Environment: Researchers with an environmental group have labelled as "disturbingly low" the number of western monarch butterflies that migrate along the California coast in the US. A recent count by the Xerces Society recorded fewer than 30,000 butterflies, which it said is an 86 per cent decline since 2017. By comparison, the group in 1981 counted more than one million western monarchs wintering in California, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The Xerces Society conducts annual Thanksgiving and New Year's counts and was not certain what caused the numbers to drop. It said there is no substantial evidence of a delayed migration and butterflies are not being reported in other parts of the country. Scientists say the butterflies are threatened by pesticides, herbicides and destruction along their migratory route.
Middle East: Several Jewish teenagers have been arrested on suspicion of carrying out "serious terror offences," including the killing of a Palestinian woman three months ago, Israel's internal security agency revealed. A media blackout had prevented the publication of most details of the case. The Shin Bet internal security agency did not specify the number of minors arrested in the October 12 stoning of a car carrying Aisha Mohammed Rabi, 47, and her husband, Yacoub, though Israeli media said five youths were arrested. The agency said that all the suspects were students in an Israeli settlement yeshiva. Aisha Rabi, a mother of nine, was struck in the head with a stone and died shortly afterward.
Europe: Since coming to power last year, the Italian Government has made one thing clear: It doesn't want migrants coming there. The country is receiving far fewer immigrants since its call to restrict migrants from entering. Given that, plus changing smuggling routes and renewed efforts by the Libyan coast guard to intercept migrant vessels, many are no longer taking their chances on the Central Mediterranean. In 2018, the number of migrants who reached Italy dropped to around a fifth of what it was the previous year, according to data from the International Organisation for Migration. In Spain, the number of migrant arrivals, by land and sea, doubled last year compared with that of 2017. In general, migration to Europe continues to drop. In 2016, more than 390,000 migrants arrived in Europe. Last year, around 142,000 made it to Europe by land and sea, while at least 2242 migrants died or went missing crossing the Mediterranean in 2018.
Thailand: A Saudi woman used social media to draw attention to her plight trying to flee her family, claiming that authorities in Thailand confiscated her passport and were holding her at an airport hotel room in Bangkok. Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun, 18, began posting on Twitter after Thai authorities stopped her in transit from Kuwait. She claims to have a visa for Australia, where she appears to have been planning to seek asylum. On Twitter, she wrote of being in "real danger" if forced to return to her family under pressure from Saudi authorities. She also posted a copy of her passport to provide evidence of her identity. For runaway Saudi women, fleeing can be a matter of life and death, and they are almost always doing so to escape male relatives. Alqunun told Human Rights Watch she was fleeing abuse from her family, including beatings and death threats from her male relatives who forced her to remain in her room for six months for cutting her hair.
Congo: The Government postponed the release of the results of last weekend's presidential election, fuelling suspicions that President Joseph Kabila's ruling party is manoeuvering to cling to power. No new date for announcing the winner of the December 30 election was given. Electoral officials have compiled 53 per cent of the votes and will not release any information until all the ballots have been tallied, said Corneille Nangaa, head of the electoral commission. The Catholic Church, an influential voice in this heavily Catholic nation, turned up the pressure by saying it already knows there is a clear victor, based on data compiled by the church's 40,000 election observers. Congo's ruling party, which backs Kabila's preferred candidate, Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, called the church's statement "irresponsible and anarchist." The leading opposition candidate is Martin Fayulu, a businessman and lawmaker.
United States: A local sheriff says race does not appear to be a factor in a drive-by shooting that killed a 7-year-old black girl. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez cautioned that authorities are still investigating the December 30 shooting of Jazmine Barnes, but said it seems to be a case involving mistaken identity. He says, "At this point, it does not appear it was related to race." Jazmine's family had believed the shooting was racially motivated. Gonzalez said authorities have identified two suspects and that both are African-American. One, 20-year-old Eric Black Jr. is in custody and has been charged with capital murder. Gonzalez would not say whether the second suspect is in custody.
- Washington Post, AP
