US News
A US intelligence report making the case for Russian election interference, expected to be presented to President-Elect Donald Trump later today, reportedly states that senior Russian government officials celebrated Trump's victory. The report also supposedly identifies the Russia-linked "actors" who gave hacked DNC emails to WikiLeaks. —The Washington PostEx-CIA Director Resigns as Trump Advisor
Former CIA director James Woolsey Jr. has abruptly resigned from Trump's transition team. Woolsey was reportedly "uncomfortable" about developments since the election, including Trump's suggestion he may restructure the office of the Director of National Intelligence. —Yahoo News
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Four Guantánamo Prisoners Sent to Saudi Arabia
Four Yemeni prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay have been released and sent to Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon has announced. The four men had been suspected of ties to al Qaeda but were never charged with any crime. There are now 55 prisoners still being held at Guantánamo, with 19 cleared for release having undergone a security review. —CNNPaul Ryan Vows to Defund Planned Parenthood
House Speaker Paul Ryan said Republicans will attempt to defund Planned Parenthood because his party is "standing for life." Ryan explained that to achieve this goal, the GOP will use a process called "reconciliation," which allows measures related to spending to pass the Senate with a simple majority of 51 rather than the 60 required for many bills under filibuster rules. —VICE NewsUN Says Severing Water Supply in Syria Is a War Crime
The UN has warned that any deliberate cutting of water supplies to millions of people in the Syrian capital of Damascus would amount to a war crime. Water supplies coming from the rebel-held area of Wadi Barada have been cut since December 22. Rebels have blamed bombing by Syrian government forces, while the government has accused rebels of sabotage.—Al JazeeraBangladeshi Police Kill Cafe Attack Suspect in Gunfight
Bangladesh police have shot and killed two Islamist militants in a gunfight in the country's capital of Dhaka, including the man accused of organizing last year's terrorist attack on a cafe in which 20 hostages were killed. Nurul Islam Marjan, the 30-year-old commander of a faction of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, was on a wanted list. —Reuters
Four Yemeni prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay have been released and sent to Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon has announced. The four men had been suspected of ties to al Qaeda but were never charged with any crime. There are now 55 prisoners still being held at Guantánamo, with 19 cleared for release having undergone a security review. —CNNPaul Ryan Vows to Defund Planned Parenthood
House Speaker Paul Ryan said Republicans will attempt to defund Planned Parenthood because his party is "standing for life." Ryan explained that to achieve this goal, the GOP will use a process called "reconciliation," which allows measures related to spending to pass the Senate with a simple majority of 51 rather than the 60 required for many bills under filibuster rules. —VICE News
International News
The UN has warned that any deliberate cutting of water supplies to millions of people in the Syrian capital of Damascus would amount to a war crime. Water supplies coming from the rebel-held area of Wadi Barada have been cut since December 22. Rebels have blamed bombing by Syrian government forces, while the government has accused rebels of sabotage.—Al JazeeraBangladeshi Police Kill Cafe Attack Suspect in Gunfight
Bangladesh police have shot and killed two Islamist militants in a gunfight in the country's capital of Dhaka, including the man accused of organizing last year's terrorist attack on a cafe in which 20 hostages were killed. Nurul Islam Marjan, the 30-year-old commander of a faction of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, was on a wanted list. —Reuters
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Russia Begins Withdrawal of Forces from Syria Conflict
Russia has announced its withdrawal of an aircraft carrier and several warships from the Mediterranean as part of a drawdown of military involvement in Syria. Military commander Valery Gerasimov said the decision had been made by "the supreme commander of the Russian armed forces, Vladimir Putin." Gerasimov explained Russia would retain the capacity for airstrikes in Syria. This expected move follows the announcement of Russian- and Turkish-organized peace talks between some of the factions in the civil war, set to be held in Kazakhstan. —The GuardianJapan Recalls Ambassador from South Korea over Statue
Japan has withdrawn its ambassador to South Korea over a statue depicting one of the women forced into prostitution during World War II by the Japanese military. The statue of a barefoot woman was installed by protestors in the city of Busan. Japan said it breaks a reparations deal made in 2015 that was supposed to resolve the long-standing grievance over "comfort women." —BBC NewsSnapchat Accused of Fake Stats by Former Employee
Former Snapchat head of growth and engagement Anthony Pompliano is suing the mobile app, alleging that he was fired for raising concerns about fraudulent stats being used in the build-up to Snapchat's IPO. The version of his complaint that was available publicly was redacted to remove any indications about which stats were allegedly manipulated. —USA TodayChance the Rapper Ranks Kanye West Albums
Chance the Rapper has sparked a Twitter debate about Kanye West's best albums after ranking his friend and collaborator's output. Favoring Kanye's early work, Chance named Late Registration and The College Dropout as his favorite records. —The FaderNinety-Nine Percent of Coral Reefs Will Suffer Bleaching by 2100
A new study in Nature Scientific Reports shows that 99 percent of coral reefs will be affected by bleaching each year by the end of the century. Bleaching happens when pollution causes corals to lose their color and often precedes their death. —TIMESoulja Boy and Chris Brown to Fight in Boxing Match
Soulja Boy announced he and Chris Brown will take a dispute into the boxing ring for a three-round fight in Vegas in March. Brown confirmed the fight will take place. The beef began when Soulja Boy commented on an Instagram photo of Brown's ex-girlfriend Karrueche Tran.—NoiseyWhite House Releases Strategy to Deal with Asteroids
In one of its final acts, the Obama administration has released a 25-page document outlining US plans to combat any giant asteroids found to be on a collision course with Earth. It's called the "Near-Earth Object Preparedness Strategy." —MotherboardCanadian Professor Wants You to Look at Porn
Taylor Kohut, a social psychology professor at Western University in Canada, wants people to look at porn and identify particular pornographic details. Kohut said the Porn Genome Project would help work out what exactly a pornographic image is. —VICE
Russia has announced its withdrawal of an aircraft carrier and several warships from the Mediterranean as part of a drawdown of military involvement in Syria. Military commander Valery Gerasimov said the decision had been made by "the supreme commander of the Russian armed forces, Vladimir Putin." Gerasimov explained Russia would retain the capacity for airstrikes in Syria. This expected move follows the announcement of Russian- and Turkish-organized peace talks between some of the factions in the civil war, set to be held in Kazakhstan. —The GuardianJapan Recalls Ambassador from South Korea over Statue
Japan has withdrawn its ambassador to South Korea over a statue depicting one of the women forced into prostitution during World War II by the Japanese military. The statue of a barefoot woman was installed by protestors in the city of Busan. Japan said it breaks a reparations deal made in 2015 that was supposed to resolve the long-standing grievance over "comfort women." —BBC News
Everything Else
Former Snapchat head of growth and engagement Anthony Pompliano is suing the mobile app, alleging that he was fired for raising concerns about fraudulent stats being used in the build-up to Snapchat's IPO. The version of his complaint that was available publicly was redacted to remove any indications about which stats were allegedly manipulated. —USA TodayChance the Rapper Ranks Kanye West Albums
Chance the Rapper has sparked a Twitter debate about Kanye West's best albums after ranking his friend and collaborator's output. Favoring Kanye's early work, Chance named Late Registration and The College Dropout as his favorite records. —The FaderNinety-Nine Percent of Coral Reefs Will Suffer Bleaching by 2100
A new study in Nature Scientific Reports shows that 99 percent of coral reefs will be affected by bleaching each year by the end of the century. Bleaching happens when pollution causes corals to lose their color and often precedes their death. —TIMESoulja Boy and Chris Brown to Fight in Boxing Match
Soulja Boy announced he and Chris Brown will take a dispute into the boxing ring for a three-round fight in Vegas in March. Brown confirmed the fight will take place. The beef began when Soulja Boy commented on an Instagram photo of Brown's ex-girlfriend Karrueche Tran.—NoiseyWhite House Releases Strategy to Deal with Asteroids
In one of its final acts, the Obama administration has released a 25-page document outlining US plans to combat any giant asteroids found to be on a collision course with Earth. It's called the "Near-Earth Object Preparedness Strategy." —MotherboardCanadian Professor Wants You to Look at Porn
Taylor Kohut, a social psychology professor at Western University in Canada, wants people to look at porn and identify particular pornographic details. Kohut said the Porn Genome Project would help work out what exactly a pornographic image is. —VICE