Putin apologizes for 'tragic incident' but stops short of saying Azerbaijani plane was shot down MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has apologized to his Azerbaijani counterpart for what he called a “tragic incident” following the crash of an Azerbaijani airliner in Kazakhstan that killed 38 people. He stopped short of acknowledging that Moscow was responsible. The Kremlin said that air defense systems were firing near Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, to deflect a Ukrainian drone strike as the plane attempted to land on Wednesday. Putin apologized to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev “for the fact that the tragic incident occurred in Russian airspace.” The Kremlin also says Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are jointly investigating the crash site near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan. Israel detains the director of one of northern Gaza's last functioning hospitals during a raid DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Gaza's Health Ministry says Israel’s army has detained the director of one of northern Gaza's last functioning hospitals. The announcement on Saturday came after health officials said Israeli troops stormed the hospital and forced many staff and patients outside and told them to strip in winter weather. Israel’s military alleges the hospital director is a suspected Hamas operative and says it detained over 240 others. It acknowledges it ordered people outside and that special forces entered the hospital. It says it “eliminated” militants who fired at its forces. Kamal Adwan officials have denied that Hamas operates in the hospital. Abortions are up in the US. It's a complicated picture as women turn to pills, travel Even with abortion bans in place in most Republican-controlled states, the number of people obtaining them has grown slightly. That's part of a complicated picture of the impacts of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade two and a half years ago. Abortion pills are more common now. So is traveling to other states for care, often on journeys hundreds of miles long. Public support for the right to abortion has also increased since before the ruling. That's been reflected in most ballot measures to add the right to abortion to state constitutions being adopted. Drought, fires and deforestation battered Amazon rainforest in 2024 BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — The Amazon rainforest staggered through another difficult year in 2024. A second year of record drought contributed to wildfires that worsened deforestation across the massive forest, which spans Brazil, Peru, Colombia and other Latin American nations and is a critical counterweight to climate change. There were some bright spots. Both Brazil and Colombia reported lower levels of deforestation compared to prior years. Experts say Amazon countries need to do more to strengthen cross-border collaboration and that the global community who reap the benefits of commodities from the rainforest also need to pitch in. Bloodied Ukrainian troops risk losing more hard-won land in Kursk to Russia KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Five months after their shock offensive into Russia, Ukrainian troops are bloodied by daily combat losses and demoralized by the rising risk of defeat in Kursk. Some want to stay in the region at all costs. Others question the value of having gone in at all. Battles are so intense that commanders are unable to evacuate their dead. Lags in communication and poorly timed operations have cost lives and commanders say they have little way to counterattack. The overstretched Ukrainians have lost more than 40% of the territory they won in the lightning incursion that seized much of Kursk in August. Afghan forces target Pakistan in retaliation for deadly airstrikes Afghanistan's Defense Ministry says its forces hit several points inside Pakistan in retaliation for deadly airstrikes. Pakistan last Tuesday launched an operation to destroy a training facility and kill insurgents in Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province. The strikes killed dozens of people. The ministry said Saturday that its forces hit points “serving as centers and hideouts for malicious elements and their supporters who organized and coordinated attacks in Afghanistan.” Pakistan accuses the Taliban of not doing enough to combat cross-border militant activity, a charge the Taliban government denies. Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who instituted economic reforms, cremated in New Delhi NEW DELHI (AP) — Manmohan Singh, the former Indian prime minister widely regarded as the architect of the country’s economic reform program, has been cremated after a state funeral. The veteran leader, who was also credited for a landmark nuclear deal with the United States, died late Thursday at age 92. Singh’s body was taken Saturday to the headquarters of his Congress party in New Delhi, where party leaders and activists paid tributes to him and chanted “Manmohan Singh lives forever.” Later, his body was transported to a crematorium ground for his last rites as soldiers beat drums. A mild-mannered technocrat, Singh was prime minister for 10 years until 2014. Sweden embarks on a sober search for more cemetery space in case of war GOTHENBURG, Sweden (AP) — Burial associations in Sweden are looking to acquire enough land for something they hope they’ll never have to do. And that's to bury thousands of people in the event of war. The search follows new crisis preparedness guidelines from the country's civil defense agency and the military. The issue is seen in a new light after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led formerly neutral Sweden to join NATO. Sweden and Finland sent out updated civil preparedness guides in November with instructions on how to survive in war. The guides are similar to those in Denmark and Norway, though they don't mention Russia by name. Olivia Hussey, star of the 1968 film 'Romeo and Juliet,' dies at 73 LONDON (AP) — Olivia Hussey, the actor who starred as a teenage Juliet in the 1968 film “Romeo and Juliet,” has died, her family said on social media. She was 73. Hussey died on Friday, “peacefully at home surrounded by her loved ones,” a statement posted to her Instagram account said. Hussey was 15 when director Franco Zeffirelli cast her in his adaptation of the William Shakespeare tragedy. “Romeo and Juliet” won two Oscars and Hussey won a Golden Globe for best new actress for her part as Juliet, opposite British actor Leonard Whiting. Decades later, the pair brought a lawsuit against Paramount Pictures over nude scenes in the film they said they were coerced to perform. The case was dismissed by a Los Angeles County judge in 2023. Winning ticket for $1.22 billion lottery jackpot sold in California, Mega Millions says At least one Mega Millions player has plenty of dough to ring in the New Year after drawing the winning number. After three months without anyone winning the top prize in the lottery, a ticket worth an estimated $1.22 billion was sold in California for the drawing Friday night. The California Lottery said the winning ticket was sold at Circle K (Sunshine Food and Gas) on Rhonda Rd. in Cottonwood. The winning ticket matched the white balls 3, 7, 37, 49, 55 and the gold Mega Ball 6. The identity of the winner or winners was not immediately known. The estimated jackpot was the fifth-highest ever for Mega Millions.Police close local highways due to weather
From challenges to opportunities: The journey of persistence, resilience, and growth
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King laughs at British comedian’s impression of Donald Trump at Royal VarietyElon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are bringing Trump's DOGE to Capitol Hill
LONDON: “Human intelligence,” the cultural critic Neil Postman once wrote, “is among the most fragile things in nature. It doesn’t take much to distract it, suppress it, or even annihilate it.” The year was 1988, a former Hollywood actor was in the White House, and Postman was worried about the ascendancy of pictures over words in American media, culture and politics. Television "conditions our minds to apprehend the world through fragmented pictures and forces other media to orient themselves in that direction", he argued in an essay in his book Conscientious Objections. “A culture does not have to force scholars to flee to render them impotent. A culture does not have to burn books to assure that they will not be read ... There are other ways to achieve stupidity.” DECLINE IN LITERACY SKILLS What might have seemed curmudgeonly in 1988 reads more like prophecy from the perspective of 2024. This month, the OECD released the results of a vast exercise : In-person assessments of the literacy, numeracy and problem-solving skills of 160,000 adults aged 16 to 65 in 31 different countries and economies. Compared with the last set of assessments a decade earlier, the trends in literacy skills were striking. Proficiency improved significantly in only two countries (Finland and Denmark), remained stable in 14, and declined significantly in 11, with the biggest deterioration in South Korea, Lithuania, New Zealand and Poland. Among adults with tertiary-level education (such as university graduates), literacy proficiency fell in 13 countries and only increased in Finland, while nearly all countries and economies experienced declines in literacy proficiency among adults with below upper secondary education. Singapore and the US had the biggest inequalities in both literacy and numeracy. “Thirty per cent of Americans read at a level that you would expect from a 10-year-old child,” Andreas Schleicher, director for education and skills at the OECD, told me – referring to the proportion of people in the US who scored level 1 or below in literacy. “It is actually hard to imagine – that every third person you meet on the street has difficulties reading even simple things.” In some countries, the deterioration is partly explained by an ageing population and rising levels of immigration, but Schleicher says these factors alone do not fully account for the trend. His own hypothesis would come as no surprise to Postman: That technology has changed the way many of us consume information, away from longer, more complex pieces of writing, such as books and newspaper articles, to short social media posts and video clips. At the same time, social media has made it more likely that you "read stuff that confirms your views, rather than engages with diverse perspectives, and that’s what you need to get to [the top levels] on the [OECD literacy] assessment, where you need to distinguish fact from opinion, navigate ambiguity, manage complexity", Schleicher explained. IMPLICATIONS FOR POLITICS AND PUBLIC DEBATE The implications for politics and the quality of public debate are already evident. These, too, were foreseen. In 2007, writer Caleb Crain wrote an article called Twilight of the Books in The New Yorker magazine about what a possible post-literate culture might look like. In oral cultures, he wrote, cliche and stereotype are valued, conflict and name-calling are prized because they are memorable, and speakers tend not to correct themselves because “it is only in a literate culture that the past’s inconsistencies have to be accounted for”. Does that sound familiar? These trends are not unavoidable or irreversible. Finland demonstrates the potential for high-quality education and strong social norms to sustain a highly literate population, even in a world where TikTok exists. England shows the difference that improved schooling can make: There, the literacy proficiency of 16-year-olds to 24-year-olds was significantly better than a decade ago. THE QUESTION OF AI The question of whether AI could alleviate or exacerbate the problem is more tricky. Systems like ChatGPT can perform well on many reading and writing tasks: They can parse reams of information and reduce it to summaries. A number of studies suggest that, when deployed in the workplace, these tools can significantly increase the performance of lower-skilled workers. In one study, researchers tracked the impact of an AI tool on customer service agents who provided technical support via written chat boxes. The AI tool, trained on the conversational patterns of top performers, provided real-time text suggestions to agents on how to respond to customers. The study found lower-skilled workers became more productive and their communication patterns became more similar to those of higher-skilled workers. David Autor, an economics professor at MIT, has even argued that AI tools could enable more workers to perform higher-skilled roles and help restore “the middle-skill, middle-class heart of the US labour market”. But, as Autor says, in order to make good use of a tool to “level up” your skills, you need a decent foundation to begin with. Absent that, Schleicher worries that people with poor literacy skills will become “naive consumers of prefabricated content”. In other words, without solid skills of your own, it is only a few short steps from being supported by the machine, to finding yourself dependent on it, or subject to it.
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Kings break through in victory over the KrakenAfter starting 2-0 in its inaugural Atlantic Coast Conference schedule, SMU looks to make the month even more special on Sunday, hosting Longwood in Dallas, Texas. The Mustangs seek a seven-game win streak in their final nonconference test before welcoming No. 4 Duke to Dallas on Jan. 4. In recent victories over Alabama State, Virginia, LSU, and Boston College, SMU (10-2) averaged 85.3 points per game, allowed just 66.0 ppg, and climbed to No. 30 in the NET rankings. "We're a different team right now than we were earlier in the season," SMU head coach Andy Enfield said at the beginning of December, his words ringing even truer as the season progresses. "They'd never been under pressure together until recently, so they're starting to learn and figure things out." Longwood (11-3) enters its third consecutive road game, having won five of its last six overall. That includes a major 82-67 win at North Carolina Central on Dec. 20. It was only the sixth nonconference home loss for NCC since 2016, and Longwood head coach Griff Aldrich saw it as a result of his team's growing cohesiveness. "We got great contributions from so many players," Aldrich said. "We have been working to play more and more connected, and this team has really taken positive steps this week." The Mustangs' Matt Cross is among the biggest threats to Longwood's defense, which allows just 66.6 points per game. A 6-foot-7 forward, Cross had 36 points over SMU's last two wins, including a 16-point, 16-rebound double-double against LSU. What Cross does with the ball in his hands is impressive -- he is averaging 13.5 ppg in December -- but it is also what he does off the ball that increases his value. "He's extremely tough," Enfield said after Cross' performance against LSU. "His wall up in transition, where (Corey) Chest came down, was going to dunk the ball, and he stood there and took the contact. ...That's a big-time basketball play." Longwood is paced by Michael Christmas, a veteran forward in his fourth year in the program. A hard-nosed wing who can score at all three levels, Christmas is Longwood's only returner who started at least 30 games on last year's NCAA Tournament team. He is averaging a team-high 11.9 points per game. "(He) loves this university, loves this town and community," Aldrich said of Christmas. "He opted to come back here to really invest in the program." --Field Level Media
Investing in assets can put you in a better position by the time you’re ready to retire. While stocks and real estate have received plenty of attention over the years, gold remains a reliable investment that has been around for thousands of years. It’s an essential resource for many industries, is a medium of exchange and serves as a safe-haven asset during geopolitical unrest or periods of market volatility. Gold is a hedge against inflation and can thrive during economic uncertainty. That last advantage is a key distinction that separates it from stocks and real estate. However, physical gold doesn’t produce yield like dividend stocks or cash flow like investment properties. Fortunately, it’s still possible to use precious metals to generate retirement income. This guide will explain several ways to use gold for retirement income. Open a gold IRA A gold individual retirement account — or gold IRA — allows you to accumulate physical precious metals in a tax-advantaged account. You won’t have to worry about gold storage, as the IRA’s custodian will handle it. You can then cash out on your gold holdings when you need to cover living expenses. The IRS sets limits for how much you can contribute to an IRA, whether it’s a conventional or gold IRA. If you make the maximum contribution to a gold IRA, you can’t contribute to another IRA. The maximum contribution for traditional and Roth IRAs is currently capped at $7,000 per year for those age 49 and younger. The IRS raises this limit periodically, but you can make catch-up contributions if you are 50 years or older. Catch-up contributions allow you to invest an additional $1,000 into your IRA each year. Anyone can open a Roth IRA, but your modified adjusted gross income must be below $146,000 to contribute the full amount. Investors who earn too much for a Roth IRA can use the backdoor method to fund it. This involves moving funds from a traditional IRA — which doesn’t have income restrictions — to a Roth IRA. Some gold IRA providers give you the flexibility to set up traditional and Roth IRAs. Learn more by reading our guide to the best gold IRA companies . Invest in gold stocks and gold ETFs Gold stocks are easier to buy and manage than physical gold. You also wouldn’t need a separate IRA just for gold investments. However, gold stocks can underperform the precious metal due to several factors. For instance, Newmont Corp. — the world’s largest gold mining company — has only seen its stock gain 13% over the past five years, failing to keep pace with gold prices , which have gained more than 70% during the same period. Varying financial performances and opportunities result in gold stocks having different results than physical gold. Investors have to trust that a company will make good business decisions instead of leaning exclusively on the long-term reliability of gold. However, gold stocks have an edge with liquidity, especially if you want to receive dividends. For example, Newmont has a dividend yield above 2%, and it’s not the only gold stock that offers a good dividend. Some people prefer to avoid the complexities of converting physical gold into cash and opt for dividends and stocks instead. Some gold exchange-traded funds also produce yield, which help generate income in retirement. These gold ETFs hold baskets of gold mining companies, whereas some gold ETFs are backed by physical gold and do not pay dividends. Similar to gold stocks, gold ETFs have also lagged the gains of physical gold. For example, while the VanEck Gold Miners ETF has a dividend that yields around 1.34%, it gained 41.55% over the past five years compared to the 70% return for physical gold. Buy physical gold and exchange it when necessary It takes more time to buy physical gold than buying a stock, including finding a reputable and trustworthy gold dealer . Physical gold isn’t as liquid, and you are responsible for storage (and optional gold insurance , as well). However, a key advantage of physical gold is that you claim full ownership of the asset. While gold ETFs and IRAs give you exposure to gold and better liquidity, buying the physical asset gives you the most control. Some people value having control over the asset instead of trusting a custodian, gold miner or fund manager. Luckily, physical gold commands a lot of value without taking up much space. A kilogram of gold is smaller than most iPhones, and an ounce of gold is about half the size of an iPhone. It’s easy to hide and move gold around if needed, but it’s still good to find professional storage and get it insured in case something happens. Physical gold should continue to gain value due to inflation. Then, you can sell your gold bars and coins when you need extra retirement funds. Should gold be a part of your retirement strategy? Putting all of your eggs in one basket is very risky, and that’s why many experts recommend diversifying your portfolio. Gold can be a valuable part of the mix, as its returns aren’t correlated to the stock market. The prices of precious metals can hold steady or gain value when stocks and real estate enter corrections. And while expert opinions on gold vary, many agree that investors shouldn’t allocate more than 5-10% of their portfolio to the precious metal. This amount of exposure provides a good buffer against inflation while allowing you to allocate funds to other asset classes. IRAs are attractive options for gold investors who want to capitalize on tax benefits while growing their portfolios. Conventional IRAs reduce your present taxable income, while Roth IRAs shield you from taxes on your distributions and capital gains. While those types of accounts can hold gold-backed equities like stocks and ETFs, only gold IRAs can hold precious metals. Investors should assess their long-term goals and financial situations before accumulating gold.
Pudu Robotics Launches New Industrial SweeperNoneNEW YORK, Dec. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Outbrain Inc. (NASDAQ: OB) (“Outbrain”), a leading technology platform that drives business results by engaging people across the Open Internet, announced today that, at its special meeting of shareholders (the “Special Meeting”) held earlier today, Outbrain shareholders voted to approve the issuance of 35 million shares of common stock and 10.5 million Series A Convertible Preferred Shares, which are convertible into common stock, in connection with the acquisition of Teads S.A. (the “Share Issuance Proposal”). The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to close during the first quarter of 2025. “We are pleased with the outcome of today’s special meeting and extend our appreciation to our shareholders for supporting the combination with Teads,” said David Kostman, Chief Executive Officer of Outbrain. “Today’s shareholder approval marks a major milestone in the process to combine our two complementary businesses. We look forward to the closing of the transaction and becoming a global leader on the Open Internet delivering our full funnel value proposition to drive great outcomes for brands and media owners,” added Kostman. At the Special Meeting, more than 64% of the outstanding shares of common stock were present or represented by proxy, and more than 99% of these shares voted in favor of the Share Issuance Proposal. The final voting results of the Special Meeting will be reported in a Form 8-K to be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, which statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements generally relating to possible or assumed future results of our business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, plans and objectives and statements relating to the transaction to acquire Teads (“Transaction”). You can generally identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “could,” “intends,” “target,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “foresee,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions that concern our expectations, strategy, plans or intentions, or are not statements of historical fact. The outcome of the events described in these forward-looking statements is subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors including, but not limited to: the risk that the conditions to the consummation of the transaction will not be satisfied (or waived); uncertainty as to the timing of the consummation of the transaction and Outbrain and Teads’ ability to complete the transaction; the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance or condition that could give rise to the termination of the share purchase agreement; the failure to obtain, or delays in obtaining, required regulatory approvals or clearances; the risk that any such approval may result in the imposition of conditions that could adversely affect Outbrain or Teads, or the expected benefits of the transaction; the failure to obtain the necessary debt financing to complete the transaction; the effect of the announcement or pendency of the transaction on Outbrain’s or Teads’ operating results and business generally; risks that the transaction disrupts current plans and operations or diverts management’s attention from its ongoing business; the initiation or outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Outbrain or Teads, or their respective directors or officers, related to the transaction; unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the transaction; the risk that Outbrain’s stock price may decline significantly if the transaction is not consummated; the effect of the announcement of the transaction on the ability of Outbrain and Teads to retain and hire key personnel and maintain relationships with their customers, suppliers and others with whom they do business; the ability of Outbrain to successfully integrate Teads’ operations, technologies and employees; the ability to realize anticipated benefits and synergies of the transaction, including the expectation of enhancements to Outbrain’s services, greater revenue or growth opportunities, operating efficiencies and cost savings; overall advertising demand and traffic generated by Outbrain and the combined company’s media partners; factors that affect advertising demand and spending, such as the continuation or worsening of unfavorable economic or business conditions or downturns, instability or volatility in financial markets, and other events or factors outside of Outbrain and the combined company’s control, such as U.S. and global recession concerns; geopolitical concerns, including the ongoing war between Ukraine-Russia and conditions in Israel and the Middle East; supply chain issues; inflationary pressures; labor market volatility; bank closures or disruptions; the impact of challenging economic conditions; political and policy uncertainties resulting from the U.S. presidential election; and other factors that have and may further impact advertisers’ ability to pay; Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to continue to innovate, and adoption by Outbrain and the combined company’s advertisers and media partners of expanding solutions; the success of Outbrain and the combined company’s sales and marketing investments, which may require significant investments and may involve long sales cycles; Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to grow their business and manage growth effectively; the ability to compete effectively against current and future competitors; the loss or decline of one or more large media partners, and Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to expand advertiser and media partner relationships; conditions in Israel, including the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas and other terrorist organizations, may limit Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to market, support and innovate their products due to the impact on employees as well as advertisers and advertising markets; Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to maintain revenues or profitability despite quarterly fluctuations in results, whether due to seasonality, large cyclical events or other causes; the risk that research and development efforts may not meet the demands of a rapidly evolving technology market; any failure of Outbrain or the combined company’s recommendation engine to accurately predict attention or engagement, any deterioration in the quality of Outbrain or the combined company’s recommendations or failure to present interesting content to users or other factors which may cause us to experience a decline in user engagement or loss of media partners; limits on Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to collect, use and disclose data to deliver advertisements; Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to extend their reach into evolving digital media platforms; Outbrain and the combined company’s ability to maintain and scale their technology platform; the ability to meet demands on our infrastructure and resources due to future growth or otherwise; the failure or the failure of third parties to protect Outbrain and the combined company’s sites, networks and systems against security breaches, or otherwise to protect the confidential information of Outbrain and the combined company; outages or disruptions that impact Outbrain or the combined company or their service providers, resulting from cyber incidents, or failures or loss of our infrastructure; significant fluctuations in currency exchange rates; political and regulatory risks in the various markets in which Outbrain and the combined company operate; the challenges of compliance with differing and changing regulatory requirements; the timing and execution of any cost-saving measures and the impact on Outbrain and the combined company’s business or strategy; and the other risk factors and additional information described in the definitive proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on October 31, 2024, in the section entitled “Risk Factors”, and under the heading “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of Outbrain’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 8, 2024 for the year ended December 31, 2023 and Outbrain’s Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on August 8, 2024 for the period ended June 30, 2024, and in subsequent reports filed with the SEC. Accordingly, you should not rely upon forward-looking statements as an indication of future performance. We cannot assure you that the results, events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or will occur, and actual results, events, or circumstances could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements made in this press release relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation and do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or circumstances after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events or otherwise, except as required by law. About Outbrain Outbrain is a leading technology platform that drives business results by engaging people across the Open Internet. Outbrain predicts moments of engagement to drive measurable outcomes for advertisers and publishers using AI and machine learning across more than 8,000 online properties globally. Founded in 2006, Outbrain is headquartered in New York with offices in Israel and across the United States, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and South America. For more information, visit https://www.outbrain.com . Media Contact press@outbrain.com Investor Relations Contact IR@outbrain.com (332) 205-8999
Putin apologizes for 'tragic incident' but stops short of saying Azerbaijani plane was shot down MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has apologized to his Azerbaijani counterpart for what he called a “tragic incident” following the crash of an Azerbaijani airliner in Kazakhstan that killed 38 people. He stopped short of acknowledging that Moscow was responsible. The Kremlin said that air defense systems were firing near Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, to deflect a Ukrainian drone strike as the plane attempted to land on Wednesday. Putin apologized to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev “for the fact that the tragic incident occurred in Russian airspace.” The Kremlin also says Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are jointly investigating the crash site near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan. Israel detains the director of one of northern Gaza's last functioning hospitals during a raid DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Gaza's Health Ministry says Israel’s army has detained the director of one of northern Gaza's last functioning hospitals. The announcement on Saturday came after health officials said Israeli troops stormed the hospital and forced many staff and patients outside and told them to strip in winter weather. Israel’s military alleges the hospital director is a suspected Hamas operative and says it detained over 240 others. It acknowledges it ordered people outside and that special forces entered the hospital. It says it “eliminated” militants who fired at its forces. Kamal Adwan officials have denied that Hamas operates in the hospital. Abortions are up in the US. It's a complicated picture as women turn to pills, travel Even with abortion bans in place in most Republican-controlled states, the number of people obtaining them has grown slightly. That's part of a complicated picture of the impacts of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade two and a half years ago. Abortion pills are more common now. So is traveling to other states for care, often on journeys hundreds of miles long. Public support for the right to abortion has also increased since before the ruling. That's been reflected in most ballot measures to add the right to abortion to state constitutions being adopted. Drought, fires and deforestation battered Amazon rainforest in 2024 BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — The Amazon rainforest staggered through another difficult year in 2024. A second year of record drought contributed to wildfires that worsened deforestation across the massive forest, which spans Brazil, Peru, Colombia and other Latin American nations and is a critical counterweight to climate change. There were some bright spots. Both Brazil and Colombia reported lower levels of deforestation compared to prior years. Experts say Amazon countries need to do more to strengthen cross-border collaboration and that the global community who reap the benefits of commodities from the rainforest also need to pitch in. Bloodied Ukrainian troops risk losing more hard-won land in Kursk to Russia KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Five months after their shock offensive into Russia, Ukrainian troops are bloodied by daily combat losses and demoralized by the rising risk of defeat in Kursk. Some want to stay in the region at all costs. Others question the value of having gone in at all. Battles are so intense that commanders are unable to evacuate their dead. Lags in communication and poorly timed operations have cost lives and commanders say they have little way to counterattack. The overstretched Ukrainians have lost more than 40% of the territory they won in the lightning incursion that seized much of Kursk in August. Afghan forces target Pakistan in retaliation for deadly airstrikes Afghanistan's Defense Ministry says its forces hit several points inside Pakistan in retaliation for deadly airstrikes. Pakistan last Tuesday launched an operation to destroy a training facility and kill insurgents in Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province. The strikes killed dozens of people. The ministry said Saturday that its forces hit points “serving as centers and hideouts for malicious elements and their supporters who organized and coordinated attacks in Afghanistan.” Pakistan accuses the Taliban of not doing enough to combat cross-border militant activity, a charge the Taliban government denies. Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who instituted economic reforms, cremated in New Delhi NEW DELHI (AP) — Manmohan Singh, the former Indian prime minister widely regarded as the architect of the country’s economic reform program, has been cremated after a state funeral. The veteran leader, who was also credited for a landmark nuclear deal with the United States, died late Thursday at age 92. Singh’s body was taken Saturday to the headquarters of his Congress party in New Delhi, where party leaders and activists paid tributes to him and chanted “Manmohan Singh lives forever.” Later, his body was transported to a crematorium ground for his last rites as soldiers beat drums. A mild-mannered technocrat, Singh was prime minister for 10 years until 2014. Sweden embarks on a sober search for more cemetery space in case of war GOTHENBURG, Sweden (AP) — Burial associations in Sweden are looking to acquire enough land for something they hope they’ll never have to do. And that's to bury thousands of people in the event of war. The search follows new crisis preparedness guidelines from the country's civil defense agency and the military. The issue is seen in a new light after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led formerly neutral Sweden to join NATO. Sweden and Finland sent out updated civil preparedness guides in November with instructions on how to survive in war. The guides are similar to those in Denmark and Norway, though they don't mention Russia by name. Olivia Hussey, star of the 1968 film 'Romeo and Juliet,' dies at 73 LONDON (AP) — Olivia Hussey, the actor who starred as a teenage Juliet in the 1968 film “Romeo and Juliet,” has died, her family said on social media. She was 73. Hussey died on Friday, “peacefully at home surrounded by her loved ones,” a statement posted to her Instagram account said. Hussey was 15 when director Franco Zeffirelli cast her in his adaptation of the William Shakespeare tragedy. “Romeo and Juliet” won two Oscars and Hussey won a Golden Globe for best new actress for her part as Juliet, opposite British actor Leonard Whiting. Decades later, the pair brought a lawsuit against Paramount Pictures over nude scenes in the film they said they were coerced to perform. The case was dismissed by a Los Angeles County judge in 2023. Winning ticket for $1.22 billion lottery jackpot sold in California, Mega Millions says At least one Mega Millions player has plenty of dough to ring in the New Year after drawing the winning number. After three months without anyone winning the top prize in the lottery, a ticket worth an estimated $1.22 billion was sold in California for the drawing Friday night. The California Lottery said the winning ticket was sold at Circle K (Sunshine Food and Gas) on Rhonda Rd. in Cottonwood. The winning ticket matched the white balls 3, 7, 37, 49, 55 and the gold Mega Ball 6. The identity of the winner or winners was not immediately known. The estimated jackpot was the fifth-highest ever for Mega Millions.