Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, Interceptor7, Magnifico, annetteboardman, Besame and jck. Alumni editors include (but not limited to) Man Oh Man, wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbook (RIP), 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.
Please feel free to share your articles and stories in the comments.
BBC
Ethiopia's Tigray crisis: Mekelle hospital struggling after attack - Red Cross
The main hospital in the capital of Ethiopia's northern region of Tigray is "dangerously low" on supplies as it treats the wounded from the fighting around the city, the Red Cross says.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed had said that federal forces had taken control of the city.
He described it as the "last phase" in the three-week long conflict with the Tigray People's Liberation Front.
But the TPLF leader vowed to fight on, in a statement to Reuters.
Few details have emerged from Tigray throughout the fighting as communications have been cut.
The ICRC said the Ethiopian Red Cross ambulances had taken "injured and deceased people" to the Ayder Referral Hospital.
On a visit to the hospital, ICRC staff found "80% of patients to be suffering from trauma injuries" adding that other services had to be suspended "so that limited staff and resources could be devoted to emergency medical care".
"The hospital is running dangerously low on sutures, antibiotics, anticoagulants, painkillers, and even gloves," ICRC head in Ethiopia Maria Soledad said.
BBC
Covid: Fauci warns of 'surge in cases' post Thanksgiving
US infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci has warned that the country could see "surge upon surge" of coronavirus cases in the coming weeks.
Millions of people are returning home following the Thanksgiving holiday.
Speaking on Sunday, he said it was "not too late" for those yet to travel to help curb the virus by wearing masks and socially distancing.
The US has recorded more than 13 million coronavirus cases and more than 266,000 people have died.
As of Sunday, the number of Covid-19 cases recorded in November have surpassed four million, double the figure recorded in October.
Anywhere from 800,000 to more than one million travellers passed through US airport checkpoints on any day during the past week, according to Transport Security Administration statistics.
"There is almost certainly going to be an uptick because of what has happened with the travel," Mr Fauci told CNN's State of the Union.
The Guardian
Covid infections in England down by nearly a third since second lockdown
Coronavirus infections in England have fallen by nearly a third since the country entered its second lockdown, swab tests on 105,000 volunteers have shown.
There was a 30% drop in cases across the country over almost a fortnight this month, with 96 people infected per 10,000 between 13-24 November, down from 132 per 10,000 between 26 October and 2 November.
The R number, which shows the level of transmission, is now 0.88. Any figure above 1 means the virus is growing exponentially.
The findings, from the government-funded React mass surveillance study, have been welcomed as proof that both the England-wide lockdown that began on 5 November, and the system of different tiered restrictions that preceded it, succeeded in reducing transmission of the virus.
NPR
'We Know We Are Asking A Lot.' Los Angeles County Announces New Stay-At-Home Order
As COVID-19 cases continue to surge across the nation, Los Angeles County has announced a new stay-at-home order that places new restrictions on businesses and gatherings but does not ban them altogether.
Friday's announcement came on a day when the number of new cases reached 205,000 nationwide — a figure believed to be higher, in part, due to delays in reporting caused by the Thanksgiving holiday. More than 4,500 of those cases were reported in Los Angeles County, along with 24 deaths.
The "safer at home" order — which takes effect Monday and runs through Dec. 20 — prohibits all public and private gatherings with individuals outside of a person's household, with exceptions for faith-based services and protests because they are "constitutionally protected rights." Residents are advised to stay home "as much as possible" but to wear a mask if they do go out.
BBC
Swiss vote to reject Responsible Business Initiative
Swiss voters have rejected a proposal which would have made businesses liable for human rights or environmental violations they cause around the world.
Even though voters backed the initiative by a narrow majority, it failed to win support in a majority of Swiss cantons as required.
The government and many business leaders had come out against the plan.
Another proposal to ban public financing of arms manufacturers was also rejected.
The liability initiative gained 50.7% of votes nationwide, but only it gained a majority in about a third of the country's cantons. It is the first time in more than half a century that a referendum measure has failed on regional grounds, despite obtaining a popular majority in the whole country.
The Guardian
Queensland braces for record-breaking heatwave as Sydney enjoys short-lived reprieve (That would be 115º F)
Queenslanders are in for a record-breaking hot day on Monday as Sydneysiders get a short-lived reprieve from the heat.
Dean Narramore, a senior forecaster with the Bureau of Meteorology, says much of southern Queensland will be experiencing an “extreme” heatwave over next three days.
“We will be tipping into severe to extreme heatwave conditions … the extreme heatwave conditions will be west of Brisbane, more in the Darling Downs, Maranoa and Warrego,” he said.
“Temperatures are expected in the low to mid-40s for those locations, probably peaking tomorrow [Tuesday].”
Dalby, north-west of Toowoomba, has a record of 41.1C for this time of year, and temperatures are set to rise to 41C on Monday. Further inland, the town of Cunnamulla is expected to hit 44.6C on Monday, 0.6C above its previous November high. Fire danger warnings were forecast to rise to “severe” for the Channel Country, Maranoa and Warrego districts on Tuesday, with a number of other areas listed as “very high”. This heat is expected to remain until Thursday.
Reuters
U.S. Supreme Court weighs Trump bid to bar illegal immigrants from census totals
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court on Monday is set to take up President Donald Trump’s unprecedented and contentious effort to exclude illegal immigrants from the population totals used to allocate U.S. House of Representatives districts to states. The challengers to Trump’s July directive include various states led by New York, cities, counties and immigrant rights groups. They have argued that the Republican president’s move could leave several million people uncounted and cause California, Texas and New Jersey to lose House seats, which are based on a state’s population count in the decennial census.
The census in mandated by the U.S. Constitution. The challengers argued that Trump is prohibited by the Constitution’s text from excluding illegal immigrants from the population count. The Constitution requires that the apportionment of House seats be based upon the “whole number of persons in each state.”
New York Times
One Seat, Competing Pressures as Newsom Considers Senate Pick
SACRAMENTO — Since Gavin Newsom’s days as a young upstart running for mayor of San Francisco through more than two decades of public life, Alex Padilla has been a stalwart ally.
As president of the Los Angeles City Council, Mr. Padilla introduced Mr. Newsom to important local labor and Latino leaders. As a state senator, Mr. Padilla chaired Mr. Newsom’s short-lived first campaign for governor. And as California secretary of state, Mr. Padilla conferred a key early endorsement that helped Mr. Newsom win the governor’s seat in 2018. Now Mr. Newsom is in a position to return the favor: He must appoint someone to fill the soon-to-be-vacant U.S. Senate seat of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. Though many names have been floated to succeed Ms. Harris, Mr. Padilla has emerged as the front-runner.
New York Times
Watch a Lunar Eclipse, or at Least Try To
This evening as you sneak some late-night Thanksgiving leftovers, take a moment to marvel at the full moon. Do you notice anything different? It’s subtle, but on early Monday (Sunday night if you’re on the west coast), the full moon should appear a bit darker than usual. That’s because you’re witnessing a penumbral lunar eclipse, a celestial occurrence in which the moon dips behind Earth’s faint, outer shadow, or penumbra.
Penumbral eclipses are slight, verging on imperceptible in some cases, says Jackie Faherty, an astrophysicist at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. “It’s not something that’s going to slap you in the face.”
So Sunday night’s eclipse will not be as dramatic as a total lunar eclipse, in which the moon plunges into Earth’s dark inner shadow, called the umbra, turning its surface blood red.
Deutsche Welle
'World's loneliest elephant' Kaavan leaves Pakistan for Cambodia
A 35-year-old elephant is headed for a wildlife sanctuary in Cambodia after his miserable condition at an Islamabad zoo sparked a global outcry. American singer Cher campaigned for his freedom for years.
Following years of public outcry and campaigning by Oscar-winning American singer and actor Cher, Kaavan the elephant is set to embark on a journey from Pakistan to a sanctuary in Cambodia.
The 35-year-old bull elephant's miserable condition in an Islamabad zoo had sparked an uproar from animal rights groups in the country and abroad.
A special cargo plane was arranged to transport Kaavan to a wildlife sanctuary in Cambodia on Sunday, where authorities have made arrangements for his arrival.