President Trump on Tuesday dismissed North Korea's threat of a "Christmas gift" for the U.S., saying the military would “deal with it very successfully," Reuters reports.
Why it matters: North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un said in October that the U.S. had until year’s end to propose new concessions in talks over his country’s nuclear arsenal and warned the U.S. to not ignore the deadline.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is promising supporters that he will convince President Trump to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Jordan Valley and all settlements on the West Bank if he wins Thursday's primary to lead the Likud Party.
Why it matters: Israel's embattled prime minister is facing his first serious challenge from within his party in over a decade. In a video published on social media accounts, he's trying to mobilize support among hardline party members from the settlements.
The world is wondering how Buckingham Palace might characterize this past year in the Queen of England's annual address.
The big picture: Queen Elizabeth II, 93, is facing a politically split nation — and perhaps physically, if the Scots walk. The prime minister is Boris Johnson. A rift between the queen's grandsons Harry and William has been covered all year, and her new granddaughter-in-law Meghan Markle bucks tradition. Her son Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein are caught in a controversial web. And so forth.
Satellite imagery now confirms the construction of a new structure this month at a factory, near Pyongyang, where North Korea manufactures military trucks used as mobile launchers for long-range missiles.
Why it matters,from AP: North Korea has warned that what “Christmas gift” it gives the U.S. depends on what action Washington takes.
The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) in Geneva decided ten days ago to open an investigation into a Palestinian complaint that claims Israel is promoting apartheid policies in the West Bank, Israeli foreign ministry officials tell me.
Why it matters: The decision came several days before the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) took a step toward opening an investigation against Israel for alleged war crimes in the West Bank and Gaza. A determination about Israeli policies by the UN CERD will be deemed authoritative by international bodies such as the ICC.
About 1,500 people have reportedly been killed in Iran's recent crackdown on protests, including at least 17 teenagers and about 400 women, according to Iranian government sources who spoke to Reuters.
Why it matters: The alleged death toll is higher than any other official estimates provided thus far. Amnesty International reported in November that 304 people had been killed "as authorities crushed protests using lethal force" in November, while U.S. Iran envoy Brian Hook said earlier this month that the Iranian government "could have murdered over 1,000 Iranian citizens."
Russia vowed Monday to respond to U.S. sanctions on its Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline to Germany, the AP reports.
The big picture: The U.S. enacted sanctions last week against individuals and companies building the pipeline — which forced a major contractor to suspend its work — arguing that it would increase Europe's dependency on Russian energy.
