In the news today: Donald Trump refuses to rule out abusing power to seek retribution in an interview with Sean Hannity; most Palestinians passing through Israel’s prison doors are teenage boys and young men, experts say; and are the West’s sanctions really punishing Putin and helping Ukraine? Also, it’s St. Nicholas day, and some parts of the Czech Republic celebrate with the Grim Reaper and the devil. | Donald Trump speaks during a rally, Dec. 2, 2023, in Ankeny, Iowa. (AP Photo/Matthew Putney) |
Trump declines to rule out abusing power to seek retribution if he returns to the White House |
Former President Donald Trump declined to rule out abusing power if he returns to the White House after Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity asked him Tuesday to respond to growing Democratic criticism of his rhetoric. The GOP presidential front-runner has talked about targeting his rivals and vowed to seek retribution if he wins a second term for what he argues are politically motivated prosecutions against him. Read more.
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Trump’s campaign rhetoric and sweeping plans for a second term alarmed Democrats. It has become a chief election argument for Biden as he prepares for a potential rematch. At a series of fundraisers Tuesday, Biden warned that Trump and his allies are out to destroy democratic institutions.
Trump has been dominating his rivals both nationally and in Iowa, which will kick off the election with its caucuses on Jan. 15. As these rivals gather this evening at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa for the fourth GOP debate, he once again will not be participating. The GOP front-runner will instead spend the evening at a Florida fundraiser.
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Generation after generation, Israeli prison marks a rite of passage for Palestinian boys |
The release of Palestinian prisoners under the Israel-Hamas cease-fire agreement last week has touched nearly everyone in the occupied West Bank, where an estimated 750,000 Palestinians have been arrested since 1967. In negotiations with Israel to free hostages in captivity in Gaza, Hamas has pushed for the release of high-profile prisoners. But experts say most Palestinians passing through Israel’s prison doors are teenage boys and young men. Read more.
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The conviction rate for security offenses in the West Bank is more than 99%. Defense lawyers often encourage young clients to plead guilty to avoid lengthy trials and detentions. Some are never formally charged or tried, held under “administrative detention,” which allows Israeli authorities to arrest Palestinians based on secret evidence and renew detention indefinitely.
Every year, the Israeli military court sentences hundreds of minors to prison, mostly for throwing stones, according to Military Court Watch. Most are 16 or 17. Palestinian activists and human rights watchdogs say Israel’s mass detentions seek to sow fear among the youngest, breaking communities that continue to defy Israeli military rule, now in its 57th year.
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The West has sanctioned Russia’s rich. But is that really punishing Putin and helping Ukraine? |
Western governments have sanctioned scores of billionaires to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin, choke off financial support for his war and turn them against him. But few tycoons have spoken out publicly and only a handful have unequivocally denounced the war, partly because they know it carries risk. With growing concerns about the future of Western funding for Ukraine, former diplomats and experts are asking what can be done to make the sanctions more effective and help Kyiv financially. Read more.
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In the 21 months since the sanctions, few of the sanctioned have criticized Putin. Of an estimated $58 billion in frozen private assets confiscated in response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea, just $5.4 million has gone to Kyiv.
Assets of sanctioned individuals generally can only be liquidated if they are related to criminal activity. This can take years to prove, and most tycoons who have been sanctioned have not been accused of criminal wrongdoing.
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Experts say a different approach is needed that could include offering tycoons a more clearly defined route off sanctions lists in exchange for cash and condemning Putin. It’s a controversial idea among Western governments, not least because they don’t want to suggest tycoons can buy their way off lists. Sanctions relief also doesn’t have the backing of Ukraine.
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On Dec. 6, 1865: The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery, was ratified as Georgia became the 27th state to endorse it. In this photo taken in 2011, a conservator at Graphic Conservation Co. looks over a rare, restored copy of the 13th Amendment. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
A look at what else happened in history on December 6 |
A traditional St. Nicholas procession in the village of Lidecko, Czech Republic. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek) |
The villages where St. Nicholas leads a parade with the devil and the Grim Reaper
In a corner of the Czech Republic, St. Nicholas leads a procession of followers dressed as the Grim Reaper and the devil in an old pre-Christmas tradition that has survived for centuries in just a few villages in the region. |
WATCH: A pod of pink river dolphins was rescued in the Amazon
24 freshwater dolphins in the Bolivian Amazon have been rescued by a team of 30 after six days of being stranded in lagoons disconnected from the main current of the Rio Grande. |
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Please let us know what you think of this newsletter. You can sign up for more and invite a friend here. For news in real time visit APNews.com. - Sarah
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