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Tuesday, December 30, 2025

Yemen declares state of emergency amid escalation

 Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council of Yemen Rashad al-Alimi declared a state of emergency on Tuesday after Saudi Arabia launched airstrikes on the country's port city of Mukalla, which targeted armored vehicles and weapons for the separatist forces backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

According to Al-Alimi's decree, the decision to impose the state of emergency was made "due to the necessity of confronting the ongoing coup against legitimacy since 2014, and the internal strife led by military rebel elements who received orders from the United Arab Emirates to take military action against the eastern governorates with the aim of dividing the Republic of Yemen."

The chairman also stated that the Joint Defense Agreement with the UAE was cancelled and that the 90-day state of emergency would also include a 72-hour air, sea, and land blockade.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/Yemen-declares-state-of-emergency-amid-escalation/65409301

China: Drills punishment for Taiwan's separatists

 The Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that the country's latest military drills around Taiwan represent "severe punishment" for the island's "separatist" forces' efforts to seek independence.

The ministry's spokesperson Lin Jian stressed that the military exercises were needed to "safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity."

China started the two-day live-fire drills on Monday in the waters and airspace surrounding Taiwan, with the island placing its military on "high alert" and urging Beijing to "immediately halt irresponsible provocations." Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said he was not concerned about the exercises as China has been conducting such drills for years and added he does not think it will attack the island.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/China:-Drills-punishment-for-Taiwan's-separatists/65409561

JD.com, Huawei reach technical cooperation deal

 JD.com Inc. shared in a statement on Tuesday that it reached a "deep technical cooperation" agreement with Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.

According to the statement, the two companies will set up a joint innovation project, focusing on the core technology of "low-latency inference for advertising." JD.com and Huawei will work together on intelligent advertising, large-scale models, and cloud computing.

Under the initiative, the businesses will be optimizing not only hardware and software, but applications as well, with an aim to ensure greater stability of advertising services under extreme traffic conditions, such as peak sales periods.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/JD.com-Huawei-reach-technical-cooperation-deal/65409208

Lung Cancer? Alarming Study Finds Ultra-Processed Foods Even Worse Than Previously Thought

 A large U.S. cohort study has found that individuals consuming the highest levels of ultra-processed foods face a significantly greater risk of developing lung cancer, even after adjusting for smoking and other factors.

Research published in the journal Thorax analyzed data from more than 101,000 participants in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial. Over an average follow-up period of 12 years, researchers identified 1,706 incident cases of lung cancer, including 1,473 cases of non-small cell lung cancer—the slower-growing form—and 233 cases of the more aggressive small cell variant.

Participants in the top quartile of ultra-processed food consumption, adjusted for energy intake, showed a 41% higher risk of lung cancer compared with those in the lowest quartile (hazard ratio 1.41). The associations held for both non-small cell (37% higher risk) and small cell (44% higher risk) subtypes.

Ultra-processed foods typically include items formulated with multiple industrial processes and additives, such as preservatives, emulsifiers and artificial flavors. Examples in the study ranged from ice cream, packaged sauces and confectionery to soft drinks, ready-made burgers, pizza and processed meats. On average, the energy-adjusted ultra-processed food consumption was 2.8 servings per day, with lunch meat contributing 11.1% to total UPF intake, diet or caffeinated soft drinks 7.3%, and decaffeinated soft drinks 6.6%, the study found. UPFs are described as nutritionally poor, with high energy density, low fibre, fewer micronutrients, and excessive sugars, sodium, fats and additives.

Examples: 

  • Sugar-sweetened beverages
  • Processed meats
  • Packaged snack cakes & pastries
  • Instant noodles & boxed meals
  • Frozen prepared pizzas & entrĂ©es
  • Sugary breakfast cereals
  • Flavored/sweetened dairy products
  • Reconstituted meat products
  • Packaged refined breads & buns
  • Processed cheese products

The findings build on prior evidence linking ultra-processed foods to a range of adverse health outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and reduced life expectancy. In the U.S. and Britain, such foods comprise more than half of daily caloric intake for many individuals.

You can’t say from this study that UPFs cause cancer as it’s observational, so we’re looking at associations, not direct effects. But it does strengthen the case for looking more closely at the food environment many people are living in, where UPFs are cheap, convenient, and heavily marketed, making them a go-to for many,” Rob Hobson, author of Unprocess Your Family Lifetold The Independent.

“That might mean cooking more from scratch where possible, adding in more whole foods like vegetables, beans and grains, or just becoming more aware of how often UPFs show up in your day,” Hobson added. “It’s not about being perfect, it’s about balance and understanding how your food choices could be supporting or undermining your long-term health.”

https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/lung-cancer-alarming-study-finds-ultra-processed-foods-are-even-worse-previously-thought

Monday, December 29, 2025

Citigroup board approves sale of Russia unit, flags $1.2 billion loss

 Citigroup said its board approved a plan to sell AO Citibank, which conducts the company’s remaining business in Russia, to Renaissance Capital.

Citigroup said its remaining business in Russia will be reported as “held for sale,” as of the fourth quarter of this year. The deal is expected to sign and close in the first half of next year, the company added.

As a result of the “held for sale” accounting treatment, Citigroup is expecting to take a pretax loss on the sale of about $1.2 billion in the fourth quarter of this year. However, the loss on the sale is subject to further changes, including as a result of foreign exchange movements, according to Citigroup.

In August of 2022, Citigroup said it would wind down its consumer banking and local commercial banking operations in Russia.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/citigroup-to-sell-remaining-business-operating-in-russia/ar-AA1Tf9rO

CIA said to have struck port site on Venezuelan coast

 The United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) conducted a drone strike against a port facility on the Venezuelan coast earlier this month, CNN reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The dock was struck because the US government believed Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua was using it to hold drugs and move them onto boats for onward shipments, the report said. The strike, which one of the sources described as largely symbolic due to the number of port facilities used by drug traffickers, caused no casualties. The facility was unoccupied at the time.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that Washington hit a "dock area" in Venezuela "where they load the boats up with drugs," though he declined to say whether the CIA was behind the attack. "We hit all the boats, and now we hit the area... it's the implementation area. That's where they implement, and that is no longer around," he said.

https://breakingthenews.net/Article/CIA-said-to-have-struck-port-site-on-Venezuelan-coast/65408592

"Quality Learing Center" 1st Domino To Fall in Somali-Linked Minneapolis Daycare Scandal

 Update (2028ET):

The dominoes are beginning to fall in the Democratic-run stronghold of Minneapolis, where federal investigators were on the ground earlier today as part of expanded investigations into childcare centers and other widespread alleged fraud schemes by Somali-linked operators.

By evening, Nick Shirley, the citizen journalist who brought the "empty" childcare companies into the national spotlight with a video that has received 121 million views in just three days, revealed that one of the Somali-linked childcare centers had been shut down by the Minnesota Department of Children.


Earlier today at the "Quality Learing Center" - and yes, it is supposed to be "learning" - the owner's son blamed the misspelling on a graphic designer.

This is damning for Gov. Tim Walz and the Democrats.

Walz blamed "white supremacy" for the targeting of Somali-linked childcare centers, which appear to be front companies.

We assess that the manufactured political backlash against DOGE from Democrats and left-wing NGOs is likely to fade rapidly as Shirley's viral, on-the-ground reporting continues to highlight the scale of the fraud.

 *  *  * 

Update (1315ET):

Agents with Homeland Security Investigations, the primary investigative arm of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, are on the ground in Minneapolis Monday morning, conducting what DHS Secretary Kristi Noem described as a "massive investigation into childcare and other widespread fraud."

"Homeland Security Investigations @ICEGov are on the ground in Minneapolis right now conducting a massive investigation on childcare and other rampant fraud," Noem wrote on X, adding, "More coming."

Homeland Security wrote on X, "The American people deserve answers on how their taxpayer money is being used and ARRESTS when abuse is found. Under the leadership of @Sec_Noem , DHS is working to deliver results."

Meanwhile.... This X post did not age well. 

Nor did this one. 

While allegations of Somali-linked welfare fraud in left-wing-controlled Minnesota have been known for years, the timing of Nick Shirley's bombshell investigation suggests the federal government needed positive sentiment in the news cycle to begin the action phase on the ground. That's usually how these types of operations work.

*   *   *

A viral video that has topped 76 million views on X within 48 hours has significantly heightened public scrutiny of multiple Minneapolis daycare centers linked to Somali operators that received millions in state and federal funding despite showing minimal operational activity. The apparent mismatch between allocated taxpayer funds and observable services strengthens a recent report by Christopher F. Rufo, which alleges that Somali-linked fraud in the left-wing-controlled state may involve front companies potentially diverting taxpayer funds to at least one overseas terrorist network.

Update: And according to FBI Director Kash Patel, the agency will "continue to follow the money" in Minnesota, and their investigation is "ongoing." (And why did it take Chris Rufo cracking the case before they took action?)

"To date, the FBI dismantled a $250 million fraud scheme that stole federal food aid meant for vulnerable children during COVID. The investigation exposed sham vendors, shell companies, and large-scale money laundering tied to the Feeding Our Future network," Patel said on Sunday. 

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party and its PR machine across left-wing corporate media outlets, including CBS, PBS, CNN, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, 60 Minutes, The New York Times, and the Associated Press, have largely remained silent on citizen journalist Nick Shirley's investigation.

We assess that as the dominant narrative of the widening Somali-linked fraud scandal in Minneapolis continues to go viral on X through "America First"-linked accounts, Democrats and their PR machine will move to advance a counter-narrative, given how optically damaging these revelations are ahead of the midterm cycle.

The days of Democrats defaulting to labeling opponents as "racists" or "fascists" appear to be over. They will likely need to develop new pejoratives to target those investigating allegations of welfare fraud on a scale larger than Somalia's GDP.

In just one day, Shirley and a private investigator visited Somali-linked businesses operating in the child daycare, adult and autism care, home healthcare, and non-emergency medical transportation industries. They say they uncovered $110 million in highly questionable payments, largely because many of these companies were not operating as they should during peak hours of operation and appeared mostly inactive.

The next critical step, and one we suspect federal investigators are already pursuing, is comprehensive entity mapping of the targets Shirley identified.

This analysis moves beyond isolated entities and enables the detection of network behavior, including shared addresses, recycled officers, repeated vendors, circular payment flows, and clusters of entities with minimal real-world operations. Such pattern recognition is essential for identifying front companies.

Here is the network mapping of Shirley's identified targets:

Mako Childcare Center, Inc.

Mini Childcare Center Inc.

Pattern detection: Both Mako and Mini share the same address.

Sweet Angel Child Care Inc.

Quality Learning Center Inc.

And now the fun begins.

Future Leaders Early Learning Center

Shirley and the private investigator note that Creative Minds Daycare L.L.C. was shuttered due to violations and reopened the next day as Super Kids Daycare Center LLC.

Creative Minds Daycare L.L.C.

Super Kids Daycare Center LLC

Minnesota Childcare Center Inc. 

And this. 

To sum up, this data transforms fragmented public records into actionable network intelligence maps, enabling X users to dig deeper and understand how money, control, and influence actually flow across Shirley's target entities.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/network-mapping-nick-shirleys-empty-minnesota-daycares