A small Mexican Navy plane transporting a young medical patient and seven others crashed Monday near Galveston, killing at least five people and setting off a search in waters along the Texas coast, officials said.

Four of the people aboard were Navy officers and four were civilians, including a child, Mexicos Navy said in a statement to The Associated Press. Two of the passengers were from a nonprofit that provides aid to Mexican children with severe burns, including transports to a Galveston hospital.

U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Luke Baker said at least five aboard had died but did not identify which passengers.

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The cause of the crash is under investigation.

Mexicos Marines said in a statement that it is sending its deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in this tragic accident.

The crash took place Monday afternoon in Galveston Bay near the base of the causeway that connects Galveston Island to the mainland. Emergency responders and search teams rushed to the scene near the popular beach destination along the Texas coast that is about 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) southeast of Houston.

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Sky Decker, a professional yacht captain who lives about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from the crash site, said he jumped in his boat to see if he could help. He said he picked up two police officers who directed him through thick fog to a nearly completely submerged plane. Decker jumped in the water and found a badly injured woman trapped beneath chairs and other debris.

I couldnt believe. She had maybe 3 inches of air gap to breathe in," he said. "And there was jet fuel in there mixed with the water, fumes real bad. She was really fighting for her life.

He said he also pulled out a man sitting in front of her who had already died. He described both of them as dressed in civilian clothes.

Mexico's Navy said the plane was helping with a medical mission in coordination with the Michou and Mau Foundation, which provides emergency transports to children with life-threatening burns to Shriners Children's hospital in Galveston, according to the nonprofit's website.

The foundation said in a post on social media, We express our deepest solidarity with the families in light of these events. We share their grief with respect and compassion, honoring their memory and reaffirming our commitment to providing humane, sensitive, and dignified care to children with burns.

The statement from Mexicos Navy said the plane had an accident during its approach to Galveston but did not elaborate.

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.

A spokesperson from NTSB said they are aware of this accident and are gathering information about it. The Galveston County Sheriffs Office said officials from its dive team, crime scene unit, drone unit and patrol were responding to the crash.

Its not immediately clear if weather was a factor. The area has been experiencing foggy conditions over the past few days, according to Cameron Batiste, a National Weather Service meteorologist. He said that at about 2:30 p.m. Monday a fog came in that had about a half-mile visibility.

The Powerball jackpot has jumped to an eye-popping $1.7 billion, after the 46th drawing passed without a big winner.

The numbers drawn Monday night were 3, 18, 36, 41, 54 and the Powerball 7.

Since Sept. 6, there have been 46 straight drawings without a big winner.

The next drawing will be on Christmas Eve, with the prize expected to be the 4th-largest in U.S. lottery history.

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Powerballs odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate big jackpots, with prizes growing as they roll over when no one wins. Lottery officials note that the odds are far better for the games many smaller prizes. There are three drawings each week.

The estimated $1.6 billion jackpot goes to a winner who opts to receive 30 payments over 29 years through an annuity. Winners almost always choose the games cash option, which for Monday nights drawing would be an estimated $735.3 million.

Powerball tickets cost $2, and the game is offered in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

U.S. regulators on Monday gave the green light to a pill version of the blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, the first daily oral medication to treat obesity.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administrations approval handed drugmaker Novo Nordisk an edge over rival Eli Lilly in the race to market an obesity pill. Lillys oral drug, orforglipron, is still under review.

Both pills are GLP-1 drugs that work like widely used injectables to mimic a natural hormone that controls appetite and feelings of fullness.

In recent years, Novo Nordisks injectable Wegovy and Lillys Zepbound have revolutionized obesity treatment globally and in the U.S., where 100 million people have the chronic disease.

The Wegovy pills are expected to be available within weeks, company officials said. Availability of oral pills to treat obesity could expand the booming market for obesity treatments by broadening access and reducing costs, experts said.

RELATED STORY | Medicare Part D recipients to see lower prices on Ozempic, Wegovy and more

About 1 in 8 Americans have used injectable GLP-1 drugs, according to a survey from KFF, a nonprofit health policy research group. But many more have trouble affording the costly shots.

Theres an entire demographic that can benefit from the pills, said Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, a Massachusetts General Hospital obesity expert. For me, its not just about who gets it across the finish line first. Its about having these options available to patients.

The Novo Nordisk obesity pill contains 25 milligrams of semaglutide. That's the same ingredient in injectables Wegovy and Ozempic and in Rybelsus, a lower-dose pill approved to treat diabetes in 2019.

In a clinical trial, participants who took oral Wegovy lost 13.6% of their total body weight on average over about 15 months, compared with a 2.2% loss if they took a placebo, or dummy pill. Thats nearly the same as injectable Wegovy, with an average weight loss of about 15%.

Chris Mertens, 35, a pediatric lung doctor in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, joined the Novo Nordisk trial in 2022 and lost about 40 pounds using the Wegovy pill. The daily medication worked to decrease his appetite and invasive thoughts of food, he said.

If there were days where I missed a meal, I almost didnt realize it, Mertens said.

Participants in a clinical trial who took the highest dose of Lillys orforglipron lost 11.2% of their total body weight on average over nearly 17 months, compared with a 2.1% loss in those who took a placebo.

Both pills resulted in less weight loss than the average achieved with Lillys Zepbound, or tirzepatide, which targets two gut hormones, GLP-1 and GIP, and led to a 21% average weight loss.

All the GLP-1 drugs, oral or injectable, have similar side effects, including nausea and diarrhea.

Both daily pills promise convenience, but the Wegovy pill must be taken with a sip of water in the morning on an empty stomach, with a 30-minute break before eating or drinking.

Thats because Novo Nordisk had to design the pill in a way that prevented the drug from being broken down in the stomach before it could be absorbed by the bloodstream. The drugmaker added an ingredient that protects the medication for about 30 minutes in the gut and makes it easier to take effect.

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By contrast, Lillys orforglipron has no dosing restrictions. That drug is being considered under the FDAs new priority voucher program aimed at cutting drug approval times. A decision is expected by spring.

Producing pills is generally cheaper than making drugs delivered via injections, so the cost for the new oral medications could be lower. The Trump administration earlier this year said officials had worked with drugmakers to negotiate lower prices for the GLP-1 drugs, which can cost upwards of $1,000 a month.

The company said the starting dose would be available for $149 per month from some providers. Additional information on cost will be available in January.

Its not clear whether daily pills or weekly injections will be preferred by patients. Although some patients dislike needles, others don't seem to mind the weekly injections, obesity experts said. Mertens turned to injectable Zepbound when he regained weight after the end of the Wegovy pill clinical trial.

He said he liked the discipline of the daily pill.

It was a little bit of an intentional routine and a reminder of today Im taking this so that I know my choices are going to be affected for the day, he said.

Dr. Angela Fitch, an obesity expert and chief medical officer of knownwell, a health care company, said whatever the format, the biggest benefit will be in making weight-loss medications more widely accessible and affordable.

Its all about the price, she said. Just give me a drug at $100 a month that is relatively effective.

Vince Zampella, one of the creators behind such best-selling video games as Call of Duty, has died. He was 55.

Video game company Electronic Arts said Zampella died Sunday. The company did not disclose a cause of death.

In 2010, Zampella founded Respawn Entertainment, a subsidiary of EA, and he also was the former chief executive of video game developer Infinity Ward, the studio behind the successful Call of Duty franchise.

A spokesperson for Electronic Arts said in a statement on Monday that Zampella's influence on the video game industry was profound and far-reaching."

A friend, colleague, leader and visionary creator, his work helped shape modern interactive entertainment and inspired millions of players and developers around the world. His legacy will continue to shape how games are made and how players connect for generations to come, a company spokesperson wrote.

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One of Zampella's crowning achievements was the creation of the "Call of Duty" franchise, which has sold more than half a billion games worldwide,

The first person shooter game debuted in 2003 as a World War II simulation and has sold over 500 million copies globally. Subsequent versions have delved into modern warfare and there is a live-action movie based on the game in production with Paramount Pictures.

In recent years, Zampella has been at the helm of the creation of the action adventure video games "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order" and "Star Wars Jedi: Survivor."

Bourbon maker Jim Beam is halting production at one of its distilleries in Kentucky for at least a year as the whiskey industry navigates tariffs from the Trump administration and slumping demand for a product that needs years of aging before it is ready.

Jim Beam said the decision to pause bourbon making at its Clermont location in 2026 will give the company time to invest in improvements at the distillery. The bottling and warehouse at the site will remain open, along with the James B. Beam Distilling Co. visitors center and restaurant.

The company's larger distillery in Boston, Kentucky, will continue to operate, the company said.

"We are always assessing production levels to best meet consumer demand," the company said in a statement that added they were talking with the distillery's union to determine whether there will be layoffs or other reductions.

Bourbon makers have to gamble well into the future. Jim Beam's flagship bourbon requires at least four years of aging in barrels before being bottled.

Whiskey makers are dealing with back-and-forth arguments over tariffs in Europe and in Canada, where a boycott started after the Trump administration suggested annexing the country into the U.S.

Overall exports of American spirits fell 9% in the second quarter of 2025 compared to a year ago, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. The most dramatic decrease came in U.S. spirits exports to Canada, which fell 85% in the April-through-June quarter

Bourbon production has grown significantly in recent years. As of January, there were about 16 million barrels of bourbon aging in Kentucky warehouses more than triple the amount held 15 years ago, according to the Kentucky Distillers' Association.

But sales figures and polling show Americans are drinking less than they have in decades.

About 95% of all bourbon made in the U.S. comes from Kentucky. The trade group estimated the industry brings more than 23,000 jobs and $2.2 billion to the state.

From department stores to grocery stores, most retailers across the U.S. close early on Christmas Eve and shut their doors entirely on Christmas Day while others opt to cut back hours. But there's also a handful of businesses that will be open during the holiday.

Before you run out the door this Christmas whether it's to buy last-minute gifts or simply get out of the house it's wise to double-check operating hours, which can differ depending on their location. When in doubt, call ahead or look up more specific schedules online for stores in your neighborhood.

Here are some of the grocery, convenience and retail stores that are CLOSED on Christmas Day:

ALDI Costco Harris Teeter Home Depot IKEA Jewel-Osco Kroger Lowe's Macy's Meijer Publix Sam's Club Sprouts Farmer's Market Target Trader Joe's Walmart Whole Foods

Here are some of the grocery, convenience and retail stores that are OPEN on Christmas Day (or have select locations that are):

Albertsons: Select locations may remain open with adjusted hours CVS: Hours may vary based on location. Denny's: Most locations are open but check your local hours. Dunkin': Most locations are open but check your local hours. McDonald's: Many locations are open on holidays like Christmas, but hours vary by location. Ralph's: Some stores open with reduced hours. Safeway: Many stores are closed, but there will also be some locations open with adjusted hours. Sheetz: Stores are open with regular hours (24/7). Starbucks: Some locations are open. Hours may vary. 7-Eleven: Most stores are open 24/7 (including on Christmas), but some locations' hours can vary. Waffle House Walgreens: Stores will be open on Christmas Day but pharmacy hours may vary. Wawa: Most locations are open.

The leaders of Denmark and Greenland insisted Monday that the United States won't take over Greenland and demanded respect for their territorial integrity after President Donald Trump announced the appointment of a special envoy to the semi-autonomous territory.

Trump's announcement on Sunday that Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry would be the envoy prompted a new flare-up of tensions over Washington's interest in the vast territory of Denmark, a NATO ally. Denmark's foreign minister told Danish broadcasters that he would summon the U.S. ambassador to his ministry.

"We have said it before. Now, we say it again. National borders and the sovereignty of states are rooted in international law," Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and her Greenlandic counterpart, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said in a joint statement. "They are fundamental principles. You cannot annex another country. Not even with an argument about international security."

"Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders and the U.S. shall not take over Greenland," they added in the statement emailed by Frederiksen's office. "We expect respect for our joint territorial integrity."

ICYMI | Trump doesn't rule out military force to acquire Greenland for 'international security'

Trump called repeatedly during his presidential transition and the early months of his second term for U.S. jurisdiction over Greenland, and has not ruled out military force to take control of the mineral-rich, strategically located Arctic island. In March, Vice President JD Vance visited a remote U.S. military base in Greenland and accused Denmark of under-investing there.

The issue gradually drifted out of the headlines, but in August, Danish officials summoned the top U.S. diplomat in Copenhagen following a report that at least three people with connections to Trump had carried out covert influence operations in Greenland.

On Sunday, Trump announced Landry's appointment, saying on social media that "Jeff understands how essential Greenland is to our National Security, and will strongly advance our Country's Interests for the Safety, Security, and Survival of our Allies, and indeed, the World."

Landry wrote in a post on social media that "it's an honor to serve you in this volunteer position to make Greenland a part of the U.S."

Danish broadcasters TV2 and DR reported that in comments from the Faroe Islands Monday, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lkke Rasmussen said he summon the U.S. ambassador in Copenhagen, Kenneth Howery, to his ministry.

WATCH: Cold War Base in Greenland, Hot Again

Greenland's prime minister wrote in a separate statement that Greenland had again woken up to a new announcement from the U.S. president, and that "it may sound significant. But it changes nothing for us here at home."

Nielsen noted that Greenland has its own democracy and said that "we are happy to cooperate with other countries, including the United States, but this must always take place with respect for us and for our values and wishes."

Earlier this month, the Danish Defense Intelligence Service said in an annual report that the U.S. is using its economic power to "assert its will" and threaten military force against friend and foe alike.

Denmark is a member of the European Union as well as NATO.

Anouar El Anouni, a spokesperson for the EU's executive Commission, told reporters in Brussels on Monday that it wasn't for him to comment on U.S. decisions. But he underlined the bloc's position that "preserving the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark, its sovereignty and the inviolability of its borders is essential for the European Union."

Chris Rea, the singer and songwriter best known for the hit "Driving Home for Christmas," has died at 74, his family said Monday.

Rea died in the hospital following a short illness, according to a statement from his family to Britain's Press Association news agency.

Rea found fame in the 1980s in Britain with hits such as "Fool (If You Think It's Over)" and "Let's Dance."

Two of his studio albums, "The Road to Hell" in 1989 and "Auberge" in 1991, went to number one in the country.

"Driving Home for Christmas," did not become an overnight hit when it was first released in 1986, but the gentle track proved to be an enduring success over the decades and remains one of the U.K.'s most-loved festive songs. It featured in a TV advertisement for the retailer Marks and Spencer just this year.

The musician was born in 1951 in Middlesbrough, in northeast England, to an Italian father and Irish mother. He took various jobs after leaving school and helped out in his family's ice cream business.

He came late to the guitar, picking one up at 21, and played in bands before going solo.

He had suffered from health problems including pancreatic cancer, and in 2016 he suffered a stroke. In more recent years he turned away from pop and released several bluesy records.

Rea is survived by his wife and two daughters.

Instacart said Monday that its ending a program where some customers saw different prices for the same product ordered at the same time from the same store when using the delivery companys service.

The program was meant to help grocers and other retailers learn more about what kinds of prices customers would pay for items, similar to how stores offer different prices for the same products at different locations. But it raised alarms after a report from Consumer Reports and two progressive advocacy groups, Groundwork Collaborative and More Perfect Union, said Instacart offered nearly three out of every four grocery items to shoppers at multiple prices in an experiment.

RELATED STORY | Same groceries, same store: So why did you pay more than your neighbor?

At a time when families are working exceptionally hard to stretch every grocery dollar, those tests raised concerns, leaving some people questioning the prices they see on Instacart, the company said in a Monday blog post. Thats not okay especially for a company built on trust, transparency, and affordability.

Retailers will continue to set their own prices on the delivery website and they may still offer different prices at different brick-and-mortar locations, Instacart said, but from now on, Instacart will not support any item price testing services.

Instacart said these services were neither dynamic pricing, a system where the price for something can go up when demand is high, nor surveillance pricing, where prices can be set based on a user's income, shopping history or other personal information. Instead, the company said it was offered to customers at random.

Some customers would simply see a slightly higher price for an item, while others would see a slightly lower price. The experiment by Consumer Reports and the two progressive advocacy groups, for example, found that Instacart customers saw one of five different prices for the same dozen of Lucerne eggs from a Safeway store in Washington, D.C.: $3.99, $4.28, $4.59, $4.69, or $4.79.

Instacart had been offering the price-testing service to retailers since 2023. The company declined to say how many customers may have been affected, but it will end the service, effective immediately.

RELATED STORY | Why Instacart is expected to send $60 million in refunds to customers

Last week, in a separate case, Instacart agreed to pay $60 million in customer refunds to settle federal allegations of deceptive practices. The Federal Trade Commission had accused Instacart of falsely advertising free deliveries and not clearly disclosing service fees, which add as much as 15% to an order and must be paid for customers.

Instacart denied FTC allegations of wrongdoing and said it reached a settlement in order to move forward and focus on its business.

Trust is earned through clarity and consistency, Instacart said in its blog post Monday. Customers should never have to second-guess the prices theyre seeing.

The U.S. Coast Guard on Sunday was pursuing another sanctioned oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea as the Trump administration appeared to be intensifying its targeting of such vessels connected to Venezuelan government.

The pursuit of the tanker, which was confirmed by a U.S. official briefed on the operation, comes after the U.S. administration announced Saturday it had seized a tanker for the second time in less than two weeks.

The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly about the ongoing operation and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Sunday's pursuit involved a sanctioned dark fleet vessel that is part of Venezuelas illegal sanctions evasion.

The official said the vessel was flying a false flag and under a judicial seizure order.

The Coast Guards pursuit of the tanker was first reported by Reuters.

RELATED STORY | What's really behind the tension between the US and Venezuela?

Saturdays predawn seizure of a Panama-flagged vessel called Centuries targeted what the White House described as a falsely flagged vessel operating as part of the Venezuelan shadow fleet to traffic stolen oil.

The Coast Guard, with assistance from the Navy, seized a sanctioned tanker called Skipper on Dec. 10, another part of the shadow fleet of tankers that the U.S. says operates on the fringes of the law to move sanctioned cargo. It was not even flying a nations flag when it was seized by the Coast Guard.

President Donald Trump, after that first seizure, said that the U.S. would carry out a blockade of Venezuela. It all comes as Trump has ratcheted up his rhetoric toward Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro.

This past week Trump demanded that Venezuela return assets that it seized from U.S. oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of a blockade against oil tankers traveling to or from the South American country that face American sanctions.

Trump cited the lost U.S. investments in Venezuela when asked about his newest tactic in a pressure campaign against Maduro, suggesting the Republican administrations moves are at least somewhat motivated by disputes over oil investments, along with accusations of drug trafficking. Some sanctioned tankers already are diverting away from Venezuela.

U.S. oil companies dominated Venezuelas petroleum industry until the countrys leaders moved to nationalize the sector, first in the 1970s and again in the 21st century under Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chvez. Compensation offered by Venezuela was deemed insufficient, and in 2014, an international arbitration panel ordered the countrys socialist government to pay $1.6 billion to ExxonMobil.

Maduro said in a message Sunday on Telegram that Venezuela has spent months denouncing, challenging and defeating a campaign of aggression that goes from psychological terrorism to corsairs attacking oil tankers.

He added: We are ready to accelerate the pace of our deep revolution!

RELATED STORY | Trump announces blockade of Venezuelan oil tankers

The targeting of tankers comes as Trump has ordered the Defense Department to carry out a series of attacks on vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean that his administration alleges are smuggling fentanyl and other illegal drugs into the United States and beyond.

At least 104 people have been killed in 28 known strikes since early September. The strikes have faced scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers and human rights activists, who say the administration has offered scant evidence that its targets are indeed drug smugglers and that the fatal strikes amount to extrajudicial killings.

Trump has repeatedly said Maduro's days in power are numbered. White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said in an interview with Vanity Fair published last week that Trump wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday that Trump's use of military to mount pressure on Maduro runs contrary to Trump's pledge to keep the United States out of unnecessary wars.

Democrats have been pressing Trump to seek congressional authorization for the military action in the Caribbean.

We should be using sanctions and other tools at our disposal to punish this dictator who is violating the human rights of his civilians and has run the Venezuelan economy into the ground, Kaine said. "But Ill tell you, we should not be waging war against Venezuela. We definitely should not be waging war without a vote of Congress.

WATCH | Congress questions Hegseth on drug boat deaths as Venezuela military operations expand

A Kremlin envoy said peace talks on a U.S.-proposed plan to end the nearly four-year war in Ukraine were pressing on constructively in Florida, while the Ukrainian president said they were moving quickly."

The talks are part of the Trump administrations monthslong push for peace that also included meetings with Ukrainian and European officials in Berlin earlier this week.

Florida talks press on

The discussions are proceeding constructively. They began earlier and will continue today, and will also continue tomorrow, Kirill Dmitriev told reporters in Miami on Saturday.

Dmitriev met with U.S. President Donald Trumps envoy Steve Witkoff and Trumps son-in-law Jared Kushner, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT | Russian missile strike on Odesa kills 8 as US hosts a Kremlin envoy for peace talks

Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram Sunday that diplomatic efforts were moving forward quite quickly, and our team in Florida has been working with the American side. This came after Ukraines chief negotiator said Friday his delegation had completed separate meetings in the United States with American and European partners.

Trump has unleashed an extensive diplomatic push to end the war, but his efforts have run into sharply conflicting demands by Moscow and Kyiv. Russian President Vladimir Putin has recently signaled he is digging in on his maximalist demands on Ukraine, as Moscows troops inch forward on the battlefield despite huge losses.

On Friday, Putin expressed confidence that the Kremlin would achieve its military goals if Kyiv didnt agree to Russias conditions in peace talks.

Possible French-Russian talks

The French presidency on Sunday welcomed Putins willingness to speak with President Emmanuel Macron, saying it would decide how to proceed in the coming days.

As soon as the prospect of a ceasefire and peace negotiations becomes clearer, it becomes useful again to speak with Putin, Macrons office said in a statement. It is welcome that the Kremlin publicly agrees to this approach.

The statement came after reports that Putin was open to holding talks with the French president if there was mutual political will.

Macrons office said any dialogue would aim to contribute to a solid and lasting peace for Ukraine and Europe, in full transparency with President Zelenskyy and our European partners.

RELATED STORY | In annual news conference, Putin says military goals will be achieved in Ukraine

European Union leaders agreed on Friday to provide $106 billion to Ukraine to meet its military and economic needs for the next two years, although they failed to bridge differences with Belgium that would have allowed them to use frozen Russian assets to raise the funds. Instead, they were borrowed from capital markets.

Ukrainian civilians moved to Russia

In Ukraine, the countrys human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, accused Sunday Russian forces of forcibly removing about 50 Ukrainian civilians from the Ukrainian Sumy border region to Russian territory.

Writing on Telegram, he said that Russian forces illegally detained the residents in the village of Hrabovske on Thursday, before moving them to Russia on Saturday.

Lubinets said he contacted Russias human rights commissioner, requesting information on the civilians whereabouts and conditions, and demanding their immediate return to Ukraine.

WATCH | Sniper GoProd the War Then It Followed Him Home

Israels Cabinet approved a proposal for 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, the far-right finance minister said on Sunday.

The settlements include two that were previously evacuated during a 2005 disengagement plan, according to Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich, who has pushed a settlement expansion agenda in the West Bank.

It brings the total number of new settlements over the past two years to 69, Smotrich wrote on X.

The approval increases the number of settlements in the West Bank by nearly 50% during the current governments tenure, from 141 in 2022 to 210 after the current approval, according to Peace Now, an anti-settlement watchdog group. Settlements are widely considered illegal under international law.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT | Hamas confirms the death of a top commander in Gaza after Israeli strike

The approval comes as the U.S. is pushing Israel and Hamas to move ahead with the new phase of the Gaza ceasefire, which took effect Oct. 10. The U.S.-brokered plan calls for a possible pathway to a Palestinian state something the settlements are aimed at preventing.

The Cabinet decision included a retroactive legalization of some previously established settlement outposts or neighborhoods of existing settlements, and the creation of settlements on land where Palestinians were evacuated, Peace Now said.

Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza areas claimed by the Palestinians for a future state in the 1967 war. It has settled over 500,000 Jews in the West Bank, in addition to over 200,000 more in contested east Jerusalem.

Israels government is dominated by far-right proponents of the settler movement, including Smotrich and Cabinet Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees the nations police force.

RELATED STORY | Trump expands travel ban and restrictions to include an additional 20 countries

Settler expansion has been compounded by a surge of attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank in recent months.

During Octobers olive harvest, settlers across the territory launched an average of eight attacks daily, according to the United Nations humanitarian office, the most since it began collecting data in 2006. The attacks continued in November, with the U.N. recording at least 136 more by Nov. 24.

Settlers burned cars, desecrated mosques, ransacked industrial plants and destroyed cropland. Israeli authorities have done little beyond issuing occasional condemnations of the violence.

WATCH | What we know about "NILI," a secret Israeli unit targeting Hamas terrorists

At least 16 files disappeared from the Justice Departments public webpage for documents related to Jeffrey Epstein including a photograph showing President Donald Trump less than a day after they were posted, with no explanation from the government and no notice to the public.

The missing files, which were available Friday and no longer accessible by Saturday, included images of paintings depicting nude women, and one showing a series of photographs along a credenza and in drawers. In that image, inside a drawer among other photos, was a photograph of Trump, alongside Epstein, Melania Trump and Epstein's longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell.

The Justice Department did not say why the files were removed or whether their disappearance was intentional. A spokesperson for the department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Online, the unexplained missing files fueled speculation about what was taken down and why the public was not notified, compounding long-standing intrigue about Epstein and the powerful figures who surrounded him. Democrats on the House Oversight Committee pointed to the missing image featuring a Trump photo in a post on X, writing: What else is being covered up? We need transparency for the American public.

RELATED STORY | Minimal mention of Trump in Justice Departments initial Epstein file release

The episode deepened concerns that had already emerged from the Justice Departments much-anticipated document release. The tens of thousands of pages made public offered little new insight into Epsteins crimes or the prosecutorial decisions that allowed him to avoid serious federal charges for years, while omitting some of the most closely watched materials, including FBI interviews with victims and internal Justice Department memos on charging decisions.

Scant new insight in the initial disclosures

Some of the most consequential records expected about Epstein are nowhere to be found in the Justice Department's initial disclosures, which span tens of thousands of pages.

Missing are FBI interviews with survivors and internal Justice Department memos examining charging decisions records that could have helped explain how investigators viewed the case and why Epstein was allowed in 2008 to plead guilty to a relatively minor state-level prostitution charge.

The gaps go further.

The records, required to be released under a recent law passed by Congress, hardly reference several powerful figures long associated with Epstein, including Britains former Prince Andrew, renewing questions about who was scrutinized, who was not, and how much the disclosures truly advance public accountability

Among the fresh nuggets: insight into the Justice Departments decision to abandon an investigation into Epstein in the 2000s, which enabled him to plead guilty to that state-level charge, and a previously unseen 1996 complaint accusing Epstein of stealing photographs of children.

The releases so far have been heavy on images of Epsteins homes in New York City and the U.S. Virgin Islands, with some photos of celebrities and politicians.

There was a series of never-before-seen photos of former President Bill Clinton but fleetingly few of Trump. Both have been associated with Epstein, but both have since disowned those friendships. Neither has been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Epstein and there was no indication the photos played a role in the criminal cases brought against him.

Despite a Friday deadline set by Congress to make everything public, the Justice Department said it plans to release records on a rolling basis. It blamed the delay on the time-consuming process of obscuring survivors' names and other identifying information. The department has not given any notice when more records might arrive.

RELATED STORY | Attorney of Epstein victim speaks out after DOJ files released

That approach angered some Epstein accusers and members of Congress who fought to pass the law forced the department to act. Instead of marking the end of a yearslong battle for transparency, the document release Friday was merely the beginning of an indefinite wait for a complete picture of Epsteins crimes and the steps taken to investigate them.

I feel like again the DOJ, the justice system is failing us, said Marina Lacerda, who alleges Epstein started sexually abusing her at his New York City mansion when she was 14.

Many of the long-anticipated records were redacted or lacked context

Federal prosecutors in New York brought sex trafficking charges against Epstein in 2019, but he killed himself in jail after his arrest.

The documents just made public were a sliver of potentially millions of pages records in the departments possession. In one example, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Manhattan federal prosecutors had more than 3.6 million records from sex trafficking investigations into Epstein and Maxwell, though many duplicated material already turned over by the FBI.

Many of the records released so far had been made public in court filings, congressional releases or freedom of information requests, though, for the first time, they were all in one place and available for the public to search for free.

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Ones that were new were often lacking necessary context or heavily blacked out. A 119-page document marked Grand Jury-NY," likely from one of the federal sex trafficking investigations that led to the charges against Epstein in 2019 or Maxwell in 2021, was entirely blacked out.

Trumps Republican allies seized on the Clinton images, including photos of the Democrat with singers Michael Jackson and Diana Ross. There were also photos of Epstein with actors Chris Tucker and Kevin Spacey, and even Epstein with TV newscaster Walter Cronkite. But none of the photos had captions and was no explanation given for why any of them were together.

The meatiest records released so far showed that federal prosecutors had what appeared to be a strong case against Epstein in 2007 yet never charged him.

Transcripts of grand jury proceedings, released publicly for the first time, included testimony from FBI agents who described interviews they had with several girls and young women who described being paid to perform sex acts for Epstein. The youngest was 14 and in ninth grade.

One had told investigators about being sexually assaulted by Epstein when she initially resisted his advances during a massage.

Another, then 21, testified before the grand jury about how Epstein had hired her when she was 16 to perform a sexual massage and how she had gone on to recruit other girls to do the same.

For every girl that I brought to the table he would give me $200, she said. They were mostly people she knew from high school, she said. I also told them that if they are under age, just lie about it and tell him that you are 18.

The documents also contain a transcript of an interview Justice Department lawyers did more than a decade later with the U.S. attorney who oversaw the case, Alexander Acosta, about his ultimate decision not to bring federal charges.

Acosta, who was labor secretary during Trumps first term, cited concerns about whether a jury would believe Epsteins accusers.

He also said the Justice Department might have been more reluctant to make a federal prosecution out of a case that straddled the legal border between sex trafficking and soliciting prostitution, something more commonly handled by state prosecutors.

Im not saying it was the right view, Acosta added. He also said that the public today would likely view the survivors differently.

Theres been a lot of changes in victim shaming, Acosta said.

U.S. forces on Saturday stopped a vessel off the coast of Venezuela for the second time in less than two weeks as President Donald Trump continues to ramp up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro.

The move, which was confirmed by two U.S. officials familiar with matter, comes days after Trump announced a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers coming in and out of the South American country and follows the Dec. 10 seizure by American forces of an oil tanker off Venezuelas coast.

The officials were not authorized to discuss publicly the ongoing military operation and spoke on condition of anonymity. One official described the action as a consented boarding, with the tanker stopping voluntarily and allowing U.S. forces to board it.

Pentagon and White House officials did not immediately respond to a requests for comment.

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Trump, following the first tanker seizure this mont,h vowed that the U.S. would carry out a blockade of Venezuela. It all comes as Trump has ratcheted up his rhetoric toward Maduro and warned that the longtime Venezuelan leaders days in power are numbered.

Trump this week demanded that Venezuela return assets that it seized from U.S. oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of a blockade against oil tankers traveling to or from the South American country that face American sanctions.

Trump cited the lost U.S. investments in Venezuela when asked about his newest tactic in a pressure campaign against Maduro, suggesting the Republican administrations moves are at least somewhat motivated by disputes over oil investments, along with accusations of drug trafficking. Some sanctioned tankers already are diverting away from Venezuela.

"Were not going to be letting anybody going through who shouldnt be going through, Trump told reporters earlier this week. You remember they took all of our energy rights. They took all of our oil not that long ago. And we want it back. They took it they illegally took it.

U.S. oil companies dominated Venezuelas petroleum industry until the countrys leaders moved to nationalize the sector, first in the 1970s and again in the 21st century under Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chvez. Compensation offered by Venezuela was deemed insufficient, and in 2014 an international arbitration panel ordered the countrys socialist government to pay $1.6 billion to ExxonMobil.

RELATED STORY | Full video of Venezuela drug boat strikes will not be made public, Hegseth says

The targeting of tankers comes as Trump has ordered the Defense Department to carry out a series of attacks on vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean that his administration alleges are smuggling fentanyl and other illegal drugs into the United States and beyond.

At least 104 people have been killed in 28 known strikes since early September.

The strikes have faced scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers and human rights activists, who say the administration has offered scant evidence that its targets are indeed drug smugglers and that the fatal strikes amount to extrajudicial killings.

The Coast Guard, sometimes with help from the Navy, had typically interdicted boats suspected of smuggling drugs in the Caribbean Sea, searched for illicit cargo, and arrested the people aboard for prosecution.

The administration has justified the strikes as necessary, asserting it is in armed conflict with drug cartels aimed at halting the flow of narcotics into the United States. Maduro faces federal charges of narcoterrorism in the U.S.

The U.S. in recent months has sent a fleet of warships to the region, the largest buildup of forces in generations, and Trump has stated repeatedly that land attacks are coming soon.

Maduro has insisted the real purpose of the U.S. military operations is to force him from power.

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said in an interview with Vanity Fair published this week that Trump wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle.

Anthony Joshua knocked out Jake Paul in the sixth round of their heavyweight fight on Friday night.

The two-time heavyweight champion displayed why he is one of the sports elite punchers when he dropped the fading Paul twice in the fifth round.

Sensing the YouTuber was finished, Joshua rocked him with a right uppercut early in the sixth. The native of England then floored Paul with a combination to the head.

Although Paul (12-2) reached his feet again, Joshua (29-4, 26 KOs) finally crushed Pauls upset dream when he dropped him a fourth time with a right to the head. Referee Christopher Young counted Paul out at 1:31 of the round in front of a capacity crowd of 19,600 at the Kaseya Center.

It took a little bit longer than expected but the right hand finally found its destination," Joshua said. "Jake Pauls done really well tonight. Im going to give him his props. He got up time and time again. I give Jake the respect for trying and trying. He came up against a real fighter tonight.

Paul later reported that his jaw was broken in two spots.

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With the victory, Joshua now can now angle to reclaim the heavyweight title he lost against Oleksandr Usyk. Joshua also has talked about a long discussed match with countryman and former champion, Tyson Fury. However, Fury is currently retired following consecutive losses to Usyk in 2024.

It was Joshuas first bout since Daniel Dubois knocked him out in five rounds in Sept. 2024.

Joshua methodically established pace against Paul from the opening round as neither fighter engaged early. Midway through the round, Paul threw an overhand right that Joshua blocked with his glove. In the closing seconds, Joshua scored with a right to the head near the ropes.

In the second, Joshua began utilizing his 6-inch reach advantage by leading with a left jab.

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Paul scored with a short right to the head early in the fourth. Later in the round, Paul twice fell to the canvas awkwardly as he again attempted to cut distance during close exchanges

I gave it my all," Paul said. "Anthony is a great fighter and I got my (rear end) kicked but that what this sport is all about. But Im going to come back and keep winning.

Paul weighed 216 pounds and Joshua weighed 243 for the bout.

The 28-year-old Paul, who began his career in Jan. 2020, originally had targeted an exhibition in Miami with lightweight champion Gervonta Davis last month. But Davis encountered legal problems that scrapped the event. Paul quickly pivoted and landed the bout against Joshua in the same venue.

Celebrities in the crowd included golf champion Rory McIlroy, New York Mets slugger Juan Soto, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy and retired NFL receivers Michael Irvin and Brandon Marshall.

In an undercard bout between retired UFC champions, 50-year-old Anderson Silva scored a second-round TKO against Tyron Woodley.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday announced the start of a military operation in Syria to eliminate ISIS fighters, infrastructure, and weapons sites following the deaths of three U.S. citizens in an ambush attack almost a week ago.

A U.S. official described it as a large-scale strike that targeted multiple locations and concentrated areas across central Syria that had Islamic State group infrastructure and weapons. Another U.S. official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operations, said more strikes should be expected.

RELATED STORY | Attacker who killed US troops in Syria was a recent recruit to security forces, official says

The attack was conducted using F-15 Eagle jets, A-10 Thunderbolt ground attack aircraft and AH-64 Apache helicopters, the officials said. F-16 fighter jets from Jordan and HIMARS rocket artillery also were used, one official said.

This is not the beginning of a war it is a declaration of vengeance. The United States of America, under President Trumps leadership, will never hesitate and never relent to defend our people, Hegseth said on social media.

President Donald Trump had pledged very serious retaliation after the shooting in the Syrian desert last Saturday that killed two Iowa National Guard members and a U.S. civilian interpreter. He blamed IS for their deaths. The troops were among hundreds of U.S. troops deployed in eastern Syria as part of a coalition fighting IS.

The attack was a major test for the warming ties between the United States and Syria since the ouster of autocratic leader Bashar Assad a year ago. Trump has stressed that Syria was fighting alongside U.S. troops and said Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa was extremely angry and disturbed by this attack, which came as the U.S. military is expanding its cooperation with Syrian security forces.

Syrian state television reported that strikes hit targets in rural areas of Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa provinces and in the Jabal al-Amour area near Palmyra. It said they targeted weapons storage sites and headquarters used by ISIS as launching points for its operations in the region.

White House officials noted that Trump had made clear that retaliation was coming.

President Trump told the world that the United States would retaliate for the killing of our heroes by ISIS in Syria, and he is delivering on that promise, White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said in a statement.

Trump this week met privately with the families of the slain Americans at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware before he joined top military officials and other dignitaries on the tarmac for the dignified transfer, a solemn and largely silent ritual honoring U.S. service members killed in action.

RELATED STORY | Trump vows retaliation after 2 U.S. troops, 1 civilian killed in ISIS ambush

The guardsmen killed in Syria on Saturday were Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, according to the U.S. Army. Ayad Mansoor Sakat, of Macomb, Michigan, a U.S. civilian working as an interpreter, was also killed.

The shooting nearly a week ago near the historic city of Palmyra also wounded three other U.S. troops as well as members of Syrias security forces, and the gunman was killed. The assailant had joined Syrias internal security forces as a base security guard two months ago and recently was reassigned because of suspicions that he might be affiliated with IS, Interior Ministry spokesperson Nour al-Din al-Baba has said.

The man stormed a meeting between U.S. and Syrian security officials who were having lunch together and opened fire after clashing with Syrian guards.

When asked for further information, the Pentagon referred AP to Hegseths social media post.

A jury found a Wisconsin judge accused of helping a Mexican immigrant dodge federal authorities guilty of obstruction Thursday, marking a victory for President Donald Trump as he continues his sweeping immigration crackdown across the country.

Federal prosecutors charged Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan with obstruction, a felony, and concealing an individual to prevent arrest, a misdemeanor, in April. The jury acquitted her on the concealment count, but she still faces up to five years in prison on the obstruction count.

The jury returned the verdicts after deliberating for six hours.

Dugan and her attorneys left the courtroom, ducked into a side conference room and closed the door without speaking to reporters.

According to a court filings that include an FBI affidavit and a federal grand jury indictment, immigration authorities traveled to the Milwaukee County courthouse on April 18 after learning 31-year-old Eduardo Flores-Ruiz had reentered the country illegally and was scheduled to appear before Dugan for a hearing in a state battery case.

Dugan learned that agents were in the corridor outside her courtroom waiting for Flores-Ruiz. She left the courtroom to confront them, falsely telling them their administrative warrant for Flores-Ruiz wasnt sufficient grounds to arrest him and directing them to go to the chief judges office.

While the agents were gone, she addressed Flores-Ruizs case off the record, told his attorney that he could attend his next hearing via Zoom and led Flores-Ruiz and the attorney out a private jury door. Agents spotted Flores-Ruiz in the corridor, followed him outside and arrested him after a foot chase. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced in November he had been deported.

CASE BACKGROUND | Wisconsin high court suspends Milwaukee judge accused of helping man evade immigration authorities

The case inflamed tensions over Trumps immigration crackdown, with his administration branding Dugan an activist judge and Democrats countering that the administration was trying to make an example of Dugan to blunt judicial opposition to the operation.

Prosecutors worked during Dugans trial to show that she directed agents to the chief judges office to create an opening for Flores-Ruiz to escape.

An FBI agent who led the investigation testified that after agents left the corridor, she immediately moved Flores-Ruizs case to the top of her docket, told him that he could appear for his next hearing via Zoom and led him out the private door.

Prosecutors also played audio recordings from her courtroom in which she can be heard telling her court reporter that shed take the heat for leading Flores-Ruiz out the back.

Her attorneys countered that she was trying to follow courthouse protocols that called for court employees to report any immigration agents to their supervisors and she didnt intentionally try to obstruct the arrest team.

TikTok has signed a deal to sell its U.S. business to three American investors Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX ensuring the popular social video platform can continue operating in the United States.

The deal is expected to close on Jan. 22, according to an internal memo seen by The Associated Press. CEO Shou Zi Chew told employees in the memo that ByteDance and TikTok have signed binding agreements with the three investors.

Half of the new TikTok U.S. joint venture will be owned by a consortium of investors among them Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX will each hold a 15% share. Another 30.1% will be held by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors and 19.9% will be retained by the China-based ByteDance, according to the memo.

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The U.S. venture will have a new, seven-member majority-American board of directors, the memo said. It will also be subject to terms that protect Americans data and U.S. national security.

U.S. user data will be stored locally in a system run by Oracle.

TikToks algorithm the secret sauce that powers its addictive video feed will be retrained on U.S. user data to ensure the content feed is free from outside manipulation, the memo said. The U.S. venture will also oversee content moderation and policies within the country.

The deal marks the end of years of uncertainty about the fate of the popular video-sharing platform in the United States. After wide bipartisan majorities in Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed a law that would ban TikTok in the U.S. if it did not find a new owner in the place of Chinas ByteDance, the platform was set to go dark on the laws January 2025 deadline. For a several hours, it did. But on his first day in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to keep it running while his administration tries to reach an agreement for the sale of the company.

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Three more executive orders followed, as Trump, without a clear legal basis, continued to extend the deadline for a TikTok deal. The second was in April, when White House officials believed they were nearing a deal to spin off TikTok into a new company with U.S. ownership that fell apart after China backed out following Trumps tariff announcement. The third came in June, then another in September, which Trump said would allow TikTok to continue operating in the United States in a way that meets national security concerns.

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A former manager of the Harvard Medical School morgue in Boston was sentenced to eight years in prison for stealing and selling body parts "as if they were baubles."

Authorities said Cedric Lodge was at the center of a ghoulish scheme in which he shipped brains, skin, hands and faces to buyers in Pennsylvania and elsewhere after cadavers donated to Harvard were no longer needed for research.

His wife, Denise Lodge, was sentenced to just over a year in prison for assisting him. They appeared Tuesday in federal court in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

In one example, Cedric Lodge provided skin to a buyer so it could be tanned into leather and bound into a book, a "deeply horrifying reality," Assistant U.S. Attorney Alisan Martin said in a court filing.

RELATED STORY | 4 people indicted in scheme to sell body parts stolen from Harvard

"In another, Cedric and Denise Lodge sold a man's face perhaps to be kept on a shelf, perhaps to be used for something even more disturbing," Martin said.

She said Lodge 58, of Goffstown, New Hampshire, treated the parts of "beloved human beings as if they were baubles to be sold for profit" and collected thousands of dollars from 2018 through March 2020.

After Harvard finishes using a donated body for research or teaching, the body is typically returned to family or cremated. Lodge acknowledged removing body parts before cremation.

RELATED STORY | Judge dismisses families' lawsuits in Harvard body parts theft case

Lodge, who was a morgue manager for 28 years, expressed regret in court. Defense attorney Patrick Casey said his acts were "egregious."

"Mr. Lodge acknowledges the seriousness of his conduct and the harm his actions have inflicted on both the deceased persons whose bodies he callously degraded and their grieving families," Casey said in a court filing.

Harvard suspended the donation of bodies for five months in 2023 when charges were filed.

Prosecutors said at least six other people, including an employee at an Arkansas crematorium, have pleaded guilty in the investigation of body parts trafficking.