1. California governor offers grim outlook

California’s Governor Jerry Brown said on Saturday that climate change has pushed weather to the extreme, and the U.S. western state must better prepare for a constant threat of wildfire, which is a “new normal.”

Brown made the remarks at a press conference after he visited victims of a massive wildfire in Ventura county, 110 kilometers northwest of Los Angeles. Recently six massive wildfires have consumed more than 700 square kilometers and destroyed 793 structures.

2. Yemen rebels kill longtime strongman Saleh

The killing of Yemen’s longtime strongman and former President Ali Abdullah Saleh by the country’s Shiite rebels as their alliance crumbled* amid street clashes in the capital, Sanaa, has thrown the nearly three-year civil war into unpredictable new chaos.

A video circulating last week showed Saleh’s body with a gaping* head wound dumped in a pickup truck by rebels — a grisly* end recalling that of his contemporary, Libya’s Moammar Gadhafi, in 2011.

3. Putin to seek 4th term of presidency

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on December 6 that he would seek a new term in the presidential election next year, which analysts say he is almost certain to win easily.

“I will stand as a candidate for the post of president of the Russian Federation,” Putin said during a meeting with employees of a car-making plant in the city of Nizhny Novgorod.

Despite an increasing number of candidates, Putin is largely expected to win by a landslide the “plebiscite*-type election,” which is scheduled for March 18, 2018.

4. Former Georgian President Saakashvili detained

Ukraine detained former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili last week on suspicion of assisting a criminal organization, sparking clashes between his supporters and police who fired tear gas into the crowd.

Masked officers dragged Saakashvili from an apartment in the capital Kiev while his supporters protested on the street and tried to stop the police van from leaving, crowding the vehicle and setting up a barricade* with tires, wood and stones.

5. Qatar signs $8b military deal with Britain

Qatar signed a multi-billion-dollar deal on Sunday to buy 24 Typhoon fighters from Britain, its second major defense agreement this week, which came during the worst political crisis in the region for years.

The US$8-billion deal was signed in Doha by Qatar’s Defense Minister Khalid bin Mohammed al-Attiyah and his British counterpart, Gavin Williamson. (SD-Agencies)