Hoping to revive Afghanistan’s struggling economy, the Taliban is mining emeralds, gold and gemstones to get cash flowing. Without U.S. aid to the country, the Islamic fundamentalist group is turning to buyers and investors in China, Russia and Iran. The World Bank estimated last April that Afghanistan’s economy lost more than a quarter of its…

Sen. Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., informed President-elect Donald Trump that he believes Pete Hegseth will have the votes to be confirmed as secretary of defense, according to a report from CBS News. While the message was relayed privately to the president-elect, Thune is saying publicly that he still doesn’t have clarity on how Hegseth’s…

Hamas still holds around 100 hostages that the terrorist group kidnapped from Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Reports abound about how both sides are working towards a deal to free them, but there hasn’t been a formal exchange of hostages in months. On Jan. 5, Reuters reported Hamas and Israel were working on a ceasefire…

South Korea faces an unprecedented political crisis as investigators work against a midnight deadline to detain impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol. Yoon remains in his official residence in Seoul, shielded by the Presidential Security Service, which has repeatedly blocked attempts to enforce arrest and search warrants issued by the Seoul Western District Court. The warrants…

Seoul said that North Korea test fired its first ballistic missile of the new year on Monday, Jan. 6, as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited South Korea. Blinken and his South Korean counterpart condemned the launch during a joint press conference on the same day. He called the test fire “another violation of…

Mexico has stated that it’s not ruling out the possibility of taking in migrants deported by the United States, regardless of nationality. The decision is a reversal from what Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum initially said last month, saying Mexico would push U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to return deportees of other nationalities directly to their countries.…

Israel has confirmed the arrest of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, during a military operation in Gaza. The Israeli military accused Dr. Abu Safiya of being a “terrorist” and holding a rank in Hamas. Rights groups indicate there are “alarming indications” of torture and abuse of Dr. Abu Safiya after…

Las Vegas authorities said they still have no clear motive for why an Army soldier drove a Cybertruck in front of the Trump Tower in Las Vegas on New Year’s Day, intending to kill himself and set off an explosion. Law enforcement is still searching for answers, while Tesla CEO Elon Musk has taken a…

A critical lifeline for Palestinians in the Israel-Hamas war is likely set to be gone soon. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, also known as UNRWA, provides food, water and medicine to Gazans, but the Israeli government is now working to ban the agency, seeing it as a dangerous cover for Hamas. U.N. officials…

Homicides in El Salvador are down 98% since 2015, a noteworthy feat for a small country once plagued by gangs, being previously dubbed “the murder capital of the world.” The Central American country closed out 2024 with its lowest murder rate on record. El Salvador’s president is touting the nation as the safest in the…