Nigeria: Tomb of Muslim leader's mother razed

1. Israeli forces have shot and killed three Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. Israeli sources say two of them were killed over alleged stabbing attacks and another in an attempted car-ramming. Tensions have been simmering in the occupied territories since the beginning of October. 135 Palestinians have been killed ever since.

2. Reports say Nigerian troops have vandalized the burial place of the mother of the country’s Islamic movement, Sheikh Ibrahim al-Zakzaky. Witnesses say the tomb was completely destroyed. This is the latest in a string of moves against Muslims in northern Nigeria after a bloody crackdown on them some ten days ago.

3. A Russian security chief says Moscow has identified the groups that downed a Russian passenger plane over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula in October. Russia's investigations at the time found that terrorists detonated a bomb inside the cabin. All 224 passengers of the flight, bound for Saint Petersburg, died in the tragedy.

4. Saudi aircraft have pounded cities across Yemen despite last week’s UN-brokered ceasefire. Two Yemenis were killed during air raids in Hudaydah province. At least three people were killed and five others were critically injured in Sa’ada province. The aggression has left over 7,300 Yemenis dead since late March.

5. A fire at a hospital in Saudi Arabia’s south has left at least 31 people dead and over one hundred others injured. The fire started in the intensive care unit and the maternity ward. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the incident.

6. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem says Damascus is ready to participate in peace talks in Geneva aimed at ending nearly five years of conflict in the country. Muallem added Damascus hopes the negotiations would help the country form a national unity government. The next round of talks will be in January.

7. People in Montenegro’s capital Pod-Grit-Sa have staged an anti-NATO demonstration. The protesters demanded early elections and a referendum on any accession to the Western military alliance. They also slammed the government for letting NATO use the country’s army bases earlier this month.

8. Powerful tornados in South and the Midwest of the United States have left at least seven people dead. Storms also toppled tractor-trailers and knocked down trees. Thousands of homes in Indiana and Arkansas are without power. Weather forecasters described the storms as particularly dangerous.

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