Wednesday, December 22nd, 2021 

Two soldiers and four civilians are killed in clashes between the Kurdish SDF and the Turkish-backed SNA in Tell Tamer. (The New Arab) 

The Saudi-led coalition kills over 280 Houthi combatants in airstrikes on Houthi-controlled areas in Al Jawf and Marib governorates of Yemen. (Arab News) 

The University of Hong Kong demolishes the Pillar of Shame overnight, a momument dedicated to the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre in China. (Hong Kong Free Press) 

Madagascar’s police minister Serge Gellé is rescued after swimming for 12 hours to shore after his helicopter crashed off the country’s northern coast during the boat accident rescue operation. President Andry Rajoelina hails Gellé’s survival. (Deutsche Welle) 

The United Kingdom reports a record 106,122 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, the first time that the country has reported more than 100,000 new cases in a single day. (The Independent) 

The Austrian government announces a series of new restrictions, including closing restaurants at 10 p.m. beginning on December 27, discourage large-scale New Year’s Eve celebrations, capacity restrictions of indoor and outdoor events, and imposing strict entry requirements for travellers from the UK, Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands where the Omicron variant is already dominant in an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and its variant. (AP) 

Prime Minister Alexander De Croo announces that, due to the spread of the Omicron variant, water parks, cinemas, theatres and concert halls will be closed, and all indoor events and outdoor events using a tent will be banned. Additionally, shopping will only be allowed in pairs and professional and amateur sport events will be held without spectators. These measures will begin on December 26. (The Brussels Times) 

The Turkish Health ministry approves the emergency use of the country’s first homegrown COVID-19 vaccine named Turkovac. (Anadolu Agency) 

The Food and Drug Administration grants emergency use authorization for Pfizer‘s antiviral COVID-19 oral pill named Paxlovid for at-risk people over the age of 12 years, becoming the first at-home oral treatment to be approved by the FDA. (NBC News) 

Nigeria destroys 1,066,214 doses of the Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine with short shelf lives that expired in November. (Punch) 

Tunisia begins to implement the usage of a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination pass in order to enter cafés, state institutions, banks, and shopping centres despite popular opposition and criticism from Amnesty International. (Barron’s) 

Western Australia will become the first state and territory to mandate a booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine for essential, mining, and healthcare workers, due to the spread of the Omicron variant. (News.com.au) 

A landowner and an earthmoving business each face 126 charges for the deaths of 70 koalas last year at a partially cleared tree plantation in Cape Bridgewater, Victoria, Australia. (BBC News) 

Italy bans fur farming and orders all remaining mink farms to shut down by June 2022, while a ban on breeding animals for their fur becomes effective immediately. (Greek Reporter) 

The End Thursday 

Japan reports its first locally transmitted cases of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in three people in Osaka Prefecture who had no travel history. (The Japan Times) 

Biden says government to distribute 500 million home COVID tests 

President Biden on Tuesday unveiled his plans for fighting the fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant, saying his administration would buy 500 million rapid COVID-19 tests and send them to Americans free of charge. He also said the government would set up more vaccination and testing sites, and dispatch 1,000 military medical personnel to help overwhelmed hospitals manage a surge of infected patients. Biden also tried to comfort Americans frustrated after two years of the pandemic, with no end in sight. “We all want this to be over, but we’re still in it,” Biden said. Still, he said, vaccinated people should feel comfortable spending the holidays with friends and family. Health officials in Texas reported what was believed to be the first U.S. death from Omicron. 

THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Trump ally Michael Flynn sues Jan. 6 committee Michael Flynn, who served as former President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, filed a lawsuit in Florida on Tuesday seeking to block the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack from obtaining his phone records. Flynn argued the committee’s subpoena was too broad and sought to punish him for constitutionally protected speech. He also claimed the panel “has no authority to conduct business because it is not a duly constituted Select Committee,” although an appeals court has ruled the committee was set up properly and has the right to obtain White House records Trump was trying to keep secret. The committee has called for Flynn to provide information regarding a “command center” at Washington’s Willard Hotel that oversaw efforts to overturn Trump’s 2020 election loss. REUTERS 

Biden promises to work with Manchin to ‘get something done’ President Biden vowed Tuesday that he and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) would work out their differences on a major spending package to expand the social safety net and the fight against climate change. Manchin this week said he couldn’t support Biden’s $2 trillion Build Back Better proposal, effectively killing it just days after offering a counterproposal that reportedly came in around $1.8 trillion. Democrats need Manchin’s vote, along with every other Democrat’s, to pass the measure in the 50-50 Senate. Biden told reporters at the White House that he didn’t hold a grudge against the more conservative Democrat, but that he would keep working to push through policies that would help families and lift people out of poverty. “Sen. Manchin and I are going to get something done,” Biden said. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Israel approves 4th COVID vaccine shot for people over 60 Israelis over age 60 and medical teams who have received a COVID-19 vaccine and a booster will be eligible for a fourth shot to increase their protection against the highly infectious Omicron variant, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced Tuesday. Studies have shown that the new, fast-spreading strain is resistant to initial vaccination, but that boosters can restore significant protection. “The citizens of Israel were the first in the world to receive the third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and we are continuing to pioneer with the fourth dose as well,” Bennett said. He urged all eligible people to “go and get vaccinated.” Israel’s pandemic expert committee recommended making the additional doses available. People with compromised immune systems also will be eligible. THE GUARDIAN 

Walter Reed military scientists test vaccine that could protect against Omicron Scientists at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research spent nearly two years developing a COVID-19 vaccine that should protect against the new Omicron variant, plus all past and presumably future SARS-origin coronaviruses, Defense One reported Tuesday. The Spike Ferritin Nanoparticle (SpFN) vaccine showed promising results in animal trials and Phase 1 human trials that wrapped up this month; it still must undergo Phase 2 and Phase 3 human trials. “We decided to take a look at the long game rather than just only focusing on the original emergence of SARS, and instead understand that viruses mutate,” said Dr. Kayvon Modjarrad, director of Walter Reed’s infectious diseases branch. “Our platform and approach will equip people to be prepared for that.”  DEFENSE ONE 

Population growth fell to record low in 1st year of pandemic U.S. population growth fell to the lowest rate in the nation’s history during the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, according to estimates released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau. The population increased by 392,665, or about 0.1 percent, from July 2020 to July 2021, bringing the country’s population to 331.8 million people, the Census Bureau said. It was the first year since 1937 that the population increased by less than one million people. The slowdown came as the pandemic curbed immigration, delayed pregnancies, and caused hundreds of thousands of deaths beyond what would normally have been expected. “I was expecting low growth but nothing this low,” said William Frey, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution’s metropolitan policy program, Brookings Metro. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

NHL says it won’t participate in Olympics due to COVID concerns The National Hockey League announced Tuesday that its players will not participate in the Beijing Winter Olympics in February. The league has also announced that it plans to pause its season starting Wednesday, ahead of its Christmas break, due to COVID-19 concerns, which have intensified as the new Omicron variant spreads explosively around the world. The NHL is the first major sports league in North America to halt is season because of the fast-spreading Omicron strain. Before the announcement, the league had already postponed 50 games due to COVID-19 cases. Ten teams had shut down by Monday night, and 15 percent of the league’s players were under pandemic protocols. ESPN 

Kellogg workers approve contract ending 11-week strike Kellogg’s workers voted on Tuesday to ratify a tentative labor contract, ending a strike at four cereal plants that began in early October. The contract covers about 1,400 employees at Kellogg plants in Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee who are represented by the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers, and Grain Millers International Union. Union president Anthony Shelton said the agreement “makes gains and does not include concessions.” Kellogg said the contract gives all workers immediate wage increases and cost of living adjustments, as well as a faster and clearer track to higher wages for new hires. Kellogg CEO Steve Cahillane said the employees will go back to work on Monday. The company had hired outside workers to help keep the plants operating during the strike. CBS NEWS 

Jury finds Harvard professor guilty of hiding payments from China A Boston jury on Tuesday found Harvard professor Charles Lieber guilty of hiding ties to China. Lieber, a 62-year-old nanoscience expert, had pleaded not guilty to charges of filing false tax returns, making false statements, and failing to report on a foreign bank account in China, but was found guilty on all six counts. Lieber’s defense attorney Marc Mukasey had argued that prosecutors lacked proof that Lieber “willfully” hid payments he received or lied, and emphasized that Lieber wasn’t accused of illegally transferring technology to China. Prosecutors said Lieber tried to protect his career and reputation by hiding his involvement in China’s Thousand Talents Plan, which aims to recruit people with knowledge of foreign intellectual property to China. NPR 

Biden considers lifting travel ban imposed to slow Omicron’s arrival President Biden said Tuesday that he is considering lifting a month-old travel ban he imposed on foreign travelers arriving from South Africa and seven other southern African countries to slow the spread of the new Omicron coronavirus variant first detected in South Africa. Omicron has since surpassed Delta as the dominant coronavirus variant in the United States. “Remember why I said we put the travel ban on. It was to see how much time we had before it hit here,” Biden said. “But we’re past that now.” He said the federal government would distribute 500 million free at-home COVID-19 tests under a campaign to contain Omicron. New cases have fallen in South Africa, suggesting Omicron infections might have peaked there. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

Walgreens, CVS limit at-home COVID test purchases as demand spikes Walgreens and CVS said Tuesday they are limiting purchases of at-home COVID-19 testing kits due to a surge in demand as the Omicron coronavirus variant spreads quickly across the United States. The nation’s two largest pharmacy chains have seen some stores run out of the tests in recent days. “To ensure equitable access to tests both in store and digitally, we’ve added a limit of six test kits per purchase,” CVS said in a statement. CVS has more than 9,900 U.S. stores, although nearly 10 percent are scheduled to be closed over the next three years. Walgreens asked customers for patience as “we continue to navigate the evolving pandemic environment,” Walgreens President John Standley said. CNN 

2021  Tuesday,  December 21st, 2021 

The Saudi-led coalition launches airstrikes on Sanaa International Airport in the Yemeni capital Sanaa. The air raid targeted six sites, including places used for “launching drone attacks”, according to a statement from the coalition. (Reuters) 

The French Army announces that they killed Soumana Boura, a leading member of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, the previous day. Boura was involved in the killings of six French aid workers and their two Nigerien guides in a mass shooting in August 2020 in Kouré, Niger. (Al Jazeera) 

The TPLF withdraws all its troops from the Afar and Amhara regions of Ethiopia. (PM News) 

The Standing Committee on Vaccination recommends the shortening of the interval between the second dose and booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine to three months and urges all citizens over the age of 18 to receive a booster dose of an mRNA-based vaccine after receiving their first two doses in order to reduce the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant. (Politico.eu) 

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and 16 state premiers agree to tighten the restrictions beginning on December 28, including limiting the number of people in private gatherings to 10 and banning spectators at large-scale musical, sporting and cultural events due to concerns related to the spread of the Omicron variant. (Deutsche Welle) 

Prime Minister António Costa announces that nightclubs and bars will be closed and all people will work from home for at least two weeks beginning on December 25 in order to reduce the spread of COVID-19. There will also be capacity restrictions at shops and people will require a negative COVID-19 test in order to enter events. (Bloomberg) 

The Swedish government announces that several new measures will begin on December 23, including limiting the number of people at private gatherings to 50, requiring the use of a vaccination pass for public events with a capacity of more than 500 people, and recommending work from home where possible, due to an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. (Reuters) 

The European Commission announces a binding proposal that will make the EU Digital COVID Certificate only valid for for travel within the European Union for nine months without a booster dose after a person’s primary vaccination schedule in order to standardize different travel requirements in the member states. The new rules will be mandatory for all 27 EU member states beginning on February 1. (RFI) 

The Health ministry recommends that Israelis over the age of 60 years and healthcare workers should receive a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, becoming the world’s first country to administer a fourth dose of the vaccine. The move is welcomed by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. (Sky News) 

Israel reports its first confirmed death related to the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in a man in his 60s with pre-existing health conditions who died at the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba. (The Times of Israel) 

The Philippine Food and Drug Administration reduces the interval of the COVID-19 vaccine booster dose to three months for people who received a two-dose vaccine and two months for people who received a single-dose vaccine in order to reduce the effects of variants. (GMA News) 

The End Wednesday 

Tuesday,  December 21st, 2021 

Omicron surges, accounting for 73 percent of new COVID cases The new Omicron coronavirus variant has spread explosively and now accounts for 73 percent of U.S. cases, after increasing six-fold in one week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday. Cities across the United States on Monday continued to step up restrictions to combat the surge, as rising Omicron infections added to ongoing cases from the previously dominant Delta strain. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (D) announced that the city, one of many where cases are spiking, would require proof of vaccination for people entering some indoor spaces, including restaurants and gyms. Washington, D.C., revived an indoor mask mandate as daily infections jumped to three times the level seen at the beginning of December. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

EPA tightens auto pollution rule to cut carbon emissions The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday announced that it had finalized a rule cutting limits on tailpipe emissions to reduce climate-warming carbon dioxide pollution. The change requires U.S. vehicles to get an average of 55 miles per gallon of gasoline by 2026, the tightest standard yet and an increase from about 38 miles per gallon today. The new rule will prevent the release of 3.1 billion tons of carbon dioxide through 2050, the EPA said. The change essentially restores an Obama administration standard, which called for automakers to hit an average of 51 miles per gallon by 2025 but was cut back by the Trump administration to about 44 miles per gallon. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

EPA unveils tightest auto pollution rule ever The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday announced that it had finalized a rule tightening tailpipe emission limits to reduce climate-warming carbon dioxide pollution. The change requires U.S. vehicles to get an average of 55 miles per gallon of gasoline by 2026, the tightest standard yet and up from about 38 miles per gallon today. The reduction would prevent the release of 3.1 billion tons of carbon dioxide through 2050. The change restores an Obama administration policy that called for automakers to hit an average of 51 miles per gallon by 2025, but was rolled back by the Trump administration. President Biden is expected to rely on such regulations to reduce emissions as Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) essentially blocks a spending bill that includes climate funding. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Three inmates are executed by hanging, marking the first time executions under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government and the first in the country in nearly two years. One was the perpetrator of a 2004 mass stabbing in which he killed seven of his relatives. (Reuters) 

The French Army says that yesterday they killed Soumana Boura, a leading member of the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, involved in the killings of six French aid workers and their two Nigerien guides in a mass shooting in August 2020 in Kouré, Niger. (Al Jazeera) 

Manchin says White House staff poisoned talks and rejected spending counteroffer Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) hit back Monday against White House staffers who accused him of breaking a promise by rejecting President Biden’s $2 trillion Build Back Better plan. Manchin said Biden aides were the ones who poisoned negotiations. Manchin, whose vote Democrats must have to pass the bill in the evenly divided Senate, objected to the cost. He had proposed an alternative $1.8 trillion package that included universal prekindergarten for 10 years, expanding Obamacare, and providing hundreds of billions of dollars for climate measures, The Washington Post reported Monday, citing three people familiar with the matter. But his counteroffer left out extending the expiring expanded child tax credit, a key part of Biden’s economic stimulus that has dramatically reduced child poverty. THE WASHINGTON POST 

The Saudi-led coalition launches airstrikes on Sanaa International Airport in the Yemeni capital Sanaa. The air raid targets six sites, including places used for “launching drone attacks”, according to the coalition. (Reuters) 

The TPLF withdraws all its troops from the Afar and Amhara regions of Ethiopia. (PM News) 

Previous to the nationwide mandate, the provinces of Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Santa Fe, Río Negro and Santiago del Estero become the first to implement the “sanitary pass” for massive events and public attention offices. The mandate applies to all above 13 years old and requires at least one dose to enter those places. (Página/12) 

Kenya’s COVID-19 infection rate reaches an all-time high. (Business Daily Africa) 

Thailand reinstates its mandatory hotel quarantine between 7 to 10 days for all incoming foreign travellers and suspends the “sandbox” program for other places outside Phuket after the country reported its first locally transmitted case of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant. (Rappler) 

Last 12 missionaries kidnapped in Haiti made daring escape, group says The last 12 of the 17 U.S. and Canadian missionaries kidnapped by a gang in Haiti in October were not released, but freed themselves in a daring escape last week, Christian Aid Ministries said Monday. Five others were released earlier under unspecified circumstances. The last 12 captives, including an infant and 3-year-old child, escaped last Wednesday night and walked about 10 miles through difficult gang territory and “eventually found someone who helped to make a phone call for help,” the Ohio-based missionary group said. “They were finally free.” The 400 Mawozo gang had captured the group as the missionaries were returning from a visit to an orphanage, and demanded $1 million per person in ransom. It was not immediately clear whether any ransom was paid. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Jury starts deliberating in ex-officer’s trial for Daunte Wright’s death Jury deliberations began Monday after prosecutors and defense attorneys gave closing arguments in the manslaughter trial of former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter, who fatally shot Black motorist Daunte Wright while yelling “Taser” in April. Potter, who faces first- and second-degree manslaughter charges, is accused of recklessly handling her gun and killing Wright, 20. She said during the trial that she didn’t mean to shoot Wright and was sorry. Defense attorney Earl Gray said Wright died during the traffic-stop-turned-arrest due to his own “rash and reckless conduct.” Prosecutor Erin Eldridge said Potter was responsible for what happened even if she mistakenly shot Write when she meant to stun him with her Taser. “Accidents can still be crimes,” he said. USA TODAY 

Alex Jones sues Jan. 6 committee and says he’ll plead the 5^th Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, a vocal backer of former President Donald Trump and operator of the far-right Infowars website, has filed a lawsuit against the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, seeking to block the panel from obtaining his phone records and forcing him to testify next month. Jones has said he plans to assert his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, and that the committee rejected his offer to provide written answers to their questions. He also said he does not intend to produce any documents because he feels his “journalistic activity” is protected under the First Amendment. Jones is the latest of several Trump supporters who have sued the panel. POLITICO 

Philippines typhoon death toll rises further, exceeding 300 The death toll in the Philippines from Super Typhoon Rai continued to rise on Monday and early Tuesday, reaching at least 375 people as search crews reached more devastated areas. The storm crashed into the country’s southeastern islands on Thursday with high winds and heavy rains. Rescue teams said they had encountered “complete carnage” in some coastal areas left without power, phone service, or sufficient drinking water. “There are some areas that look like it has been bombed worse than World War II,” the chair of the Philippines Red Cross, Richard Gordon, told the BBC. The governor of the Dinagat Islands, Arlene Bag-ao, said on Facebook that the “fields and boats of our farmers and fisherfolk have been decimated.” RAPPLER 

Report says glaciers melting fastest in Himalayas Himalayan glaciers are melting at an “exceptional” rate that is outpacing the loss of glaciers in other parts of the world, according to a peer-reviewed study published Monday in the journal Scientific Reports. The Himalayan mountains, often referred to as the “third pole,” are home to the third-largest collection of glaciers after Antarctica and the Arctic. Researchers, using satellite images and digital models, found that the Himalayas’ 15,000 glaciers had shrunk by about 40 percent from the peak during the so-called Little Ice Age 400 to 700 years ago. Current losses are at least 10 times the average rate of past centuries, with recent acceleration coinciding “with human-induced climate change,” said report author Jonathan Carrivick, deputy head of the University of Leeds School of Geography. NATURE

Biden administration offers 20,000 more visas for temporary winter workers The Biden administration will make 20,000 more seasonal, H-2B guest-worker visas available for employers this winter to help address labor shortages, the Department of Homeland Security announced Monday. The new allotment added to the 33,000 visas already set aside for landscapers, hotels, ski resorts, and other seasonal employers for the winter hiring season. They are available for people hired by March 31. H-2B visas can go to foreign workers entering the United States to fill temporary non-agricultural jobs. “DHS is taking action to protect American businesses and create opportunities that will expand lawful pathways to the United States for workers” from Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Haiti, said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in a statement. CNN 

California sues Walmart over hazardous waste disposal California prosecutors on Monday filed a lawsuit accusing Walmart of illegally dumping toxic waste in state landfills. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the retail giant throws out a million batteries, aerosol insect-killer cans, cleaning supplies, and other hazardous waste every year. “When a big box store disposes of unwanted goods, just like the rest of us, they need to do so properly. Unfortunately, Walmart — the largest company in the world by revenue — has failed to do that on a grand scale here in California,” Bonta said. Walmart, which has more than 300 stores in California, called the lawsuit “unjustified.” The company paid $25 million to settle a similar lawsuit in 2010, and agreed to stop the dumping in California landfills unequipped for hazardous waste. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

‘Spider-Man’ producer warned Tom Holland and Zendaya against dating There’s nothing like young, forbidden Spider-Man love. Spider-Man: No Way Home producer Amy Pascal has revealed she tried — and failed — to stop Tom Holland and Zendaya from dating in real life after they were cast as on-screen love interests Peter Parker and MJ. Funnily enough, they’re actually the third consecutive set of Spider-Man actors to date off screen, as Andrew Garfield dated his Spider-Man love interest Emma Stone and Tobey Maguire dated the original MJ, Kirsten Dunst. “I took Tom and Zendaya aside, separately, when we first cast them and gave them a lecture,” Pascal told The New York Times. “Don’t go there — just don’t. Try not to. I gave the same advice to Andrew and Emma. It can just complicate things, you know? And they all ignored me.” Either that, or Pascal has wanted to pair them all up and is just the master of reverse psychology.  E! ONLINE

Jennifer Lopez denies being mad at Ben Affleck over his Jennifer Garner comments Please don’t put in the newspaper that I got mad, Jennifer Lopez says. Lopez has shot down reports she’s upset with Ben Affleck over his recent comments about his ex-wife Jennifer Garner. For those just joining us in this debacle, Affleck recently told Howard Stern that “part of why I started drinking” was because he felt “trapped” in his marriage to Garner, and he suggested he would still be drinking if they were married today. Soon after, Page Six claimed Lopez was “pissed,” with a source saying, “She is getting pulled into this because she is dating him. She doesn’t want to be dragged into this.” But Lopez is now denying this, telling People, “This story is simply not true. It is not how I feel.” She added, “I couldn’t have more respect for Ben as a father, a co-parent, and a person.” Affleck has since said his original comments about Garner were taken out of context, slamming “clickbait” headlines about them. PEOPLE 

‘X-Men’ director Bryan Singer faces new abuse allegations from former assistant  Bryan Singer, director of films like X-Men and Bohemian Rhapsody, is facing even more allegations of abuse. This time, Singer’s former assistant Blake Stuerman came forward in a piece published Monday by Variety, alleging he was a victim of “mental and emotional abuse” by the filmmaker. They reportedly began a sexual relationship when Stuerman was 18 and Singer was 43, and Stuerman says that during their first sexual encounter, he was drunk and “didn’t know I was allowed to say no.” He accuses Singer of emotional abuse that “would frequently trigger panic attacks” and also alleges he once witnessed Singer “violently” attack a guest at his house. Singer has previously faced allegations of sexually abusing underage boys, and he hasn’t released a movie since he was replaced as director of Bohemian Rhapsody. He denied the allegations through his lawyer, claiming Stuerman “simply has an axe to grind.” VARIETY 

Monday,  December 20th, 2021 

Health officials warn of potential record COVID surge  Leading public health officials said Sunday that the U.S. is likely to face record numbers of new coronavirus infections and hospitalizations as the Omicron variant spreads explosively. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the Biden administration’s top health-care adviser, said on CNN’s State of the Union that the “extraordinary” transmissibility of the new strain will cause “a significant stress” on some hospitals, “particularly in those areas where you have a low level of vaccination.” Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, said on CBS News’ Face the Nation that the nation could soon see a million new Omicron cases a day, far beyond the record of about 250,000 new daily cases set in January, although it was unclear how many of those cases would require hospitalization. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Warren, Booker test positive in breakthrough COVID cases Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) said Sunday that they had tested positive the coronavirus. Warren said via her official Twitter account that she was experiencing mild COVID-19 symptoms. Warren, who lost her older brother to the virus in May 2020, is fully vaccinated and has received a booster shot. She said the fact that she was vaccinated and boosted had protected her from more severe illness. With U.S. infections surging, Warren urged everyone to “get the vaccine and the booster as soon as possible — together, we can save lives.” Booker also has been vaccinated and boosted, and said his symptoms were “relatively mild.” CNN 

The United States reports its first confirmed death related to the Omicron variant in a unvaccinated man in his 50s in Harris County, Texas who had underlying health issues. (U.S. News and World Report) 

The governments of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo reveal that they have captured 35 rebels and destroyed numerous enemy strongholds within the past week. (Voice of America) 

The Israeli Defense Forces reveal that they have captured more than 100 members of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, amid a recent increase in tensions between the two groups. (Times of Israel) 

The death toll from the fuel tank truck explosion in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, six days ago rises to 90. (Al Jazeera) 

Israel’s government agrees to ban all travel to Germany, Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Morocco, Portugal,  Canada, Switzerland, Turkey, and the U.S. without special permission beginning on December 22 due to the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant. (NBC News) 

Kuwait will require incoming travellers who fully vaccinated against COVID-19 more than nine months ago to receive booster dose beginning from January 2 and also requires them to self-isolate for 10 days unless they received a negative PCR test within 72 hours of their arrival beginning from December 26.  (Times of Oman) 

Germany bans all travel from the United Kingdom and imposes a mandatory 14-day quarantine and proof of a negative PCR test from the previous 48 hours for German residents and citizens returning from the UK, amid the spread of the Omicron variant in Britain. (Euronews) 

The United Kingdom ends its travel ban on Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique,  Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. (Times of India) 

The European Commission authorizes the use of the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine after the European Medicines Agency recommended the use of the vaccine, becoming the fifth vaccine to be approved for use by the European Union. (Euronews) 

Quebec closes all bars, gyms, spas, cinemas, and concert halls as well as suspends in-person learning and mandates remote working after the province reported a record 4,857 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. (Global News) 

Poland and Lithuania join Ukraine in calling for stronger Western sanctions on Russia, with Polish President Andrzej Duda saying that “everything must be done” to prevent a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine, and that he was “absolutely against any policy of concessions to Russia”. (RFE/RL) 

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby says a small Department of Defense team has returned from Ukraine after assessing the country’s air defences. (The Drive) 

The trial of Aung San Suu Kyi is delayed by Burmese courts until December 27. (Al Jazeera) 

Egyptian blogger and activist Alaa Abdel Fattah is sentenced to five years in prison by Egyptian authorities for spreading fake news. His family continues to protest the verdict. (Al Jazeera) 

The Nagaland Legislative Assembly publicly demands that the Government of India repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, which has been in effect since 1958. This comes after a massacre occurred in Mon district, Nagaland on December 4. (Sangai Express) 

The End Tuesday 

An investigation by the BBC discovers that a massacre of 40 civilians took place in July 2021, in Kani Township, a People’s Defence Force stronghold in Sagaing Region. (BBC News) 

Manchin says he won’t vote for Biden’s spending proposal  Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said Sunday he will not vote for President Biden’s $2 trillion Build Back Better spending and tax bill, which would expand the social safety net and fight climate change. Manchin, a key centrist swing vote, has objected to the cost. The White House and leading congressional Democrats have been negotiating with Manchin to seek his support, which they must have to push the bill through the evenly divided Senate. “I can’t get there,” he said on Fox News Sunday. “This is a no.” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Manchin was reneging on a promise with his “sudden and inexplicable” reversal, noting that as recently as Tuesday he had pledged to work out a compromise with the White House. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Moderna says booster dose effective against Omicron in lab study  Moderna said early Monday that a third dose of its COVID-19 vaccine significantly increased immune responses against the Omicron variant in lab tests, adding more preliminary evidence that booster shots restore protections eroded by the new variant. Moderna said the half-dose it has been using as a booster increases levels of neutralizing antibodies, a first line of defense against the coronavirus, 37-fold versus pre-booster levels. Pfizer reported earlier that its third dose boosted neutralizing antibodies against Omicron more than 25-fold. The lab results have not yet been confirmed in real-world studies. Pfizer and Moderna have both reported that their original two-dose regimens were not very effective at preventing Omicron infections, though they do significantly cut down on severe illness and hospitalization. USA TODAY 

Chile elects 35-year-old leftist Gabriel Boric as president Gabriel Boric, a leftist millennial who gained influence during anti-government protests, won Chile’s presidential election Sunday after a polarizing campaign against conservative lawmaker José Antonio Kast, a fan of Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro who has been likened to Donald Trump. Boric was ahead by 10 percentage points with more than half of the votes counted. During the campaign, Kast tried to scare voters by saying Boric would be controlled by allies in Chile’s Communist Party, and would destroy the South American nation’s stable and advanced economy. Boric, surrounded by thousands of mostly young supporters, repeated promises to fight climate change and no longer “permit that the poor keep paying the price of Chile’s inequality.” When Boric, 35, takes office in March, he will be Chile’s youngest modern president. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai tells newspaper she never accused anyone of sexual assault Chinese tennis champion Peng Shuai reversed her allegation that a former Chinese Communist Party leader sexually assaulted her, telling Chinese-language Singaporean newspaper Lianhe Zaobao in a Sunday interview that there were “a lot of misunderstandings” about the November social media post in which she made the claim. “I have never said or written that anyone sexually assaulted me,” Peng told Lianhe Zaobao. “This point must be emphasized very clearly.” She also said she personally wrote the Chinese version of an email to the Women’s Tennis Association retracting her accusation against former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli and assuring the WTA that everything is fine. The WTA said it welcomed Peng’s appearance “in a public setting,” but reiterated its “call for a full, fair, and transparent investigation.” THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Rapper Drakeo the Ruler fatally stabbed at festival  West Coast rapper Drakeo the Ruler was stabbed to death Saturday during a fight at a Los Angeles festival, a publicist for the late performer confirmed on Sunday. He was 28. The stabbing occurred near the Banc of California Stadium in Exposition Park, the festival venue. Drakeo the Ruler, whose real name was Darrell Caldwell, had been scheduled to take the stage at 8:30 p.m. Saturday during the Once Upon a Time in L.A. festival. Several other artists, including 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg, also were appearing. Organizers called off the rest of the show after the rapper’s death. In February, Caldwell released “The Truth Hurts,” his biggest album yet. He said in a statement early this year that the album covers “everything that I have gone through,” including spending much of his youth in correctional facilities. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ crushes expectations with a $253 million debut Spider-Man: No Way Home smashed box office expectations over its debut weekend, bringing in $253 million in ticket sales at 4,336 North American theaters. It was by far the biggest opening weekend for any film since the coronavirus pandemic started. In an era when COVID-19 fears force studios to release many films for streaming and theaters simultaneously, Tom Rothman, Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group chairman and CEO, said the Sony comic-book sequel’s success reaffirmed “the unmatched cultural impact that exclusive theatrical films can have when they are made and marketed with vision and resolve.” The new Spider-Man film is the first movie released during the pandemic to bring in more than $100 million in a weekend. VARIETY 

Goldman Sachs cuts economic growth forecast after Manchin’s bombshell Goldman Sachs cut its forecast for U.S. economic growth to 2 percent for the first quarter of 2022, down from 3 percent, after Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced on Fox News Sunday that he would not vote for his party’s $2 trillion Build Back Better domestic spending legislation. He sent an aide to let the White House and congressional leadership know less than a half an hour before going on air to drop his bombshell. Republican moderates who voted for the bipartisan infrastructure deal Manchin helped negotiate were thrilled with the news, but congressional Democrats and the White House were not. Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) quickly released a new framework for a more narrowly focused Build Back Better plan. POLITICO 

Musk says he’ll pay $11 billion in 2021 taxes Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, tweeted on Sunday that he will pay $11 billion in 2021 taxes to the Internal Revenue Service. Bloomberg News calculated that Musk will owe the IRS more than $10 billion on his taxes this year if he exercises all of his stock options that will expire in 2022. If the figures are accurate, it could be the largest individual payment the IRS has ever collected. Musk already has sold millions of Tesla shares to raise the money to cover his looming tax bill. Tesla shares have soared by more than 2,300 percent in the last five years. In November, Musk polled his Twitter followers to get their opinions on whether he should sell 10 percent of his Tesla stake. Since then, Tesla’s stock has fallen by nearly 25 percent. BLOOMBERG 

The End

Wednesday, December 15th, 2021 

Scientists announce that NASA’s Parker Solar Probe became the first ever spacecraft to enter the stellar corona of the Sun during a flyby in April. (The Guardian) 

‘Time’ names Elon Musk its Person of the Year Time magazine announced Monday that it had chosen Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk as its Person of the Year. In 2021, Musk became the richest person in the world as enthusiasm for electric vehicles drove Tesla’s stock price to record levels, and SpaceX launched the first-ever mission to Earth’s orbit with only tourists on board, followed by a flight for professional astronauts. “He is reshaping life on Earth and possibly life off Earth, as well,” Edward Felsenthal, Time‘s editor-in-chief, said Monday on NBC’s Today show. Critics said Musk was an inappropriate choice for several reasons, including his early downplaying of the danger of COVID-19, his opposition to unions, and his rejection of a “billionaire’s tax” targeting the wealthiest Americans. NBC NEWS 

Ex-SpaceX interns say they faced sexual harassment A former SpaceX intern said in an online essay published on the website Lionness on Tuesday that the company is “rife with sexism.” Ashley Kosak, a former intern who later became a full-time SpaceX engineer, wrote in the essay that a male intern groped her in 2017 in company housing shared by interns, and another male colleague moved his hand up her torso during a 2018 company event. Kosak, who now works for Apple after leaving SpaceX in November, said she reported the incidents right after they happened and received no response. “Given my tenuous position at the company, I felt powerless,” she wrote. The New York Times reported that two other former SpaceX interns also said they faced sexual harassment and unwanted advances from other interns and more senior employees. SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment from CNBC or the Times, but has said recently it is auditing its human resources department. CNBC 

‘Return of the Jedi’ and ‘Fellowship of the Ring’ added to the Library of Congress It’s official: The Fellowship of the Ring is as culturally relevant as Shrek. The National Film Registry on Tuesday announced the latest 25 films that will be preserved in the Library of Congress because they’re “culturally, historically, or aesthetically” significant. Among the movies joining the list are Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, WALL-E, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, and A Nightmare on Elm Street. This comes after last year’s list of inductees included The Dark Knight, The Hurt Locker, and yes, Shrek. The original Star Wars was already preserved by the Library of Congress years ago, though if only one of Return of the Jedi‘s Jabba’s Palace scenes had included “All Star,” perhaps it might have gotten in sooner.  ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY 

James Cameron wonders if his ‘Avatar’ sequels will ‘make any damn money’ James Cameron has spent the last decade of his life working on sequels to Avatar, though even he’s not fully confident we’ll all rush out to see them. Cameron chatted with Entertainment Weekly about the not one, but four sequels to Avatar he’s got on the way, the first of which is allegedly set to arrive next year. But given how much the theatrical landscape has changed since the 2009 movie became the top-grossing film ever, Cameron told EW, “The big issue is: Are we going to make any damn money?” That would be an issue, yes! Cameron continued, “Big, expensive films have got to make a lot of money. We’re in a new world post-COVID, post-streaming. Maybe those [box office] numbers will never be seen again. Who knows? It’s all a big roll of the dice.” When Spider-Man: No Way Home makes approximately one gazillion dollars this weekend, maybe he’ll feel better.  THE WRAP 

Leonardo DiCaprio ‘had a problem’ with Meryl Streep nude scene in ‘Don’t Look Up’ Meryl Streep was totally down for having her character appear nude in Don’t Look Up, though Leonardo DiCaprio wasn’t so sure about it. In an interview with The Guardian, director Adam McKay was asked about a moment in which Streep’s character is seen naked — though it’s actually a body double — and he revealed that DiCaprio “had a problem with it.” He ” just views Meryl as film royalty,” McKay explained, and he “didn’t like seeing her with the lower back tattoo, walking for a second naked.” So DiCaprio actually asked McKay, “Do you really need to show that?” McKay made the case for the scene, though, telling DiCaprio it’s Streep’s character who’s naked, not her. As for Streep, according to McKay, “She didn’t even blink. She didn’t even bring it up.”  THE GUARDIAN 

Britney Spears rips Diane Sawyer for ‘making me cry’ in 2003 interview Britney Spears has a message for Diane Sawyer: “Kiss my white a–.” The pop star on Instagram slammed Sawyer over a primetime interview she conducted with her in 2003, following Spears’ breakup with Justin Timberlake. Sawyer told Spears she “broke his heart,” also asking if she had an addiction to shopping. “What was with the ‘You’re in the wrong’ approach?? Geeze … and making me cry???” Spears wrote. Spears also claimed her manager “put that woman in my home and made me talk to her on national television.” She said she was “in shock” after her split with Timberlake and “never spoke to anyone for a very long time,” but she alleged she was “forced” to talk to Sawyer. In the interview, Sawyer also asked Spears if she’s a woman or a girl, and almost 20 years later, Spears offered a response: “‘Ma’am I’m a catholic slut!!!”  THE WRAP 

Kim Kardashian says there’s ‘no possibility of saving’ Kanye West marriage Sorry, Ye: it looks like Kim Kardashian won’t be running back to you anytime soon. Kardashian has filed new court documents in her divorce from Kanye West, which say that since she originally filed for divorce in February, she has “reached out to [West] and his counsel several times in an attempt to move this case forward to a speedy and amicable resolution,” but West “has been non-responsive.” The documents also say that the marriage has “irremediably broken down,” that “there is no possibility of saving the marriage through counseling or other means,” and that “no counseling or reconciliation effort will be of any value at this time.” Kardashian is seeking to be declared legally single, though West is still publicly asking her to take him back, singing at a recent concert, “I need you to run right back to me, baby!”  VANITY FAIR 

David Fuller, a double murderer who sexually abused the corpses of more than 100 deceased women, is sentenced to a whole life tariff. (BBC News) 

A court in Hanoi, Vietnam, sentences two Facebook users to lengthy jail sentences for “conducting propaganda against the state”. One man was sentenced to 10 years in prison and five of house arrest while another man was given a six-year imprisonment term and three of house arrest. (Reuters) 

A fire breaks out at the World Trade Centre Hong Kong, injuring 13 people and leaving 300 more trapped within the building. (Al Jazeera) 

South Korea reports a record 7,850 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 536,495. (Yonhap News Agency) 

The number of people fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in New Zealand surpasses 90%. (Stuff) 

Australia reopens its border to vaccinated skilled migrants and foreign students without an exemption after more than 18 month closure due to the pandemic despite the spread of the Omicron variant worldwide. (ABC News Australia) 

The United Kingdom reports a record 78,610 new cases of COVID-19 in the previous 24 hours, an increase of over 10,000 on the previous daily-record which occurred in January of this year. (BBC News) 

Siaosi Sovaleni becomes prime minister-designate of Tonga. (RNZ) 

Pfizer says its COVID pill effective in preventing severe illness Pfizer said Tuesday that a study had confirmed that its coronavirus pill helps prevent severe COVID-19. The drugmaker also said the antiviral pill proved effective in laboratory studies against the new Omicron variant, which is expected to overtake the Delta variant as the dominant strain in the United States within weeks. “We are confident that, if authorized or approved, this potential treatment could be a critical tool to help quell the pandemic,” Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said in a statement. Pfizer last month submitted preliminary data to the Food and Drug Administration, requesting authorization to distribute the pill, known as Paxlovid. The new results are expected to increase the likelihood that the pill will win approval. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Health officials warn fast-spreading Omicron could peak in January Federal health officials warned Tuesday that the fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant could peak with a “big wave” of infections that could overwhelm hospitals as soon as January. The dire predictions, based on new modeling analyzed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, came after Omicron’s prevalence increased sevenfold in a week, and the United States reached 800,000 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic began, a once-unimaginable milestone. Pharmaceutical companies aren’t in favor of creating an Omicron-specific vaccine, and believe that individuals with both vaccine doses and a booster shot are still well protected against severe illness and death, even with the new strain. THE WASHINGTON POSTNPR 

Producer prices to suppliers jump by a record 9.6 percent The Labor Department reported Tuesday that its producer-price index, which measures prices suppliers charge businesses, rose by 9.6 percent in November compared to a year earlier. The jump was the biggest since records began in 2010. The so-called core PPI, which excludes volatile food and fuel prices, rose by 7.7 percent, also a record. Sharply rising prices from producers show that costs remain unusually high throughout the supply chain, suggesting that consumers will face higher prices into 2022. “This is a testament to the fact that inflation continues to broaden out,” said Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Amherst Pierpont. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

House approves compromise bill seeking to ban imports from China’s Xinjiang region The House on Tuesday passed a bill seeking to ban imports from China’s Xinjiang region over concerns about forced labor and other abuses against the Uyghur Muslim minority. The House passed a different version of the legislation last week, but that was rejected by the Senate. The new bill is a compromise that eliminates differences between the House and Senate versions, so it is expected to win Senate approval and head to President Biden’s desk for his signature. The compromise includes a provision justifying the ban with a “rebuttable presumption” that all Xinjiang goods are made with slave labor because China has Uyghur detention camps in the region. REUTERS 

 
House recommends contempt charge against Mark Meadows The House voted Tuesday night to recommend that the Department of Justice charge former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows with criminal contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) were the only Republicans to join Democrats in the 222-208 vote. Meadows initially cooperated with the committee, handing over texts and other documents about the White House’s reaction to the insurrection by a mob of then-President Donald Trump supporters, who wanted to prevent Congress from certifying Trump’s election loss. The Justice Department has already charged another Trump ally, former White House strategist Steve Bannon, with contempt. CNN 

D.C. attorney general sues Proud Boys, Oath Keepers over insurrection D.C. Attorney General Karl A. Racine (D) on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers over their alleged roles in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The lawsuit holds the far-right groups responsible for the violence by a mob of former President Donald Trump’s supporters trying to prevent lawmakers from certifying Trump’s election loss. The lawsuit invokes a modern version of the 1871 Ku Klux Klan Act to seek large financial penalties. House Homeland Security Committee Chair Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and police officers who battled the rioters have filed similar lawsuits, but Racine’s complaint is the first such suit by a government agency. An attorney representing two of the defendants called the lawsuit “a fantasy” targeting the wrong people. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Senate votes to raise debt ceiling by $2.5 trillion The Senate voted Tuesday to take up a proposal to raise the debt ceiling by $2.5 trillion, a move necessary to avoid an unprecedented and potentially catastrophic default until at least early 2023. All Democrats in the evenly divided chamber backed the legislation; all Republicans opposed it. Party leaders agreed to a deal letting Democrats push through the measure with a simple majority thanks to a one-time exemption from the filibuster rule. The Treasury Department has warned that the government would be unable to borrow enough to avoid a default within days unless lawmakers raised the debt ceiling. “The American people can breathe easy and rest assured there will not be a default,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Judge rejects Trump effort to shield tax returns from House committee U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden ruled Tuesday that the Treasury Department can release former President Donald Trump’s tax records to the House Ways and Means Committee. McFadden, a former Trump Justice Department official, put the ruling on hold, however, pending a likely appeal. Trump’s attorneys argued that the records were only requested by House Democrats as a way to expose Trump’s finances. McFadden said Trump’s lawyers were “wrong on the law. A long line of Supreme Court cases requires great deference to facially valid congressional inquiries. Even the special solicitude accorded former presidents does not alter the outcome.” The committee wants Trump’s tax records for an inquiry into the effectiveness of the Internal Revenue Service’s presidential audit program. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Far too few fraudulent votes to change 2020 election There were fewer than 475 potential cases of voter fraud in the six battleground states that former President Donald Trump disputed, far too few to change the results of the 2020 presidential election, The Associated Press reported Tuesday after a review of every flagged ballot. President Biden beat Trump in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin by a total of 311,257 votes. The allegedly fraudulent votes weren’t all for Biden, but most were spotted and never added to official vote counts. The AP also found that there was no collusion among the people who cast the fraudulent ballots. Trump responded to the AP report by repeating his baseless claim that the election was stolen from him through voter fraud. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

N.Y. ethics panel says Cuomo must return $5.1 million in book proceeds New York’s Joint Commission on Public Ethics on Tuesday ordered former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to return $5.1 million he received for his 2020 pandemic memoir after concluding that he had violated state ethics laws. The board previously determined that he got authorization for the book deal under false pretenses and was therefore not entitled to be paid for it. His lawyer had assured he would use “no state property, personnel, or other resources” to work on the book, but he wound up having administration employees help write it. Cuomo has vowed to fight the decision, which one of his lawyers, Jim McGuire, called “unconstitutional.” Cuomo has already given $500,000 of the money to charity and put $1 million into a trust for his daughters. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

House passes Omar’s anti-Islamophobia bill The House on Tuesday passed Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-Minn.) bill seeking to create an office at the State Department dedicated to tracking and fighting Islamophobia. The vote came as Democrats push back against Rep. Lauren Boebert’s (R-Colo.) anti-Muslim rhetoric against Omar. Boebert has referred to Omar and other progressives as a “Jihad Squad,” and joked that Omar posed a terror threat to the Capitol. Progressive Democrats have called for the House to strip Boebert of her committee assignments. The bill passed along party lines, with no Republicans joining Democrats in favor of it. That suggests the legislation faces an uphill battle in the evenly split Senate, where Democrats need 10 Republican votes to get past a likely GOP filibuster. AXIOS 

The Italian Council of Ministers approves the extension of the COVID-19 state of emergency until March 31 and also rules that travellers from other EU countries must present a negative swab test prior to departure due to the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant. (Thomson Reuters Foundation) 

Caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte announces that primary schools will be closed on December 20 and that existing restrictions requiring bars, restaurants, and non-essential shops to close at 5 pm have been extended until January 14 due to concerns over the spread of the Omicron variant. (Barron’s) 

The United States surpasses 800,000 deaths from COVID-19, remaining the highest death toll in (NPR) 

A final results of trial of Paxlovid conducted by Pfizer shows 89% cut of risk of hospitalization and death in high-risk patients and is likely to work against the Omicron variant. (Financial Times) 

The House of Commons votes to approve “Plan B” measures that include the extension of the indoor mask mandate, vaccine passports, and mandating COVID-19 vaccines for NHS workers in England, despite large opposition from Boris Johnson’s own Conservative Party. (Euronews) 

Australian Deputy Prime Minister and National Party Leader Barnaby Joyce and a small group of Liberal Party backbenchers join the Labor Party in criticising the Liberal-National Coalition Morrison Government’s inaction on the United Kingdom’s imminent extradition of Australian publisher Julian Assange to the United States, arguing that Assange has not broken any Australian laws. (The Guardian) 

Tuesday,  December 14th, 2021 

South Africa study finds Omicron vaccine resistant but causes milder COVID A study released Tuesday by Discovery Health, South Africa’s largest private health insurer, found that the newly emerged Omicron coronavirus variant appears to cause less severe COVID-19 than other strains, but is more resistant to vaccines. The study found that the two-dose Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine widely used in South Africa provided just 33 percent protection against Omicron infection, down from 90 percent protection from the original variant. Pfizer’s shots provide 70 percent protection against severe disease, which the researchers said was “very good” even though it was down from 95 percent protection against severe disease from the Delta variant. Pfizer-BioNTech research suggests that a booster dose can restore, at least temporarily, original protection levels. USA TODAY 

Supreme Court rejects request to block NY vaccine mandate for health workers The Supreme Court on Monday refused to block New York’s vaccine mandate covering workers in hospitals, nursing homes, hospices, and other medical facilities. The unsigned order did not spell out the court’s reasoning. Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Clarence Thomas dissented, with Gorsuch writing that the state was violating religious freedom by declining to offer a religious exception for abortion opponents who object to the current vaccines because they “depended upon abortion-derived fetal cell lines” in production or testing.  The high court now has rejected requests to block state mandates in Indiana, Maine, and New York, giving states considerable leeway in fighting COVID-19 during the Delta variant surge.CNN 

California renews statewide mask mandate California on Monday ordered a new statewide mask mandate for indoor public spaces due to rising coronavirus infections and concerns that the highly infectious new Omicron variant could fuel a new surge. The requirement takes effect Wednesday. New cases have been increasing in California since Thanksgiving, with COVID-19 hospitalizations up by nearly 15 percent. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified California as a state with a high level of coronavirus transmission, the most urgent ranking on the agency’s four-tier scale. Several big counties — including Los Angeles, Ventura, San Francisco, and Sacramento — already have local indoor mask mandates, so the new statewide policy affects about half of California’s population. LOS ANGELES TIMES 

Philadelphia imposes a vaccine mandate for indoor activities such as dining, cinemas, and at the Wells Fargo Center for a 76ers or Flyers game. (The Philadelphia Inquirer) 

Derek Chauvin expected to change plea on George Floyd civil rights charge Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin indicated in a Monday court filing that he plans to change his not-guilty plea on federal charges that he violated the civil rights of George Floyd, the unarmed Black man Chauvin was convicted of killing by kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes. Chauvin was sentenced to more than 22 years in prison for the murder conviction. A grand jury earlier this year also indicted Chauvin and former officers J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane, and Tou Thao for allegedly abusing their power to deny Floyd of his constitutional rights to be free from unreasonable force. All four pleaded not guilty, but Chauvin is now scheduled to enter a new plea in a Wednesday hearing. Floyd’s death sparked nationwide protests against police mistreatment of Black Americans. MINNEAPOLIS STAR-TRIBUNE 

A court in Minsk, Belarus, sentences opposition activist Sergei Tikhanovsky to 18 years in prison for organising riots among other charges following what was widely described as a “sham trial”. Tikhanovsky’s wife, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, fled Belarus amidst the protests that rocked the country in 2020. (BBC News) 

Hundreds of gymnasts reach $380 million settlement over Larry Nassar abuse More than 500 gymnasts sexually abused by former national team doctor Larry Nassar have agreed to a $380 million settlement with USA Gymnastics. The settlement was revealed Monday during a USA Gymnastics bankruptcy hearing. “No amount of money will ever repair the damage that has been done and what these women have been through,” former gymnast Rachael Denhollander told The New York Times. “But at some point, the negotiations have to end because these women need help — and they need it right now.” Olympic gold medalists Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, and Aly Raisman are among the women who qualify for compensation under the settlement, which is among the largest ever for a sexual abuse case. THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Two explosions at Cúcuta’s Camilo Daza International Airport kill two law enforcement officials and one of the perpetrators. (Yahoo News) 

The descendants of the late Chief Justice José Abad Santos, Brigadier General Vicente Lim and civic worker and suffragette Josefa Llanes Escoda considered as national heroes during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines condemn the proposal of the redesigned version of the Philippine one thousand-peso note slated for release in 2022. (Rappler) 

Bangko Sentral Governor Benjamin Diokno defends the controversial redesign of the Philippine one thousand-peso note slated for release in 2022 despite opposition from various sectors. (The Philippine Star) 

At least 60 people are killed when a fuel tanker explodes in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti. (BBC News) 

Australian Deputy Prime Minister and National Party Leader Barnaby Joyce voices opposition to ruling Coalition partner the Liberal Party’s lack of intervention in the extradition of Australian publisher Julian Assange from the United Kingdom to the United States, arguing Assange has not broken any Australian laws, a position also held by the opposition Labor Party. Liberal backbencher Bridget Archer also joins the criticism of the Liberal leadership. (ABC News Australia) 

Ugandan politician Bobi Wine is placed under house arrest. (The East African) 

House Jan. 6 panel votes to hold Mark Meadows in contempt  The special House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack voted Monday to recommend holding former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows in criminal contempt of Congress for defying the panel’s subpoena. The unanimous vote by the committee’s seven Democrats and two Republicans referred the matter to the full House, which is expected to take it up as soon as Tuesday. The committee released evidence indicating that Meadows was deeply involved in Trump’s push to overturn President Biden’s election victory. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) read texts from Fox News hosts and Donald Trump Jr. urging Meadows to get the then-president to speak out against the mob violence. “These text messages leave no doubt,” Cheney said. “The White House knew exactly what was happening here at the Capitol.” THE WASHINGTON POST 

No U.S. troops to be punished for botched Afghanistan drone strike No U.S. military personnel will be punished for an August drone strike in Kabul that killed 10 Afghan civilians, including seven children, the Pentagon said Monday. A Pentagon review found that U.S. intelligence struck the wrong vehicle thinking it was carrying ISIS-K-led suicide bombers targeting the Kabul airport. The review concluded that the incident “did not violate any laws of war,” and left the decision on punishment to two senior commanders, who found no grounds for disciplinary action. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin reportedly agreed with the two senior officials. The driver of the car, Zemari Ahmadi, was killed. He worked for a California-based aid organization. Steven Kwon, the founder of the organization, called the decision not to hold anyone accountable “shocking.” NBC NEWS 

Harris announces investments to ease Central America migration root causes  Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday announced that seven private companies have committed to investments in Central America to help address the root causes of a wave of migrants seeking to enter the United States over the southern border. Harris, who is overseeing the Biden administration’s response to immigration issues, said PepsiCo, Mastercard, and Cargill were among the companies that had pledged to invest $1.2 billion in the region, which is struggling with poverty and violence. The news came as Harris faces increasing pressure to show results as recent staff departures have fueled concerns that her office is being hampered by internal turmoil. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Toyota changes course with faster shift to EVs Toyota said Tuesday it would accelerate its commitment to electric vehicles by offering 30 EV models by 2030 and selling 3.5 million battery EVs globally by 2030. The Japanese automaker also said it would make all of its luxury Lexus brand vehicles fully electric by 2035, with battery EVs accounting for all its Lexus sales in Europe, North America, and China by 2030. Toyota said it would fuel the push by investing $17.6 billion in battery technology. The announcement came as well-funded startups such as Lucid, Fisker, Rivian, and Canoo rush out new EVs and trailblazer Tesla ramps up mass production. Toyota President Akio Toyoda, once a skeptic about the shift to EVs, said the company wanted to reduce carbon emissions as fast as it can. THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 

MGM Resorts to sell Mirage to Hard Rock International for $1.1 billion MGM Resorts International has agreed to sell the Mirage hotel on the Las Vegas Strip to Hard Rock International for nearly $1.1 billion in cash, MGM said in a Monday news release. MGM said it would net $815 million in cash from the sale. The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close in the second half of 2022. MGM has owned the Mirage, one of the Strip’s first mega-resorts, for 21 years. It put the property up for sale in November, saying it didn’t want to invest any more money in it. MGM still owns about a dozen Las Vegas properties, including the Bellagio, MGM Grand, and Mandalay Bay. Under the deal, it will give Hard Rock a royalty-free license for the Mirage name for up to three years while the new owner works on rebranding it.  CNN 

Golden Globes announce nominations as if everything is totally fine The Hollywood Foreign Press Association had some real “this is fine” dog energy on Monday while announcing the nominations for this year’s Golden Globe Awards, despite getting canceled in both senses of the word. NBC already announced it wouldn’t air the Golden Globes in January following revelations that the HFPA had literally zero Black members. But somehow, the Golden Globes will still be handed out next month. Monday’s nominations included Belfast, Coda, Dune, King Richard, and The Power of the Dog up for Best Motion Picture – Drama. Meanwhile, Cyrano, Don’t Look Up, Licorice Pizza, tick, tick … Boom!, and West Side Story were nominated for Best Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy. Perhaps the highlight of the morning, though, was Snoop Dogg reading the nominations while seeming like he wanted to be absolutely anywhere else, even managing to mispronounce Ben Affleck’s name at one point. “Sorry about that, Ben,” he said. THE WASHINGTON POST 

Kim Kardashian passes the baby bar exam after failing it 3 times The fourth time was the charm for Kim Kardashian. Kardashian revealed Monday on Instagram she has finally passed the “baby bar” exam after two years of attempts. “Looking in the mirror, I am really proud of the woman looking back today in the reflection,” she wrote. The reality star explained that “in California, the way I’m studying law you need to take 2 bar exams, this was just the first one but with the harder pass rate.” She previously failed the exam three times, although to be fair, she had a pretty good excuse for not passing the third time; she noted she “did have COVID” then. She wrote on Instagram that her father, the late attorney Robert Kardashian, “would be so proud” — even though “I am told he was notorious for making fun of people who didn’t pass on their first attempt like he did.”  NBC NEWS 

Billie Eilish believes she ‘would have died’ from COVID-19 if she was unvaccinated  August 2021 was no time to die for Billie Eilish, and she credits the COVID-19 vaccine. Eilish revealed Monday on The Howard Stern Show that she battled COVID-19 for nearly two months earlier this year. “It was bad,” she said. “I didn’t die, and I wasn’t gonna die, but that does not take away from how miserable it was. I mean, it was terrible. I still have side effects.” Eilish said she was vaccinated at the time, though she stressed that it was “because of the vaccine that I’m fine,” and “I think if I weren’t vaccinated, I would have died.” She praised the COVID-19 vaccines as “f—ing amazing,” and she did note that her case wasn’t terrible in the grand “scheme of COVID.” Eilish previously urged her fans to get vaccinated, saying in a Vanity Fair interview, “It’s not just for you, you selfish b—h!”  UPROXX 

Naomie Harris alleges a ‘huge star’ groped her in an audition James Bond star Naomie Harris told the Mail on Sunday that a major actor once groped her during an audition. Harris, who played Moneypenny in the James Bond series, didn’t name the person, but she alleged he put his hand up her skirt while she was reading. “What was so shocking about it was the casting director was there and the director, and of course no one said anything because he was — he is — such a huge star,” she said. Harris said this was the only “#MeToo incident” she has experienced in her career, which she said makes her “very lucky given how rife that behaviour was.” She did, though, also recall a project she was on where “there was a #MeToo incident and there was no hesitation … [the perpetrator] was immediately removed.” So, she suggested, “now things have definitely changed.”  DEADLINE 

Monday,  December 13th, 2021 

One hundred and six members of an Ukrainian “neo-Nazi” youth group are arrested in Russia, suspected of planning attacks, including mass murders. Russia has accused Ukrainian intelligence of financially funding the group. Ukraine alleges that the arrests and subsequent Russian media reporting are staged as part of Russian intelligence measures. (Reuters) 

Harnaaz Sandhu of India is crowned Miss Universe in Eilat, Israel. (CNN) 

Three policemen are killed and 11 others injured as Jaish-e-Mohammed gunmen open fire against a bus carrying Indian security forces in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. (BBC News) 

‘West Side Story’ ticket sales disappoint over debut weekend Director Steven Spielberg’s reboot of the 1961 classic musical West Side Story made a disappointing box office debut, bringing in just $10.5 million in its opening weekend in North America. Film industry analysts had projected about $15 million in domestic ticket sales in the film’s first weekend. The lackluster opening came despite great reviews, an “A” CinemaScore from viewers, and early Oscar buzz. Other recent film adaptations of Broadway musicals, including Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In The Heights, also have had trouble at the box office. The newly emerged Omicron coronavirus variant might have discouraged some moviegoers from venturing out to see West Side Story, although audiences still might appear as the holidays arrive and people have more free time to go to the movies. CNN 

Biden approval on economy, pandemic hit new lows Public approval of President Biden’s handling of the economy and the coronavirus pandemic have fallen to a new low, according to an ABC News/Ipsos poll released Sunday. Fifty-three percent of Americans still approve of Biden’s pandemic response, but 45 percent now disapprove, the most since Biden took office. In March, 72 percent approved of Biden’s COVID-19 response. The decline came as the Biden administration tightens mask requirements and travel restrictions, and pushes vaccine booster shots to fight the new Omicron variant. As inflation rose to the highest rate in decades, approval of Biden’s approach to combating rising consumer prices came in at just 28 percent. In October, 53 percent approved of his handling of the economy, compared to 41 percent in the new poll. ABC NEWS

A vehicle carrying migrants crashes while trying avoid a police check in Morahalom, Hungary, killing seven people and wounding four more. The Serbian driver has been arrested. (BBC) 

Cyprus announces the approval of the COVID-19 vaccine administered for children ages 5 to 11 years and also allowing adults to receive booster dose two weeks sooner than six months after their second dose in order to curb the rise of COVID-19 cases following the first case of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant. (AP) 

The Norwegian government announces that alcohol sales at bars and restaurants will be banned and stricter rules will be implemented at schools due to the spread of the Omicron variant. The government also announces that the COVID-19 vaccine booster dose interval has been reduced to 4.5 months and that the military will assist with the booster dose campaign. (The Local Norway) 

China reports its first confirmed case of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in a person who travelled to Tianjin from overseas on December 9. (NDTV) 

New York state reimposes a mandatory indoor mask mandate for businesses that haven’t implemented a vaccination requirement amid threats of the COVID-19 surge and the Omicron variant in winter. (The New York Times) 

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett enters the Presidential Palace of the United Arab Emirates on his first official visit to the country. (NBC News) 

South Africa cancels a plan to forcibly deport 200,000 Zimbabweans from the country amid an outcry and concerns over perceived xenophobia and human rights abuses. (Bloomberg) 

Eight people are injured as a teenager detonates an improvised explosive device, in an attempt to blow himself up, at a Russian Orthodox school near a convent in Serpukhov, Russia. The perpetrator is identified as a student at the school, and is currently hospitalised in critical condition. (BBC News) 

Congolese president Felix Tshisekedi assures his country that the presence of Ugandan troops in the Congo is only to prevent the ongoing insurgency by the Allied Democratic Forces. The president has assured that Uganda’s intervention will be temporary. (Reuters) 

Miley Cyrus and Pete Davidson got matching tattoos Miley Cyrus and Pete Davidson once got matching ink live from New York — though only one of them still has it. This would have been in 2017, when Cyrus and Davidson starred in a Saturday Night Live sketch where they rap while dressed as babies. “It was a very dark time, I think, in our lives,” Davidson joked on The Tonight Show. Cyrus proclaims in the sketch “we babies,” and she told Jimmy Fallon that “for some reason,” they “looked at each other and were like, ‘that’s a great tattoo!’” So Davidson actually had his “tattoo guy” come by 30 Rock, and they both got matching tattoos that just say “we babies.” Davidson later had his lasered off, but Cyrus still has hers on her foot. “I stopped smoking weed the next day,” Cyrus said. “For a couple of years. Well, at least with Pete.” THE TONIGHT SHOW 

Kanye West begs Kim Kardashian to ‘run right back’ to him Speaking of Davidson, in case you didn’t get the memo that Kanye West really wants Kim Kardashian to break up with the Saturday Night Live star, he openly begged at a concert on Thursday night. While performing with Drake in Los Angeles at a show that Kardashian attended, West repeatedly sang, “I need you to run right back to me, baby! I need you to run right back to me!” If there was any doubt about what he was talking about, West added, “more specifically, Kimberly.” Kardashian filed for divorce from West earlier this year and is currently dating Davidson, but West has previously said that “I want us to be together” and claimed “the media” doesn’t want this to happen. Meanwhile, People cites a source as saying Kardashian “has moved on” but “she knows it’s difficult for Kanye to deal with.” TMZ

Netflix’s ‘Cowboy Bebop’ has already been canceled Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop is over faster than you can say “three, two, one, let’s jam.” The live-action remake of the classic anime has been canceled, a decision that brutally came less than three weeks after the show’s debut. The series starring John Cho was slammed with some tough reviews, and critics generally recommended viewers just watch the original anime. It was the latest example of Netflix debuting an expensive new series with big hopes for its future, only for it to completely flop and get quickly axed, a fate also met by the superhero show Jupiter’s Legacy earlier this year. Even so, it’s not often you see a high-profile streaming series debut just before Thanksgiving and not even make it to Christmas. Oh well — see you, space cowboy.  THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 

Taylor Swift to face trial over claim she ripped off ‘Shake It Off’ lyrics Taylor Swift wasn’t able to shake off a claim she copied lyrics for one of her most popular songs — at least not before it heads to a trial. A judge has declined to dismiss a copyright case against Swift over her song “Shake It Off,” which songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler claim copied lyrics from their 3LW song “Playas Gon’ Play.” Both songs feature versions of the phrase “players gonna play” and “haters gonna hate,” and … that’s pretty much it. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald previously said these lyrics are “too brief, unoriginal, and uncreative” for a copyright case. But an appeals court reversed this ruling, and the judge said Swift will have to face a trial since the court can’t “determine that no reasonable juror could find substantial similarity of lyrical phrasing, word arrangement, or poetic structure between the two works.” We’ll have to see whether a jury thinks she did something bad. BBC

Peloton hits back over portrayal in ‘Sex and the City’ reboot Peloton on Sunday released a parody commercial in response to a scene in HBO Max’s Sex and the City reboot that sent the at-home fitness equipment company’s already struggling shares tumbling to a 52-week low last week. One of the main Sex and the City characters in And Just Like That…, Mr. Big, dies of a heart attack after a Peloton class. In the parody, Mr. Big, played by actor Chris Noth, sits in front of a fire with the show’s Peloton instructor, Jess King, and says, “Shall we take another ride?” Then actor and director Ryan Reynolds then says in a voiceover: “And just like that, the world was reminded that regular cycling stimulates and improves your heart, lungs, and circulation. … He’s alive.” CNBC 

Reuters: U.S. coronavirus death toll reaches 800,000 The United States coronavirus-related death toll reached 800,000 on Sunday, according to Reuters‘ count. The nation hit the grim milestone as public health officials brace for a potential surge of new cases as winter hits and people spend more time indoors, increasing the risk of infection at the same time that the highly infectious Omicron variant continues to spread. More than 450,000 people have died after contracting COVID-19 this year, more than did in all of 2020, despite the widespread availability of vaccines and new treatments. The highly transmissible Delta variant drove a summertime surge and continues to account for nearly all COVID deaths. Most of those dying now are unvaccinated. The U.S. has the highest COVID death rate in the Group of Seven wealthiest nations.REUTERS 

Boris Johnson expands booster access as coronavirus ‘tidal wave’ looms  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Sunday that his government would offer everyone 18 and older a coronavirus booster shot by the end of December to confront a potential “tidal wave” of infections due to the fast-spreading new Omicron variant. The government previously had planned the booster expansion by the end of January, but accelerated it as Omicron cases doubled every two to three days in the United Kingdom. “I’m afraid it is now clear that two doses of vaccine are simply not enough to give the level of protection we all need,” Johnson said. “But the good news is that our scientists are confident that with a third dose – a booster dose – we can all bring our level of protection back up.” THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Haitian president was preparing to unmask drug traffickers when killed  Haitian President Jovenel Moïse was compiling a list of political and business leaders linked to drug traffickers when he was assassinated in July, The New York Times reported Sunday. Moïse had planned to hand over the information to the United States, the Times said, citing four senior Haitian advisers and officials assigned to work on the dossier. Moïse’s wife, Martine, was wounded in the attack, and survived by pretending to be dead. She told the Times in her first interview after the assassination that the gunmen who killed her husband searched their bedroom, going through his files until someone said, “That’s it.” Some members of the hit squad who were captured confessed that one of their tasks was to retrieve the list of drug suspects, one of several issues the late president had been clashing over with powerful rivals.  THE NEW YORK TIMES 

Austria ends coronavirus lockdown for vaccinated people Austria on Sunday lifted coronavirus lockdown restrictions for vaccinated people, clearing the way for theaters, museums, and other cultural sites to resume operations. Some regions also gave restaurants and hotels the green light to open their doors. Stores will be able to reopen starting Monday. The Austrian government imposed the strict rules three weeks ago as the country faced a new wave of coronavirus infections, as did some other European nations. Restaurants still face an 11 p.m. curfew, and people still must wear masks on public transportation, in stores, and in other public places. Chancellor Karl Nehammer last week called the decision to let the country’s nine regions relax restrictions depending on local infections “opening with a seatbelt.” THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 

Chris Wallace leaves Fox News to join CNN streaming service  Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace announced on his show this weekend that he is resigning after 18 years at the conservative cable network. “After 18 years — this is my final Fox News Sunday,” Wallace said on his final airing. “It is the last time — and I say this with real sadness — we will meet like this.” Wallace said he was leaving to start a “new adventure.” CNN said he would be joining CNN+, a streaming service launching early in 2022. Wallace will have a weekday show in which he will interview newsmakers in business, sports, and culture, as well as politics, which was his bread and butter at Fox. “I look forward to the new freedom and flexibility streaming affords in interviewing major figures across the news landscape — and finding new ways to tell stories,” Wallace said. FOX NEWS

North and South Korea, U.S., China agree ‘in principle’ to officially end Korean War  North and South Korea, the U.S., and China have agreed “in principle” to formally end the Korean War, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Monday during a visit to Australia. The fighting stopped with an armistice in 1953, but never officially was declared over. For now, Moon said, “we are not able to sit down for a discussion or negotiation on the declarations” due to demands made by North Korea, which wants the U.S. to drop what it calls its “hostile policy” toward the North. North Korea has long objected to the presence of U.S. forces in South Korea, joint U.S.-South Korean training exercises, and U.S. sanctions imposed over North Korea’s nuclear weapons buildup. The U.S. State Department told Axios that U.S. officials are “prepared to meet without preconditions.”AXIOS

Mexican musical icon Vicente Fernández dies at 81 Mexican mariachi legend Vicente Fernández died Sunday, four months after a fall at his ranch in Guadalajara in his home state of Jalisco. He was 81. His Guillain-Barré syndrome had prevented his recovery, and he had been placed on a ventilator in a hospital. The Grammy winner, who was known as the king of the rancheras, started his career as a street performer and went on to sell more than 65 million albums and make more than 35 movies. His hits included “El rey,” “Volver, volver,” “Por tu maldito amor,” and “Para siempre.” He won three Grammys and eight Latin Grammys, and, in 1998, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. This year, singer Lupita Castro accused him of sexual abuse, which he denied. NBC LOS ANGELES

The End