U.S

M23 Rebels Seize Key City in Eastern DR Congo Amid Rising Tensions Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have reportedly entered the eastern DR Congo city of Uvira, an essential military base located near the borders of Burundi and Rwanda. This unforeseen advancement has triggered panic among residents, forcing thousands to flee in fear. Witnesses stated that the M23 forces marched in without opposition, declaring they had "liberated" the city, although local officials maintained that government troops still controlled the area. This…

U.S. seizes oil tanker off Venezuela, Trump says, sending oil prices higher The United States has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, President Donald Trump said, a move that pushed crude prices higher and risks deepening tensions between Washington and Caracas over sanctions and energy flows. “We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, large tanker, very large, largest one ever, actually, and other things are happening,” Trump said. He offered no details on the ship’s identity or where the…

Irish travelers and millions of other visitors to the United States could be required to disclose five years of social media history before entering the country under a Trump administration proposal published in the U.S. Federal Register. The plan would apply to citizens of 42 countries — including Ireland, Britain, France, Australia and Japan — who can currently travel to the U.S. without a visa under the Visa Waiver Program. Those visitors must obtain an Electronic System for Travel Authorization, or ESTA, and provide…

The United States seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, President Donald Trump said, jolting crude prices and raising the prospect of deeper confrontation with Nicolás Maduro’s government over the OPEC nation’s chief source of revenue. “We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, large tanker, very large, largest one ever, actually, and other things are happening,” Trump said. He did not identify the vessel or provide details on the interdiction, including the flag it was flying or the precise location.…

MOGADISHU, Somalia — U.S. Africa Command has intensified airstrikes in Somalia, pushing the annual tally to 109 and signaling a stepped-up campaign against al-Shabaab and ISIS militants in coordination with state forces in Puntland State and Jubaland. AFRICOM said multiple operations between Nov. 26 and Nov. 28 struck ISIS positions in the rugged Calmiskaad mountains of Puntland State, roughly 37 miles from Bosaso, the region’s commercial hub. The mountainous redoubt has long provided militants with cover and access to…

MOGADISHU — The man at the center of a viral deportation saga stepped into Mogadishu last month to cheers, ululations and a crush of cellphone cameras. For many Somalis online, Mahad Maxamud — a TikTok creator with a following now exceeding 450,000 — returned a folk hero. For others, he was the face of a bruising fight over truth, power and the politics of migration. In late October, the official White House account on X labeled Maxamud a “criminal illegal scumbag,” alleging he helped kidnap two French intelligence officers…

You are an elite, award-winning international journalist and a meticulous senior editor. Your job is to transform raw source material into a publish-ready article that meets the highest AP-standard editorial and technical requirements. PHASE 1 — ANALYSIS AND FORMAT DECISION Read the source text thoroughly. Identify the core themes, dominant purpose, crucial facts, data points, and human or structural angles. Based solely on this analysis, select exactly one article format from the list below. Always choose Football…

Mogadishu — U.S. Africa Command carried out seven new airstrikes in Somalia between Nov. 26 and Dec. 3, pushing this year’s total to at least 109 strikes — a record level of U.S. military activity in the country. The latest operations targeted ISIS-linked militants in Puntland State and an al-Shabaab site in southern Jubaland, AFRICOM said. The command described a rapid sequence of strikes focused on a remote mountain zone southeast of Bosaso, a longtime militant hideout, and a separate strike near the Kenyan border. It did…

Kenya signs $2.5 billion health pact with U.S., first under Trump-era overhaul; data privacy questions follow NAIROBI, Kenya — Kenya has signed a five-year, $2.5 billion health agreement with the United States, the first such government-to-government pact since President Donald Trump overhauled U.S. foreign aid, U.S. and Kenyan officials said Saturday. Washington cast the deal as a model for a series of agreements with developing countries, signaling a deeper pivot to direct funding of public sectors over traditional aid…

MIAMI — U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff held two days of “productive” talks with Ukraine’s senior negotiator Rustem Umerov in Miami and will meet again, U.S. officials said Friday, as the delegation and Ukrainian leaders pressed to translate recent diplomacy with Moscow into a durable cease-fire. Witkoff, who met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow this week alongside President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Kushner held what the State Department and Ukrainian officials described as “constructive…