BRIEF – ME! – DAILY NEWS BRIEFING
In today’s briefing update, in Honduras, eighteen prisoners have died after another clash in another overcrowded prison.
Tens of thousands have been forced to flee as Syrian forces continue its Idlib advance.
In the US, an internal email suggests the US took steps to block Ukrainian aid just 90 minutes after Trump’s phone call. In the UK, Thomas Cook staff say the welfare system has failed them.
Space, astronaut Jessica Meir celebrates Hannakuh from the ISS!
Entertainment, actor Robert De Niro says he would like to see a ‘bag of s***’ thrown in President Trump’s face.
ALL this and more in today’s news briefing – A daily roundup of all the news headlines that you need to know, summarised as part of WTX News Briefing.
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Eighteen prisoners dead in new Honduras jail clash
Arab News reports eighteen people were killed Sunday afternoon in violence between prisoners at a jail in central Honduras. Just two days earlier another 18 people died in unrest at a separate facility. 
A spokesman for the combined national security force released a list of names of the dead and the two injured. And said that “firearms, knives and machetes” were used in the clash.
Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez ordered the army and police to take control of the country’s 27 prisons, which are badly overcrowded.
Read the full story on Arab News
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Tens of thousands flee as Syrian forces continue Idlib advance
Aljazeera says tens of thousands of civilians have fled parts of Syria’s northern Idlib province towards the border with Turkey as Russia-backed Syrian forces gain ground following days of renewed attacks against the last rebel-held enclave. 
For a fourth consecutive day, civilians have been fleeing from towns and villages eastern and southern Idlib – according to activists and rescue workers.
“Barrel bombs, air-stikes, have indiscriminately targeted civilian structures in the area with the aim of driving out both civilians and fighters,” local activist Suleiman Abdulqader said.
Read the full story on Aljazeera
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US took steps to block Ukraine aid 90 minutes after Trump phone call
France24 says a US budget office told the Pentagon to “hold off” on military aid to Kyiv 90 minutes after a controversial phone call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelensky, according to an internal email. 
The email was part of several published by the investigative nonprofit Center for Public Integrity. The US President is accused of withholding millions in aid to Ukraine to push them to investigate his political rival, Joe Biden.
“Based on guidance I have received and in light of the Administration’s plan to review assistance to Ukraine… please hold off on any additional DoD obligations of these funds,” Office of Management and Budget official Micheal Duffy wrote in an email to Pentagon staff.
Read the full story on France24
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Thomas Cook staff say ‘benefits system has failed them’
BBC News says when Thomas Cook collapsed three months ago, staff thought they’d be able to fall back on the welfare system. 
But Betty Knight, who had worked cabin crew for 12 years and many of her colleagues, were bewildered when they struggled to get the help they needed. Her application for job seekers was repeatedly denied.
“I’ve worked hard. I’ve done everything expected of me to contribute to our society, but when I needed the Department for Work and Pensions, I haven’t been able to access that. It left me reeling.”
Read the full story on BBC News
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Astronaut Jessica Meir celebrates Hannukah from space
CNN says NASA astronaut Jessica Meir celebrated the first day of Hanukkah in space.
Meir posted a picture Sunday on Twitter of her feet in Hanukkah socks from the International Space Station.
“Happy Hanukkah to all those who celebrate it on Earth! #HappyHanukkah,” Meir’s post said.
You could see Earth beneath her feet in the picture.
In October, Meir was part of the first all-female spacewalk outside of the ISS.
Read the full story on CNN
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Donald Trump: Robert De Niro says he wants to see a ‘bag of s***’ thrown in Trump’s face
Sky News says legendary actor Robert De Niro has said Donald Trump “needs to be humiliated” and he would like to see a “bag of s***” thrown in the president’s face. 
The Oscar-winning actor took his long-running criticism of the US president to new extremes during a podcast alongside Micheal Moore.
De Niro said the Democrats must choose a candidate to run against Mr Trump in the 2020 presidential election who is formidable enough “to confront him and put him in his place.”
Read the full story on Sky News
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