Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, eeff, Magnifico, annetteboardman, Besame, jck, and JeremyBloom. Alumni editors include (but not limited to) Interceptor 7, Man Oh Man, wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbeck (RIP), rfall, ScottyUrb, Doctor RJ, BentLiberal, Oke (RIP) and jlms qkw.
OND is a regular community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00 AM Eastern Time.
Subbing for maggiejean tonight.
The Guardian
Former world leaders seek $25bn levy on oil states’ revenues to pay for climate damage
The bumper revenues of oil-producing states should be subject to a $25bn levy to help pay for the impact of climate disasters on the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people, a group of former world leaders and leading economists has said.
Seventy international figures led by the former UK prime minister Gordon Brown signed a letter calling for the measure before a crucial UN climate summit, Cop28, that begins in Dubai on Thursday. The signatories include 25 former prime ministers or presidents.
Such a levy would shave off only a small fraction of the bonanza that oil-producing countries have made in recent years, and would help to fill a fund for the “loss and damage” to poor countries afflicted by the impacts of the climate crisis.
“In the space of just a year, $2.5tn of windfall profits were gained by the oil producer states and their national and other private companies that they have done nothing to earn.”
The Guardian
Doctors encouraged by early-stage trial of MS stem cell therapy
Doctors are cautiously hopeful about a new multiple sclerosis therapy after finding that injecting stem cells into patients’ brains was safe and potentially protective against further damage from the disease.
The small, early stage trial was only able to assess whether injecting cells directly into the brain was well tolerated by patients, but in tests carried out in the year after treatment, researchers found hints that the cells may have a long-lasting, beneficial impact.
“We don’t know yet whether this is the beginning of a fantastic journey or not, but the results are very strong and very consistent,” said Prof Stefano Pluchino at the University of Cambridge.
More than 2 million people worldwide live with multiple sclerosis. While most existing drugs target the early, relapsing remitting phase of the disease, two-thirds of patients still move on to the secondary, progressive and increasingly debilitating stage within 30 years of diagnosis.
Deutsche Welle
Ukraine updates: Black Sea storm batters Ukraine, Russia
A winter storm on the Black Sea is lashing parts of Ukraine and Russia.
Heavy snows have crippled power stations, leaving millions of people without power or heat.
The severe conditions comes as Russia presses forward with its invasion of Ukraine.
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has promised the military alliance will continue long-term support for Ukraine.
Deutsche Welle
Malaysia, Indonesia seek allies in EU deforestation row
Malaysia and Indonesia want to bring other Southeast Asian countries on their side amid ongoing disputes with the European Union over environmental and deforestation regulations that are set to take effect in late 2024, with the two nations worried about the regulations' impact on the region's agriculture exports.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said earlier this month that his Thai counterpart, Srettha Thavisin, "has given me the assurance that Thailand would come on board to work together with Malaysia and Indonesia, and hopefully other countries, in presenting our case, particularly to the EU."
Indonesia and Malaysia, which together account for around 85% of global palm oil production, argue that the EU Deforestation-Free Regulation is discriminatory and unfairly punishes small-scale farmers who will struggle to cope with the bureaucratic demands set by Brussels.
Reuters
Vermont man charged with attempted murder in shooting of students of Palestinian descent
Nov 27 (Reuters) - The man accused of shooting and wounding three college students of Palestinian descent in Burlington, Vermont, over the weekend pleaded not guilty to attempted murder charges on Monday and was ordered by a judge to remain held without bond.
Jason J. Eaton, 48, was arraigned in Chittenden County Criminal Court in Burlington, appearing via a video feed from the county jail where he has been detained since his arrest on Sunday, the day after the attack.
Police have said investigators were treating Saturday evening's gun violence in the heart of Vermont's largest city as a suspected hate-motivated crime.
Two of the three men who were shot recounted they were wearing black-and-white Palestinian keffiyeh scarves, and one said they were conversing in a mix of English and Arabic when the gunman confronted them, according to charging documents filed in court.
Reuters
'Rat miners' burrow to rescue 41 men stuck in Indian tunnel
SILKYARA, India, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Rescuers on Monday brought in "rat miners" to drill through a narrow pipe and help pull out 41 construction workers trapped in a tunnel in the Indian Himalayas for more than two weeks after high-powered machines failed, officials said.
The men, low-wage workers from India's poorest states, have been stuck in the 4.5km (3 miles) tunnel in Uttarakhand state since it collapsed on Nov. 12.
They have been getting food, water, light, oxygen and medicines through a pipe but efforts to dig a tunnel have run into a series of snags with machines. The drilling, removal of debris and pushing the 900-millimetre (3 feet) wide evacuation pipe further is now being done from inside the pipe by a team of six "rat miners" from central India, who officials described as "skilled workers".
Miami Herold
‘Dwarf’-like creature found at resort in India turns out to be ‘beautiful’ new species
At a wilderness resort in southern India, a “dwarf”-like creature scampered along the walls. The “beautiful” animal caught the attention of visiting scientists — and turned out to be a new species. Researchers visited a remote resort in Tamil Nadu in April, according to a study published Nov. 17 in the journal Zootaxa. While there, they found three “beautiful” geckos on the walls and nearby rocks, the study said. Scientists captured the small lizards and, taking a closer look, realized they’d discovered a new species: Cnemaspis sundara, or the sundar dwarf gecko.
Sundar dwarf geckos are considered “small-sized,” reaching about 3 inches in length, researchers said. They have a “relatively slender” body, “long (and) slender” limbs, and pointed spikes intermixed with their scales. Male and female sundar dwarf geckos differ significantly in color, photos show.
Washington Post
Stephen Colbert cancels late-night shows after his appendix burst
Stephen Colbert announced Monday in a social media post that he has canceled this week’s episodes of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” after his appendix burst.
Still, he mustered enough good humor to crack a joke for his fans about the reason for the last-minute cancellation.
“I’m sure you’re thinking, ‘Turkey overdose, Steve? Gravy boat capsize?’ Actually, I’m recovering from surgery for a ruptured appendix,” he wrote Monday afternoon.
A burst or ruptured appendix is a potentially life-threatening condition that spreads infection throughout the abdomen, according to the Mayo Clinic. It requires immediate surgery to remove the organ.
Washington Post
This lawsuit could disrupt the U.S. tax system. Key facts are in dispute.
The fate of an obscure provision of President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax package, which will be reviewed by the Supreme Court next week, has many experts panicked over the potential to destabilize the nation’s tax system. In addition, some say the outcome could preemptively block Congress from creating a wealth tax.
But the case has also exposed questions about the accuracy of the personal story a Washington state couple presented to the court in making their constitutional challenge to the tax, a one-time levy on offshore earnings.
Charles and Kathleen Moore appear to have closer ties to the company central to the case than they disclosed in court filings. Among other things, Charles Moore served on its board for five years and made a significant cash contribution to the company, records show.
This time, however, questions about the legal basis for the couple’s challenge to the tax have been raised before the justices are scheduled to hear oral argument on Dec. 5.
Reuters
Judge rejects Trump bid for US House Jan. 6 committee records
WASHINGTON, Nov 27 (Reuters) - A judge on Monday rejected Donald Trump’s request to see records from the congressional investigation of the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, which the former president said may be relevant to his defense against election interference charges.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington found that Trump "has not sufficiently justified his requests" for information tied to the Democratic-led House of Representatives probe, which concluded in 2022.
Trump sought to subpoena materials that his lawyers said were "missing" from the House investigation, including transcripts and video recordings of interviews with law enforcement officials.
The judge concluded that prosecutors had already given Trump written transcripts of those interviews and that Trump’s attorneys had not shown how video footage of those same conversations could be relevant to his defense.