A military standoff in one of the world’s key waterways escalated Wednesday after the United States confirmed it shot down drones and missiles over the southern Red Sea fired from Yemen by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.

Russia has admitted that one of its warships was hit in a Ukrainian attack on a Black Sea port in Russian-occupied Crimea early Tuesday, killing at least one person. The strike on the peninsula comes after modern Ukraine celebrated its first Christmas Day under a new calendar amid ongoing clashes.

The Belarusian president confirmed on Christmas Day that Russia completed its shipments of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus in a warning to the Western NATO military alliance.

The United States military on Monday hit facilities of terror groups in Iraq in what U.S. Secretary of Defense LIoyd Austin called “necessary and proportionate strikes” after several American forces were injured in a Christmas Day attack on a U.S. airbase.

The Iranian president has warned that Iran would retaliate against Israel for killing a high-ranking general in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Syria.

Iranian State TV announced on Sunday that Iran’s navy had enhanced its weaponry with the integration of advanced, locally manufactured Talaeieh and Nasir cruise missiles. These missiles, notably the Talaeieh, are described as “fully smart,” with a range exceeding 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) and capable of changing targets during their flight.

The FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies warn about China’s use of artificial intelligence, indicating potential risks beyond intellectual property theft. They are concerned that China could use AI for massive data collection on American citizens. The FBI has highlighted the importance of safeguarding artificial intelligence as a vital U.S. technology in response to China’s aim for substantial AI advancements by 2025, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Pope Francis has expressed his closeness to what he said are “our brothers and sisters suffering due to war,” including the people of Ukraine which faced a turbulent Christmas, with Russian shelling and drone attacks reportedly claiming the lives of at least four people. The leader of more than a billion Catholics, who has been involved in peace diplomacy with both nations, but there was no evidence Sunday his efforts had been successful.

Iran has denied U.S. allegations that it is involved in planning attacks by Yemen’s Tehran-aligned Houthi movement on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

The Czech Republic plunged into a day of national mourning Saturday after a student killed 14 people and wounded 25 others at his Prague university in the worst mass shooting in the country’s, and Europe’s, recent history.

China’s battle with the West over control of the world’s critical minerals rapidly escalated Friday after the Communist nation banned the export of production technology for rare earth metals.

Britain’s High Court of Justice has ruled it is lawful to criminalize pro-life activity, including silent prayer vigils, inside a designated exclusion zone around an abortion clinic, the UK Christian Concern organization said in a press release.The ruling was handed down by Lord Justice Warby and Justice Thornton on Dec. 15, 2023.

American warships faced possible attacks Friday after Yemen’s Houthis warned they would strike U.S. warships if Washington targeted the Iranian-backed militia.

A year after he received standing ovations in Western capitals from Washington to London, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy looked beleaguered.

Ukraine continues to require international support to fight Russia’s invasion and has now received the last 1.5 billion euro ($1.65 billion) tranche from the 18 billion package from the European Union for 2023, Reuters reports. Receipt of the final EU tranche was announced Thursday Dec. 21 by Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

At least 15 people were killed and about 30 others injured in a shooting on Thursday at Charles University in central Prague, Czech police and other sources said.

The death toll from the volcanic eruption on Indonesia’s Mount Marapi that caught dozens of climbers by surprise this month has risen to 24 after a teenage girl, who became a symbol of determination and hope, lost her life.

Turkey’s president wrapped up his visit to Hungary with a warning to Israel to end its “ongoing massacre” in Gaza, while not mentioning the Hamas atrocities in the Jewish nation that killed 1,200 people.

Communist-run China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is rolling out brain-influencing weapons and advanced psychological warfare in “a major shift in military strategy,” according to a new report obtained by Worthy News.

An appeals court in Suriname on Wednesday upheld the conviction of former President Desi Bouterse and sentenced him to 20 years in prison for his role in the execution of 15 people in the former Dutch colony in December 1982.