China sentences journalist for espionage after he was detained while eating with Japanese diplomat

A prominent Chinese journalist was sentenced in a Beijing court to seven years in prison for espionage, according to his family.

Dong Yuyu, a commentator and editor, was detained by police in February 2022 while he was meeting a Japanese diplomat at a restaurant, according to The Associated Press, and has been in police custody since.

The verdict on Friday named then-Japanese ambassador Hideo Tarumi and Shanghai-based chief diplomat Masaru Okada as agents belonging to an espionage organization, Dong's family said.

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Dong had served as the deputy head of the editorial department at Guangming Daily, a state-owned newspaper in China. He also contributed to the Chinese edition of the New York Times.

His published work includes his support for constitutional democracy and political reform, which were later deemed to be against the position of China's Communist Party.

Dong had contacts with foreign diplomats, scholars and other journalists through his decades-long career as a journalist. He also considered Tarumi as a friend.

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His family said he knew he was always watched by state security, so he wanted to be as open as possible while meeting his Japanese or American contacts.

"With Yuyu's conviction, every Chinese citizen, when dealing with the Japanese embassy — or perhaps any other foreign embassy and diplomat — will be expected to know that the Chinese government may consider those embassies to be 'espionage organizations,'" the family said in a statement. "Every sensible Chinese citizen should be appalled by this reasoning."

The U.S. Ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns, criticized Dong's conviction.

"Punishing Dong for exercising his freedom of speech and the press, guaranteed by the PRC’s constitution for all its citizens, is unjust," Burns said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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White House responds to disturbing Edan Alexander hostage video, denounces Hamas: 'Cruel reminder'

The White House denounced the harrowing hostage video of Edan Alexander released on Saturday, calling it "a cruel reminder of Hamas’s terror."

The disturbing hostage footage shows the 20-year-old covering his face and crying. Alexander, who is a dual American-Israeli citizen, was serving in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) when he was abducted by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7 attacks.

In the footage, Alexander appeared gaunt and pale. The hostage explained that he had been a prisoner for over 420 days and delivered forced messages to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President-elect Trump.

On Saturday, National Security Council (NSC) spokesman Sean Savett said that the White House was aware of the footage and is in touch with Alexander's family.

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"The hostage video released today of American-Israeli citizen Edan Alexander is a cruel reminder of Hamas’s terror against citizens of multiple countries, including our own," he said.

"The war in Gaza would stop tomorrow and the suffering of Gazans would end immediately — and would have ended months ago — if Hamas agreed to release the hostages," Savette added. "It has refused to do so, but as the President said last week, we have a critical opportunity to conclude the deal to release the hostages, stop the war, and surge humanitarian assistance into Gaza." 

Savett also promised that President Biden "will continue to work around the clock" to secure the release of the hostages in Gaza.

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The release of the footage came days after the IDF and Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed terrorist group, agreed to a 60-day cease-fire in Lebanon. While announcing the deal on Tuesday, Biden acknowledged Hamas' unwillingness to release its hostages.

"Far too many civilians in Gaza have suffered far too much," the president said from the White House's Rose Garden. "And Hamas has refused, for months and months, to negotiate a good-faith ceasefire and a hostage deal."

Alexander's parents, Yael and Adi Alexander, appeared on "Fox & Friends" last month to speak about their son. During the interview, the New Jersey residents described a meeting they had with President-elect Trump.

"I just told [Trump] about Edan, what kind of a Jersey boy he is," Yael said. "I told the president that people that [were] rescue[d] in mid-November, saw Edan inside the tunnels, and they told me that he was speaking with them, tell[ing] everyone that he's an American citizen."

"He tried to calm everyone down and to say, 'Listen, you're all civilians. You will be out soon, very fast. Don't worry about it.' It gave us a lot of strength to know that Edan was strong on October 7th, and he was comforting others," she added. 

Reuters and Fox News Digital's Bailee Hill contributed to this report.

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How Brazilian police say Bolsonaro plotted a coup to stay in office

Brazil's Federal Police in late November formally accused far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro and 36 others of planning a coup to keep him in office. The agency described a multistep scheme, substantiated by evidence and testimony, in an 884-page report.

The plan included systematically sowing distrust of the electoral system among the populace, drafting a decree to give the plot a veneer of legal basis, pressuring top military brass to go along with the plan, and inciting a riot in the capital.

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Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet will now decide whether to formally charge the accused parties, toss the investigation or request more testimony to understand each person’s participation in different parts of the alleged plot before deciding who stands trial on which counts. Bolsonaro and his main allies have denied any wrongdoing or involvement and accuse the authorities of political persecution.

Here is a breakdown of the plan's key elements as laid out in the report and how they are supposedly connected.

Sowing doubt about Brazil’s voting system

Police allege that efforts to disseminate fake news about Brazil’s electronic voting system began in 2019, Bolsonaro’s first year in office, but were conducted more strategically and intensively as his 2022 reelection bid drew near.

Police say so-called "digital militias" comprised of thousands of social media accounts linked to pro-Bolsonaro propaganda, as well as other prominent right-wing influencers and politicians, spread propaganda claiming the voting system could be tampered with. Bolsonaro also openly expressed admiration for Brazil’s military dictatorship (1964-1985), which he claimed saved the country from communism.

The narrative of an impending illegitimate election defeat helped Bolsonaro rally tens of thousands of supporters to multiple street demonstrations and also muster many to set up camp outside military barracks and headquarters to pressure leaders.

Three months before the election, Bolsonaro invited dozens of diplomats to the presidential palace for a nationally televised meeting in which he presented supposed vulnerabilities of the voting system, without providing any evidence.

Following Bolsonaro’s loss in 2022 to leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Bolsonaro's Liberal Party questioned results at the country's top electoral court, arguing voting devices made in specific years could have permitted fraud. The electoral court swiftly dismissed the claims.

"They spread false studies on the vulnerabilities of the electronic voting machines through the Liberal Party, in an attempt to create a factual basis for a presidential decree" that would set the coup in motion, the report says.

A draft decree to set the coup in motion

In January 2023, Brazilian police found a draft decree in the home of Bolsonaro’s former justice minister Anderson Torres. It was one of many versions drafted either at the far-right leader's behest or with his knowledge, police say. The former president presented the document, unsigned, to the commanders of the three divisions of the armed forces on Dec. 7, seeking their support.

Investigators say the draft decree shows Bolsonaro and his allies sought to create a committee to probe alleged fraud and crimes in the October 2022 vote, so they could later suspend the powers of the nation’s top electoral court and possibly convene a new election.

The navy’s commander was ready to comply with the decree, but army and air force leaders objected to any plan that would prevent Lula's inauguration, the report said. Those refusals are why the plan did not go ahead, according to witnesses who spoke to investigators.

Many legal experts including say evidence that former president presented the draft to military leaders and supported for different versions of the document are very damaging.

"(The goal) was to unduly intervene in elections," said Luiz Henrique Machado, a law professor at the IDP university in the capital Brasilia. "In Brazil, it is the electoral prosecutors' office and the top electoral court that have the final word about electoral legislation."

In an interview with website UOL published Thursday, Bolsonaro said he discussed with military leaders moves including decreeing a state of emergency and other exceptional measures that would have suspended the rule of law for the public good. He said such measures are provided for by the constitution, so there is nothing unseemly about evaluating those options.

"What is being said is absurd. For my part, there has never been any discussion of a coup," Bolsonaro told journalists in Brasilia on Monday.

Plan to assassinate the president-elect

On Nov. 19, Brazil's Federal Police arrested four army special operations officers and a federal police officer accused of plotting in 2022 to assassinate Lula, vice-president-elect Geraldo Alckmin and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. The arrested men were all mentioned in a police report that was unsealed later.

The assassination plan sought to leave Bolsonaro's ticket as the only remaining valid one in the 2022 runoff, police say. As for de Moraes, he led a five-year probe into fake news and threats against Supreme Court justices, which has led some far-right allies and supporters being barred from social media and even imprisoned. In early 2023, he presided over the nation’s top electoral court when it declared Bolsonaro ineligible for office until 2030 over abuse of power related to a meeting he convened with foreign ambassadors to spread lies about the voting system.

Gen. Walter Braga Netto, Bolsonaro’s 2022 running mate and former defense minister, greenlit the assassination plan at a meeting with the plotters inside his home, investigators added. Federal Police portray the retired general as one of the plot's leaders, also involved in pressuring military leaders to sign onto the coup.

Braga Netto said in a statement on Tuesday that he never plotted a coup. He added that several of the documents seized from one of his aides, including "writings, drafts and media reports" were "preparatory material to answer media requests and to prepare for testimony in congressional hearings."

The police report contains no indication that any attempt to assassinate Lula or Alckmin was put into motion. However, investigators found messages and documents indicating that the plotters were monitoring and following de Moraes at the time.

Police said they found evidence that retired Brig. Gen. Mário Fernandes, one of the officers arrested who had been serving as interim general secretary of the presidency, also visited the protest camps outside military installations, including at the army headquarters in Brasilia. Investigators said they have evidence that he gave instructions and financial support to the protesters.

Jan. 8 uprising

Federal Police linked Bolsonaro and some of his top ministers to the Jan. 8, 2023 riot in which supporters of the former president, many of whom had been camped outside army headquarters for months, ransacked the Supreme Court, Congress and presidential palace in Brasilia.

The protesters had pleaded for the armed forces to keep the leftist leader out of office and their uprising — which came after Lula was sworn in — was an attempt to force military intervention and oust the new president, police say.

The riot appears in the report as one of several "other actions to pressure the army commander to join the coup d’etat." Police also say that Brig. Gen. Fernandes sent a message in November 2022 to Gen. Marco Antônio Freire Gomes, then the Army's commander, discussing the need for a "triggering event" for a coup.

Defendants, including Bolsonaro, have argued that the riot was an isolated event, and many legal experts have noted that the report's evidence of a connection between it and a broader plot is tenuous.

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"It is clear that the alleged coup plotters had contacts with people camped outside military barracks, people who were there on Jan. 8. But how much of that contact was transformed into planning, coordination, stimulus for those people to take public buildings that day? That is to be debated, it is going to be discussed in the process and the collection of more evidence," said João Pedro Pádua, a professor of criminal law proceedings at the Universidade Federal Fluminense in Rio de Janeiro.

Bolsonaro left for the United States days before Lula’s inauguration on Jan. 1, 2023 and stayed there three months, keeping a low profile. The police report alleges he was avoiding possible imprisonment related to the coup plot and awaiting the fallout from the uprising.

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Islamist rebels in Syria catch Assad, Putin, Iran regimes off guard giving US new mideast headache

JERUSALEM—Extremist Syrian Islamist forces have seized control over much of Aleppo, the second-largest city in the war-torn country, raising significant new questions for the U.S. government about its policy in the highly volatile Syrian Arab Republic.

"I think it is concerning if some elements of the anti-Assad forces get their hands on sensitive sites in Syria. There have been reports that they have seized the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center, which is where Assad’s chemical weapons program is housed among other military assets," Jason Brodsky, policy director for United Against Nuclear Iran, told Fox News Digital. 

He continued, "Given the background of some of these groups which were formerly affiliated with Al-Qaeda, it raises serious questions and could have implications for Israeli national security."

The government of Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly met on Friday night to discuss the latest news coming out of Syria.

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Former President Barack Obama cut a widely criticized deal with Syrian regime dictator Bashar Assad in 2013 to remove his chemical weapons program. U.S. officials later said that Assad likely retained part of his chemical warfare apparatus. Assad has repeatedly used poison gas on his population to dissolve the democratic revolt that unfolded against his regime in 2011.

There are currently about 900 American soldiers in Syria as part of a mission to defeat the Islamic State. The U.S. military presence in Syria, according to Mideast experts, also helps to blunt the Iranian regime's attempts to absorb of parts of Syria.

The seizure of most of the two million-person populated city of Aleppo is a stunning military defeat for Assad and his allies, the U.S-designated terrorist movement, Hezbollah, Russia, and the Islamic Republic of Iran. 

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Yet, Brodsky warned that Hayʼat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an amalgam of radical Islamist groups that secured the victory in Aleppo, is also a highly dangerous organization for the U.S.

"We can’t forget that one of these groups, HTS has been designated by the U.S. as a foreign terrorist organization. I think Israel’s degradation of Hezbollah emboldened the anti-Assad forces as they smelled blood in the water with this assault on Aleppo. It’s not only Hezbollah’s losses, but also the IRGC’s [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] losses which are testing the Quds Force’s structures in Syria.

"Let’s not forget that Israel decapitated the IRGC Quds Force Department 2000, which oversees operations in the Levant, twice in the last year alone, not to mention other key commanders in the Syrian theater. That is a loss of relationships, skills and networks that have placed the IRGC at a disadvantage, especially when Hezbollah has been under such strain," he said.

The United States government has designated both Iran’s regime and the Syrian Arab Republic as state-sponsors of terrorism.

Phillip Smyth, an expert on Iranian regime proxy groups and Syria, who is with the Atlantic Council, told Fox News Digital, "If you were thinking Assad was sending out or had anything elite and functional for fighting forces, recall that nearly every successful offensive for pro-Assad side was executed by Iran and Iran proxies and or Russia since 2013 and 2015, respectively."

Smyth said that "HTS is a group that is an outgrowth of Al-Qaeda and has connections to Turkey. Their endgame is to create a Talibanesque society with a few tweaks."

He said, "I doubt the U.S. will be in a position to say we're hunky-dory with this. They attacked us on 9/11, "in reference to the Al-Qaeda origin of HTS. Smyth, however, noted that Assad’s is the other side of the same dangerous coin for U.S interests. He said regarding Assad and HTS, "I don’t think either is a good case. Assad has been very Anti-American. He has allowed Lebanese Hezbollah to metastasize and utilized Sunni Jihad groups" Smith added that "Assad allowed Al-Qaeda to go to Iraq to kill Americans."

The U.S. allied group, a coalition of Kurdish forces called the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), is also present in Aleppo. The SDF played a critical role in defeating the Islamic State in Syria.

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Wladimir van Wilgenburg, a Kurdish studies expert, discussed the SDF and the Kurdish force YPG (The People's Defense Units) with Fox News Digital. He said "The city of Aleppo is home to two Kurdish-dominated neighborhoods under the control of the Kurdish-led SDF/YPG  and a significant number of displaced people from Afrin (which is under Turkish control) living in Til Rifaat in northern Aleppo. It is unlikely the HTS will accept the YPG from controlling the airport. Russia, for the first time, has also carried out airstrikes in Aleppo, killing several civilians and rebel fighters."

Van Wilgenburg, the co-author of the 2021  book with Dr. Michael Knights on the SDF-U.S. partnership against the Islamic State, continued that "The rising influence of HTS also poses a threat to the YPG’s presence in northern Aleppo. Notably, the YPG/SDF withdrew from Nubl and Zahra without a fight, having moved in after regime and Iran-backed militias previously took control of those towns."

General Hossein Daghighi, Advisor to the Commander of the IRGC, said on Saturday, according to Iran International, "The enemy is incapable of taking any effective action, as the resistance networks have been systematically organized. Their attempts to meddle in Syria will result in their hand being decisively severed, leaving a mark on history that will not be forgotten."

The Syrian regime’s military announced their "redeployment operation" in Aleppo. "The large numbers of terrorists and the multiplicity of battlefronts prompted our armed forces to carry out a redeployment operation aimed at strengthening the defense lines in order to absorb the attack, preserve the lives of civilians and soldiers, and prepare for a counterattack," said Syria’s military.

According to Syria’s military, "Dozens of men from our armed forces were killed and others wounded" as "terrorist organizations were able over the past hours to enter large parts of neighborhoods of Aleppo city."

Assad’s regime has slaughtered over 500,000 people in Syria since 2011. The U.N. has since stopped tracking the death toll there.

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Israeli military says Hezbollah is smuggling weapons into Lebanon during cease-fire

Hezbollah terrorists are smuggling weapons into Lebanon despite an ongoing cease-fire agreement with Israel, the Israel Defense Forces alleged Saturday. 

IDF Arabic Spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote on X that "earlier today, Air Force fighter jets, under the direction of Military Intelligence, attacked military infrastructure near the border crossings between Syria and Lebanon, which Hezbollah actively used to transfer weapons from Syria to Lebanon. 

"This raid came after monitoring the transfer of Hezbollah combat equipment from Syria to Lebanon even after the cease-fire agreement, which constitutes a threat to the State of Israel and a violation of the understandings of the cease-fire agreement," he added. 

The cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah is now in its fourth day on Saturday. Some Israeli forces still remain in southern Lebanon following a ground operation that was launched there in October, and under the terms of the cease-fire, they are expected to withdraw within the next 60 days. 

ISRAEL DESTROYS HEZBOLLAH’S ‘LARGEST PRECISION-GUIDED MISSILES MANUFACTURING SITE’ 

However, Hezbollah’s militants still appear to be active within Lebanon. 

Adraee said Saturday that "a number of gunmen were observed arriving in the southern Lebanon area, where they loaded RPGs, ammunition boxes and other military equipment into a vehicle" and "a short time later, an IAF aircraft attacked the vehicle." 

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"In another incident, an Air Force aircraft attacked a military vehicle operating inside Hezbollah's missile production infrastructure deep inside Lebanon," he continued. 

Adraee also said Saturday that in southern Lebanon, Israeli troops "uncovered combat equipment inside a mosque used by Hezbollah members, and the forces confiscated it." 

He shared images of rifles and grenades that reportedly were found at the scene.

"The IDF is deployed in the southern Lebanon area and will enforce any violation of the cease-fire agreement," he declared. 

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Imprisoned Kremlin critic convicted again, receives 3-year sentence for opposing war in Ukraine

Imprisoned Kremlin critic Alexei Gorinov was convicted again on Friday and given a three-year prison sentence for opposing Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.

The three-day trial against Gorinov again revealed Russian intolerance of dissent.

Gorinov, 63, is a former member of a Moscow municipal council who is already serving a seven-year prison term for public criticism of the invasion, according to The Associated Press.

Noting his previous conviction and sentence, a court in Russia's Vladimir region ordered Gorinov to serve a total of five years in a maximum-security prison. Russia's independent news site Mediazona quoted Gorinov's lawyer, who said the new sentence means he will spend a year more behind bars compared to his previous sentence.

Gorinov was first convicted in July 2022, when a Moscow court sentenced him to seven years in prison for "spreading false information" about the Russian army at a municipal council meeting. Gorinov was accused of expressing skepticism about a children’s art competition in his constituency and saying that "every day children are dying" in Ukraine.

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He was the first known Russian imprisoned under a 2022 law that essentially bans any public statements about the war that deviate from Moscow's narrative.

In March 2023, Gorinov told The Associated Press from behind bars that "authorities needed an example they could showcase to others (of) an ordinary person, rather than a public figure."

Last year, authorities launched a second case against Gorinov, his supporters said. He was purported to have been "justifying terrorism" in conversations with his cellmates about Ukraine’s Azov battalion, which Russia outlawed as a terrorist organization, and the 2022 explosion on the Crimean bridge, which Moscow considered an act of terrorism.

Gorinov rejected the allegations against him Wednesday, according to independent news site Mediazona, which quoted him as saying that he only said the annexed Crimean Peninsula was Ukrainian territory and that he called Azov a part of the Ukrainian army.

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His trial began Wednesday in the Vladimir region, where he is serving time in prison from his previous conviction. Photos from the courtroom, published by Mediazona, showed Gorinov in the defendant’s cage with a hand-drawn peace symbol on a piece of paper covering his prison badge and holding a handwritten placard saying: "Stop killing. Let’s stop the war."

"My guilt is that I, as a citizen of my country, allowed this war to happen and could not stop it," Gorinov said in his closing statement in court, Mediazona reported.

"But I would like my guilt and responsibility to be shared with me by the organizers, participants, supporters of the war, as well as the persecutors of those who advocate peace," Gorinov added. "I continue to live with the hope that this will happen someday. In the meantime, I ask those who live in Ukraine and my fellow citizens who suffered from the war to forgive me."

About 1,100 people have been the subjects of criminal cases over their anti-war stance since the war against Ukraine began in February 2022, according to OVD-Info, a prominent rights group that tracks political arrests. Nearly 350 of them are currently behind bars or have been involuntarily committed to medical institutions.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Israel cease-fire deal has critics worried over Biden, Obama officials looking to stymie incoming Trump admin

JERUSALEM— Amid the start of a cease-fire on Wednesday between Israel and the Iranian regime-backed Hezbollah terrorist movement in Lebanon, some leading Republican lawmakers accused President Biden of browbeating Israel into a temporary suspension of the war as the Jewish state staged a near-take down of the terror group's leadership and military structure. 

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reached the Litani River in Lebanon on Tuesday. A key war goal for the IDF is to push Hezbollah forces north of the Litani River. Under the cease-fire deal, Hezbollah is required to move its forces north of the Litani, which in some places is about 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the border.

Yet, the reported threat of Biden imposing a weapons embargo on Israel pulled the plug on Israel’s penetration of Hezbollah-controlled territory in southern Lebanon, according to regional experts and several lawmakers.

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"The cease-fire agreement does not diminish what Israel managed to achieve in short order against Hezbollah. Within two months, it dismantled its infrastructure along the border, decapitated its entire senior command structure, destroyed a large percentage of its arsenal, and killed and injured thousands of its fighters," Tony Badran Levant, analyst and news editor at Tablet Magazine, told Fox News Digital.

Describing the move by former officials from the Obama administration who now work in the Biden administration, he said, "What the Obama-Biden team did on their way out was to coerce the Israelis, reportedly with the threat of an arms embargo at the Security Council, into signing onto Obama’s vision for the U.S. role in Lebanon, which is part of his broader pro-Iran realignment. This is the downside of the agreement: it consolidates this Obama framework that should have been dismantled—and that’s separate from the tactical and strategic gains that Israel achieved on the battlefield. Rather, this pertains to U.S. policy and how the Obama-Biden team used Israel to lock in their regional preferences."

He continued, "The deal puts the incoming Trump administration and the Israelis in a weird situation, not just because it saddles the new administration with Obama’s preferences in Lebanon—including hundreds of millions in additional aid to the Lebanese Armed Forces—but also it makes the U.S. an arbiter for Israeli action against Hezbollah moving forward and the possibility for friction that may create between the Trump administration and Israel.

"Meanwhile, the Obama-Biden team have set their structure in place. If the incoming administration keeps it, that would be great for the Democrats, who will pick it up on the other end and expand on it. In any case, they have a document—a bilateral side agreement—that will be there for a future Democratic administration," he warned.

Amos Hochstein, the presidential envoy who brokered the deal, told Israel's Channel 12 evening news anchor Yonit Levi that he had informed President-elect Donald Trump's team about the tenets of the deal "because it's very important for them to understand and support it, because they are going to have to carry it forward and implement as they took office in just a few weeks."

Echoing Badran's warning, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., noted in a statement that "I am deeply disturbed both by reports that Obama-Biden officials exerted enormous pressure on our Israeli allies to accept this cease-fire and by how those officials are characterizing Israel's obligations. This pressure and these statements are further efforts to undermine Israel and constrain the incoming Trump administration. Obama-Biden officials pressured our Israeli allies into accepting the cease-fire by withholding weapons they needed to defend themselves and counter Hezbollah, and by threatening to facilitate a further, broader, binding international arms embargo through the United Nations."

Hezbollah launched rocket attacks a day after the Hamas massacre of nearly 1,200 people on Oct. 7, 2024 in southern Israel. The Iranian regime-backed Hamas terrorist movement slaughtered more than 40 Americans during the invasion. 

According to the left-wing Israeli Haaretz newspaper, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's aides said Biden threatened a weapons delivery stoppage for Israel if Jerusalem continued to prosecute its war in Lebanon. The second Biden threat reportedly involved a U.S. refusal to veto a potential U.N. Security Council resolution that would hurt the Israelis.

The Biden administration denied the punitive measures targeting Israel to bring about a cease-fire in Lebanon. A senior administration official during a Tuesday press briefing flatly denied that Biden threatened to sanction Israel at the council. The official said, "This topic never came up, not once. It's only that we didn't threaten it … literally the topic never came up, so, I don't even know how to answer the question any other way. It is completely new to me. And none of us has heard of this before."

Backing this up in his interview with Israel's Ch. 12, Hochstein also denied the Biden administration threatened Israel over use of its U.N. Security Council veto if it did not sign the deal, saying, "There was no such discussion at any point," adding "it never came up."

The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital press query.

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Biden’s carrot-and-stick approach toward the delivery of weapons to Israel as the tiny Jewish state fights a seven-front war against Islamic Republic of Iran proxies has been a source of friction between Netanyahu and its main ally, the United States.

Lt. Col. (Res.) Sarit Zehavi, president and founder of the Israel-based Alma Research and Education Center, told Fox News Digital that the IDF eliminated Hezbollah leadership, most of its rockets were eradicated, and it was pushed away from the border.  She said "The big question at stake remains, will Hezbollah recover and smuggle rockets and store them in Lebanon and south Lebanon again?"

Zehavi answered her question, "I am pretty sure that this deal will not."

Lebanese experts have long argued that Hezbollah is the de facto ruler of Lebanon. The U.S., Canada and many European countries classify Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.

Zehavi said "The Lebanese government is not willing to change its relationship with Hezbollah. Hezbollah is a member of the Lebanese government."

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She said she does expect enforcement of the terms of the cease-fire from The United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL), the Lebanese armed forces and the Lebanese state. 

According to the cease-fire, the Lebanese government is required to stop the smuggling of weapons to Hezbollah, Zehavi noted.

"I accept this cease-fire with mixed feelings. As a resident of the north, I am happy that we have a cease-fire. I am happy that my daughter can go back to school. I am happy to go back to normality and to stop hearing sounds of war and running for shelter all the time."

Mayors and local leaders in the northern towns ravaged by Hezbollah’s missile attacks opposed the cease-fire deal because the terms of the deal did not ensure they could safely reside in their homes.

Biden said that over 70,000 Israelis were forced to flee their homes in northern Israel because of Hezbollah’s rocket attacks. The number of displaced Israelis, according to experts in Israel, may be as high as 100,000 people.

UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti told Fox News Digital that, "The proliferation of weapons outside state control in Lebanon has been an undeniable fact, and that in south Lebanon – south of the Litani River – is a flagrant violation of Resolution 1701. But, as stated earlier, UNIFIL is not mandated to disarm Hezbollah or other groups by force. The Mission does not have the mandate to forcibly enter any location unless there is credible evidence that actions leading to hostile activity are taking place in that location."

Fox News Digital reported on the alleged failures of UNSC 1701, whose aim is to dislodge Hezbollah from southern Lebanon and disarm the terrorist organization.  

When asked by CNN about incoming Trump National Security Adviser Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., attributing the cease-fire deal to the Trump effect, Jake Sullivan said, "This peace deal was reached because Israel achieved its military objectives, because the stakeholders in Lebanon decided they didn't want war anymore, and because of relentless American diplomacy led by President Biden, driven by her envoy Amos Hochstein, coordinated in this building behind me by the National Security Council. That's how this came to pass."

Waltz wrote on X, "Everyone is coming to the table because of President Trump. His resounding victory sent a clear message to the rest of the world that chaos won’t be tolerated. I’m glad to see concrete steps towards deescalation in the Middle East. But let’s be clear: The Iran Regime is the root cause of the chaos & terror that has been unleashed across the region. We will not tolerate the status quo of their support for terrorism."

A Trump-Vance transition official told Fox News Digital that, "President Trump has been crystal clear that his support for Israel and his commitment to peace in the Middle East is steadfast. Hezbollah understands this is their best opportunity to get a more favorable deal done. Iran-backed proxies clearly see the clock ticking as President Trump will soon return to the White House with a strong national security team, including Marco Rubio, Mike Waltz, and Pete Hegseth, with U.S. intelligence led by Tulsi Gabbard and John Ratcliffe. President Trump rightfully predicted that actors in the region would make moves toward peace because of his historic victory -- and that's exactly what we are seeing take place."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Ukraine's Zelenskyy ordered missile strikes into Russia hours after trip to front lines with Fox News

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sat stoically across the table in the cafeteria car of the moving train. His dark sweater, matching the pitch black sky outside, had the Ukrainian gold coat of arms embroidered over his heart.

"If we have permission plus missiles, you will hear the results on the battlefield." Zelenskyy said with a slight smirk on his face. "For today we didn’t use it."

Hours later, Ukraine’s wartime leader would order six U.S.-supplied long-range missiles to be launched into southern Russia. A move that has reshaped the trajectory of the now 1,000+ day war.

ZELENSKYY FEARS DANGER IF UKRAINE LOSES UNITY, DEFEAT IF US CUTS FUNDS, 1,000 DAYS AFTER WAR BEGAN

For months, Russian leadership warned that such a move would be viewed as direct Western involvement in the conflict and could spark World War III. For Ukraine, the decision was highly anticipated and came more than six months after the U.S.-built ATACMS arrived in-country, along with similar British and French weaponry. 

"All our partners always look for permission from the United States," Zelenskyy lamented. "If the United States doesn’t give it, Europe will not give." 

RUSSIA TRICKS YEMENI MEN TO FIGHT IN UKRAINE UNDER HOUTHI SCHEME

The 44-year-old president spoke with intention after a long day traveling the eastern front lines. He had just met with soldiers in the cities of Kupyansk, Kramatorsk and Pokrovsk who told him they were running low on ammunition and artillery shells. A long war of attrition was changing quickly and not in Ukraine’s favor.

This 24-hour trip was considered a top secret mission for the Ukrainian military, intelligence agencies and government since nearly three years into the conflict against Russia. Zelenskyy remains a key target.

Emerging from an underground bunker in Pokrovsk, the echo of outgoing artillery fire pierced the air. 

"You can hear, we are very close," Zelenskyy said.

Driving to the next location, Zelenskyy thought of what he would say to civilians who had paused their lives to dig trenches outside the city.

Russian soldiers were advancing in the distance, and Ukraine would need to build up additional defenses, carved into the Earth, to slow the enemy down.

While on defense in some areas along the more than 600-mile front line, his forces would need to use what western weapons they could to target staging Russian soldiers who were now joined by thousands of North Korean troops.

When asked if there were certain targets that the Americans were encouraging Ukraine not to hit with their new ATACMS missiles, Zelenskyy checked with his translator to ensure he heard the question correctly before responding.

"The Americans were not happy," Zelenskyy recalled. "They were not happy because [of] our targeting some energy targets on the territory of Russia."

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Missing Canadian hiker found alive after spending weeks in blistering cold

A hiker who had been missing for more than six weeks was located in the Canadian wilderness earlier this week, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

The Northern Rockies RCMP were notified on Tuesday at around 11:30 a.m. that Sam Benastick, 20, had been located. He had been reported missing by his family on Oct. 19.

Benastick’s family became alarmed when he didn’t check in after embarking on a 10-day solo camping trip on Oct. 7 in harsh winter conditions, with temperatures plummeting below 4 degrees Fahrenheit.

SEARCH FOR MISSING OREGON HIKER AND HER DOGS SUSPENDED OVER 'WEATHER CONDITIONS, LIKELIHOOD OF SURVIVABILITY'

Benastick was found when two people traveling to the Redfern Lake Trail for work saw him walking toward him. He was using walking sticks to support himself and was using a cut-up sleeping bag to keep his legs warm.

The men took Benastick to the hospital, where police confirmed him as the missing camper.

He told police that he had stayed in his car for part of the time but then walked to a creek and the mountain side where he camped for 10 to 15 days. After that, he moved down the valley and built a camp and shelter in a dried-out creek bed before eventually flagging down the two men.

"Finding Sam alive is the absolute best outcome. After all the time he was missing, it was feared that this would not be the outcome," said RCMP Cpl. Madonna Saunderson.

The agency went on to thank multiple jurisdictions that provided mutual aid support during the search, as well as the Canadian Rangers and volunteers with extensive backcountry knowledge of the area.

HIKER LOST FOR 10 DAYS FOUND ALIVE IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA MOUNTAINS

"The time, effort and resources put in to locate Sam from the time of notification he was missing was beyond measure. We are thankful for the great outcome," Saunderson said.

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A GoFundMe was set up by his sister following his disappearance to aid with expenses used to locate him.

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7 US hostages still held by Hamas terrorists as families plead for their release: 'this is urgent'

The parents of the American hostages who have been held by Hamas for nearly 420 days are once again pleading with the U.S. and Israeli officials to show a sense of "urgency" in securing their freedom.

Seven of the 101 hostages held in Gaza are American, and their families, who will once again sit through another Thanksgiving dinner with an empty seat on Thursday, are again urging that their release be prioritized.

"Our plea is that this is urgent, and I'm not sure we're seeing the sense of urgency," Orna Neutra, mother of Omer Neutra, who was 21 years old when he was abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, but who has since experienced two birthdays while in captivity, told Fox News Digital.

"There were security issues that needed to be dealt with in the north, with Hezbollah, with Iran. But at this point, the hostages – which are a primary war goal for the Israelis – should be the first priority, and everything possible should be done to get them out," she continued. "It's been very frustrating for us to follow this news cycle to make sure that they're not forgotten, to wait patiently, constantly, until other goals are achieved."

AMERICAN FATHER OF HAMAS HOSTAGE ITAY CHEN PUSHES US, ISRAEL ON ‘PLAN B’ AS NEGOTIATIONS FALTER

Orna, her husband Ronen Neutra, along with the families of other hostages still in Gaza have begun to question Netanyahu’s strategy for returning the hostages.

The Israeli prime minister has seen an increasing push at home and abroad by those calling on him to establish a cease-fire with Hamas and secure the hostages’ release. 

Cease-fire negotiations have all but collapsed. And although the Biden administration continues to push all sides to the table to end the war and secure the release of the hostages, Israel's military campaign to defeat Hamas continues.

"It's extremely . . . painful for us to see how the time is going by, and our son is held in those terrible conditions trying to survive," Omer’s father Ronen said. "The question is, what are we going to gain from a few more months of waiting with these conditions?"

Ultimately, as Omer’s parents highlighted, while IDF operations continue in Gaza the hostages remain in danger.

"We saw what happened in late August, when the IDF was getting too close to the hostages, the terrorists got instructions to execute them," Orna said. "We saw six hostages executed in one day, one of them, American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin. And the conditions that they were held in and the state in which they were retrieved – they were emaciated, they were dehydrated, it doesn't leave a lot of room for imagination.

"They are in horrible conditions, and they need to be taken out as soon as possible," she added. 

Netanyahu has said his two primary goals in the Gaza campaign are the destruction of Hamas and securing the return of the hostages. 

But following the October death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar – a major war aim for Netanyahu – military operations did not cease, nor were ceasefire negotiations fervently pursued by Israel or Hamas.

DR. AYELET LEVY SHAHAR: A MOTHER'S MESSAGE TO AMERICA: DON'T FORGET THE HOSTAGES

It is not only the continued military operations in Gaza that have begun to frustrate the families of the hostages, but also Israel’s increased attention in Lebanon, which has left many feeling that the hostages had been "sidelined."

Israel and Lebanon on Wednesday entered into a cease-fire just two months after Jerusalem began its operations to oust Hezbollah, a move that will allow citizens in both countries to begin returning to their homes near the shared border. But despite nearly a year’s effort, no such deal has been secured in Gaza. 

"I am a bit disappointed that there is no connection between the Lebanon peace and the Gaza peace," Ruby Chen, father of Itay Chen, who was 19 and serving in the IDF when he was attacked and taken by Hamas terrorists, told Fox News Digital. "In Gaza, there are people, U.S. citizens, that are at risk and should come out. 

"But let's have hope that this will bring Israel into focus on this peace for the hostages, as well as the other international players that are doing the hostage deal," he added. 

In an address on Wednesday, Biden championed the Israel-Lebanon cease-fire but said, "Now Hamas has a choice to make. Their only way out is to release the hostages, including American citizens which they hold, and, in the process, bring an end to the fighting, which would make possible a surge of humanitarian relief.  

"Over the coming days, the United States will make another push with Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and others to achieve a cease-fire in Gaza with the hostages released and the end to the war without Hamas in power," he added. 

AS GAZA WAR DRAGS PAST 1 YEAR MARK, HOPE FADES FOR A DEAL TO BRING HOSTAGES HOME SOON

Many hold out hope that even if the Biden administration cannot secure the release of the hostages before he leaves office in January, that the incoming Trump administration may bring a change to the negotiations and secure the hostages’ release. 

President-elect Donald Trump said from the campaign trail, "We want our hostages back, and they better be back before I assume office, or you will be paying a very big price."

Trump has not detailed steps he would take to secure the hostages' release from the terrorist network, though on Tuesday he signed a memorandum of understanding that should enable him to begin accessing intelligence regarding the hostages – a process that traditionally happens weeks prior to when Trump signed the document. 

While some Republicans, including those whom Trump has tapped for top jobs in his administration, like Florida Sen.  Marco Rubio, have been in communication with the hostage families, the president-elect has not yet made contact with them, according to the parents of Omer and Itay.

Fox News Digital could not immediately reach Trump’s transition team to verify when the president-elect intends to reach out to the families and start on securing the hostages' release. 

The parents of Omer and Itay have said they will continue to make sure that neither everyday citizens nor world leaders forget their children who are still held hostage. 

"I have my empty seat again this Thanksgiving," Ruby said in reference to where his son Itay should sit. "We would hope that U.S. citizens that understand the tragedy of having an empty chair at the table would adopt that as well. 

"We have Christmas [and Hanukkah] coming up, hopefully we will have our Christmas miracle as well, and we'll be able to be united as family again and bring him home," Ruby added. 

The other American hostages still being held in Gaza include Edan Alexander, Sagui Dekel-Chen, Gadi Haggai, Judi Weinstein Haggai and Keith Siegel.

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Biden admin urges Ukraine to lower draft age to conscript 18-year-olds

President Biden’s administration is urging Ukraine to lower its draft age to conscript 18-year-olds to keep pace with Russia’s growing military nearly three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion.

A senior Biden administration official told The Associated Press Wednesday that "the pure math" of Ukraine’s situation calls for lowering the draft age from the current age of 25 to expand its outnumbered fighting force.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Ukraine is failing to mobilize and train enough soldiers to replace its battlefield losses and keep pace with Russia's growing forces.

In April, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law that lowered the military conscription age from 27 to 25 to replenish its depleted ranks.

RUSSIA LAUNCHES ANOTHER LARGE MISSILE, DRONE ATTACK ON UKRAINE'S ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE

Lowering the minimum conscription age, however, has some Ukrainians worried that taking more young adults out of the workforce could further damage its already war-ravaged economy. Some Ukrainian officials see the push from the U.S. as part of a Western effort to distract from their own delays in providing weaponry and other equipment.

Even with more than 1 million Ukrainians now in uniform, including the National Guard and other units, Ukrainian officials have said they need about 160,000 additional troops to keep pace on the battlefield. 

But the Biden administration believes they probably will need even more, saying that shoring up Ukraine’s manpower shortage far eclipses the need for military equipment.

TRUMP NOMINATES FORMER PENCE MILITARY AIDE FOR NEW UKRAINE POST

White House National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett in a statement said the administration will continue sending Ukraine weaponry but believes "manpower is the most vital need" for Ukraine.

"So, we’re also ready to ramp up our training capacity if they take appropriate steps to fill out their ranks," Savett said.

The White House has pushed more than $56 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the start of Russia's February 2022 invasion and expects to send billions more to Kyiv before Biden leaves office in less than two months.

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President-elect Trump has said that he will bring about a swift end to the war when he takes office on Jan. 20, 2025, though some are concerned that he may not continue to provide Ukraine with military support.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Russia launches another large missile, drone attack on Ukraine's energy infrastructure

Russia launched another "massive" attack on Ukraine's energy infrastructure on Thursday, knocking out power for more than a million households, according to Ukranian officials.

Thursday's attack, which involved more than 200 missiles and drones, marks the second on Ukraine's power grid in less than two weeks.

Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said on Facebook that "attacks on energy facilities are happening all over Ukraine." He added that emergency power outages have been implemented nationwide.

Areas affected include the Lviv region in western Ukraine, the northwestern Rivne region, the bordering Volyn region and the western Ivano Frankivsk region, according to The Associated Press.

RUSSIA LAUNCHES RECORD NUMBER OF DRONES IN NEW ATTACK

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kalibr cruise missiles with cluster munitions, which release numerous small bombs over a wide area, hit civilian targets. He described the attack as an "insidious escalation."

Zelenskyy asked that Western countries accelerate delivery of promised air defense weaponry in response to the attack.

"Each such attack proves that air defense systems are needed now in Ukraine, where they save lives, and not at storage bases," Zelenskyy said on Telegram.

Andrii Yermak, head of Ukraine's presidential office, accused Russia of stockpiling missiles with the intention of waging war during the winter. He also said Russia "was helped by their crazy allies, including from North Korea."

US WARNS RUSSIA POTENTIALLY AIDING NORTH KOREA'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM IN DIRECT THREAT TO EUROPE, ASIA

It is not uncommon for Russia to attack Ukraine during the bitter winter months in attempts to deny civilians access to heat and drinking water supplies. 

The attacks also aim to break down Ukraine's production of missiles, drones, armored vehicles and other military assets.

In the nearly three years of war, Russia has destroyed almost half of Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Australian police officer who used Taser on 95-year-old woman found guilty of manslaughter

A police officer who shocked a 95-year-old nursing home resident with a Taser was found guilty of manslaughter in an Australian court Wednesday.

A jury found Kristian James Samuel White guilty in the trial in Sydney after 20 hours of deliberation. White, who is on bail, could get up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced later.

Clare Nowland, a great-grandmother who had dementia and used a walker, was refusing to put down the steak knife she was holding when the officer discharged his Taser at her in May 2023. Nowland fell backward after White shocked her and died a week later in hospital.

GRANDMOTHER, 95, DIES AFTER POLICE SHOCK HER WITH STUN GUN: 'COMMUNITY IS OUTRAGED'

Police said at the time that Nowland sustained her fatal injuries from striking her head on the floor, rather than directly from the device’s debilitating electric shock.

White's employment is under review and is subject to legal processes, NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb told reporters after the verdict.

"The court has found Claire Nowland died as a result of the actions of a police officer. This should never have happened," Webb said, as she offered her "deepest condolences" to Nowland's family. The state's police reviewed its Taser policy and training in January and no changes to it were made, she added.

In video footage played during the New South Wales Supreme Court trial, White was heard saying "nah, bugger it" before discharging his weapon, after the officers told Nowland 21 times to put the knife down. White, 34, told the jury he had been taught that any person wielding a knife was dangerous, the Guardian reported.

ALABAMA POLICE OFFICER ON LEAVE AFTER VIDEO SHOWS HER USING STUN GUN ON HANDCUFFED MAN

But after an eight-day trial, the jury rejected arguments by White's lawyers that his use of the Taser was a proportionate response to the threat posed by Nowland, who weighed about 100 pounds.

The prosecutor argued that White's use of the Taser was was "utterly unnecessary and obviously excessive," local news outlets said.

The extraordinary case provoked debate about how officers in the state use Tasers, a device that incapacitates using electricity.

Nowland, a resident of Yallambee Lodge, a nursing home in the town of Cooma, was survived by eight children, 24 grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

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2,000-year-old fig unearthed in Ireland marks ‘oldest example of an exotic fruit’ discovered in the area

A fig dating back 2,000 years ago was found during excavations of Drumanagh in Dublin. The finding shines light on the foods that were traded between the Roman Empire and Ireland thousands of years ago. 

The 2,000-year-old fig is one of many items that have been unearthed during excavations in the area. Among other finds include metal and ceramic objects, as well as additional food remains, according to University College Dublin's release about the ancient find. Food remains were able to stay preserved due to their burned condition. 

The ancient fig provides new insights into the goods traded between the Roman Empire and Ireland. 

2,000-YEAR-OLD ROMAN ROAD DISCOVERED BY ARCHAEOLOGISTS IN LONDON

"Fig seeds dating to as far back as the 13th century have been recovered from excavations of medieval Dublin, Cork and other towns," Professor Merial McClatchie, director of the UCD Ancient Foods research group at UCD School of Archaeology, said per the news release. 

The ancient find is a first-of-its kind for Ireland. 

"An actual fruit has never been found in Ireland until now, but what is most important about the Drumanagh fig is its antiquity. It is without parallel in Ireland and is by far the oldest example of an exotic fruit found here," McClatchie said. 

Trade routes between the Roman Empire and Ireland allowed for the exchange of food. Before this find, it was unknown by researchers that figs made their way to Ireland thousands of years ago. 

NEW SUBWAY SYSTEM IN GREECE PUTS ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS DISCOVERED DURING CONSTRUCTION ON DISPLAY FOR PASSENGERS

"It’s thrilling to imagine someone enjoying such an exotic food here in Ireland so long ago," McClatchie said, per the news release. 

The excavations of Drumanagh have been led by Christine Baker, Heritage officer and archaeologist at Fingal County Council. 

She and her team were able to unearth many ancient objects beyond food remains. All the finds together have helped researchers better understand how people in Ireland lived thousands of years ago. 

"Our excavations have revealed more of the story of those living and working at Drumanagh," said Baker per the news release. "We now know there was an importation, not just of goods but of lifestyle. By these windswept cliffs people were consuming spelt bread, olive oil and figs, drinking from glass vessels and fine ceramic cups while wearing brooches and glass beads. The evidence so far points to a connection with Chester/Wirral area of Roman Britain during the first 200 years of the Roman conquest." 

Ireland has been a location full of food-related finds through the years. Another recent example of an ancient find in Ireland came from County Donegal, where a farmer found a 60-pound slab of bog butter on his land by means he called "pure luck." 

He found the bog butter after discovering a "cheesy" scent in the air. While bog butter is not considered an incredibly rare find in the area, with around 500 finds recorded in Ireland, it was more unique in its size. 

The 60-pound slab was described as one that could be "one of the biggest chunks of bog butter found in Ireland to date," according to Paula Harvey, an archaeologist who visited the site, per The Irish News. 

"It was just by pure luck that we came across it," Micheal Boyle, who found the bog butter said, per the Irish Examiner, explaining that he saw something in the ground, and was surrounded by a "cheesy smell," leading him to quickly conclude what he had discovered. 

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China releases 3 'wrongfully detained' Americans, White House says

China is releasing three Americans Wednesday who the White House says were "wrongfully detained," Fox News has confirmed.

"We are pleased to announce the release of Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung from detention in the People’s Republic of China," a National Security Council spokesperson said. "Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years. Thanks to this Administration’s efforts and diplomacy with the PRC, all of the wrongfully detained Americans in the PRC are home."

Mark Swidan of Texas was 38-years old when he went to China on business looking for flooring for construction work in November 2012. He was arrested after his driver and translator were allegedly found with drugs, the Texas Tribune has reported. 

A United Nations report determined that Swidan was not in possession of drugs on his person or in his hotel room, and records show he was not in China at the time of the alleged offense. 

CHINA FREES US PASTOR AFTER NEARLY 20 YEARS OF WRONGFUL DETAINMENT

The U.N. report said that the 11 other people arrested with Swidan as part of the alleged trafficking ring were unable to identify him and that the conviction was based on his visiting a factory that had once been used to manufacture methamphetamine. 

His mother Katherine Swidan told Fox News last year that she wanted President Biden to demand Mark's release.

"I want him to say his name. I want him to be strong and make some demands. Diplomacy is important, I understand that, but this has been going on too long," Katherine Swidan said at the time. "He is not well at all. He's lost 100 pounds."

CHINA DETAINS SUSPECT ACCUSED OF SPYING FOR BRITAIN'S SECRET INTELLIGENCE SERVICE 

Harrison Li, the son of Kai Li, told Fox News around a year ago that his father was detained in China while traveling there for a memorial service for his own mother.

"He was not allowed to get off the plane. As soon as he landed at Shanghai Pudong Airport, agents from the Ministry of State Security whisked him away and nobody has been able to see him outside of the prison ever since," Li said.

A website set up to raise awareness for Li said he had been held in China "since September 2016 on politically motivated charges of espionage and stealing state secrets. 

"He is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence at Shanghai’s Qingpu Prison," it added.

Leung, who has permanent residency in Hong Kong, was also sentenced on espionage charges in 2023, according to The Wall Street Journal.

He was first detained in April 2021. A friend of Leung told the newspaper that he was involved in charity work supporting low-income elderly people and students in Jiangsu province and has organized tours between the U.S. and China for musicians.  

Fox News’ Kate Sprague, Andrew Mark Miller and Kristine Parks contributed to this report. 

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Unidentified drones spotted over US bases in the UK, do not appear belong to 'hobbyists'

Unidentified drones have been spotted over joint U.S.-U.K. bases in the United Kingdom for nearly a week.

Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin reports that four U.S. military bases in the U.K. that house the American F-15 Strike Eagle and F-35 fighter jets have been targeted by "swarms of small drones" since Wednesday, Nov. 20. 

Military officials say they are "alarmed" at what appears to be a coordinated effort to test security at RAF Lakenheath, RAF Mildenhall and RAF Feltwell in eastern England, as well as RAF Fairford in southwestern England.

The U.K. military has sent around 60 personnel to protect the bases being targeted by multiple drone incursions.

RUSSIAN FORCES CAPTURE FORMER BRITISH SOLDIERS FIGHTING FOR UKRAINE IN KURSK: REPORT

A senior U.S. official told Fox that the drones do not appear to be those of "hobbyists." Witnesses say they are small quadcopters and octocopters and are more sophisticated than those that can be bought off the shelf. 

Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said earlier Tuesday that none of these drone incursions have impacted the base residents, the facilities or U.S. assets on the bases. 

US LAWMAKERS REACT TO CEASE-FIRE DEAL BETWEEN ISRAEL AND HEZBOLLAH

"We, of course, always maintain the right to defend ourselves if we deem something to be a threat," Ryder said. 

U.S. officials have not revealed the origin of the drones, but the coordinated nature suggests an aggressive state actor that began a day after Ukraine used long-range American ATACMs to target Russia after President Biden lifted restrictions on the use of longer-range missiles. 

Soon after, President Vladimir Putin said his country had the right to strike nations that allow their weapons to be used against Russia.

The U.K. Defense Ministry said it is working closely with U.S. and local police to find out what these drones are doing and whether a foreign adversary is involved. 

"The number of systems has fluctuated, and they have ranged in sizes and configurations," U.S. Air Forces Europe said in a statement. "Our units continue to monitor the airspace and are working with host-nation authorities and mission partners to ensure the safety of base personnel, facilities and assets."

The incursion of drones comes a month after Fox first reported that surveillance drones flew for 17 days near Langley Air Force Base in Virginia last December. Those drones were large but pose a similar challenge to base commanders. 

Lakenheath is home to the 48th Fighter Wing, which the U.S. Air Force describes as the foundation of its combat capability in Europe. Mildenhall hosts the 100th Air Refueling Wing, and Feltwell is a hub for housing, schools and other services. Fairford is home to the 501st Combat Support Wing Headquarters and the 420th Air Base Squadron.

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6 dead as protests erupt in Pakistan over jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan

Supporters seeking the release of imprisoned Pakistani former Prime Minister Imran Khan broke through a ring of shipping containers blocking off the capital on Tuesday, and battled security forces despite a government threat to respond with gunfire. Six people have died in the violence.

Thousands of security forces have poured into central Islamabad in an attempt to quell protests in support of Khan that have gripped the capital and its surrounding areas since Sunday. The popular politician has been in jail for over a year and faces more than 150 criminal cases that his party says are politically motivated.

Authorities say only courts can order the release of Khan, who was ousted in 2022 through a no-confidence vote in Parliament. He has been imprisoned since his first conviction in a graft case, in August 2023.

FORMER PAKISTANI PRIME MINISTER IMRAN KHAN SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON IN CIPHER CASE

On Tuesday, Pakistan’s army took control of D-Chowk, a large square in downtown Islamabad’s Red Zone, which houses key government buildings and is where visiting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is staying. Paramilitary rangers and police were also out in force and some fired warning shots into the air.

Still, Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, who is leading the protests, made slow progress toward the square in a heavily guarded convoy, surrounded by well-wishers.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi threatened that security forces would respond with live fire if protesters fired weapons at them.

"We have now allowed police to take any decision according to the situation," Naqvi said later while visiting the square.

IMPRISONED FORMER PAKISTANI PM IMRAN KHAN ADDRESSES IMF IN ELECTION AUDIT PUSH

Protester Shahzor Ali said people were on the streets because Khan had called for them to be there. "We will stay here until Khan is among us. He will decide what to do next," Ali said.

"If they again fire bullets, the bullet will be responded with the bullet," he said.

Protester Fareeda Bibi, who is not related to Khan’s wife, said people have suffered greatly for the last two years.

"We have really suffered for the last two years, whether it is economically, politically or socially. We have been ruined. I have not seen such a Pakistan in my life," she said.

Police so far have used tear gas in an attempt to disperse the crowds. The dead include four members of the security services and one civilian who were killed when a vehicle rammed them on a street overnight into Tuesday. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denounced the attack, saying an "anarchist group" was deliberately targeting law enforcement personnel. There was no claim of responsibility for the ramming. A police officer died separately.

Scores of people have also been injured, including journalists who were attacked by demonstrators. Dozens of Khan supporters beat a videographer covering the protest for The Associated Press and took his camera. He sustained head injuries and was treated in a hospital.

VISITATION PRIVILEGES REVOKED FOR IMPRISONED EX-PAKISTANI PM IMRAN KHAN AFTER REPORTS OF POSSIBLE ATTACK

Pakistani media have mostly stopped filming and photographing the rally, instead focusing on the security measures and the city’s deserted streets.

By Tuesday afternoon, fresh waves of protesters made their way unopposed to their final destination in the Red Zone. Most demonstrators had the flag of Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, around their shoulders or wore its tricolors on accessories.

Naqvi said Khan’s party rejected a government offer to rally on the outskirts of the city.

Information Minister Atta Tarar warned there would be a severe government reaction to the violence.

He said the government did not want Bushra Bibi to achieve her goal of freeing Khan. "She wants bodies falling to the ground. She wants bloodshed," he said.

In a bid to foil the unrest, police have arrested more than 4,000 Khan supporters since Friday and suspended mobile and internet services in some parts of the country and messaging platforms were also experiencing severe disruption in the capital.

Khan’s party relies heavily on social media to demand Khan’s release and uses messaging platforms such as WhatsApp to share information, including details of events. The X platform, which is banned in Pakistan, is no longer accessible, even with a VPN.

On Thursday, a court prohibited rallies in the capital and Naqvi said anyone violating the ban would be arrested. Travel between Islamabad and other cities has become nearly impossible because of shipping containers blocking the roads. All educational institutions remain closed.

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Trump, Congress looking to put suffocating sanctions on 'kangaroo' ICC over Netanyahu arrest warrant

JERUSALEM — The scandal-plagued International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Jewish state’s former defense minister has brought the court into the crosshairs of a potent American sanctions regime.

The ICC last week slapped arrest warrants on Netanyahu and ex-Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for their war plans involved in rooting out Hamas terrorism in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas slaughtered nearly 1,200 people on Oct. 7, 2023, in southern Israel, including over 40 Americans. 

Israeli news outlet Kan said President-elect Trump’s administration plans to initiate sanctions against the ICC judges who issued the warrants, including the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan.

THUNE THREATENS INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT WITH SANCTIONS IF IT DOESN'T DROP NETANYAHU WARRANT FOR ARREST

The British chief prosecutor, Khan, is currently the subject of a probe based on allegations that he committed sexual misconduct, something that he has vigorously denied, noting that there was "no truth to suggestions" of such behavior, according to reports.

Avi Bell, a professor of law at the University of San Diego and Bar Ilan University in Israel and founding dean of the Israel Law and Liberty Forum's annual program on law and democracy, told Fox News Digital, "Several years ago, the ICC threatened to charge American soldiers for alleged crimes in Afghanistan. The fact that the ICC lacked jurisdiction did not cause the ICC to pause even for a second. It was only President Trump’s sanctions against the ICC (during his first term) that forced the ICC to obey the law and drop its threat to prosecute Americans. Sanctions against the ICC will work; persuasion will not."

Trump’s nominee for national security adviser, Mike Waltz, announced on X, "You can expect a strong response to the antisemitic bias of the ICC and U.N. come January."  

One of Trump’s key Senate partners, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., upped the ante in a recent Fox News interview, saying, "To any ally, Canada, Britain, Germany, France, if you try to help the ICC, we’re going to sanction you."

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the associate dean for the L.A.-based Simon Wiesenthal Center, warned democratic states that they could face persecution from the judicial activism of the world’s top war crimes court based in The Hague, Netherlands.

ISRAEL CONFIRMS DEATH OF MISSING ABU DHABI RABBI: ‘ABHORRENT ACT OF ANTISEMITIC TERRORISM’

He told Fox News Digital, "The warrant from a kangaroo court makes a mockery of justice and is a victory for Iran and its terrorist lackeys. Israeli leaders are guilty of defending their citizens from genocidal terrorists. France and the Netherlands were the first to confirm they would arrest PM Netanyahu and the list could reach 124 nations. Democracies beware you could be next."

Both the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations branded the ICC a defective judicial system for Americans and rejected joining the international body.

"The arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant are legally a joke, but they constitute a very serious development," Bell said. "Under Karim Khan’s predecessors as ICC prosecutor, the ICC was merely ineffective. Khan has ushered in an era of political buffoonery in which the court devotes the bulk of its resources to political grandstanding. With the new indictments, the court is grandstanding on behalf of terrorists and some of the world’s worst criminals."

When approached for a comment about Bell’s criticism, ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah told Fox News Digital, "We don’t comment on such declarations."

The legal scholar urged countries to walk away from the ICC, saying, "The ICC will only desist from its course if it is forced to pay a heavy price. Countries should withdraw from the Rome Statute and cease paying dues. They should impose sanctions on the ICC and forbid cooperation with the ICC. And so long as the ICC persists in issuing warrants for persons over whom it has no jurisdiction on trumped-up charges, ICC personnel should face criminal sanctions for attempted kidnapping and support for terrorism."

The ICC, which commenced operations in 2002, bases its authority on the signatories of the Rome Statute, which outlines four core international crimes that the court will prosecute: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes of aggression, all of which are "not subject to any statute of limitations" but limited to only crimes that occurred after the statute came into force.

When asked if anti-Jewish sentiments animated the ICC warrants, Bell said, "I do not get the impression that the warrants are due to the ICC judges’ personal antisemitism. The ICC has always preyed on the politically weak: formerly African countries and now the Jewish state. It is widespread antisemitism in the West, especially among progressives, that makes Israel politically weak and vulnerable. The ICC may be bigoted, but the ICC’s attempt to prosecute Israelis despite their legal innocence is really a sign of a much greater institutional moral depravity than mere bigotry."

BIDEN REVERSES TRUMP, LIFTS SANCTIONS ON INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT

Gabriel Noronha, a former U.S. Department State adviser on Iran who is now a fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, told Fox News Digital the ICC has known that it could face penalties for its legal action against the Mideast’s only democracy, Israel, but the ICC "decided to ignore diplomacy and face the repercussions of the United States." 

He added that U.S. sanctions would mean that affected ICC personnel will not be able to secure visas to enter the U.S. and their property and bank accounts will be frozen in America. 

"The sanctions could be pretty broad and include family members," Noronha noted.

Noronha echoed Graham's remarks. A second Trump administration, he said, could implement a "Diplomatic strategy to impose penalties on countries that cooperate with these particular ICC warrants."

Some European countries have already slammed the ICC decision. Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg wrote on X, "The ICC decision to issue arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant is utterly incomprehensible. International Law is non-negotiable and applies everywhere, at all times. But this decision is a disservice to the Court‘s credibility."

He continued, "It is absurd to create an equivalence between members of a democratically elected government and the leader of a terrorist organization."

The ICC also issued an arrest warrant for the already dead Hamas terror leader Muhammad Deif.

Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala flatly dismissed the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants against Israeli leaders.

"The ICC’s unfortunate ruling undermines authority in other cases by equating the elected representatives of a democratic state with the leaders of an Islamist terrorist organization," he wrote on X.

Conservative Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán accused the ICC of "interfering in an ongoing conflict for political purposes," saying the decision to issue the warrant for Netanyahu over his conduct of the war in Gaza undermined international law and escalated tensions.

The U.S. and the European Union have classified Hamas as a foreign terrorist organization.

The Associated Press and Fox News' Peter Aitken contributed to this article.

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Russian forces capture former British soldier fighting for Ukraine in Kursk: report

Russian forces captured a former British Army soldier who was fighting with Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region, according to reports on Monday.

In a video, the prisoner of war was sitting on a bench with his hand restrained as he identified himself as 22-year-old James Scott Rhys Anderson.

Russia’s Tass news agency reported on Monday that Russian security officials confirmed a British mercenary had been captured in the Kursk area.

"I was in the British Army before, from 2019 to 2023, 22 Signal Regiment," Anderson told Russian authorities while being recorded. "Just a private. I was a signalman. One Signal Brigade, 22 Signal Regiment, 252 Squadron."

RUSSIA TRICKS YEMENI MEN TO FIGHT IN UKRAINE UNDER HOUTHI SCHEME

He expressed regret for joining Ukraine in its fight against Russia, explaining he had nearly lost everything.

When he left the military, he got fired from his job and applied on the International Legion (of Ukraine) webpage.

"I had just lost everything. I just lost my job. My dad was away in prison. I see it on the TV," Anderson said while shaking his head. "It was a stupid idea."

RUSSIA IS SUPPLYING HOUTHIS WITH SATELLITE DATA TO ATTACK SHIPS IN THE RED SEA: REPORT

The International Legion for Defense of Ukraine was created at the request of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.

The Associated Press reported that the Legion is a unit of Ukraine’s ground forces that mainly consists of foreign volunteers.

Anderson reportedly served as an instructor for Ukrainian troops and was deployed to the Kursk region against his will.

In the video, he said his commander took his stuff — passport, phone and other items — and ordered him to go to the Kursk region.

UKRAINE TO ANALYZE FRAGMENTS OF MISSILE FIRED BY RUSSIA CAPABLE OF CARRYING NUCLEAR WARHEADS

"I don’t want to be here," Anderson said. 

The AP could not independently verify the report, but if confirmed, it said this could be one of the first publicly known cases of a Western national getting captured on Russian soil while fighting for Ukraine.

The U.K. Embassy in Moscow told the wire officials were "supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention" though no other details were provided.

Anderson’s father, Scott Anderson, told Britain’s Daily Mail that his son’s Ukrainian commander informed him the young man had been captured.

The senior Anderson also said his son served in the British military for four years, worked as a police custody officer, and then went to Ukraine to fight. He told the paper he tried to convince his son not to join the Ukrainian military, and now fears for his safety.

"I’m hoping he’ll be used as a bargaining chip, but my son told me they torture their prisoners, and I’m so frightened he’ll be tortured," he told Britain’s Daily Mail.

While being questioned, the younger Anderson talked about how he got to Ukraine from Britain, saying he flew to Krakow, Poland from London Luton. From there, he took a bus to Medyka in Poland, which is on the Ukrainian border.

Anderson’s capture comes amid reports Russia is recruiting hundreds of Yemeni men to fight in its war in Ukraine by luring them to Russia under false pretenses in coordination with the Houthi terrorist network, as reported by the Financial Times.

A senior Ukrainian defense official told Fox News that Moscow is trying to involve as many foreign mercenaries as possible in its war against Ukraine, whether from its allies or proxies in poor, impoverished countries.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense similarly confirmed the report to Fox News and said, "Russi[a] has escalated this war twice recently. First, when they brought North Korean fighters, and second, when they used [a] ballistic missile in Ukraine."

Fox News Digital’s Caitlin McFall and Nana Sajaia, as well as The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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