Israel Strikes in Southern Syria

Israeli officials are preparing to brief President Donald Trump on new military options against Iran when he meets later this month with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, amid growing concern that Tehran is rapidly rebuilding its ballistic missile program and restoring damaged air defenses, according to an NBC News exclusive citing a person with direct knowledge of the plans and multiple former U.S. officials.

Israel, Greece, and Cyprus have agreed to accelerate a long-discussed regional energy and security partnership, pledging deeper cooperation amid rising instability in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean.

The United States has seized another crude oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, marking the second such operation in less than two weeks as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his government.

Ukraine’s military says it is attempting to halt a Russian incursion into a border village in the northeastern Sumy region, even as diplomatic efforts continue to seek an end to the nearly four-year war.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called for “peaceful coexistence” as his nation marked the first anniversary of a deadly car-ramming attack at a Christmas market in eastern Germany that revived a debate about the influx of migrants from mainly Muslim countries.

With Christmas approaching, a Christian worker and his family have fled a brick kiln in Pakistan where they were effectively held in modern-day slavery by their Muslim employer, amid continuing concerns over the safety of Christian girls in the mainly Islamic nation, investigators told Worthy News.

Jerusalem will host a high-level trilateral summit on Monday as Israel, Greece, and Cyprus move to deepen security, energy, and strategic cooperation amid growing concern over Turkey’s expanding military posture in the eastern Mediterranean.