Phillips 66 stock rises Tuesday, outperforms market

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hearing a high-profile culture-war clash, the Supreme Court on Wednesday seemed likely to uphold Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for minors . The justices’ decision, not expected for several months, could affect similar laws enacted by another 25 states and a range of other efforts to regulate the lives of transgender people , including which sports competitions they can join and which bathrooms they can use . The case is being weighed by a conservative-dominated court after a presidential election in which Donald Trump and his allies promised to roll back protections for transgender people, showcasing the uneasy intersection between law, politics and individual rights. The Biden administration's top Supreme Court lawyer warned a decision favorable to Tennessee also could be used to justify nationwide restrictions on transgender healthcare for minors. In arguments that lasted more than two hours, five of the six conservative justices voiced varying degrees of skepticism of arguments made by the administration and Chase Strangio, the ACLU lawyer for Tennessee families challenging the ban. Chief Justice John Roberts, who voted in the majority in a 2020 case in favor of transgender rights , questioned whether judges, rather than lawmakers, should be weighing in on a question of regulating medical procedures, an area usually left to the states. ”The Constitution leaves that question to the people’s representatives, rather than to nine people, none of whom is a doctor,” Roberts said in an exchange with Strangio. The court’s three liberal justices seemed firmly on the side of the challengers. But it’s not clear that any of the conservatives will go along. Justice Sonia Sotomayor pushed back against the assertion that the democratic process would be the best way to address objections to the law. She cited a history of laws discriminating against others, noting that transgender people make up less than 1% of the U.S. population, according to studies. There are an estimated 1.3 million adults and 300,000 adolescents aged 13 to 17 who identify as transgender, according the UCLA law school's Williams Institute. “Blacks were a much larger part of the population and it didn’t protect them. It didn’t protect women for whole centuries,” Sotomayor said in an exchange with Tennessee Solicitor General Matt Rice. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she saw some troubling parallels between arguments made by Tennessee and those advanced by Virginia and rejected by a unanimous court, in the 1967 Loving decision that legalized interracial marriage nationwide. Quoting from the 57-year-old decision, Jackson noted that Virginia argued then that “the scientific evidence is substantially in doubt and, consequently, the court should defer to the wisdom of the state legislature.” Justice Neil Gorsuch, who wrote the majority opinion in 2020, said nothing during the arguments. The arguments produced some riveting moments. Justice Samuel Alito repeatedly pressed Strangio, the first openly transgender lawyer to argue at the nation's highest court, about whether transgender people should be legally designated as a group that’s susceptible to discrimination. Strangio answered that being transgender does fit that legal definition, though he acknowledged under Alito’s questioning there are a small number of people who de-transition. “So it's not an immutable characteristic, is it?” Alito said. Strangio did not retreat from his view, though he said the court did not have to decide the issue to resolve the case in his clients' favor. There were dueling rallies outside the court in the hours before the arguments. Speeches and music filled the air on the sidewalk below the court’s marble steps. Advocates of the ban bore signs like “Champion God’s Design” and “Kids Health Matters,” while the other side proclaimed “Fight like a Mother for Trans Rights” and “Freedom to be Ourselves." Four years ago, the court ruled in favor of Aimee Stephens, who was fired by a Michigan funeral home after she informed its owner that she was a transgender woman. The court held that transgender people, as well as gay and lesbian people, are protected by a landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace. The Biden administration and the families and health care providers who challenged the Tennessee law urged the justices to apply the same sort of analysis that the majority, made up of liberal and conservative justices, embraced in the case four years ago when it found that “sex plays an unmistakable role” in employers' decisions to punish transgender people for traits and behavior they otherwise tolerate. The issue in the Tennessee case is whether the law violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same. Tennessee's law bans puberty blockers and hormone treatments for transgender minors, but allows the same drugs to be used for other purposes. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, the administration's top Supreme Court lawyer, called the law sex-based line drawing to ban the use of drugs that have been safely prescribed for decades and said the state “decided to completely override the views of the patients, the parents, the doctors.” She contrasted the Tennessee law with one enacted by West Virginia, which set conditions for the health care for transgender minors, but stopped short of an outright ban. Rice countered that lawmakers acted to regulate “risky, unproven medical interventions” and, at one point, likened the use of puberty blockers and hormone treatments to lobotomies and eugenics, now thoroughly discredited but once endorsed by large segments of the medical community. Rice argued that the Tennessee law doesn’t discriminate based on sex, but rather based on the purpose of the treatment. Children can get puberty blockers to treat early onset puberty, but not as a treatment for gender dysphoria. “Our fundamental point is there is no sex-based line here,” Rice said. While the challengers invoked the 2020 ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County for support, Tennessee relied on the court's precedent-shattering Dobbs decision in 2022 that ended nationwide protections for abortion and returned the issue to the states. The two sides battled in their legal filings over the appropriate level of scrutiny the court should apply. It's more than an academic exercise. The lowest level is known as rational basis review and almost every law looked at that way is ultimately upheld. Indeed, the federal appeals court in Cincinnati that allowed the Tennessee law to be enforced held that lawmakers acted rationally to regulate medical procedures, well within their authority. The appeals court reversed a trial court that employed a higher level of review, heightened scrutiny, that applies in cases of sex discrimination. Under this more searching examination, the state must identify an important objective and show that the law helps accomplish it. If the justices opt for heightened scrutiny, they could return the case to the appeals court to apply it. That's the course Prelogar and Strangio pushed for on Wednesday, though there did not seem to be much support for it. Gender-affirming care for youth is supported by every major medical organization, including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychiatric Association. But Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Brett Kavanaugh all highlighted a point made by Tennessee in its legal briefs claiming that health authorities in Sweden, Finland, Norway and the United Kingdom found that the medical treatments "pose significant risks with unproven benefits.” If those countries “are pumping the brakes on this kind of treatment," Kavanaugh said, why should the Supreme Court question Tennessee's actions? None of those countries has adopted a ban similar to the one in Tennessee and individuals can still obtain treatment, Prelogar said. Kavanaugh, who has coached his daughters’ youth basketball teams, also wondered whether a ruling against Tennessee would give transgender athletes "a constitutional right to participate in girls' sports.” Prelogar said a narrow decision would not affect the sports issue. Associated Press writers Lindsay Whitehurst, Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas, Geoff Mulvihill in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and Kimberlee Kruesi in Nashville, Tennessee contributed to this report. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. Get local news delivered to your inbox!Brad Battin grilled on his personal stance on nuclear power

US stock indexes closed at record highs Tuesday after President-elect Trump's created only some ripples on Wall Street. Trump has often praised the use of tariffs, but investors are weighing whether his latest threat will actually become policy or is just an opening point for negotiations. For now, the market seems to be taking it more as the latter, the reports. Unless the United States can prepare alternatives for the autos, energy products, and other goods that come from Mexico, Canada, and China, such tariffs would raise the price of imported items all at once and make households poorer, according to Carl Weinberg and Rubeela Farooqi, economists at High Frequency Economics. They would also hurt profit margins for US companies, while raising the threat of retaliatory tariffs by other countries. General Motors sank 9%, and Ford Motor fell 2.6% because both import automobiles from Mexico. Constellation Brands, which sells Modelo and other Mexican beer brands in the United States, dropped 3.3%. The talk about tariffs overshadowed another set of mixed profit reports from US retailers.The UH-60 Black Hawk is not just an icon of the US military but of modern helicopters as our world knows them. The prolific whirly-bird was built by Sikorsky at the behest of the US Army and Air Force. The family of variants has grown over the years to include the SH-60 Seahawk of the US Navy , the US Air Force's MH-60 Pave Hawk and MH-60T Jayhawk of the US Coast Guard . It has served as the U.S. Army's primary utility helicopter since 1979. Renowned for its versatility, the Black Hawk is the go-to battlewagon that gets troops on the battlefield from point A to point B. It also serves as the workhorse for many missions like medical evacuation (medevac), search and rescue (SAR), cargo airlift and fire support. Time and time again, the rugged helo has proven it can take any mission the Army throws at it. As time marches on, combat continues to evolve, and the Black Hawk has kept pace with many phases of upgrades and modifications to integrate new technology. However, the landscape is changing, and new threats demand ever-increasing performance from the Army’s Air Corps. As reported by Defense News , the US Army plans to reduce the Black Hawk fleet significantly over the next decade to prioritize modernization efforts. This modernization effort focuses on the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA)program, which seeks a next-generation rotorcraft capable of meeting 21st-century operational demands. The Bell V-280 Valor and other tiltrotor platforms are top contenders for replacing the Black Hawk . Sikorsky's project, which combines autonomy and fly-by-wire technology, is another candidate. However, the notable gains in speed, range, and payload capacity offered by tilt-rotors have the potential to completely transform the Army's vertical lift capabilities. Because the platform choice will influence the Army's aviation capabilities for many years, it is a crucial strategic decision. Black Hawk legacy The Black Hawk family has been the backbone of the Army’s rotary-wing fleet for over four decades. The UH-60 was created during the Cold War to meet the demand for a dependable, durable, and adaptable helicopter. The helicopter has deployed on every mission from disaster relief in the States to counterinsurgency ops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Famously immortalized by the movie “Black Hawk Down,” for its central role in the peacekeeping operations in Somalia where the Army relied on its fleet to rapidly ingress special forces like Rangers and Green Berets to execute tactical strikes. The Black Hawk's rotors are designed to withstand extreme conditions, including medics & direct arms fires, making it a powerful lifeline in combat. One recent upgrade program tested a semi-autonomous, fly-by-wire MH-60M variant that would allow the pilot to focus on tactical tasking and leave the flying primarily up to the autopilot. “We’re going to have a tablet. You push a button, and it’ll go through all the pre-flight checks, it’ll start, it’ll take off, and perform that [assigned] mission,” said Dan Tenney , Vice President, Strategy and Business Development for Lockheed Martin for Rotary and Mission Systems. Even with its legacy of service and achievement, the Black Hawk is becoming seen as unsuitable for threats in the future. It is less resilient than it once was for operations under fire, as today's adversaries have more sophisticated air defense weaponry than ever before. Bell Valor’s promise The Bell V-280 Valor was developed under the Army’s FLRAA program. The Valor holds the potential for a paradigm shift in rotary-wing aviation. The V-280 employs tiltrotor technology to transition between vertical takeoff and higher-speed horizontal flight. Bell V-280 Valor specs : Cruise speed: 320 mph (520 km/h) Range: 500-800 nautical miles (926-1,482 km) Maximum payload: 12,000 lbs (5,443 kg) Valor versus the Hawk Although decades of service have demonstrated the Black Hawk's worth, the V-280 outperforms it in critical metrics critical to maintaining the battlefield advantage in future conflicts. Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk specs : Cruise speed: 183 mph (295 km/h) Range: 320 nautical miles (593 km) Maximum payload: 10,350 lbs (4,694 kg) The Black Hawk's capabilities have made it one of the world's most versatile military helicopters with a diverse range of roles. Implications for Army aviation The choice to switch to a next-generation platform and replace over 2,000 Black Hawks will have a widespread impact on how the Army allocates resources for many programs. Tiltrotor aircraft will require infrastructure changes that provide maintenance and training, which necessitates an investment of funding and time. The promise of improved survivability in contested environments, increased range, and quicker battlefield response times may provide operational advantages that outweigh these difficulties. Only time will tell which course the top brass in the Army choose will be the new direction for their air cavalry. Until then, we will have to wait and watch.It might seem like the year 2024 would last forever, but there's only a few weeks left before we turn the calendar to 2025 . If you're lucky enough to get some quiet during the December holidays, it can be a great time to assess your financial situation and make changes to boost your tax refund (or lower your tax liability) before filing your tax return in 2025 . These tax strategies could help you reduce your tax burden, but you'll need to act soon, as some steps require preparation to complete before Dec. 31, 2024. Read more: Best Tax Software It's worth taking the time now to review your tax situation, as a little effort now could pay off big later. Read on to find end-of-the-year tax tips to set you up for the upcoming tax season. 1. Double-check your paycheck for tax withholding The US has a "pay as you go" model of income tax, which is why your employer withholds money from your paycheck and freelancers have to pay estimated taxes quarterly . Failure to pay enough taxes during the year can result in a penalty at tax time. Your employer determines the amount withheld from your paycheck by your W-4 tax form, which includes your filing status and estimated tax deductions. The end of the year is a great time to review your W-4 and current withholding to decide if you want to change it. The IRS' Tax Withholding Estimator tool lets you estimate your current withholding and projected tax refund in order to adjust your W-4 form. You can submit an updated W-4 form to your company at any time, and your employer must institute your changes by the start of the first payroll period, which is 30 days or longer after your W-4 submission. 2. Sell any losing stocks to offset your capital gains It's been a huge year for stocks in 2024 -- the S&P 500 index is up a whopping 30% -- but there are still plenty of stocks that lost money this year. One bright spot of potential stock losses is the opportunity to practice " tax loss harvesting ." This tax strategy works by realizing losses or selling your stocks and assets that have lost value, to offset other capital gains you may have earned. For example, if you made $25,000 in profit on a real-estate sale in 2024 but lost big on an investment in a struggling stock (like Intel ), you can sell your securities and subtract the financial loss of that investment from your capital gains. If you have $25,000 in stock losses, you'll offset the $25,000 you earned from the real-estate sale to eliminate that tax burden. Capital gains include any income that you earn through the sale of assets, such as stocks, real estate, cars, furnishings or any other tangible properties, but you must actually sell assets to realize losses and offset gains. 3. Maximize contributions to your retirement account Retirement funds like 401(k) accounts and IRAs provide one of the most productive tax deductions because you can reduce your tax bill while building a nest egg for the future. If you can afford it, max out your possible contributions to any retirement account before the end of the year. The deduction limit for 401(k) contributions for 2024 taxes is $23,000, and that does not count employer contributions. A worker in the 24% tax bracket could knock almost $5,000 off their tax bill just by saving money for the future. Crank up the percentage of your regular 401(k) contribution for the last pay periods of 2024 to make the most of your potential retirement deductions. If you're over 50, you can contribute more to your 401(k) with "catch up" contributions totaling $7,500 per year (or $30,000 total) in 2024, if permitted by your 401(k) plan. You don't even need to be "behind" on your 401(k) contributions to make additional deferrals to your account. For IRAs, the maximum amount of tax-deductible contributions for 2024 is $7,000, or $8,000 if you are over 50. The amount of money that you can deduct from your taxes depends on both your income and whether or not you have a work-provided retirement plan. 4. Make your home more energy efficient Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 , there are major incentives to making your home "greener" in 2024. The law boosted the amount of tax credits you can get for increasing your home's energy efficiency. For this tax year, the residential clean energy credit -- which gives money back for installing solar panels, geothermal heat pumps, fuel cells and battery storage -- is still at 30%. Tax credits have more of an impact on your tax bill than deductions. While deductions lower your level of taxable income, tax credits directly reduce the amount of taxes that you owe to the IRS. Installing a solar energy system, wind turbine or geothermal heat pump can now give you 30% of the cost back if completed before Jan. 1, 2025. In California, the average cost of solar installation is $11,563. If you made that average improvement to your home in 2024, you'd knock $3,467 off your taxes. Tax credits for energy improvements aren't limited to alternative energy. Simply installing new, qualified Energy Star-certified furnaces and boilers can reap tax credits too, although smaller than for alternative energy. Be sure to check the manufacturer's tax certification statement, as not every Energy Star-certified product is eligible. 5. Do you want to defer an end-of-year bonus or payment? It's not always easy to postpone payment from your employer, but if you receive an end-of-year bonus and are looking to decrease your taxable income as much as possible this year, consider asking your company to pay you in January. Similarly, if you're a freelancer or contractor and you want to reduce your taxable income for 2024, consider delaying your invoices until December so that you don't get paid until January. You're only postponing the payment of income taxes on that money until your 2025 taxes are due, so you'll need to strategize on whether this year or next would be better for earning that money. 6. Donate to charities now if you want more deductions If you itemize your tax deductions and like to contribute financially to the causes and groups that you support, do it before the end of the year to best reduce your taxable income for 2024. Most taxpayers can generally deduct charitable donations up to 50% of their taxable income. Before donating to anyone, make sure that your contribution will be tax deductible by searching the IRS' tax-exempt organization database . All valid charities and nonprofits will also have a tax identification number that identifies them as tax-exempt. 7. Check required minimum distributions from IRAs and 401(k) accounts US tax law requires that Americans start receiving distributions from their personal or work-provided retirement accounts when they reach a certain age. Starting in 2023, the SECURE 2.0 Act raises that age from 72 to 73, for those who turned 72 after Dec. 31, 2022. These distributions are mandatory for 401(k) plans, traditional IRAs, profit-sharing plans and pensions. They're not required for Roth IRAs while the owner is alive. Required minimum distributions, or RMDs, are calculated by adding up all of the money in your retirement accounts and dividing by an IRS life expectancy factor. The Securities and Exchange Commission provides a simple calculator that incorporates the latest IRS life expectancy tables. While the administrator of your retirement plan is required to follow tax law for RMDs, it's up to you to make sure you're getting the right amount. If you don't meet the required amount for your RMD, you'll face the harshest IRS penalty around. The excise tax on RMD failures has been 50% in the past, but the SECURE 2.0 Act reduces that penalty to 25%, and even further to 10% if the RMD is corrected within two years. Still, if you were required to withdraw $20,000 in 2024 but only received $10,000, you could be on the hook for a $2,500 penalty. It's definitely worth double-checking your RMD for 2024 and withdrawing more money if required. 8. Combine your medical expenses into one year Medical expenses can be a significant deduction for many taxpayers, but the IRS only allows you to deduct expenses that are in excess of 7.5% of your AGI. For example, if your AGI is $50,000, and you spent $5,000 on medical expenses, you can deduct $1,250 ($5,000 - ($50,000 x 7.5%)) from your taxable income. For that reason, it can be advantageous to group all of your major medical expenses into one year. These expenses can include surgeries, preventative care, hospital visits, dental care, prescription medicine, glasses, hearing aids and mental health care like therapy, as well as transportation costs to and from providers. If you're approaching 7.5% of AGI in medical expenses this year, consider making as many of your anticipated health-related purchases by the end of December. Get your teeth straightened, buy those new glasses or schedule that elective surgery by the end of 2024, and you'll maximize your medical deductions. Similarly, if you're not approaching that 7.5% of the AGI threshold for medical expenses in 2024, hold off on any non-urgent health-related purchases until January when they could be more advantageous for next year's income taxes. 9. Strategize your business expenses If you're self-employed or a freelancer, deducting your business expenses can save you considerable money on taxes. Depending on how much you've already spent on your professional work this year, you might consider prepaying for next year's expenses before the end of 2024 in order to reduce your tax burden. For example, instead of buying supplies a month at a time, you could order and pay in December 2024 for supplies that you'll use for several months of 2025. The timing of your deductions might depend on whether you use a cash method of accounting or accrual basis, but front-loading business expenses for next year is a time-tested way of reducing your taxable income for the current year. It's very important to note that everyone's tax situation is different. These end-of-year tax tips may be effective for you, but there is no "one size fits all" approach to tax preparation. Be sure to consult a tax professional before making any major tax decisions. For more on the 2024 tax season, see how much income brackets and the standard deduction are changing in 2025 .Israeli strikes on a Gaza tent camp kill at least 21 people, hospital says

SYDNEY, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Asian shares edged lower on Monday as high Treasury yields challenged lofty Wall Street equity valuations while underpinning the U.S. dollar near multi-month peaks. Volumes were light with the New Year holiday looming and a rather bare data diary this week. China has the PMI factory surveys out on Tuesday, while the U.S. ISM survey for December is due on Friday. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) , opens new tab dipped 0.2%, but is still 16% higher for the year. Japan's Nikkei (.N225) , opens new tab eased 0.2%, but is sitting on gains of 20% for 2024. South Korea's main index has not been so fortunate, having run into a storm of political uncertainty in recent weeks, and is saddled with losses of more than 9% for the year. It was last off 0.35%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures were both off 0.1%. Wall Street suffered a broad-based sell off on Friday with no obvious trigger, though volumes were just two-thirds of the daily average. . The S&P 500 is still up 25% for the year and the Nasdaq 31%, which is stretching valuations when compared to the risk-free return of Treasuries. Investors are counting on earnings per share growth of just over 10% in 2025, versus a 12.47% expected rise in 2024, according to LSEG data. Yet yields on 10-year Treasuries are near eight-month highs at 4.631% and ending the year around 75 basis points above where they started it, even though the Fed delivered 100 basis points of cuts to cash rates. "The continued rise in bond yields, driven by the reassessment of less restrictive monetary policy expectations, creates some concern," said Quasar Elizundia, a research strategist at broker Pepperstone. "The possibility that the Fed may keep restrictive monetary policy for longer than expected could temper corporate earnings growth expectations for 2025, which could in turn influence investment decisions." Bond investors may also be wary of burgeoning supply as President-elect Donald Trump is promising tax cuts with few concrete proposals for restraining the budget deficit. Trump is expected to release at least 25 executive orders when he takes office on Jan. 20, covering a range of issues from immigration to energy and crypto policy. Widening interest rate differentials have kept the U.S. dollar in demand, giving it gains of 6.5% for the year on a basket of major currencies . The euro has lost more than 5% on the dollar so far in 2024 to last stand at $1.0429 , not far from its recent two-year trough of $1.0344. The dollar held near a five-month top on the yen at 157.71 , with only the risk of Japanese intervention preventing another test of the 160.00 barrier. The strength of the dollar has been something of a burden for gold prices, though the metal is still 28% higher for the year so far at $2,624 an ounce . Oil has had a tougher year as concerns about demand, particularly from China, kept a lid on prices and forced OPEC+ to repeatedly extend a deal to limit supplies. Brent fell 37 cents to $73.80 a barrel, while U.S. crude lost 17 cents to $70.43 per barrel. Sign up here. Reporting by Wayne Cole;Editing by Shri Navaratnam Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. , opens new tab

Syrian opposition fighters have reached the suburbs of the capital, Damascus, and government forces are withdrawing from the strategic city of Homs as the rebels' surprising offensive picks up speed and President Bashar Assad's whereabouts are unknown. Homs is an important intersection between Damascus and Syria’s coastal provinces that are the Syrian leader’s base of support. In Damascus, residents described a city on edge, with security forces on the streets and many shops running out of staple foods. The rapidly developing events have shaken the region. Lebanon said it was closing all its land border crossings with Syria except for one that links Beirut with Damascus. Jordan closed a border crossing with Syria, too. Eight key countries gathered with the U.N. special envoy on Syria on the sidelines of the Doha Summit for two hours of discussions Saturday night, and more will follow. The U.N. envoy seeks urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition.” Here's the Latest: Two officials with Iran-backed Iraqi militias in Syria say the militias are monitoring the situation and have not made a decision to enter in support of Iran’s ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad. One of the officials said Iranian militias had withdrawn to Iraq from their positions in Syria. “All the militias are waiting to see what Bashar Assad will do in Damascus. If he resists and does not allow Damascus to fall, it is possible that the Iraqi factions will intervene for the purpose of support,” he said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter. -- Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad Multi-country discussions on Syria have ended on the sidelines of the Doha Summit. Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein says the countries will issue a statement, and there will be follow-up talks “taking into consideration the practical and real situation on the ground.” He said the talks, which lasted over two hours Saturday evening, focused on how to stop the fighting. Eight key countries including Saudi Arabia, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran gathered with the U.N. special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen. When asked where Syrian President Bashar Assad is, Iraq's foreign minister replied, “I don’t know.” He declined to speculate on whether Assad would be overthrown. Opposition fighters have reached the Damascus suburbs. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Health Ministry says two Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday killed six people and wounded five others. The ministry said an airstrike on the village of Beit Leif killed five people and wounded five, while a drone strike on the village of Deir Serian killed one person. Israel’s military said it was looking into the report. Despite a ceasefire that went into effect on Nov. 27 to end the 14-month fighting between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah militants that had escalated into all-out war, violations of the truce have continued. The director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza says the facility came under heavy Israeli bombardment again on Saturday and three medical staff were killed. Dr. Hussam Abu Safia in a statement posted by Gaza’s Health Ministry said the hospital was hit by over 100 projectiles and bombs, and electricity was cut off. He said the surgery department and neonatal unit were hit, and he pleaded for “immediate coordination for repair operations.” Kamal Adwan is one of the last remaining hospitals in northern Gaza. Israeli forces are pressing an offensive that has almost completely sealed off the area from humanitarian aid for two months. Israel’s military said it wasn’t aware of any attack Saturday. The hospital director on Friday said Israeli strikes had killed at least 29 people including four medical staff. Israeli Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi says the military is monitoring the Syrian border to make sure that “local factions do not direct actions towards us,” adding that Israel is not intervening in the events in Syria. Israel’s military has said it is reinforcing its deployment along the border with Syria. Halevi said if “confusion” arises and actions are directed toward Israel by “local factions” taking control of parts of Syria, Israel has a strong “offensive response.” The United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Syria says the U.N. is relocating non-critical staff outside the country. Adam Abdelmoula in a statement Saturday called it a precautionary measure to protect U.N. teams. “Let me emphasize—this is not an evacuation and our dedication to supporting the people of Syria remains unwavering,” Abdelmoula said. The statement did not say how many U.N. staffers were leaving Syria as opposition fighters reached the suburbs of Syria’s capital, Damascus. The statement said the fighting in Syria has displaced over 370,000 people as the humanitarian situation deteriorates, “with many seeking refuge in the northeast and others trapped in frontline areas, unable to escape.” Foreign ministers and senior diplomats from eight key countries including Saudi Arabia, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran have gathered on the sidelines of the Doha Summit along with the U.N. special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, to discuss the situation in Syria. The talks continued late Saturday and no details were immediately available. Qatar, Jordan and Iraq also were part of the discussions as opposition fighters closed in on the Syrian capital, Damascus. BAGHDAD — An Iraqi government spokesperson says about 2,000 Syrian army soldiers have crossed into Iraq seeking refuge as opposition forces advance in Syria. Bassem al-Awadi said the soldiers’ equipment and weapons were registered and taken into custody by the Iraqi army. “We dealt with them according to the principle of good neighborliness and humanity,” he said Saturday. Al-Awadi also said Iraqi officials are concerned about the security of the al-Hol camp and other facilities in northeast Syria where suspected Islamic State group members and their families are detained. The facilities are guarded by U.S.-backed Kurdish forces. Al-Awadi said there is “high security coordination” between Iraqi officials and those forces to “prevent the prisoners from escaping.” Syria's army says it is fortifying its positions in the suburbs of Damascus and in the country’s south, as opposition fighters close in on the capital. The army statement on Saturday also asserted that Syria is being subjected to a “terrorist” and propaganda campaign aiming to destabilize and spread chaos. The statement also said the military is continuing with operations in areas including the central provinces of Hama and Homs, and that it has killed and wounded hundreds of opposition fighters. At least two people were wounded in a car-ramming attack in the West Bank on Saturday, according to the Israeli army and rescue services. The army said the attack took place in the area of the Fawwar refugee camp, near the city of Hebron. It said a soldier was severely wounded, and security forces were looking for the attacker. Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said another man in his 40s suffered light injuries from shrapnel. The West Bank has seen a surge in violence since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza sparked the war there. Israel has intensified its military raids in the West Bank, targeting what it says are militants planning attacks, and there has also been a rise in Palestinian attacks on Israelis. The Israeli military says it is helping United Nations forces to head off an attack on a U.N. position in Syria close to the Israeli border. The army said in a statement Saturday that an attack was carried out by “armed individuals” on a U.N. post near the Syrian town of Hader and it was “assisting U.N. forces in repelling the attack.” On Friday, Israel’s military said it would reinforce its forces in the Golan Heights and near the border with Syria, where civil war has reignited between the government and opposition fighters. Hamas has released a video showing Israeli hostage Matan Zangauker making an emotional plea for his release and describing the conditions he and other hostages face in Gaza after being seized in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel. His mother, Einav, has become a symbol of the fight to bring back the hostages and is an outspoken critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Matan Zangauker, speaking under duress, appealed to the public to protest in front of Netanyahu’s home and “not let him sleep even for a minute.” Zangauker also referred to 420 days of being held by Hamas militants. “We want to return before we go crazy. Isolation is killing us, and the darkness here is frightening,” he said, describing having little food and medicine and “undrinkable” water. President-elect Donald Trump has made his first extensive comments on dramatic advances by opposition fighters in Syria, saying the besieged President Bashar Assad didn’t deserve U.S. support to stay in power. “THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT,” Trump posted on the Truth Social platform on Saturday. Syrian opposition activists and regional officials have been watching closely for any indication from both the Biden administration and the incoming Trump administration of how the U.S. would handle the sudden advances against Syria’s Russian- and Iranian-allied leader. Trump condemned the overall U.S. handling of the 13-year civil war in Syria, but spoke favorably of the routing of Assad and Russian forces. ISTANBUL — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday that there was “now a new reality in Syria” following the rapid advance of rebel forces. Speaking in Gaziantep, a city less than 30 miles (48 kilometers) from the Syrian border, Erdogan said that “increasing attacks on civilians” in Syria’s northwest Idlib province “triggered the latest events like the straw that broke the camel’s back.” It was not possible for Turkey to ignore developments in a country with which it shares a lengthy border and it would not allow any threats to its national security, he added in a televised speech. “Our wish is for our neighbor Syria to attain the peace and tranquility it has been longing for for 13 years,” he told a rally of supporters. “We want to see a Syria where different identities live side by side in peace. We hope to see such a Syria in the very near future.” Erdogan claimed President Bashar Assad had erred in rebuffing Turkey’s previous efforts to establish relations, saying Damascus “could not appreciate the value of the hand Turkey extended.” Ankara has supported anti-Assad rebel groups since the early months of the conflict and hosts 3 million refugees dislodged by the fighting. While Turkey lists HTS, the group leading the latest offensive, as a terrorist organization, the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army has worked alongside it. BEIRUT — A resident of the Syrian capital of Damascus says the city is very tense as troops and members of security agencies are deployed on main streets and intersections. The resident told The Associated Press that many shops are closed and those that are open have run out of main commodities such as sugar. He added that if food products are available, some shops are selling them for a price three times higher than usual. “The situation is very strange. We are not used to that,” the resident said on condition of anonymity, fearing retributions. “People are worried whether there will be a battle (in Damascus) or not.” — Bassem Mroue in Beirut DOHA, Qatar — Russia’s foreign minister says he has met his Turkish and Iranian counterparts in Doha and that all three countries were calling for an “immediate end to hostile activities” in Syria. Russia and Iran are the chief supporters of Syria’s government, while Turkey backs opposition fighters trying to remove President Bashar Assad from power. Speaking at the annual Doha Forum, Sergey Lavrov said Russia continues to help the Syrian army confront insurgents, military via airstrikes. Asked whether Assad’s rule is threatened by the fast-moving rebel offensive, he said, “We are not in the business of guessing what’s gong to happen.” He blamed the United States and the West for the events in Syria and said, “We are very sorry for the Syrian people who became a subject of another geopolitical experiment. “We are doing everything we can not to make terrorists prevail, even if they say they are not terrorists,” Lavrov said, referring to the de facto leader of the Syrian insurgents, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, who says he has cut links with al-Qaida. His group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, is listed as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and United Nations. He said Russia, Iran and Turkey want the full implementation of a U.N. resolution, which endorsed a road map to peace in Syria. Resolution 2254 was adopted unanimously in December 2015. The measure called for a Syrian-led political process, starting with the establishment of a transitional governing body, followed by the drafting of a new constitution and ending with U.N.-supervised elections. Lavrov also downplayed reports that Moscow had withdrawn ships from Russia’s base in Syrian city of Tartus, saying that the vessels had left to take part in naval exercises in the Mediterranean. DOHA, Qatar — The U.S. envoy who brokered the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah says the deal has created a new opportunity for Lebanon to reshape itself. Amos Hochstein told the Doha Forum that the weakness of Hezbollah after nearly 14 months of fighting along, along with blows to its Syrian and Iranian allies, give the Lebanese military and government a chance to reassert itself. “Now is the moment with this ceasefire to rebuild Lebanon again for a much more prosperous future and stronger state institutions,” Hochstein told The Associated Press on the sidelines of the conference. He said Lebanon needs “to do its part” by rebuilding its economy, choosing a president after years of delays and strengthening its central government to attract investors. “And the international community has a requirement and a responsibility to support Lebanon after this devastating conflict and after years of Hezbollah control,” he said. Hochstein told the conference that the turning point in ceasefire efforts was Hezbollah dropping its pledge to keep fighting as long as the war in Gaza continues. He said the change in position was the result of the heavy losses inflicted on Hezbollah, and Lebanese public opinion in favor of delinking the two conflicts. He said key tests for the ceasefire will be whether Israel carries out its promised phased withdrawal from southern Lebanon over the coming two months and whether the Lebanese army is able to move into those areas. BEIRUT — Insurgents and a war monitor say opposition fighters are taking over military posts evacuated by Syrian government forces in the country’s south, bringing them closer to the capital, Damascus. An insurgent official known as Maj. Hassan Abdul-Ghani posted on the Telegram messaging app that opposition fighters are now in the town of Sanamein, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the southern outskirts of Damascus, President Bashar Assad’s seat of power. Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said insurgents have entered the town of Artouz, which is about 10 kilometers (6 miles) southwest of Damascus. Opposition fighters have captured wide parts of Syria, including several provincial capitals, since they began their offensive on Nov. 27. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s government has approved a plan to deploy more troops along the border with Israel, part of the ceasefire deal that ended the Israel-Hezbollah war. In a rare Cabinet meeting outside of Beirut, held Saturday at a military base in the southern port city of Tyre, the government also approved a draft law to reconstruct buildings destroyed during the Israel-Hezbollah war that broke out in October 2023 and ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire last week. Information Minister Ziad Makary told reporters after the meeting that the committee whose job is to monitor the ceasefire that went into effect on Nov. 27 will hold its first meeting on Monday. The committee is made up of military officials from the U.S., France, Israel and Lebanon as well as the U.N. peacekeeping force deployed along the border. As part of the ceasefire deal, during the first 60 days Israeli troops will have to withdraw from Lebanon, while Hezbollah will have to pull its heavy weapons away from the border area to north of the Litani river. The Lebanese army said this week it will begin recruiting more soldiers, apparently to deploy them along the border with Israel. BEIRUT — The Syrian army withdrew from much of southern Syria on Saturday, leaving more areas of the country, including two provincial capitals, under the control of opposition fighters, the military and an opposition war monitor said. The redeployment away from the provinces of Daraa and Sweida came as Syria’s military sent large numbers of reinforcements to defend the key central city of Homs, Syria’s third largest, as insurgents approached its outskirts. The rapid advances by insurgents are a stunning reversal of fortunes for Syria’s President Bashar Assad , who appears to be largely on his own, with erstwhile allies preoccupied with other conflicts. His chief international backer, Russia, is busy with its war in Ukraine, and Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah, which at one point sent thousands of fighters to shore up his forces, has been weakened by a yearlong conflict with Israel. Iran, meanwhile, has seen its proxies across the region degraded by Israeli regular airstrikes. JERUSALEM — Israeli security forces killed a Palestinian man after he attacked them at a border crossing in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Saturday morning, police said. The man shot firecrackers at security forces at the checkpoint and threatened them with a knife, the police statement said. The man wore a t-shirt emblazoned with a symbol of the Islamic State militant group, according to an Associated Press reporter Israeli fire has killed at least 700 Palestinians in the West Bank since the Israel-Hamas war began last year, Palestinian health officials said. In that time, Palestinian militants have launched a number of attacks on soldiers at checkpoints and within Israel. DOHA, Qatar — The prime minister of Qatar says he has seen new momentum in Gaza ceasefire efforts since the U.S. presidential election, with the incoming Trump administration seeking an end to the conflict before it takes office. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, a key mediator in the ceasefire efforts, declined to give specifics of the negotiations but told an international conference in Doha that the gaps between the sides are not large. Qatar, which has served as a mediator throughout the 14-month war, suspended its efforts last month in frustration over the lack of progress. But Sheikh Mohammed said his government has re-engaged in recent days after determining a new willingness by both parties to reach a deal. ’We have sensed after the election that the momentum is coming back,” he told the Doha Forum on Saturday. He said has been in touch with both the outgoing Biden administration and the incoming Trump administration and found that while there are some differences in approach, both are committed to the same goal of ending the war. ’We have seen a lot of encouragement from the incoming administration in order to achieve a deal, even before the president comes to the office,” Sheikh Mohammed said. He declined to discuss details, saying he wanted to “protect the process,” but expressed hope for a deal “as soon as possible.” ’If you look at the gaps and the disagreements, they are not something substantial that really affects the agreement,” he said. CAIRO — At least 29 people were killed, including four medical staff, when Israeli strikes pummeled the area around one of the last remaining hospitals in northern Gaza, Palestinian officials said. The situation in and around the Kamal Adwan hospital is “catastrophic,” according to Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, the director of the hospital. The dead included five children and five women, according to the hospital casualty list, which was obtained by The Associated Press. Friday’s strikes also wounded 55 people including six children and the five women, according to the hospital. Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya is one of the few hospitals still partially operating in the Gaza’s northernmost province , where Israeli forces are pressing an offensive that has almost completely sealed off the area from humanitarian aid for two months. Israel’s military denied that its forces had struck the hospital or operated inside it. The army said that in the past few weeks, “coordinated efforts with international organizations have been underway in order to transfer patients, companions, and medical staff to other hospitals.” An Indonesian medical team which had been assisting in Kamal Adwan for the past week was forced to evacuate on foot after the area was surrounded by Israeli soldiers, according to a statement from the team. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the medical team’s expulsion. Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, the World Health Organization representative in the Palestinian territories, said an Israeli tank approached the hospital at around 4 a.m. Friday. Although no official Israeli evacuation order was issued, “people started to climb the wall to escape, and this panic attracted IDF (Israeli) fire,” he said. He spoke by video from Gaza to journalists in Geneva. Kamal Adwan Hospital has been struck multiple times over the past two months since Israel launched a fierce military operation in northern Gaza against Hamas militants. In October, Israeli forces raided the hospital, saying that militants were sheltering inside and arrested a number of people, including some staff. Hospital officials denied the claim. MANAMA, Bahrain — Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister has reiterated the kingdom’s call for an end to the war in the Gaza Strip. Prince Faisal bin Farhan described Israel as acting with “impunity and is getting away without punishment” in its war on Hamas there. The prince said that any permanent solution requires a two-state solution, with the Palestinians having east Jerusalem as their capital. After the speech, Prince Turki al-Faisal, a prominent royal in the kingdom who led Saudi intelligence for more than two decades and served as ambassador to the U.S. and Britain, took the stage. He harshly criticized Israel’s conduct in the wars. “Israel has become an apartheid, colonial and genocidal state,” Prince Turki said. “It is about time for the world to address that issue and take the necessary steps to bring those who are thus charged by the International Criminal Court to justice.” Israeli officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Prince Turki’s remarks. The Saudis spoke at the International Institute for Security Studies’ Manama Dialogue in Bahrain.How major US stock indexes fared Wednesday, 12/4/2024

King and PM honour former US president Jimmy Carter after his death aged 100A Queens couple ran a massive mob-style theft ring targeting major chains such as Macy’s and Sephora and swiping luxury brands to rake in millions of dollars, officials said Tuesday. Sticky-fingered husband and wife Cristopher Guzman, 35, and Yvelisse Guzman Batista, 29, earned themselves the dubious distinction of being the first criminals charged under a new state law aimed at helping to take out such widespread online schemes, authorities said. “ Listen, this is going to be real simple,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said at a press conference touting the new law — which criminalizes the “fostering the sale of stolen goods,’’ particularly using the Web and middlemen. “ We’ve had enough with criminals preying on our citizens,” Hochul said. “We are sick and tired of our citizens feeling they’re vulnerable to — whether it’s random crimes on the streets or whether it’s these sophisticated organized crime rings. And we are coming after you .” Guzman and Batista allegedly sat atop what Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz called a “large-scale retail theft and fencing operation” built upon a thieves’ guild that delivered them stolen high-end makeup, perfume, beauty products, designer clothing and accessories from up and down the East Coast. The Guzmans allegedly ordered crews to jack certain items from stores, then sold the goods out of their Kew Gardens home or a storefront in the Dominican Republic under the name Yvelissa Fashion, LLC, Katz said in a statement. Other times, the couple paid off truck drivers a la the mob to bring them loads of products right from the manufacturers’ warehouses instead of to retailers such as Sephora and Ulta Beauty, where they were supposed to go, Katz said. “The defendants ran a widespread fencing operation that offered stolen merchandise for sale far below retail prices,” Katz said, adding that the Guzmans made more than $2 million in their illicit endeavor. “These arrests once again prove that consumers should be extremely careful about buying items on social media or from unfamiliar vendors,” she said. “As we approach the holiday season, take great care to know the genesis of the products you are buying.” Guzman and Batista — along with Batista’s mom, Rosa Rodriguez Santana, 59; and Johanny Almonte Reyes, 33, of Fresh Meadow, Queens — were slapped with a litany of charges, including criminal possession of stolen property, conspiracy, attempted criminal possession of stolen property and fostering the sale of stolen goods. Another alleged accomplice, 29-year-old Tiffany Leon Fuentes of Ozone Park, of Queens was hit with similar charges. At the height of the ring’s operation, the defendants were pulling in $50,000 in stolen goods every week, Katz said. The crooks allegedly shared their profits with the street crews, handing them about 10% to 15% of each heist’s retail value. The illicit goods were peddled through online ads or out of a brick-and-mortar boutique in Santiago, Dominican Republic. Authorities latched onto the ring after the New York State Police infiltrated it, then brought the case to the Queens DA’s office, a law-enforcement source told The Post. State and federal investigators slowly closed in, surveilling the Guzmans’ Kew Gardens home and an apartment in Fresh Meadows, Katz said. Undercovers sold three different loads of purportedly stolen goods to the couple, which included beauty products and perfume worth about $23,000, authorities said. In return, the suspects gave them about 15% of the retail value, or nearly $3,800, officials said. The Guzmans allegedly then requested the agents steal certain in-demand brands for them to sell. Another undercover operative bought a pricey perfume from the Guzmans’ product-laden basement, which was fully stocked with shelves of merchandise, the DA said. Fuentes, one of the alleged accomplices, was caught on video stealing makeup and cosmetics from Ulta stores in Chester, NJ, and Towson, Md., and bringing them to the Guzmans’ fencing spot, officials said. Earlier this year, shipments of Sol de Janeiro products worth nearly $800,000 miraculously disappeared — and investigators say the Guzmans paid to have the drivers bring them right to them. Bank records showed that the Guzmans made hundreds of payments to scores of “vendedoras” — the Spanish word for “sellers” — from January 2022 to September 2024 worth about $230,000, Katz said. The couple allegedly shipped stolen merchandise to the Dominican Republic in big, blue, plastic barrels — some of which were seized by Homeland Security agents earlier this month. When authorities raided the Guzmans’ home, the Fresh Meadows apartment and another spot in Briarwood in Queens on Friday, they found a cornucopia of contraband — including 50,000 retail products worth more than $1 million from companies such as Maybelline, Fenty, Dior, Yve Saint Laurent, Versace, Valentino, Prada, Zara, Anthropologie and Victoria’s Secret. They also seized a money counter, label maker, shipping barrels, ledgers and two polymer ghost-gun kits with parts of an unfinished firearm. The DA’s office said the defendants are scheduled to appear in court Jan. 15 — and face up to 25 years if convicted. -Additional reporting by Vaughn Golden

Divisive Rhetoric On Religion Harms Constitutional Unity: Supreme Court JudgeSyrian government forces withdraw from central city of Homs as insurgent offensive accelerates

Ravens' running game was crucial in a big win over the Chargers, especially on 4th downIDX Dynamic Innovation ETF ( NASDAQ:DYNI – Get Free Report ) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,700 shares, a growth of 750.0% from the November 30th total of 200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 9,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.2 days. IDX Dynamic Innovation ETF Stock Performance Shares of DYNI opened at $28.32 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $28.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.39. IDX Dynamic Innovation ETF has a one year low of $25.76 and a one year high of $30.35. IDX Dynamic Innovation ETF Announces Dividend The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 24th were issued a dividend of $0.1547 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 24th. IDX Dynamic Innovation ETF Company Profile The IDX Dynamic Innovation ETF (DYNI) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in stocks based on a particular theme. The fund is an actively managed fund-of-funds that invests in technology equity ETFs with exposure to companies from around the world with addressable markets perceived to have potential for widespread adoption. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for IDX Dynamic Innovation ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for IDX Dynamic Innovation ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .

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PIERS Morgan has lead well-wishes for Michail Antonio after a car crash saw him trapped in his Ferrari for 45 minutes. The footballer, 34, was airlifted to hospital with "shattered" legs after the horror unfolded on Coppice Row, in Epping, Essex, at around 12.50pm. Michail was eventually cut free by fire crews at 1.45pm after being trapped for nearly an hour. Piers Morgan posted his well-wishes on X after shocking photographs from the scene circulated. "Whoa... this looks very bad. Hope he’s OK," wrote the Uncensored host. When West Ham later posted a major health update stating the player was in "stable condition", the presenter added: "Good news...". Michail's former team-mate Jobi McAnuff, who played with him at Reading, also wrote on Instagram: "Thoughts and prayers to Michail and his family." It comes after the footballer's £260,000 Ferrari FF smashed into trees after leaving the road. Ex-wife Debbie travelled from her home in Manchester to be at his bedside. A source told The Sun on Sunday: “He is in a serious condition. “He is conscious and communicating but everyone at the club is very worried. We are all just praying he gets through this.” Onlookers reported grey smoke pouring from the car which crashed in Theydon Bois — close to the home of West Ham owner David Sullivan. One said: “There were other cars stopped and people were on their phones calling 999. “It was awful weather, rain, wind and very slippery on the road. It didn’t look like another car was involved. "It looked like it had spun out of control. “I only found out later who he was. I hope he’s OK.” A motorist who passed the scene added: “The right wing was ripped off, as well as the right front wheel and driver’s door. “I could see firefighters had to cut away parts of the car to get him out. It looked like he had some face injuries.” Another source also claimed the footballer's legs had been "shattered" in the crash. Horrific photographs from the scene show the shocking aftermath. Michail's silver Ferrari lay at the side of the road on the verge of surrounding woodland. There appeared to be extensive damage to the front, driver's side, with the windshield crumpled. Pictures revealed only the back of the car remained in tact. In an update on X, the club confirmed Michail is in a "stable condition" and remains in hospital after the single vehicle collision. The dad-of-four is "under close supervision" but is "conscious and communicating". "West Ham United can confirm that Michail Antonio is in a stable condition following a road traffic accident this afternoon in the Essex area," the club wrote on social media. "Michail is conscious and communicating and is currently under close supervision at a central London hospital. "At this difficult time, we kindly ask everyone to respect the privacy of Michail and his family. "The Club will make no further comment this evening, but will issue a further update in due course." Fans on X were quick to send their best wishes and prayers following the latest update. One said: "Amazing news. Here’s to speedy recovery Michail take all the time you need." Another added: "Good news! Glad to hear this." A third said: "Wishing Michail Antonio a speedy recovery. Glad to hear he's in stable condition. "Thoughts are with him and his family during this difficult time. Hoping for a full and quick recovery." A spokesperson for Essex Police said: "Officers investigating a serious collision in Epping are asking for witnesses and dash cam footage. "We were called shortly after 12.50pm on Saturday 7 December to Coppice Row, Epping, following reports of what is believed to be a single vehicle collision involving a Ferrari. "Emergency services attended and the driver has been taken to hospital. "The vehicle has been recovered and we are no longer on scene. "An investigation will be carried out by our Roads Policing Unit. "If you have any information, CCTV, dash cam or other footage in relation to this incident, then please get in contact with us. "Please quote incident 605 of 7 December when providing any information to make sure it gets to the right person as quickly as possible. "Alternatively, please email the investigating officer, PS Mark Hewitt." An Essex Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson added: "Crews were called to High Road, Epping, at 1.02pm this afternoon after reports of a road traffic collision involving one car. "On arrival firefighters reported that a man was trapped in his car and worked to release him by 1.45pm. "The casualty was left in the care of the Ambulance Service."Lucknow, Dec 28 (PTI) Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said the BJP is a threat to democracy and the Constitution. “The BJP murders democracy by misusing power. People got the right to vote from the Constitution, but the BJP is snatching it. Votes were looted in the by-election. People were stopped from voting...,” he said in a statement here. “The whole country saw that brave women faced bullets and guns in the by-election. They were successful in casting their votes by risking their lives,” he added. Addressing a large number of workers of the Khangar community at the Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Auditorium in the Samajwadi Party’s state headquarters in Lucknow, Yadav said good people were needed to implement the Constitution. “The Constitution given by Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar gives strength to the poor, farmers, the deprived and PDA,” he said and added that the BJP is weakening the Constitution. “The BJP is the originator of fake news. It propagates lies, files false cases against opponents and always conspires to defame the Samajwadi Party leadership. The BJP government has weakened the constitutional institutions, it is on the path of dictatorship,” he claimed. The SP chief also said that the BJP has never worked for the poor people and farmers. “It took decisions for its capitalist friends and made them profits. The country’s economy was destroyed by the decisions of the BJP government,” he added. “Inflation and unemployment have reached the peak. The poor did not benefit from the decision of demonetisation. Where did the black money go? Jobs and employment ended. Today, the youth do not have jobs and employment,” he said. Under the BJP government, crops are bought from farmers at low prices and sold at high rates, Yadav alleged, adding, “The work of Mandis was stopped. Mandis were built for the convenience of farmers under the Samajwadi government. The BJP government is responsible for the inflation of food items, oil, pulses.” “If the Samajwadi Party forms the government in the state in 2027, the PDA society will get social justice. Only then will they get rights and respect. The Samajwadi Party wants a caste census in the country. With the caste census, the deprived sections will be able to get their rights. There will be social justice for everyone,” he said in the statement. PTI NAV IJT This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content. var ytflag = 0;var myListener = function() {document.removeEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);lazyloadmyframes();};document.addEventListener('mousemove', myListener, false);window.addEventListener('scroll', function() {if (ytflag == 0) {lazyloadmyframes();ytflag = 1;}});function lazyloadmyframes() {var ytv = document.getElementsByClassName("klazyiframe");for (var i = 0; i < ytv.length; i++) {ytv[i].src = ytv[i].getAttribute('data-src');}} Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() );Watch: Israel uses THAAD system to intercept Houthi missile

Middle East 2024 Wrapped: Top Events