Morning Briefing: Dec. 25, 2024

ISTANBUL

Here is a rundown of all the news you need to start your Wednesday with, including Syria factions agreeing to merge under Defense Ministry, US President-elect Donald Trump vowing to reinstate to federal executions, and Kabul claiming Pakistan conducted deadly airstrikes inside Afghanistan.

TOP STORIES

Syrian armed factions agreed on Tuesday to dissolve themselves and merge under the Defense Ministry, state media said.

State news agency SANA said the move was taken during a meeting in Damascus between the head of Syria’s new administration Ahmed al-Sharaa and representatives of the revolutionary factions in the country.

Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime groups took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963.

The takeover came after Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) fighters captured key cities in a lightning offensive that lasted less than two weeks.

US President-elect Donald Trump vowed to reinstate federal executions as he criticized President Joe Biden’s decision to commute the death sentences of 37 federal inmates.

Trump made the pledge on his social media platform, Truth Social, saying: “As soon as I am inaugurated, I will direct the Justice Department to vigorously pursue the death penalty to protect American families and children from violent rapists, murderers, and monsters. We will be a Nation of Law and Order again!”

It was in response to Biden’s announcement earlier this week to commute the sentences of 37 of 40 federal death row inmates to life imprisonment without parole, a move the administration described as a step toward a more humane criminal justice system.

Afghanistan accused Pakistan’s military of carrying out airstrikes in eastern Paktika province, killing and injuring several civilians, “mostly refugees from Waziristan.”

The Defense Ministry of the Taliban-led interim administration in Kabul claimed that the Pakistani military bombed Paktika’s Barmal district.

Enayatullah Khwarizmi, a ministry spokesman, said the bombing targeted civilians, mainly “refugees” from Pakistan’s restive Waziristan region.

According to Kabul, this is the second airstrike conducted inside Afghanistan, after the first in March, which was formally protested by the Taliban administration. Islamabad has yet to respond to claims made by Kabul.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• In Manbij, northern Syria’s Aleppo province, a car bomb attack carried out by PKK/YPG terrorists killed at least two people and injured two others.
• At least seven Palestinians were killed, the majority of whom were in northern Gaza, and several others were injured in a series of Israeli airstrikes on various areas of the besieged coastal strip.
• UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern about the escalating food insecurity in Sudan, warning of famine conditions in several areas amid the conflict.
• The Syrian Cabinet issued a directive suspending work at state institutions on Dec. 25-26.
• Paris’ iconic Eiffel Tower was evacuated over security concerns following an electrical emergency.
• An explosion at an explosives production facility in Türkiye’s western Balıkesir province left 12 people dead and several others injured.
• Houthis threatened to target US interests in the Middle East if strikes on Yemen persist.
• Pope Francis opened the Holy Door of Saint Peter’s Basilica in Vatican to widely-anticipated 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope.
• Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani warned Iran about actions that could incite instability in Syria and held Tehran responsible for potential consequences of recent statements.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said an Israeli negotiation team would return from Qatar after a significant week of negotiations to hold internal consultations on a potential prisoner exchange deal with Hamas.
• Three Palestinian civilians were injured in an Israeli drone strike on the Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarem, northern occupied West Bank.
• Ultra-Orthodox Jews blocked a major street in the central Israeli city of Bnei Brak, near Tel Aviv, protesting the contentious issue of military conscription.
• Syria needs everything to take a new beginning, the Turkish minister of transportation and infrastructure said, adding that Türkiye has prepared an action plan for repairing and rebuilding the war-torn country’s airports, bridges, roads, and railways.

SPORTS

Brazilian midfielder Oscar returned to Sao Paulo on a three-year deal, after 14 years.

“I’m happy to be back in Brazil and to play for São Paulo, which is the club where I started, got my foundation, and became prominent. I’m happy about this opportunity to return, and so is my family,” Oscar said in a statement.

Oscar, 33, after playing for Sao Paulo, went to Internacional, Chelsea and Shanghai Port, winning the 2013 UEFA Europa League, two English Premier League titles in 2015 and 2017), and the 2015 English League Cup with the Blues.

Barcelona confirmed that a small injury to Ferran Torres’ soleus has been detected following Saturday’s La Liga clash with Atletico Madrid.

“Ferran Torres ended Saturday’s game with a muscle issue. As the problem has not gone away, the player today underwent magnetic resonance and a small injury to his soleus has been detected, meaning he will be unavailable until the injury has healed,” Barca said in a statement.

Torres helped Barcelona win the 2023 Spanish La Liga title and Spanish Super Cup. The 24-year-old winger won the EURO 2024 trophy with the Spanish national team.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

American Airlines grounded all its flights across the US early Tuesday due to an unspecified technical problem, impacting thousands of passengers traveling the day before Christmas.

“We’re currently experiencing a technical issue with all American Airlines flights,” the company said on X.

The airline did not disclose the reason for the nationwide halt, but tried to reassure one impacted customer online, saying: “Our team is currently working to get (repairs) done. An estimated timeframe has not been provided, but they’re trying to fix it in the shortest possible time.”

Poland is advancing its ambitious armament program with two major defense deals worth 17 billion Polish zlotys ($4.15 billion), Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz announce.

In a post on X following his visit to Huta Stalowa Wola, a subsidiary of the state-owned Polish Armament Group, Kosiniak-Kamysz highlighted the significance of these agreements, calling them some of the largest arms purchases in Poland’s history.

The deals include the acquisition of 96 KRAB self-propelled howitzers, along with command and ammunition-loading vehicles, and 250 support vehicles for the South Korean-made K9 self-propelled howitzers already in the Polish army’s inventory.

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