International
Hezbulá regrets the death of its spokesman in an Israeli bombing in Beirut
The Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah regretted the death of its spokesman, Mohamed Afifi, in a bombing of Israel on Sunday against the headquarters of the Baath Arab Socialist Party in Beirut, the first time in a month that the Israeli army directly attacks the Lebanese capital.
Hizbulá praised Afifi as a “leader” in his role as a media spokesman and said that he joined his comrades and his “father” as a “martyr”, Hasán Nasrala, the top person responsible for the political and military formation of the movement, who died in another bombing in Beirut in September, according to a statement from the group released on Sunday night.
Afifi was among the dead in the attack
The general secretary of the Baath Arab Socialist Party in Lebanon, Ali Yusef Hegazy, confirmed that Afifi was identified as one of the seven dead in the Israeli attack on the headquarters of his formation in Beirut, in a television intervention on the Al Mayadin channel.
The bombing destroyed the headquarters of the Lebanese branch of the Pan-Araba party that maintains power in Syria with Bashar Al Asad.
For its part, the Islamist organization Hamas regretted the death of Afifi in a statement in which it highlighted his “bold media appearances” from Dahye, the suburbs south of Beirut under constant Israeli attacks, and said that it was “a voice of strong and defiant resistance that disturbed the (Israeli) occupation.”
The attack occurred in the Beirut neighborhood of Ras al Nabaa, a peripheral area in the south of the capital considered part of its metropolitan area.
On Sunday afternoon, another Israeli bombing hit the center of the Lebanese capital again, in an unusual day with attacks beyond the Dahye, a daily siege target.
Israel detects the arrival of 60 projectiles from Lebanon
The Israeli Army detected the arrival of at least 60 projectiles launched between the morning and afternoon of Monday, which it attributed to the Lebanese Shiite organization Hezbollah, and indicated that most of them were intercepted.
“At 3:00 p.m. (13 GMT), approximately 60 projectiles fired by the terrorist organization Hezbulá crossed from Lebanon to Israel today,” the military body reported in a statement.
Israel’s Emergency Service, the Maguen David Adom (MDA), reported that two women, aged 34 and 65, were injured by the remains of these devices after being intercepted by the Israeli air defense system.
The Army also announced today the destruction of a Shiite arsenal and a tunnel in a mountainous area of southern Lebanon.
In the same statement, he detailed that militants of Hizbulá planned attacks against Israel from that place located in southern Lebanon – whose name was not specified.
Balance of the war between Israel and Hezbullah
More than a year of fire exchange between Israel and Hizbulah around the border with Lebanon has ended the lives of almost 3,500 people in this country, most of them since the Israeli Army intensified its bombing campaign on September 23. The armed forces estimate that about 2,500 were militiamen of the Shiite group.
On the Israeli side, 76 people have died from attacks launched from Lebanon, of which 45 were civilians (6 of them foreigners). In addition, 42 soldiers have died in combat in the south of the neighboring country, where they have maintained a land invasion since last October 1.
Israel confirms that a “precise” bombing in Beirut
The Israeli Army confirmed that it killed Hezbulah spokesman Mohamed Afifi in a “precise” bombing on Sunday in Beirut, who was condemned by Iran and the Lebanese Shiite group.
Afifi was in direct contact with senior officials from Hezbula to carry out “terrorist activities” of the group against Israel, according to a statement from the Israeli Army released early Monday morning.
He points out that Afifi directed Hezbullah’s operations from the field to promote the “propaganda and psychological terror campaign” of the Shiite movement, and accuses him of “glorifying” and “inciting” “terrorist activities” against the State of Israel.
International
Trump Orders Construction of New ‘Golden Fleet’ to Revitalize U.S. Naval Superiority
President Donald Trump issued an executive order this Monday for the immediate construction of two new warships that will bear his name. These vessels will be the pioneers of what he described as the “Golden Fleet,” a future generation of “Trump-class” battleships that he claimed would be “100 times more powerful” than those currently in service.
The announcement took place at his private residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. The President indicated that following the initial two ships, the administration aims to commission up to 25 additional vessels. He is scheduled to meet with Florida-based contractors next week to expedite production, criticizing existing defense firms for failing to deliver results efficiently.
This naval expansion is a cornerstone of Trump’s goal to revitalized the American shipbuilding industry and address the strategic gap between the U.S. and competitors like China.
The move comes amid heightened geopolitical tension. Just last week, Trump ordered the seizure of all sanctioned tankers involved with Venezuela’s “ghost fleet” to cripple the country’s crude oil industry. Since December 10, the U.S. military—deployed in the Caribbean under the guise of counter-narcotics operations—has already detained two tankers linked to Venezuelan oil transport.
International
U.S. Judge Blocks ICE from Re-detaining Salvadoran Erroneously Deported Under Trump Administration
A U.S. federal judge ruled this Monday, December 22, that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is prohibited from re-detaining Salvadoran national Kilmar Ábrego García, who was erroneously deported to El Salvador earlier this year during the administration of President Donald Trump.
During a hearing in Maryland, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ruled that Ábrego García must remain free on bail through the Christmas holidays, concluding that his initial detention lacked a legal basis. The ruling follows a request from his legal team for a temporary restraining order to prevent ICE from carrying out a new arrest.
Earlier this month, on December 11, Judge Xinis ordered his release from a Pennsylvania migrant detention center after determining that the government had detained him without a formal deportation order. In 2019, an immigration judge had already ruled that Ábrego could not be returned to El Salvador because his life was in danger.
Despite that protection, Ábrego García was deported in March 2025 following a raid by the Trump administration. Officials argued at the time that he was a gang member, and he was sent directly to the Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT) in El Salvador. In June, he was returned to the United States to face a new trial for alleged human smuggling—a charge he denies.
On Monday, Judge Xinis also temporarily invalidated a new deportation order issued by an immigration judge following Ábrego’s recent release, granting him legal protection through the coming weeks. His trial is scheduled to begin in Tennessee in January 2026.
International
Fire at substation triggers major blackout in San Francisco
The U.S. city of San Francisco was plunged into darkness Saturday night after a power outage left about 130,000 customers without electricity, although the utility company said service was restored to most users within hours.
Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) said in a statement posted on X that nearly 90,000 homes had their power restored by 9:00 p.m. local time (05:00 GMT on Sunday), while the remaining 40,000 customers were expected to have service restored overnight.
Large areas of the city, a major technology hub with a population of around 800,000, were affected by the blackout, which disrupted public transportation and left traffic lights out of service during the busy weekend before Christmas, a crucial period for retail businesses.
“I know it’s been a difficult day,” San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said in a video posted on social media from the city’s emergency operations center. “There has been progress, but for those still without power, we want to make sure they are safe and checking in on their neighbors,” he added.
Lurie said police officers and firefighters advised residents to stay home as much as possible. He also noted that officers and traffic inspectors were deployed to manage intersections where traffic lights were not functioning.
The mayor confirmed that the outage was caused by a fire at an electrical substation. Parts of the city were also covered in fog, further complicating conditions during the incident.
As a result of the blackout, many businesses were forced to close despite it being the weekend before Christmas. The sudden drop in shopper traffic ahead of the holiday is “devastating” for retailers, the manager of home goods store Black & Gold told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Trump Orders Construction of New ‘Golden Fleet’ to Revitalize U.S. Naval Superiority
U.S. Judge Blocks ICE from Re-detaining Salvadoran Erroneously Deported Under Trump Administration
Fire at substation triggers major blackout in San Francisco
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