While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Dec 16
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Rudy Giuliani must pay more than US$148 million (S$196 million) in damages to two former Georgia election workers he defamed.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Giuliani must pay almost $200m to Georgia election workers
Rudy Giuliani must pay more than US$148 million (S$196 million) in damages to two former Georgia election workers he defamed through false accusations that they helped rig the 2020 election against Donald Trump, a jury decided on Dec 15.
The jury in federal court in Washington, DC, found that Giuliani owes the workers, Ms Wandrea “Shaye” Moss and her mother, Ms Ruby Freeman, roughly US$73 million to compensate them for the reputational and emotional harm they suffered and US$75 million to punish the former Trump lawyer and one-time New York major for his conduct.
A federal judge determined before the trial that Giuliani was liable for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and civil conspiracy.
The only question before the jury was how much in damages to impose on Giuliani, who helped Republican former President Trump advance his false claims of a stolen 2020 election.
Russia probe material went missing as Trump left office
Material from a binder with highly classified information connected to the investigation into Russian efforts to meddle in the 2016 election disappeared in the final days of Donald Trump’s presidency, two people familiar with the matter said.
The disappearance of the material, known as the “Crossfire Hurricane” binder for the name given to the investigation by the FBI, vexed national security officials and set off concerns that sensitive information could be inappropriately shared, one of the people said.
The material’s disappearance was reported earlier on Dec 15 by CNN. The matter was so concerning to officials that the Senate Intelligence Committee was briefed about it last year, a US official said.
Israel troops kill 3 hostages mistaking them for ‘threat’
The Israeli army said its troops shot and killed three hostages on Dec 15 after “mistakenly” identifying them as a threat.
“During combat in Shejaiya (a battleground neighbourhood of Gaza City), the IDF (army) mistakenly identified three Israeli hostages as a threat. As a result, the troops fired toward them and they were killed,” the army said, in a statement.
The army identified the hostages as Yotam Haim and Alon Shamriz, both taken from Kibbutz Kfar Aza during Hamas’s Oct 7 attack, and Samer El-Talalqa, who was taken from Kibbutz Nir Am.
EU leaders vow to overcome Ukraine aid block
EU leaders on Dec 15 pledged to find a way around Hungary’s veto on a €50 billion (S$70 billion) aid package for Ukraine, after Prime Minister Viktor Orban blocked the desperately needed support.
The 27 leaders will reconvene for an emergency summit early next year to try to hammer out a deal after intense wrangling at a two-day meeting in Brussels failed to budge Mr Orban.
The failure to commit more aid to prop up Ukraine’s budget over the next four years dealt a blow to Kyiv, even after the European Union took the symbolic step of agreeing to open membership talks.
Ja Morant ready for NBA return after of 25-game ban
Two-time NBA All-Star guard Ja Morant says he endured “horrible days” during a 25-game ban and prepares to return to the Memphis Grizzlies with a new outlook on life.
Morant spoke after a Grizzlies workout on Dec 15, after being suspended for the first 25 games of the NBA season following two social media videos showing him displaying a gun went public.
“Definitely tough. Horrible days,” Morant said of his ban. “But the support I had throughout this process, it definitely helped me a lot. It was pretty much all I could lean on.”
