For more than a century, this Black soldier from Virginia was remembered by nearly no one. Then this year, someone at the Pentagon found a use for him.

The killing of three Americans during what was said to be a counterterrorism operation in central Syria served as a reminder that U.S. troops are still operating in the country.

Marjorie Taylor Greene says that GOP leadership promised theyd have the House vote on her anti-trans bill next weekThe trade: House Republican leadership made several deals with hardline Republican members to get their votes for the military appropriations bill this week, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) says that one of the promises made was to hold a vote on her bill to ban gender-affirming care for trans minors, something she has been pushing for years without much success.Why it matters: Families of trans kids have been fleeing red states for years as they enact tougher policies attacking their rights. If this bill passes, doctors could be thrown in prison for providing safe and effective health care no matter what state they practice in. Marjorie Taylor Greene says GOP leader promised a vote on her bill to put pro-trans doctors in jail Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Some anti-trans provisions removed from military appropriations billWhy some Republicans are complaining: Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) was outraged that some of the anti-trans riders in the 2026 NDAA were removed in order to get it passed by both the House and the Senate. She said the bill still forces women in our military to compete against (and shower with) biological men pretending to be women.Why it matters: Even though Republicans control everything at the federal level, defenders of LGBTQ+ equality are still able to eke out small victories like this one, taking the teeth out of a college-level sports ban. Lauren Boebert rages at Defense bill for not fully banning trans athletes: DEI madness Trump administration deadnames history-making transgender admiral on her official government portraitWho she is: Admiral Rachel Levine served as the assistant secretary for health under President Joe Biden and she was the first transgender official to be appointed to a Senate-confirmed position. After she spent years working to help Americans stay healthy, the Trump administration changed the name on her official portrait to her deadname as a petty insult.Why it matters: The Trump administration can try to dress up their anti-trans policies as protecting women or protecting children or whatever, but fundamentally, this incident shows that they have antipathy for a historically oppressed minority. Trump deadnames history-making transgender admiral on her official government portrait University dismisses second professor over anti-trans essay drama as students protestWhats going on: The University of Oklahoma dismissed a professor for letting students attend a protest in support of a trans teaching assistant who was put on leave for giving a bad grade to a Christian student who wrote a shoddy essay that cited the Bible and called trans people demonic.Why it matters: Some universities cracking down on academic freedom in order to advance an anti-woke agenda. University dismisses 2nd professor in kerfuffle over anti-trans students essay Anti-LGBTQ+ activist allegedly hired two men to kidnap her developmentally disabled daughter to teach her what evil isIt was harrowing: Authorities believe Tammi Hamby hired the two men who drove her daughter to a field, zip-tied her wrists to a tree, and then demanded money from her, all while the mom watched. The daughter escaped to a nearby house, where residents called 911.Why it matters: Hambys activism focused on removing LGBTQ+ books from libraries because she claimed those books groomed children by exposing them to ideas their parents dont want them to be exposed to. The mentality that parental authority is more important than childrens well-being, that children are their parents property and not human beings is whats actually damaging to children. Homophobic mom allegedly hired thugs to kidnap her own daughter to teach her about evil And here are some interesting queer and trans readsDeputy Editor Molly Sprayregen talked to Professor Kaila Adia Story on how queer spaces arent the same amount of safe for everyone. Restoring the rainbow: How cis white gay folks must show up for trans & queer people of color Columnist Faefyx Collington explains that transphobia extends far beyond the current president. The anti-trans movement is sadly going to outlive Trumps presidency Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

We cover shootings at Bondi Beach, in Australia, and at Brown University.

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Opponents of Missouri's Republican-backed congressional redistricting plan display a banner in protest at the State Capitol in Jefferson City, Missouri, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb)2025-12-14T13:10:53Z When Indiana adopted new U.S. House districts four years ago, Republican legislative leaders lauded them as fair maps that reflected the states communities. But when Gov. Mike Braun recently tried to redraw the lines to help Republicans gain more power, he implored lawmakers to vote for fair maps.What changed? The definition of fair.As states undertake mid-decade redistricting instigated by President Donald Trump, Republicans and Democrats are using a tit-for-tat definition of fairness to justify districts that split communities in an attempt to send politically lopsided delegations to Congress. It is fair, they argue, because other states have done the same. And it is necessary, they claim, to maintain a partisan balance in the House of Representatives that resembles the national political divide.This new vision for drawing congressional maps is creating a winner-take-all scenario that treats the House, traditionally a more diverse patchwork of politicians, like the Senate, where members reflect a states majority party. The result could be reduced power for minority communities, less attention to certain issues and fewer distinct voices heard in Washington. Although Indiana state senators rejected a new map backed by Trump and Braun that could have helped Republicans win all nine of the states congressional seats, districts have already been redrawn in Texas, California, Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio. Other states could consider changes before the 2026 midterms that will determine control of Congress. Its a fundamental undermining of a key democratic condition, said Wayne Fields, a retired English professor from Washington University in St. Louis who is an expert on political rhetoric.The House is supposed to represent the people, Fields added. We gain an awful lot by having particular parts of the population heard. Redistricting is diluting community representationUnder the Constitution, the Senate has two members from each state. The House has 435 seats divided among states based on population, with each state guaranteed at least one representative. In the current Congress, California has the most at 52, followed by Texas with 38. Because senators are elected statewide, they are almost always political pairs of one party or another. Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are the only states now with both a Democrat and Republican in the Senate. Maine and Vermont each have one independent and one senator affiliated with a political party.By contrast, most states elect a mixture of Democrats and Republicans to the House. That is because House districts, with an average of 761,000 residents, based on the 2020 census, are more likely to reflect the varying partisan preferences of urban or rural voters, as well as different racial, ethnic and economic groups.This years redistricting is diminishing those locally unique districts. In California, voters in several rural counties that backed Trump were separated from similar rural areas and attached to a reshaped congressional district containing liberal coastal communities. In Missouri, Democratic-leaning voters in Kansas City were split from one main congressional district into three, with each revised district stretching deep into rural Republican areas. Some residents complained their voices are getting drowned out. But Govs. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., and Mike Kehoe, R-Mo., defended the gerrymandering as a means of countering other states and amplifying the voices of those aligned with the states majority. All is `fair in redistrictingIndianas delegation in the U.S. House consists of seven Republicans and two Democrats one representing Indianapolis and the other a suburban Chicago district in the states northwestern corner. Dueling definitions of fairness were on display at the Indiana Capitol as lawmakers considered a Trump-backed redistricting plan that would have split Indianapolis among four Republican-leaning districts and merged the Chicago suburbs with rural Republican areas. Opponents walked the halls in protest, carrying signs such as I stand for fair maps! Ethan Hatcher, a talk radio host who said he votes for Republicans and Libertarians, denounced the redistricting plan as a blatant power grab that compromises the principles of our Founding Fathers by fracturing Democratic strongholds to dilute the voices of urban voters. Its a calculated assault on fair representation, Hatcher told a state Senate committee. But others asserted it would be fair for Indiana Republicans to hold all of those House seats, because Trump won the solidly Republican state by nearly three-fifths of the vote.Our current 7-2 congressional delegation doesnt fully capture that strength, resident Tracy Kissel said at a committee hearing. We can create fairer, more competitive districts that align with how Hoosiers vote. When senators defeated a map designed to deliver a 9-0 congressional delegation for Republicans, Braun bemoaned that they had missed an opportunity to protect Hoosiers with fair maps. Disrupting an equilibriumBy some national measurements, the U.S. House already is politically fair. The 220-215 majority that Republicans won over Democrats in the 2024 elections almost perfectly aligns with the share of the vote the two parties received in districts across the country, according to an Associated Press analysis. But that overall balance belies an imbalance that exists in many states. Even before this years redistricting, the number of states with congressional districts tilted toward one party or another was higher than at any point in at least a decade, the AP analysis found.The partisan divisions have contributed to a cutthroat political environment that drives the parties to extreme measures, said Kent Syler, a political science professor at Middle Tennessee State University. He noted that Republicans hold 88% of congressional seats in Tennessee, and Democrats have an equivalent in Maryland. Fairer redistricting would give people more of a feeling that they have a voice, Syler said.Rebekah Caruthers, who leads the Fair Elections Center, a nonprofit voting rights group, said there should be compact districts that allow communities of interest to elect the representatives of their choice, regardless of how that affects the national political balance. Gerrymandering districts to be dominated by a single party results in an unfair disenfranchisement of some voters, she said.Ultimately, this isnt going to be good for democracy, Caruthers said. We need some type of dtente. DAVID A. LIEB Lieb covers issues and trends in state governments across the U.S. Hes reported about government and politics for The Associated Press for 30 years. twitter mailto

Merrill Kelly, after being dealt by Diamondbacks to the Rangers at the trade deadline last season, is returning to Arizona on a two-year, $40M deal, according to reports.

Security has become a top concern for voters across the region who are calling for iron-fisted measures. In Chile, the issue is pushing the country to the right.

In January, gay comedian Rosie ODonnell pulled up stakes and moved to Ireland. She was looking to escape the mental jail in which Donald Trump locked her during his first term in office, and where he threatened to put her again in his second, along with deporting her. Related Rosie ODonnell slams Trump for his attempt to deport her: Old soulless man with dementia Now she says shes loving her life in a Georgian farmhouse near Dublin, the Washington Post reports, enjoying walks around town like a civilian, and thankful that her nonbinary kid one of five adopted children is thriving. Shes even got work lined up on Irish television.But how is she really doing?Apparently fine, apart from the continuing obsession with Trump that took her to Ireland in the first place. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Thats something shes still working on with her therapist, she says. A 20-year feud between tri-borough rivals must be hard to shake.ODonnell and Trump came up at the same time in the 1990s in tabloid-obsessed New York: ODonnells platform was daytime talk, following her breakout performance as baseball brawler Doris Murphy in A League of Their Own. Trump was playing PR flack John Baron to promote himself on Page Six and tabloid TV shows like Inside Edition.They finally came to blows in 2006, when ODonnell traded her Queen of Nice persona for liberal attack dog in her first outing as a host on The View. Trump was a ratings hit by then on The Apprentice, and gaudy, easy prey for ODonnell, who mocked his hair, called him bankrupt, and compared him to snake oil salesmen.Left the first wife, had an affair; left the second wife, had an affair. Had kids both times, but hes the moral compass for 20-year-olds in America,she said, referring to his reportedly smarmy behavior with contestants in the Miss Universe Pageant, which he then owned. Donald, sit and spin, my friend, she advised him.The very same day on Entertainment Tonight, Trump responded, Rosie ODonnell is disgusting, I mean both inside and out. Take a look at her, shes a slob. She talks like a truck driver.Its been downhill ever since depending on how you look at it.Its been all upside for Trump, who thrives on conflict and milked their rivalry as his political career went into overdrive.ODonnell stayed relevant amid the ugly back-and-forth as her own career slowed.But ODonnell has a heart and a soul buried under her tough exterior. So, fearing the worst when he was elected to a second term, she fled to the home of her paternal grandparents, seeking safety, distance, and relief from the orange specter haunting her.Shes checked two of those boxes on the Emerald Isle.ODonnell loves being able to head down to the local pub unaccosted, unlike life in the States as an approachable celebrity.People may say hello or I hate him, too! as one neighbor recently blurted but theyre respectful and easy going.Now, ODonnell says, she is, too.She recounted a long conversation with a young couple canoodling their baby on a recent visit to the pub. Hours in, the pair finally admitted they knew who she was. Youre big fans, and you didnt tell me for two hours? she laughed, recollecting the moment. Yet even an ocean away, the brash developer from the 90s is still living in her head, rent-free.Hes in the news, on her phone, and in her mind, just like he was in his first term when she sketched more than 200 portraits of him on her iPad with titles like The Moron and Loser and Liar.In July,Trump gleefully posted an unflattering pic of ODonnell with a threat to take away the ex-pats citizenship.She is incapable of being a great American, he declared.You are everything that is wrong with America, she wrote in reply, and Im everything you hate about whats still right with it.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Put on your fabulous party attire and don a festive mask. It soon will be time for Carnival in Palm Springs. Brothers of the Desert has merged two holidays to present its annual gala-fundraiser on Dec. 31. Guests can expect to experience a joyful New Years Eve celebration with a colorful, sexy Carnival theme at []The post Black gay mens nonprofit Brothers of the Desert to host New Years Eve Party in Palm Springs appeared first on GEDmagazine.

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Retired WNBA star and Hall of Famer Sue Wicks rides her boat to check on her oysters in Moriches Bay in New York, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)2025-12-14T14:10:15Z After seven days of wind, the morning is finally calm enough on New Yorks East Moriches Bay for Sue Wicks to jetty her boat to check on her oysters. Hundreds of cages pop out at odd angles from their lines, and a few float away.The retired WNBA star and Hall of Famer admits that the aquaculture farm she started at age 50 can be anxiety-inducing and compares it to her time playing basketball. Retired WNBA star and Hall of Famer Sue Wicks throws an anchor from her boat in Moriches Bay in New York, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) Retired WNBA star and Hall of Famer Sue Wicks throws an anchor from her boat in Moriches Bay in New York, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Some days youre like, Why am I doing this? Youre injured, youre hurt, you are losing, things are going bad. And then the next day you go back and do it again because you love it, she said. Wicks, 59, has worked as a commentator, college basketball coach and at a fitness start-up since retiring from the WNBA in 2002, and says she feels lucky to again find a career that works for my soul. But the reality is that even a successful run as one of the worlds best basketball players didnt earn her enough to fully retire. Retired WNBA star and Hall of Famer Sue Wicks rides her boat to check on her oysters in Moriches Bay in New York, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) Retired WNBA star and Hall of Famer Sue Wicks rides her boat to check on her oysters in Moriches Bay in New York, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Although the WNBA is bringing in more than ever from sponsors and ticket sales, many players still find themselves financially unsteady when the final whistle blows. The choice is what they do as their second career, not whether they have a second career, said Risa Isard, director of research and insights at womens sports marketing platform Parity. Since women athletes get paid a fraction of what men do while theyre playing, Isard said their next acts tend to look more like traditional career paths rather than managing substantial investment portfolios. The average NBA salary is around $11.9 million, according to data reviewed by The Associated Press. Thats nearly 100 times what the WNBA says is the average salary of $120,000 for its players although major differences in league size, age, profit margins and media contracts account for part of that gap. For 2009 second overall draft pick and 2015 WNBA All-Star Marissa Coleman, the main difference between post-playing careers between WNBA and NBA players is that most NBA guys are sitting on tens, sometimes hundreds of million dollars. And for those who are financially savvy, working after the game is more so curing boredom versus a necessity. Retired WNBA All-Star Marissa Coleman poses for a photo in Mitchellville, Md., Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) Retired WNBA All-Star Marissa Coleman poses for a photo in Mitchellville, Md., Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Most women athletes across the board have to find a career after basketball out of necessity, Coleman said.All this is happening against a backdrop of unresolved questions about the future of WNBA player compensation. Tensions have run high in the ongoing labor battle between the WNBA and the players union, although it is unclear how far apart the sides are in terms of compensation. Both parties agreed on Nov. 30 to an extension of the current collective bargaining agreement to Jan. 9 while negotiations continue. A major sticking point has been revenue sharing: As the WNBA booms, players are looking for a larger share in that growth. They currently earn a significantly smaller fraction of the leagues revenue compared with NBA players.When former Minnesota Lynx forward Devereaux Peters transitioned from basketball to real estate development in 2019, she said the hardest lesson was learning that working hard in her new career may not be enough to yield results quickly, or at all. After a tough game during her playing days, she could go in the gym and shoot and work on my shot. And youre going to see a result if youre putting in the work. That is not necessarily true in the real world, said the 36-year-old. You can put in a ton of work and do a lot right and not get anywhere. Former Minnesota Lynx forward Devereaux Peters, transitioned from basketball to real estate development, poses for a photo at her office in Chicago, Monday, Nov. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Former Minnesota Lynx forward Devereaux Peters, transitioned from basketball to real estate development, poses for a photo at her office in Chicago, Monday, Nov. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More The shift away from basketball also came as a financial shock: That transition was a little bit difficult in that I had to cut back significantly, she said. There was a lot of learning very quickly given the big gap in what I was making then and what I make now.For the last six years, Peters has shepherded an affordable housing project in South Bend, Indiana home to her alma mater, Notre Dame. Red tape, politics, and myriad other logistical challenges have made the project the hardest thing Ive ever done in my life, Peters said.But she says its also the best: Helping people that truly, genuinely need it makes it all worth it. Her affordable apartment building is slated to break ground next month, and open its doors in August 2027.For 38-year-old Coleman, the next phase of her career also unfolded far outside the paint. Alongside former teammate Alana Beard, Coleman franchised a Mellow Mushroom a psychedelic-themed pizza chain in Roanoke, Virginia. She also chaired a campaign to legalize sports betting in Maryland, and now leads strategy and growth for the VIP team at fantasy sports platform Underdog, with the aim of carving space for more women and people of color to access the industry.I knew from a very early age entrepreneurship and business were something that I was really, really passionate about, Coleman said. She added that she feels grateful to her parents for emphasizing the importance of education and long-term career planning. Thanks to their wisdom, she made sure to seek out mentors and explore industries that interested her throughout her basketball career. I knew I didnt want to be one of those players that retired, and it was like, Oh gosh, what now? Coleman said.Many former athletes land in sports-related roles, such as coaching or sports broadcasting. But not all are surefooted in finding their next calling. Jayne Appel Marinelli, SVP of player relations for the leagues union and a former center for the San Antonio Stars, counsels players on their post-basketball career path. She explained the transition remains challenging for many, even with the WNBA and unions joint tuition assistance and internship program, and semester-long opportunity with Harvard Business School, which Coleman completed.The players union has worked to further expand opportunities by adding player internship slots to licensee contracts, partnering with universities and more, according to Appel Marinelli. Athletes sometimes need help recognizing that the skills that they have built are so easily transferable over to any role that theyre going to take on next, she said.That kind of support didnt exist for Wicks generation at the leagues inception in 1997. There was no stability in womens sports, she said. Our victory was, we got our next paycheck, and that the lights were on and that the bus was waiting there still.Back then, my dream was that the league would exist, Wicks said. Almost 30 years later, her new dream is that players are compensated in a way that gives them freedom to do what they want in life.Despite her own post-WNBA success, Peters says players could use more guidance to help them understand how to plan, save and prepare for the future. The general lifespan of a basketball player is not long, she said. You have to be prepared to not be here tomorrow or the next year.________AP Sports Writers Doug Feinberg in New York and Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed to this report.The Associated Press women in the workforce and state government coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find APs standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. CLAIRE SAVAGE Savage is a national reporter for the APs Business team. She covers women in the workforce and is based in Chicago. twitter instagram mailto BRITTANY PETERSON Peterson is an Associated Press video journalist based in Denver. She covers water in the western U.S. for APs global climate team. twitter mailto

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Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski, one of the Belarusian prisoners released on Saturday, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)2025-12-14T17:27:41Z VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski arrived for an interview with The Associated Press on Sunday in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, direct from a dentist appointment. The 63-year-old veteran human rights advocate was experiencing a return to daily life after more than four years behind bars in Belarus. He was suddenly released on Saturday. Medical assistance in the penal colony where he served his 10-year sentence was very limited, he said in his first sit-down interview after release. There was only one option of treating dental problems behind bars pulling teeth out, he said. Bialiatski recalled how in the early hours of Saturday he was in an overcrowded prison cell in the Penal Colony no. 9 in eastern Belarus when suddenly he was ordered to pack his things. Blindfolded, he was driven somewhere: They put a blindfold over my eyes. I was looking occasionally where we were headed, but only understood that were heading toward west. In Vilnius, he hugged his wife for the first time in years. When I crossed the border, it was as if I emerged from the bottom of the sea and onto the surface of the water. You have lots of air, sun, and back there you were in a completely different situation under pressure, he told the AP. Bialiatski was one of 123 prisoners released by Belarus in exchange for the U.S. lifting sanctions imposed on the Belarusian potash sector, crucial for the countrys economy. A close ally of Russia, Belarus has faced Western isolation and sanctions for years. Its authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko has ruled the nation of 9.5 million with an iron fist for more than three decades, and the country has been repeatedly sanctioned by the West for its crackdown on human rights and for allowing Moscow to use its territory in the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In an effort at a rapprochement with the West, Belarus has released hundreds of prisoners since July 2024. Bialiatski won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022 along with the prominent Russian rights group Memorial and Ukraines Center for Civil Liberties. Awarded the prize while in jail awaiting trial, he was later convicted of smuggling and financing actions that violated the public order charges widely denounced as politically motivated and sentenced to 10 years in prison.The veteran advocate, who founded Belarus oldest and most prominent human rights group, Viasna, was imprisoned at a penal colony in Gorki in a facility notorious for beatings and hard labor. He told AP that he wasnt beaten behind bars his status as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, perhaps, protected him from physical violence, he said. But he said he went through much of what all political prisoners in Belarus go through: solitary confinement, arbitrary punishment for minor infractions, not being able to see your loved ones, rarely being able to receive letters. We can definitely talk about inhumane treatment, about creating conditions that violate your integrity and some kind of human dignity, he said. Bialiatski is concerned about two of his Viasna colleagues, Marfa Rabkova and Valiantsin Stefanovic, who remain imprisoned, and about all 1,110 political prisoners still behind bars, according to Viasna. Despite the fact that prisoners are being freed right now, new people regularly end up behind bars. Some kind of schizofrenia is taking place: with one hand, the authorities release Belarusian political prisoners, and with the other they take in more prisoners to trade, to maintain this abnormal situation in Belarus, he said. The advocate vows to continue to fight for the release of all political prisoners, adding: There is no point in freeing old ones if youre taking in new ones. He intends to use his status as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate of which he learned in prison and couldnt initially believe it to help Belarusians who chose freedom. This prize was given not to me as a person, but to me as a representative of the Belarusian civil society, of the millions of Belarusians who expressed will and desire for democracy, for freedom, for human rights, for changing this stale situation in Belarus, he told AP. And it was a signal to the Belarusian authorities, too, that its time to change something in the life of the Belarusians. YURAS KARMANAU Karmanau is an Associated Press journalist covering Belarus and the CIS countries. He has worked in Belarus and Ukraine, as well as other countries in the region, for more than 20 years. He is part of the team that covers the Russia-Ukraine war. mailto

U.S. forces patrol oil fields in Syria, Oct. 28, 2019 . (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad, File)2025-12-14T17:28:45Z BEIRUT (AP) A man who carried out an attack in Syria that killed three U.S. citizens had joined Syrias internal security forces as a base security guard two months earlier and was recently reassigned amid suspicions that he might be affiliated with the Islamic State group, a Syrian official told The Associated Press Sunday.The attack Saturday in the Syrian desert near the historic city of Palmyra killed two U.S. service members and one American civilian and wounded three others. It also wounded three members of the Syrian security forces who clashed with the gunman, interior ministry spokesperson Nour al-Din al-Baba said.Al-Baba said that Syrias new authorities had faced shortages in security personnel and had to recruit rapidly after the unexpected success of a rebel offensive last year that intended to capture the northern city of Aleppo but ended up overthrowing the government of former President Bashar Assad. We were shocked that in 11 days we took all of Syria and that put a huge responsibility in front of us from the security and administration sides, he said.The attacker was among 5,000 members who recently joined a new division in the internal security forces formed in the desert region known as the Badiya, one of the places where remnants of the Islamic State extremist group have remained active. Attacker had raised suspicionsAl-Baba said the internal security forces leadership had recently become suspicious that there was an infiltrator leaking information to IS and began evaluating all members in the Badiya area.The probe raised suspicions last week about the man who later carried out the attack, but officials decided to continue monitoring him for a few days to try to determine if he was an active member of IS and to identify the network he was communicating with if so, al-Baba said. He did not name the attacker.At the same time, as a precautionary measure, he said, the man was reassigned to guard equipment at the base at a location where he would be farther from the leadership and from any patrols by U.S.-led coalition forces. On Saturday, the man stormed a meeting between U.S. and Syrian security officials who were having lunch together and opened fire after clashing with Syrian guards, al-Baba said. The attacker was shot and killed at the scene.Al-Baba acknowledged that the incident was a major security breach but said that in the year since Assads fall there have been many more successes than failures by security forces.In the wake of the shooting, he said, the Syrian army and internal security forces launched wide-ranging sweeps of the Badiya region and broke up a number of alleged IS cells.A delicate partnershipThe incident comes at a delicate time as the U.S. military is expanding its cooperation with Syrian security forces.The U.S. has had forces on the ground in Syria for over a decade, with a stated mission of fighting IS, with about 900 troops present there today.Before Assads ouster, Washington had no diplomatic relations with Damascus and the U.S. military did not work directly with the Syrian army. Its main partner at the time was the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the countrys northeast. That has changed over the past year. Ties have warmed between the administrations of U.S. President Donald Trump and Syrian interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, the former leader of an Islamist insurgent group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham that used to be listed by Washington as a terrorist organization.In November, al-Sharaa became the first Syrian president to visit Washington since the countrys independence in 1946. During his visit, Syria announced its entry into the global coalition against the Islamic State, joining 89 other countries that have committed to combating the group.U.S. officials have vowed retaliation against IS for the attack but have not publicly commented on the fact that the shooter was a member of the Syrian security forces. Critics of the new Syrian authorities have pointed to Saturdays attack as evidence that the security forces are deeply infiltrated by IS and are an unreliable partner. Mouaz Moustafa, executive director of the Syrian Emergency Task Force, an advocacy group that seeks to build closer relations between Washington and Damascus, said that is unfair.Despite both having Islamist roots, HTS and IS were enemies and often clashed over the past decade.Among former members of HTS and allied groups, Moustafa, said, Its a fact that even those who carry the most fundamentalist of beliefs, the most conservative within the fighters, have a vehement hatred of ISIS.The coalition between the United States and Syria is the most important partnership in the global fight against ISIS because only Syria has the expertise and experience to deal with this, he said. ABBY SEWELL Sewell is the Associated Press news director for Lebanon, Syria and Iraq. She joined the AP in 2022 but has been based in the region since 2016, reporting and guiding coverage on some of its most significant news stories. twitter mailto

Palestinians pray during the funeral of Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades operatives, whose bodies are draped in the group's flag, killed in an Israeli strike Saturday, in Gaza City, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)2025-12-14T15:23:32Z JERUSALEM (AP) Hamas on Sunday confirmed the death of a top commander in Gaza, a day after Israel said it had killed Raed Saad in a strike outside Gaza City.The Hamas statement described Saad as the commander of its military manufacturing unit. Israel had described him as an architect of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war in Gaza, and asserted that he had been engaged in rebuilding the terrorist organization in a violation of the ceasefire that took effect two months ago.Israel said it killed Saad after an explosive device detonated and wounded two soldiers in the territorys south.Hamas also said it had named a new commander but did not give details.Saturdays strike west of Gaza City killed four people, according to an Associated Press journalist who saw their bodies arrive at Shifa Hospital. Another three were wounded, according to Al-Awda hospital. Hamas in its initial statement described the vehicle struck as a civilian one. Israel and Hamas have repeatedly accused each other of truce violations.Israeli airstrikes and shootings in Gaza have killed at least 391 Palestinians since the ceasefire took hold, according to Palestinian health officials. Israel has said recent strikes are in retaliation for militant attacks against its soldiers, and that troops have fired on Palestinians who approached the Yellow Line between the Israeli-controlled majority of Gaza and the rest of the territory. Israel has demanded that Palestinian militants return the remains of the final hostage, Ran Gvili, from Gaza and called it a condition of moving to the second and more complicated phase of the ceasefire. That lays out a vision for ending Hamas rule and seeing the rebuilding of a demilitarized Gaza under international supervision. The initial Hamas-led 2023 attack on southern Israel killed around 1,200 people and took 251 hostages. Almost all hostages or their remains have been returned in ceasefires or other deals. Israels two-year campaign in Gaza has killed more than 70,660 Palestinians, roughly half of them women and children, according to the territorys Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between militants and civilians in its count. The ministry, which operates under the Hamas-run government, is staffed by medical professionals and maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by the international community.___Find more of APs Israel-Hamas coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Weve known for some time that the rise of anti-trans politics in the Republican Party was likely an intentional tactic devised by political strategists in backrooms. But the recent events in Washington, D.C., and the eventual passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) bring the craven nature of those moves out into the light.In the wake of same-sex marriage being legalized nationwide by the Supreme Court in 2015, Republicans needed another minority rights issue to get their base angry over. The growing mainstream awareness of trans people at the time played perfectly for those goals, and that move is evident in the escalation of anti-trans bills since 2015. Related The anti-trans movement is sadly going to outlive Trumps presidency Prior to the government shutdown at the end of September, the appropriations bills that conservatives in the Republican-controlled Congress were putting forward included a wealth of anti-trans riders. Six amendments were added to the 2026 NDAA, the $900 billion military funding bill, on September 10 that would have restricted gender-affirming care for service members and their families, banned trans women from sports, banned trans people from using the restroom at military facilities, removed gender identity questions from military surveys, and banned Pride flags.While that speaks to a strong anti-trans sentiment, it appears that Republicans may have largely included them partially to satisfy the anti-trans extremists in the party and to represent something they could give up during deal-making with the Democrats. Dive deeper every day Join our newsletter for thought-provoking commentary that goes beyond the surface of LGBTQ+ issues Subscribe to our Newsletter today By the time the government was steaming towards a shutdown and stopgap bills, or continuing resolutions, were being considered, all of those anti-trans riders had evaporated. Republicans seemed ready to drop them as a way to push through other appropriations and to focus on ensuring Obamacare subsidies expired, forcing up healthcare prices for many Americans.The big fear was that once the government was reopened, new appropriations bills would include all those anti-trans clauses. That fear was clearly well-founded. The NDAA once again included a ban on Defense Department resources going towards gender-affirming surgeries, a ban on trans women taking part in programs or activities at the military service academies that are designated for women or girls, and other anti-diversity language.But this past week, deal-making prior to the bill passing on Wednesday resulted in those anti-trans clauses being attenuated. The restrictions on gender-affirming healthcare were removed entirely, and the sports ban was altered to only affect those enrolled in the military academy, not visiting teams. That wasnt a total win, but it was a big step in the right direction. We dont know what they gave up to remove those anti-trans riders, but it seems the president and House Republicans might not be as deeply invested as theyd like us to believe.What we do know, however, is what bargaining chip was handed over to at least one representative to secure a yes vote on the NDAA.Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) heavily criticized the NDAA bill for its massive spending of taxpayer money in ways that wouldnt actually help American citizens, tweeting, These American People are $38 Trillion in debt, suffering from an affordability crisis, on the verge of a healthcare crisis, and credit card debt is at an all time high. Funding foreign aid and foreign wars is America Last and is beyond excuse anymore. This week we are voting on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that funds our military and its, once again, filled with Americans hard earned tax dollars used to fund foreign aid and foreign countrys wars.These American People are $38 Trillion in debt, suffering pic.twitter.com/Rgbcrvy7aY Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (@RepMTG) December 8, 2025However, she changed her no to a yes, and not because she suddenly thought the bill was worthwhile. She revealed this week that all it cost was a promise from House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) that her pet project bill would get a vote on the House floor on December 17.The Protect Childrens Innocence Act, Greenes bill, is not about protecting children. It is a massive gender-affirming care ban for trans youth, which would allow for doctors and parents alike to be charged with a felony for providing minors with gender-affirming healthcare.Greene has been pushing this bill for years, while a near-identical measure has been proposed multiple times in the Senate with a list of co-sponsors that has included JD Vance. However, it has never actually been put to a vote. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has claimed to support such a ban in the past, but has either been focused on other matters, didnt think it would pass, or has been holding this anti-trans bill as a bargaining chip to spend when he needed Greenes vote one day. Now, Greenes vanity project is suddenly getting a vote, just as shes on her way out the door. Not because of its merits as a bill, nor because Republicans agreed with the anti-trans aims, but because that vote was traded for her agreement to help pass the NDAA.Greenes bill is unlikely to pass, but it will allow her to say she did what she promised, and she can blame Capitol Hill for it not becoming law. It all emboldens anti-trans hate in the name of political maneuvering without a care for what is actually said.California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) spoke this week about how much pro-trans legislation he has passed in the state. He also said that he didnt support trans inclusion in sports, noting that his disagreement comes from his heart, and that it wasnt a political decision.Hes wrong about denying trans children inclusion in school sports, and he knows that its not a politically good position to take. But when Republicans are hating us because their strategists tell them to, theres perhaps something refreshing (if depressing and annoying) about someone genuinely believing in something rather than being guided by cynical positioning. Correct. Were sorry your daughter hates you, Elon. https://t.co/HeJIm5fJMS Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) December 11, 2025Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze will not play against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday after aggravating his foot injury during pregame warmups.

The video, verified by The New York Times, shows a man sneaking up on one of the shooters who targeted a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney on Sunday.

A look at the top moments from Week 15's games.

People gather on Washington Street in front of Manhattan Bridge during a snowfall, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, in the Brooklyn Borough of New York. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)2025-12-14T18:46:33Z A weekend storm sent temperatures plunging well below zero in the Midwest and dumped heavy snow on parts of the Northeast on Sunday, creating many airport delays and slick roads as the Pacific Northwest braced for more rain after days of flooding and mudslides. The storm began Saturday and brought up to several inches of snow in the New York-New Jersey metro area, the regions first significant snowfall of the season. Light snow fell over parts of New England.The storm was expected to weaken by Sunday night, followed by arctic conditions with overnight windchill temperatures at or plummeting below zero degrees (-18 Celsius). Crews and contractors were out plowing and treating roads in New Jersey, where the state Department of Transportation advised people to avoid unnecessary travel. Salt spreaders and plows worked overnight to clear snow from roads and bike lanes, the New York City Department of Sanitation posted online. The state of Pennsylvania temporarily reduced speed limits on interstates to 45 mph (72 kph). There were over 1,000 flights delayed and more than 100 cancellations at U.S. airports due to the weather, according the flight tracking site FlightAware. Meanwhile, a blastic of arctic air swept south from Canada and into parts of the northern U.S. The National Weather Service in Chanhassen, Minnesota, said Sunday was the coldest morning of the season so far. It was -10 degrees (-23 C) at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, with temperatures as low as -22 (-30 C) in some communities. In the Pacific Northwest, which has seen catastrophic flooding that has forced thousands of people to evacuate, more rain and wind was expected in the region as early as late Sunday, forecasters said. RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Ravens linebacker Teddye Buchanan, who is the team's second-leading tackler, was knocked out of Sunday's game against the Bengals with a knee injury.

Harry Kane's late pen helped his team avoid a first defeat of the season and also marked his 50th goal for Bayern in 2025, the first time the former Tottenham striker has ever hit that mark for his club in a single calendar year.

When a slogans real meaning comes true.

The student, in his first year at Brown, described helping others who were more seriously injured than him as they hid in their classroom.

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