November 14, 2024

MIDDLE EAST | Update from regional conflicts:

• In an interview with Al Jazeera yesterday, senior Lebanese government official Ali Hassan Khalil suggested that the Hezbollah militant group is prepared to move its forces away from the Lebanese-Israeli border as part of any ceasefire agreement with Israel. [more]

U.S. POLITICS | Among the new developments in federal politics following this month’s elections:

• With several races being called yesterday, Republicans have won the 218 seats needed to have a majority in the House, joining the Senate in having GOP control of the chamber. [more]
• Senate Republicans chose South Dakota’s John Thune yesterday to be the next majority leader in Congress’ upper chamber. [more]
• House Speaker Mike Johnson won the GOP nomination yesterday to remain in his role. [more]

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION | Among the selections announced yesterday by President-elect Donald Trump for roles in his upcoming administration were: Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz to serve as attorney general, Florida Senator Marco Rubio to be Secretary of State, and former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to serve as director of national intelligence. [more]

NEW YORK | Governor Kathy Hochul is expected to announce today that New York will revive a currently paused program that imposes a congestion charge for driving in parts of New York City’s Manhattan borough. [more]

TRUMP CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS CASE | Special counsel Jack Smith asked a federal court yesterday to pause an appeal seeking to revive the classified documents case against now-President-elect Donald Trump while prosecutors consider how, and whether, to proceed with the case, which was dismissed by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in July. [more]

U.S. AND CHINA | White House officials say U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet Saturday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Lima, Peru. Reports suggest that the topics Biden is most likely to bring up with Xi are trade issues, the flow of Chinese-manufactured chemicals used to make fentanyl, concerns about Beijing’s indirect support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, cybersecurity issues, and the importance of maintaining military-to-military communications. [more]

GLOBAL DIABETES | A new study published in The Lancet says more than 800 million adults worldwide – almost twice as many as previously estimated – have diabetes and that more than half of those over the age of 30 who have the condition are not receiving treatment. [full study] [more]

PHILIPPINES | More than 24,000 people were evacuated from the Philippines’ northern Cagayan province ahead of today’s arrival of Typhoon Usagi, which is the fifth major storm to hit the country in the past three weeks. [more]

FRANCE | Reports say several thousand people took part in two separate pro-Palestinian demonstrations in central Paris yesterday evening to protest against a controversial “Israel is Forever” gala being held in the city to raise funds for the Israeli military. [more]

DENMARK | The Danish royal court announced yesterday that it plans to begin phasing out a system used since the 1800s to award grants to companies to use the image of the country’s crown on their products. The palace said in a statement that designations such as “Holder of the Royal Warrant” and “By Appointment to the Royal Danish Court” are “no longer in keeping with the times.” [more]

PERU AND CHINA | Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to inaugurate a new deep-water port at the central Peru city of Chancay today. The $1.3 billion port is majority-owned by Chinese shipping giant Cosco and its establishment is seen as an advancement of Chinese interest in expanding development in resource-rich South America. [more]

BRAZIL | Police in São Paulo, Brazil, say a yet-unidentified man killed himself with an explosive device yesterday outside the Brazilian Supreme Court after failing in an attempt to break into the building. [more]

SUDAN | Rights group Amnesty International says in a new report that armored vehicles produced in the United Arab Emirates and equipped with French defense systems are being used in Sudan’s civil war by the country’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and that the presence of such equipment likely violates a U.N. embargo on the transfer of weapons to Sudan. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1889, American journalist Nellie Bly began her around-the-world race against the record of Phileas Fogg, hero of Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days. She completed the journey in slightly more than 72 days. [more history]