kkjili ph Trump's former lawyer tells judge he 'has no car, credit card, or cash'Colourful ceremony marks ‘Gulf 26’ opening in Kuwait

Conservative: Amnesty’s ‘Genocide’ Game Amnesty International “produced a report accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza” — but, sniffs Commentary’s Seth Mandel , “a funny thing happened on the way to the forum.” The group’s Israel branch, “the part of the organization that works on the ground in the country . . . disavowed the report .” Why? “The report is a joke. It didn’t take long for people to find the part where Amnesty explained that in order to find Israel guilty of genocide, the organization had to literally redefine genocide .” “So Amnesty International dissents from international law. That’s fine. Just be up-front about it: Amnesty is not accusing Israel of ‘genocide,’ it is accusing Israel of a different crime which Amnesty has named ‘genocide,’ just so it could use that word.” Libertarian: The Obama CIA’s Futile Syria Scheme “From 2013 to 2017, the CIA spent over $1 billion trying to strengthen ‘moderate rebels’ against both Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and anti-American extremists in the opposition,” but “Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, former head of Al Qaeda in Syria” is now “accomplishing in a week what the CIA tried and failed to do for years” after he “organized a surprise offensive against the Syrian government,” reports Reason’s Matthew Petti. “The collapse of Assad’s government” is “a sign of how futile U.S. intervention has been. The U.S. spent years paying Syrians to kill their countrymen without being able to shape the outcome, before giving up.” Now, Jolani’s evil Levant Liberation Committee is calling the shots. “All the American money spent and Syrian blood it paid to spill amounted to very little in the end.” Labor beat: Biden the Unions’ Man “Thanks to the undemocratic power of government unions, the new administration will be limited in its ability to deliver more efficient services for citizens,” grumble the Washington Examiner’s editors . The Biden crew just inked a new labor deal that lets 42,000 Social Security Administration employees work remotely “when President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in” — moving “to thwart Trump’s government efficiency agenda.” Barring government workers from “signing collective bargaining agreements with government agencies” is the only way “to make the federal government efficient.” Foreign desk: Blame Macron for French Collapse France faces “its most serious political, constitutional and economic crisis in decades,” warns Spiked’s Fraser Myers — and President Emmanuel Macron is to blame, as it’s his “hand-picked prime minister,” Michel Barnier, just ousted by a no-confidence vote. “Under the French constitution, legislative elections cannot be held until the summer of 2025, meaning Macron is stuck with a hung parliament that won’t accept his austerity measures or pass a new budget,” making France “effectively ungovernable for the foreseeable future.” Many “blame the ‘populists’ on the left and the right for pulling the plug on Barnier’s ailing government.” But France’s centrists deserve to be j’accused: “While it would be overstating it to say the French economy is on the verge of collapse, we are a very long way away from the dynamic, competitive ‘start-up nation’ that Macron promised to build when he entered the Élysée.” From the right: End the Pardon-palooza Now that President Biden has pardoned his son Hunter, Democrats are debating whether he “should hand out similar pre-emptive clemency like Christmas stocking stuffers,” snarks The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board . If Biden goes along, it’ll “be another broken democratic norm, and another swirl into the lawfare spiral.” “Pre-emptive pardons for outgoing officials would be a bad precedent” and “a constitutional abuse.” They risk “developing a culture of impunity,” with the next administration expecting the same for their guy. To cool things, Biden could pardon Donald Trump for the two federal cases against him. Note that Trump said in his debate with Biden that his only retribution will be to be successful. If he “leaned into that message, it would do the country good.” — Compiled by The Post Editorial Board( MENAFN - IANS) Tallinn, Dec 27 (IANS) The Estonian government convened an emergency meeting after the Estlink-2 power cable connecting Estonia and Finland along the floor of the Gulf of Finland was damaged the previous day. At a press conference following the meeting on Thursday, Estonian officials agreed with the Finnish authorities' suspicion that the Cook Islands-flagged tanker Eagle S "intentionally" struck the offshore cable, Xinhua news agency reported. Estonian Interior Minister Lauri Laanemets said Finnish authorities have brought the Eagle S to port for further examination. Supporting the Finns' investigation, he said, "The ship's crew must be prepared to stay in the country's waters for as long as the situation requires." Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal called for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to increase its maritime presence in the region as a "deterrent fleet," adding that Finland's investigation would reveal more details. In response to whether Estonia would consider invoking NATO's Article 4, Michal said he intended to discuss the matter with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg after the press conference. Article 4 stipulates that member states will consult whenever a member believes its territorial integrity, political independence, or security is under threat. Michal said the Estonian navy, together with allies, will increase patrols around critical infrastructure. He highlighted the cooperative deployment of ships to monitor undersea infrastructure, urging for greater cooperation to expedite infrastructure improvements. At a separate press conference on Thursday afternoon, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo noted that he had contacted Baltic Sea allies and that President Alexander Stubb had reached out to NATO. “This underlies the danger of the shadow fleet in the Baltic Sea,” Mr. Orpo said at a news conference in Finland's capital, Helsinki. “Our main task is to find effective means to stop the shadow fleet,” Mr. Orpo added.“The shadow fleet pumps money into Russia's war fund so that Russia can continue to wage its war in Ukraine against the people of Ukraine, and it has to be stopped.” He said the Finnish government had not been in touch with Russia. After its seizure, the Eagle S was anchored in Finnish waters, as the Finnish authorities investigated, working with the Estonian authorities. The 145-km EstLink 2 cable, running beneath the Gulf of Finland, connects the energy grids of Estonia and Finland. Transmission operators Elering and Fingrid reported the outage on December 25. 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Bank of Japan’s rate hike ambiguity causing unwelcome angstThe billionaire whose fortune is tied up in a ‘golden cage’DAMASCUS, Syria — Ousted Syrian leader Bashar Assad fled to Moscow and received asylum from his longtime ally, Russian media said Sunday, hours after a stunning rebel advance seized control of Damascus and ended his family’s 50 years of iron rule. Thousands of Syrians poured into streets echoing with celebratory gunfire and waved the revolutionary flag in scenes that recalled the early days of the Arab Spring uprising, before a brutal crackdown and the rise of an insurgency plunged the country into a nearly 14-year civil war. The swift events raised questions about the future of the country and the wider region. “Our approach has shifted the balance of power in the Middle East," President Joe Biden said, crediting action by the U.S. and its allies for weakening Syria’s backers — Russia, Iran and Hezbollah. He called the fall of Assad a “fundamental act of justice” but also a “moment of risk and uncertainty,” and said rebel groups are “saying the right things now” but the U.S. would assess their actions. Russia requested an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council to discuss Syria, according to Dmitry Polyansky, its deputy ambassador to the U.N., in a post on Telegram. The arrival of Assad and his family in Moscow was reported by Russian agencies Tass and RIA, citing an unidentified source at the Kremlin. A spokesman there didn't immediately respond to questions. RIA also said Syrian insurgents had guaranteed the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic posts in Syria. Earlier, Russia said Assad left Syria after negotiations with rebel groups and that he gave instructions to transfer power peacefully. The leader of Syria's biggest rebel faction, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, is poised to chart the country’s future. The former al-Qaida commander cut ties with the group years ago and says he embraces pluralism and religious tolerance. His Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, or HTS, is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the U.N. In his first public appearance since fighters entered the Damascus suburbs Saturday, al-Golani visited the Umayyad Mosque and described Assad's fall as “a victory to the Islamic nation.” Calling himself by his given name, Ahmad al-Sharaa, and not his nom de guerre, he said Assad had made Syria “a farm for Iran’s greed.” The rebels face the daunting task of healing bitter divisions in a country ravaged by war and split among armed factions. Turkey-backed opposition fighters are battling U.S.-allied Kurdish forces in the north, and the Islamic State group is still active in remote areas. Syrian state television broadcast a rebel statement saying Assad was overthrown and all prisoners had been released. They urged people to preserve the institutions of “the free Syrian state,” and announced a curfew in Damascus from 4 p.m. to 5 a.m. An online video purported to show rebels freeing dozens of women at the notorious Saydnaya prison, where rights groups say thousands were tortured and killed. At least one small child was seen among them. “This happiness will not be completed until I can see my son out of prison and know where is he,” said one relative, Bassam Masr. "I have been searching for him for two hours. He has been detained for 13 years.” Rebel commander Anas Salkhadi appeared on state TV and sought to reassure religious and ethnic minorities, saying: “Syria is for everyone, no exceptions. Syria is for Druze, Sunnis, Alawites, and all sects.” “We will not deal with people the way the Assad family did," he added. Damascus residents prayed in mosques and celebrated in squares, calling, “God is great.” People chanted anti-Assad slogans and honked car horns. Teenage boys picked up weapons apparently discarded by security forces and fired into the air. Soldiers and police fled their posts and looters broke into the Defense Ministry. Families wandered the presidential palace, walking by damaged portraits of Assad. Other parts of the capital were empty and shops were closed. “It’s like a dream. I need someone to wake me up," said opposition fighter Abu Laith, adding the rebels were welcomed in Damascus with “love.” Rebels stood guard at the Justice Ministry, where Judge Khitam Haddad said he and colleagues were protecting documents. Outside, residents sought information about relatives who disappeared under Assad. The rebels “have felt the pain of the people,” said one woman, giving only her first name, Heba. She worried about possible revenge killings by the rebels, many of whom appeared to be underage. Syria’s historically pro-government newspaper al-Watan called it “a new page for Syria. We thank God for not shedding more blood.” It added that media workers should not be blamed for publishing past government statements ordered from above. A statement from the Alawite sect that formed the core of Assad's base called on young Syrians to be “calm, rational and prudent and not to be dragged into what tears apart the unity of our country.” The rebels mainly come from the Sunni Muslim majority in Syria, which also has sizable Druze, Christian and Kurdish communities. In Qamishli in the northeast, a Kurdish man slapped a statue of the late leader Hafez Assad with his shoe. The rebel advances since Nov. 27 were the largest in recent years, and saw the cities of Aleppo, Hama and Homs fall within days as the Syrian army melted away. The road to Damascus from the Lebanese border was littered with military uniforms and charred armored vehicles. Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, which provided crucial support to Assad, abandoned him as they reeled from other conflicts. The end of Assad’s rule was a major blow to Iran and its proxies, already weakened by conflict with Israel. Iran said Syrians should decide their future “without destructive, coercive, foreign intervention.” The Iranian Embassy in Damascus was ransacked after apparently having been abandoned. Hossein Akbari, Iran’s ambassador to Syria, said it was “effectively impossible” to help the Syrian government after it admitted the insurgents' military superiority. Speaking on Iranian state media from an undisclosed location, he said Syria's government decided Saturday night to hand over power peacefully. “When the army and the people could not resist, it was a good decision to let go to prevent bloodshed and destruction,” Akbari said, adding that some of his colleagues left Syria before sunrise. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking on state TV, said there were concerns about the “possibility of civil war, disintegration of Syria, total collapse and turning Syria into a shelter for terrorists.” Syrian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Jalali has said the government was ready to “extend its hand” to the opposition and turn its functions over to a transitional government. A video on Syrian opposition media showed armed men escorting him from his office to a hotel. The U.N.’s special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, has called for urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition.” The Gulf nation of Qatar, a key regional mediator, hosted an emergency meeting of foreign ministers and top officials from eight countries with interests in Syria late Saturday, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Turkey. Majed al-Ansari, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, said they agreed on the need “to engage all parties on the ground," including the HTS, and that the main concern is “stability and safe transition.” Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli troops had seized a buffer zone in the Golan Heights established in 1974, saying it was to protect Israeli residents after Syrian troops abandoned positions. Israel’s military later warned residents of five southern Syria communities to stay home for their safety, and didn’t respond to questions. Israel captured the Golan in the 1967 Mideast war and later annexed it. The international community, except for the U.S., views it as occupied, and the Arab League on Sunday condemned what it called Israel’s efforts to take advantage of Assad’s downfall to occupy more territory. ___ Sewell reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue, Sarah El Deeb and Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut; Samar Kassaballi, Omar Sanadiki and Ghaith Alsayed in Damascus; Jon Gambrell in Manama, Bahrain; Josef Federman in Doha, Qatar; and Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem, contributed.

Reed scores 15 off the bench, Tulsa downs Mississippi Valley State 93-48

James nets late to earn Hereford Pegasus draw at WestfieldsBy Alexandra Alper WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Biden administration is set to unveil new export restrictions on China as soon as next week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce told members in a Thursday email. The new regulations could add up to 200 Chinese chip companies to a trade restriction list that bars most U.S. suppliers from shipping goods to the targeted firms, the email from the powerful Washington-based lobbying group said, according to an excerpt seen by Reuters on Friday. The Commerce Department, which oversees U.S. export policy, plans to publish the new regulations "prior to the Thanksgiving break," next Thursday, according to the email. The Chamber of Commerce did not respond to a request for comment. The Commerce Department declined to comment. The update, if accurate, shows the Biden administration is plowing ahead with plans to further crack down on China's access to semiconductors even as the start of Republican President-elect Donald Trump's second terms in January approaches. Another set of rules curbing shipments of high-bandwidth memory chips to China is expected to be unveiled next month as part of a broader artificial intelligence package, the email continues. Biden has slapped a raft of export controls on China aimed at halting its technological advances, amid fears the technology could be used to bolster China's military. Sources briefed on the matter said the first round of regulations are likely to include restrictions on chipmaking tool shipments to China. Reuters reported in July that the U.S. planned to unveil a new package of export controls on China, including adding about 120 Chinese entities to its restricted trade list. (Reporting by Alexandra Alper; Additional reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by Leslie Adler and Jonathan Oatis)