Book review: Another fine FBI thriller with agents Sherlock and Savich

Reuters
Indonesia plans pardons for Papua prisoners, including separatist rebels
Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto is considering pardons for prisoners linked to armed organisations in the restive easternmost province of Papua, including separatists, providing they renounce violence and abandon secessionist agendas, a senior minister said on Wednesday. Prabowo plans to grant amnesty to those convicted and awaiting trial if they pledge loyalty to the Indonesian state and "stop all activities aimed to separate Papua from Indonesia", senior minister for law and human rights affairs, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, told Reuters.
Associated Press
Mittens the cat becomes an accidental frequent flyer after getting mistakenly left on a plane
A Maine coon cat named Mittens became an accidental jetsetter this month when her cage was overlooked in a plane cargo hold and she made three trips in 24 hours between New Zealand and Australia. Mittens, 8, was booked for one-way travel with her family from Christchurch, New Zealand to their new home in Melbourne, Australia on Jan. 13. It was then that ground staff told Neas the plane had returned to New Zealand — with Mittens still on board.
Associated Press
Syria's southern rebels loom large as the country's new rulers try to form a national army
As insurgents raced across Syria in a surprise offensive launched in the country's northwest late last year, officials from several countries backing either the rebels or Syria’s government met in Qatar on what to do. According to people briefed on the Dec. 7 meeting, officials from Turkey, Russia, Iran and a handful of Arab countries agreed that the insurgents would stop their advance in Homs, the last major city north of Damascus, and that internationally mediated talks would take place with Syrian leader Bashar Assad on a political transition.
Reuters
Clash of the handouts as Modi's BJP seeks to reclaim Delhi after decades
Having unexpectedly won two Indian state votes late last year, in big part due to a slew of handouts, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party is deploying the same playbook in a bid to wrest back Delhi for the first time in nearly three decades next month. Standing in the way of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is a smaller but bitter rival that has ruled the national capital for a decade through largesse such as free water and power for the poor - its main voter base. The BJP and Delhi's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have often been at loggerheads over how to run the city.
Reuters
China CATL's shares dip after it warns of revenue fall, slowing profit growth
Shares in CATL, the world's largest battery maker, dropped nearly 4% on Wednesday after the Chinese company warned that its annual revenue fell for the first time last year and that profit grew at its slowest pace since 2019. CATL said in a securities filing late on Tuesday that its revenue fell between 8.7% and 11.2% last year after it adjusted product prices to reflect a decline in the price of raw materials such as lithium carbonate, leading to a decline in operating income although sales volumes grew. The annual revenue fall would be the first since CATL started releasing its operating figures in 2015.
AFP
Trump targets opponents, faces criticism from cathedral pulpit
Donald Trump targeted opponents and touted a huge AI project Tuesday in a shock-and-awe start to his second presidency -- but faced defiance including a rare public dressing down from a bishop.Trump however faced fresh criticism from an unexpected and powerful voice Tuesday when a Washington bishop told him from the pulpit that he was sowing fear among America's immigrants and LGBTQ people.
AFP
S. Korea to overhaul some airports after Jeju Air crash
South Korean authorities said on Wednesday they will change the concrete barriers used for navigation at some airports across the country after the Jeju Air crash that left 179 people dead.South Korean and US investigators are still probing the cause of the crash, which prompted national mourning with memorials set up across the country.
NBC News
4 arrested in Ohio amid probe of upscale burglaries, some at sports stars' homes
Four men from Chile have been charged in an ongoing investigation of nationwide burglaries at the homes of the rich and sometimes famous, according to court documents.
Associated Press
Fire risk and strong winds continue in Southern California with potential rain on the horizon
Parched Southern California was forecast to face more dangerous winds on Wednesday but could get some badly needed rain this weekend, dampening the prospects of another round of killer wildfires though even a small amount of precipitation could could create new challenges like toxic ash runoff. Los Angeles officials were preparing for that prospect even as a small number of residents were allowed to return to the devastated Pacific Palisades and Altadena areas and firefighters quickly controlled small blazes that broke out. Mayor Karen Bass issued an executive order Tuesday to expedite cleanup efforts in burn areas and mitigate the environmental impacts of fire-related pollutants.
AFP
Panama complains to UN over Trump canal threat, starts audit
Panama has complained to the United Nations over US President Donald Trump's "worrying" threat to seize the Panama Canal, even as it launched an audit of the Hong Kong-linked operator of two ports on the interoceanic waterway.The company, part of Hutchison Ports, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings, operates the ports of Balboa and Cristobal on either end of the canal.
Associated Press
Winter storm that dropped record-breaking snow in New Orleans spreads into Florida and the Carolinas
A major winter storm that slammed Texas and blanketed the northern Gulf Coast with record-breaking snow moved east overnight, spreading heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain across parts of the Florida Panhandle, Georgia and eastern Carolinas. The weather warning areas included big cities like Jacksonville, Florida, which is expected to see snow, sleet and accumulating ice into Wednesday.
Associated Press
GOP-led states are emboldened to keep rolling back trans rights. Democrats struggle with a response
Republicans and Democrats in Kansas agree that concerns about the economy drove voters to support President Donald Trump by a 16% margin. “It carries so much more emotional weight,” said Republican state Rep. Ron Bryce, a doctor from southeastern Kansas.
Reuters
Turkey detains nine people over ski resort hotel fire that killed 76
Turkey has detained nine people, including the owner of the hotel, in connection with a deadly fire that claimed the lives of 76 people and injured dozens at a ski resort in western Turkey, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said early Wednesday. Yerlikaya also reported that the bodies of 45 victims had been handed over to their families, while DNA tests were being conducted to identify the remaining bodies at the forensic institute.
TODAY
Is it better to run faster or longer? Experts reveal which has more health benefits
Whether you're trying running for the first time or switching up your workout routine for the new year, you may be wondering whether it's better to run longer or faster.
TODAY
Six planets will be visible in the night sky this month. How to see the 'parade of planets'
What is the parade of planets? How to see Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune this January and what days and times. Plus astrological effects.
Associated Press
Republicans renew efforts to limit people in US illegally from census count
Republican efforts to exclude people in the U.S. illegally from numbers used to divvy up congressional seats among states have begun anew, with four Republican state attorneys general suing to alter the once-a-decade head count even before President Donald Trump’s second term in office began Monday. Trump joined in the battle immediately upon returning to office, signing an executive order on Monday that rescinded a Biden administration order and signaled the possibility of a push by his new administration to change the 2030 census.
Associated Press
A chef lost his dream home in the Palisades Fire. He keeps his spirits up by feeding others
The Pacific Palisades home where chef Daniel Shemtob and his wife dreamed of raising a family is now nothing more than a cratered pit of twisted metal and rubble. Gone are the gourmet kitchen, the nursery with the baby giraffe and elephant wallpaper, the half-century-old olive trees in the yard. It would be easy for the two-time Food Network competition winner to dwell on the loss of the home, which he and his wife, Elyse, moved into about eight months ago, leasing with an option to buy.
Associated Press
Trump finds new ways to flex presidential power after returning to White House
President Donald Trump is swiftly breaching the traditional boundaries of presidential power as he returns to the White House, bringing to bear a lifetime of bending the limits in courthouses, boardrooms and politics to forge an expansive view of his authority. Democrats and civil rights organizations are rallying to fight Trump in court, but legal battles could drag on before slowing the president down. Meanwhile, Trump is drafting a new blueprint for the presidency, one that demonstrates the primacy of blunt force in a democratic system predicated on checks and balances between the branches of government.
CNN
White House orders government DEI employees to be placed on leave
Employees in any federal diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility offices will be placed on paid administrative leave “effective immediately,” according to a post from White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
CNN
Why Trump’s two days in the White House already feel like a full term
It already feels like he’s been back for months.

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