“Israeli authorities are expected to advance plans to build 9,000 new housing units in an illegal [squat] on the site of the abandoned Qalandiya airport in occupied East Jerusalem, in another attempt to cut off Palestinian lands from each other and block any possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state ever emerging. The so-called Atarot neighbourhood in northern East Jerusalem, reminiscent of the E1 plan to undermine Palestinian statehood, is to be discussed and have its outlines approved on Wednesday by the District Planning and Building Committee, according to Israeli group Peace Now. … It would build an Israeli enclave in an area where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians live in close proximity, with the aim of blocking development in a key area and further damaging the likelihood of a sovereign Palestinian state being established.” (12/17/25)
“U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday stateside designated Venezuelan government a ‘terrorist’ organization and ordered a ‘complete and total’ blockade of sanctioned oil tankers moving in and out of the country. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said ‘Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America.’ … The White House has reportedly undertaken a large military buildup in the Caribbean, including deploying its largest aircraft carrier to the region, as well as launching strikes against boats that it claims were trafficking drugs to the U.S.” (12/16/25)
“Attorney General Catherine Hanaway said Tuesday that China is now suing Missouri, in China, in the wake of the $24 billion American court judgment the state has obtained against China in connection with the pandemic. … In April, a federal judge in Cape Girardeau ordered the Chinese government to pay the money to Missouri after finding it hoarded personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic. … Hanaway, in her news release Tuesday, said the new Chinese suit is demanding that the defendants in Missouri issue public apologies in the New York Times and other American media and internet platforms and in Chinese media and internet platforms. Hanaway also said the suit demands compensation equivalent to $50.5 billion plus legal fees and the right to claim further compensation.” (12/16/25)
“The Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine is currently receiving electricity through only one of two external power lines, its Russian management said on Tuesday. The other line was disconnected due to military activity, the management said, adding that radiation levels remain normal. Repair work will begin as soon as possible. The nuclear plant, Europe’s largest, has been under Russian control since March 2022, when Russian forces overran much of southeastern Ukraine. It is not currently producing electricity but relies on external power to keep the nuclear material cool and avoid a meltdown. Each side has regularly accused the other of shelling the facility.” (12/16/25)
“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that the Pentagon will not release the full, unedited video of the U.S. military’s September strike on an alleged drug boat, which [murdered] 11 ‘narco-terrorists,’ including two survivors in a follow-up strike. ‘In keeping with long-standing Department of War [sic] policy … Department of Defense policy, of course, we’re not going to release a top secret full unedited video of that to the general public,’ Hegseth told reporters after briefing senators on the U.S. military’s ongoing, lethal strikes against alleged drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.” (12/16/25)
“The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has rolled out the first official rule proposal stemming from the new law governing stablecoin issuers, with its board voting Tuesday to open a 60-day public comment period on its system for handling applications from its regulated banks looking to issue stablecoins from subsidiaries. The agency — led by Acting Chairman Travis Hill, who is also President Donald Trump’s nominee for the permanent seat — will gather comments and review them before it can release a final rule. The Tuesday proposal, approved by all three members of the shorthanded board, would establish the procedures for accepting applications, reviewing them under a 120-day approval window and offering an appeal process for those rejected.” (12/16/25)
“House Speaker Mike Johnson said Tuesday he won’t call for an amendment vote to renew enhanced subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, ensuring higher health insurance premiums through the healthcare marketplace next year. Speaking during a news conference after a House Republican Conference meeting, Johnson blamed the decision on about a dozen Republican members of the House in swing districts ‘fighting hard to make sure that they reduce costs for all of their constituents.'” (12/16/25)
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“French lawmakers formally approved the country’s 2026 social security budget on Tuesday, handing Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu an important political victory and offering some optimism to skittish markets worried France isn’t serious about getting its public finances in check. The bill, which covers state health care and pensions spending, was expected to pass after having already been approved by the National Assembly, France’s more powerful lower legislative chamber, last week, but its rejection by the Senate over the weekend forced another vote.” (12/16/25)
“A Pakistani anti-terrorism court sentenced a senior leader of a banned Islamist party to 35 years in prison for inciting violence, more than a year after the cleric publicly called for the killing of the country’s then-chief justice, court officials and a defense lawyer said Tuesday. Zaheerul Hassan Shah, a leader of the outlawed Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, was arrested last year after a video circulated on social media showing him offering 10 million rupees ($36,000) to anyone who beheaded then-Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa. Isa had faced criticism from hardline religious groups last year after he granted bail to a man from the minority Ahmadi community in a blasphemy case.” (12/16/25)
