Peter Atitebi

President Biden has commuted the sentences of 37 federal death row inmates to life without parole, leaving only three individuals facing capital punishment: Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, synagogue shooter Robert Bowers, and church shooter Dylann Roof. This decision comes as President-elect Trump prepares to take office in January, having campaigned on promises to expand federal executions to include crimes such as drug trafficking, child rape, and killings of police officers or US citizens by migrants. During Trump's first term, federal executions resumed after a long hiatus, including the execution of Lisa Montgomery, the first woman put to death by the federal government since 1953. The commutations have drawn mixed reactions. Human rights groups praised the move, while Republicans and Trump's team strongly opposed it. Trump's communications director Steven Cheung called it "a slap in the face to the victims," […]

Russian missiles struck Kyiv early Friday, killing one person and wounding nine others, following Ukraine's use of US-supplied missiles against targets in Russia's border region. Ukrainian air defense intercepted five Iskander ballistic missiles targeting the capital. The attack's aftermath disrupted heating services to 630 residential buildings, 16 medical facilities, and 30 educational institutions. Missile debris caused fires and damage across three districts. Ukraine's air force emphasized the urgency of responding to ballistic missile warnings due to the minimal warning time required to seek shelter. The Russian Defense Ministry stated the attack was retaliation for a Ukrainian strike on Russia's Rostov region two days prior. They claimed Ukraine employed six American ATACMS missiles and four British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles in that operation. Ukraine had reported targeting a Rostov oil refinery as part of its strategy to disrupt Russia's military support infrastructure. […]