North America

MIAMI, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH.N) must pay $110 million in damages for use of a port that Cuba's government confiscated in 1960, a U.S. judge ruled on Friday, a milestone for Cuban-Americans seeking compensation for Cold-War era asset seizures.

The decision by U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom in Miami follows her March ruling that the use of the Havana Cruise Port Terminal constituted trafficking in confiscated property owned by the plaintiff, Delaware-registered Havana Docks Corp.

MEXICO CITY, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Four human skulls were discovered inside a package at a Mexican airport that was due to be sent by courier to the United States, local authorities said on Friday.

The skulls were found wrapped in aluminum foil inside a cardboard box at Queretaro Intercontinental Airport in central Mexico, a statement from the National Guard said.

The package had been sent from the western coastal state of Michoacan - one of the most violent parts of the country - and was destined for an address in Manning, South Carolina, it said.

NEW YORK, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks dipped on Friday to end a tumultuous year as market participants remain concerned about the economic and profitability landscape.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 73.55 points, or 0.22 percent, to 33,147.25. The S&P 500 sank 9.78 points, or 0.25 percent, to 3,839.5. The Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 11.60 points, or 0.11 percent, to 10,466.48.

UNITED NATIONS, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- The General Assembly on Friday approved an annual regular budget for the United Nations of about 3.396 billion U.S. dollars.

The 2023 budget is higher than that of 2022, which stood at 3.122 billion dollars.

The regular budget covers UN activities across a range of areas, including political affairs, international justice and law, regional cooperation for development, human rights and humanitarian affairs, and public information.

NEW YORK, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street had a brutal 2022, as surging U.S. inflation has prompted the most aggressive Federal Reserve rate hike campaign in decades, raising fears about a potential recession.

All three major indexes suffered their worst year since 2008. The Dow dropped 8.8 percent in 2022, while the S&P 500 tanked 19.4 percent and the technology-heavy Nasdaq slumped 33.1 percent.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly has asked the U.N.’s highest judicial body to give its opinion on the legality of Israeli policies in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem.

The Assembly voted by a wide margin, but with over 50 countries abstaining, on Friday evening to send one of the world’s longest-running and thorniest disputes to the International Court of Justice, a request promoted by the Palestinians and opposed vehemently by Israel.

Democrats in Congress released thousands of pages of former President Donald Trump’s tax returns Friday, providing the most detailed picture to date of his finances over a six-year period, including his time in the White House, when he fought to keep the information private in a break with decades of precedent.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The fatal stabbings of four students at the University of Idaho shook the college town of Moscow, a small community nestled in the rolling agricultural hills of the Palouse region that hadn’t seen a murder for five years.

The Nov. 13 slayings seemed to mystify police, adding to the tension in town as the weeks went by without a break in the case. Then on Friday a suspect was arrested more than 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) away in Pennsylvania.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — President Joe Biden’s administration on Friday finalized regulations that protect hundreds of thousands of small streams, wetlands and other waterways, repealing a Trump-era rule that federal courts had thrown out and that environmentalists said left waterways vulnerable to pollution.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A suspect in the killings of four University of Idaho students was arrested in eastern Pennsylvania, a law enforcement official said Friday.

Arrest paperwork filed in Monroe County Court said Bryan Christopher Kohberger, 28, was being held for extradition to Idaho on a warrant for first degree murder.

A law enforcement official confirmed the arrest to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the official could not publicly discuss details of the investigation ahead of a formal announcement expected later Friday.