specifics. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s parliament speaker on Monday accused Israel of committing 54 breaches of the ceasefire that ended the war between Hezbollah and Israel, demanding urgent intervention to halt what he called “flagrant violations.” Speaking to the Lebanese newspaper Al Joumhouria, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri condemned Israel’s “aggressive actions,” including the alleged demolition of homes in border villages, the persistent overflight of Israeli reconnaissance drones, and airstrikes that have caused casualties. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Berri’s assertions. Israel says it reserves the right under the ceasefire deal to respond to perceived ceasefire violations. An Israeli drone strike on Monday hit a Lebanese army military bulldozer in the northeastern town of Hermel, wounding a soldier, the Lebanese army said in a statement. Also on Monday, an Israeli drone strike targeting a motorcycle in Jdeidet Marjayoun in southern Lebanon killed one person, the Lebanese Health Ministry said. In Bint Jbeil province, a drone strike injured one person, the state-run National News Agency said. On Saturday, two people were killed in an airstrike on Marjayoun province, Lebanon’s state media said. Berri called on the technical committee established to monitor the ceasefire to take immediate action, urging it to “oblige Israel to halt its violations and withdraw from Lebanese territories without delay.” He said that Lebanon and Hezbollah have fully adhered to the terms of the ceasefire since the early hours of Wednesday. Berri is the leader of the Shiite Amal movement, which is closely allied with the Shiite militant group Hezbollah. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said Monday one person was killed in an Israeli drone strike that hit a motorcycle, while the Lebanese army said that a soldier was wounded in an Israeli strike on a military bulldozer at an army base. The Israeli military said that it carried out a series of strikes in Lebanon on Sunday and Monday, including one in the same area where the soldier was said to have been wounded. It said it struck several military vehicles in Lebanon’s Bekaa province as well as strikes on Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon. The incidents underscored the fragility of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah reached after nearly 14 months of cross-border fighting. Since the ceasefire went into effect on Wednesday, Israel has struck several times in response to what it says have been ceasefire violations by Hezbollah. Lebanon has accused Israel of violating the deal but so far Hezbollah has not resumed its rocket fire. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Monday rejected accusations that Israel is violating the tenuous ceasefire agreement, saying it was responding to Hezbollah violations. In a post on X, Saar said that he made that point in a call with his French counterpart, Jean-Noël Barrot. France, along with the U.S., helped broker the deal and is part of an international monitoring committee meant to ensure the sides uphold their commitments. Israel says that it reserves the right under the deal to respond to perceived ceasefire violations. TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military said Monday an Israeli American soldier who was believed to have been taken hostage alive on Oct. 7, 2023, is now presumed to have been killed during Hamas’ attack and his body taken into Gaza. Neutra, 21, was a New York native who enlisted in the Israeli military and was captured when Hamas attacked southern Israel. Neutra’s parents, Ronen and Orna, led a public campaign while he was thought to be alive for their son’s freedom. They spoke at protests in the U.S. and Israel, addressed the Republican National Convention this year and kept up ties with the Biden administration in their crusade to secure their son’s release. In a statement announcing the death, the military did not say how it came to the conclusion over Neutra’s fate. He was one of seven American Israelis still held in Gaza, four of whom are now said to be dead. Hamas released a video of one, Edan Alexander, over the weekend, indicating he was still alive. In late summer, Israel said Hamas killed Hersh Goldberg-Polin , another prominent Israeli American hostage, along with five other captives, whose bodies the Israeli military recovered. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 hostage. Some 100 captives are still held inside Gaza , around two-thirds believed to be alive. Iraqi militias supported by Iran deployed in Syria on Monday to back the government’s counteroffensive against a surprise advance by insurgents who seized the largest city of Aleppo, a militia official and a war monitor said. Insurgents led by jihadi group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham launched a two-pronged attack on Aleppo last week and the countryside around Idlib before moving toward neighboring Hama province. Government troops built a fortified defensive line in northern Hama in an attempt to stall the insurgents’ momentum while jets on Sunday pounded rebel-held lines. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus Sunday and announced Tehran’s full support for his government. He later arrived for talks in Ankara, Turkey, one of the rebels' main backers. Iran has been of Assad’s principal political and military supporters and deployed military advisers and forces after 2011 protests against Assad’s rule turned into an all-out war. Tehran-backed Iraqi militias already in Syria mobilized and additional forces crossed the border to support them, said the Iraqi militia official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. According to Britain-based opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, some 200 Iraqi militiamen on pickups crossed into Syria overnight through the strategic Bou Kamal. They were expected to deploy in Aleppo to support the Syrian army’s pushback against the insurgents, the monitor said. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — U.S. Navy destroyers shot down seven missiles and drones fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels at the warships and three American merchant vessels they were escorting through the Gulf of Aden. No damage or injuries were reported. U.S. Central Command said late Sunday that the destroyers USS Stockdale and USS O’Kane shot down and destroyed three anti-ship ballistic missiles, three drones and one anti-ship cruise missile. The merchant ships were not identified. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement and said they had targeted the U.S. destroyers and “three supply ships belonging to the American army in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden.” Houthi attacks for months have targeted shipping through a waterway where $1 trillion in goods pass annually over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and Israel’s ground offensive in Lebanon. A ceasefire was announced in Lebanon last week. The USS Stockdale was involved in a similar attack on Nov. 12 . Read more of the AP's coverage of the Middle East wars: https://apnews.com/hub/mideast-wars
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Manchester City, Arsenal, and now Tottenham. The list of top Premier League teams beaten at Bournemouth this season is growing. Dean Huijsen took advantage of Tottenham’s weakness at set pieces to head home a 17th-minute winner in Bournemouth’s 1-0 victory on Thursday. Bournemouth climbed into ninth — a point and a place above Tottenham in the standings — and underlined its penchant for surprising high-profile visitors to Vitality Stadium. Man City’s remarkable four-game losing run in the Premier League started with a 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth, while fellow title contender Arsenal’s first loss of the season also came at the Vitality, 2-0 on Oct. 19. This was Spurs' sixth defeat of the campaign. They now have as many wins as losses, highlighting the inconsistency blighting their season, and their seven away results so far make remarkable reading: aside from a 3-0 win at Manchester United and a 4-0 thrashing of Man City, Tottenham has lost four and drawn the other at relegation candidate Leicester. An inability to defend set plays continues to hurt Ange Postecoglou’s side. A week after Roma scored twice from them in a 2-2 draw in the Europa League, Huijsen roamed free in the area at a corner and headed home unmarked. Postecoglou said in May said he “wasn’t interested” about his side’s fallibility while defending set pieces, and said after losing 1-0 to Arsenal in September — after a goal from Gabriel at a corner — that “it’s my burden to carry and I’m happy to do that.” “We started well and conceded a really poor goal," Postecoglou said after the Bournemouth game. “It’s a difficult place to come when giving the opposition the opportunity to play in the manner they want.” IWOBI DOUBLE Alex Iwobi scored goals early and late in the game to lead Fulham to a 3-1 win over Brighton. The Nigeria winger intercepted a stray pass out from the back by Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen and slotted into an unguarded net for the opener in the fourth minute and curled home Fulham’s clinching goal in the 87th. Carlos Baleba equalized for Brighton in the 56th before Brighton midfielder Matt O’Riley – a former Fulham academy player – deflected the ball into his own net from a corner to put the home side back in front. Fulham climbed to sixth in the standings, a point and a place behind Brighton. AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccerBrisbane news live: Voters think PM is weak as support for Labor slashed againThe United States chose dependable veterans over younger alternatives in picking its roster to compete against Canada, Sweden and Finland in the 4 Nations Face-Off, the first international tournament featuring the NHL’s best players in nearly a decade. Chris Kreider of the New York Rangers and Brock Nelson of the rival Islanders were among the final 17 players chosen, with USA Hockey prioritizing experience from world championships and other events over future potential. General manager Bill Guerin said the depth of talent to choose from was a testament to the grassroots growth of the sport in the U.S. “It was extremely challenging to get to a final roster,” said Guerin, the Minnesota Wild’s general manager. “Hockey in our country is strong and continuing to get better, and this team is no doubt a reflection of that.” Dallas’ Jason Robertson, 25, Utah’s Clayton Keller, 26, and Buffalo’s Alex Tuch, 27, and Tage Thompson, 28, were among the forwards left off. Kreider and Nelson, the oldest players on the team at age 33, have extensive history playing at the world championships. The youngest player is also the only one with Olympic experience: 22-year-old Minnesota defenseman Brock Faber, who played at the Beijing Games in 2022 when the NHL pulled out late because of pandemic-related scheduling issues. Winnipeg’s two-time Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck, Dallas’ Jake Oettinger and Boston’s Jeremy Swayman were the slam-dunk choices in net at a position with an embarrassment of strong depth, with Vancouver’s Thatcher Demko injured and unavailable. Canada has no sure answer in goal and chose a pair of Stanley Cup champions, St. Louis’ Jordan Binnington and Vegas’ Adin Hill, along with Montreal’s Sam Montembeault. The country that won the 2016 World Cup of Hockey and the past two Olympics without NHL talent built a team outside the net that fits two-time Cup-winning coach Jon Cooper and includes Lightning players Anthony Cirelli, Brandon Hagel and Brayden Point. “This event is an important part of the process as we continue to build teams that can be successful on the international stage,” Cooper said. “We look forward to our group gathering in February and competing for a championship.” Finland also went heavy on recent championship winners, picking Florida’s Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen and Niko Mikkola and Colorado’s Artturi Lehkonen “It’s big value,” said Finland general manager Jere Lehtinen, who was also in charge of the team that won gold at the 2022 Olympics without NHL talent. “You have a few players who have won and have been in tough situations through their careers, so when it comes to a tournament like that, it’s a quick tournament. You have to be ready right away.” Sweden, much like the U.S., skewed older with its selections. The Swedish Hockey Federation opted for veteran experience on defense with Edmonton’s Mattias Ekholm and Minnesota’s Jonas Brodin, to go along with young Buffalo captain Rasmus Dahlin. Up front, the Swedes did not overlook youth, choosing Anaheim’s 19-year-old center Leo Carlsson and Detroit’s 22-year-old winger Lucas Raymond among their forwards. “We went with an experienced group,” Sweden general manager Josef Boumedienne said. “We’ve got a few really good young players that did not make the roster, but we decided with a short tournament like this, basically do-or-die games in every single one of them, we went with a little more experienced group and we have a lot of leadership qualities in our group that we were excited about.” The Finns took some role players in piecing together a team in front of Nashville goaltender Juuse Saros, including Montreal’s Joel Armia and San Jose’s Mikael Granlund, who’s having something of a career renaissance with the Sharks. “As a young player in Finland, that’s one of the biggest things you can have in a hockey career, to play for your country,” Granlund said this week. “I’ve always just actually loved those moments and I’ve had good success on the national team. It’s really cool and, having the 4 Nations, that’s best against best, so that’s special.” Among the final decisions, Sweden left off Hampus Lindholm to bring Brodin, citing the Boston defenseman’s injury and tight timeline as the reason. Finland put Patrik Laine on the roster that had to be locked in earlier this week before the scoring winger made his season debut Tuesday night for Montreal. “We’ve been talking with him and knowing where he’s at,” Lehtinen said. “Overall, there’s two months before the tournament starts, so there’s a lot of games before then and I think it’s enough time to get him in good game shape and playing well.” Toronto’s Jani Hakanpää got the nod on the blue line even though he has only played in two games this season coming off a knee injury. Finland only had the choice of 10 defensemen to pick from. “We know that we don’t have too many D-men who’s playing in the NHL,” coach Antti Pennanen said. “But still, we have a good back end: strong and big, and they are able to play against top forwards.” The United States and Canada are set to unveil their choices later Wednesday. The round-robin tournament with the top two teams facing off in the final is taking place from Feb. 12-20, with the first half in Montreal and second half in Boston. This is the first country versus country men’s tournament in the sport with the best players involved since the World Cup of Hockey in 2016. The hope was to stage the event this past winter, but questions over how to handle Russian players given that country’s war in Ukraine pushed it to 2025 and reduced the teams involved to these four. Each country’s first six players were named in late June: Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, Matthew Tkachuk, Quinn Hughes, Charlie McAvoy and Adam Fox for the U.S.; Point, Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Brad Marchand for Canada; Mika Zibanejad, William Nylander, Filip Forsberg, Victor Hedman, Erik Karlsson and Gustav Forsling for Sweden and Saros, Aleksander Barkov, Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho, Miro Heiskanen and Esa Lindell for Finland.
Prep The test Calculation The result The TOI Lifestyle Desk is a dynamic team of dedicated journalists who, with unwavering passion and commitment, sift through the pulse of the nation to curate a vibrant tapestry of lifestyle news for The Times of India readers. At the TOI Lifestyle Desk, we go beyond the obvious, delving into the extraordinary. Consider us your lifestyle companion, providing a daily dose of inspiration and information. Whether you're seeking the latest fashion trends, travel escapades, culinary delights, or wellness tips, the TOI Lifestyle Desk is your one-stop destination for an enriching lifestyle experience. Read More Morning habits that can help improve concentration and performance at work Graceful snaps of Helly Shah Statement wedding jewellery inspired by ardent gemstone lover Nita Ambani Elegant snaps of Malavika Mohanan 10 simple ways you can boost productivity at work Vaani Kapoor's winter formal styling sets the next big fashion trend 10 authors who went viral on social media in 2024 Rasha Thadani's all-black look exudes chic elegance 8 tips to protect home garden in wintersPresident-elect Trump's the next director of the FBI would be a serious mistake that could haunt America for decades, writes historian and journalist Garrett M. Graff in a op-ed. Patel's only qualification for the post seems to be that he is fiercely loyal to Trump and willing to do his bidding, writes Graff. He argues that the agency has a long history of independence in its post-Hoover years, in part because directors serve 10-year terms that overlap presidencies. (Trump wants to break with that tradition and oust current director Christopher Wray three years early.) "What this independence illustrates is that the FBI is not, as many MAGA loyalists believe, some liberal bastion of wokeness," writes Graff, who points out that no Democrat has ever served as permanent director of the agency. "Trump has been clear in what he is trying to do with a nominee like Mr. Patel: He wants to bend and break the bureau and weaponize it against those he sees as his political enemies and domestic critics," writes Graff. Putting someone like Patel in charge even for a few years "could cause grave, lasting harm to the institution," he adds. That harm would come from the promotion of like-minded people into top positions, with those choices shaping "the bureau for decades." (Read the .)
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Altus Group Limited ( TSE:AIF – Get Free Report ) Director William Brennan purchased 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of C$55.70 per share, for a total transaction of C$16,710.00. William Brennan also recently made the following trade(s): Altus Group Trading Up 0.0 % Shares of AIF opened at C$56.35 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is C$56.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is C$53.91. The company has a market cap of C$2.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 939.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 57.13. Altus Group Limited has a twelve month low of C$40.01 and a twelve month high of C$61.09. Altus Group Announces Dividend Analysts Set New Price Targets Several brokerages recently weighed in on AIF. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Altus Group from C$55.00 to C$56.00 in a research report on Friday, November 8th. CIBC boosted their target price on shares of Altus Group from C$52.00 to C$60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, National Bankshares increased their price target on shares of Altus Group from C$50.00 to C$55.00 in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of C$57.11. View Our Latest Research Report on AIF About Altus Group ( Get Free Report ) Altus Group Limited provides asset and funds intelligence solutions for commercial real estate (CRE). The company operates through Analytics, Property Tax, and Appraisals and Development Advisory segments. The Analytics segment portfolio includes software, data analytics, market data, and consulting services; CRE asset and fund management services; ARGUS-branded, finance active-branded debt management, and valuation management solutions; technology consulting services, such as strategic advisory for front-to-back-office strategies, processes, and technology; and software services related to education, training, and implementation. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Altus Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Altus Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .Barron Trump, the son of the president-elect , is using one strategy to make friends at New York University as sources claim he "hardly exists." The 18-year-old , who is following in the footsteps of his siblings Ivanka and Eric by studying at Stern Business School, is said to be struggling to connect with his peers and spends a lot of time off campus. Since starting at NYU, reports have emerged about his experience, including his refusal of selfie requests from classmates and being constantly surrounded by Secret Service agents . "He hardly exists," a student told TMZ . Barron Trump's voice heard for first time in 15 years as he asks to become UFC fighter Barron Trump's unexpected response when friends at his New York university ask who he votes for Barron reportedly uses video games as a means to socialize with other students. The college freshman is reportedly an avid gamer and often asks fellow students for their Discord usernames and gamer tags so they can play online games together. His favorite game is said to be the popular soccer game, FIFA . Click here to follow the Mirror US on Google News to stay up to date with all the latest news, sports and entertainment stories. It's fitting, as videos of Barron 's soccer prowess have been making a splash on the internet, with many people surprised by the former first child's skill on the field. However, some are pointing out his significant height as a potential mismatch for his chosen pastime, suggesting that perhaps another sport might be more suitable, reports the Irish Star . DAILY NEWSLETTER: Sign up here to get the latest news and updates from the Mirror US straight to your inbox with our FREE newsletter.