White House tightens rules on counterterrorism drone strikes
President Joe Biden has signed a classified policy limiting counterterrorism drone strikes outside conventional war zones, tightening rules that President Donald Trump had loosened, according to officials. The policy, which the White House sent to the Pentagon and the CIA on Friday, institutionalizes a version of temporary limits that Biden’s team quietly put in place on the day of his inauguration as a stopgap for reducing risks to civilians while the new administration reviewed the counterterrorism policies it had inherited from Trump. The policy requires Biden’s approval before a suspected terrorist is added to a list of those who can be targeted for “direct action.”
Uvalde schools suspend entire police force after outrage
Uvalde school leaders have pulled its embattled campus police force off the job four months after the Robb Elementary School shooting. The decision Friday follows a wave of new outrage over the hiring of a former Texas state trooper who was part of the hesitant law enforcement response during the May attack that killed 19 children and two teachers. School leaders also put two members of the district police department on administrative leave, one of whom chose to retire. A total of 400 officers responded to the shooting, including five school district police officers. The city’s police, county sheriff’s deputies, state police and U.S. Border Patrol agents were among others who responded.
Newsom to call special legislative session over gas prices
California Gov. Gavin Newsom will call a special session of the state Legislature to pass a new tax on oil companies. Newsom said Friday the session would begin Dec. 5. He accused oil companies of price gouging. The average price for a gallon of gas in California was $6.39 on Friday, according to AAA. That’s $2.58 higher than the national average. Western States Petroleum Association Vice President Kevin Slagle said state lawmakers should examine decades of California’s energy policy and what it means to the economy. Newsom said he wants money from the new tax to be returned to taxpayers.
Appeals court ruling allows Arizona abortions to restart
Abortions can take place again in Arizona, at least for now, after an appeals court on Friday blocked the enforcement of a pre-statehood law that almost entirely criminalized the procedure. The three-judge panel of the Arizona Court of Appeals agreed with Planned Parenthood that a judge should not have lifted the decades-old order that prevented the older law from being enforced. The brief order written by Presiding Judge Peter J. Eckerstrom said Planned Parenthood and its Arizona affiliate had shown they are likely to prevail on an appeal of a decision by the judge in Tucson to allow enforcement of the old law.
Multiple explosions rock eastern Ukraine city of Kharkiv
A series of explosions have rocked the eastern Ukraine city of Kharkiv, sending towering plumes of illuminated smoke in the sky and triggering a series of secondary explosions. The blasts came just after midnight as Russia concentrated attacks Friday in its increasingly troubled invasion of Ukraine on areas it illegally annexed. Meanwhile, the death toll from earlier missile strikes on apartment buildings in the southern city of Zaporizhzhia rose to 14. Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said on Telegram that the explosions were the result of missile strikes that hit targets including one of the city’s medical institutions and a nonresidential building.
Haiti’s leader requests foreign armed forces to quell chaos
Haiti’s government has agreed to request the help of international armed forces as gangs and protesters paralyze the country and basic supplies including fuel and water dwindle. A document published Friday and signed by Prime Minister Ariel Henry and 18 top-ranking officials states they are alarmed by “the risk of a major humanitarian crisis” that is threatening the life of many people. It authorizes Henry to request from international partners “the immediate deployment of a specialized armed force, in sufficient quantity,” to stop the crisis caused partly by the “criminal actions of armed gangs.” It wasn’t clear if the request has been formally submitted.
Nobel Peace Prize to activists from Belarus, Russia, Ukraine
This year’s Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to jailed Belarus rights activist Ales Bialiatski, the Russian group Memorial and the Ukrainian organization Center for Civil Liberties. Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said the judges wanted to honor “three outstanding champions of human rights, democracy and peaceful coexistence.” The announcement represents a strong rebuke to Russian President Vladimir Putin whose invasion of Ukraine has outraged the international community and highlighted his authoritarian rule. The award follows a tradition of highlighting groups and activists trying to prevent conflicts, alleviate hardship and protect human rights.
By wire sources
