While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Nov 19
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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks to the news media in the briefing room at the State Department in Washington, DC, on Nov 18, 2019.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
US softens stance on Israeli settlements, draws Palestinian outrage
The United States on Monday effectively backed Israel's right to build Jewish settlements on the occupied West Bank by abandoning its four-decade position that they were "inconsistent with international law."
The announcement by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was a victory for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is struggling to remain in power after two inconclusive Israeli elections this year, and a defeat for the Palestinians.
Pompeo said US statements about the settlements on the West Bank - which Israel captured during a 1967 war - had been inconsistent.
He added that Democrat President Jimmy Carter in 1978 found they were not consistent with international law and Republican President Ronald Reagan in 1981 said he did not view them as inherently illegal.
As violence spikes, some Hong Kong activists see salvation in British citizenship
More than two decades after Britain handed control over Hong Kong to Beijing, a British passport status that until recently appeared to have fallen out of time is suddenly gaining new relevance.
As the Hong Kong leadership - backed by Beijing - is increasingly cracking down on pro-democracy protests in the semiautonomous territory, some argue that the West's most credible leverage over the Chinese leadership there hinges on the so-called British National Overseas (BNO) passport category.
Migration consultancies in Hong Kong have reported a surge in interest there in moving abroad in recent months, pulling Britain in particular further into the confrontation between pro-democracy protesters and Beijing.
Trump's impeachment hearings roll on, but many Americans tune out
In this volatile political moment, information, it would seem, has never been more crucial. The country is in the midst of impeachment proceedings against a president for the third time in modern history. A high-stakes election is less than a year away.
But just when information is needed most, to many Americans it feels most elusive. The rise of social media; the proliferation of information online, including news designed to deceive; and a flood of partisan news are leading to exhaustion with news itself.
Add to that a president with a documented record of making false statements, and the result is a strange new normal: Many people are numb and disoriented, struggling to discern what is real in a sea of slant, fake and fact.
Taylor Swift cleared to perform old hits at American Music Awards
Taylor Swift will be able to perform her past hits at an upcoming awards show after her old label, Big Machine Label Group, reached a deal with Dick Clark Productions, the producer of the American Music Awards.
Swift plans to perform later this month at the American Music Awards, where she will be crowned artist of the decade.
Swift, 29, has won more than a dozen AMAs in her career, including artist of the year in 2018. She had claimed Big Machine wouldn't allow her to perform any of the songs she recorded for that label.
Kylie Jenner sells $816 million stake in beauty line to Coty
Coty Inc agreed to pay US$600 million (S$816 million) in cash for a majority stake in Kylie Jenner's cosmetics line, the latest move by a major beauty company to acquire trendy brands that appeal to a younger clientele.
The makeup and fragrance giant will have overall responsibility for the portfolio, while Jenner, part of the Kardashian clan, will lead creative efforts and communications, the companies said Monday.
The deal values Kylie Cosmetics, which Jenner, 22, started in 2015 as a line of lip kits when she was still a teenager, at about US$1.2 billion.
