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In the news today: What we know about the New Orleans attack; Ukraine ends the pipeline supply of Russian gas to Europe; and Biden is set to award Presidential Citizens Medals to Liz Cheney and Bennie Thompson. Also, a look back at December in pictures.

A black flag with white lettering lies on the ground rolled up behind a pickup truck that a man drove into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, on Wednesday.  (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

U.S. NEWS

US Army veteran who killed 15 in New Orleans attack was inspired by the Islamic State group

A U.S. Army veteran who drove a pickup into a crowd of New Year’s revelers in New Orleans early Wednesday, killing 15 people, had posted videos to social media hours before the carnage saying he was inspired by the Islamic State group and expressing a desire to kill, President Joe Biden said. Read more.

Key points:

• The FBI said it was investigating the incident as a terrorist act and did not believe he acted alone.
  
  

• Investigators found guns and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device in the vehicle — which bore the flag of the Islamic State group — along with other explosive devices elsewhere in the city’s famed French Quarter.
  
  

• The FBI identified the driver as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a U.S. citizen from Texas, and said it was working to determine any potential associations with terrorist organizations. Jabbar was killed by police after he exited the truck and opened fire on responding officers.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

• An aspiring nurse, football star, and father of 2 among the dead in New Orleans attack
  
  
• New Orleans barriers to prevent vehicle attacks were in the process of being replaced
  
  
• What is the Islamic State group, and what attacks has it inspired by offshoots and lone wolves?

WORLD NEWS

Ukraine halts transit of Russian gas to Europe after a prewar deal expired

Ukraine on Wednesday halted Russian gas supplies to European customers through its pipeline network after a prewar transit deal expired at the end of 2024 and almost three years into Moscow’s all-out invasion of its neighbor. Read more.

Why this matters:

• Before the war, Russia supplied nearly 40% of the European Union’s pipeline natural gas. After the war started, Russia cut off most supplies through the Baltic and Belarus-Poland pipelines, citing disputes over a demand for payment in rubles. The Russian cutoff caused an energy crisis in Europe. Germany had to shell out billions of euros to set up floating terminals to import liquefied natural gas that comes by ship, users cut back as prices soared and Norway and the United States filled the gap, becoming the two largest suppliers.
  
  

• At a summit in Brussels last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed that Kyiv would not allow Moscow to use the transits to earn “additional billions ... on our blood, on the lives of our citizens.” However, he briefly held open the possibility of the gas flows continuing if payments to Russia were withheld until the war ends.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

• Ukraine has seen success in building clean energy, which is harder for Russia to destroy
  
  
• Ceremonies mark full membership of Bulgaria and Romania in Europe’s Schengen travel zone
  
  
• Sweden embarks on a sober search for more cemetery space in case of war

POLITICS

Biden is giving the second-highest civilian award to the leaders of the Jan. 6 congressional panel

President Joe Biden is bestowing the second highest civilian medal, the Presidential Citizens Medal, on Liz Cheney and Bennie Thompson — the lawmakers who led the congressional investigation into the violent Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot by Donald Trump’s supporters, and who Trump has said should be jailed. Read more.

What to know:

• Biden has been considering whether to offer preemptive pardons to Cheney and others Trump has targeted. Pardons are historically afforded to those accused of specific crimes — and usually to those who have already been convicted of an offense — but Biden’s team is considering issuing them for some who have not even been investigated, let alone charged.
  
  

• Biden will award 20 people in a ceremony Thursday at the White House, including Americans who fought for marriage equality, a pioneer in treating wounded soldiers, and two of the president’s longtime friends, former Sens. Ted Kaufman, D-Del., and Chris Dodd, D-Conn.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

• Chief Justice John Roberts defends judicial independence, says it is under threat in several ways
  
  
• Trump says he is planning to attend Jimmy Carter’s funeral
  
  
• Outgoing North Carolina governor commutes 15 death row sentences
  
  
• Arizona official who delayed county’s 2022 election certification didn’t have immunity, court says
  
  
• Court sides with state over Pennsylvania county’s handling of voting machines after 2020 election
  
  
• The rise in mail voting comes with a price, as mismatched signatures lead to ballot rejections
  
  
• Psychedelic therapy begins in Colorado, causing tension between conservatives and veterans
  
  
• Panama celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Panama Canal handover as Trump wants to take it back
  
  
• US imposes sanctions on Russian and Iranian groups over disinformation targeting American voters
  
  
• China’s manufacturing activity slows in December as trade risks grow

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IN OTHER NEWS

READ

Cybertruck explosion: Firework mortars, gas canisters stuffed inside Tesla that exploded outside Trump’s Las Vegas hotel

Montenegro: A gunman killed at least 12 people in a shooting rampage after a bar brawl

New Zealand: Driver runs down 2 New Zealand police officers, killing 1

New York City: 10 people shot outside a Queens nightclub

Largest FBI seizure: FBI found 150 homemade bombs at Virginia home during search in December, prosecutors say

New Year’s fireworks: Fireworks accident at a Honolulu home kills 3, injures over 20

Today in History: In 1942, the Philippine capital of Manila was captured by Japanese forces during World War II

WATCH

Tradition since 1946: Three men dive off Rome’s Cavour bridge in New Year’s Day tradition

‘It’s kinda laughable’: LeBron James on turning 40 and playing in the NBA

Hilde Dosogne: With a marathon a day throughout 2024, this Belgian runner has a Guinness world record within her grasp

A year under the stars: Timelapse videos capture the night sky month by month

A CHANGE OF PACE

AP top photos of the month, December 2024. (AP Photos/Ethan Swope, Evgeniy Maloletka, Pamela Smith, Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Hussein Malla)

The month of December in pictures
In images captured by Associated Press photographers in December, rifle-toting opposition fighters celebrated in the streets after the end of President Bashar Assad's reign, while, wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and Lebanon upended more lives in the final weeks of 2024. In the U.S., Americans watched as the suspect in the fatal shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO returned to New York surrounded by police. There were moments of joy, too, especially as Christmas drew near. See the collection of photos chosen by AP photo editors.

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