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Right-wing opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was missing from the ceremony awarding her this year’s Nobel Peace Prize. She’s been in hiding for the past year since she accused Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of rigging the July 2024 election.

Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro’s new film Frankenstein brings Shelley’s old questions back into sharp focus. Watching it, I wasn’t thinking about the film alone but about the world we now inhabit: a world driven by machines that imitate judgement, technologies released faster than any ethics can catch them, and creators who often step back from the consequences of what they build. The story became a frame for thinking about invention without care and the human cost of systems that move ahead of responsibility.

From the first shot, it was clear del Toro wasn’t interested in telling a simple horror story. He was asking what happens when creation slips away from responsibility. His protagonist Victor Frankenstein is a man capable of making life but unwilling to face what follows. His Creature is marked by a worn, unmistakably human presence, punished simply for existing. Together they pull Shelley’s story into the present, where knowledge outruns empathy and creators disown the harm their inventions cause. This isn’t a film review. It’s a way of thinking about an age built on AI, automated judgement and systems that move faster than the societies they reshape.

The Image as Argument

Del Toro’s visuals feel like political claims. Inside the lab, everything shines with promise, but the world around it already feels smaller, narrowed by Victor’s drive. Step outside, and the landscape is hard and unwelcoming. The images hint at a future where speed counts for more than judgement, and the tools we build quietly take choices away from the people who have to live with them.

The Creature and the Human Left Behind

The Creature’s journey exposes what gets left behind when systems evolve without accountability. His struggle is not mythic fortitude. It is the fight of someone denied belonging, yet still reaching for it. His suffering comes not from nature but neglect. That is where the story finds its political edge. When institutions, technologies or creators step back, people fall through the cracks. Monsters are produced through abandonment long before they ever lash out.

The Wound of Inheritance

Endurance teaches survival, but survival alone cannot heal neglect. To understand where that wound begins, we have to turn from myth to the people who make it. Like Shelley, the director builds his story on failed fathers: men who mistake intellect for affection and principle for presence.

In Shelley’s novel, Victor’s father is distant, a man of education and propriety who believes guidance is best delivered through correction rather than warmth. When Victor loses his mother, his father’s stoic restraint becomes a model of civility that hides a failure of empathy. That early absence of emotional attention shapes Victor’s later obsession with mastering life instead of understanding it. Shelley knew this pattern intimately.

Her father, William Godwin, preached liberty and reason but struggled with tenderness. He married Mary Wollstonecraft, the feminist intellectual, only after her death, a gesture that exposed how intellect can perform care without ever practising it. Shelley grew up inside that contradiction: a father who believed in just progress yet withheld warmth. Frankenstein became her answer to that hypocrisy. Victor Frankenstein is Godwin’s idea of pure reason turned human. He creates life but cannot care for what he has made. His emotional detachment does not just inform his choices; it defines his mythic role.Victor became the modern Prometheus. By the end, he finally confesses what drives him: pride, greed, and the hunger to control. It is the only peace he earns, and it feels like the confession of our own age.

Del Toro recognises the same model and turns it outward. His Victor belongs to our century of technocrats who build systems and then deny their consequences. He is our era’s new aristocracy of tech feudalism: ambitious, efficient, and unaccountable. The technology elite speak of optimisation, disruption, long-term futures and existential threats, but rarely of the ordinary lives reshaped by their decisions. Some imagine themselves visionaries, others saviours, others guardians of civilisation. But Shelley’s question cuts through that confidence. What does it mean to create something powerful, then step aside when it begins to rearrange the world?

Systems Without Stewards

The logic of the story echoes the world we now occupy. Tools built to support us now automate decisions about welfare, policing and work. Machine learning reshapes social life faster than regulators can understand it. Data systems expand with no clear stewards. What Shelley framed as a private tragedy now feels structural. Victor’s refusal to care has become a model reproduced across industries.

And this is where the parallel lands. We’ve slipped into a century shaped by people who build vast systems yet refuse to own the worlds those systems produce. Think of Elon Musk’s faith in acceleration, or Peter Thiel and Alex Karp insisting that Palantir’s surveillance tools are essential for democracy. Each stance mirrors Victor’s belief that intellect alone justifies power. They cast themselves as guardians of progress, yet their creations are already remaking social life faster than any public can respond. Frankenstein unsettles because it shows what follows when men commanding immense influence refuse to look directly at the people caught beneath their ambitions.

That is why the Frankenstein story matters again. It does not tell us how to regulate AI. It reminds us that danger begins when makers decide they are above the consequences of their work. Shelley wrote a warning. Del Toro simply holds up the mirror. The question is no longer whether Victor failed. It is whether we, facing our own age of unsupervised power, will choose to do any better.

Dec. 10 (UPI) — The Department of Homeland Security has inked a deal to buy six Boeing 737 planes to deport immigrants.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has used charter planes in the past for deportation flights, but this deal will allow it to operate its own fleet.

The money comes from the $170 billion that Congress authorized for Trump’s immigration control plans in a spending bill earlier this year, according to the Washington Post.

In late October, DHS announced it had deported nearly 600,000 people this year.

DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to The Post that the planes would save money “by allowing ICE to operate more effectively, including by using more efficient flight patterns.” She said it would save $279 million in taxpayer dollars, though she didn’t elaborate.

“We are delighted to see The Washington Post is highlighting the Trump administration’s cost-effective and innovative ways of delivering on the American people’s mandate for mass deportations of criminal illegal aliens,” she said in a statement.

She added that Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem “are committed to quickly and efficiently getting criminal illegal aliens OUT of our country.”

In November, The Wall Street Journal reported that Noem and her chief adviser, Corey Lewandowski, directed ICE officials to buy 10 planes from Spirit Airlines for deportation flights and their own travel. But Spirit didn’t own the planes, which did not have engines.

The DHS contract is with Virginia-based Daedalus Aviation, created in February 2024, according to corporate records, The Post reported. Daedalus’s website says it “offers a full range of commercial and charter aviation services” and “provides comprehensive responsive flight operations tailored to the unique needs of each mission.”

John Sandweg, former acting director of ICE under President Barack Obama, said the purchase shows that ICE has a lot of money, but isn’t likely to be cost-effective.

“It’s so much easier to issue a contract to a company that already manages a fleet of airplanes,” Sandweg told The Post. “So this move I’m surprised by because what the administration wants to accomplish, by and large, can be accomplished through charter flights already.”

The central bank cut rates for the third time in 2025 as limited government data clouds economic outlook.

The United States Federal Reserve has cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point, marking the last rate cut of the year.

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.50 – 3.75 percent as US job growth has appeared to stall.

“Job gains have slowed this year, and the unemployment rate has edged up through September. More recent indicators are consistent with these developments. Inflation has moved up since earlier in the year and remains somewhat elevated,” the central bank said in a statement.

The cut was widely expected with an 89 percent probability of a rate cut, according to the CME Fed Watch, a tracker which monitors the likelihood of monetary policy decisions.

The decision came as the central bank faced gaps in many sets of government data used to assess the state of the US economy. During the record-long 43-day government shutdown, key agencies, including the Department of Labor, were unable to gather information needed for their reports.

Among them were import and export prices, the producer price index report, as well state employment and unemployment. The Bureau of Labor Statistics on Monday said that it would not release numbers from October because the agency did not have enough resources to collect information.

The last top-line data that the central bank had to make its interest rate decision was from September. At the time, the unemployment rate rose slightly to 4.4 percent and the core inflation rose to 2.8 percent.

A new government report on Wednesday showed US labour costs increased 0.8 percent in the third quarter, slightly less than expected.

The central bank might be more cautious about interest rate cuts in the next year as economic data shows a cooling labour market.

“There is considerable uncertainty around the labour market, but some of the weights should begin to lift early next year,” Ryan Sweet, managing director, US Macro Forecasting and Analysis at Oxford Economics, said in a report published ahead of the central bank’s decision.

“The challenge facing the Fed next year is the potential jobless expansion, when GDP increases but employment gains are modest, at best. This leaves the economy vulnerable to shocks because the labour market is the main firewall against a recession.”

Political turmoil

While the Fed has maintained its independence from partisan interference, there has been increased pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut rates further and he has often used hostile rhetoric towards the Fed chair to do it. The first rate cut in Trump’s second term as president came only in September.

The White House has also installed loyalist Stephen Miran to the Fed board where he is on leave from his job as an economic adviser in the White House. Miran has dissented against the 25 basis point rate cut that was undertaken at each of the two meetings he has attended in favour of larger half-percentage-point cuts.

On Wednesday, Miran, again, voted for a more aggressive cut of half a percentage point while governors Austan D Goolsbee and Jeffrey R Schmid voted not to make a rate cut at all. The other governors all voted for a 25 basis point cut.

“Still elevated inflation and a backlog of economic data complicate the picture for the Fed looking into next year — with President Trump’s aggressive push for lower short-term rates potentially complicating the objective of bringing down longer-term borrowing costs,” Daniel Hornung, policy fellow at Stanford Institute of Economic Policy Research, said in remarks provided to Al Jazeera.

Fed Chair Powell’s term is up in mid-May 2026. Trump, in an interview published on Tuesday in news outlet Politico, said support for immediately cutting interest rates would be a requirement for anyone he chose to lead the Federal Reserve.

Almost two dozen people are confirmed dead after two buildings collapsed in the Moroccan city of Fez, angering residents who said the structures had clear problems before the deadly incident.

IOC currently has no universal rule in place for the participation of transgender athletes at the Olympic Games.

The International Olympic Committee says it will announce eligibility criteria for transgender athletes early next year, after months of deliberation as it seeks to find a consensus on how to protect the female category.

The issue has been a source of controversy, with no universal rule in place for the participation of transgender athletes at the Olympic Games.

The IOC, under its new President Kirsty Coventry, did a U-turn in June, deciding to take the lead in setting eligibility criteria for Olympic participation, having previously handed responsibility to the individual sports federations, leading to a confusing patchwork of different approaches.

In September, Coventry set up the “Protection of the Female Category” working group, made up of experts as well as representatives of international federations, to look into how best to protect the female category in sports.

“We will find ways to find a consensus that has all aspects covered,” Coventry told a press conference on Wednesday following an IOC executive board meeting.

“Maybe it is not the easiest thing to do, but we will try our best, so when we talk about the female category, we are protecting the female category.”

Coventry said a decision would come in the first months of 2026.

“We want to make sure we have spoken to all stakeholders, taken adequate time to cross the Ts and dot the Is,” she said.

“The group is working extremely well. I don’t want to try to constrain the working group by saying they need to have a specific deadline, but I am hopeful in the next couple of months and definitely within the first quarter of next year we will have a clear decision and way forward, which I think we are all looking forward to,” said Coventry, a former Olympic swimming champion.

Before Coventry’s decision in June, the IOC had long refused to apply any universal rule on transgender participation for the Games, instructing international federations in 2021 to come up with their own guidelines. Under current rules, still in force, transgender athletes are eligible to take part in the Olympics.

Only a handful of openly transgender athletes have taken part in the Games. New Zealand’s Laurel Hubbard became the first openly transgender athlete to compete in a different gender category to that assigned at birth when the weightlifter took part in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

Currently, some international federations have rules in place, but others have not yet reached that stage.

US President Donald Trump has banned transgender athletes from competing in sports in schools in the United States, which civil society groups say infringes on the rights of trans people, as Los Angeles prepares to host the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Trump, who signed the “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” order in February, has said he would not allow transgender athletes to compete at the LA Games.

Dec. 10 (UPI) — The House of Representatives will vote on Wednesday on the bipartisan $900 billion defense policy bill, though some lawmakers take issue with some of its provisions.

The 3,086-page bill authorizes $8 billion more in spending than President Donald Trump had asked for.

“This year’s National Defense Authorization Act helps advance President Trump and Republicans’ Peace Through Strength Agenda by codifying 15 of President Trump’s executive orders, ending woke ideology at the Pentagon, securing the border, revitalizing the defense industrial base, and restoring the warrior ethos,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement.

The bill would codify the use of active-duty troops at the U.S.-Mexico border, create a “Golden Dome” to protect the U.S. from aerial attacks and ban diversity, equity and inclusion programs at the Department of Defense. The bill would also create a 3.8% raise for all service members.

It includes a ban on transgender women competing in sports at military academies.

The annual legislation has normally been approved with bipartisan support. But several Republicans have voiced dissent.

“I think that it’s in trouble because it’s not the version we sent over,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., told The Hill. She said she was disappointed with the bill because it authorizes funds for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative. It includes $400 million for military help to Ukraine in fiscal years 2026 and 2027.

Last week, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., criticized Johnson for blocking a provision requiring the FBI to tell Congress when it begins counterintelligence investigations on candidates running for federal office. It was later added.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said on X that the bill will “fund foreign aid and foreign country’s wars.” She also accused Republican leadership of breaking a promise to include a ban on creating a central bank digital currency. Hardline conservatives have argued that the digital currency could be used to spy on Americans.

“Conservatives were promised that an anti-Central Bank Digital Currency language, authored by Tom Emmer, the whip, would be in the NDAA,” Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, said on Fox Business Monday. “There are red lines that we need to put in here.”

Emmer, R-Minn., said about leaving the anti-CBDC segment out, “they’ll understand what is going on, and they’ll be fine,” The Hill reported.

Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., said he doesn’t like that the bill allows “8 billion more than we should have.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will see his travel budget cut under the bill until the Pentagon releases the footage of strikes against alleged drug boats near Venezuela. His travel budget would be reduced by 25% until he shares “unedited video of strikes conducted against designated terrorist organizations in the area of responsibility of the United States Southern Command.”

It also requires him to submit some overdue reports before getting his travel budget back.

“That was a bipartisan shot across the bow to Donald Trump to hand over the tapes, done by Republicans. I salute them for their courage for bucking Trump and bucking Hegseth,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the Senate floor Tuesday.

After finishing on top of their group in the opening round of the 2025 FIFA Arab Cup, Palestine will look to continue their historic run when they face Saudi Arabia at Lusail Stadium on Thursday.

The Palestinian side also defied the odds to reach the knockout stages of the AFC Asian Cup for the first time earlier this year.

Having already beaten hosts and favourites Qatar, who were subsequently eliminated at the group stage, Palestine must now overcome a Saudi Arabia side that produced a shock at the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup when they defeated the eventual champions, Argentina.

Follow the build-up, analysis and live text commentary of the game as Madrid host City at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

A member of the UK armed forces who died in Ukraine has been named as Lance Corporal George Hooley of the Parachute Regiment.

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Defence said the 28-year-old was killed in a “tragic accident” while observing Ukrainian forces test “a new defensive capability, away from the front lines”.

Paying tribute to the paratrooper in the Commons on Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “His life was full of courage and determination.

“He served our country with honour and distinction around the world in the cause of freedom and democracy, including as part of the small number of British personnel in Ukraine.”

Sir Keir said he had placed L/Cpl Hooley’s name on record in the Commons “to express our gratitude and respect, and to affirm that his service will never be forgotten”.

Defence Secretary John Healey shared his condolences with L/Cpl Hooley’s family and colleagues.

He wrote on X: “He served our country with distinction. His tragic death reminds us of the courage and commitment with which our outstanding armed forces serve every day.”

The BBC understands the incident is not thought to have been caused by hostile fire.

A military source told the BBC two Ukrainian personnel were believed to have died in the incident, and several more were injured.

The weapons system being tested was said to be an armed interceptor drone, according to unconfirmed reports.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence has been approached for comment.

It is not known what L/Cpl Hooley’s role was in the country. This is the first time the presence of paratroopers in Ukraine has been confirmed.

The UK government has never disclosed the number of service people in Ukraine, but has previously acknowledged a small number is there to support Ukrainian armed forces and provide security to diplomatic personnel.

The Parachute Regiment is an airborne infantry regiment of the British Army.

It has not been confirmed in which battalion L/Cpl Hooley served. The first battalion is under the direction of special forces, while others are part of the Army’s rapid response formation.

It is the first death of a UK service member in Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.

The Parachute Regiment said it was mourning the death of the 28-year-old, who joined the British Army in November 2015.

He joined the Regiment in June 2016 after completing his training at the Infantry Training Centre Catterick in North Yorkshire, it said in a statement on social media.

Sir Keir told the Commons he had met Ukraine’s President Zelensky in Downing Street on Monday, alongside France’s President Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as efforts to negotiate an end to the war intensify.

“We must redouble our efforts,” he told the House.

“The UK, Europe and our allies will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine, stand up to Putin’s aggression and work to deliver a just and lasting peace.”

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, also speaking in the Commons, said: “The thoughts of the whole House will rightly be with family of Lance Corporal Hooley, who tragically died supporting Ukraine in her fight for freedom.”

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who welcomed Healey to Washington DC for defence talks on Wednesday, also paid tribute to L/Cpl Hooley, saying: “It is a reflection of the sacrifice and commitment that so many make around the world.”

A series of meetings to bring the war to an end have taken place in recent weeks, following interventions from US President Donald Trump and a range of European leaders.

Dec. 10 (UPI) — A federal judge in New York said Wednesday that the 2019 grand jury files in the case against convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein can be released.

U.S. District Judge Richard Berman had denied a previous request by the Department of Justice. Grand jury proceedings are normally sealed. But the Epstein Files Transparency Act — signed into law on Nov. 19 — now allows for the release, Berman said.

“The Court hereby grants the Government’s motion in accordance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act and with the unequivocal right of Epstein victims to have their identity and privacy protected,” he said in the four-page ruling.

A federal judge in Florida on Dec. 5 ordered the release of grand-jury transcripts from the investigation against Epstein from 2005 to 2007. That investigation was abandoned.

The ruling comes one day after a similar ruling in which a judge allowed the release of grand jury files in the case of Epstein’s accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving 20 years for child sex trafficking. Epstein died by suicide in prison in 2019.

Congressional Democrats recently released photos of Epstein’s private island, Little St. James, in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Nigerian military has, on Monday morning, allegedly opened fire on unarmed protesters in Adamawa State, North East Nigeria, killing eight people, seven of them women. 

According to the locals who spoke to HumAngle, the tragedy happened after a 24-hour curfew was imposed by the police in Lamurde to stop a communal clash in the community. Not satisfied with the decision, some women from Lamurde stood on the route to BaShaka, a community around the Lamurde axis, waving their leaves and chanting songs in protest. Hours later, HumAngle learned, members of the Nigerian military deployed to secure the area allegedly opened fire on them.

“When the soldiers came, they met the women standing on the highway, blocking the access road. The soldiers didn’t say anything to the women. They just opened fire. These women had nothing on them but leaves, and who attacks women during battle?” Morison, an eyewitness who also lost his son in a previous episode of the clash, said. 

After the gunshots broke out shortly after the soldiers arrived at the scene, seven women and one man were found dead at the spot. The rest fled with bullet wounds. One of the survivors, who is currently receiving treatment at the Numan General Hospital, recounted the harrowing incident to HumAngle. 

“When the soldiers arrived in their vehicle, they first fired gunshots in the air, and while we began to disperse, one particular officer knelt with a gun in hand and aimed at us, then he opened fire at us. He killed them all,” she said. 

She escaped with a gunshot wound in the hand. The other women are receiving treatment at the female surgical ward in Numan General Hospital, while some have been referred to the Moddibo Adama Teaching Hospital in Yola. A total of 16 people, mostly women, are currently receiving treatment at the Numan General Hospital. 

The soldiers left the scene after the incident, and later that day, locals crept out and carried the bodies, transporting them to the morgue in Numan Local General Hospital. HumAngle saw the bodies at the morgue today. The seven women and one man were wrapped in white clothes and placed on a local mat. They were later placed in a vehicle and conveyed back to their hometown in Lamurde for a mass burial. 

HumAngle gathered that the clash began Sunday night and by Monday morning had intensified. Homes were razed, properties destroyed, and many died, while several others were injured that morning. So far, the cause of the fresh clash is yet to be determined, but locals blame it on past grievances over land.

On Tuesday at dawn, a group of protesters consisting of men and women dressed in black from the Numan community stormed the Numan–Lamurde highway to protest in solidarity over the killing of the women. 

What the military is saying

In a statement issued via X and its other social media handles, the Nigerian Military denied killing the women. 

“While moving to secure the Secretariat, some women blocked the road to deny troops passage to the Secretariat, while armed men suspected to be fighting for Bachama extraction fired indiscriminately within the community. Troops then created a passage and proceeded to the Local Government Secretariat ( LGS) to secure the area. At this point, no woman was shot or injured. Otherwise, troops would not have been allowed to find any passage through the crowd,” a part of the statement read. 

The military further blamed the death of the women on the unprofessional handling of automatic weapons by the local militias, whom they described as ‘not proficiently trained  to handle such automatic weapons.’

Eyewitnesses like Morisson allege the military is shielding itself from accountability, and while the Bachama community in Lamurde and Numan is aggrieved over the killing of the women, Hyginus, the Tshobo community leader, says his people are in a dire situation as the security forces that have been deployed to the local government have camped in Lamurde town, leaving villages vulnerable. 

“We are just here. We don’t know what will happen next,” he said. 

The deceased have been laid to rest in a mass burial in Lamurde amidst hushed discussions of retaliation from their kinsmen. 

In September, HumAngle reported how a land dispute tore apart both communities, who are just a kilometre apart despite sharing the same resources.  In the clash, walls were torn, homes were burnt, valuables like motorcycles were set ablaze, and animals were slaughtered and left to bleed in the compounds where they were found. 

Speaking about the current incident, Hyginus Mangu, the leader of the Tshobo community, says he doesn’t know what caused the incident. 

“We just saw houses being set ablaze in Wammi 2 from Sunday night, and by Monday, it intensified,” he told HumAngle. 

The community leader explained that by Monday, three villages inhabited by Tshobo locals in Lamurde were completely burnt after being looted. The villages are Wammi 2, Bashaka, and Sabon Layi.

In Rigange, a Bachama-dominated community, Morrison Napwatemi, a resident of the area, explained that the clash resulted in the deaths of many natives, including his son. 

He explained that despite the intervention of the Adamawa State Governor in the past month, the fresh clash hints that the dispute is far from over. Even though the community is still under curfew, Morrison said there is a lot of tension in the land as locals are aggrieved. 

“It’s a terrible situation. It’s not something one would want to talk about,” he said. 

In Tshobo communities, the community leader explained that locals have currently rallied under a shade for safety, while some have climbed the mountains bordering Gombe. 

“Right now, we have no food, water, or security. We don’t know what will become of us later,” he said. 

While he doesn’t know the exact number of casualties so far, Hyginus said they have recorded many deaths. He fears his tribe might be wiped out as the clash is getting more deadly. 

Syria is seeing major political changes, but security on the ground is still unstable. Israeli attacks continue in the south, while armed groups and internal tensions remain uncertain elements to Syria’s security. Al Jazeera’s Osama Bin Javaid breaks it down.

Online flight tracking data shows that a pair of U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets flew right into the center of the Gulf of Venezuela earlier today, and stayed there for some 40 minutes. This is a relatively small body of water bounded on three sides by Venezuela’s national territory, and is in the same general area where American forces are known to have previously probed that country’s air defenses. The sorties represent a new escalation in the maximum pressure campaign against Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro that President Donald Trump’s administration has been conducting for months now.

The two Super Hornets, callsigns Rhino 11 and Rhino 12, look to have remained in international airspace throughout the duration of their sorties in the Gulf of Venezuela today, though this remains unconfirmed. Spoofing aircraft in open-source flight tracking is possible and does happen, but in this case, considering what we are seeing, and the recent history of certain U.S. platforms making their presence very known off the coast of Venezuela, this seems unlikely.

Even flying tight orbits in the middle of the Gulf could easily have brought the jets close to the Venezuelan coast. The body of water is approximately 75 miles long, north to south, and 150 miles wide, east to west, at its longest points. The opening to the Gulf from the Caribbean Sea to the north is only some 52 miles across, with Venezuela’s national airspace extending 12 miles from either side. Venezuelan authorities have claimed the entire body of water to be internal to the country’s national territory, something the United States has openly challenged for decades.

In addition to the F/A-18s, a pair of Navy EA-18G Growler electronic warfare jets, with the callsigns Grizzly 1 and Grizzly 2, were also tracked flying orbits in the Caribbean just north of the Gulf of Venezuela. One of the Navy’s MQ-4C Triton maritime surveillance drones also flew a mission further out in the Caribbean opposite Venezuela’s coastline at around the same time. It is highly probable that other U.S. military aircraft were also operating in the same broad area, but were not visible online. That the Super Hornets and Growlers were broadcasting their positions means they were intended to be seen, and to send a clear message to authorities in Venezuela.

Junto a los Super Hornet RHINO11 y RHINO12 estaban los EA-18G Growler con códigos de llamada GRIZZLY1 y GRIZZLY2. Son aviones de ataque electrónico aerotransportado. pic.twitter.com/2o31SEZMb2

— 𝘼𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙤 (@Arr3ch0) December 9, 2025

Where the F/A-18s or EA-18Gs were operating from during their sorties has not been confirmed. However, these types of aircraft are among those currently embarked on the Navy’s supercarrier USS Gerald R. Ford, which has been sailing in the region since last month.

Ford was recently observed leaving St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) also posted pictures of Super Hornets and Growlers operating from the carrier, all of which were taken back in November, on social media at around the time of today’s flights off the coast of Venezuela.

‼️🇺🇸🇻🇪NEWS: The USS Gerald R. Ford is moving toward Venezuela after leaving St. Thomas yesterday.

The nuclear-powered carrier is heading south as part of Trump’s Operation Southern Spear, marking a major show of force aimed at increasing pressure on Maduro.

See the latest… pic.twitter.com/eNdIYkgyJ2

— The threat of missiles and drones (@StatWatch25) December 8, 2025

Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) conducts flight operations while underway in the Caribbean Sea.

U.S. military forces are deployed to the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility in support of Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR, Department of War-directed… pic.twitter.com/lVP1zSJgwa

— U.S. Navy (@USNavy) December 9, 2025

Super Hornets from Ford have also been spotted recently at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in Puerto Rico. Since September, Marine fighters and other aircraft have been operating from the former Naval Station Roosevelt Roads on the island in support of operations in the Caribbean, as well. TWZ has reached out to the Navy and U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) for more information about today’s flights near Venezuela.

The combination of F/A-18s and EA-18Gs, with the latter flying in a standoff position, is exactly what one would expect to see during actual strikes on targets in Venezuela. The Growlers would provide electronic warfare support to help cover the Super Hornets penetrating into the threat envelope of hostile air defenses on the way to their targets. Such a mission would also include a host of additional aircraft and other assets providing command and control, aerial refueling, surveillance and reconnaissance, and other support further away from the objective areas.

Whether or not the Venezuelan Air Force made any attempt to intercept any U.S. aircraft flying around the country’s borders today is unclear. The Gulf of Venezuela, as well as Lake Maracaibo, which lies immediately to the south, and the surrounding areas, are all highly strategic locales. Lake Maracaibo, in particular, is the country’s main oil-producing region. Tankers regularly sail in and out of the area, where key refineries are also situated.

As mentioned, this is not the first time that U.S. military aircraft have operated in this same general area, and with the explicit intent of testing and otherwise gathering intelligence about Venezuela’s air defenses. Those assets do present varying degrees of risk, as you can read more about here.

Back on November 20, Navy Super Hornets notably flew just north of the Gulf of Venezuela while a U.S. Air Force RC-135W Rivet Joint intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft monitored the situation from a station further out in the Caribbean. Air Force B-52 bombers, which also now regularly take part in shows of force aimed at Venezuela, were tracked in the area at around the same time. One of the main missions of the Air Force’s Rivet Joint fleet is to help in crafting so-called “Electronic Orders of Battle” of enemy or potentially hostile forces in a given area, especially air defense nodes. EA-18Gs can collect information to help with this, as well.

FlightRadar24 has now identified FELIX11, one of the “unknown military aircraft” off the coast of Venezuela, as a U.S. Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet from the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), meaning that the others; PARTY11, LION11, LION12, as well as others not seen, are also likely… https://t.co/x6kX0H1UZv pic.twitter.com/KSPC4TbG19

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) November 20, 2025

“They are normal operational training flights from the aircraft carrier USS Ford and platforms performing training exercises,” a U.S. official told TWZ about those sorties. “They are also testing Venezuelan sensors and responses, and it is part of the pressure campaign to show U.S. capabilities in the Caribbean.”

It should be noted here that there has been a significant buildup of U.S. forces in the Caribbean overall since August, with approximately 15,000 personnel in total now deployed in the region. This includes Ford and a host of other major naval assets, as well as various crewed and uncrewed aircraft, and supporting elements on the ground. Special operations forces are also now heavily deployed in the region. President Trump also previously confirmed he had authorized the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela.

All of this is ostensibly in support of enhanced counter-narcotics operations, now dubbed Operation Southern Spear. The U.S. government accuses Maduro of being directly involved in drug trafficking in association with an entity referred to as the Cartel of the Suns, which is now also designated as a terrorist organization. Questions have been raised about those links. Maduro has been under indictment in the United States since 2020 on narcotics and other charges, and American authorities currently have a $50 million bounty out for information leading to his arrest.

President Trump ordered action — and the Department of War is delivering.

Today, I’m announcing Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR.

Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and @SOUTHCOM, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our…

— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) November 13, 2025

The sorties today follow weeks of escalating shows of force, as well as reports that the Trump administration could be getting closer to launching strikes or conducting other direct action missions on targets inside Venezuela. U.S. operations in the Caribbean already now include routine strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats. Serious questions have been raised about the underlying intelligence behind those strikes, as well as their legality.

“I don’t want to say that,” President Trump said just today when asked about how far he might go to remove Maduro from office during an interview with Politico‘s Dasha Burns.

“His [Maduro’s] days are numbered,” Trump added in response to a follow-up question simply about whether he would like to see Maduro out of power.

He also declined to rule out a ground invasion of Venezuela or any other kind of military action, the potential prospect of which TWZ has recently explored.

During a recent interview Trump is asked about removing Maduro from power,
He refuses to rule out any options and says “Maduros days are numbered”

Trump also added that he wanted
“The people of Venezuela to be treated well”#Venezuela
pic.twitter.com/TPCV0huV6F

— CNW (@ConflictsW) December 9, 2025

If nothing else, today’s sorties in and around the Gulf of Venezuela make clear that the U.S. government remains committed to ratcheting up the pressure on Maduro.

Update, 7:00 PM EST:

There are indications that a new contingent of tactical jets, possibly EA-18G Growlers, has deployed from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in Washington State to the Caribbean. The aircraft may be headed to the former Naval Station Roosevelt Roads in Puerto Rico based on online flight tracking data. Land-based EA-18Gs, on top of the Growlers already in the region aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford, would not be a typical show of force, but would represent a key force multiplier for any future strike operations.

Does this mean strikes are soon to begin in Venezuela, no it doesn’t, but it is among the most interesting movements we have seen that would point to preparing for this. More on Venezuela’s air defense capabilities here: https://t.co/IYAm9hIu0z

— Tyler Rogoway (@Aviation_Intel) December 9, 2025

And these would likely be land based, not deployed to augment the carrier air wing directly. Standard stuff for the EA community.

— Tyler Rogoway (@Aviation_Intel) December 9, 2025

Update, 12/10/2025:

In response to our queries yesterday, the U.S. Navy directed us to U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM). In turn, a SOUTHCOM spokesperson provided the following statement:

“We conduct routine, lawful operations in international airspace, including over the Gulf of Venezuela. We will continue to fly safely, professionally, and in accordance with international law to protect the homeland, monitor illicit activity, and support stability across the Americas.”

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

From Jack Harris: Coming into the offseason, the Dodgers signaled that they would be conservative when it came to pursuing help in the bullpen.

Turned out, they were quietly plotting one of the most surprising — and influential — signings of the winter.

In a blockbuster move on Tuesday, the team agreed to a three-year, $69-million deal with top free-agent closer Edwin Díaz, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly, snatching the three-time All-Star and three-time reliever of the year award winner in a move that will transform their previously shaky bullpen.

Díaz, 31, was the consensus best relief pitcher in this year’s free-agent class. Over his nine-year career, he has a 2.82 ERA and 253 saves. In that time, no other MLB reliever tops him in strikeouts (839), while only Kenley Jansen has recorded more saves (334). With the New York Mets this past season — his second since returning from a knee surgery that sidelined him for all of 2023 — Díaz also had one of his best career campaigns, posting a 1.63 ERA with 28 saves in 31 opportunities and 98 strikeouts in 66 ⅓ innings.

He was so good, he elected to opt out of the final two years of the record-setting five-year, $102-million deal he signed with the Mets in 2022.

Thanks to that track record, the hard-throwing right-hander was positioned to be the highest-paid reliever on this year’s market. Most projections pegged him for another four- or five-year deal, making upward of $20 million per season again.

Continue reading here

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Shaikin: Edwin Díaz signing shows Dodgers aren’t going to worry about potential salary cap

Take a swing? Two Buss brothers consider investing in baseball’s Athletics

NEW UCLA COACH TAKES AIM AT USC

From Ben Bolch: Nine months before his debut in his first big-time college football coaching job, Bob Chesney sounded as confident as a running back with four downs to gain one yard.

Nothing could stop him, no matter the weight of the unique challenges ahead.

For instance…

How did he feel about UCLA’s lack of recent football success?

“To me,” Chesney said, “there is zero doubt in my mind that we can win here.”

A perceived lack of institutional support?

“Alignment,” Chesney said, referencing his shared vision with university officials, “was a word that continued to show up over and over and over again.”

That annoying crosstown rival?

“We don’t need to be the other school in this town,” Chesney said, “we need to be the school in this town and I promise that will happen here in the very, very near future.”

Continue reading here

USC BASKETBALL TAKES NOSTALGIC TRIP

From Ryan Kartje: When they first met more than four decades ago now, the four freshmen on the University of San Diego’s men’s basketball team in 1983 didn’t need long to figure out who would lead them. Eric Musselman had all but elected himself within moments of moving into their dorm room.

“Before I could even drop my bag on the bed, Eric goes, ‘OK, we’re going to the gym,’” recalled Scott Thompson, San Diego’s 7-foot center. “He’d barely said hello.”

It didn’t matter that, at 5-foot-7, Musselman — the future USC men’s basketball coach — was more than a foot shorter than his freshman counterparts, with the other two checking in at 6-foot-11 and 6-foot-9. Or that Musselman carried himself with a swagger and confidence more befitting, even then, of a coach than a college freshman. He was so sure of himself, he actually pitched himself for the head coaching job as a sophomore.

“Father [Pat] Cahill was our athletic director,” Musselman said. “So before they named our new coach [in 1984], I went in there and told him, ‘Hey I think I can coach these guys and be a student athlete and a coach, and it’d be great publicity, the first time ever and all that.”

“And Father Cahill told me to get back to class.”

Continue reading here

MORE USC:

Chad Baker-Mazara and Ezra Ausar lead USC to win at San Diego

USC vs. San Diego summary

RIVERS RETURNS TO NFL

From Sam Farmer: These are not your grandfather’s Indianapolis Colts.

Or perhaps they are.

The Colts are planning to sign Chargers legend Philip Rivers, who recently became a grandfather, bringing back the 44-year-old quarterback after five years of retirement.

Continue reading here

HIGH SCHOOLS

From Eric Sondheimer: It was paparazzi time on Tuesday night at the old Morningside High gymnasium, where more than 20 photographers stationed themselves on the baseline trying to capture the moment Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood set the state record for career scoring by a high school basketball player.

Think Chino Hills days with the Ball brothers and Sierra Canyon days with Bronny James to bring out the cameras en masse.

The 6-foot-4 senior and son of Inglewood coach Jason Crowe Sr. needed 29 points to pass the 3,659 career points accumulated by Tounde Yessoufou of Santa Maria St. Joseph.

Continue reading here

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Josh Gallagher helps Loyola turn back Cathedral in boys’ soccer rivalry game

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DUCKS

Beckett Sennecke scored a shorthanded goal with one second remaining to force overtime, Leo Carlsson scored in the shootout and the Ducks beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 on Tuesday night for their fifth win in seven games.

The 19-year-old Sennecke eluded three defenders and his shot deflected off the glove of Pittsburgh’s Erik Karlsson and into the net. A replay review confirmed the shot beat the buzzer.

Ville Husso made 45 saves, including seven in overtime, and stopped all three shots in the shootout.

Continue reading here

Ducks-Penguins summary

NHL standings

THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1939 — The Green Bay Packers register the first shutout in an NFL championship game by beating the New York Giants 27-0.

1961 — Billy Cannon of the Houston Oilers rushes for 216 yards, catches five passes for 114 yards and scores five touchdowns in a 48-21 victory over the New York Titans. Cannon finishes with 373 combined yards.

1971 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scores a career-high 55 points in Milwaukee’s 120-104 victory over the Boston Celtics.

1982 — Michael Dokes knocks out Mike Weaver in the first round to capture the WBA heavyweight title in Las Vegas.

1985 — The Indiana Pacers hits only 19 field goals in an 82-64 loss to the New York Knicks, setting an NBA record for the fewest field goals made by one team since the inception of the shot clock.

1986 — Atlanta’s Dominique Wilkins scores 57 points to lead the Hawks to a 123-95 rout of the Chicago Bulls.

1992 — The NHL awards expansion franchises to Anaheim and Miami. The newcomers, scheduled to begin play in the 1993-94 season, bring the NHL to 26 teams.

1994 — Art Monk sets an NFL record for consecutive games with a reception on New York’s first play in the Jets’ 18-7 loss to the Detroit Lions. Monk’s 5-yard catch gives him 178 consecutive games with a reception, breaking Steve Largent’s NFL mark.

1999 — Laffit Pincay Jr. guides Irish Nip to a two-length victory in the sixth race at Hollywood Park for his 8,834th victory, breaking Bill Shoemaker’s 29-year-old record and making him the world’s winningest jockey.

2006 — LaDainian Tomlinson breaks Shaun Alexander’s NFL single-season touchdown record of 28 when he scores three times in the San Diego Chargers’ 48-20 victory over the Denver Broncos. Tomlinson has 26 TDs rushing and three receiving.

2006 — Marvin Harrison of Indianapolis is the fourth player in NFL history with 1,000 receptions, joining Jerry Rice, Tim Brown and Cris Carter.

2008 — Carmelo Anthony matches George Gervin’s NBA record for points in a quarter with 33 in the third and finishes with a season-high 45 points in Denver’s 116-105 victory over Minnesota.

2010 — George Karl earns his 1,000th coaching victory, the seventh coach in NBA history, as Al Harrington scores a season-high 31 points and Nene adds 26 to help the Denver Nuggets hold off the Toronto Raptors 123-116.

2016 — 82nd Heisman Trophy Award: Lamar Jackson, Louisville Cardinals (QB), youngest player to win at 19.

2016 — Army ends a 14-year run of frustration against Navy, using an overpowering running game and opportunistic defense to carve out a long overdue 21-17 victory.

2016 — Roman Torres scores in the sixth round of penalty kicks to give the Seattle Sounders their first MLS Cup title, 5-4 over Toronto FC after 120 scoreless minutes. It’s the first MLS Cup final to fail to produce a goal in regulation, setting the stage for a dramatic tiebreaker.

2017 — Ben Roethlisberger completes 44 of a franchise-record 66 passes for 506 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the first quarterback in NFL history to top 500 yards passing three times and leading Pittsburgh past Baltimore 39-38. Antonio Brown caught 11 passes for 213 yards for Pittsburgh.

Compiled by the Associated Press

Until next time…

That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Dec. 10 (UPI) — Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado did not attend a ceremony in Oslo to receive her award on Wednesday as the Venezuelan opposition leader was in hiding from the regime of President Nicolas Maduro, somewhere in the country.

The Norwegian committee said in a news release that Machado had done everything possible to make what it said would have been a very risky journey, but confirmed she was safe and appeared to suggest her imminent arrival in Norway.

“Machado has done everything in her power to come to the ceremony today. A journey in a situation of extreme danger. Although she will not be able to reach the ceremony and today’s events, we are profoundly happy to confirm that she is safe and that she will be with us in Oslo,” the statement read.

The news followed days of contradictory statements over whether Machado, who has been in hiding since disputed elections in July 2024, would make it to Oslo. Machado, who has been repeatedly threatened with arrest by Venezuelan authorities has not appeared in public since January.

Machado’s daughter, Ana Corina Sosa, received the diploma and medal on her behalf at the ceremony at City Hall in the Norwegian capital.

The committee shared a recording of a phone call with Machado in which she confirmed she would not attend to receive her prize, which was awarded in recognition “her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”

“I want to thank the Norwegian Nobel committee for this immense recognition to the fight of our people for democracy and freedom. We feel very emotional and very honoured, and that’s why I’m very sad and very sorry to tell you that I won’t be able to arrive in time for the ceremony, but I will be in Oslo and on my way to Oslo right now.

“I know that there are hundreds of Venezuelans from different parts of the world that were able to reach your city, that are right now in Oslo, as well as my family, my team, so many colleagues. Since this is a prize for all Venezuelans, I believe that it will be received by them.”

Machado, who ran for president in 2011 and attemped to run last year, has been a leader of the country’s democratic movement more than 20 years, opposing and holding to account the administration of Hugo Chavez, first, and then the authoritarian rule of Maduro.

She was elected to the National Assembly in 2010 but removed in 2014 after being accused of conspiring with other critics and the United States to assassinate Maduro. She denies the charges which she says were based on fabricated evidence.

In October 2023, she won a primary to run against Maduro in last summer’s election, to which the Maduro government responded by banning her from politics for 15 years. She was replaced on the ballot by Edmundo Gonzalez.

The results of the July 2024 were widely rejected by the opposition and internationally, including by Brazil, Colombia and the United States, which instead recognized Gonzalez as the real winner.

He fled the country in September in 2024 and was granted political asylum in Spain.

The build-up to the ceremony has been tinged with shadowy intrigue, after the Nobel institute earlier said Machado’s whereabouts were unknown.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado will not receive the Nobel Peace Prize in person at an award ceremony in Oslo but she will be in the European city, the director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute has said.

Machado, 58, was due to receive the award on Wednesday at Oslo City Hall in the presence of Norway’s monarchs and Latin American leaders, including fellow right-wing politicians Argentinian President Javier Milei and Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa.

The opposition leader of the Vente Venezuela party was awarded the prize in October, with the Nobel committee praising Machado’s role in the country’s opposition movement and her “steadfast” support for democracy.

Machado, who holds many right-wing views, dedicated it in part to United States President Donald Trump, who has said he, himself deserved the honour and was infuriated that he did not.

“Although she will not be able to reach the ceremony and today’s events, we are profoundly happy to confirm that Machado is safe and that she will be with us in Oslo,” the institute stated.

She is expected to reach Oslo “sometime between this evening and tomorrow morning,” the institute’s director Kristian Berg Harpviken told the AFP news agency on Wednesday, shortly before the 1pm (12:00 GMT) ceremony, at which her daughter, Ana Corina Sosa Machado, is set to accept the award in her place.

“I will be in Oslo, I am on my way,” Machado stated in an audio recording released by the institute.

The announcement was part of a sequence of events more befitting of cloak-and-dagger intrigue, as the institute had earlier stated Machado’s whereabouts were unknown. A planned news conference a day earlier was also cancelled due to her absence.

Machado has a decade-long travel ban on her and has spent more than a year in hiding.

Alignment with right-wing hawks

The political leader has welcomed international sanctions and US military intervention in Venezuela, a move her critics say harkens back to a dark past.

The US has a long history of interference in the region, particularly in the 1980s when it propped up repressive right-wing governments through coups, and funded paramilitary groups across Latin America that were responsible for mass killings, forced disappearances and other grave human rights abuses.

Venezuelan authorities cited Machado’s support for sanctions and US intervention when they barred her from running for office in last year’s presidential election, where she had intended to challenge President Nicolas Maduro. Machado has accused Maduro of stealing the July 2024 election.

Shortly after her Nobel win in October, Machado also voiced support for Israel in a phone call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during its ongoing genocidal war in Gaza.

Machado has previously pledged to move Venezuela’s embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, as Trump did with the US diplomatic presence during his first term in office, if her movement comes to power. This would be on par with other right-wing Latin American leaders who have taken pro-Israel stances, including Argentina’s Milei and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.

Machado has aligned herself with right-wing hawks close to Trump who argue that Maduro has links to criminal gangs that pose a direct threat to US national security, despite doubts raised by the US intelligence community.

The Trump administration has ordered more than 20 military strikes in recent months against alleged drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and off Latin America’s Pacific coast.

Human rights groups, some US Democrats and several Latin American countries have condemned the attacks as unlawful extrajudicial killings of civilians.

Maduro, in power since 2013 following the death of Hugo Chavez, says Trump is pushing for regime change in the country to access Venezuela’s vast oil reserves. He has pledged to resist such attempts.

Venezuela’s armed forces are planning to mount a guerrilla-style resistance in the event of a US air or ground attack, according to sources with knowledge of the efforts and planning documents seen by the Reuters news agency.

Dec. 10 (UPI) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine could hold elections within the next three months in response to allegations by U.S. President Donald Trump that Kyiv was using the war as an excuse to stay in power.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday evening, Zelensky said he was ready for elections and would seek to hold them on condition that the United States and other allies provided guarantees to keep voters safe at a time when Ukraine’s cities were under attack day and night.

“I’m asking now, and stating this openly, for the U.S. to help me. Together with our European partners, we can ensure the security needed to hold elections. If that happens, Ukraine will be ready to conduct elections in the next 60 to 90 days,” said Zelensky.

“I personally have the will and readiness for this,” he added, saying that he had instructed lawmakers to come with proposals to amend legislation that currently prohibits the holding of elections while the country is under a state of martial law.

“I’m waiting for proposals from our partners, expecting suggestions from our lawmakers, and I am ready to go to the elections,” Zelensky said.

Zelensky’s comments came after Trump, in an interview with Politico, said “it’s time” for Ukraine to hold an election because it was getting to the point where it was no longer a democracy.

“I think it’s an important time to hold an election. You know, they’re using war not to hold an election, but I would think the Ukrainian people would, you know, should have that choice. And maybe Zelensky would win. I don’t know who would win, but they haven’t had an election in a long time,” Trump said.

“You know, they talk about a democracy, but it gets to a point where it’s not a democracy anymore.”

Ukraine has been under martial law since Russia launched its full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, meaning that Zelensky has remained in office long beyond the expiration of his five-year term in May 2024.

Zelensky said in September that he would not run for a second term, saying his goal was to serve his country amid a crisis and finish the war, not win elections.

The offer represents a new position for his administration. For the first half of the war it completely rejected suggestions that elections should be held before relenting to U.S. pressure and saying toward the end of 2024 that it would consider holding elections if a cease-fire were implemented.

A significant majority of Ukrainians say elections should be held only after the war ends, with only around a fifth in favor of elections following a cease-fire. Support for Zelensky is also down markedly, after a recent corruption scandal involving some of his close associates.

Critics warn of numerous pitfalls of elections, ranging from the logistical issue of people being in the wrong places with large numbers of Ukrainians displaced internally, 4 million refugees overseas and 1 million mobilized in the military. There is also the question of how to include Ukrainians living in regions of the country occupied by Russia.

“In order for these elections to be fair all of the people of Ukraine would need to be allowed to vote,” Ukrainian opposition MP Lesia Vasylenko told the BBC.

“Elections are never possible in wartime.”

The United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand all held elections during World War II with only Britain effectively suspending democracy in favor of a government of national unity through July 1945. However, Britain was the only nation under direct, sustained attack and imminent threat of invasion.

Tuesday’s moves came amid a U.S. drive to broker a peace deal that was making little to no headway in bridging the gap between Moscow, which is demanding Ukraine cede territory and demilitarize and Kyiv, which has vowed not to give up land or cut the size of its military without cast-iron security guarantees.

A Brazilian lawmaker was removed from Congress by police on Tuesday as he staged a protest against a bill which could drastically reduce ex-President Jair Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison sentence.

The military gains made by forces of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) in southern Yemen mark a significant turning point in the country’s political and military conflicts.

The latest fighting is between the STC and internationally recognised Yemeni government, known as the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), and led by Rashad al-Alimi. The irony here is that the STC, led by Aidarus al-Zubaidi, is also a member of the Yemeni PLC. But the relationship between the two groups is shaky and at times, turbulent.

Yemen’s government condemned the STC’s latest military advance and land grab across the south and labelled the group separatists – calling their action a “unilateral and a blatant violation of the transitional phase’s framework”.

On the ground, STC forces have completed their control over the remaining southern governorates, furthering the group’s efforts to revive its decades-old aspiration of establishing an independent state in the south of Yemen.

The battle of Hadramout

The latest and rapid developments are redrawing the map of control in Yemen, and it could have further implications on the future of a strong, coherent and unified country.

The fall of Hadramout last week was sudden, and it was seen as a shocking development – although it came after a long period of tension in the oil-rich province. The Yemeni government remained more of a bystander – maintaining some military brigades stationed in its camps in the governorates of Hadramout and al-Mahra. While local and tribal proxies affiliated with regional countries, they were competing for control and influence.

Taking advantage of its superior military equipment and massive forces, the STC advanced nearly unchallenged to overtake Hadramout and al-Mahra.

The government forces lacked modern weapons, sufficient manpower and perhaps the willingness to fight.

The fall of Hadramout was pivotal and posed greater importance in the eyes of many Yemeni politicians, given the special status of this governorate locally and regionally. It dealt a final blow to what remained of the components of Yemeni unity and the government’s legitimacy, and it thwarted all the bets that considered Hadramout to be immune from falling to STC forces.

Both the incoming STC forces and government and local tribal fighters had their own alliances and allegiances to competing regional powers – with connections and loyalties with tribal leaders, politicians and local actors in Hadramout.

Why does Hadramout matter?

Hadramout is a crucial and essential governorate in Yemen, occupying more than a third of the country’s area, approximately 200,000 square kilometres (77,000 square miles), with a population of nearly two million.

It is home to the largest share of Yemen’s oil wealth, containing the most important oil fields and export terminals. Furthermore, it is a stronghold of Yemeni and Arab Gulf businessmen and a cradle of cultural and historical wealth. In short, Hadramout is the Yemeni governorate that possesses the elements of a fully fledged state, and its inhabitants had hoped to establish a Hadrami state that would restore their past glories, far removed from the political and military conflict that engulfed the rest of Yemen’s governorates.

Hadramout governorate has always had a unique political and administrative character throughout all eras and political systems, especially during the socialist regime that ruled the South from the early 1970s until 1990, when the two Yemeni parts, North and South, unified.

This unique character continued under the unified state, as Hadramout remained governed by its own people and refused to accept officials from outside its geographical boundaries. Consequently, the people of Hadramout consider the STC’s control over it an unprecedented occupation, given that most of the STC’s leaders come from the Lahj and Dhale governorates, which are marginal areas – and that would be unacceptable for them. Therefore, the stability and continuity of the STC’s authority in the governorate are doubtful because the group lacks local and popular support.

‘Divorce without return’

These repercussions will undoubtedly cast a shadow over the eight-member PLC in Yemen, headed by Rashad al-Alimi, who, along with his cabinet members and his guards, was expelled from the presidential palace in the al-Maashiq district of Aden.

Many considered this a “divorce without return” and a disastrous end to all previous understandings and agreements aimed at maintaining a political order based on shared principles that would not harm any party.

In light of these developments, the legitimate government now only controls modest areas of land in the governorates of Taiz and Marib.

But Marib is already besieged by Houthi forces from the north, and by the STC forces from the south. The Houthis are a group backed by Iran and control the capital and the north and northwestern parts of Yemen. Taiz is besieged by the Houthis from the north and from the east by the forces of Brigadier General Tariq Saleh, the son of the ousted Yemeni president, Ali Abdullah Saleh.

It is not unlikely that these areas will fall into the hands of either of these two powerful parties at any moment. If that happens, the legitimate Yemeni government will become just a piece of paper, even though it practically lacks any influence on the ground since the rise of the STC forces and the growing power of the Houthis.

The unattainable southern aspiration for secession

As political sociology researcher Fayrouz al-Wali says, the STC does not have the authority to declare southern independence, despite its military control on the ground, because this decision rests not with it but with external regional powers that have deep interests in southern Yemen.

She noted that the path to statehood in the south does not lead through the gates of the Ma’ashiq Palace in Aden, but rather through the United Nations Security Council, where regional powers could play a pivotal role.

There is also a realisation that it would be difficult for the STC to declare independence in the foreseeable future, at least, because of the lack of essential resources to fund the budget of a nascent state without even the most basic elements of sustainability. Such a state would inherit an empty treasury from a country exhausted by more than a decade of war.

In addition to the economic, security and military challenges, and the lack of public services, the southern state envisioned by the STC would face discord with neighbouring powerful countries and other nations that do not wish to see Yemen fragmented into warring mini-states. This would create an unstable security situation with dire consequences for the entire region.