- U.S. and Saudi Arabia working to finalize defense pact before MBS meets Trump Axios
- Saudis to host investment summit in DC’s Kennedy Center during crown prince’s visit, sources say WTOP
- Before talks with Trump, Saudi Arabia doubles down on terms for Israel ties Reuters
- Trump doesn't need to buy Saudi loyalty with a security pact Responsible Statecraft
- Israel Could Be Left Out as the Americans and Saudis Get Closer Haaretz
Venezuelans sent by Trump to El Salvador endured systematic torture, report finds
Human rights groups accuse Trump officials of complicity and draw comparison with scandal at Abu Ghraib prison
More than 252 Venezuelans expelled to El Salvador under Donald Trump’s mass deportation policy suffered systematic and prolonged torture and abuse, including sexual assault, during their detention, according to a report published on Wednesday.
The report, compiled jointly by Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Cristosal – a group investigating violations in Central America – says conditions at El Salvador’s sprawling “terrorist continent center” (Cecot) breached the UN’s standard minimal rules for the treatment of prisoners. It cites “inhumane prison conditions, including prolonged incommunicado detention, inadequate food” and other shortcomings.
Continue reading...Actor Allison Mack reveals role in Nxivm sex cult in new podcast: ‘I was abusive’
Smallville actor, released from prison two years ago, tells how she helped coerce women for cult leader Keith Raniere
The Smallville actor Allison Mack says she was once riveted by the influence she wielded through her role in the Nxivm sex cult – though it eventually sent her to federal prison, and she now realizes it was “abusive”.
“I was excited by the power that I felt having these young, beautiful women look to me and listen to me,” Mack, 43, maintains in a new podcast series titled Allison After Nxivm, which contains her first public remarks since her release from prison about two years ago. “And – yes – the sexuality of it was exciting.”
Continue reading...US House to vote on bill that could end longest-ever government shutdown
Democrats have vowed to vote against the proposal after a faction of Senators broke with party to pass a compromise
The House on Wednesday was poised to vote on legislation that would end the longest government shutdown in US history, as Democrats voice fury that the Senate-brokered compromise fails to extend expiring healthcare subsidies.
The House speaker, Mike Johnson, has instructed lawmakers to return to Washington after keeping the chamber out of session for more than 50 days.
Continue reading...From YouTube team to the Premier League: Ndiaye’s unusual run to the top
The French-born footballer did not have an easy run on his way to the top, with numerous clubs rejecting him.
Influential list of highly cited researchers now shuts out more scientists: here’s why – Nature
- Influential list of highly cited researchers now shuts out more scientists: here’s why Nature
- Math is back as Clarivate boosts integrity markers in Highly Cited Researchers list Retraction Watch
- Five UD faculty named among world’s most influential researchers University of Delaware
- Three Tufts Professors Are Named Top Researchers in the World Tufts Now
- Duke Scholars Featured in the Highly Cited Researchers 2025 List Duke Today
View from The Hill: Conservative Liberals hold ‘power walk’ before delivering coup de grâce to net zero – The Conversation
- View from The Hill: Conservative Liberals hold ‘power walk’ before delivering coup de grâce to net zero The Conversation
- Australia's conservative Liberal Party abandons net zero policy Reuters
- Liberals commit to reduce emissions in line with 'comparable countries' — as it happened Australian Broadcasting Corporation
- As a conservative Liberal senator I see no coherent reason to run away from a net zero target | Andrew McLachlan The Guardian
- There’s a way for the Libs out of their climate mess. Just ask the Victorians The Age
Turkish military plane crash in Georgia kills all 20 on board – AP News
- Turkish military plane crash in Georgia kills all 20 on board AP News
- Turkish military plane falls from sky over Georgia, killing all 20 aboard The Washington Post
- Turkey says 20 troops killed in Georgia plane crash; black box found Reuters
- Turkish Military Plane Crashes in Georgia, Killing 20 Troops The New York Times
- Turkish military plane crash: All 20 onboard dead DW
Pakistan investigates suicide bombing that killed 12 outside an Islamabad court – abcnews.go.com
- Pakistan investigates suicide bombing that killed 12 outside an Islamabad court abcnews.go.com
- Two blasts a day apart in India and Pakistan’s capitals fray regional nerves in an already tense year CNN
- LIVE: India, Pakistan launch probes after blasts in New Delhi, Islamabad Al Jazeera
- Pakistan Taliban claim responsibility for deadly terror attack in Islamabad The Guardian
- Deadly Blasts in India and Pakistan Set Region on Edge The New York Times
Climate-sceptic IPA refuses to reveal funders in fiery Senate inquiry
Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart has previously donated to Institute of Public Affairs but thinktank won’t say if she remains a donor
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A thinktank known for its rejection of the climate crisis and a conservation group that has opposed renewable energy projects refused to identify their funders during a fiery Senate inquiry into climate and energy misinformation on Wednesday.
Chair of the committee, Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson, asked Rainforest Reserves Australia’s vice-president, Steven Nowakowski, who had funded nine full-page newspaper advertisements promoting an open letter attacking a shift to renewable energy and promoting nuclear.
Continue reading...Australian windsurfer escapes shark attack
Andy McDonald recalls moment he encountered a shark while windsurfing in Western Australia this week.
Fog helps Russian forces push deeper into key Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk
A video has gone viral showing Russian soldiers openly driving into the city on civilian cars and motorbikes.
New sleeper service will run from Paris to Berlin next year
European Sleeper will operate the new service from March 2026, replacing the Nightjet train that is being axed next month
The resurgence of sleeper trains on the continent hit a kink in the tracks in September, when the Austrian state operator ÖBB announced that it would be axing its two Nightjet services – Paris to Vienna and Paris to Berlin – from 14 December. ÖBB cited the French government’s ending of subsidies, dealing a blow to the night-train renaissance.
However, there is light at the end of the tunnel. European Sleeper has told the Guardian that it will be taking over the route from Paris to Berlin, with the first train to run on 26 March 2026. The train will operate three times a week with departures likely to be from Paris Gare du Nord on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings and the return service from Berlin Hauptbahnhof and Ostbahnhof on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The current Nightjet service departs Paris Gare de l’Est just after 7pm and winds east via Strasbourg, Frankfurt, Erfurt and Halle before arriving in Berlin around 8.30am. European Sleeper intends to make the journey via Brussels, with precise route details and timings currently being confirmed with infrastructure managers in France, Belgium and Germany.
Continue reading...Delhi air pollution: Schools go hybrid, mining banned as air quality worsens – BBC
- Delhi air pollution: Schools go hybrid, mining banned as air quality worsens BBC
- Thick smog blankets Delhi as stubble burning continues to worsen AQI level | In Pics Hindustan Times
- Air pollution levels surge in India’s capital, sparking rare protests AP News
- India tightens anti-pollution curbs in Delhi after rare protest NBC News
- Air pollution in Indian capital Delhi closes schools, draws protests and a warning for the sick to escape CBS News
Schools go hybrid as Delhi’s air quality worsens
Delhi's air quality has deteriorated to "severe" levels, which can seriously impact those with existing diseases.
Women riding the streets of Tehran on motorbikes is the latest sign of Iran’s societal change – AP News
- Women riding the streets of Tehran on motorbikes is the latest sign of Iran’s societal change AP News
- The Battle Iranian Women Are Winning The Atlantic
- Iran’s hijab announcement is a decoy Washington Times
- Why parts of Tehran are more alive than Times Square The Times
- Women on motorbikes zipping through streets of Iran's capital are the latest sign of societal change MSN
John F Kennedy’s grandson Jack Schlossberg announces run for US House seat
Schlossberg has drummed up a large following on social media with frequent posts weighing in on national issues
John F Kennedy’s grandson Jack Schlossberg has said he will run for the US House next year, announcing Tuesday that he was seeking a key New York seat set to be vacated by longtime Democrat Jerry Nadler.
“This district should have a representative who can harness the creativity, energy and drive of this district and translate that into political power in Washington,” Schlossberg said in a campaign video posted on social media late Tuesday.
Continue reading...Property investors make up two in every five Australian home loans amid record borrowing
Investor home borrowing surges nearly 18% in the September quarter compared with previous three months, prompting calls to ‘urgently rein in overheated credit market’
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Property investors have borrowed record amounts of money for home purchases amid a decline in first home buyer lending and surging house prices.
Investors accounted for two in every five home loans from July to September, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported on Wednesday, sparking calls for the Albanese government to force banks to put the brakes on landlord lending.
Continue reading...‘Atrocious on every level’: sex case findings shame New Zealand’s senior police culture
Inspector general will be inaugurated to oversee service after report on how top officers steered investigation of Jevon McSkimming, who went on to become deputy commissioner
New Zealand’s government will take the unprecedented move of appointing an inspector general of police after a damning report found “significant failings” in the way senior police officers handled serious sexual complaints against a former high-ranking officer.
The Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) released a 135-page report on Tuesday detailing allegations made against the former deputy police commissioner Jevon McSkimming and the police’s response to them.
Continue reading...Supply boom in cheaper renewables will seal end of fossil fuel era, says IEA
Watchdog’s flagship report says rise in low-carbon electricity will make transition ‘inevitable’, despite Trump’s calls to carry on drilling
Renewables will grow faster than any major energy source in the next decade, according to the world’s energy watchdog, making the transition away from fossil fuels “inevitable”, despite a green backlash in the US and parts of Europe.
The world is expected to build more renewable energy projects in the next five years than has been rolled out over the last 40, according to the flagship annual report from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
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