- Trump picks General Mattis to be Secretary of Defense. Mattis will need a waiver from Congress before assuming the role. Current law requires that the Secretary of Defense be retired from the military for at least seven years, Mattis has only been retired for three. [Link]
- Central bank created inflation is leading to deceptively smaller chocolate bars. [Link]
- A 24-year-old man was arrested for refusing to give a police officer his birthdate. The man was collecting signatures so he could run for public office when the police officer approached him and asked for his name and birthdate. The police officer and her superior officer are currently on paid leave. [Link]
- 70% of immigrants admitted to the US under Obama’s minor refugee program are adults. [Link]
- Both houses of Congress have now passed a bill that will renew sanctions on Iran for another ten years. [Link]
- US Coast Gaurd Commandant Admiral is proposing that the Coast Gaurd operate in the South China Sea. [Link]
- French President, Hollande, will not seek reelection in next year’s election. Hollande currently has a 90% disapproval rating. [Link]
- Last month, the Taliban seized weapons the US gave to the Afghan army. [Link]
- The Islamic State in Libya has almost lost in Sirte. The Islamic State now holds about two square blocks of the city. [Link]
- Militias are fighting for control of Libya’s capital city, Tripoli. [Link]
- The US admits to killing 24 civilians in Manbij, Syria. Local monitoring groups say this number is too low. [Link]
- In Yemen, children are starving to death as both sides of the civil war block the flow of food and medical supplies into the country. Saudi airstrikes and naval blockade prevent food and supplies from entering. The Houthi block aid from reaching medical facilities. Families are being forced to choose between getting their severely malnourished children the medical care they need to prevent starvation and feeding their other children. [Link]
