An Israeli airstrike flattened a multistory building in central Gaza, killing at least 25 people and wounding dozens more, according to Palestinian medical officials, after strikes Thursday across the Gaza Strip killed at least 28 others. The latest deadly strike hit the urban Nuseirat refugee camp just hours after U.S. President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters in Jerusalem that the recent ceasefire in Lebanon has helped clear the way for a potential deal to end the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the deadly strike in Nuseirat. Israel says it is trying to eliminate Hamas, which led the attack on southern Israel in October 2023 that sparked the war in Gaza . The Israeli military says Hamas militants hide among Gaza’s civilian population. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine in some of the hardest-hit parts of the territory. Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and around 250 others were taken hostage. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Here's the latest: Syrian exile group says transitional government should be formed through a U.N.-backed process DAMASCUS, Syria — Mohammad Salim Alkhateb, an official with the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces — an internationally backed group of the opposition in exile — said his group wants to see a transitional government formed via a United Nations-backed process in the wake of Bashar Assad ouster. It is not yet clear if Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the main rebel group now in control of Syria, will pursue such a process. The insurgents have said an interim government headed by Mohammad al-Bashir, who is also the head of the “salvation government” of HTS in its former stronghold in northern Syria, will oversee the country until March but have not made clear how the transition to a new, fully empowered government would take place. “The transitional governing body should be formed in Geneva to have international legitimacy,” said Alkhateb, who is now in Damascus. “The transitional governing body, whatever its form, whether it is the ‘salvation government’ or any other, what matters is that it has international recognition.” Alkhateb said that the unexpectedly rapid fall of Damascus and departure of Assad after opposition forces launched their offensive had created confusion and a governance vacuum. A day before the insurgents pushed into Damascus, diplomats from countries including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, Iran and Russia met in Qatar to discuss the situation in Syria. Alkhateb said that they had discussed a scenario in which the rebels would halt their advance, keeping the territory they had captured so far in the north — including Syria’s largest city, Aleppo — and the opposition and Assad’s government would go to Geneva for talks on a political settlement to the conflict. However, he noted, “there were no Syrians in that meeting.” Assad fled to Russia before the rebel forces arrived in Damascus but has not officially announced his resignation, which is “why we are living in a vacuum rather than a political transition,” Alkhateb said. He added that creating a professional army should be a priority of the transitional government. “We do not want a civilian who was trained during the revolution to carry military weapons to become the military,” he said. Israel bombed hundreds of military sites in Syria this week in a wave of airstrikes that destroyed “most of the strategic weapons stockpiles” in the country. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the wave of airstrikes in neighboring Syria was necessary to keep the weapons from being used against Israel following the Syrian government’s stunning collapse . Biden administration says missing American journalist in Syria ‘is a top priority’ WASHINGTON — White House press secretary Karine Jean-Peirre says Austin Tice, an American journalist missing in Syria for 12 years, “is a top priority for this president.” During a briefing with reporters on Thursday, Jean-Pierre said of Tice, “There is no indication that he is not alive. There’s also no indication about his location or condition.” “What our goal is, is to bring him home. And so, we hope certainly that he is alive and, as we have stated many times before, we are talking through this with the Turks and we want to do everything we can to bring him home,” she said. Four Israeli strikes in Lebanon should be investigated as war crimes, rights group says BEIRUT — Amnesty International said Thursday that four Israeli airstrikes between September and October that killed at least 49 civilians in Lebanon “must be investigated as war crimes.” The rights organization said in a new report that the four strikes targeted homes in the Bekaa Valley, northern and eastern Lebanon, and municipal offices in the south. “These four attacks are emblematic of Israel’s shocking disregard for civilian lives in Lebanon and their willingness to flout international law,” said Amnesty International’s Erika Guevara Rosas, Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns. The rights group said this report was part of its ongoing investigation into violations of the laws of war in Lebanon. Amnesty International investigated four Israeli airstrikes, including one on Sept. 29 in al-Ain that killed all nine members of the same family. On Oct. 21, a strike in Baalbek city in eastern Lebanon killed six members of the same family. Another on Oct. 14 in the village of Aitou in northern Lebanon killed 23 displaced people, including a 5-month-old baby. A fragment from the attack site in Aitou was identified by an Amnesty weapons expert as likely part of a Mk-80 series aerial bomb, weighing at least 500 pounds. These munitions are primarily supplied to Israel by the United States, Amnesty said. The fourth strike Amnesty investigated was the strike that hit the municipal headquarters in Nabatiyeh, southern Lebanon, on Oct. 16, killing 11 civilians including the mayor. “The air strike took place without warning, just as the municipality’s crisis unit was meeting to coordinate deliveries of aid, including food, water and medicine, to residents and internally displaced people who had fled bombardment in other parts of southern Lebanon,” Amnesty said. The rights group said it interviewed survivors and witnesses, examined evidence, and found no military targets near the sites of the four strikes. The Israeli military gave no warnings and did not respond to Amnesty’s inquiries, the group said. Israeli strike on a multistory building in Gaza kills at least 25 people and wounds dozens DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — An Israeli airstrike hit the central Gaza Strip on Thursday, killing at least 25 Palestinians and wounding dozens more, Palestinian medics said, just hours after President Joe Biden’s national security adviser raised hopes about a ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza. Photos from the scene of the blast that circulated on social media showed a completely collapsed building with people walking through its mangled and charred remains, smoke rising from piles of belongings strewn over the rubble. Officials at two hospitals in the Gaza Strip, al-Awda Hospital in the north and al-Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza, reported they received a combined total of 25 bodies from an Israeli strike on a multistory residential building in the urban Nuseirat refugee camp. Palestinian medics also reported that over 40 people, most of them children, were receiving treatment at the two hospitals. The al-Aqsa Hospital said that the Israeli attack also damaged several nearby houses in Nuseirat. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the deadly strike. Israel is trying to eliminate Hamas, which led the attack on southern Israel in October 2023 that sparked the war in Gaza . The Israeli military says Hamas militants hide among Gaza’s civilian population. Israel’s war against Hamas has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine. Israel says it allows enough aid to enter and blames U.N. agencies for not distributing it. The U.N. says Israeli restrictions, and the breakdown of law and order after Israel repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, make it extremely difficult to operate in the territory. UN food agency faces challenges in Syria UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. food agency is trying to deal with massive needs in Syria not only from escalating war-related food insecurity and an upsurge in displaced people fleeing Lebanon but also the dramatically new environment following the ouster of Bashar Assad, a senior U.N. official says. “It’s a triple crisis and the needs are going to be massive,” said Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the World Food Program, in an interview with The Associated Press late Wednesday. The WFP estimated that 3 million people in Syria were “acutely food insecure” and very hungry. However, that estimate was made before the Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon pushed many Syrian refugees back to their home country, plus the instability caused by the overthrow of Assad. Due to funding cuts, the WFP had been targeting only 2 million of those people, he said. Because WFP has been working in Syria during the 13-year civil war, he said, it has pre-positioned food in the country. It has 500 staff in seven offices nationwide and has operated across conflict lines, across borders, and with all different parties, he said. Skau said Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the main rebel group now in control of Syria, has promised to provide security for WFP warehouses. Humanitarian aid supplies had been looted at U.N. warehouses in the disorder after Assad fell. “We’re not really up and running in Damascus because of the continued kind of uncertainty there,” he said. WFP initially thought of relocating non-essential staff but the situation in Aleppo, Syria’s largest city, has been “quite calm and orderly," he said. In the short term, Skau said, “what we’re seeing is that markets are disrupted, the value of the currency dropped dramatically, food prices are going up, transport lines don’t work,” and it’s unclear who will stamp required papers for imports and exports. This means that a bigger humanitarian response is needed initially, he said, but in the next phase, the U,N. will be looking at contributing to Syria’s recovery, and ultimately the country will need reconstruction. Skau said he expects a new funding appeal for Syria and urged donors to be generous. A top US official says the truce in Lebanon may help seal a Gaza ceasefire deal JERUSALEM — President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, told reporters in Jerusalem on Thursday that Israel’s ceasefire in Lebanon has helped clear the way for another deal to end the war in Gaza. He plans to travel next to Qatar and Egypt — key mediators in the ceasefire talks — as the Biden administration makes a final push on negotiations before Donald Trump is inaugurated. Sullivan said “Hamas’ posture at the negotiating table did adapt” after Israel decimated the leadership of its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon and reached a ceasefire there. “We believe it puts us in a position to close this negotiation,” he said. Sullivan dismissed speculation that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was waiting for Trump to take office to finalize a deal. He the U.S. believes there are three American hostages still alive in Gaza, but it’s hard to know for sure. He also said “the balance of power in the Middle East has changed significantly” since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, especially with the overthrow of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, a key ally of Hezbollah and Iran. “We are now faced with a dramatically reshaped Middle East in which Israel is stronger, Iran is weaker, its proxies decimated, and a ceasefire that is new and will be lasting in Lebanon that ensures Israel’s security over the long term,” he said. Israel launches deadly strike on a Lebanese border town just hours after withdrawing troops KHIAM, Lebanon — An Israeli strike killed at least one person Thursday in the Lebanese border town of Khiam, the Health Ministry said, less than a day after Israeli troops handed the hilltop village back to the Lebanese army in coordination with U.N. peacekeepers, Khiam is the first Lebanese town Israel has pull out of since a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah militants began two weeks ago, and marks an important test of the fragile truce . Lebanon's Health Ministry and state news agency did not provide details on who was killed, and did not report airstrikes elsewhere on Thursday. The Israeli military said the airstrike in Khiam targeted Hezbollah fighters. Lebanese troops deployed in the northern section of the town on Thursday morning and were coordinating with U.N. peacekeepers to finalize Israel’s withdrawal before fully entering into other neighborhoods. An Associated Press reporter who visited Khiam on Thursday observed widespread destruction, with most houses reduced to rubble. Entire neighborhoods were flattened, with collapsed walls and debris scattered across the streets. Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, sharply criticized Israel for striking the town less than 24 hours after the Lebanese army returned, saying it was “a violation of the pledges made by the parties that sponsored the ceasefire agreement, who must act to curb Israeli aggression.” The truce was brokered by the U.S. and France. Israel has previously said the ceasefire deal allows it to use military force against perceived violations. Near-daily attacks by Israel during the ceasefire, mostly in southern Lebanon, have killed at least 29 people and wounded 27 others. Khiam, which sits on a ridge less than 3 miles (5 kilometers) from the border with Israel, saw some of the most intense fighting during the war. The Lebanese army was clearing debris and reopening roads in the northern section of the town. Civilian access to other areas remained challenging as the army clears roads and works alongside the U.N. peacekeepers to ensure the area is free of unexploded ordnance. Blinken urges the many players in Syria to avoid taking any steps that could lead to violence AQABA, Jordan -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is urging the many players in Syria to avoid taking any steps that could lead to further violence. Blinken spoke to reporters in Jordan on Thursday shortly after meeting King Abdullah II as he opened a trip in the region to discuss Syria's future after former President Bashar Assad's ouster. Blinken will next visit Turkey, a NATO ally and a main backer of Syrian rebel groups. Blinken called this “a time of both real promise but also peril for Syria and for its neighbors.” He said he was focused on coordinating efforts in the region “to support the Syrian people as they transition away from Assad’s brutal dictatorship” and establish a government that isn’t dominated by one religion or ethnic group or outside power. Blinken was asked about Israel’s incursion into a buffer zone that had been demilitarized for the past half century. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the move is temporary and defensive, but also indicated Israel will remain in the area for a long time. Blinken declined to say whether the U.S. supports the move, but said the U.S. would be speaking to Israel and other partners in the region. “I think, across the board, when it comes to any actors who have real interests in Syria, it’s also really important at this time that, we all try to make sure that we’re not sparking any additional conflicts,” he said. Turkish spy chief makes symbolic visit to pray in Damascus after Assad's fall ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s intelligence chief, Ibrahim Kalin, arrived in Damascus on Thursday, according to Turkish media reports. Kalin was seen arriving at the Umayyad Mosque to pray, surrounded by a large crowd, according to video shown on Turkish television. The visit is highly symbolic. Turkish officials, who supported the opposition against Syria’s government, had predicted at the start of the civil war in 2011 that President Bashar Assad’s government would fall, allowing them to pray at the Umayyad Mosque. Paraguay reopens embassy in Jerusalem in diplomatic victory for Netanyahu JERUSALEM — Paraguay reopened its embassy in Jerusalem Thursday, becoming one of a small handful of nations to recognize the city as Israel’s capital and marking a diplomatic victory for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel’s international isolation has increased as the war in Gaza drags on, and Paraguay was the first country to move its embassy to Jerusalem since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack that kickstarted the war. The United States, Honduras, Guatemala, Kosovo, and Papua New Guinea are among the few countries with Jerusalem embassies. Israel annexed east Jerusalem in 1967 but it wasn’t recognized by the international community, and most countries run their embassies out of Tel Aviv. Spirits were high at the ceremony marking the embassy’s inauguration Thursday, with Netanyahu and Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar lavishing praise on Paraguayan President Santiago Pena. “My good friend Santiago,” said Netanyahu, addressing Pena. “We’re a small nation. You’re a small nation. We suffered horrible things but we overcame the odds of history...we can win and we are winning.” Paraguay had an embassy in Jerusalem in 2018, under Former President Horacio Cartes. That embassy was moved back to Tel Aviv by Cartes’ successor, Mario Abdo Benitez, prompting Israel to close its embassy in Asuncion. Saar said Israel and Paraguay shared a “friendship based not only on interests but also values and principles.” He and the Paraguayan foreign minister, Rubén Ramírez Lezcano, signed a series of bilateral agreements and Saar said he would soon visit Asunción with a delegation from the Israeli private sector. “Israel is going to win and the countries we are standing next to Israel, we are going to win," Pena said. US Secretary of State Blinken renews calls for inclusion, stability in Syria in Mideast visit AQABA, Jordan — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is renewing calls for Syria’s new leadership to respect women and minority rights, prevent extremists from gaining new footholds in the country and keeping suspected chemical weapons stocks secure as he makes his first visit to the Mideast since the weekend ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad . Making his 12th trip to the Middle East since the Israel-Hamas war erupted lasted year but amid fresh concerns about security following the upheaval in Syria, Blinken emphasized Thursday to Jordan’s King Abdullah II U.S. “support for an inclusive transition that can lead to an accountable and representative Syrian government chosen by the Syrian people,” the State Department said. Blinken also repeated the importance the outgoing Biden administration puts on respect for human rights and international law, the protection of civilians and stopping terrorist groups from reconstituting. Blinken met with the monarch and Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi in Aqaba before traveling to Turkey for talks with Turkish officials on the situation in Syria and the urgency of securing a long-elusive deal to release hostages and end the fighting in Gaza that has devastated the Palestinian territory since October 2023. Abdullah told Blinken that “the first step to reach comprehensive regional calm is to end the Israeli war on Gaza." UN envoy urges authorities to collect evidence from Syrian detention centers GENEVA — The U.N. envoy for Syria is calling on authorities to save evidence from detention centers that were a hub of “unimaginable barbarity” that Syrians have faced for many years and cooperate with international investigators looking into such crimes. Geir Pederson referred to new images from the notorious Saydnaya military prison north of the capital, Damascus, after President Bashar Assad fled Syria as armed groups stormed in to overthrow his government over the weekend. “The images from Saydnaya and other detention facilities starkly underscore the unimaginable barbarity Syrians have endured and reported for years,” Pedersen said in a statement. Documentation and testimonies “only scratch the surface of the carceral system’s horrors,” he added. Pedersen urged authorities to cooperate with U.N. bodies like an independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria, which was created in 2011, and an independent group known as the IIIM that was set up five years later to also compile evidence of crimes. G7 leaders say they support an inclusive political transition in Syria ROME — Leaders of the Group of 7 industrialized nations offered their full support for an inclusive political transition in Syria and invited all parties to preserve the country’s territorial integrity. In a message released by Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni’s office, the leaders said they were ready to support a transition that “leads to a credible government, inclusive and not sectarian, that guarantees respect for the state of law, universal human rights, including rights for women, (and) the protection of all Syrians, including religious and ethnic minorities.” The leaders also underlined the importance that ousted President Bashar Assad’s government is held responsible for crimes, citing “decades of atrocities.” They said they would also cooperate with groups working to prohibit chemical weapons “to secure, declare and destroy” remaining chemical arms in Syria. Italy currently holds the rotating presidency of the G-7, which also includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the United States. Israel's military says it hit Hamas militants in two locations in southern Gaza JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says it struck Hamas militants in two locations in the southern Gaza Strip who planned to hijack aid convoys. Palestinian Health officials had earlier said that the two strikes killed 15 men who were part of local committees established to secure aid deliveries. The committees have been organized in cooperation with the Hamas-run Interior Ministry in Gaza. It was not possible to independently confirm either account of the strikes, which occurred overnight into Thursday. Israel has long accused Hamas of hijacking humanitarian aid deliveries, while U.N. officials have said there is no systemic diversion of aid . U.N. agencies and aid groups say deliveries are held up by Israeli restrictions on the entry of aid and movement within Gaza, as well as the breakdown of law and order more than 14 months into the war between Israel and Hamas. Israel has repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, which maintained internal security before the war. The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, the main aid provider in Gaza, said a U.N. convoy of 70 trucks carrying humanitarian aid in southern Gaza “was involved in a serious incident,” resulting in just one of the trucks reaching its destination. It did not provide further details on the incident but said the same route had been used successfully two days earlier. Israel’s offensive, launched after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, has caused vast destruction and displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, leaving the territory heavily reliant on international food aid. American who says he crossed into Syria by foot is free after 7 months in detention DAMASCUS, Syria — An American who turned up in Syria on Thursday says he was detained after crossing into the country by foot on a Christian pilgrimage seven months ago. Travis Timmerman appears to have been among thousands of people released from the country’s notorious prisons after rebels reached Damascus over the weekend, overthrowing President Bashar Assad and ending his family’s 54-year rule. As video emerged online of Timmerman on Thursday, he was initially mistaken by some for Austin Tice, an American journalist who went missing in Syria 12 years ago. In the video, Timmerman could be seen lying on a mattress under a blanket in what appeared to be a private house. A group of men in the video said he was being treated well and would be safely returned home. The Biden administration is working to bring Timmerman home, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters in Aqaba, Jordan, without offering details, citing privacy. Timmerman later gave an interview with the Al-Arabiya TV network, saying he had illegally crossed into Syria on foot from the eastern Lebanese town of Zahle seven months ago, before being detained. He said he was treated well in detention but could hear other men being tortured. US Secretary of State Blinken visits Mideast after Assad's ouster in Syria AQABA, Jordan — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Jordan on his 12th visit to the Mideast since the Israel-Hamas war erupted last year and his first since the weekend ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad that has sparked new fears of instability in a region wracked by three conflicts despite a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon. Blinken was meeting in Aqaba with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Thursday before traveling to Turkey for talks with Turkish officials on Friday. The meetings will focus largely on Syria but also touch on long-elusive hopes for a deal to end the fighting in Gaza that has devastated the Palestinian territory since October 2023. Blinken is the latest senior U.S. official to visit the Middle East in the five days since Assad was deposed as the Biden administration navigates more volatility in the region in its last few weeks in office and as President-elect Donald Trump has said the U.S. should stay out of the Syrian conflict. Other include national security adviser Jake Sullivan and a top military commander who traveled there as the U.S. and Israel have launched airstrikes to prevent the Islamic State militant group from reconstituting and prevent materiel and suspected chemical weapons stocks from falling into militant hands. Blinken “will discuss the need for the transition process and new government in Syria to respect the rights of minorities, facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance, prevent Syria from being used as a base of terrorism or posing a threat to its neighbors, and ensure that chemical weapons stockpiles are secured and safely destroyed,” the State Department said. The U.S. would be willing to recognize and fully support a new Syrian government that met those criteria. U.S. officials say they are not actively reviewing the foreign terrorist organization designation of the main Syrian rebel group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, known as HTS, which was once an al-Qaida affiliate, but stressed they are not barred from speaking to its members. Netanyahu says Israeli forces will remain in Syrian buffer zone until border security is guaranteed JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israeli forces will remain in a Syrian buffer zone until a new force on the other side of the border can guarantee security. After the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar Assad, Israeli forces pushed into a buffer zone that had been established after the 1973 Mideast war. The military says it has seized additional strategic points nearby. Israeli officials have said the move is temporary, but Netanyahu’s conditions could take months or even years to fulfill as Syria charts its post-Assad future, raising the prospect of an open-ended Israeli presence in the country. Netanyahu’s office said in a statement Thursday that Assad’s overthrow by jihadi rebels created a vacuum on the border. “Israel will not permit jihadi groups to fill that vacuum and threaten Israeli communities on the Golan Heights with October 7th style attacks,” it said, referring to Hamas’ 2023 attack out of Gaza, which ignited the war there. “That is why Israeli forces entered the buffer zone and took control of strategic sites near Israel’s border.” The statement added that “this deployment is temporary until a force that is committed to the 1974 agreement can be established and security on our border can be guaranteed.” The buffer zone is adjacent to the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war and later annexed. The international community, except for the United States, views the Golan as occupied Syrian territory. Attacker who fatally shot boy on a bus in the West Bank turns himself in, military says JERUSALEM — Israel’s military said Thursday that the attacker who fatally shot a 12-year-old Israeli boy in the occupied West Bank overnight turned himself in to authorities. The attacker opened fire on a bus near the Israeli settlement of Beitar Illit, critically wounding the boy, who hospital authorities pronounced dead in the early morning. Three others were wounded in the attack, paramedics said. The shooting took place just outside Jerusalem in an area near major Israeli settlements. Indonesia evacuates 37 citizens from Syria JAKARTA, Indonesia — The Indonesian government has evacuated 37 citizens from Syria following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad government, officials said Thursday. The evacuees were taken by land from Damascus to Beirut, where they boarded three commercial flights to Jakarta, said Judha Nugraha, director of citizen protection at the Foreign Affairs Ministry. The Indonesian Embassy in Damascus said all 1,162 Indonesian citizens in Syria were safe. Indonesian Ambassador to Syria Wajid Fauzi said the situation in Syria has gradually returned to normal. “I can say that 98% of people’s lives are back to normal, shops are open, public transportation has started running,” Fauzi said, adding that most Indonesian nationals living in Syria had chosen to stay. Israeli airstrikes kill at least 28 people, including 7 children, Palestinian medical officials say DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian medical officials say Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 28 people in the Gaza Strip, including seven children and a woman. One of the strikes overnight and into Thursday flattened a house in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the nearby city of Deir al-Balah, where the casualties were taken. An Associated Press reporter saw the bodies at the hospital’s morgue. Two other strikes killed 15 men who were part of local committees established to secure aid convoys . The committees were set up by displaced Palestinians in coordination with the Hamas-run Interior Ministry. The Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis received the bodies and an AP reporter counted them. The hospital said eight were killed in a strike near the southern border town of Rafah and seven others in a strike 30 minutes later near Khan Younis. The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250 people. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead. Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,800 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many were combatants. The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. The fighting has plunged Gaza into a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts warning of famine. Israel says it allows enough aid to enter and blames U.N. agencies for not distributing it. The U.N. says Israeli restrictions, and the breakdown of law and order after Israel repeatedly targeted the Hamas-run police force, make it extremely difficult to operate in the territory. UN General Assembly demands ceasefire in Gaza and backs UN agency helping Palestinian refugees UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved resolutions Wednesday demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and backing the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees that Israel has moved to ban . The votes in the 193-nation world body were 158-9 with 13 abstentions to demand a ceasefire now and 159-9 with 11 abstentions to support the agency known as UNRWA. The votes culminated two days of speeches overwhelmingly calling for an end to the 14-month war between Israel and the militant Hamas group . General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, though they reflect world opinion. There are no vetoes in the assembly. Israel and its close ally, the United States, were in a tiny minority speaking and voting against the resolutions.
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Marrakech Film Festival bestows Palestinian film 'Happy Holidays' with top awardAziz Shamuratov Listen below or on the go on Apple Podcasts and Spotify The department store chain accepts at $6.5B buyout offer. (0:16) The Container Store files for Chapter 11 . (1:15) U.K. looks to facial recognition to limit social media use. (4:46) This is an abridged transcript of the podcast. Our top story so far. Department store chain Nordstrom ( NYSE: JWN ) has accepted a $6.25 billion all-cash buyout offer to end its 53-year run as a publicly traded company. Operators signed a deal with Erik, Pete, Jamie Nordstrom and other members of the Nordstrom family and El Puerto de Liverpool, S.A.B. de C.V. ( OTCPK:ELPQF ). Following the close of the transaction, the Nordstrom family will have a majority ownership stake in the company. Common shareholders will receive $24.25 per share. In addition, the board intends to authorize a special dividend of up to $0.25 per share immediately before and contingent on the close of the transaction. Nordstrom first went public in August 1971. At that time, it offered shares under the name "Nordstrom Best" and was recognized as the West Coast's largest volume fashion specialty store shortly thereafter, with annual sales surpassing $100 million by 1973. The company then formally changed its name to Nordstrom, Inc. Shares of the retailer peaked in 2015. In addition, the Container Store Group ( OTC:TCSG ) filed for Chapter 11 after 46 years in business. The company plans to implement a recapitalization transaction to bolster its financial position, fuel growth initiatives, and drive enhanced long-term profitability. CEO Satish Malthora said, "The Container Store is here to stay. Our strategy is sound, and we believe the steps we are taking today will allow us to continue to advance our business, deepen customer relationships, expand our reach, and strengthen our capabilities." Looking to the economy, November durable goods orders (moved a day earlier due to the shortened trading day on Christmas Eve) sank more than expected. New orders of durable goods fell -1.1% M/M , reversing from a 0.8% increase in October, which was revised up from 0.2%. The forecast was for a drop of -0.3%. Core durable goods, which excludes transportation, saw orders tick down -0.1% vs. a 0.2% rise in October and a +0.3% rise expected. Nondefense new orders for capital goods dipped 0.3% during the month. Pantheon Macroeconomist Samuel Tombs notes: “A slump in aircraft orders was responsible for nearly all the drop in headline durable goods orders. In addition, orders ex-transportation were held back by a 12% decline in defense orders.” “The somewhat better performance of orders compared to shipments in November might reflect businesses starting to place orders for delivery in a few months time, in order to lock in prices ahead of potential import tariffs.” In addition, the Conference Board’s measure of consumer confidence unexpectedly fell to 104.7 in December from 112.8 in November. Economists predicted a small rise to 113 with a change in the White House ahead. But the Expectation Index sank 12.6 points to 81.1 points, just above the threshold of 80 that usually signals a recession ahead. The Present Situation Index fell by 1.2 points to 140.2, and Tombs said: “Households have become more downbeat on future business and employment conditions, as well as income expectations. The cutoff for the survey was December 16, before the FOMC meeting and the associated drop in stock prices, so we think the deterioration likely reflects the incoming administration starting to talk about spending cuts, which were not part of Mr. Trump's election pitch.” Among active stocks today, the fact that a federal jury ruled in favor of Qualcomm ( QCOM ) on two of three counts in its lawsuit with Arm Holdings ( ARM ) is seen as a "clear win" for the San Diego-based chipmaker. Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon says, "At this point Qualcomm’s roadmap (and their license?) appear safe." Perhaps most importantly, the third question that the jury decided on — whether Qualcomm's CPUs that use designs from Nuvia are licensed under Qualcomm's Arm architectural license — was a big decisive victory, Rasgon added. Xerox ( XRX ) said it will acquire Lexmark International from Ninestar , PAG Asia Capital and Shanghai Shouda Investment Centre in a $1.5 billion deal. The deal is expected to be immediately accretive to earnings per share and free cash flow. And ResMed ( RMD ) and Inspire Medical Systems ( INSP ), two companies reliant on sleep apnea devices, are under pressure after Eli Lilly's ( LLY ) Zepbound gained an additional indication for sleep apnea in obese individuals . ResMed is a top manufacturer of CPAP machines, considered the gold standard treatment for sleep apnea. Inspire makes a neurostimulation implant for sleep apnea. In other news of note, social media companies will be expected to remove millions of underage users from their platforms using facial recognition age checks, according to John Higham, head of online safety policy at the U.K.'s communications watchdog Ofcom. Apps like Meta's ( META ) Facebook, Instagram, TikTok ( BDNCE ), and Snapchat ( SNAP ) could face multi-billion-pound fines under the Online Safety Act if they fail to protect children from harmful content online. According to Ofcom estimates, around 60% of children aged 8-11 years - about 1.6M kids - in the U.K. have social media accounts despite the apps having a minimum 13-year age limit. And a third of children aged 5-7 are reportedly using social media unsupervised. Higham said in a newspaper interview: "It doesn't take a genius to work out that children are going to lie about their age," adding that Ofcom will announce plans next month detailing how apps would be expected to handle the issue. "The sort of thing we might look to is some facial age estimation technology that we see companies bringing in now, which we think is really pretty good at determining who is a child. We will expect the technology to be highly accurate and effective," he said. And in the Wall Street Research Corner, Goldman’s equity team introduced a model to pick industries that are poised to outperform an equal-weighted index by 5 percentage points or more “to identify ‘high conviction’ views with significant alpha potential.” Strategist David Kostin says: “Our model incorporates macro, fundamental, and valuation data as independent variables. We run the profit model for each sector separately and only include variables with statistical and economic significance. Our model does not capture fiscal policy changes or secular themes such as artificial intelligence.” The model's highest-conviction picks are in materials and in software and services, while it also currently recommends Overweights in health care, utilities and real estate. “Our model recommends a large number of defensive Overweights in part because of the level of economic growth optimism already priced into the equity market today,” Kostin said. Among the value stock picks in those sectors are Akamai ( AKAM ) and IBM ( IBM ) in software, Mosaic ( MOS ) and Eastman Chemical ( EMN ) in Materials, NRG Energy ( NRG ) and ConEd ( ED ) in Utilities and Biogen ( BIIB ) in Healthcare. Growth names include Palantir ( PLTR ) and ServiceNow ( NOW ) in software, FreeportMcMoRan (FRE) in Materials, Realty Icome ( O ) in Real Estate and Merck ( MRK ) and Lilly ( LLY ) in Healthcare. Editor's Note: This article discusses one or more securities that do not trade on a major U.S. exchange. Please be aware of the risks associated with these stocks.
MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — The Marrakech International Film Festival bestowed its top prize Friday on “Happy Holidays,” a Palestinian drama set in Israel whose screenplay won an award at the Venice Film Festival in September. The film, directed by Scandar Copti, follows Israeli and Palestinian characters facing familial and societal pressures in present-day Haifa and stars both professional and non-professional actors. It is the first Palestinian film to win Marrakech’s Etoile D’Or award. Screenwriter Mona Copti in an acceptance speech said the film team’s joy at winning was tempered by war in the Middle East and she denounced what she called the dehumanization of Palestinians Eight features, each a director’s first or second film, competed in the festival. The winning films tackled social issues through the lens of family, a theme that the festival’s artistic director Remi Bonhomme underlined at its opening. The festival awarded its jury prize to two additional films from Somalia and Argentina. The nine-member jury awarded Mo Harawe’s “The Village Next to Paradise” — a story about a family living under the threat of drone strikes dreaming of a better life — and Silvina Schnicer’s “The Cottage” about children who commit an unspeakable act at a rich family’s summer vacation home. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. “The Village Next to Paradise” participated last year in the Marrakech festival’s Atlas Workshops, an initiative to develop filmmakers from Morocco, the Middle East and Africa and promote their work. In his acceptance speech, Harawe lauded the film’s Somali cast and crew and highlighted the significance of the award for Somalia. Cecilia Rainero, the lead actor of “The Cottage,” thanked the jury and said it was meaningful amid Argentinian President Javier Milei’s moves to defund the country’s film industry. Advertisement Advertisement
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Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save South Jersey Extended Care in Bridgeton has consistently been the worst-rated nursing home in the state, according to the Office of the State Comptroller. The owners funneled millions to themselves while starving the facility, according to the state agency. Now, the facility is barred from receiving Medicaid payments, after the comptroller’s investigation of five years of operation found it was run as a way to funnel millions to a man who had been barred from owning nursing homes in Connecticut and Massachusetts and two of his relatives, acting Comptroller Kevin Walsh said Thursday during a news conference. A call for comment to South Jersey Extended Care was not returned Thursday. Health inspection surveys documented more than double the state average in deficiencies in the last three inspection cycles, including serious neglect, abuse, unsanitary conditions and inadequate medical care, according to the comptroller’s report. Body matching description of missing 84-year-old found in Galloway Township 1 injured in Egg Harbor Township crash Absecon police detain suspect in dollar store robbery Pentagon refutes Van Drew Iran claims as New Jersey officials meet to discuss mystery drones Questions about Gillian’s Wonderland finances draw angry response from Mita Could American Airlines bus program lead to more flights at Atlantic City airport? Atlantic City now has more weed shops than casinos with dozens more on the way These South Jersey bars and restaurants have transformed into holiday wonderlands Work on Mike Trout's Vineland golf course completed, but play still more than a year away District overspending main focus for new Atlantic City school board member Ron Bailey LGBTQ+ restaurant the ByrdCage to open in Atlantic City in January Atlantic County suing NJ Juvenile Justice Commission over placement of youth offenders Large drones spotted in Philadelphia area as FBI investigates mysterious drone sightings in NJ Egg Harbor City church celebrates its inspiration with 1,700-year-old artifact Who are The Press 2024 Boys Soccer All-Stars? “They were using unqualified staff. The director of nursing wasn’t a registered nurse,” Walsh said. “The ‘social worker,’ when they had one, wasn’t a social worker.” Also barred from the Medicaid program is Sterling Manor Care Center in Maple Shade, Burlington County, which is also owned and operated by the same three men. Walsh said the men inflated costs for food and made a lot of money through a medical supply business they controlled. The owner on paper of the Bridgeton facility was Mordechay “Mark” Weisz, even though he told Walsh’s office he had nothing to do with the operation of the facilities. In fact, Steven Krausman, through his company, Comprehensive Health Care Management Services LLC, and his brother-in-law Michael Konig and his companies, including Broadway Health Care Management LLC, controlled both facilities as manager and administrator, respectively. “Weisz took $1.3 million out of the nursing home in distributions, and Krausman’s and Konig’s businesses collectively allocated $45.5 million in profits to themselves,” the report states. Konig had previously owned the Bridgeton nursing home until about 1997 but transferred ownership to Weisz after being forced out of multiple nursing homes he owned in Massachusetts and Connecticut, the report said. “OSC found that the financial schemes present here — in which those in charge of the nursing home enter into contracts with ‘vendors’ they also control, at inflated costs, using taxpayer funds — are pervasive throughout nursing homes in New Jersey,” the report states. The investigation found Krausman and Konig provided management and operational services to nine other low-rated Medicaid-funded nursing homes throughout New Jersey, in which they concealed their roles. “Where one sees poor quality one looks for fraud, because that is often the cause of poor quality, is what we’ve found,” Walsh said. The investigation covered five years from April 1, 2018, to March 17, 2023, and “found a pattern of waste and abuse of public funds, financial mismanagement, disregard of federal and state oversight requirements, and substandard care,” according to the comptroller’s report. A Superior Court judge has appointed an independent receiver to run a Hammonton nursing home after its owners failed to give up financial control of the facility by a June 17 deadline, the Office of the State Comptroller said. Walsh called for legislative reform to allow the state Department of Health to provide better oversight of nursing homes. AARP New Jersey said in a news release Thursday afternoon that it fully endorses New Jersey bill S1948/A1872, which would revise reporting requirements for nursing homes on financial disclosures and ownership structure. “This legislation is a crucial step towards ensuring that nursing homes operate with the highest standards of transparency and accountability,” the AARP release said. “By mandating comprehensive financial disclosures and clear ownership structures, we can better safeguard public funds and improve the quality of care for residents.” Laurie Facciarossa Brewer, the New Jersey long-term care ombudsman, said Thursday her office has known the two nursing homes were problematic for a long time, and has been monitoring them. “But I was surprised by the extent of the financial games as outlined by the acting state comptroller today,” Brewer said. Over five years, South Jersey Extended Care received $35.6 million in Medicaid funds but spent $38.9 million on contracts with entities owned or controlled by Krausman and Konig. The three men failed to report any of these related-party transactions to the state and federal governments, as required, to avoid scrutiny and hide their conflicts of interest, the report said. “Funds that could have been used to hire additional staff, improve facilities, or enhance resident programs were instead used for owner distributions, ‘consulting’ fees, and charitable donations to organizations they controlled,” the report states. A Lee Enterprises Public Service Journalism Team and Press of Atlantic City investigation into the Hammonton Center found years’ worth of patient safety concerns and questionable payments to companies controlled by the Hammonton Center’s owners. Meanwhile, for the five-year period of the comptroller’s review, South Jersey Extended Care was the worst-rated facility in New Jersey by CMS standards, receiving a one-star rating in nearly every rating period since at least 2013. The other facilities that contracted with Krausman and Konig included Providence Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Trenton, Royal Health Gate Nursing & Rehabilitation in Trenton, Manhattanview Nursing Home in Union City, Manahawkin Convalescent Center in Stafford Township, Amboy Care Center in Perth Amboy, Teaneck Nursing Center in Teaneck, Oceana Rehab and Nursing Center in Cape May Court House, and Shore Meadows Rehab & Nursing Center in Toms River. This investigation is ongoing, and the comptroller’s office may pursue recovery of overpayments, civil monetary penalties and administrative sanctions against the responsible parties, the report said. REPORTER: Michelle Brunetti Post 609-841-2895 mpost@pressofac.com Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Staff Writer Author twitter Author email {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.Goalkeepers will concede corners for time-wasting in radical new football law changes
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SINGAPORE: When the history of this tumultuous week in South Korean politics is written, legislators who demanded the president rescind his declaration of martial law will surely be lauded. It’s also worth standing back to examine the role that economics has played in the country’s transition to democracy, and why that least-worst system of government, to quote Winston Churchill, survived. The contribution of capitalism – its constraints and opportunities – has been vital. The rhythms of global commerce have been present at key points in South Korea’s journey. It’s fair to say that without the thrills and spills of money, there wouldn’t have been a mature democracy to protect. That you may not have noticed is a testament to its success and durability. Of all the potential year-end shocks that traders had gamed out, Tuesday (Dec 3) night's brief but alarming events didn't come close to making the cut. Markets were braced for social media posts on outlandish cabinet picks by Donald Trump, new tariff threats, and the prospect of a French government implosion, not an attempted coup by President Yoon Suk Yeol . NO ECONOMIC BLOODBATH AFTER MARTIAL LAW CRISIS The reaction was swift but contained: The currency tumbled in offshore trading, along with other assets tied to South Korea. By Wednesday morning, after lawmakers rebuked Yoon, the won had recouped losses and bonds were little changed. Equities fell in local trading, but by no means was it a bloodbath. Regulators were ready to provide ample liquidity. Dramatic gestures like shutting the stock exchange were eschewed, as were panicky moves like further interest-rate cuts. Officials backstopped the system without fuss. This is the way it's supposed to work: Instill confidence, not sap it. Textbook central banking. This doesn't mean the economy will sail smoothly. Gross domestic product rebounded slightly in the third quarter from a modest contraction in the previous three months. The Bank of Korea had already signalled its worries by unexpectedly reducing borrowing costs last week, and making concerned noises about a resumption of trade wars. But a cyclical downdraft is different from a shock that strikes at the heart of the administration. (When I previously wrote that the country was preparing for bleak days, the would-be putsch wasn’t what I foresaw.) ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL UPHEAVAL IN ASIA The good news is that economics and political upheaval have often been strange bedfellows in South Korea – and elsewhere in Asia. As military-backed leaders in Seoul pushed rapid industrialisation in the years after the 1950 to 1953 war that left the peninsula divided, it was almost inevitable that prosperity would bring with it a rising middle class that became more aspirational and demanded a greater say in how it was governed. The scrutiny that came with integration in supply chains, inbound and outbound investment, and the price demanded for access to global markets forced South Korea to clean up its act. Booms also bring busts and Seoul came within an inch of default in the late 1990s during the Asian financial crisis. As wrenching as the meltdown was, it was also part of a big shift in the country’s politics. For the first time, a long-standing opposition politician, Kim Dae-jung, was elected president. Government figures tried to murder him during the dictatorship years, but American intervention kept Kim alive. His moment came and the transition to full democracy was complete. FORCES UNLEASED BY CAPITALISM AND AN OPEN ECONOMY As lawmakers debated the future of the now disgraced Yoon on Wednesday, a former South Korean trade minister sat down with Bloomberg journalists in Singapore. I asked him whether, from a historical vantage point, the ebbs and flows of capitalism were effectively the midwife to democracy in Korea. “Absolutely,” replied Yeo Han-koo, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington. “There's no turning back.” Financial swings also led to a revolution and, ultimately, a freer system in Indonesia. It hasn’t been perfect; the years after the International Monetary Fund imposed harsh conditions on loans that pushed autocratic ruler Suharto out were marred by communal violence and efforts by far flung provinces to break away. Although Suharto’s son-in-law, Prabowo Subianto, now sits in the presidential office, he had to get there the hard way – via the ballot box. In Malaysia, Mahathir Mohamad held on to power for a few years after the financial collapse, but the ructions it produced cemented Anwar Ibrahim as the leading alternative. Anwar became prime minister in 2022 and presides over a sprawling coalition that, against the odds, he has held together. There are exceptions to these encouraging stories: China didn’t democratise as its economy flourished and markets took shape. If anything, it has gone in the opposite direction: President Xi Jinping has accrued more personal authority than any leader since Mao Zedong. Perhaps the moral is you have to be very big to stand against the forces that thriving capitalism and an open economy unleash. Taiwan did manage the transition after decades of enviable growth. Governance can take detours, as Koreans have found out. But the necessities of operating within the global economic system also bring checks on the power of ambitious leaders. Let’s salute the people of South Korea, but also the not-so-invisible hand of commercial priorities.Tottenham identify Premier League manager as Ange Postecoglou’s possible replacementWHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. (AP) — Jaland Lowe scored 19 of his career-high 22 points in the second half and collected eight rebounds and six assists in leading Pittsburgh to a 74-63 win over LSU at the Greenbrier Tip-Off on Friday. Pitt (6-0) will play the Wisconsin-UCF winner on Sunday for the tournament title. The Tigers (4-1) will take on the loser. This is Pitt's best start since 2018-19. Lowe made four 3-pointers while Ishmael Leggett added 21 points, six rebounds and five steals. Cameron Corhen scored 14 points and Zack Austin 10. The Panthers shot 64% in the second half after a 31% showing in the first. Jalen Reed had 14 points and seven rebounds, Vyctorius Miller came off the bench to score 14 points and Cam Carter added 11 for the Tigers, who shot 37%. LSU, which had trailed by as many as 12 in the second half, got within four on a four-point play by Miller with six minutes left but Lowe scored eight points, found Corhen for a pair of dunks and Leggett added seven points to help the Panthers pull away. Pitt stumbled at the end of the first half in surrendering the lead but came out in the second hot, hitting its first five shots and scoring the first 13 points. The Tigers missed their first 12 shots before finally getting a bucket and their first points from Carter nearly seven minutes into the second half. LSU had its only lead after Lowe was called for a technical foul with 4.9 seconds remaining in the first half and Carter hit a free throw to finish an 8-2 run to send the Tigers into the break ahead 28-27. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketballChristmas gift guide with golfers in mind, Callaway tops the list