The U.S. carried out military strikes in Iraq and Syria targeting a militia blamed for an attack that killed an American contractor, a Defense Department spokesman said Sunday. U.S. forces conducted “precision defensive strikes” against five sites of Kataeb Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia, spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in a statement. TheRead more

White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien said Sunday he did not want to speculate about North Korea and its threat of “Christmas gift,” but added the U.S. would be “very disappointed” if Pyongyang tested a long-range or nuclear missile. During an interview with ABC’s “This Week,” O’Brien said the country would take appropriate actionRead more

The Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a telephone conversation initiated by the Russian side, has thanked U.S. President Donald Trump “for information transmitted via the special services that helped prevent the commission of terrorist acts in Russia.” There was no immediate confirmation from the U.S. side. The call also reportedly included discussion ofRead more

A total of 2,231 people have died out of 3,373 declared cases of Ebola in the current epidemic in the DR Congo, according to the agency overseeing the response, health officials said Sunday. Deadly unrest in the fragile state has hampered the fight against the disease during the latest epidemic, which broke out on AugustRead more

French coastguards rescued 31 migrants trying to cross the English Channel overnight after the engine of one small boat cut out and the other dinghy began to take in water, local authorities in France said on Sunday. Border and coast guards in Britain and France have recently intercepted several attempted crossings, including on Dec. 26Read more

The Australian government announced Sunday that it would compensate volunteer firefighters in the state of New South Wales (NSW), as the country’s intense bushfire season rages on.  Prime Minister Scott Morrison said payments of up to A$6,000 would be available for eligible firefighters who had spent more than 10 days in the field this fire season.  “I know that our volunteer firefightersRead more

Austria’s Greens, who are in coalition talks with conservatives led by Sebastian Kurz, on Saturday summoned a meeting of their party’s top decision-making body next week to sign off on a deal, indicating an agreement is close.  The Greens’ Federal Congress, comprising various groups within the party, including its national, local and European lawmakers, must sign off on any coalition deal, andRead more

Former Ivory Coast rebel leader Guillaume Soro dismissed an arrest warrant issued against him as baseless and said he would pursue his campaign as a presidential candidate from overseas, according to comments published Sunday in a French newspaper.  Ivory Coast’s public prosecutor issued the warrant for Soro on Monday as part of an investigation into an alleged coup plot, forcing him to callRead more

Chile’s human rights watchdog is calling for an investigation into the electrocution of a man during anti-government protests.    The death during clashes between police and protesters on Friday raised the number of those killed during protests that started in October to at least 27.    The man who died was 40 years old andRead more

An international aid group said Saturday that conditions in northwest Syria’s rebel-held Idlib province were at a “breaking point.”    The International Rescue Committee warned that continued violence could displace as many as 400,000 in the coming weeks.    After weeks of intense bombardment, Syrian government forces launched a ground offensive on the southern and easternRead more

Somali officials say dozens of people were killed and wounded when a huge car bomb exploded at a busy junction on the southwestern side of Mogadishu. Witnesses say the blast occurred at a security checkpoint at an intersection used by vehicles leaving and entering Mogadishu from Afgoye town. An officer said it was a truckRead more

A U.S. military base in South Korea accidentally blared an alert siren instead of a bugle call, causing a brief scare as the U.S. and its allies are monitoring for signs of provocation from North Korea, which has warned it could send a “Christmas gift” over deadlocked nuclear negotiations. The siren at Camp Casey, whichRead more