Portal:Current events/2016 December 12

• December 2016 Istanbul bombings
  • The death toll from the bombings in Beşiktaş, Istanbul, rises to at least 44, according to Health Minister Recep Akdağ. (Anadolu Agency)
  • At least 118 HDP officials and supporters are arrested in anti-terrorism raids. HDP rejects any link with either the PKK or Kurdistan Freedom Falcons. (Reuters), (FOX News)
• Syrian Civil War
  • The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights declares that "the battle for Aleppo has reached its end" with a major victory for the Syrian government. (Euronews)
  • Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says he is hoping he is wrong stating that the United States "orchestrated, coordinated" the Islamic State's recent capture of Palmyra in order to "give a break to those bandits that are in eastern Aleppo." (Reuters)
  • The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports that suspected Syrian government or Russian warplanes conduct a series of air raids on Oqayrabat and other nearby villages in the Hama Governorate at dawn, killing at least 34 civilians, including 11 children. (Hindustan Times) (Times of Israel)
  • Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, warns that "atrocities" have occurred in recent hours in the battle for Aleppo. (BBC), (BBC)
  • Russian airstrikes against ISIS in Palmyra kill 5 people. (Middle East Monitor)

• 74th Golden Globe Awards
  • La La Land leads nominations. (Entertainment Weekly )

• Venezuela swaps its bolivar notes with coins in order to curb hyperinflation. (BBC)
• National Amusements announces CBS Corporation and Viacom media companies will not be merging. CBS shares rose 1.8 percent closing in on a nearly 2-1/2 year high while Viacom fell 6.9 percent. (Reuters)

• 2016 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • Tropical Cyclone Vardah is expected to make landfall in southern India today bringing heavy rain to the city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu as well as Andhra Pradesh. At least four people have been killed and tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from low lying areas. (CNN), (Reuters via ABC News Australia)

• One-China policy, China–United States relations
  • President-elect Donald Trump says he sees no reason why the U.S. should continue to abide by the One China policy unless a bargain is reached with Beijing involving trade. (The Guardian)
  • A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman says these comments raise the possibility that U.S.-China relations could be adversely affected, and that the One-China policy is the political foundation of the ties between the two countries. (CBS News) (NPR)
• China–Mexico relations
  • Representatives from China and Mexico pledge to deepen ties between their countries as a reaction to Donald Trump's positions on trade. (Reuters)
• Cuba–European Union relations
  • Cuba and the European Union sign an accord in Brussels to normalize relations, formally ending the Common Position which was adopted by the Council of the European Union in 1996. (AFP via Yahoo!)
• Kenya threatens to leave the International Criminal Court. (Voice of America)
• Former Prime Minister of Portugal António Guterres is sworn in as the new United Nations Secretary General. (Reuters)

• Pakistan appoints Lt. Gen. Naveed Mukhtar as the new head of the Inter-Services Intelligence. (The Seattle Times)
• Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, goes on trial in France for alleged negligence as Finance Minister resulting in the loss of hundreds of millions of euros. (New York Times) (Al Jazeera)
• Aaron Schock, a former U.S. representative from Illinois's 18th congressional district, pleads not guilty on 24 charges including Mail fraud and tax evasion. (Reuters).

• 2016 United States presidential election recounts
  • Jill Stein's bid to force a recount of the presidential election results in the state of Pennsylvania is rejected by a federal judge. (USA Today)
  • The completed recount in Wisconsin verifies Donald Trump as the winner of the state's ten electors. (MSN)
• New Zealand National Party leadership election, 2016
  • Bill English is elected as the leader of the New Zealand National Party and is now the country's Prime Minister. Paula Bennett is elected as English's deputy. (Sydney Morning Herald)
• Gambian presidential election, 2016
  • The president of Senegal urges The Gambia's fallen dictator Yahya Jammeh to respect the result of the polls. (Fox News)
• Romanian legislative election, 2016
  • Being forced into opposition a year earlier, by the resignation of Prime Minister Victor Ponta amid the Colectiv nightclub fire tragedy, the Social Democratic Party returns to government following a landslide victory in last Sunday's parliamentary elections. (The New York Times)
• António Guterres, a Portuguese Catholic politician will be the next Secretary-General of the United Nations beginning January 1, 2017. He served as prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002. (Catholic World Report)