Good morning.
Israel bombed dozens of sites in Syria overnight, despite the Syrian rebel leader, Abu Mohammed al-Jolani aka Ahmed al-Sharaa, saying his Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group was not interested in conflict with Israel.
Jolani’s comments came as Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announced on Sunday that he had approved a plan to expand settlement-building in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
The latest airstrikes follow a statement by the country’s defence minister, Israel Katz, that Israeli troops, who seized the Golan Heights buffer zone with Syria last week, would remain for the winter. The UN, France, Germany and Spain have called on Israel to withdraw from the buffer zone, which sits between Syria and the Israeli-occupied area.
Meanwhile, at least 12 Palestinians were killed, including children, in an Israeli airstrike on a shelter for the displaced in Gaza’s Khan Younis school turned shelter for displaced Palestinians on Sunday, the Hamas-run civil defence agency said.
What is Israel bombing in Syria? Israeli air raids have hit bases, heavy weapons, sites associated with the former Assad regime’s missile and chemical weapons programme, and destroyed Syria’s small naval force in port of Latakia. The scale of the Israeli bombing campaign has surprised many western capitals.
How did Netanyahu justify further settlements? He justified expanding Israeli settlements in the occupied Golan Heights “in light of the war and the new front facing Syria” and a desire to double the Israeli population in the area. “We will continue to hold on to it, cause it to blossom and settle in it,” he said.
Hundreds believed to be dead as Cyclone Chido devastates French islands of Mayotte
At least several hundred people are feared to have been killed after the worst cyclone in almost a century ripped through the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte on Saturday, leaving health services in ruins.
Rescuers have been dispatched to the islands, which lie between the coast of Mozambique and Madagascar, but their efforts are likely to be hindered by damage to airports and electricity distribution in an area where clean drinking water is subject to chronic shortages.
The archipelago’s prefect, François-Xavier Bieuville, said the confirmed toll of 11 dead was likely to soar over the coming days. “I think there will certainly be several hundreds, maybe we will reach a thousand, even several thousands.”
How powerful was the storm? Winds of at least 140mph uprooted trees, tore houses apart and pounded the impoverished archipelago’s already weak infrastructure.
What complicates relief efforts? French authorities say about 100,000 people live in Mayotte clandestinely, which some healthcare workers believe makes them reluctant to seek assistance – due to fears it would lead to their removal.
How deadly have previous cyclones been in the region? Cyclone Idai killed more than 1,300 people in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe in 2019. Cyclone Freddy left more than 1,000 dead across several countries last year.
Lindsey Graham contradicts Trump’s assertion that January 6 investigators ‘should go to jail’
Senator Lindsey Graham on Sunday rejected Donald Trump’s view that officials who investigated the deadly attack on the Capitol in 2021 should be imprisoned.
On NBC’s Meet the Press, Graham was asked whether he agreed with Trump’s assertion that investigators should go to jail. “No,” said South Carolina’s senior senator.
Meanwhile, independent leftwing senator Bernie Sanders said on Sunday that Joe Biden should “very seriously consider” issuing pre-emptive pardons.
How will Trump approach the January 6 convicted? More than 1,250 people have pleaded guilty or otherwise been convicted in the January 6 attack. At least 645 people have been sentenced to serve some time in prison, ranging from a few days to 22 years. Trump says he’ll pardon them on “day one”.
In other news …
South Korea’s constitutional court has begun reviewing the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol, over his attempt to impose martial law on 3 December.
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has been discharged from hospital, after spending six days recovering from emergency surgery to drain a hematoma in his brain.
Israel has announced it will close its embassy in Ireland, citing Dublin’s decision last week to support a petition at the international court of justice accusing the country of genocide.
Stat of the day: Russian tanker sinks in Black Sea spilling 4,300 tons of oil
A Russian tanker carrying about 4,300 tons of oil products has sunk in the Black Sea amid stormy conditions, while a second has run aground. Commentators pointed out that the oil products, if spilled into the Black Sea, would cause serious ecological damage to a marine environment already badly affected by war.
Don’t miss this: The architect who sketched Notre Dame’s ancient insides
After disaster struck Notre Dame in 2019, Axelle Ponsonnet began to draw parts of the cathedral exposed by the fire, some not seen for centuries. “At one point, the entire internal volume of the cathedral was filled with scaffolding,” Ponsonnet said. “When they started taking the scaffolding down, it was like everything could breathe again.”
Climate check: Anxious scientists brace for Trump’s climate denialism
Trump dominated conversations at the annual American Geophysical Union meeting this year. The prospect of Trump slashing budgets and mass-firing federal staff has given America’s scientific community a sort of collective anxiety attack. “We all feel like we have a target on our backs,” one said.
Last Thing: A white T-shirt for $202? Welcome to capitalism’s era of ‘bespoke basics’
It’s made from mid-weight Supima brushed cotton, with subtle stitching and slim elbow-length sleeves. It’s comfy and fits perfectly. It’s also … a white T-shirt. And who in their right mind, writes Morwenna Ferrier, would pay $202 for something they may spill coffee down?
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