#Israeli military says it killed a member of Iran’s Quds Force in Lebanon.

#JERUSALEM -- The Israeli ‍military said on Thursday that its forces ‍killed a member of Iran’s Quds ‍Force in Lebanon who had been involved in planning attacks from Syria and Lebanon.

The military identified the man as Hussein Mahmoud Marshad al-Jawhari, calling him a key operative ⁠in the force’s unit 840.

He was ‍assassinated in the area of Ansariyeh, the military added in a statement, without giving any further details of his death.

Al-Jawhari “operated under the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and ​was involved in terror activities, directed by Iran, against the State of Israel and its security forces," ⁠the statement said.

Syria says senior ISIS leader killed, arrests operative near Damascus

#MOSCOW, December 24. Air defense systems on duty destroyed approximately 132 #Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles over Russian Regions between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. Moscow time [10 a.m. and 5 p.m. GMT], the Russian defense ministry reported.

"On December 24, between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. Moscow time [10 a.m. and 5 p.m. GMT], 132 Ukrainian fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles were intercepted and destroyed by air defense systems on duty: 46 UAVs over the territory of the Belgorod Region, 42 UAVs over the territory of the Bryansk Region, 15 UAVs over the territory of the Kaluga Region, 12 UAVs over the territory of the Moscow Region, 7 UAVs over the territory of the Kursk Region, 4 UAVs over the territory of the Lipetsk Region, 2 UAVs over the territory of the Ryazan Region, 2 UAVs over the territory of the Oryol Region, 1 UAV over the territory of the Tula Region, and 1 UAV over the territory of the Republic of Crimea," the statement said.

Kennedy Center Christmas Eve jazz concert cancelled after Trump name added to building.

As of last Friday, the building’s facade reads The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. According to the White House, the president’s handpicked board approved the decision, which scholars have said violates the law. Trump had been suggesting for months he was open to changing the center’s name.

“When I saw the name change on the Kennedy Center website and then hours later on the building, I chose to cancel our concert,” Redd told The Associated Press in an email Wednesday. Redd, a drummer and vibraphone player who has toured with everyone from Dizzy Gillespie to Ray Brown, has been presiding over holiday “Jazz Jams” at the Kennedy Center since 2006, succeeding bassist William “Keter” Betts.

The Kennedy Center did not immediately respond to email seeking comment. The center’s website lists the show as canceled.

President Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, and Congress passed a law the following year naming the center as a living memorial to him. Kennedy niece Kerry Kennedy has vowed to remove Trump’s name from the building once he leaves office and former House historian Ray Smock is among those who say any changes would have to be approved by Congress.

14 countries condemn Israel’s expansion of West Bank settlements: statement. Fourteen countries, including France, Britain, and Germany, condemned on Wednesday Israel’s recent approval of new Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.

“We, States of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom condemn the approval by the Israeli security cabinet of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank,” said a joint statement released by the French foreign ministry.

“We recall our clear opposition to any form of annexation and to the expansion of settlement policies,” it added.

On Sunday, Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced the authorities had greenlit the settlements, saying the move was aimed at preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state.

In their statement, the countries stressed such unilateral actions “violate international law” and risk undermining a fragile ceasefire in Gaza as mediators push for the implementation of the second phase of the truce.

The countries urged Israel “to reverse this decision, as well as the expansion of settlements”.

They also reaffirmed their “unwavering commitment to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace based on the two-state solution... where two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, live side-by-side in peace and security”.

Israel has occupied the West Bank following a war in 1967.

Excluding east Jerusalem, which was occupied and annexed by Israel in 1967, more than 500,000 Israelis live in the West Bank, along with about three million Palestinian residents.

Earlier this month, the United Nations said the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank -- all of which are illegal under international law -- had reached its highest level since at least 2017.

DOJ sues Illinois’ governor over laws protecting immigrants at courthouses and hospitals.


CHICAGO — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Tuesday fired back against a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit over state protections of immigrants from federal arrest at courthouses, hospitals and day cares.

Justice officials filed suit on Monday, claiming new Illinois measures prohibiting detention of immigrants going about daily business at key locations are unconstitutional and “threaten the safety of federal officers,” according to a department statement.

Democrat Pritzker has led the opposition to the Trump administration’s crackdown on migrants in Illinois, particularly because of the indiscriminate and sometimes-violent way they’re apprehended. Through a spokesperson, he reiterated that he’s not opposed to taking action on migrants who commit violent crimes and are in the country illegally.

“However, the Trump administration’s masked agents are not targeting the ‘worst of the worst’ — they are harassing and detaining law-abiding U.S. citizens and Black and brown people at daycares, hospitals and courthouses,” spokesperson Jillian Kaehler said.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s “Operation Midway Blitz,” which appears to have largely wound down for now, arrested more than 4,000 people. Data on those arrested from early September through mid-October showed only 15% had criminal records, with traffic offenses, misdemeanors or nonviolent felonies comprising the vast majority.

At issue are laws Pritzker signed earlier this month that ban civil arrests at and around courthouses statewide and require hospitals, day care centers and public universities to have procedures for handling civil immigration operations and protecting personal information.

The laws, which took effect immediately, also provide legal steps for people whose constitutional rights were violated during the federal enforcement action in the Chicago area, including $10,000 in damages for someone unlawfully arrested while attempting to attend a court proceeding.

Immigration and legal advocates have applauded the legislation, saying many immigrants were avoiding courthouses, hospitals and schools out of fear of being detained.

Lawrence Benito, executive director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, called the laws “a brave choice” in opposing ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

“Our collective resistance to ICE and CBP’s violent attacks on our communities goes beyond community-led rapid response — it includes legislative solutions as well,” he said at the time.

The Justice Department argues that Pritzker and co-defendant Attorney General Kwame Raoul, also a Democrat, violated the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, which dictates that federal law is supreme. The lawsuit is part of an effort by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to identify state and local laws the agency says impede federal immigration operations.

A spokesperson said Raoul and his staff are reviewing the complaint.

“This new law reflects our belief that no one is above the law, regardless of their position or authority,” Kaehler said. “Unlike the Trump administration, Illinois is protecting constitutional rights in our state.”

Christine Fernando And John O’connor, The Associated Press

O’Connor reported from Springfield, Illinois.

The Trump administration is not satisfied with the Rwanda-backed M23's withdrawal from a strategic town in eastern Congo, a senior U.S. official told Reuters, as residents reported persistent clashes nearby on Tuesday.


M23 seized the town of Uvira, near the border with Burundi, on December 10, days after Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan leader Paul Kagame met President Donald Trump in Washington and reaffirmed a U.S.-brokered peace deal.

The capture marked the rebels' biggest advance in months, fueling fears of regional spillover from fighting that has killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands since January.
After U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Rwanda's actions in mineral-rich eastern Congo were violating the peace deal, M23 last week pledged to withdraw to give peace talks a chance.
While most M23 combatants have left Uvira itself, Washington is "not satisfied" that the group has fully withdrawn, the senior U.S. official said.
"There has been some movement, but we don't feel that it really amounts to a complete liberation of the town. We do believe that the M23 continues to be positioned around the city," the official said.

Some M23 fighters remain in Uvira wearing police instead of military uniforms, two residents told Reuters on Tuesday.
Sporadic gunfire was heard on Tuesday morning from hills overlooking the Kalundu neighbourhood, one resident said.
Sources from M23 and the Congolese army blamed each other for the violence in recent days.
Rwanda denies backing M23 and has blamed Congolese and Burundian forces for the renewed fighting. A report by a United Nations group of experts in July assessed that Rwanda exercised command and control over the rebels.
M23 is not party to the Washington-mediated negotiations, but is negotiating separately with Kinshasa in Qatar.

#WAR STRAINS PUBLIC FINANCES, IMF SAYS

The recent fighting has sent over 84,000 refugees into Burundi this month, overwhelming its capacity, the U.N. refugee agency said last week.
About 500,000 people have been displaced in South Kivu province since early December, and the World Food Programme is scaling up aid for 210,000 vulnerable people.

M23's lightning advance this year in North and South Kivu has cost Congo 0.4% of GDP, while exceptional security spending nears $3 billion, IMF mission chief Calixte Ahokpossi told Reuters.
"If (insecurity) continues in the medium term and they have to continue cutting spending, particularly on investment and social programmes, it will have an impact on growth and the future of the country," he said.

Emergency officials respond to a small plane crash in Texas, Four of the people aboard were Navy officers and four were civilians, including a child, Mexico’s Navy said in a statement to The Associated Press. It was not immediately clear which of them were confirmed dead by U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Luke Baker.

Two of the people aboard were members from the Michou and Mau Foundation, a nonprofit that provides aid to Mexican children with severe burns.

The crash took place Monday afternoon near the base of a causeway, a raised roadway typically built over water, near Galveston, along the Texas coast about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) southeast of Houston. The cause is under investigation.

Mexico’s Navy said in a statement that the plane was helping with a medical mission and had an “accident.” It promised to investigate the cause and is helping local authorities with the search and rescue operation.

Teams from the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have arrived at the scene of the crash, the Texas Department of Public Safety said on the social platform X.

The killing of a general in Moscow follows a series of assassinations Russia blames on #Ukraine.



Russia has accused Ukraine of carrying out a number of high-profile attacks against prominent Russians since Moscow invaded its neighbour nearly four years ago.

While Kyiv has hinted at its involvement in some cases, Ukrainian officials have often stopped short of publicly claiming responsibility. In other cases, they have denied all involvement.

On Monday, a Russian general was killed by a car bomb in Moscow, and investigators say they are looking into whether Ukraine was behind the attack. Ukraine has not yet commented on the death of Lt. Gen. Fanil Sarvarov.

Other attacks that Russia has blamed on Ukraine include:
Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov

Kirillov, head of the military’s nuclear, biological and chemical protection forces, was killed alongside his assistant, Ilya Polikarpov, when a bomb planted on a scooter exploded outside an apartment building in Moscow in December 2024.

Kirillov had been charged in absentia a day earlier by Ukraine’s Security Service, the SBU, with ”ordering the use of banned chemical weapons against Ukraine’s Defense Forces.” The SBU later claimed responsibility for the attack. An Uzbek man was quickly arrested and charged with killing Kirillov on the security service’s behalf.
Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik

Moskalik, a deputy head of the main operational department of the General Staff, was killed in April 2025. A bomb had been placed underneath his car, which was parked near his apartment building just outside Moscow.

Several days after the attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a statement that the country’s Foreign Intelligence Service had informed him of the “elimination of senior command personnel of Russia’s armed forces,” but gave no further details.

A Russian man who previously lived in Ukraine pleaded guilty to carrying out the attack and said that he had been paid by Ukraine’s security services.
Stanislav Rzhitsky

Rzhitsky, a former submarine commander, was gunned down in July 2023 while jogging in Krasnodar, Russia.

Ukrainian media reported that Rzhitsky was one of six submarine commanders able to launch the long-range missiles that hit Vinnytsia, Ukraine, a year earlier, killing 23 people and wounding over 100.

When he died, Rzhitsky was deputy head of a military mobilization office in Krasnodar.

Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s main intelligence directorate, denied Kyiv’s involvement in the death. However, the agency also released details about the killing, including the time of the attack and the number of shots fired. A dual Russian-Ukrainian citizen was convicted in the killing in October 2024.
Zakhar Prilepin

Prilepin, a nationalist Russian writer, narrowly avoided death in a car bombing in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region in May 2023. His driver was killed, while Prilepin was hospitalized with broken bones, bruised lungs and other injuries.

Prilepin, known for his support of the war, was sanctioned by the European Union.

A Ukrainian was found guilty of the attack in a Russian court and sentenced to life imprisonment. Russia’s Investigative Committee accused him of working on orders from Kyiv.

In an interview with Ukrainian journalists in March 2024, SBU chief Lt. Gen. Vasyl Maliuk declined to take responsibility for the attack, but said he could provide some details, such as Prilepin’s injuries.
Vladlen Tatarsky

Tatarsky, a military blogger, was killed in April 2023 when a bomb tore through a cafe in central St Petersburg where he had been speaking.

Tatarsky supported the war in Ukraine and filed regular reports from the front for his Telegram followers.

Darya Trepova was convicted of the bombing and sentenced to 27 years in prison after she was seen on camera presenting a small statue to Tatarsky that exploded shortly afterward. Trepova testified she didn’t know the gift contained a bomb.

In the March 2024 interview, SBU chief Maliuk also declined to take responsibility for Tatarsky’s death, but describing the blogger as a mouthpiece for Russia who had “paid a karmic price before the Ukrainian people.” He also provided details on the bomb that killed Tatarsky.
Illia Kyva

Kyva, a Ukrainian lawmaker who fled to Russia shortly after the full-scale invasion, was found dead near Moscow in December 2023 with a gunshot wound to the head.

A controversial political figure in Ukraine before the war, Kyva often appeared on pro-Kremlin TV talk shows. A month before his death, a Ukrainian court found him guilty in absentia of treason and sentenced him to 14 years in prison.

Russia’s state Investigative Committee accused an Armenian-born businessman of passing on details about Kyva’s movements to the SBU, state news agency Tass said. However, no charges have been brought directly related to the killing.

Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for Ukraine’s military intelligence, said after Kyva’s death that “the same fate will befall other traitors of Ukraine,” but did not say who was behind the killing.
Darya Dugina

Dugina was killed in August 2022 when a remote-controlled bomb planted in her SUV blew up as she drove on Moscow’s outskirts.

Her father, Alexander Dugin, was widely believed to be the intended target. The philosopher, writer and political theorist is an ardent supporter of the war.

Ukraine denied responsibility for the attack, with Zelenskyy saying Dugina was “not our responsibility” and Kyiv was ”not interested in her.”

Russia’s Federal Security Agency, the FSB, publicly identified two Ukrainian citizens as suspects, but said they had escaped abroad.

___

Katie Marie Davies, The Associated Press

#Israeli government approves controversial closure of Army Radio after 75 years