Good morning.
Donald Trump has urged his fellow Republicans in Congress to vote for the release of files related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, reversing his previous resistance to such a move.
Trump’s post on his Truth Social platform came after the House speaker, Mike Johnson, said that he believed a vote on releasing justice department documents in the Epstein case should help put to rest allegations “that he [Trump] has something to do with it”.
The president wrote on Truth Social last night: “House Republicans should vote to release the Epstein files because we have nothing to hide.”
Why the sudden U-turn? The House was expected to vote to release the files anyway, as early as tomorrow. There has been fervent suspicion within Trump’s usually loyal Maga base that the administration is hiding details of Epstein’s crimes to protect the rich elite with whom the financier associated – including Trump.
Has Trump made up with Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has been calling for the files to be released? No, he doubled down on his attacks against the Republican lawmaker, despite his reversal on resisting the release of the Epstein files. Greene, meanwhile, has said she hopes they can make it up.
At least 98 Palestinians have died in custody since October 2023, Israeli data shows
Israeli data shows at least 98 Palestinians have died in custody since October 2023, and the real toll is likely to be substantially higher because hundreds of people detained in Gaza are missing, an Israel-based human rights group has said.
Physicians for Human Rights – Israel tracked deaths from causes including physical violence, medical neglect and malnutrition for a report, using freedom of information requests, forensic documents and interviews with lawyers, activists, relatives and witnesses.
What does Israel’s limited data tell us about the rate of detainee casualties? Israeli authorities only provided comprehensive data for the first eight months of the war. During this period, official figures show an unprecedented casualty rate among Palestinian detainees, on average one death every four days.
Far-right candidate José Antonio Kast is favourite to become Chile’s next president
The ultra-conservative lawyer José Antonio Kast is in pole position to become Chile’s next leader after advancing to the second round of the South American country’s presidential election, where he will face the Communist party candidate, Jeannette Jara.
With more than 70% of votes counted, Kast had secured about 24% of the vote in Sunday’s first-round election, having campaigned on hardline promises to crack down on crime and immigration, while making a Trump-style pledge to “put Chileans first”.
How did Jara do? She won slightly more support than Kast, about 26%. But other rightwing candidates took almost 30% of votes, and several threw their support behind Kast, making him the clear favourite to win the runoff on 14 December.
In other news …
Bangladesh’s deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina has been sentenced to death in absentia by a court in Dhaka for crimes against humanity over a deadly crackdown on a student-led uprising last year.
The US has attacked another alleged drug-trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific on Saturday, killing three people onboard, according to the Pentagon.
Paul McCartney is releasing a track of an almost completely silent recording studio as part of a music industry protest against copyright theft by artificial intelligence companies.
Stat of the day: Japanese retail and tourism stocks tumble 9% after China travel warning
Shares in Japanese tourism and retail firms fell sharply today, including a 9% slump for the cosmetics firm Shiseido, after China told its citizens not to travel to Japan amid an escalating row over comments made by the prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, about Taiwan. Takaichi suggested that Japanese self-defense forces could intervene if a Chinese attempt to invade Taiwan represented a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan.
Don’t miss this: Is there a dark side to gratitude?
The word “gratitude” is everywhere these days, writes Tiffany Watt Smith:
I’m a skeptical historian, but even I was persuaded to take up the gratitude habit, and when I remember to do it, I feel better: more cheerful and connected, inclined to see the good already in my life. Counting your blessings is free and attractively simple. But there’s the problem. In our eagerness to embrace gratitude as a cure-all, have we lost sight of its complexity and its edge?”
… or this: Scrutiny grows over LA fire origins
Concerns have intensified in recent weeks over a small brush fire that reignited days later into the massive Palisades fire – the most destructive in Los Angeles history – after reports that firefighters were told to leave the scene of the initial blaze, even though they feared the ground was still smoldering.
Climate check: Have courage to create fossil fuel phaseout roadmap at Cop30, Brazilian minister urges
Brazil’s environment minister, Marina Silva, has urged all countries to have the courage to address the need for a fossil fuel phaseout. At the Cop30 climate summit, hosted by Brazil, she called for roadmap to be drawn up, charting an “ethical” response to the climate crisis.
Last Thing: High art – the museum that is only accessible via an eight-hour hike
At 7,500ft above sea level, Italy’s newest – and most remote – cultural outpost is visible long before it becomes reachable, thanks to its bright red exterior. The Frattini Bivouac, a tiny museum on a high ridge in the municipality of Valbondione, is part of a Bergamo gallery experiment.
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