USA

10 Dec 2020; MEMO:  US federal judge Paul Engelmayer on Tuesday ordered the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to surrender a report on the killing of prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi as well as a video of his assassination, after rejecting the decision to keep this information confidential, reported Bloomberg.

10 Dec 2020; MEMO:  In a vote held on Monday, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) called on Israel to "renounce possession of nuclear weapons," news agencies reported.

A resolution entitled "The Risk of Nuclear Proliferation in the Middle East" had 153 supporting votes against only 6 who did not support it, with 25 abstentions. The US, Israel's ally, was among the six countries that did not vote for the resolution.

Chicago, Dec 10 (AP-PTI) The Trump administration is planning an unprecedented five more federal executions before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, starting with a Texas street-gang member set to be put to death Thursday for his role in the 1999 slayings of an Iowa religious couple whose bodies he burned in the trunk of their car.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday accused U.S. universities of caving to Chinese pressure to blunt or bar criticism of the Chinese Communist Party. The attack, which included identifying two university administrators by name, comes as the Trump administration seeks to cement its anti-China policies before leaving office in January.

NEW YORK (AP) — More Americans have been getting flu shots this year, apparently heeding the advice of health officials fearful of a flu and coronavirus double pandemic, public health officials said Wednesday.

But the flu vaccination rate for Black children is down, fueling worries that Black Americans may be turning away from shots.

“It’s certainly a point of concern,” said Dr. Ram Koppaka of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which posted new flu vaccination data Wednesday. “We’ll monitor this over the coming weeks very closely.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to let him join an improbable lawsuit challenging election results in Pennsylvania and other states that he lost, a day after the justices rejected a last-gasp bid to reverse Pennsylvania’s certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s victory.

The high court has asked for responses by Thursday. Out of the roughly 50 lawsuits filed around the country contesting the Nov. 3 vote, Trump has lost more than 35 and the others are pending, according to an Associated Press tally.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden is set to nominate Katherine Tai to be the top U.S. trade envoy, according to two people familiar with his plans.

Tai, who is chief trade counsel for the House Ways and Means Committee, will be tapped as the U.S. Trade Representative, according to the two people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly about it.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — More than 300 Minneapolis residents signed up to speak Wednesday night on a plan to shrink the city’s police department, with some pleading for City Council members to deliver the reforms they promised after George Floyd’s death and others warning it would be irresponsible to cut officers amid soaring crime rates.

The council was expected to vote on the plan late Wednesday after several hours of public comment, and 11 of its 13 members have already cast committee votes in favor of key components of it.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — SpaceX launched its shiny, bullet-shaped, straight-out-of-science fiction Starship several miles into the air from a remote corner of Texas on Wednesday, but the 6 1/2-minute test flight ended in an explosive fireball at touchdown.

It was the highest and most elaborate flight yet for the rocketship that Elon Musk says could carry people to Mars in as little as six years. Despite the catastrophic finale, he was thrilled.

“Mars, here we come!!” he tweeted.

WASHINGTON (AP) — There’s plenty of noise but no cause for confusion as President Donald Trump vents about how the election turned out and vows to subvert it even still.

This truth is self-evident: Joe Biden is on track to become president Jan. 20. The machinery of government and democracy is moving inexorably toward that end despite Trump’s attempts to undermine the voters’ will.