Emmy winner Catherine O’Hara of Schitt’s Creek and Home Alone dies at 71

LOS ANGELES — Catherine O’Hara, the Emmy-winning Canadian-born actor whose range stretched from the anarchic brilliance of SCTV to the beloved roles of Home Alone and Schitt’s Creek, died at her Los Angeles home following a brief illness. She was 71. Her death was confirmed by her agency, CAA, which said further details were not immediately available. O’Hara’s death prompted a wave of tributes across the industry, led by Macaulay Culkin, who played Kevin McCallister opposite O’Hara’s anxious, fiercely devoted mother, Kate,…

Catherine O’Hara, Emmy winner from Schitt’s Creek and Home Alone, dies at 71

Catherine O’Hara, the Emmy-winning actor celebrated for indelible turns from “Home Alone” to “Schitt’s Creek,” has died at 71. She died at her home in Los Angeles following a brief illness, her agency, CAA, said in a statement. Further details were not immediately available. The Canadian-born O’Hara was an alumna of Toronto’s Second City Theatre and one of the creators of the sketch series SCTV, where she helped shape a generation of offbeat, character-driven comedy. Her career took off at Second City in the 1970s, where she…

Ex-CNN anchor Don Lemon arrested after Minnesota church protest

Don Lemon arrested in Los Angeles after livestreamed protest disrupted St. Paul church service, lawyer says Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has been arrested in the United States over his involvement in a protest that interrupted a church service in St. Paul, Minnesota, earlier this month, according to his lawyer and a Department of Justice official. The Justice Department official said Lemon was taken into custody in Los Angeles by agents from the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations. The official confirmed the arrest but…

U.S. Justice Department unveils new trove of Jeffrey Epstein documents

The U.S. Justice Department has published a final cache of Jeffrey Epstein–related records, releasing millions of pages and thousands of media files under a new law that mandates disclosure of material tied to the late convicted sex offender. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the production marks the end of the administration’s planned releases under the statute passed in November. The trove includes more than three million pages, 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, according to Blanche, who added the files contain…

Panama court cancels Hong Kong firm’s port concession contracts

Panama’s Supreme Court has annulled the legal basis for long-standing port concessions held by Panama Ports Company, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison, casting uncertainty over ownership of container terminals at the Panama Canal’s Pacific and Atlantic gateways and complicating a planned $23 billion ports sale. After “extensive deliberation,” the court found the laws and acts underpinning PPC’s concession for the development, construction, operation and management of terminals at Balboa and Cristobal…

U.S. judge removes death penalty option for Mangione in healthcare CEO murder

U.S. Judge Margaret Garnett on Thursday barred prosecutors from seeking the death penalty against Luigi Mangione, the 27-year-old accused of gunning down United Healthcare chief executive Brian Thompson in New York in December 2024. In a ruling that reshapes the federal case, Garnett dismissed two death-eligible counts against Mangione — murder and using a gun with a silencer — effectively taking capital punishment off the table. Mangione still faces two federal counts of stalking, and he remains charged with murder at the…

USAID warned parts of Gaza resembled an apocalyptic wasteland in 2024

Analysis: Blocked USAID cables on Gaza reveal a deeper struggle inside Biden’s policy apparatus In early 2024, a set of internal USAID cables describing northern Gaza as an “apocalyptic wasteland” collided with a diplomatic gate. The U.S. ambassador to Jerusalem, Jack Lew, and his deputy, Stephanie Hallett, blocked wider distribution, arguing the documents lacked balance, according to interviews with former officials and documents described to Reuters. The decision offers a rare window into how humanitarian warnings can be…

Ukraine’s Zelensky backs energy infrastructure ceasefire despite Russian attacks

Ukraine says it will halt long-range strikes on Russian energy facilities if Moscow stops hitting its grid, President Volodymyr Zelensky said, after U.S. President Donald Trump raised hopes for a short pause in attacks on Kyiv and other cities amid a brutal cold snap. Zelensky welcomed Trump’s announcement and set a clear condition: “If Russia does not strike our energy infrastructure, generation facilities or any other energy assets, we will not strike theirs.” He said he is counting on Washington to help secure the pause,…

U.S. partially lifts Venezuela sanctions, opening doors for oil exports

U.S. eases some Venezuela oil sanctions, opening trade for American firms WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has lifted some sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry to make it easier for U.S. companies to move and process the country’s crude, even as broader restrictions on production remain in place, according to the Treasury Department. The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a general license authorizing U.S. entities to buy, sell, transport, store and refine Venezuelan-origin oil. The measure is intended…

Kurdish militias reach deal to merge with Syrian government forces

Syria’s government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces have reached a sweeping agreement to fold Kurdish security units and their autonomous administration into the central state, capping weeks of clashes that culminated in a cease-fire, according to statements released today by both sides and broadcast on Syrian state television. The accord follows a period of fighting in which Kurdish forces lost control of swathes of territory to pro-government units, leaving them confined largely to Kurdish-majority pockets in…