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I'm VOA's Joe Ramsey with your worldwide news update.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is threatening action if Israeli hostages still held in Gaza are not released before he's sworn into office. AP correspondent Sagar Meghani reports. In a social media post, Trump says if the hostages are not freed by January 20, there will be "all hell to pay in the Middle East." He writes those responsible will be hit harder than anyone has been hit in American history. It's unclear whether Trump's threatening to directly involve the U.S. military in the Israeli campaign against Hamas. Trump allies say he hopes a cease-fire and hostage release deal is struck before he takes office. The Biden administration has launched a last-ditch effort to try and restart talks between the two sides. Sagar Meghani, Washington. Syrian and Iraqi sources said on Monday that hundreds of fighters from Iran-backed Iraqi militias crossed into Syria overnight to help the government fight rebels who had seized Aleppo last week. Reuters correspondent Zachary Goelman reports. Video and social media purports to show Syrian rebels standing triumphantly atop tanks abandoned by government forces on the outskirts of Aleppo. Their lightning offensive in recent days has threatened territory previously held by the government of President Bashar Assad. Syria's Defense Ministry on Monday released footage it said showed its troops fighting back around the city of Hama. And Iraqi security sources told Reuters hundreds of Iranian-backed militia fighters crossed into Syria overnight to aid the government. On Monday, the head of the internationally recognized Syrian opposition based in Istanbul said he would not stop fighting until Assad committed to a political process. Reuters correspondent Zachary Goelman. This is VOA News. U.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Angola on Monday for his long-awaited first presidential visit to sub-Saharan Africa. His three-day visit to the southern African nation will highlight an ambitious U.S.-backed railway project meant to counter China's influence on the continent of over 1.4 billion people. The White House defended President Biden on Monday over his decision to pardon his son, Hunter, even after he said he would not do so. Reuters correspondent Jillian Kitchener has more. The White House said Biden believed his political opponents would have kept persecuting his son even after he leaves office. A jury in Delaware found Hunter Biden guilty of lying about his drug addiction on a disclosure form that is required to purchase a firearm. In California, he pleaded guilty to criminal charges of failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes while spending lavishly on drugs, sex workers and luxury items. Reuters correspondent Jillian Kitchener. Members of the exiled Russian opposition are looking to organize a common strategy while waiting for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to fulfill his campaign promises to end Russian President Vladimir Putin's war with Ukraine, something they fear could mean a loss of U.S. support. Elizabeth Cherneff narrates this report from Ricardo Marquina. After nearly three years of full-scale war in Ukraine, the Russian opposition to President Vladimir Putin is at a difficult crossroads. With the movement's prominent figures in exile and those left behind forced to remain silent or face imprisonment, the opposition finds itself with no clear leadership. One of Putin's main opponents, Ilya Yashin, welcomes us in Berlin, where he resides after being released from a Russian prison as part of a historic swap in August. "The Russian opposition had a leader, Boris Nemtsov. He was killed. The Russian opposition had another leader, Alexei Navalny. He was arrested and poisoned in prison. Today, there is no current task to join around one person. It seems to me that it is much more important to consolidate around common values." The transfer of power in Washington next month is cause for concern among Russia's opposition in exile, which is waiting to see whether Donald Trump's pledge to quickly achieve peace in Ukraine will represent a radical change in military and political support for Kyiv. For Ricardo Marquina in Berlin, Elizabeth Cherneff, VOA News. That wraps up this update, but the world and news never stop. For additional updates, visit our website, voanews.com. I'm Joe Ramsey, VOA News. |