At least 45 people injured in nighttime Russian missile attack on Ukrainian capital

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s capital came under another missile attack early Wednesday, resulting in at least 45 injuries and several damaged buildings, the city’s mayor said.

A series of loud explosions could be heard in Kyiv at 3 a.m. as the city’s air defenses were activated for the second time this week.

USA: How the presidents of Harvard, Penn and MIT testified to Congress on antisemitism

WASHINGTON, D.C. (AP) — Over five hours at a congressional hearing, lawmakers pressed the presidents of Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania and MIT on the topic of antisemitism. In some instances, they were unable to say whether calls for the genocide of Jews would violate their schools’ conduct policies.

The backlash started almost immediately. Penn’s leader stepped down within days. Harvard’s president was on the hot seat for nearly a week before a university governing board announced Tuesday she would stay on the job.

Canadian PM calls for further humanitarian pauses in talk with Netanyahu

OTTAWA, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday to call for further humanitarian pauses.

Trudeau said it was crucial to "ensure safe and unimpeded access to life-saving humanitarian aid for civilians" during the war, according to a readout issued by his office, adding that he expressed support for "urgent international efforts toward a sustainable ceasefire."

Kenya to scrap visas for all visitors, president says

NAIROBI, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Visitors to Kenya from across the world will no longer require a visa from January, President William Ruto said on Tuesday.

Ruto said his government had developed a digital platform to ensure all visitors would receive an electronic travel authorisation in advance, instead of needing to apply for a visa.

"It shall no longer be necessary for any person from any corner of the globe to carry the burden of applying for a visa to come to Kenya," he said in a speech in the capital Nairobi at an event to mark 60 years of independence from Britain.

Germany’s government reaches a deal to resolve its budget crisis and keeps up support for Ukraine

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s governing coalition reached a deal Wednesday to resolve a budget crisis triggered by a court ruling last month, agreeing to cut some subsidies and spending while stressing that Berlin will stick to plans to step up support for Ukraine.

USA: United Nations demands humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The United Nations on Tuesday demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war after more than three-quarters of the 193-member General Assembly backed the move, which had been vetoed by the United States in the Security Council last week.

The United States does not have a veto in the General Assembly. It voted against the resolution, along with Israel and eight other countries. The resolution was adopted to a round of applause with 153 votes in favor, while 23 countries abstained from the vote.

Italy: The pope says he wants to be buried in the Rome basilica, not in the Vatican

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis says he wants to be buried in the Rome basilica of St. Mary Major, not in the grottoes of the Vatican like other popes, so he can be near his favorite icon of the Madonna.

Francis, who turns 87 on Sunday, also said he never thought about resigning this year despite a series of health scares. He said he has a trip confirmed to Belgium next year and visits under consideration to Polynesia and his native Argentina.

South Africa to build new nuclear plants

JOHANNESBURG, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- The South African government will begin the process of adding 2,500 megawatts (MW) to its nuclear capacity, with the first commissioning expected in 2032 or 2033, a senior official said Tuesday.

"We are triggering a procurement process. We are going out to ensure that we are able to get that additional 2,500 MW of nuclear capacity to ensure energy security and sovereignty. This is a significant milestone," said Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, minister in the Presidency responsible for electricity, at a media briefing.

USA: Biden points to Gaza hostages when asked about Israeli tunnel flooding reports

WASHINGTON, Dec 12 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden declined to directly answer a question on reports that Israel was pumping seawater into Hamas' Gaza tunnel complex, referring only to assertions that there were no hostages in the areas targeted.

Citing unnamed U.S. officials, the Wall Street Journal reported that Israel had recently begun pumping seawater into Hamas' vast labyrinth of tunnels underneath Gaza, in a process that would likely take weeks.

USA: Georgia election worker suing Rudy Giuliani tells jurors that his lies made her fear for her life

WASHINGTON (AP) — Scared for her life after Rudy Giuliani and other Donald Trump allies falsely accused her of fraud, former Georgia election worker Wandrea “Shaye” Moss told jurors Tuesday she seldom leaves her home, suffers from panic attacks and battles nightmares brought on by a barrage of threatening and racist messages.

Serbian democracy activists feel betrayed as freedoms, and a path to the EU, slip away

KRALJEVO, Serbia (AP) — When Serbia began talks to join the European Union in 2014, pro-Western Serbs were hopeful the process would set their troubled country on an irreversible path to democratization. A decade later, that optimism is gone, replaced by feelings of betrayal — both toward their government, which has slid toward autocracy, and the EU, which has done little to stop it.

Switzerland: Iranian foreign minister says Israel, US cannot wipe out Hamas

GENEVA, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said on Tuesday that Israel and the United States will never be able to wipe out Hamas and that Israel could only secure the release of hostages held in Gaza with a political solution to the conflict.

In a speech at the United Nations in Geneva in which he described the Islamist group as a freedom movement, Amirabdollahian said: "Israel and the United States will never be able to eliminate Hamas."

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