World
Ukraine's Yermak meets senior Trump advisers, source says
Ukrainian delegation met on Wednesday with senior representatives of President-elect Donald Trump, a source familiar with the meeting said, as Ukraine seeks support from the incoming team in its war to repel Russian invaders.
The Ukrainian delegation was led by Andriy Yermak, a top aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. The group met in Washington with Trump’s choice for White House national security adviser, Mike Waltz, and his Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, the source said, without providing details.
The Trump transition team did not respond to a request for comment about the meeting.
Trump has vowed to bring about a negotiated end to the nearly three-year-old conflict between Ukraine and Russia, but has thus far not provided details.
World
Photos: How South Korean Protesters Filled Streets to Demand Yoon’s Ouster
Tens of thousands of South Koreans from across the country gathered in the streets outside the National Assembly in Seoul on Saturday, demanding President Yoon Suk Yeol’s ouster. Mr. Yoon briefly imposed martial law on Tuesday, reopening old wounds and plunging the country into political chaos. An attempt to impeach Mr. Yoon failed to garner the required number of votes, prolonging the political upheaval and uncertainty that has roiled the country this week.
Protests in the city and around the country have intensified since Mr. Yoon’s audacious move on Tuesday. The rally at the National Assembly ahead of the impeachment vote on Saturday was the largest one yet, despite freezing temperatures. By 3 p.m. the areas in front of the National Assembly were filled.
People waved flags representing labor unions, human rights groups and smaller political parties. The police, wearing neon jackets, were lined up along the crowds to keep order.
As the grand boulevard facing the National Assembly filled up with protestors, people moved to the street that runs across the front of the complex.
Meanwhile, in another part of Seoul, supporters of Mr. Yoon gathered near Gwanghwamun Square. There were chairs set up for the supporters, unlike the crowds sitting on the ground outside of the National Assembly. Soon after the impeachment vote began, speakers were quick to announce that impeachment looked unlikely, and the crowd turned jubilant.
Protesters in front of the National Assembly stayed well into the night, as the voting session dragged on. People held candles and colorful light sticks. South Korea has a tradition of holding candlelight rallies to express political dissent.
As 9 p.m. approached, it became clear there were not enough votes to impeach Mr. Yoon and the crowd began to thin out.
However, many protesters said they would not give up. “I plan to come every weekend,” said Subin Park, 29, who had traveled from Bucheon, west of Seoul. “I hope a lot of people will show up from Monday.”
World
Syrian dictator Bashar Assad flees into exile as Islamist rebels conquer country
JERUSALEM — Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, who used chemical weapons multiple times on his population, has fled Syria after rebels stormed the capital city of Damascus, according to Reuters.
Assad, who was trained as an eye doctor in the United Kingdom before succeeding his father, and his British-born wife, Asma al-Assad, fled with their three children, according to Syrian television reports. It was not known where they were headed.
A video statement from a group of men on Syrian state TV said that Assad had been overthrown and all prisoners have been set free.
The man who read a statement said the Operations Room to Conquer Damascus is calling on all opposition fighters and citizens to preserve state institutions of “the free Syrian state.”
“Long live the free Syrian state that is to all Syrians and all” their sects and ethnic groups, they said.
Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali said early Sunday he didn’t know the whereabouts of Assad. He told the Saudi television network Al-Arabiyya that they lost communication Saturday night.
Crowds of Syrians gathered in the central squares of Damascus to celebrate. Some chanted anti-Assad slogans and honked horns. In other areas, celebratory gunshots rang out.
Syria has been embroiled in a bloody, nearly 14-year civil war as Islamist rebels looked to overthrow the Assad dynasty. The apparent collapse of more than 50 years of Assad family rule over the Syrian Arabian Republic is a monumental turning point in Middle East power politics.
ISLAMIST REBELS IN SYRIA CATCH ASSAD, PUTIN, IRAN REGIMES OFF GUARD GIVING US NEW MIDEAST HEADACHE
A coalition of largely radical Islamist groups dislodged Assad’s Iran-backed regime. The U.S.-designated terrorist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist former Al-Qaeda affiliate that is part of the rebel forces, played the decisive role in evicting Assad, who inherited his presidency in 2000 following the death of his father, Hafez Assad.
Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the Islamist leader of HTS, who has a $10 million bounty on his head from the U.S., seeks to present a toned-down version of the radical Islamism that has defined his years of fighting in Syria and in Iraq against American troops. Al-Golani was detained by the U.S. military in the first decade of this century.
Syrian experts have told Fox News Digital that HTS seeks to impose a totalitarian Islamist regime on the population. Phillip Smyth, an expert on Iranian regime proxy groups and Syria, who is with the Atlantic Council, told Fox News Digital, “HTS is a group that is an outgrowth of Al-Qaeda and has connections to Turkey. Their endgame is to create a Taliban-esque society with a few tweaks.”
Al-Golani banned his fighters from opening fire into the air in Damascus.
“Public institutions will remain under the supervision of the prime minister until they are officially handed over,” he said in a statement published on his group’s social media outlets.
Assad’s decision in 2011 to launch a violent crackdown on pro-democracy Syrian activists during the Arab Spring revolts, which engulfed Egypt and Tunisia, resulted in the protracted civil war. Assad’s scorched-earth policy against the citizens of his country caused the killing of over 500,000 people. The UN recently announced that it has stopped tracking the mounting death toll.
TRUMP URGES US TO STAY OUT OF SYRIAN CIVIL WAR, BLAMING OBAMA FOR FAILURE AS ISLAMISTS CLOSE IN ON CAPITAL
The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Egyptian and Jordanian officials urged Assad to flee Syria and form a government-in-exile. Jordan’s government denied the report.
In 2015, Assad’s regime was teetering when Russia intervened to save the dictatorship. The U.S.-sanctioned Lebanese terrorist movement, Hezbollah, and its main sponsor, Iran, both threw their weight behind Assad’s regime.
The rebel forces who routed Assad’s forces—with the swift capture of the major Syrian cities of Aleppo, Hamas, and Homs—jolted both Putin and Iran. Ukraine’s resistance to Russia’s invasion of its territory has weakened Moscow. Israel has inflicted a number of aerial attacks on Iran’s military infrastructure since Tehran’s ally, Hamas, launched a surprise attack against the Jewish state on October 7, 2023.
The United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 2254 in 2015, which called for a cease-fire, UN-run elections and a new constitution. Assad rejected the resolution’s implementation.
After Assad launched a shocking mass chemical weapons strike on Syrian civilians in 2013, in which more than 1,400 people were killed, former President Obama’s administration reneged on its promise to take military action against Assad.
The origin of Assad’s forced departure can be traced back to a group of schoolboys in the southwestern dusty city of Daraa—the cradle of the Syrian revolt—in 2011. The young boys used cans of graffiti to write on a concrete wall: “The people / want / to topple the regime!”
Assad’s cousin, Gen. Atef Najeeb, oversaw an operation that involved reported torture of the arrested 15 boys between the ages of 10 and 15. Syrian officials ripped the boy’s fingernails out and burned and beat them.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
World
Iconic Notre Dame cathedral reopens for the first time since 2019
Paris’ iconic Notre Dame cathedral reopens five years after it was nearly destroyed by a devastating fire five years ago. 1,500 dignitaries, including sitting heads of states and royal figures attended the historic ceremony.
The iconic Notre Dame cathedral rises from the ashes.
The gothic architectural masterpiece was closed for five years, undergoing restoration work after a devastating fire almost destroyed it in 2019.
The restoration, a remarkable achievement in just five years for a structure that took nearly two centuries to build was seen as a moment of triumph for French President Emmanuel Macron, who championed the ambitious timeline. It’s a moment of respite air for Macron who’s been battling domestic political challenges, after the collapse of his country’s government just a few days ago.
The celebration was attended by 1,500 dignitaries, including US President-elect Donald Trump, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, US First Lady Jill Biden and Prince William of Britain’s Royal Family.
The ceremony was initially planned to begin on the forecourt was moved inside due to bad weather. But the unusually harsh December winds howling could not stop the Notre Dame’s resurrection. But nothing could diminish from the significance of the moment, as choirs sang psalms inside the luminous nave, and the cathedral’s organ, silent for nearly five years, erupted with an interplay of melodies.
Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich opened the ceremony with three resounding knocks on the cathedral’s doors, wielding a specially designed crosier carved from the fire-scorched beams. And just like that, the cathedral was officially reopened for worship.
Observers and attendees see the event as Macron’s, who turned it into a diplomatic gathering, highlighting France’s ability to come together in unity on the international stage despite internal political chaos.
Outside the cathedral’s iconic western facade, the word “MERCI” (thank you in French) was projected
The French president reiterated his gratitude as he addressed the nation at the ceremony. He expressed his gratitude to firefighters and first responders; who saved the UNESCO accredited World Heritage Site from total collapse, and the personnel who worked tirelessly for years to bring the cathedral to its former glory.
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