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MIDDLE EAST | Updates from regional conflicts:

• Two U.S. service members and one American civilian interpreter were killed Saturday in Syria in an attack authorities say was carried out by an alleged member of the Islamic State militant group. U.S. President Donald Trump vowed "very serious retaliation" after the attack, and Syria's state-run SANA news agency said two members of Syria’s security force and several U.S. service members had also been wounded in the attack. [more]
• Hamas confirmed yesterday that Raed Saad, who commanded the militant group's military manufacturing unit, was killed Saturday in an Israeli strike outside Gaza City. Israeli officials say Saad was an architect of the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel and that he was "engaged in rebuilding the terrorist organization." [more]

UKRAINE | Today is day 1,388 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here is your update:

• Following talks between U.S. envoys and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy yesterday in Berlin, Ukrainian and European officials are meeting today as part of continuing efforts to secure peace and security amidst ongoing Russian assertiveness. [more]

U.S. GUN VIOLENCE | Two students were killed, and nine others were injured, Saturday when a yet-unidentified gunman opened fire in a classroom at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. A person of interest in the shooting was taken into police custody yesterday at a Rhode Island hotel, but has since been released, with authorities saying that "evidence now points in a different direction." [more]

U.S. HEALTHCARE | Ahead of next month's expiration of Affordable Care Act health insurance premium subsidies, House Republicans proposed a plan Friday that, instead of extending subsidies, would enhance access to employer-sponsored health insurance, help control drug costs, and possibly provide cost-sharing reductions that would not take effect until January 2027 for some lower-income people who rely on ACA plans. [more]

U.S. TRANSPORTATION | Following similar recent actions against California, Texas, Pennsylvania, and other states, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy threatened Friday to withhold highway funds from New York after investigations found the state to have routinely issue commercial driver’s licenses to immigrants that are valid long after they are no longer legally authorized to be in the country. [more]

U.S. AND EUROPE | German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Saturday that, with the U.S. now "fiercely defending" its own interests, the era of 'Pax Americana' – the post-war dominance of the United States as a superpower that has brought relative peace in Europe and elsewhere – is "largely over for us in Europe and for us in Germany as well." [more]

AUSTRALIA | At least 15 people were killed, and 38 others were wounded, yesterday when two gunmen, a father and son, opened fire on participants in beachfront festivities during a Hanukkah celebration being held at Australia's Bondi Beach. Authorities have declared the incident an act of terrorism and have vowed to tighten Australia's gun laws and crack down on anti-Semitism in response to the shooting. [more]

COLOMBIA | The left-wing National Liberation Army rebel group began what it called a four-day armed strike yesterday in parts of Colombia, saying it would force civilians to stay in their homes and restrict business activities and transportation in affected regions. The rebel move came after President Gustavo Petro announced a "counterinsurgency plan" against the group and amidst U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to expand military strikes in the region as part of anti-drug-trafficking actions. [more]

HONG KONG | Pro-democracy activist and former media executive Jimmy Lai was convicted on national security and conspiracy charges today in Hong Kong and faces a sentence of up to life in prison. Lai, the former publisher of the pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper, was arrested in August 2020 under a Beijing-imposed national security law, with prosecutors saying he conspired with foreign governments to destabilize the ruling Chinese Communist Party. [more]

INDIA | Dozens of flights have been cancelled, trains have been delayed, and authorities have issued strong health advisories in New Delhi, India, today as dense toxic smog pushed the city's air pollution to the highest level in weeks. Government officials say the city's pollution over the past two days has been at a "severe" level that can cause respiratory effects to healthy people and seriously affect the health of people with heart or lung diseases. [more]

CZECH REPUBLIC | Following a victory in October's elections, the populist coalition government of Andrej Babiš was took office in the Czech Republic today, being sworn in by President Petr Pavel. Major stances by Babiš include steering the country away from supporting Ukraine and rejecting some key European Union policies. [more]

CHILE | Far-right former lawmaker José Antonio Kast won Chile's presidential election yesterday, receiving 58.2% of the vote vs. 41.8% support for Jeannette Jara, the candidate of the South American country's center-left governing coalition. [more]

SOUTH KOREA | Results of an independent counsel investigation released today conclude that former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol plotted for over a year to impose martial law as part of moves to eliminate political rivals and monopolize power and that Yoon, who was removed from power and is now in prison, also ordered operations against North Korea in an attempt to heighten tensions and justify his plans to declare martial law. [more]

GUATEMALA | President Bernardo Arévalo declared a 15-day state of emergency in Guatemala's western municipalities of Nahuala and Santa Catarina Ixtahuacan yesterday, a day after gunmen thought to be linked to local criminal groups attacked a military post and a police station, killing at least five people. [more]

MOROCCO | Authorities say at least 37 people were killed in weekend flooding that followed heavy rains in the Moroccan coastal city of Safi. Local media reports that schools in the affected region have been closed through Wednesday as recovery efforts continue. [more]

CONGO | Leaders of the Rwandan-backed M23 rebel group say their forces captured hundreds of Burundian soldiers during the group's latest offensive in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. [more]

FRANCE | Amidst concerns over security and related crowding and working conditions following an October jewelry heist, Paris' Louvre Museum is closed today after workers voted to take part in a one-day strike. [more]

COLLEGE FOOTBALL | Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza was named the 2025 recipient of the Heisman Trophy on Saturday, becoming the first Indiana player to ever win college football’s most prestigious award. [more]

R.I.P. | Actor and director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were found dead yesterday in their Los Angeles home. Reports say the two showed evidence of stab wounds and cite police as saying the deaths are being investigated as an apparent homicide. [more]

WEEKEND MOVIES | "Zootopia 2" topped the North American box office over the weekend with an estimated $26.3 million in receipts, followed by "Five Nights at Freddy’s 2" and "Wicked: For Good." [more]

WORD OF THE YEAR | Dictionary maker Merriam-Webster has selected "slop" its word of the year, noting that the word, originally used in the 1700s to mean soft mud, evolved to generally mean something of little value and has expanded in recent years to refer to fake and/or low-quality digital content. [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1791, the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution—the Bill of Rights, which is a collection of mutually reinforcing guarantees of individual rights and limitations on federal and state governments—were adopted as a single unit. [more history]