At least 16 tourists missing after Egyptian yacht carrying Americans sinks in high-waves Red Sea

At least 16 people are missing after an Egyptian yacht carrying international tourists sank in the Red Sea on Monday.

Forty-four people, including 13 crew members and 31 tourists, were aboard the Sea Story when it sank near Marsa Alam, a resort town in southeastern Egypt. The ship was carrying tourists for a multi-day diving trip.

Egyptian media outlet Al-Dostor reported that two American tourists were on board, but it is unclear if they are among those missing. Authorities were alerted to the incident at around 5:30 a.m. on Monday.

"Immediately, [authorities] informed the Naval Base and the Armed Forces, where search and rescue teams began operations using a helicopter and a marine unit moving from Bernice Harbor towards the rescue site," the Red Sea Governorate explained in a Facebook post.

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"The [Egyptian] Control Center and Operations Room continue to coordinate and follow up around the clock to ensure all necessary actions are taken and situation is reassured."

The search is ongoing and the number of deaths have not been officially announced.

Egyptian officials reported that 28 people have been rescued. Among that group, minor injuries like scrapes and bruising were reported, but no victims were hospitalized.

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The group of missing people includes 12 foreign nationals. The ship carried citizens of the U.S., Belgium, Spain and Germany, along with citizens of the United Kingdom, China, Finland, Ireland, Poland, Slovakia and Switzerland.

While the cause of the sinking has not been determined, officials believe that a massive wave capsized it. The vessel sank within five to seven minutes.

"Some passengers were in their cabins, which is why they were unable to escape," Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafi said in the statement.

Authorities are actively investigating the incident. No additional information is known at this time.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Uruguay ousts conservative government, elects leftist opposition candidate as turnout hits 90 percent

Uruguay ousted its conservative government that had been in charge for the past five years, as leftist opposition candidate Yamandú Orsi claimed victory in a tight presidential runoff Sunday.

Even as the vote count continued, Álvaro Delgado, the presidential candidate of the center-right ruling coalition, conceded defeat to his challenger.

"With sadness, but without guilt, we can congratulate the winner," he told supporters at his campaign headquarters in the capital of Montevideo. 

Orsi, 57, a working-class former history teacher and two-time mayor from Uruguay's Broad Front coalition, was mentored by former President José "Pepe" Mujica, an ex-Marxist guerilla who became world renowned for driving Uruguay’s legalization of abortion, same-sex marriage and sale of marijuana a decade ago. Orsi thanked his supporters as crowds flocked to greet him.

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"The country of liberty, equality and fraternity has triumphed once again," he said, vowing to unite the nation of 3.4 million people after such a tight vote.

"Let's understand that there is another part of our country who have different feelings today," he said. "These people will also have to help build a better country. We need them too."

"I will be the president who calls for national dialogue again and again, who builds a more integrated society and country," Orsi said.

"Starting tomorrow, I'll have to work very hard, there's a lot to do," he told the Associated Press from the glass-walled NH Columbia hotel, thronged friends and colleagues embracing and congratulating him.

With nearly all the votes counted, electoral officials reported that Orsi won just over 49% of the vote, ahead of Delgado’s 46%. The rest cast blank votes or abstained in defiance of Uruguay's enforced compulsory voting. Turnout reached almost 90%.

After weeks in which the rivals appeared tied in the polls, Delgado's concession ushers in Orsi as Uruguay’s new leader and cuts short the center-right Republican coalition's shot at governing. 

The 2019 election of President Luis Lacalle Pou spelled an end to 15 consecutive years of rule by the Broad Front.

"I called Yamandú Orsi to congratulate him as President-elect of our country," Lacalle Pou wrote on social media platform X, adding that he would "put myself at his service and begin the transition as soon as I deem it appropriate."

Orsi's victory made the South American country the latest to rebuke the incumbent party in the wake of post-pandemic economic malaise.

The win contrasts with that of populist Javier Milei, who won the presidency in Argentina in 2023 by promising to overhaul the establishment to deal with soaring inflation and poverty. Milei reportedly has grown close to President-elect Trump. 

Orsi has been described as a moderate with no radical plans for change. He largely agrees with his opponent on key voter concerns like driving down the childhood poverty rate, now at a staggering 25%, and containing an upsurge in organized crime that has shaken the nation long considered among Latin America's safest. 

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Despite Orsi's promise to lead a "new left" in Uruguay, his platform resembles the mix of market-friendly policies and welfare programs that characterized the Broad Front’s tenure from 2005-2020.

Mujica, now 89 and recovering from esophageal cancer, turned up at his local polling station before balloting even began on Sunday to praise Orsi’s humility and Uruguay’s proud stability.

"This is no small feat," he said of his nation's "citizenry that respects formal institutions."

With inflation easing, and the economy expected to expand by some 3.2% this year, Delgado had promised to continue pursuing his predecessor’s pro-business policies. 

Lacalle Pou, who constitutionally cannot run for a second consecutive term, has enjoyed high approval ratings. But the official results trickling in on Sunday showed that mounting complaints in Uruguay about years of sluggish economic growth, stagnant wages and the government’s struggle to contain crime after five years helped swing the election against Delgado.

Specific proposals by Orsi include tax incentives to lure investment and revitalize the critical agricultural sector, as well as social security reforms that would lower the retirement age but fall short of a radical overhaul sought by Uruguay’s unions that failed to pass in the Oct. 27 general election during which neither front-runner secured an outright majority. 

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He is also likely to put an end to a trade agreement with China that Lacalle Pou had pursued to the chagrin of Mercosur, an alliance of South American nations promoting regional commerce.

His government will take office on March 1, 2025.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Israel moves towards ceasefire deal with Hezbollah: reports

Israel is reportedly moving towards a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah in Lebanon after nearly a year of fighting escalated into an all-out war in September. 

Israeli media outlets including YNET and Haaretz have reported that Israel has tentatively agreed to a U.S.-backed proposal for a ceasefire. No final deal has been reached, according to the reports. 

Lebanon and the militia group Hezbollah reportedly agreed to the deal last week but both sides need to give the final okay before it can materialize. 

The reported ceasefire deal comes after Hezbollah launched one of its largest rocket attacks on Israel in exchange for Israeli forces striking Hezbollah command centers in Beirut. 

This is a developing story. Check back for updates. 

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Hezbollah fires barrage of rockets into Israel after IDF targets Hezbollah command centers in Beirut

Hezbollah fired a barrage of missiles and other projectiles into Israel Sunday in response to deadly IDF strikes on the militant group’s command centers in Beirut. 

The Israeli military said Hezbollah fired about 250 rockets and other projectiles Sunday, with some intercepted – marking one of the militant group’s heaviest barrages in months. Some of the rockets reached the Tel Aviv area in the heart of Israel.

Meanwhile, an Israeli strike on an army center killed a Lebanese soldier and wounded 18 others in the southwest, Lebanon's military said. The Israeli military said the strike occurred in an area of combat against Hezbollah and that the military's operations are directed solely against the militants.

Israeli airstrikes also pounded central Beirut on Saturday, killing at least 29 people and wounding 67, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry.

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Smoke billowed above Beirut again Sunday with new strikes. Israel's military said it targeted command centers for Hezbollah and its intelligence unit in the southern suburbs of Dahiyeh, where the militants have a strong presence.

Hezbollah began firing rockets, missiles and drones into Israel after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack out of the Gaza Strip ignited the war there. Hezbollah has portrayed the attacks as an act of solidarity with the Palestinians and Hamas. Iran supports both armed groups.

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Israel launched retaliatory airstrikes at Hezbollah, and in September the low-level conflict erupted into all-out war as Israel launched airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon and killed Hezbollah's top leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

Israeli attacks have killed more than 3,700 people in Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry. The fighting has displaced about 1.2 million people, or a quarter of Lebanon's population.

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On the Israeli side, about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed by bombardment in northern Israel and in battle following Israel's ground invasion in early October. Around 60,000 Israelis have been displaced from the country's north.

Israeli strikes have killed over 40 Lebanese troops since the start of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, even as Lebanon's military has largely kept to the sidelines.

Lebanon's caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, condemned the latest strike as an assault on U.S.-led cease-fire efforts, calling it a "direct, bloody message rejecting all efforts and ongoing contacts" to end the war.

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Four men convicted in Spain in connection to 2021 hate crime murder

Four men in Spain were convicted for their role in what is being considered a homophobic murder on Sunday in connection to the killing of a young nursing assistant, which sparked protests in cities across Spain and abroad.

Reuters reported that 24-year-old Samuel Luiz died in a hospital in July 2021 after he was assaulted by a group of people outside a nightclub in A Coruña, which is located in the northwestern Galicia region of Spain.

Three of the men involved who committed the fatal assault – Diego Montaña, Alejandro Freire and Kaio Amaral – were each found guilty of aggravated murder. The fourth man, Alejandro Míguez, was convicted of complicity. A fifth person, a woman, was tried and acquitted of charges against her.

Evidence presented in court showed that Montaña led the efforts after concluding that Luiz was gay based on his speech and clothing.

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Montaña then reportedly started shouting homophobic insults and slurs at Luiz before the attack and made anti-gay comments to the other accused individuals afterward.

The trial lasted nearly four weeks before the case was placed on the jury to decide the fate of Montaña, Freire, Amaral and Míguez. Ultimately, the jury found them guilty of the charges.

Sentencing is expected to take place at a later date, and the prosecution has asked the judge for jail terms between 22 and 27 years.

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"Today, 4 attackers have been sentenced for the murder of Samuel Luiz," Irene Montero, former minister of equality in Spain, wrote in a translated post on X, explaining that the men shouted a derogatory term at the victim. "I hope it helps to make amends for Samuel’s family and friends. Let’s not look the other way: the [LGBTQ-phobia] that kills begins with comments or ‘jokes’ that are hateful, harmful and must be stopped."

Reuters reported that in 2023, there were more than 360 hate crimes related to sexual orientation or gender identity reported in Spain. Of those crimes reported, 184 arrests were made, Interior Ministry data shows.

The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights also reported that only a fraction of hate crimes are reported.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Israel confirms death of missing Abu Dhabi rabbi: 'Abhorrent act of antisemitic terrorism’

Israeli officials on Sunday confirmed the death of an Abu Dhabi rabbi who had been missing since Thursday. 

"The UAE intelligence and security authorities have located the body of Zvi Kogan, who has been missing since Thursday, 21 November 2024," the Israeli Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on X. "The Israeli mission in Abu Dhabi has been in contact with the family from the start of the event and is continuing to assist it at this difficult time; his family in Israel has also been updated." 

"The murder of Zvi Kogan, of blessed memory, is an abhorrent act of antisemitic terrorism. The State of Israel will use all means and will deal with the criminals responsible for his death to the fullest extent of the law," the statement added. 

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Rabbi Zvi Kogan was an emissary of the Chabad Lubavitch movement, a prominent and highly observant branch of Hasidic Judaism based in Brooklyn's Crown Heights neighborhood in New York City.

The 28-year-old was a resident of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates when he went missing Thursday. He is a citizen of both Moldova and Israel.

According to his LinkedIn, Kogan worked as a recruiter and was "passionate about volunteering and serving [his] community."

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The Israeli Prime Minister's Office announced its investigation into the unusual disappearance on Saturday. At the time, the statement said the disappearance appeared to be related to "a terrorist incident" but did not elaborate.

The United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Interior had confirmed it was investigating Kogan's disappearance, but described his citizenship solely as a "Moldovan national." 

Kogan’s wife, Rivky, is a U.S. citizen who lived with him in the UAE. She is the niece of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg, who was killed in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Calls for US to do more as antisemitic acts skyrocket in Europe: 'enormously painful'

On Nov. 7, an anti-Israel mob set out on a "Jew hunt" through the streets of Amsterdam following a soccer game against a visiting Israeli team in what Israeli President Isaac Herzog termed an ‘antisemitic pogrom.’

When the angry mob was done hunting down and violently assaulting Jews and Israelis, five victims were hospitalized. Rioters continued to protest following the attacks setting a tram aflame on Nov. 11 and intensifying the spotlight on antisemitism throughout Europe.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean and Director of Global Social Action for the Simon Wiesenthal Center, told Fox News Digital that his organization "put a travel advisory on Amsterdam in the immediate aftermath of what happened." Cooper explained that the Simon Wiesenthal Center only takes this action "very rarely" and after serious deliberation. 

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"Theoretically," Cooper added, "you can slap a travel advisory on almost every place in Western Europe." As Cooper explained, "the establishment has never stepped forward in any really major way across Europe to safeguard their Jews and guarantee their rights and their religious freedoms."

Following Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel, there has been a staggering increase in antisemitism across Europe. In May, citing data from the World Zionist Organization, Ynetnews reported an 800% increase in antisemitic incidents in Sweden over the previous year, as well as a 680% increase in Spain, a 450% increase in the Netherlands, a 442% increase in the UK and a 433% increase in France. 

Events in Amsterdam appeared to be a flashpoint for further hate. On Nov. 10, Belgian authorities arrested five individuals after calls appeared on social media for a "Jew Hunt" in the Jewish Quarter of Antwerp, according to the Jerusalem Post.

In Greece in mid-November, protests featuring pro-Palestinian activists became so volatile that the Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry advised Israelis to avoid the Embassy and certain other areas and to remove identifying symbols, the Jerusalem Post reported. Far from the first anti-Israel demonstration in Greece, in June, nine Europeans were under consideration for deportation following "disruptive anti-Israel demonstrations" at the University of Athens School of Law.

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The Jerusalem Post reported that an under-17 youth soccer team in Berlin was "chased and assaulted" on Nov. 7 by a knife- and stick-wielding crowd screaming, "Free Palestine." The Times of Israel reported that fewer than two weeks later, the Berlin Chief of Police told Jewish and gay residents to "be careful" in neighborhoods with high populations of Arabs. "Unfortunately, there are certain neighborhoods where there are mostly Arab people who also have sympathy for terrorist groups," she explained.

The expansion of at-risk groups in Berlin echoes the warning words of Holocaust survivor Simon Wiesenthal. As Cooper explained, his organization’s founder readily emphasized, "It often starts with the Jews. It never ends with the Jews."

In the atmosphere of tension and hate, Cooper noted that Jewish Europeans are engaging in "conditioning and self-censorship," removing yarmulkes, or taking the Jewish "chai" symbols from their necklaces. Cooper said that it has "probably been about 15 years since a Jewish person felt comfortable walking to synagogue wearing a kippah in Amsterdam."

Cooper’s concerns are borne out by media reports. As one Dutch Jewish citizen told Ynetnews, Jews visiting the Netherlands should not wear identifying items or "bring Israeli passports." The Times reported in October that many Irish Jews are likewise removing identifying symbols due to an environment of mistrust.

In France, Jewish citizens are removing mezuzahs from their doors, avoiding riding in Ubers, and even changing their names to protect themselves from being identified and targeted with hate when they receive deliveries, according to the Christian Science Monitor. In 2023, France recorded 1,676 antisemitic incidents, compared with 436 the prior year. About 1,200 French Jews began applications to emigrate to Israel in 2023, an increase of 430% from 2022.

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As Cooper explained, it is "enormously painful to look across Europe and to see that they give their due deference one or two days a year to dead Jews. They still haven’t figured out in Europe how to live and embrace and celebrate Jewish presence in their societies." 

With increased hate in Europe possibly impacting Americans traveling overseas, Fox News Digital asked the U.S. State Department whether it would issue travel advisories warning Jewish Americans of antisemitism abroad. 

"We take seriously our commitment to provide U.S. citizens with clear, timely, and reliable information about every country in the world so they can make informed travel decisions," a spokesperson said. "We use standard formats for our Travel Advisories and Alerts to help U.S. citizens find and use important security information easily. We encourage U.S. citizens traveling overseas to enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP.state.gov) to receive important safety and security updates, and to make it easier for the U.S. embassy or consulate to contact them in an emergency."

The Netherlands’ Level-Two State Department Travel Advisory, last updated in August, notes threats of terrorism, but provides no information about antisemitic hatred. Neither do advisories for France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, or Greece.

Cooper emphasized that the Simon Wiesenthal Center hopes the incoming Trump administration will "take the fight against antisemitism globally to a new level," making it "part and parcel of American foreign policy, especially in the Americas and in the international organizations for which we fork out billions of dollars every year." 
 

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