High-Stakes Negotiations: Cartel Plea Talks, Austria’s Political Crossroads, and EU Debates on Post-Assad Syria

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Ovidio and Joaquin Guzmán López, sons of "El Chapo" and key figures in the Sinaloa cartel, are engaged in plea negotiations with U.S. prosecutors over sweeping drug-trafficking charges, Austrian far-right Freedom Party leader Herbert Kickl, poised to become Austria's first FPO chancellor, has warned the conservative OVP to approach imminent coalition talks honestly or face a snap election, and Germany is leading EU discussions on easing sanctions on post-Assad Syria to facilitate humanitarian aid and reconstruction.

Top Stories

• 2 sons of Mexican cartel leader ‘El Chapo’ are in plea negotiations with US, attorneys say (AP)

• Austrian far right demands conservatives be 'honest' in coalition talks (RT)

• ‘Hell will break loose’: Trump hints at military moves in Mideast, Americas (AJ)

• Meta employees criticize Zuckerberg decisions to end fact-checking, add Dana White to board (CNBC)

• Scottish regulators criticize past management of a charity founded by king but find no misconduct (AP)

• Ireland Joins South Africa’s Genocide Case Against Israel (NYT)

• The Populist Vying to Lead Canada and End a Decade of Liberalism (WSJ)

• France’s far-right Jean-Marie Le Pen dies at 96 (AJ)

• Residents flee as wildfires race through Los Angeles coastal community (CNN)

• Germany pushing for EU to relax sanctions on Syria, sources say (RT)

• US rejection of Nippon Steel’s bid for US Steel rankles Washington’s key ally in Asia (AP)

• French Inflation Stays Below Target as ECB Primes Next Rate Cut (WSJ)

• UK special forces soldiers tell inquiry of Afghan murder concerns (RT)

• US says Sudanese rebel force has committed genocide and imposes sanctions on the group’s leaders (AP)

United States and Canada

• Two Indian companies indicted in US for importing ingredients used in opioid fentanyl (RT)

• Judge Temporarily Blocks Release of Special Counsel Report on Trump (WSJ)

• Army Doctor Pleads Guilty to Sexually Assaulting Dozens of Patients (NYT)

• Disgraced former US Rep. George Santos seeks to delay fraud sentencing to make more podcast episodes (AP)

• Pittsburgh Man Who Threw an Explosive at University Police Gets 5 Years (NYT)

• 2 bodies found in the wheel well of a JetBlue plane in Fort Lauderdale, airline says (CNN)

• US bans medical debt from credit reports as Biden nears exit (AJ)

• US Justice Department accuses six major landlords of scheming to keep rents high (AP)

• Former Congressman Matt Gaetz considering governor run, he says (RT)

Africa

• Algeria and Mali clash over security approach amid diplomatic strains (AN)

• Ghana’s Mahama returns as president, vowing to boost economy (RT)

• Residents and officials say rebels have seized 2 key towns in eastern Congo (AN)

• ‘It’s the only way’: Migrants, army face-off along S Africa-Zimbabwe border (AJ)

• French police arrest three Algerians for making alleged violent statements on social media (AN)

• U.S. accuses Russia of funding both sides of Sudan's war (RT)

• At least 46 kidnapped in Nigeria's Zamfara state, residents say (RT)

Middle East

• Hamas stands by demand for end to Gaza war under hostage deal, as Trump deadline nears (RT)

• Middle East latest: Israeli strikes kill 17 people in Gaza, nearly all of them women or kids (AP)

• International flights resume at Damascus airport (AJ)

• UAE says it has discussed a potential role in postwar Gaza, but conditions remain unmet (CNN)

• In Israeli Video, Detainee Says Hamas Operates Out of Gaza Hospital (NYT)

• Three Palestinian militants killed in West Bank as Israeli operations intensify (RT)

• Israel extends closure of Al Jazeera office in occupied West Bank (AJ)

Indo-Pacific

• With Trump looming, Pakistan braces for foreign policy challenges in 2025 (AJ)

• Three feared dead as mine accident traps workers in India’s Assam (AJ)

• Earthquake Near Tibet Holy City Kills Scores (WSJ)

• Australia's Rottnest Island plane crash: Swiss, Danish tourists among three dead (RT)

• South Korean anti-corruption agency receives new court warrant to detain impeached President Yoon (AP)

• Indonesia joins BRICS group of emerging economies (AJ)

• Malaysia offers tax incentives for companies, workers in Johor economic zone (RT)

Europe

• EU warns of 'serious blow' from Trump on climate change (RT)

• Danish PM says Greenland ‘not for sale’ as Donald Trump Jr visits island (AJ)

• Short of Heat and Power, a Breakaway Region Struggles Without Russian Gas (NYT)

• Russia claims capture of eastern Ukrainian town as fighting rages in Kursk (CNN)

• France marks 10 years since deadly Charlie Hebdo attack (AP)

• Iran tells France to review 'unconstructive' approach ahead of meeting (RT)

• US imposes sanctions on key aide to Hungary's Orban for suspected corruption (RT)

Latin America

• Ecuador's Noboa names acting president so he can campaign (RT)

• The UN says more than 5,600 people were killed in Haiti last year as gangs rampage (AP)

• ELN secuestró a seis personas en Arauca. Esto es lo que se sabe (SM)

• US to roll out new Venezuela sanctions this week, Axios reporter says (RT)

• Venezuela’s Maduro says US nationals among group of ‘mercenaries’ detained (AJ)

• Fuerte respuesta del Gobierno de Milei a las nuevas acusaciones de Maduro contra el gendarme Nahuel Gallo: “Falsas e infundadas” (CA)

• Almagro exige la liberación inmediata y sin condiciones del yerno de Edmundo González (LN)