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US-led coalition issues warning to Houthis, vows ‘consequences’ for Red Sea attacks

A U.S.-led coalition of 13 countries issued a warning to Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen on Wednesday, vowing consequences should the group continue attacks in the Red Sea. The U.S. was joined by the U.K., Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands and New Zealand in Wednesday’s statement. The nations said that the destabilization of trade throughout the Red Sea is “unacceptable” and vowed consequences. “Ongoing Houthi attacks in the Red Sea are illegal, unacceptable, and profoundly destabilizing. There is no lawful justification for intentionally targeting civilian shipping and naval vessels. Attacks on vessels, including commercial vessels, using unmanned aerial vehicles, small boats, and missiles, including the first use of anti-ship ballistic missiles against such vessels, are a direct threat to the freedom of navigation that serves as the bedrock of global trade in one of the world’s most critical waterways,” the nations wrote. “Let our message now be clear: we call for the immediate end of these illegal attacks and release of unlawfully detained vessels and crews. The Houthis will bear the responsibility of the consequences should they continue to threaten lives, the global economy, and free flow of commerce in the region’s critical waterways. We remain committed to the international rules-based order and are determined to hold malign actors accountable for unlawful seizures and attacks,” the statement continued. HAMAS LEADERS LIVED LIKE WEALTHY CELEBRITIES IN GAZA TERROR REIGN PRIOR TO OCT. 7 MASSACRE There have been roughly two dozen attacks on international shipping by the Houthis since Oct. 19. The Houthis say their attacks are aimed at Israel-linked ships to stop the Israeli offensive in Gaza. ISRAEL ANNOUNCES PARTIAL TROOP WITHDRAWAL FROM GAZA IN NEW PHASE OF HAMAS WAR The Houthis have launched missiles at numerous ships in recent weeks and struck a Maersk container vessel on Saturday. Last month, the U.S. announced the formation of Operation Prosperity Guardian, an international initiative to protect commercial ships traveling through the Red Sea. Since then, approximately 1,200 merchant ships have traveled through the region, and none had been hit by drone or missile strikes until Saturday. Currently, there are five warships from the U.S., France and the U.K. patrolling the waters of the southern Red Sea and the western Gulf of Aden. The ships have so far shot down a total of 17 drones and four anti-ship ballistic missiles. Fox News’ Bradford Betz contributed to this report

DHS chief Mayorkas calls out Texas for ‘failure of governance’ amid illegal immigrant crisis and impeachment

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas called out Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday, labeling his migrant busing policy “a remarkable failure of governance.”  Mayorkas, who faces impeachment proceedings in the House for his handling of the illegal immigration crisis, blamed Abbott, a Republican, for failing to cooperate with officials in Democrat-led cities that have been overwhelmed by migrant arrivals.  “Let me identify one fundamental problem here, and that is the fact that we have one governor in the state of Texas who is refusing to cooperate with other governors and other local officials,” Mayorkas said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” Emphasizing the need for the country to “stand united” on immigration, Mayorkas said, “it’s a remarkable failure of governance to refuse to cooperate with one’s fellow local and state officials.”  HOUSE HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE SETS FIRST MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT HEARING Abbot began bussing migrants to New York City and other sanctuary jurisdictions last year in protest of the Biden administration’s border policies. Abbott’s office has said it has sent around 27,000 migrants to New York City since then and has done so to relieve pressure on besieged border communities. The illegal immigration crisis — which broke a record in December with over 300,000 encounters at the border in a single month — has put a strain on Democrat-led cities that lack the resources to house them. New York and Chicago have attempted to unload migrants in surrounding suburban neighborhoods, which in turn have complained that they cannot house them and threatened to send migrant buses back to the Texas-Mexico border.  BIDEN ADMIN EYES MORE DEPORTATION FLIGHTS TO VENEZUELA AS MIGRANT NUMBERS SHATTER RECORDS New York City Mayor Eric Adams said last week his city is at a “breaking point” after 161.000 migrants have arrived since spring 2022, including those who have arrived on their own. The mayor issued an executive order restricting when and where buses may drop off migrants, but a “loophole” in the city’s order was reportedly found after migrants were delivered to train stations in New Jersey, from which they departed for the Big Apple.  “We’re dealing with a bully right now, and everything is on the table that conforms with the law,” Adams said of Abbott on Tuesday.  NEW YORK CITY, CHICAGO SUBURBS TURN THEIR BACKS ON MIGRANT BUSES, SAY THEY CANNOT HANDLE INFLUX Mayorkas told MSNBC that federal teams have been dispatched to Chicago, Denver and New York to assist in managing migrant arrivals and ensure that migrants eligible to work receive their work authorization as quickly as possible.  “We’ve also successfully sought some funding from Congress to assist cities, and in our supplemental budget request we’ve requested additional funding for that purpose,” Mayorkas said.  House Republicans have blamed Mayorkas as the border crisis has worsened under his leadership. The Homeland Security Committee will hold its first impeachment hearing into the secretary on Jan. 10 as Republicans accuse Mayorkas of refusing to enforce immigration laws. Mayorkas said he will “certainly” cooperate with the committee’s investigation and “continue to do my work as well.”  Fox News Digital’s Timothy H.J. Nerozzi, Anders Hagstrom, Houston Keene and Adam Shaw contributed to this report.

South Africa trail India after 23 wickets fall on frenetic day of cricket

The second Test between South Africa and India gets off to a manic start as both teams suffer batting collapses. India has suffered a spectacular collapse, losing six batters for no runs as 23 wickets fell on a crazy opening day of their second Test against South Africa at Newlands. Resuming on 153-4 after tea, the home team ran through India’s batting order to bowl them out for 153 in the space of 11 deliveries with Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi and Nandre Burger snapping up three wickets each. South Africa’s stand-in skipper Dean Elgar was at a loss to explain a frenetic opening day but said South Africa will fancy their chances of victory if they can set India a target of 100 or more. “I would take 100 all day,” Elgar told reporters. “When our bowlers click, they can rip through any batting lineup, and on this wicket, that is possible.” Elgar was out for 4 and 12 in his final Test before retirement, having won the toss and elected to bat first on what he knew would be a tricky surface. “I didn’t know it would play in that way, though. With the naked eye, it did not look so bad,” he said. “But it’s one of those wickets where if you knuckle down, you never know what can happen. Earlier, South Africa were bowled out for just 55 in 23.2 overs, sliding to their lowest total since being readmitted to Test cricket in 1991 after Mohammed Siraj claimed a Test best haul of 6-15. South Africa then reached the close of play on 62-3 in their second innings, trailing by 36 runs overall with Aiden Markram unbeaten on 36 and David Bedingham seven not out. India were looking good in its first innings when Rohit Sharma (39) and Shubman Gill (36) were putting on 55 for the second wicket, the day’s highest partnership. Burger removed Sharma before Gill added 33 for the third wicket with Virat Kohli, then had Gill caught in the gully and dismissed Shreyas Iyer for a two-ball duck. Kohli went on to make 46, sharing a stand of 43 for the fifth wicket with KL Rahul as India went to tea in a seemingly healthy position. However, wickets fell thick and fast after the interval. Ngidi tested Rahul with extra bounce, and he was caught behind. Two balls later, Ravindra Jadeja went to the same bowler, and two balls later, Ngidi snared Jasprit Bumrah. Rabada captured Kohli’s wicket, Siraj was run out and the innings ended when Prasidh Krishna was caught at slip. There were five ducks among the last six dismissed batters. Earlier, South Africa had suffered their own embarrassing collapse before lunch. Paceman Siraj registered his third five-wicket haul in his 23rd Test and his first against South Africa. Bumrah also took 2-25 while Mukesh Kumar picked up two wickets without conceding a run in 2.2 overs. In South Africa’s second innings, Markram came out to attack, hitting six fours in 51 balls. But Elgar was caught at slip for 12 off Kumar, who also removed Tony de Zorzi for one, while Tristan Stubbs was also out for one. South Africa won the opening match of the two-match series by an innings and 32 runs. Adblock test (Why?)

Rory McIlroy would consider playing LIV if it turns into ‘IPL of golf’

McIlroy has softened his stance on LIV Golf and says he has accepted it as ‘part of our sport now’. Rory McIlroy says if LIV Golf was modelled like cricket’s Indian Premier League (IPL) and staged over two months, then he would consider playing in it. The 34-year-old Northern Irishman has been a vocal opponent of the Saudi Arabia-funded LIV Golf, once saying he would retire rather than play in it “if it was the last place to play golf on earth”. However, he has toned it down of late – especially after his friend, fellow Ryder Cup star and formerly a stringent critic of LIV Jon Rahm decamped and is reportedly set to earn upwards of $566.4m. Attracting some of world cricket’s top stars with bumper salaries, the IPL helped make Twenty20 hugely popular, attracting hundreds of millions of viewers. LIV’s circuit is based around team events with its 48 players split into 12 teams. “I would love LIV to turn into the IPL of golf,” McIlroy told the Stick to Football Podcast. “They take two months of calendar. You go and do this team stuff and a bit different and is a different format. “If they were to do something like that I would say ‘yeah that sounds like fun’ because you are working within the ecosystem.” McIlroy previously accused some of those who jumped ship as being duplicitous, but he is beginning to mellow and says it is no longer his job to fight the battle. “I think at this point, I was maybe a little judgmental of the guys who went to LIV golf at the start, and I think it was a bit of a mistake on my part because I now realise that not everyone is in my position or in Tiger Wood’s position,” the former world number one said. “We all turn professional to make a living playing the sports that we do, and I think that’s what I realised over the last two years. I can’t judge people for making that decision.” ‘Part of our sport now’ McIlroy said he had “accepted” that LIV is “part of our sport now”, but he takes issue with the huge sums being paid to players when that could be used to invest in the sport. “The thing I have come to realise is if you have got people, or a sovereign wealth fund, wanting to spend money in your sport – that is ultimately a good thing,” McIlroy said. “But you just want to get them to spend it the right way and spend it on things that are important in the game. “Instead of giving someone $100m, why don’t you put $50m into grassroots programmes for the R&A or USPGA? Spending that money to actually grow the game and not just buy talent would be a way better way.” The four-time major winner said he hoped the divisions sparked by the breakaway would be healed but he feared there was a lack of will to do so. “I hope everyone comes back together,” he said. “You have got guys on both sides that don’t want it to happen. “The LIV guys don’t want to come back to play on the PGA Tour because they don’t think they have been treated very well. “Some of the PGA Tour guys don’t want to see those other guys. “People need to put their egos and feelings aside and come back together and we all move forward because that would be a good thing for golf.” Adblock test (Why?)

Russia, Ukraine exchange hundreds of prisoners in largest release of war

More than 470 prisoners of war return home on both sides after the swap deals stalled in the latter half of 2023. Russia and Ukraine have exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in the biggest single release of captives since Russia’s invasion began in February 2022. Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday that 230 of its prisoners were released while Russia said 248 of its soldiers were returned after mediation by the United Arab Emirates. While the two sides have gone through several exchanges during the war, swap deals stalled in the latter half of last year. The latest exchange was the first in almost five months. “More than 200 of our soldiers and civilians have been returned from Russian captivity,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced in a post on the Telegram messaging app that included a video of uniformed men celebrating. The prisoner swap on January 3, 2024, was the largest of the Russia-Uraine war [Head of Ukraine’s Presidential Office Andriy Yermak via Telegram/Handout via Reuters] Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said 230 Ukrainian prisoners, including six civilians, had been released, marking what he said was the 49th exchange between the two sides. Kyiv said this was the largest documented swap of troops so far. Some of the Ukrainians had been held since 2022. Among them were some who fought in milestone battles for Ukraine’s Snake Island and port city of Mariupol. The Russian Ministry of Defence said 248 of its soldiers had been returned after “complex” negotiations by the UAE. Russian officials offered no other details of the exchange. Attacks on Belgorod Also on Wednesday, Russia said it shot down 12 missiles fired at one of its southern regions bordering Ukraine. The governor of Russia’s Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, said the situation “continues to remain tense” after Ukraine launched repeated missile and drone attacks. While there have been no reports on casualty numbers from the latest attack, Gladkov said authorities were evacuating residents near possibly unexploded munitions with bomb disposal units called in to evaluate the danger. Defence Ministry technicians were working on disposing of an unexploded projectile, and about 600 residents from 323 houses within a 500-metre (550-yard) radius had been evacuated, he said. Gladkov added that several other villages also came under fire in Wednesday’s attack and a power line was knocked out. Russia’s Defence Ministry said Ukraine fired six Tochka-U ballistic missiles and six guided missiles from a Vilkha heavy multiple rocket launcher. Ukraine has escalated its attacks on Belgorod over the New Year period after Russia launched some of its most significant attacks on Ukraine since the war began. On Tuesday, Kyiv said Moscow had launched more than 300 attack drones and missiles of various kinds across Ukraine since Friday. Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised that Kyiv’s attacks on Belgorod would “not go unpunished”. Adblock test (Why?)

Former U.S. Rep. Mayra Flores accused of cribbing others’ pictures of Mexican food as her own cooking

Flores, who is challenging U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez for her old seat, is being accused of routinely stealing stylish photos of Mexican campfire cooking and passing them off as her own idyllic life on a ranch.

Florida Surgeon General calls for halt to COVID-19 vaccine usage after FDA said he spread misinformation

Florida State Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo is calling on healthcare providers to halt the use of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines, citing purported health risks labeled “misinformation” by federal officials.  In a bulletin issued Wednesday, Ladapo claimed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not shown evidence that coronavirus vaccines manufactured by Pfizer and Moderna have been assessed for “nucleic acid contaminants” that could cause cancer. Disputing claims by the FDA that such risk is “implausible,” Ladapo called for an immediate stoppage to the use of the approved mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. “I am calling for a halt to the use of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines,” the Florida surgeon general said in a statement.  “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have always played it fast and loose with COVID-19 vaccine safety, but their failure to test for DNA integration with the human genome — as their own guidelines dictate — when the vaccines are known to be contaminated with foreign DNA is intolerable,” he asserted.  NEW COVID VACCINE PUSH IS ‘ANTI-HUMAN,’ SAYS FLORIDA SURGEON GENERAL: ‘MAJOR SAFETY CONCERN’ A top FDA official last month pushed back against Ladapo and what the FDA called “the proliferation of misinformation” on vaccine safety. Ladapo raised concerns about the agency’s approval of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in a Dec. 6 letter to FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert M. Califf and CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen. His letter cited a pre-print study that, according to the surgeon general, showed there are “billions of DNA fragments per dose of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 mRNA vaccines.”  Pointing to FDA guidance on vaccines that “use novel methods of delivery regarding DNA integration,” Ladapo questioned whether the Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines had been assessed to meet FDA’s standards, noting a potential risk of cancer. In a written response, Dr. Peter Marks, director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, wrote that it is “implausible” that residual small DNA fragments could find their way into the nucleus of human cells and then alter DNA to cause cancer. NEW COVID VARIANT JN.1 NOW COMPRISES UP TO 30% OF US CASES: CDC “We would like to make clear that based on a thorough assessment of the entire manufacturing process, FDA is confident in the quality, safety, and effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines,” Marks wrote in a Dec. 14 letter. “Additionally, with over a billion doses of the mRNA vaccines administered, no safety concerns related to residual DNA have been identified.”  Marks went on to say that the chief challenge regulators face “is the ongoing proliferation of misinformation and disinformation about these vaccines which results in vaccine hesitancy that lowers vaccine uptake.” However, Ladapo contends FDA did not answer his questions.  “The FDA’s response does not provide data or evidence that the DNA integration assessments they recommended themselves have been performed,” the surgeon general said in a statement. “Instead, they pointed to genotoxicity studies — which are inadequate assessments for DNA integration risk. In addition, they obfuscated the difference between the SV40 promoter/enhancer and SV40 proteins, two elements that are distinct.”  COLD, FLU, COVID-19 AND RSV: HOW TO IDENTIFY THE DIFFERING SYMPTOMS AND STAY SAFE “DNA integration poses a unique and elevated risk to human health and to the integrity of the human genome, including the risk that DNA integrated into sperm or egg gametes could be passed onto offspring of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine recipients,” Ladapo continued. “If the risks of DNA integration have not been assessed for mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, these vaccines are not appropriate for use in human beings.”  The FDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  In a statement, Pfizer reiterated that regulatory agencies across the globe have authorized the use of its mRNA vaccine and found it safe and effective.  “These authorizations are based on robust and independent evaluation of the scientific data on quality, safety and efficacy, including our landmark phase 3 clinical trial. Data from real world studies complement the clinical trial data and provide additional evidence that the vaccine provides effective protection against severe disease,” Pfizer told Fox News Digital.  “Over the course of this deadly pandemic, mRNA vaccines have saved hundreds of thousands of lives, tens of billions of dollars in health care costs, and enabled people worldwide to go about their lives more freely. We have delivered more than 4 billion vaccines to 181 countries and territories in every region of the world.” Moderna did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  Ladapo has previously clashed with the FDA and CDC. In March, the health agencies accused him of misleading the public on COVID-19 vaccine side effects by highlighting rare adverse events and downplaying the benefits of vaccination.

Inspector general report casts doubt on Biden’s ambitious electric bus program as ‘delays’ could last years

President Biden’s ambitious plans to accelerate the adoption of electric school buses in coming years is facing significant barriers, according to an inspector general report. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Inspector General’s audit determined that the agency’s Clean School Bus Program was largely dependent on utility companies’ ability to increase power supplies, according to its report published late last month. The program may also face significant delays, it added, without construction of additional charging stations. “The Agency may be unable to effectively achieve program goals unless it can ensure that school districts will be able to establish the infrastructure necessary to support clean bus and charging purchases,” the EPA inspector general concluded. “There could be delays in utilities constructing the needed charging stations to make the buses fully operational in a timely manner.” “While early coordination with utilities is not a requirement, it could prevent the Agency from achieving its objective to remove older diesel buses and replace them with clean buses,” the report continued. “The increased demand on manufacturers and utility companies may impact the timeliness of replacing diesel buses and ultimately may delay program health and environmental benefits.” CLIMATE ACTIVISTS WHO CHASED BUTTIGIEG, POWELL OFF STAGES REWARDED WITH PRIVATE WHITE HOUSE MEETING Entities interviewed by the inspector general’s office specifically expressed concern about the ability of utility providers to bring power lines and transformers to school districts with electric buses. While some power providers have experience with electric bus infrastructure, they said they had never built such infrastructure at scale. Establishing charging stations and connecting them to the regional power grid could take as much as two years, according to the report. Additionally, bus charging stations that are expected to support more than 25 buses in larger school districts face other challenges since they require different technology.  BIDEN ALLIES TURN AGAINST KEY PART OF HIS CLIMATE AGENDA “Clean bus charging sites that need to support 25 buses or more often require a different transformer and switch gear, which take a year to construct. A utility provider we interviewed explained that it is hard to find transformers in the United States and it has backlogged orders because of the high demand,” the report stated. In a statement to Fox News Digital, the EPA said it reviewed the audit, but declined to comment on its specific findings. “The OIG initiated this audit to determine whether potential supply chain or production delays could impact the EPA’s efforts to disburse and manage clean school bus program funds pursuant to section 71101 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” the agency said. “EPA thanks the OIG for the considerations outlined and notes, EPA does not have recommendations to address.” The EPA’s Clean School Bus Program was created under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which President Biden signed into law in November 2021. The legislation provides $5 billion in federal grants through 2026 to replace existing diesel-powered school buses nationwide. The agency has projected the program will fund thousands of new electric school buses. Under the first round of clean bus rebates under the program, EPA awarded a total of $965 million to 389 school districts across the country. The EPA announced the second round of funding, totaling at least $500 million, in September. “Thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, more students, teachers, and staff are breathing easier this school year as brand-new clean school buses are hitting the road in communities across America,”said EPA Administrator Michael Regan. “We’ve seen incredible demand for this program from school districts that want to benefit from the transition to cleaner school buses, leading to cost savings for districts, better air quality, and less pollution.” “Clean school buses mean clean air and a brighter future for our students,” added Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. “Clean air, tackling climate change, and cost savings is a win-win-win.”

RFK Jr. meets requirements to appear on first 2024 general election ballot as campaign season heats up

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has officially met the requirements to appear on his first 2024 presidential election ballot. According to election officials in Utah, Kennedy met the 1,000-signature requirement to appear on the state’s general election ballot well before the March 5 deadline, and once he files as a candidate, will be included. The positive news for Kennedy is a sign his campaign isn’t slowing down as the country enters the presidential election year, something that could further complicate the race for President Biden and former President Trump as polls show a likely 2020 rematch. BIDEN CONTINUES BLEEDING SUPPORT FROM KEY VOTER GROUPS AS DEMS SOUND ALARM OVER 2024: POLL Kennedy first launched a campaign for the Democrat presidential nomination in April, but became an independent candidate in October after the Democratic National Committee refused to hold any primary debates. Recent polls have shown sizable support for Kennedy that draws from voters who would otherwise back Biden or Trump, including in a Fox News poll released ahead of Christmas. That poll found 41% support for Trump, compared to 37% for Biden and 14% for Kennedy. Independent candidate Cornel West and Green Party candidate Jill Stein received 2% and 3%, respectively. MAINE DEMOCRAT WHO BARRED TRUMP FROM BALLOT SAID VOTER ID LAWS ‘ROOTED IN WHITE SUPREMACY’ Another poll released just days earlier found Kennedy actually playing the role of spoiler for Biden’s hopes at winning a second term. His inclusion in the poll grew Trump’s lead over Biden from 2% to 5%, while garnering 16% support himself. Ballot access requirements vary from state to state, but Kennedy’s allies have vowed to spend millions to ensure he appears on as many state ballots as possible. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Would be great if Nitish Kumar is made INDIA bloc convenor: Bihar Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav

The young RJD leader, whose party is the largest constituent of the ruling Mahagathbandhan in Bihar.