BYBLOS, Lebanon — The anguish in Lebanese archaeologist Nader Siklaoui’s voice is clear as he films Israeli missiles slamming down near ancient Roman columns he has spent much of his life protecting. “Oh, God, oh, God,” he said, the camera shaking as plumes of smoke and debris fill the sky after an Oct. 26 airstrike on Tyre in southern Lebanon , one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities. Israel’s war against the Lebanese militia group Hezbollah has killed more than 3,200 people and displaced more than a million others in Lebanon according to local officials, as its military vows to end Hezbollah’s ability to launch rocket and other attacks into northern Israel, which has forced around 60,000 Israelis to flee their homes near the border. But...

KYIV, Ukraine — Russia unleashed its largest air strike on Ukraine in almost three months on Sunday, launching 120 missiles and 90 drones that killed at least seven people and caused severe damage to the power system, officials said. Ukrainians had been bracing for weeks for a renewed Russian attack on an already hobbled energy system, fearing long winter blackouts and mounting psychological pressure almost 1,000 days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion . The strikes, which caused numerous power cuts, came at a time when the impending U.S. presidency of Donald Trump , who has pledged to end the war without saying how, has raised the prospect of a push for negotiations. Air defenses could be heard engaging drones over the capital Kyiv in the ni...

Multiple current and former senior Justice Department and FBI officials have begun reaching out to lawyers in anticipation of being criminally investigated by the Trump administration , according to three people with knowledge of their deliberations. Following Trump’s decisive election victory, many Justice Department officials and career staffers were already nervous about the possibility that they would be targeted by Trump loyalists, particularly members of Congress. But the selection of former Rep. Matt Gaetz , a firebrand Trump ally who was the subject of a recent FBI investigation, to lead the department has sharply increased the sense of alarm, the sources said. “Everything we did was aboveboard,” said a former senior FBI official who has started contactin...

The Trump transition team is compiling a list of senior current and former U.S. military officers who were directly involved in the withdrawal from Afghanistan and exploring whether they could be court-martialed for their involvement, according to a U.S. official and a person familiar with the plan. Officials working on the transition are considering creating a commission to investigate the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, including gathering information about who was directly involved in the decision-making for the military, how it was carried out and whether the military leaders could be eligible for charges as serious as treason, the two sources said. “They’re taking it very seriously,” the person with knowledge of the plan said. The Trump transition team did not immediately r...

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., on Sunday defended Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, saying Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic, is “extremely intelligent when it comes to” vaccines and questioning levels of autism in the U.S. “I’ve sat down and had a long conversation with [Kennedy], and I actually find the guy extremely intelligent when it comes to this stuff. And some of this stuff does raise a lot of questions,” Mullin said on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” when he was asked whether Kennedy’s history of questioning the efficacy of vaccines is a deal-breaker for him. “I have said that there’s some positives to vaccinations. I’ve also questioned the vaccines multiple times, and I think they should be questi...

Trump transition team compiling list of U.S. military officers for possible courts-martial The Trump transition team is compiling a list of senior current and former U.S. military officers who were directly involved in the withdrawal from Afghanistan and exploring whether they could be court-martialed, according to a U.S. official and a person familiar with the plan. Officials working on the transition are considering creating a commission to investigate the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, including gathering information about who was directly involved in the decision-making for the military, how it was carried out, and whether the military leaders could be eligible for charges as serious as treason, they said. “They’re taking it very seriously,” the person with k...

The culture wars have found their way to the dessert table. What was supposed to be a simple birthday treat devolved into the latest flashpoint after “The View” co-host Whoopi Goldberg implied that a New York bakery refused to take her order because of her liberal politics. It’s an accusation that the bakery has denied. Now, the store is claiming that an influx of orders has flooded its phone lines as local residents show their support for the small business. The controversy started when Goldberg recounted in Wednesday’s episode of the “The View” that she had tried to order a batch of charlotte russe — showing off platters of sponge cakes topped with whipped cream and a cherry — from a family-owned New York City bakery. “Now, I should tell you, charlotte russe ha...

KRISTEN WELKER: This Sunday: confirmation battles. President-elect Donald Trump’s controversial cabinet picks are sending shockwaves through Washington and raising questions about how he will carry out his second administration. SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI: I don't think it's a serious nomination for the attorney general. SEN. SUSAN COLLINS: I was shocked that he has been nominated. SEN. KEVIN CRAMER: I have concerns that he can't get across the finish line. JOHN BOLTON: It must be the worst nomination for a cabinet position in American history. KRISTEN WELKER: Will the senate approve Mr. Trump’s picks? Plus: total control. Republicans take charge of both chambers of Congress, clearing a path for Mr. Trump to enact his policy plans. SPEAKER MIKE JOHNSON: We a...

Bela Karolyi, one of the United States' most eminent gymnastics coaches alongside wife Márta, has died at age 82, a spokesperson for USA Gymnastics said Saturday evening. Jill Geer, a spokesperson for the organization, the nation's governing body for the sport, confirmed Karolyi died Friday. A cause of death was not provided. Bela Karolyi helped build USA Gymnastics into an Olympics and international competition powerhouse starting in the 1980s and extending through the 2010s, when his wife had taken over many of his leadership duties. After success with Nadia Comăneci in Romania, the couple helped to launch the athletic careers of U.S. Gymnastics Hall of Fame inductees Dominique Dawes, Phoebe Mills, Betty Okino, Kerri Strug, Mary Lou Retton and Kim Zmeskal. They found early fa...

More than 60 million households watched the much-hyped boxing match between 58-year-old retired boxing legend Mike Tyson and the far-younger Jake Paul on Friday night, Netflix said. The match between Tyson, former heavyweight champion of the world, and Paul, a 27-year-old social media star-turned-boxer, ended with no knockdowns and a win by unanimous decision for Paul. The event was plagued by reports of problems with the video quality or interruptions during the undercard matches, but reports of issues tracked by website downdetector.com had dropped by the time of the main event at around 11 p.m. local time in Texas. Netflix on social media acknowledged the problems, which were lampooned by X users who posted heavily pixelated videos purported to be the match. "T...