Pentagon warns of China’s rapid military buildup despite corruption

Israel built an ‘AI factory’ for war. It unleashed it in Gaza.

Azerbaijan demands Russia admit guilt for downing plane, pay compensation

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev blasted Russia for putting forward “absurd” theories initially and said Moscow must compensate victims’ families....

Plane crash at South Korean airport kills 179 with two survivors

The control tower at Muan International Airport warned the Jeju Air plane of a potential bird strike minutes before the crash. Two people were rescued....

Putin apologizes for airline crash, does not take responsibility 

Putin apologized for the “tragic incident” in Russian airspace, but the Kremlin did not take responsibility for downing the Azerbaijan Airlines flight....

Five infamous incidents of commercial airplanes that were shot down

The downing of an Azerbaijan Airlines flight in Kazakhstan echoes tragic past instances in which civilian flights have been shot down....

White House sees ‘indications’ airliner was downed by Russia

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the evidence in the Azerbaijan Airlines crash goes beyond widely circulated images of the wreckage....

Finland seizes ship in probe of undersea cable damage

Damage to the power cable in the Baltic Sea is the latest in a spate of murky disruptions to undersea cables that have put European authorities on high alert....

As Ukraine marks Christmas, exhausted soldiers wonder if Trump can end the war

Asked for their thoughts about a potential ceasefire in 2025, Ukrainian soldiers said they’d welcome a reprieve but were skeptical one was coming soon...

Authorities investigate cause of Azerbaijan Airlines crash that killed 38

The flight was en route from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku to Grozny, in Russia’s south, when it diverted and attempted an emergency landing in Kazakhstan....

For Syria’s Christians, Christmas is a time to grapple with hope and fear

Although members of the Christian community said they are happy to see the Assad regime go, many are wary of their new Islamist leaders....

Once a war zone, southern Philippines rebrands as tourist destination

New visitors are flocking to the Philippines’ Sulu Archipelago. But the specter of violence — both real and imagined — persists....

Russia sentences U.S. citizen to 15 years in prison for espionage

Eugene Spector, who was already serving a 3½-year sentence in Russia for bribery, received the additional sentence after being charged with espionage last year....

Faulty mortar rounds spark corruption allegations for Ukraine’s defense industry

Activists are calling for an investigation into Ukraine’s top defense institutions over accusations that tens of thousands of locally made mortar rounds are failing or misfiring....

Zelensky’s slow shift toward negotiating for Ukraine’s future

A new U.S. president and battlefield realities appear to be pushing Zelensky, who had long insisted on fighting for every inch of occupied land, to the table....

U.S. ship shoots down jet in friendly fire over Red Sea, military says

Two service members ejected above the Red Sea after a warship fired on their aircraft, according to U.S. Central Command. Both sustained minor injuries....

Five months on, Ukraine clings to Kursk amid doubts over operation

Outnumbered Ukrainian troops are clinging to a section of Russian territory in hopes of using it as a bargaining chip in any future negotiations....

Russia launches missile strike on Kyiv following Putin’s ‘duel’ threat

The Russian leader had mockingly challenged Ukraine’s Western allies to a missile “duel,” testing their air defenses, during his annual year-end news conference....

Trump-Putin relations enter a new chapter, and the world is at stake

Vladimir Putin wants a sit-down with Donald Trump as equals in which they divide the world into spheres of influence....

European allies consider deploying troops to Ukraine after the war

The deployment of European troops could provide security guarantees to Ukraine and play to Trump’s insistence that Europe carry more weight on defense....

Putin denies weakness after Assad ouster in Syria, is open to Trump meeting

The Russian president also promised he would ask the ousted Syrian leader — whom he has given asylum in Moscow — for the whereabouts of U.S. journalist Austin Tice....

Putin promises to ask Assad for whereabouts of U.S. journalist Austin Tice

Club raids, influencers: How Putin’s playbook is pushing young Russians toward ultranationalism

Russian President Vladimir Putin wants young Russians to become ultranationalist patriots. Today, we meet the online influencer at the center of this push and hear how a society can drastically change in a short period....

Kyiv behind killing of Russian general in Moscow, Ukrainian official says

An explosion killed Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, chief of Russia’s nuclear defense forces, and his assistant in Moscow, Russia’s Investigative Committee said....

Denmark frees anti-whaling activist, rejecting Japan’s extradition request

U.S.-Canadian environmentalist Paul Watson, 74, was detained based on a decade-old Interpol warrant that accused him of interfering with a Japanese whaling ship....

Who is Igor Kirillov, the Russian nuclear defense chief killed in Moscow?

Kirillov ran Russia’s nuclear, biological and chemical defense forces. Kyiv previously accused him of ordering the use of chemical weapons against Ukraine....

Assad defends escape from Syria, blames ‘terrorist onslaught’ in first statement

The statement on Bashar al-Assad’s Telegram account said he left Syria for Russia from Hmeimim air base on Dec. 8. In Gaza, the death toll passed 45,000, the Health Ministry said....

Ukrainian troops say inexperienced North Koreans are making easy targets

At least 30 North Koreans were “killed or wounded” over the weekend while fighting for Russia in the Kursk region, Ukrainian military intelligence said....

The unique destructiveness of Israel’s war on Gaza

Airwars, which charts civilian casualties of 21st century conflict, calls Israel’s campaign in Gaza “by far the most intense, destructive, and fatal conflict” it has tracked....

Foreign powers jockey for control in Syria, risking new conflict

In the days since the collapse of the Assad regime, multiple countries have bombed targets in Syria, as the power vacuum unleashes a battle for the heart of the Middle East....

Drones swarm Kyiv every night. These volunteers shoot them down.

A searchlight, a World War II-era machine gun and lots of coffee and tea help a band of volunteers protect the night skies over Ukraine’s capital from drones....