World
Fuerzas lideradas por kurdos repelen a rebeldes sirios apoyados por Turquía
QAMISHLI, Siria (AP) — Las Fuerzas Democráticas Sirias lideradas por los kurdos anunciaron el martes que han lanzado una contraofensiva contra el Ejército Nacional Sirio respaldado por Ankara para recuperar áreas cerca de la frontera norte de Siria con Turquía.
Las FDS son aliado crucial de Estados Unidos en Siria, enfocándose en las células durmientes del extremista grupo Estado Islámico dispersas por el este del país.
Desde la caída del régimen totalitario de Bashar Assad a principios de este mes, los enfrentamientos se han intensificado entre el grupo apoyado por Estados Unidos y el ENS, que capturó la ciudad clave de Manbij y las áreas circundantes.
Los intensos enfrentamientos, que han durado semanas, ocurren en un momento en que Siria, devastada por más de una década de guerra y miseria económica, negocia su futuro político tras medio siglo bajo el dominio de la dinastía Assad.
Ruken Jamal, portavoz de la Unidad de Protección de Mujeres, o YPJ, bajo las FDS, dijo a The Associated Press que sus combatientes están a poco más de 11 kilómetros del centro de Manbij en su contraofensiva en curso.
Acusó a Ankara de intentar debilitar la influencia del grupo en las negociaciones sobre el futuro político de Siria a través del ENS,
“Siria está ahora en una nueva fase, y se están llevando a cabo discusiones sobre el futuro del país”, dijo Jamal. “Turquía está intentando, a través de sus ataques, distraernos con batallas y excluirmos de las negociaciones en Damasco”.
El Observatorio Sirio para los Derechos Humanos, un grupo que monitorea la guerra desde Gran Bretaña, dice que desde que la ofensiva del ENS contra los kurdos comenzó a principios de este mes, decenas de combatientes de ambos lados han muerto.
Ankara ve a las FDS como una filial de su archienemigo, el Partido de los Trabajadores del Kurdistán, o PKK, al que clasifica como una organización terrorista. Grupos armados respaldados por Turquía junto con jets turcos han atacado durante años posiciones de las FDS en el norte de Siria, en un intento de crear una zona de amortiguamiento a lo largo de la extensa frontera compartida.
Mientras que el ENS estuvo involucrado en la insurgencia relámpago liderada por el grupo islamista Hayat Tahrir al-Sham que derrocó a Assad, ha continuado su avance contra las FDS, vistas como el segundo actor clave de Siria para su futuro político.
El lunes, el portavoz de las FDS, Farhad Shami, dijo que las fuerzas del grupo repelieron a los rebeldes respaldados por Turquía de áreas cerca de la presa de Tishrin en el Éufrates, una fuente clave de energía hidroeléctrica. Dijo que las FDS también destruyeron un tanque perteneciente a los rebeldes al sureste de Manbij.
El monitor de guerra con sede en Gran Bretaña dijo el martes que el grupo liderado por los kurdos, tras los combates nocturnos, ha recuperado cuatro aldeas en las áreas cerca de la presa estratégica.
Los jets turcos también bombardearon la ciudad fronteriza de Kobani en los últimos días.
Durante el conflicto de Siria, los kurdos se hicieron con un enclave de gobierno autónomo en el noreste de Siria, sin aliarse completamente ni con Assad en Damasco ni con los rebeldes que intentaban derrocarlo.
Incluso tras el derrocamiento de Assad, parece que la posición de Ankara no cambiará. El ministro de Relaciones Exteriores turco Hakan Fidan visitó Siria y mantuvo una posición firme sobre el grupo liderado por los kurdos en su reunión con el líder de facto Ahmad al-Sharaa de HTS.
“Ha convertido la región en un caldero de terror con miembros del PKK y grupos de extrema izquierda que han venido de Turquía, Irak, Irán y Europa”, dijo Fidan en una conferencia de prensa después de la reunión. “La comunidad internacional está haciendo la vista gorda a esta anarquía debido a la custodia que proporciona (contra el Estado Islámico)”.
Con los combates en curso, el comandante de las FDS, Mazloum Abdi, ha expresado su preocupación por un fuerte resurgimiento del EI debido al vacío de poder en Siria y los combates que han dejado al grupo liderado por los kurdos incapaz de llevar a cabo sus ataques y redadas en las células durmientes del grupo extremista.
Decenas de miles de niños, familiares y partidarios de los militantes del EI todavía están retenidos en grandes centros de detención en el noreste de Siria, en áreas bajo control de las FDS.
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Chehayeb informó desde Beirut.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
World
Sporticast 510: The Sordid Saga of a Legends’s Former Mansion
On the latest Sporticast episode, hosts Scott Soshnick and Eben Novy-Williams discuss some of the biggest sports business stories of the week, including the latest in a strange sports real estate story.
In 2012, Michael Jordan listed his Bulls-era mansion outside Chicago for about $29 million, or $41 million in today’s dollars. It took more than a decade and multiple price drops for the home to sell, which it did late last year for $9.5 million. The buyer, a partner in a local real estate firm, has since tried multiple ways to monetize the property. Initially he tried to sell timeshares for $1 million each, but that plan was thwarted by the local town council. He’s back in front of that same council this week, seeking approvals related to his next plan: to build a “multi-sensory experience focused entirely on personal transformation.” The tourist attraction would require the use of a parking lot on an adjacent nature preserve.
Next the hosts discuss major upset in college sports. Nebraska’s women’s volleyball team, the top seed in this year’s NCAA tournament, was upset by Texas A&M in the quarterfinals. Riding a wave of volleyball commercial growth, the Huskers spent more on the sport than any other public school in the country, according to numbers from Sportico‘s college finance database. The team reported $2.57 million in ticket sales during the 2023-24 school year, the third highest total for any women’s team at any public school in the country, trailing only Iowa and UConn women’s basketball.
They close by taking about the Big 12‘s proposed private equity plan. A few days after Big 12 member Utah laid out its own on-campus capital ambitions, Sportico reported that the Big 12 is in talks to set up what essentially amounts to a credit facility for its members via a potential partnership with RedBird Capital-backed Collegiate Athletic Solutions.
(You can subscribe to Sporticast through Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.)
World
Bystanders seen confronting Australian gunman during ISIS-inspired deadly rampage
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Bystanders were seen on video confronting a gunman before his ISIS-inspired deadly mass shooting at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, could begin.
Despite their efforts to disarm him, the gunman eventually overpowered the two bystanders and killed them, according to authorities.
The bystanders were later identified as Boris and Sofia Gurman, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. The outlet reported that the Gurmans were walking by as they saw the assailant exiting a vehicle. Though Boris had the upper hand for a moment after picking up the shooter’s rifle, the attacker allegedly picked up another rifle during the confrontation and fatally shot the couple, making them the first victims of the massacre.
“We are heartbroken by the sudden and senseless loss of our beloved Boris and Sofia Gurman,” the family said in a statement on Tuesday afternoon, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. “While nothing can lessen the pain of losing Boris and Sofia, we feel an overwhelming sense of pride in their bravery and selflessness.”
RABBI KILLED IN SYDNEY HANUKKAH ATTACK HAD WARNED AUSTRALIAN PM ABOUT RISING ANTISEMITISM
Bystanders were seen confronting one of the gunmen behind the deadly attack on a Hanukkah celebration at Australia’s Bondi Beach. (Jenny/Reuters)
In the video, obtained and verified by Reuters, an eyewitness replaying the dashcam footage recalls how the incident unfolded.
“You see the shooter here — he fired shots from here, shooting from here. And then look, this guy went and tackled him (shooter), knocking him to the ground. At that point, he had already grabbed the gun,” the witness, who was speaking in Mandarin, said in the video, according to a Reuters translation.
Authorities have identified the shooters as a father, 50, and a son, 24. The father was killed at the scene, while the son was shot by police and taken to the hospital in critical condition. Australian authorities also said that the shooters had improvised explosives and homemade ISIS flags in their vehicle.
On Sunday, the pair opened fire on families celebrating Hanukkah at Bondi Beach, killing 15 people and leaving more than two dozen injured. The Australian government is investigating the incident as a terror attack targeting the Jewish community.
GAL GADOT, ASHTON KUTCHER CONDEMN ANTISEMITIC TERROR ATTACK AT BONDI BEACH HANUKKAH EVENT
Police teams take security measures at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, on Sunday after a terrorist attack targeting the Jewish community during the first night of Hanukkah. ( Claudio Galdames A/Anadolu via Getty Images)
During the deadly rampage, another bystander, Ahmed al Ahmed, an Australian immigrant, wrestled a gun away from one of the shooters. His attorney said that Ahmed does not regret intervening, despite being “riddled with bullets” and in intense pain.
“He doesn’t regret what he did. He said he’d do it again. But the pain has started to take a toll on him,” Ahmed’s attorney, Sam Issa, told The Sydney Morning Herald. “He’s not well at all. He’s riddled with bullets. Our hero is struggling at the moment.”
The outlet reported that Ahmed has undergone his first round of surgery and that Issa fears the hero bystander may lose his left arm.
“He’s a lot worse than expected. When you think of a bullet in the arm, you don’t think of serious injuries, but he has lost a lot of blood,” Issa said.
President Donald Trump praised Ahmed for his actions, calling him “a very, very brave person” and saying that he has “great respect” for him.
People attend a floral memorial in honor of the victims of a mass shooting that targeted a Hanukkah celebration on Sunday, at Bondi Beach, in Sydney, Australia, Dec. 16, 2025. (Flavio Brancaleone/Reuters)
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The Bondi Beach attack is the worst mass shooting Australia has seen since the country implemented sweeping reforms after a shooter killed 35 people in Port Arthur, Tasmania, in 1996. Following the Bondi Beach attack, Australian leaders have vowed to strengthen the country’s already restrictive gun laws.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced several proposed actions, including limiting the number of guns one can possess.
“The government is prepared to take whatever action is necessary. Included in that is the need for tougher gun laws,” he said after meeting with his National Cabinet.
Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano, Bradford Betz and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
World
Venezuelan opposition leader Machado injured on covert Nobel Prize trip
President Maduro’s rival was hurt as she sped on a boat through choppy waters in secret escape from hiding to reach Oslo ceremony.
Published On 16 Dec 2025
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was injured as she made a clandestine dash to collect her Nobel Peace Prize last week, her spokesperson has said.
Claudia Macero said late on Monday that the right-wing opposition figure fractured a vertebra during a choppy boat ride that had formed part of a risky cloak-and-dagger journey to reach the Norwegian capital, Oslo, for the Nobel award ceremony.
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Machado has been in hiding since she was banned from running in Venezuela’s July 24 presidential election, fearing that her life is under threat from long-time Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
“The vertebra fracture is confirmed,” Macero told the AFP news agency, adding that no further details would be released beyond what had been reported in the Norwegian daily Aftonbladet.
The newspaper had earlier reported that the 58-year-old Machado sustained the fracture while crossing the sea in a small fishing boat battered by high waves.
The opposition leader was examined by doctors at Oslo University Hospital during her time in the city.
Dangerous dash
Media reports in the United States said Machado’s escape last week involved wearing a disguise, including a wig, and travelling from a small Venezuelan fishing village on a wooden boat to the island of Curacao, before boarding a private plane to Norway.
Machado has said she feared for her life during the voyage, which saw US forces situated in the Caribbean alerted to avoid a strike on the vessel.
Several similar boats have been attacked in recent months in a campaign that the Trump administration asserts is a bid to avert drug smuggling into the US.
Maduro has accused Washington of seeking to engineer regime change in the hope of seizing Venezuela’s large oil reserves.
The leader of the opposition Vente Venezuela party was attempting to reach the ceremony at which she was due to be presented with the Nobel Peace Prize.
She was announced the winner of the prestigious award in October, with the selection committee praising her role in the country’s opposition movement and her “steadfast” support for democracy.
‘Broken soul’
Despite her speedy trip, Machado failed to reach Oslo in time for the ceremony. Her daughter received the award on her behalf and delivered a speech that slammed Maduro and warned of the need to fight for democracy.
Hours after the ceremony, early on Thursday morning, Machado greeted supporters from an Oslo hotel balcony in what was her first public appearance in a year.
Despite the fracture, she climbed over a barrier to greet supporters outside the hotel, AFP reported.
Machado said authorities in Venezuela would have attempted everything possible to prevent her journey to Norway.
Appearing set to challenge Maduro in the vote, the opposition leader was barred from running in the country’s presidential election in July last year.
She then announced that she would be going into hiding within Venezuela due to fear for her life while Maduro is in power.
The Venezuelan president commented dismissively on the reports of Machado’s injury on television on Monday.
Machado “says she has a broken vertebra”, he said. “What’s broken is her brain and her soul because she’s a demon – she hates Venezuela.”
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