WORLD NEWS
Political unrest casts shadow over elections – DW – 12/24/2025
Bangladesh has plunged into renewed violent unrest in recent days following the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, a popular student leader and parliamentary hopeful.
The 32-year-old, a staunch critic of neighboring India, was a key figure in the 2024 pro-democracy uprising that ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Hadi was shot by masked gunmen on December 12 as he was leaving a mosque in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka. He died on December 18 while receiving treatment at a hospital in Singapore.
The student leader had planned to contest the general election scheduled for February 12.
Violent protests over the killing
Hadi’s killing set off violent demonstrations in Dhaka. Protesters torched several buildings, including those belonging to two major newspapers deemed to favor India, as well as a prominent cultural institution.
They also hurled stones at the Indian High Commission in the port city of Chattogram. India has since suspended visa services there.
Hadi had planned to contest the general election scheduled for February 12Image: Munir Uz Zaman/AFP
Police said they identified the suspects in Hadi’s killing but have yet to arrest them.
The perpetrator “could be either inside the country or outside,” Bangladeshi Home Affairs Adviser Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said. “If his exact location were known,” Chowdhury said, “he would have been caught.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned Hadi’s killing and urged the authorities to conduct “a prompt, an impartial, a thorough and transparent investigation, in line with international human rights standards.”
Lynching of Hindu man raises safety fears
In a separate incident, Dipu Chandra Das, a 25-year-old Hindu man, was lynched and burned publicly on December 18 following allegations of blasphemy in Mymensingh district’s Bhaluka subdistrict.
The killing deepened fears of insecurity among religious minorities in Muslim-majority Bangladesh since Hasina’s ouster.
Minority groups have accused the interim government, headed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, of failing to protect their safety. The Yunus administration rejects the accusation.
Authorities said at least 12 suspects had been arrested following the killing of Das.
Tensions between Bangladesh and India
The death further heightened tensions between Dhaka and New Delhi, where hundreds of people protested near Bangladesh’s High Commission.
Under Hasina, Bangladesh shared warm ties with India.
New Delhi viewed her as a friend, and th countries intensified bilateral economic and security cooperation.
Hasina’s opponents accused her administration of being subservient to India.
Since her downfall, ties between the countries have deteriorated.
Hasina, who sought refuge in India, was sentenced to death in absentia for her government’s clampdown on the 2024 student uprising. She has denied the charges against her.
India has not acted on repeated requests by Bangladesh’s government for her extradition.
New Delhi’s backing of Hasina and helping her stay in power for years has bred anti-India discontent among Bangladeshis, said Mohiuddin Ahmed, a Dhaka-based political historian. “It also helped her party to manipulate elections in the past,” he said.
Tens of thousands mourn slain Bangladeshi protest leader
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Top leader to return from exile
Against the backdrop of political unrest and heightened regional tensions, Tarique Rahman, one of Bangladesh’s top politicians, is set to return home on Thursday, after spending 17 years in exile in the UK.
He is the heir to the nation’s longtime ruling family and a leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which is widely seen as the frontrunner in the upcoming elections.
He has lived in London since 2008, saying he fled politically motivated persecution. Rahman was implicated in a 2004 grenade attack on a Hasina rally. He denied the charges but was sentenced in absentia to life in prison.
Since Hasina’s ouster, Rahman has been acquitted of that charge.
He is widely expected to take over the party leadership from his ailing mother, 80-year-old ex-Prime Minister Khaleda Zia.
Zahed Ur Rahman, a Dhaka-based political analyst, views Rahman’s return favorably.
“Many things will happen due to his return. The administration will start functioning properly. The perception of the election will gain momentum. And his party will regain confidence,” he told DW.
“I think if the BNP acts properly at the grassroots level, the voting will be a good one,” he added.
Ahmed shared a similar view, underlining that Rahman’s return will reinvigorate the BNP, which has been without an active and visible leader for years due to ex-PM Zia’s imprisonment and illness.
Why is India protecting Bangladesh’s Sheik Hasina?
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Will the election be free and fair?
A December poll by the US-based International Republican Institute (IRI) indicated the BNP could win a majority of the seats in the February polls.
About 33% of the survey participants said they would vote for the BNP, while Jamaat-e-Islami, the country’s largest Islamist party, followed with around 29%.
Some 6% said they would vote for the newly established National Citizen Party (NCP), which was formed by students who spearheaded last year’s uprising.
Meanwhile, Hasina’s Awami League party, which has been barred from the election, has threatened to take to the streets in protest. It has cast doubts about the caretaker administration’s ability to hold a free and fair vote.
But Ahmed believes there will be a credible election in February.
“The political parties in our country tend to engage in unruly activities during elections. It’s nothing new. However, if the government wants, it will be able to contain them to ensure a peaceful election,” he said.
Edited by: Srinivas Mazumdaru
WORLD NEWS
Family beg for help to end their ‘nightmare before Christmas’ as there’s no sign of daughter who vanished off Texas road
A father is begging the public to help end his ‘nightmare before Christmas’ by helping find his daughter after she vanished in Texas two weeks ago.
Sydney Marquez, 24, was last seen on December 11 in southwest Houston walking near the 9100 block of Bellaire Boulevard, close to Ranchester Road, according to the Houston Police Department.
‘I’m begging the community, if you see my daughter, if she’s endangered. Please don’t stay quiet,’ Raul Marquez, her father, told KHOU11.
‘If you see something, if you know something, please say something. I miss my daughter. She needs to come home.’
Marquez added that the area of southwest Houston where his daughter was last seen was diverse and mentioned that some witnesses may be hesitant to speak with the police because of their immigration status.
The family described the past two weeks as a ‘nightmare before Christmas.’
A missing persons flyer created by Texas Equusearch, a nonprofit search-and-recovery organization, reported that Sydney was last seen near a shopping center in the Asiatown neighborhood of Houston.
Surveillance footage obtained by KHOU 11 shows the missing girl walking northbound along the sidewalk on Ranchester Road on the last night she was seen.
Sydney Marquez, 24, was last seen on December 11 in southwest Houston walking near the 9100 block of Bellaire Boulevard
Raul Marquez, her father, is begging the community to come forward with any information that will help end his ‘nightmare before Christmas’
‘It didn’t look like she was in distress, like a normal walk, not running, not staggering, it certainly appeared to be a normal, normal walk,’ Tim Miller with Texas EquuSearch explained to the outlet.
He added that the area has been thoroughly searched and that they are continuing to pursue other leads.
‘She suffers from mental illness, which makes finding her quickly even more urgent,’ EquuSearch wrote on December 22 in an updated post.
‘No parent should ever have to spend day and night searching for their missing child—but this family refuses to stop hoping, and neither do we.’
The family said that Sydney had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and added that she was not on her medication at the time of her disappearance.
Marquez noted that Sydney had wandered by herself before and that she was visiting her friends in Houston the night she went missing.
Marquez noted that Sydney had wandered by herself before the night she went missing
Sydney snuck away with a friend’s car for several hours, drove it to a parking lot, left it running with her belongings inside, then got out and walked away alone, according to the father.
Sydney, the youngest of four daughters, grew up in El Paso and graduated from Texas A&M with a degree in neuroscience in 2023.
‘Sydney was very driven,’ her older sister Kayla told KBTX.
‘She really remained focused on her studies, and even though she picked a really tough course workload, she stuck with it.’
Clarissa, her other sister, said, ‘She would advocate for everyone. She was just a really great person.’
She was last seen wearing gray pants, a gray hoodie, and tennis shoes.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Houston Police Department at (713) 884-3131, the Houston Police Missing Persons Unit at (832) 394-1840, or Texas EquuSearch at (832) 394-1840.
People have been left mystified after excavation efforts between two small Welsh towns unearthed more than 400 shoes – and two theories have tried to explain what happened
Hundreds of shoes were found on several Welsh beaches(Image: media Wales)
Locals living in two quiet Welsh towns have been left baffled after hundreds of old shoes were excavated from the sand on their shared local beach.
Around 437 decades old shoes were unearthed from the Vale of Glamorgan coastline by construction crews carrying out a major rockpool restoration project on four beaches. The vast majority of the shoes were found in the towns of Ogmore and Llantwit Major, home to just 878 and 9,486 people respectively.
The finds – made as part of an environmental initiative led by Beach Academy and supported and funded by the Vale Local Nature Partnership – appear to come from “times past”, the organisation said.
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Hundreds of shoes were found littered across the beaches(Image: media Wales)
A Beach Academy spokesperson told Wales Online: “They resemble shoes from times past rather than modern styles, mainly adult males’ and children’s shoes. We are slowly excavating them from rockpool zones where they have been embedded into sediment or trapped in rocks as part of our rockpool restoration project.
“We have no idea how long they have actually been trapped there – many stories, I’m sure.” The shoes are being uncovered from rockpool zones on four beaches in the Vale.
Of the total, 293 were found at Ogmore, 134 at Llantwit Major, nine at Penarth and one at Whitmore Bay. At Ogmore alone, 200 shoes were removed in just one week, highlighting how deeply embedded some of the footwear has become within the coastal environment.
Officials believe the shoes came from the 19th century(Image: media Wales)
The project has undertaken 15 rockpool restoration sessions since September, with volunteers working to remove long-standing marine litter in an effort to restore the rockpools to their original natural state. Several theories have been put forward following the discovery in a bid to explain how such a large number of shoes ended up along the shoreline.
The strongest theory so far has linked them to a 19th century ship the Frolic, which struck Tusker Rock around 150 years ago while carrying a cargo of shoes and other goods from Italy. It is believed the shoes were washed up the Ogmore River and periodically reappear, particularly when erosion of the riverbank exposes them.
Several theories have been put forward regarding the shoes’ origins(Image: media Wales)
Another possible explanation lies in Bridgend’s industrial past. The town was once famous for shoemaking, particularly around 1960, when more than 50,000 pairs of boots and shoes were being produced each week. According to the spokesperson, cobblers would often dump old boots that could not be mended into the river at Portobello, where they may eventually have been carried out to sea.
The discovery has sparked intrigue on social media, with one person commenting, “We often find parts of old leather shoes down that way. The soles are always very small like a child’s shoe.”
Another said: “There were loads washed up about a year ago too, down Newton.” Despite the mystery surrounding the origins of the shoes, Beach Academy stresses that the focus of the project remains firmly on environmental restoration. The organisation pointed out that the shoes form only a small part of the wider problem.
The shoes are not the focus of the works, officials have said(Image: media Wales)
The spokesperson added that more than 12,000 items of litter have already been removed from the coastline, and that this work has “barely scratched the surface”. They said: “We wish to restore rockpool habitats back to their original natural state by removing marine litter that has been there for some time, either embedded in sediment or trapped in the rocks. Beach Academy is now appealing for more volunteers to join the effort.”
The spokesperson added: “Volunteers are needed. People can join us.”
WORLD NEWS
Families reunited with kidnapped Nigerian schoolchildren in time for Christmas | World News
Families in Nigeria were reunited with more than a hundred schoolchildren and teachers abducted in November.
The tearful reunions happened just in time for Christmas.
“This Christmas, since we are celebrating Christmas with our children, we are so glad. And this Christmas will be different from the others,” said Yusuf Timothy, whose daughter, Rejoice, was among those freed.
The hostages were abducted in November. Pic: AP
Loved ones of the kidnapped children had an emotional reunion. Pic: AP
Mr Timothy said his family had to put their life on hold since the attack.
“Sometimes, even though I’m asleep with my wife, if we wake up, we will start thinking. We will start crying. When are we going to see our child?” he said.
The group of children and teachers were the last to be freed after the 21 November attack on St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri.
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“I am happy, I am happy,” said Rita Marcus, who was reunited with her son, tears flowing down her face.
“This happiness, it is too much.”
The attack on the Papiri school was one of Nigeria’s biggest mass kidnappings. Pic: AP
The children’s loved ones checked them for injuries and lifted them high in the air as they celebrated the hostages coming home.
Most of the children were between 10 and 17, according to the school.
Nigeria kidnappings explained
Nigerian authorities initially said 303 schoolchildren and 12 teachers had been kidnapped but later revised the number to 230.
They say all of the hostages have now been released.
Although school kidnappings in Nigeria have become a major security issue, the November attack was one of the country’s biggest mass kidnappings in recent years.
How the French Empire built power through language, schooling and cultural assimilation and what it means today.
Beyond armies and violence, France built its empire through language, schooling and cultural influence. This film explores how assimilation became a method of rule and a source of resistance.
At the heart of French colonial rule was the mission “civilisatrice”, a doctrine that claimed to lift up colonised societies through education, administration and the French language. In practice, this system sought to reshape colonised people’s identities, loyalties and cultures, replacing local traditions with French norms while maintaining strict political and economic control. Schools, legal systems and bureaucracies became tools of empire as powerful as armies.
Through case studies in Algeria, Indochina and West Africa, the documentary shows how colonial administrations operated on the ground. In Algeria, settler colonialism and mass repression led to war. In Indochina, education and bureaucracy coexisted with exploitation and nationalist resistance. In West Africa, language policy and indirect rule reshaped social hierarchies and governance.
This episode examines how resistance movements challenged the promise of civilisation, forcing France to confront the contradictions at the heart of its empire. Anticolonial struggles, intellectual movements and armed uprisings not only weakened imperial rule but reshaped French politics, culture and identity itself.
The documentary also places French colonial strategies in a broader modern context. In the contemporary world, the United States projects influence less through formal empire and more through soft power. Hollywood cinema, television and digital platforms circulate American values, lifestyles and narratives globally, shaping cultural imagination in ways that echo earlier imperial projects. At the same time, US dominance in higher education, academic publishing and institutional standards helps define what knowledge is valued, taught and legitimised worldwide.
It also draws direct connections between French colonialism and the modern world. Contemporary debates over language, immigration, secularism and inequality are deeply rooted in colonial systems designed to classify, discipline and extract. Many modern state institutions, education models and economic relationships reflect structures first imposed under empire.
By tracing how cultural control, education and administration functioned as instruments of power, the documentary reveals how the legacy of French colonialism continues to shape modern capitalism, global inequality and postcolonial relations today.
Published On 24 Dec 2025
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Three people – including two police officers – have been killed in an explosion in Moscow, Russian authorities have said.
Two traffic police officers saw a “suspicious individual” near a police car on the city’s Yeletskaya Street, and when they approached the suspect to detain him, an explosive device was detonated, Russia’s Investigative Committee has said.
Reports in Russia say the third person killed was the suspect, but this has not been officially confirmed.
The blast took place close to the location where a senior Russian general was killed in a car bombing in the capital on Monday. Lt Gen Fanil Sarvarov died after an explosive device – which had been planted under a car – was detonated.
Investigate Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said in a statement on Telegram that a criminal case was being investigated in Moscow “regarding an attempt on the lives of traffic police officers”.
The officers have been named by Russian media as Ilya Klimanov, 24, and Maxim Gorbunov, 25.
Sources in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, HUR, told the BBC that a local resident, eliminated two representatives of the Russian law enforcement agency, “as a sign of disagreement with the Kremlin’s aggressive policy” and said that a man “threw an explosive package through the car window, causing an explosion”.
According to the HUR sources, two other people were taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Ukrainian military sources also told the BBC on Wednesday that the two officers killed had “participated in hostilities against Ukraine,” and added there was “evidence of their involvement in the torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war”.
There are no details and Moscow has not commented.
Speaking to Reuters news agency, Alexander, a resident who lives close by, said: “There was an explosion.
“It was loud bang – like with the car a few days ago.”
Russia said it suspected Ukraine was behind Monday’s explosion, without providing any evidence.
However Ukraine has not said whether it was involved in Fanil Sarvarov’s death.
It is also not known whether the two explosions are linked.
Sarvarov, 56, was the head of the armed forces’ operational training department.
He was the third military official to have been killed in bomb attacks in the Russian capital over the last year.
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Thousands flocked to Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas for the first time since the implementation of the U.S.-brokered Israel-Hamas peace deal.
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who has served as the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem since 2020, kicked off the celebration during a traditional procession from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, calling for “a Christmas full of light,” The Associated Press reported. Upon his arrival at Manger Square, which is named for the manger in which Christian tradition says Jesus was laid after his birth, Pizzaballa said that he came with greetings from the Christian community in Gaza where he held a pre-Christmas Mass on Sunday, the AP reported.
“We, all together, we decide to be the light, and the light of Bethlehem is the light of the world,” Pizzaballa told the crowd, according to the AP.
BIRTHPLACE OF JESUS TO RESUME CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS AFTER WAR FORCED A TWO-YEAR PAUSE
People gather next to the Christmas tree at Manger Square on the day of Christmas events with Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, on Christmas Eve, in the Old City of Bethlehem in the West Bank, Dec. 24, 2025. (Mussa Qawasma/Reuters)
In November, Bethlehem Mayor Maher Canawati announced that the city would see a return of Christmas celebrations.
“From the heart of Bethlehem, the birthplace of Christ, the city of peace — once again, we ignite the flame of hope and raise our prayers for peace,” Canawati said in a video posted to Instagram.
“Let us celebrate together the message of Christmas,” he added. “Glory to God in the highest — on Earth, peace, goodwill to all. Bethlehem keeps the light alive.”
Bethlehem, where Christians believe Jesus was born, started its Christmas festivities on Dec. 6 with the city’s first Christmas tree lighting since 2022.
“We came to celebrate, watch and enjoy, because for several years we haven’t had the chance,” said Randa Bsoul, a Palestinian from Haifa, Israel, told Reuters at the time.
Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa attends Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem, in the West Bank, on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2025. (Ammar Awad/Reuters)
HISTORIC ITALIAN VILLAGE CREDITED FOR FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND CHRISTMAS NATIVITY SCENE DRAWS CROWDS FOR 800 YEARS
Bethlehem, over which the Palestinian Authority has limited control due to the Oslo Accords, has seen limited, if any, Christmas celebrations over the past two years due to the war in Gaza. During the war, Manger Square featured a nativity scene of baby Jesus surrounded by rubble and barbed wire in homage to the situation in Gaza.
During the war, Bethlehem, which relies on tourism, saw a massive drop in visitors. Canawati said earlier this month that the city’s unemployment rate jumped from 14% to 65%, according to the AP. Additionally, poverty in Bethlehem soared with approximately 4,000 people left searching for work.
Clergy members stand, on the day Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa attends Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem, in the West Bank, on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2025. (Ammar Awad/Reuters)
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The U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal has largely remained in place, despite both sides accusing the other of violating the agreement. Recently, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said that preparations for the second phase of the plan were underway, following high-level talks in Miami with representatives from Egypt, Qatar and Turkey.
Fox News Digital’s Ashley J. DiMella and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Rachel Wolf is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital and FOX Business.
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Ukraine has unveiled the latest 20-point peace proposal brokered by the US to bring an end to the war with Russia.
Ukrainian and US delegations reached a consensus on several critical issues in the latest round of talks in Miami.
However, Volodymyr Zelensky said sensitive issues around territorial control in the country’s eastern industrial heartland, along with the management of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), remain unresolved.
“This is a document referred to as a framework, a foundational document on ending the war, a political document between us, America, Europe, and the Russians,” Mr Zelensky said.
“We are ready for a meeting with the United States at the leaders’ level to address sensitive issues. Matters such as territorial questions must be discussed at the leaders’ level.”
Asked about the plan, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow would set out its position based on information received by Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who met US envoys in Florida over the weekend.
The recent proposal comes after weeks of modifying an earlier 28-point plan, which was heavily criticised by Ukraine and Nato leaders.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is ready for a meeting with Donald Trump to discuss more difficult issues in peace plan (PA)
Below are the points of the draft proposal as unveiled by Mr Zelensky and shared by his office on Wednesday.
1. Ukraine’s sovereignty will be reaffirmed.
2. This point will envisage a full and unquestionable non-aggression agreement between Russia and Ukraine. It specifies that to sustain long-term peace, a monitoring mechanism will be established to oversee the line of contact through space-based unmanned monitoring, to ensure early notification of violations, and to resolve conflicts.
3. Ukraine will receive robust security guarantees.
4. Ukraine will maintain its armed forces at their present strength of 800,000 personnel. The earlier US draft had called for Ukraine to reduce the size of its forces.
5. The United States, Nato, and European countries will provide Ukraine with security guarantees that mirror Article 5, the mutual-defence clause of Nato’s founding treaty.
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The latest peace proposal was brokered by the US to end the war Putin began in 2022 (Sputnik)
6. Russia will formalise a policy of non-aggression towards Europe and Ukraine in all necessary laws and all required documents on ratification, including ratification by an overwhelming majority vote in the State Duma.
7. Ukraine will become an EU member at a specifically defined date. Ukraine will also receive short-term preferential access to the European market.
8. Ukraine will receive a strong global development package, which will be defined in a separate agreement on investment and future prosperity.
9. Several funds will be established to address economic recovery, the reconstruction of damaged areas and regions, and humanitarian issues. The objective will be to mobilise $800bn to help Ukraine fully realise its potential.
10. Ukraine will accelerate the process of concluding a free-trade agreement with the United States. Zelensky said the US position was that if Washington were to grant free trade access to Ukraine, it aimed to offer similar terms to Russia.
11. Ukraine will confirm that it will remain a non-nuclear state, in accordance with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
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Ukrainian and US delegations reached a consensus on several critical issues in the latest round of talks (AP)
12. The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Zelensky said no agreement had yet been reached with the United States on the issue of Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant, which is located near the front line in territory now controlled by Russian forces. Zelensky said the US proposal was for the plant to be operated jointly by Ukraine, the United States, and Russia, each holding equal stakes in a joint enterprise, with the Americans acting as the chief managers.
Kyiv’s proposal was for the plant to be operated by a 50-50 joint enterprise involving only the United States and Ukraine, with Ukraine receiving half of the energy produced and the United States independently allocating the other half.
13. Ukraine and Russia commit to implementing educational programmes in schools and across society that promote understanding and tolerance toward different cultures and eliminate racism and prejudice. Ukraine will implement European Union rules on religious tolerance and the protection of minority languages.
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Donald Trump pledged to end the war in Ukraine on his first day in office (PA)
14. Territory: Zelensky said that this was the most complex point, and as yet unresolved. Russia wants Ukraine to withdraw troops from territory Ukraine still controls in the eastern Donetsk region. Kyiv wants the fighting to be halted at current battle lines. Washington has proposed demilitarised zones and a free economic zone in the part of the Donetsk region that Kyiv controls.
15. After reaching an agreement on future territorial arrangements, both Russia and Ukraine undertake not to alter these agreements by force.
16. Russia will not obstruct Ukraine from using the Dnipro River and the Black Sea for commercial purposes. A separate maritime agreement and an access agreement will be concluded, covering freedom of navigation and transport. The Kinburn Spit, along the Dnipro’s outlet to the sea, will be demilitarised.
17. A humanitarian committee will be established to resolve outstanding issues:
a) All remaining prisoners of war will be exchanged on the principle of All for All.
b) All civilian detainees and hostages will be returned, including children.
c) Provisions will be made to address the suffering of victims from the conflict.
18. Ukraine must hold elections as soon as possible after the signing of the agreement.
19. This agreement will be legally binding. Its implementation will be monitored and guaranteed by a Peace Council, chaired by Donald Trump. Ukraine, Europe, Nato, Russia, and the United States will be part of this mechanism. Sanctions will apply in case of violations.
20. Once all parties agree to this agreement, a full ceasefire will take effect immediately.
NEED TO KNOW
- A parent is feeling guilty about having a small Christmas for their children
- In a post on Reddit, the original poster (OP) explained that they are the parent of a 4-year-old and a nearly 3-year-old, and they don’t plan to get them a lot of gifts
- OP shared they’re “just looking for solidarity” from other people who may struggle with overspending
A parent is wondering if they should feel guilty for having a small Christmas for their children.
In a post on a “toddlers” subreddit, the original poster (OP) explained that they are the parent of a 4-year-old and a nearly 3-year-old. With the holidays approaching, OP shared that they are having an “internal struggle” where they have to remind themselves that they set the tone for Christmas, gift-receiving and what’s normal.
“It’s just hard not to compare our family to others. It feels like my kids are probably getting like a 1/3 as many gifts as their peers,” they wrote. “And honestly that’s for the better. But I still catch myself thinking we should do more.”
A stock image of a family opening gifts.
Getty
OP explained that their children only have grandparents on one side of the family and they get a couple of gifts from them.
“They don’t go over the top. They’re not the type. Just a couple $30-50 things,” they wrote. “They don’t get gifts from my spouse’s four siblings. They usually get a gift from one of my siblings. And a gift from my best friend.”
“Then they each get one thing from Santa. And maybe like three to four small things each from us,” OP added. “We have the money to go over the top, but I hate the crazy pressure of consumerism and over buying on Christmas.”
OP ended their post saying that they are “just looking for solidarity” from other people who may struggle with over buying and worried that a few gifts don’t make their kid’s holiday feel “magical enough.” Many users shared their thoughts under OP’s post.
“I’m also in the anti-over-consumption boat, but I’ll also add that small children have a much different perspective on what is ‘big.’ Once you hit say three to four gifts it all sort of becomes moot and they forget half the things they even received,” one user wrote. “You probably have an epic Christmas planned in their eyes.”
They added, “Santa is bringing my 4yo a box of Cinnamon toast crunch and let me tell you it’s going to be all he talks about all day.”
A stock image of a family opening gifts.
Getty
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Another user shared that what OP planned sounds “normal” to them.
“This sounds normal to me. I think toned down is better. Christmas doesn’t have to be about the gifts and by setting this as an expectation now, it will make it easier later,” they wrote. “My 3yo is getting 1 gift from santa, one from me, 1 from cousins/uncle/aunt and 1 from grandparents. I feel like it will get harder later and comparing gifts with friends but for now, what you are doing even sounds like alot.”
“So many new toys at once are overwhelming at this age anyways,” they wrote. “Make it magical in other ways – go to see lights, christmas music, decorate cookies!”
WORLD NEWS
Unrepentant transgender rapist moans that being in male prison is ‘worse than the crime I’m supposedly guilty of’
A transgender rapist who started identifying as a woman after committing a sex attack has been complaining about the ‘hell’ of daily life in a male prison, the Daily Mail can reveal.
Lexi Secker sobbed after being sentenced to six and a half years behind bars last year for carrying out the sexual assault on a drunk friend.
Then called Alex, he lured her to woodland and raped her – and then claimed he was innocent and accused the victim of consenting. He continues to deny rape.
Secker was jailed last November and sent to HMP Ashfield, which houses around 400 male sex offenders.
But since then it appears that Secker has been griping about life behind bars, insisting that ‘placing genuine trans women in male prisons is not the solution’.
Secker claims to have been a victim of sexual assault, sexual harassment, transphobia, misogyny and also ‘having urine thrown over me’.
‘I have experienced misogyny and sexism… Things that have happened to me since I’ve come to prison have been worse than the crime I’m supposedly guilty of. Is this justice?’, the sex attacker wrote in a letter, adding that: ‘Injustice is an acceptable part of my sentence’.
Rapist Lexi Secker, 36, who began identifying as a woman after the attack, has been sentenced to six and a half years in a male prison and is complaining about life there
Secker, 36, a father-of-two, whose birth name was Alexander, lashed out in letters to a newspaper
Secker went on trial as a woman, but the judge and police recorded that he was male when he carried out the attack in a woodland in Blunsdon, Wiltshire two years ago.
The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, read out an impact statement in court where she said she had been left traumatised and feels ongoing ‘unbearable anxiety, shame and fear’.
The victim referred to her attacker in court as ‘Alex’ – not Lexi – but the prosecutor and defence lawyers addressed her as ‘Ms Secker’ during the trial.
But a police statement said that ‘at the time of the offence Secker was living as a man’ and the crime was ‘recorded as being committed by a male’.
Just like the case of Scottish trans rapist Isla Bryson, Secker’s crimes caused anger when revealed.
It later emerged that Secker is an vocal ‘anti-TERF’ activist who trolled JK Rowling for her views on gender identity, calling the author a ‘shallow, insecure pleb who mistook success for intelligence’.
A year ago Secker, 36, wept as the judge said he had ‘regard to how difficult a prison sentence in a male institution will be’.
And it appears that the convicted rapist agrees, apparently writing letters from behind bars about suffering ‘constant discrimination’ at HMP Ashfield.
Writing under the name Lexi S, Secker has been regularly sending letters to Inside Time, the newspaper for prisoners.
In a piece entitled ‘prison’s tougher if you’re trans’, published in October 2025, Secker says: ‘When I was sentenced, the judge told me that as a transgender woman in a men’s prison, I would face “additional difficulties”. I think about that a lot.
‘Here are just some of the “additional difficulties” I have faced: sexual assault, sexual harassment, transphobia, misogyny, having urine thrown over me, being threatened, being spat at, being unable to shower or use the toilets, being asked invasive and inappropriate questions, and having other prisoners expose themselves to me. Things that have happened to me since I’ve come to prison have been worse than the crime I’m supposedly guilty of. Is this justice’.
Secker took the victim to woodland ‘under the pretence of sobering up’ – and then raped her.
Secker insists that a male prison is not the right or safe place for a trans woman
Secker lured a friend to woodland and raped her when still identifying as a man in 2023
He claimed the incident was ‘consensual intercourse’ initiated by the victim – but was later convicted of rape.
Judge Jason Taylor KC said the victim was ‘significantly affected by alcohol’, adding: ‘I am sure you hatched a plan to be alone with her’.
He said: ‘You identified as a man and you were, on the evidence, clearly attracted to women.
‘You were not disinhibited at the time by your conditions. There is no evidence they were as present and compelling as they are now.’
JK Rowling had followed the case and at its conclusion wrote on X: ‘The important thing to remember is, he’s a total one off*, none of the other men arguing against women-only spaces are predators** and we won’t find out down the line there are more rapists hiding in plain sight.***
‘*He really isn’t.
‘**They totally are.
‘***We definitely will.’
Secker said Rowling was a ‘shallow, insecure pleb who mistook success for intelligence’
Rowling had followed the case and wrote about it afterwards on X
Wiltshire Police previously said Secker was living as a man when the attack took place, on April 23, 2023.
He was sent to prison for just under seven years after being convicted just before Christmas 2024, having denied rape.
Secker claims in a letter to Inside Times that the Government has refused requests to be moved away from a male jail.
‘I am genuinely concerned about the damage this experience has done to me. I don’t think I will ever be okay again’, the sex offender said.
Secker also wrote a letter to Inside Time in May, around eight months into a six-and-a-half year sentence.
It was entitled: ‘My fears, as a trans woman in prison’ – after the Supreme Court’s ruling that the legal definition of a woman is based on biological sex.
Secker wrote: ‘To be honest, I’m scared. I’ve only been in prison for a short while, but as a transgender woman I have already faced my fair share of difficulties. Now with the Supreme Court’s ruling that “sex” in the Equality Act refers to biological sex, I’m frightened for what fresh hell I may be about to uncover’.
The sex attacker said: ‘The Supreme Court claims that trans women are still protected from discrimination, but I’m already discriminated against constantly.
‘My body is, for lack of a better term, developed. So, while there are certain services and facilities that I, on paper, share with my male counterparts, in reality using them is distressing, uncomfortable, and even potentially dangerous’.
Secker claimed that ‘there are certain experiences that are unique to biological women that I can never understand’, but added: ‘I also have many we share’.
The 36-year-old said: ‘I have experienced misogyny and sexism. I have been patronised and objectified on the basis of my body and my gender.
‘Mostly what I fear is that I will continue not to belong, and that my life will be defined not by who I am, but by what happened to be between my legs when I was born. Of course, we must keep women safe. But placing genuine trans women in male prisons is not the solution’.
Readers of Inside Times have been scathing.
One wrote: ‘The fact that you are biologically a male, in a men only prison, telling anyone who will listen that you are really a woman has no bearing on your situation? How utterly absurd!
‘If you at least met your fellow prisoners halfway by admitting you were really looking for an unfair advantage they would maybe, just maybe see your point’.
Another said: ‘As the conviction was for a rape on a woman, it is a farcical joke to say we must protect women. You don’t fool me’.
But one supporter replied: ‘Your cruelty to this woman is vile. She is suffering additional punishments because of being trans, punishments which are not legislated and which would not be applied to a cis man or woman.’
The Met Office has issued a new weather warning for wind on Christmas Day. The yellow alert will remain in place for 20 hours between 4am tomorrow and 11.59pm.
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WORLD NEWS
Second fatal bombing in Moscow ’embarrassing’ for Kremlin but helpful timing for Ukraine | World News
A second fatal bombing on the streets of Moscow in the space of three days.
We do not know the full details of this latest explosion but the fact these incidents keep happening will be highly embarrassing for the Kremlin.
Pic: Reuters
Monday’s car bomb that killed Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov was the latest in a long line of high-profile hits on Russian soil since the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Live updates: Ukraine war latest
When a top military official was killed in similar circumstances this time last year, by a bomb hidden in a scooter, Vladimir Putin criticised Russia’s security services and told them they should learn from their mistakes.
It does not look like they have. Since then, there have been many more assassinations of senior officials – both in Moscow and further afield.
Pic: Investigative Committee of Moscow/AP
This latest killing of two police officers in the same area as Monday’s attack only makes things worse.
It doesn’t just look complacent. It’s starting to appear incompetent.
Although Ukraine has been behind some of the attacks, in this case, it has not commented.
But could this have been Kyiv’s way of trying to change the narrative in the peace talks? To show Donald Trump that Russia doesn’t ‘hold all the cards’?
Pic: Investigative Committee of Moscow/AP
The timing has certainly been helpful for Ukraine, coinciding with the latest negotiations. So perhaps it’s no coincidence that Kyiv has seemingly made progress in convincing Washington to agree to a less punishing peace proposal.
Article 5-style security guarantees are a big win for Ukraine, as is an allowance to retain the strength of its armed forces.
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They are yet to convince the US on territory, but it’s still progress nonetheless.
Will Moscow agree to the other points? Don’t hold your breath.
Russia’s position “is well known”, the Kremlin said, when asked for its reaction to the latest proposals, suggesting it remains unmoved in its opposition to a security guarantee involving foreign troops.
But even so, it seems the spotlight is back on Moscow.
WORLD NEWS
Ties with Turkiye improve “once Libya can patch its internal differences” | Digital Series
Barin Kayaoglu, of the Social Sciences University of Ankara, says that a Libyan general’s plane crash in Turkiye is unlikely to impact the broader framework of Turkiye’s role in Libya.
Published On 24 Dec 2025
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WORLD NEWS
Trump team plans to renovate industrial warehouses so they can hold up to 80,000 migrants: report
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The Trump administration is reportedly planning to acquire at least seven large-scale warehouses across the United States and use them as holding facilities for detained migrants as it seeks to organize its chaotic deportation and detention immigration system.
According to a draft solicitation proposal, obtained by the Washington Post, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is looking to acquire at least seven large industrial warehouses that could hold 5,000 to 10,000 people after they are processed.
The buildings would serve as a second stop for newly-detained immigrants to prevent detainees from being moved around the U.S. to detention centers that have available space.
As the Trump administration seeks to deport swaths of immigrants, officials are running into problems finding beds for the volume of people detained. Established immigration detention centers are quickly filling up – roughly 67,000 people were in detention centers as of November, per Trace reports.
To make space in overcrowded detention facilities, some detainees have been transferred across the country to unfamiliar places where there is space.
open image in gallery
Over the last year, reports have emerged describing poor conditions in overcrowded detention centers (Getty)
But the warehouses would be part of a new “feeder” system that hopes to organize immigration detentions by having newly arrested detainees first go to processing centers, then to one of the seven large warehouses before being deported.
The Independent has asked the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment.
The new report from the Post comes more than a month after NBC News reported the administration was considering buying warehouses that were initially designed for Amazon and other retailers, to serve as detention facilities.
A White House official told NBC News in November that the warehouses being considered are more than twice the size of current ICE detention facilities.
The buildings would be renovated with restrooms, showers, kitchens, dining areas, and medical units to house detainees – seemingly a step-up from other makeshift detention centers such as Alligator Alcatraz.
open image in gallery
More than 67,000 people were in immigration detention as of November (Getty Images)
The renovated warehouses would “maximize efficiency” while lowering costs, processing times and lengths of stay, the draft solicitation stated, according to the Post.
The larger warehouses would be located near hubs in Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, Texas and Virginia, according to the draft proposal.
Meanwhile, ICE would add another 16 smaller warehouses, which could hold up to 1,500 people, to serve as processing centers. At least five of the new processing centers would be located in the Northeast, mostly in areas led by Republicans who support Trump’s immigration agenda.
NEED TO KNOW
- Choreographer Mandy Moore met actress Mandy Moore for the first time after years of near encounters and mix-ups
- The two connected at 4 a.m. in an airport lounge and bonded over years of mistaken identity
- Moore, the choreographer, humorously embraced the confusion, naming her corporation “Nope, Not Her” and using it as her Instagram handle
Mandy Moore has finally met her famous name twin.
After years of near misses, the three-time Emmy-winning choreographer — known for her work on So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing with the Stars and for staging Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour — at long last came face-to-face with actress and singer Mandy Moore.
Moore (the choreographer, to be clear) recounted the story on the latest episode of The Joe Vulpis Podcast, released Tuesday, Dec. 23.
Until that point, the two had crossed paths in almost every way except in person. Moore recalled working on That ’70s Show while the actress was dating Wilmer Valderrama, along with multiple red carpet near-meetings and even a lunch planned just before the COVID-19 pandemic that never materialized.
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But as the saying goes, good things happen when you least expect it. And one early morning at Los Angeles International Airport, the long-awaited meeting between the Moores happened.
“Literally 4 a.m. at LAX at the American lounge one morning, I look over and I’m like, ‘That’s Mandy Moore,’ ” the choreographer recalled. “And I was like, ‘Oh my God, I don’t want to be a dork. But I feel like this moment is important!’ ”
Though she initially decided not to say anything, fate intervened once they boarded the same flight. “I get on the plane, she’s in first class. She’s the first person, I’m sitting right behind her,” Moore said. “I was like, ‘I’m going to say it.’ I was like, ‘Mandy?’ ”
Moore (the actress and singer, now) was thrilled her namesake had said hello. “She goes, ‘Mandy!’ ” the choreographer exclaimed. “And she like, gave me the biggest hug.”
The moment capped off years of confusion between the two, something Moore (the choreographer) said has followed her throughout her career.
“I think this is the funniest thing in the world that I have the same name as a very lovely lady, Mandy Moore,” she said. “Yes, it has been a bit of the bane of my existence for many, many years. But I also love it.”
Choreographer Mandy Moore (left) and actress/singer Mandy Moore (right).
John Nacion/Getty; Stefanie Keenan/Getty
Because of years of being mistaken for one another, the two had already connected online, making the real-life introduction especially meaningful.
“Obviously on like, Twitter and stuff, we’ve gone back and forth because everyone always thinks she’s me and everyone thinks I’m her,” Moore said. “So it was very sweet. And she’s just a rad human.”
And Moore (the choreographer, again) has even embraced the mix-ups professionally, naming her corporation “Nope, Not Her,” which also doubles as her Instagram handle.
“People… they’re like, ‘Nope, another?’ They don’t quite get it,” she explained. “But when you see it, you can’t unsee it.”
Moore, 49, worked as a dancer for years before DWTS judge Carrie Ann Inaba gave her one of her first big breaks, hiring her as an assistant for television dance projects. She spent 16 seasons on SYTYCD, crafting some of the show’s most memorable numbers, and has been a mainstay on DWTS, too, even choreographing the ABC competition’s upcoming stage tour.
Other notable choreography credits include films such as La La Land and Snow White, as well as TV hits like Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist and Hairspray Live!. She has also created dance numbers for the Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Emmy Awards and Grammy Awards ceremonies.
Moore most recently appeared on-screen on Swift’s Eras Tour docuseries, The End of an Era, with fans getting to see a behind-the-scenes glimpse of how she choreographed the record-breaking tour.
The other Moore, 41, first rose to fame in the late ’90s with hit singles including “Candy” before becoming a successful film and television star. Her acting credits include A Walk to Remember, The Princess Diaries, and This Is Us, for which she earned Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. She is also the voice of Rapunzel in Disney’s Tangled franchise.
Fans can see the actress next on screen alongside comedian Nate Bargatze in the upcoming film The Breadwinner, set for release on March 13, 2026.
This is the heart-stopping moment a reckless biker speeds down the outside lane of the A14 near Cambridge whilst in a ‘Superman’ pose atop the vehicle.
The motorcyclist was laid in a ‘plank’ across the seat on their stomach with their legs behind them in a moment labelled ‘pure stupidity’.
Click to watch the moment above.