Portal:Current events

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • War crimes in the Syrian civil war, Fall of the Assad regime
    • Syrian mass graves
      • Several mass graves are uncovered following the fall of the Assad regime, with a central site in al-Qutayfah estimated to contain the human remains of at least 100,000 individuals. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
  • Operation Dawn of Freedom
    • Senior American officials report that Turkey is building up its forces along the Syrian border, raising fear of a possible ground invasion of territories held by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. (WSJ)
  • 2024 Israeli invasion of Syria
    • While the Israeli Defense Forces continue their ground operation beyond the buffer zone in southern Syria, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense minister Israel Katz visit the peak of Mount Hermon, which was seized by the IDF last week. (The New York Times)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Russian Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, head of the NBC Protection Troops, and his assistant are assassinated by an IED hidden inside of an e-scooter in Moscow. A Ukrainian source claims that the Security Service of Ukraine is responsible for the killings, after previously charging Kirilov in absentia for the use of chemical weapons. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, says that the Ukrainian leadership would face an "imminent revenge" for the killings. (BBC News), (Deccan Herald)
  • Military aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War, Russia–NATO relations
    • NATO's Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine command center in Wiesbaden, Germany, takes over coordination of Western military support to Ukraine from the United States. (Reuters)
• Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
  • Two police officers are killed and three more wounded after a mass shooting at a security checkpoint in Shangla district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. (AP)
  • Three police officers are killed by a roadside bomb targeting a vehicle carrying polio workers in Dera Ismail Khan district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. (ABC News)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • The death toll in Mozambique from Cyclone Chido climbs to 34, with 23,600 homes destroyed in the country. (DW)
• 2024 Port Vila earthquake
  • A 7.4 magnitude earthquake strikes Vanuatu's capital Port Vila, prompting a tsunami warning to be issued. At least 14 people are killed and over 200 others are injured. (RNZ)

Politics and elections

• Second presidential transition of Donald Trump
  • The U.S. Electoral College formally certifies U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's victory against U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris. (WNYW) (CNN)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • 2024 Israeli invasion of Syria
    • The Cabinet of Israel approves a plan proposing to double the occupied Golan Heights regional Israeli settlers population. (BBC News)
    • Heavy overnight Israeli airstrikes are reported in Tartus Governorate, Syria. (The Times of Israel)
  • US intervention in the Syrian civil war
    • The US Air Forces conduct strikes targeting ISIS camps and operatives, killing one dozen ISIS fighters according to the Pentagon. (US Department of Defense)
  • Fall of the Assad regime
    • A recently created mass grave containing the bodies of 17 executed Syrian Army soldiers is discovered in the Syrian Desert near Deir ez-Zor. (SOHR)
    • In his first public statement since being overthrown, former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad says that he "didn't intend to leave Syria", claiming that he went to Khmeimim Air Base in Latakia Governorate to "oversee combat operations" only to find that the Syrian Army had abandoned their positions and surrendered to rebel forces. Amid "an intensified attack by drone strikes" at the air base, Assad says that Russia decided to airlift him to Moscow. (BBC News)
  • Sectarianism and minorities in the Syrian civil war
    • The brother of the Imam of the Great Prophet Mosque of Masyaf is assassinated by unidentified gunmen, Hama Governorate, in a potential revenge operation, due to the Imam being associated with Hezbollah and other Iranian- and Shia-associated militias. (SOHR)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • The Gaza Health Ministry announces that the death toll in the ongoing war has surpassed 45,000. (Al Jazeera)

Health and environment

• 2024 Australia heat wave
  • Walpeup, Victoria, Australia, reports a temperature of 47.1 °C (116.8 °F), the hottest temperature reported in the state since 2019. Extreme heat wave warnings and fire risk warnings are are also issued for areas across Australia. (The Guardian) (ABC News Australia)

Law and crime

• 2024 Northeastern United States drone sightings
  • U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas calls for state National Guards to be given the authority to shoot down unidentified drones, saying that the federal government is not able to address the issue by themselves. (The Telegraph)
  • U.S. officials say that a drone detection system is being deployed in New York following a formal request by Governor Kathy Hochul. (BBC News)
  • The United States Air Force confirms that Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio had to temporarily suspend air operations for four hours on Friday and Saturday after the airbase reported sightings of unidentified "small unmanned aerial systems". (CNN)
  • President-elect Donald Trump cancels a planned visit to Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey amid drone sightings in the state. Trump also calls on outgoing President Joe Biden and the U.S. military to reveal the truth about the drones, saying that "the government knows what's happening" and that they know where the drones are coming from. (The Times of India)
• Abundant Life Christian School shooting
  • Two people are killed and six others are injured in a mass shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. The perpetrator is found dead at the scene. (CNN)
• Bolivian prosecutors issue an arrest warrant for former President Evo Morales in connection to sexual abuse allegations that he fathered a child with a 15-year-old girl, a claim he denies. (AP)

Politics and elections

• 2024 German government crisis, 2025 German federal election
  • German Chancellor Olaf Scholz loses a vote of confidence, thereby allowing for early elections to be held on February 23. (BBC News)
• Resignation of Chrystia Freeland
  • Chrystia Freeland resigns as Canada's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance amid disagreements with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on increased government spending and how to handle possible U.S. tariffs imposed by the incoming Trump administration. (Reuters)
• President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov announces that he has dismissed Akylbek Japarov as Prime Minister. (Reuters)
• The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle announced the expulsion of former Indonesian president Joko Widodo, his son Vice President Gibran Rakabuming and his son-in-law Governor-elect of North Sumatra Bobby Nasution, following rift over the candidacy of Rakabuming as the running mate of Prabowo Subianto during the 2024 Indonesian presidential election. (Jakarta Globe)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Israel–Hamas war
  • December 2024 Nuseirat refugee camp attack
    • Al Jazeera cameraman Ahmad Al-Louh is killed in an Israeli airstrike on a civil defense point in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. (WAFA) (anews)
• Syrian civil war
  • 2024 Israeli invasion of Syria
    • Israeli Air Force fighter jets strike surface-to-air missile and weapon depots in Tartus Governorate, Syria, with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights describing the strikes as the heaviest in the region since the start of the civil war. (AFP via Barron's)

Business and economy

• Free trade agreements of the United Kingdom
  • The United Kingdom joins the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, becoming the 12th member and the first European member. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • Thousands of people are believed to have been killed by Cyclone Chido in the French overseas department of Mayotte, with the cyclone also causing damage in the Comoros and Mozambique. (The Independent)
• 2024 Kerch Strait oil spill
  • At least one person is killed when two Russian oil tankers, Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-236, are damaged due to bad weather in the Kerch Strait with oil from the tankers actively leaking into the strait. (NOS) (CNN)

International relations

• Australia–Indonesia relations
  • Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announces that the remaining five members of the Bali Nine drug-trafficking group, who were serving life sentences in Indonesia, have returned to Australia following an agreement between the two countries to end their imprisonment. (CNN)
• Ireland–Israel relations
  • Israel announces that it will close its embassy in Dublin, Ireland, over Ireland's alleged "extreme anti-Israel policies". (Reuters)

Law and crime

• 2024 Northeastern United States drone sightings
  • White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby says that the United States Coast Guard has confirmed that there is no evidence of any "foreign-based involvement" in the unidentified drones that are being sighted over the Northeastern United States. (The Times of India via MSN)
• ABC News settles a defamation lawsuit filed by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump over statements made on air by anchor George Stephanopoulos about the E. Jean Carroll v. Donald J. Trump lawsuits, with ABC agreeing to pay $15 million to the Trump presidential library as well as $1 million for legal fees. (AP)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Operation Dawn of Freedom, Turkish involvement in the Syrian civil war
    • 2024 Kobani offensive
      • The Turkish Armed Forces and pro-Turkish rebel groups amass troops on the Syria–Turkey border outside of Kobani, Aleppo Governorate, Syria, and along the nearby Qarqozak Bridge, following several breaches in an internationally-brokered temporary ceasefire agreement between them and the Syrian Democratic Forces. (Enab Baladi) (Roj News)
      • Iraqi water experts issue warnings regarding cracks that have formed in the Tishrin Dam in Aleppo Governorate following continuous bombardment by Turkish and pro-Turkish forces and the possibility of further damage causing a dam failure. (Waradana)
• Somali Civil War
  • Puntland–Somaliland dispute
    • Las Anod conflict
      • Two Somaliland troops are killed and eight others are injured in fighting between Somaliland and SSC-Khatumo forces in Erigavo, Sanaag, Somaliland. (Idil News)
  • At least eight people were killed and ten others injured in a deadly inter-clan conflict in a rural area under the El Buur district of Galgadud region in south-central Somalia (Hiiraan Online)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip
    • At least 52 Palestinians are killed in Israeli airstrikes on two schools in Gaza City and Rafah in the Gaza Strip. (Al Jazeera)

Business and economy

• Moody's downgrades France's bond credit rating to "Aa3" from "Aa2" following the collapse of the Barnier government, citing "political fragmentation" as a threat to the country's ability to reduce its public debt and lower its deficit. (DW) (Politico)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • Cyclone Chido kills two people and causes "catastrophic" damage to the island of Mayotte, with many more feared dead on the island. (France 24) (RFI)

International relations

• The 24th summit of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA-TCP) is held in Caracas, Venezuela. (ALBA-TCP News)

Law and crime

• 2024 New Jersey drone sightings
  • Flights are temporarily suspended at Stewart International Airport in New York, United States, after the Federal Aviation Administration alerts them to a drone sighting in the area. The incident prompts Governor Kathy Hochul to call for federal government intervention amid a series of widespread drone sightings across the Northeastern United States. (ABC News)
  • The Public Service Enterprise Group files a request with the Federal Aviation Administration to close the airspace over two of its nuclear power plants to all aircraft after unidentified drones were spotted hovering over the facilities in New Jersey. (The New York Post via MSN)
• 2024 Nord Department killings
  • Five people are killed during a shooting spree between Dunkirk and Loon-Plage, in Nord Department, France. A man is detained. (AP)
• One police officer is killed and at least two others are injured in an explosion in Dnipro, Ukraine. (Ukrinform)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Georgian presidential election
  • President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili states that she will not recognize the scheduled presidential election results as legitimate due to the election not being a direct vote, and repeats her intention to remain as president until new parliamentary elections are held. (Anadolu Agency)
  • Georgian Dream candidate Mikheil Kavelashvili is elected as president by the electoral college. Major opposition parties do not participate in the vote, having boycotted Parliament since the parliamentary election in October. (CNN)
• Impeachment of Yoon Suk Yeol
  • South Korea's National Assembly votes to impeach president Yoon Suk Yeol over his recent attempt to impose martial law. (The Guardian)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Israel and the Syrian civil war
    • 2024 Israeli invasion of Syria
      • Syrian sources report that Israeli forces met with village dignitaries in the Yarmouk Basin area of Daraa Governorate, instructing them to surrender all weapons in the villages and for villagers to comply with home searches. (Erem News) (Sada El-Balad)
  • US intervention in the Syrian civil war
    • The U.S. military evacuates American citizen Travis Timmerman out of Syria after Timmerman had previously been reported missing in the country. (NBC News)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Moldova and the Russo-Ukrainian War
    • The Parliament of Moldova votes in favor of declaring a 60-day national state of emergency beginning on December 16 due to Ukraine not renewing its transit contract with Gazprom to deliver Russian gas to Moldova. (Reuters)
  • Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure
    • Russia launches one of its largest attacks on the Ukrainian energy infrastructure since the conflict began, with about 290 missiles fired and drones striking multiple regions. The Russian Defense Ministry claims that the attack was in response to a recent Ukrainian ATACMS attack on Taganrog-Central air base in Rostov Oblast, Russia. (The Kyiv Independent) (UNN)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • December 2024 Nuseirat refugee camp attack
    • The number of Palestinians killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Nuseirat refugee camp yesterday increases to 33, most of whom are from the same family. 84 others are reported to be either injured or missing. (Al Jazeera)
• Sudanese civil war
  • Darfur campaign
    • Nine people are killed and 20 others are injured in a Rapid Support Forces airstrike on a hospital in Al-Fashir, North Darfur, Sudan. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • Cyclone Chido destroys most of Agaléga, Mauritius. (L'Express) (Le Mauricien)
• Six people are killed and 66 others are injured in a fire at a nursing home in Amman, Jordan. (Reuters)

Health and environment

• Opioid epidemic in the United States
  • McKinsey & Company agrees to pay $650 million and enter a deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve criminal charges related to its advisory work for Purdue Pharma on increasing OxyContin sales, including conspiracy to misbrand a drug and obstruction of justice. (Al Jazeera)
• The British Antarctic Survey reports that A23a, the world's largest iceberg, has exited the Taylor column and is beginning to drift further north through the Southern Ocean. (BBC News) (CNN)

International relations

• Syria–Ukraine relations
  • Humanitarian aid during the Syrian civil war
    • The Ukrainian government says that it is ready to supply food to Syria after Russia suspended wheat supplies to Syria amid uncertainty about the new government and payment delays. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Israel–Hamas war
  • A court in The Hague, Netherlands, rejects a request by 10 pro-Palestinian NGOs for the Netherlands to stop arms exports to Israel. (Reuters)
• Three people are killed and 48 are injured in a bombing during a festival in Umphang District, Tak Province, Thailand. Two suspects are arrested. (Thai PBS)
• Former Chinese footballer and coach Li Tie is sentenced to 20 years in prison for bribery and match-fixing. (CNN)

Politics and elections

• 2024 French political crisis
  • French President Emmanuel Macron appoints François Bayrou as Prime Minister. (Politico) (The Guardian)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Operation Dawn of Freedom
    • 2024 Manbij offensive
      • Large-scale protests occur in Manbij, Aleppo Governorate, Syria, against pro-Turkish Dawn of Freedom Operations Room revenge killings and crimes against civilians. (SOHR)
      • Pro-Turkish factions are filmed executing dozens of surrendered prisoners of the pro-Kurdish Manbij Military Council and Syrian Democratic Forces. (SOHR)
    • 2024 Kobani offensive
      • Turkish military forces and the pro-Turkish Dawn of Freedom Operations Room launch an attack with tanks and drones against the Tishrin Dam on the Euphrates river, which the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights warns could trigger a dam failure and a severe humanitarian crisis. (SOHR)
  • Israel and the Syrian civil war
    • 2024 Israeli invasion of Syria
      • Syrian residents of the villages of Hader, Hamidiya, and Umm Batna in Quneitra Governorate are displaced from their homes after Israeli military forces enter the villages with military vehicles. (SOHR)
  • Fall of the Assad regime
    • At least six civilians are reported to have been killed by gunfire in celebration of the fall of the Assad regime. (SOHR)
  • Russian intervention in the Syrian civil war
    • Satellite images and MarineTraffic data confirm that the Russian Navy has abandoned its naval base in the port city of Tartus. (The Telegraph)
  • Syrian peace process
    • The Syrian transitional government announces that the constitution and parliament will be suspended during the three-month transitional period. (Al Arabiya)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip
    • December 2024 Nuseirat refugee camp attack
      • At least 33 Palestinians are killed and 50 others are injured in an Israeli airstrike on the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. (AP) (Euronews)
    • Fifteen people are killed in Israeli airstrikes while guarding humanitarian aid convoys near Rafah and Khan Younis, Gaza. (Al Jazeera)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Attacks in Russia during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • Four police officers are injured in a drone attack on the barracks of a police regiment building in Grozny, Chechnya, Russia. (Kyiv Independent)
• Islamic State–Taliban conflict
  • The Islamic State – Khorasan Province claims responsibility for yesterday's suicide bombing in Kabul, Afghanistan, which killed acting Minister of Refugee and Repatriation Khalil Haqqani and several other people. (AP)

Arts and culture

• United States president-elect Donald Trump is named Person of the Year by Time magazine. (BBC News)
• Astro Bot wins Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2024. (Polygon)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • Tropical Cyclone Chido makes landfall over Agaléga, Mauritius. (Crisis24)
• Seven people, including a child, are killed and 35 others are injured in a fire at a private hospital in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, India. (The Times of India)
• At least nine people are found dead, six others are missing, and 27 people are rescued when a boat carrying African migrants sinks off the coast of Chebba, Mahdia Governorate, Tunisia. (Al Jazeera) (Arab News)

International relations

• Enlargement of the European Union
  • The European Union approves of Romania and Bulgaria to join the Schengen Area in 2025. (Al Jazeera) (Euronews)
• Israel–Paraguay relations
  • Paraguay reopens its embassy in Jerusalem, Israel. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• Federal pardons in the United States
  • U.S. President Joe Biden announces pardons for 39 people convicted of non-violent offenses, and commutes the sentences of 1,500 others who had been released from prison to house arrest during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is considered the "largest single-day grant of clemency in modern history". (AP)
• A Danish court sentences British hedge fund trader Sanjay Shah to 12 years in prison for tax fraud. (The National)
• The Venezuelan government releases 103 prisoners who were arrested during the protests against the results of the disputed presidential election in July. (Al Jazeera) (CNN)

Politics and elections

• In Lithuania, the three-party coalition Government headed by the new appointed Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas takes over. (Reuters)
• Hundreds of protesters, led by university students, gather outside the Radio Television of Serbia headquarters in Belgrade, Serbia, to protest against the state-owned television broadcaster and President Aleksandar Vučić's administration. At least 13 people are detained by Serbian police. (AP) (BalkanInsight) (Euronews)

Science and technology

• Edith Heard, biologist specialist of epigenetics and director-general of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, is awarded the CNRS Gold Medal, France's highest research award. (CNRS - Le Journal)

Sports

• World Chess Championship 2024
  • Gukesh Dommaraju defeats Ding Liren to win the World Chess Championship 7½-6½, becoming the youngest ever chess champion at the age of 18 years. (Sportstar)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Somali Civil War
  • Constitutional crisis in Somalia
    • 2024 Jubaland presidential election
      • Battle of Ras Kamboni
        • Somali forces launch a failed attack on Jubaland regional forces, with Jubaland capturing hundreds of Somali soldiers and claiming to have fully taken over Ras Kamboni, Lower Juba, Somalia. (Reuters) (Idil News) (Garowe Online)
• Israel–Hamas war
  • Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip
    • Siege of North Gaza
      • At least 29 people are killed in Israeli airstrikes on civilian areas in Beit Lahia, North Gaza Governorate, Gaza. (Al Jazeera)
  • An Israeli boy is killed and three others are injured by a Palestinian gunman attack on a bus in Al-Khader, West Bank. (The Times of Israel)
• Russo-Ukrainian War
  • Military aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War
    • United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
      • The United States Department of State approves a $266.4 million sale of F-16 maintenance equipment to Ukraine. (Ukrainska Pravda) (DSCA) (Newsweek)
    • The Parliament of Canada approves the allocation of CA$764 million (US$587 million) in military aid to Ukraine. (Ukrainska Pravda)
• Syrian civil war
  • Fall of the Assad regime
    • Armed men raid and set fire to the tomb of former president Hafez al-Assad and also conduct attacks on other tombs and graves in Qardaha District, Latakia Governorate, Syria. (SOHR)
  • Sectarianism and minorities in the Syrian civil war
    • The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights urges Syria's military leadership to prevent ongoing sectarian riots, looting, and assaults on civilians from armed groups. (SOHR)
  • The Federal Foreign Office of Germany announces an additional €8 million (US$8.4 million) in humanitarian aid to Syria following the fall of the Assad regime. (APA)
• Haitian crisis
  • Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, reopens after it was closed in November when a Spirit Airlines aircraft was struck by gunfire. (DW)
• Islamic State–Taliban conflict
  • Afghanistan's acting Minister of Refugee and Repatriation Khalil Haqqani and five other people are killed in a suicide bombing at the Ministry's headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan. (Reuters)
• Israel–Hezbollah conflict
  • Five civilians are killed in Israeli airstrikes in Ainata, Bint Jbeil, and Beit Lif, Lebanon, despite the agreed ceasefire with Hezbollah. (Al Jazeera)
• Sudanese civil war
  • Amnesty International reports that Sudan is currently facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, with over 30 million people at risk or in need of humanitarian aid. (DW)

Business and economy

• Proposed acquisition of Albertsons by Kroger
  • American grocery store company Albertsons of Boise, Idaho backs out of a $24.6 billion merger deal between Cincinnati-based grocer Kroger and files a lawsuit against them that includes a $600 million termination fee. (ABC News)

Disasters and accidents

• One person is killed in a fire and explosion at a residential high-rise apartment building in Shenzhen, China. (Reuters)
• Fourty-four people are presumed dead from drowning when a boat carrying refugees from Sierra Leone capsizes on its way from Sfax, Tunisia, to Europe. (DW)

Law and crime

• Two United States foreign nationals from California are killed in a shooting by unidentified gunmen in Michoacán, Mexico. (ABC News)

Health and environment

• Environmental issues in Iran
  • Iran announces that all government offices, universities, and schools in Tehran province will be closed for two days due to severe air pollution. (AP)

Politics and elections

• 2024 South Korean martial law
  • A special investigations team conducts a raid on South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's office, the National Police Agency headquarters, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency headquarters, and the office of the National Assembly's security service, as part of an investigation into Yoon's failed attempt at imposing martial law last week. (DW)
  • Jailed former national defense minister Kim Yong-hyun, who allegedly helped President Yoon Suk Yeol impose martial law, attempts suicide while in custody. (BBC News)
• 2024 United Kingdom farmers' protests
  • Hundreds of tractors block Whitehall in protest of Labour government changes to agricultural inheritance tax. (The Independent)
• The Swiss Federal Assembly elects Karin Keller-Sutter, currently Finance minister, as President of Switzerland for 2025. (Swissinfo)

Sports

• 2034 FIFA World Cup
  • FIFA announces that Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 FIFA World Cup. (Khaleej Times)