Business and economy

• 2024 South Korean protests
  • The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and other professional unions in South Korea announce a labor strike on December 5 and 6 in response to President Yoon Suk Yeol's surprise martial law yesterday, calling for his resignation. (Maeil Business Newspaper) (Bloomberg)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • 2024 Hama offensive
      • Rebel forces capture the city of Suran, the towns of Halfaya and Taybat al-Imam, and the village of Maardis in Hama Governorate, Syria. (SOHR)
  • Deir ez-Zor offensive
    • The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) capture seven villages and the town of Khasham in Deir ez-Zor Governorate from pro-government forces. CJTF–OIR coalition aircraft also launch airstrikes in support of the SDF offensive. (Rudaw)
• Red Sea crisis
  • The Government of Canada officially designates the Yemen-based Houthi movement as a terrorist organization due to the group's attacks on civilian and military vessels in the Red Sea. (Al Jazeera)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–2025 floods in Southeast Asia and South Asia
  • At least 31 people have been killed by flooding in Thailand and Malaysia in the past five days. (AP)

Health and environment

• 2024 Kwango province disease outbreak
  • Authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo announce an investigation into the deaths of 143 people from an unidentified disease in the Province of Kwango. (AP)

Law and crime

• A court in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, upholds the death penalty for real estate tycoon Trương Mỹ Lan after Lan was found guilty of embezzling $12.5 billion through the Sai Gon Joint Stock Commercial Bank. (VnExpress) (AP)

Politics and elections

• 2024 South Korean martial law
  • During an emergency address to the nation, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declares martial law in order to clear out alleged "threats posed by North Korean communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements." Yoon says that the decision to declare martial law was made in order to "remove North Korean forces" and to protect South Korea's "liberal constitutional order". (KBS) (BBC News) (Reuters) (Barrons)
  • South Korean Army general Park An-su is appointed Martial Law Commander by Yoon Suk Yeol, with Park announcing that media organizations will be subject to military control and that protests will be banned. (Yna) (The Guardian)
  • Protesters clash with police while attempting to storm the National Assembly building in Seoul. (The Independent)
  • In defiance of the declaration of martial law, which prohibits political activities, the National Assembly votes unanimously to order Yoon Suk Yeol to lift martial law. Korean soldiers that were guarding the National Assembly building withdraw following the vote. (The Guardian)
  • Yoon Suk Yeol announces that he will lift the martial law that he declared hours earlier amid staunch opposition from both the opposition and his own People Power Party. (Reuters)
• Fatah–Hamas reconciliation process
  • Palestinian officials announce that Fatah and Hamas are close to reaching an agreement on appointing a technocratic committee to govern the Gaza Strip following the end of the Israel–Hamas war. (The Globe and Mail)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Arab–Israeli conflict
  • Israel–Hamas war
    • Israel–Hamas war hostage crisis
      • Hamas says that 33 hostages have been killed in the 14 months since the war started. (The Times)
      • The Israel Defense Forces say that Israeli-American soldier Omer Maxim Neutra, previously believed to be a living hostage, was killed during the October 7 attacks last year and his body was kept in Gaza. (Haaretz)
    • Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip
      • The Gaza Health Ministry says that around 37 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks in the past 24 hours, increasing the Palestinian death toll in Gaza to 44,466. (The Hindu)
  • Israel–Hezbollah conflict
    • Despite the ceasefire, Israel and Hezbollah exchange fire, with Talousa and Haris targeted in Lebanon; at least eleven people are killed. (Reuters) (Al Jazeera)
• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Operation Dawn of Freedom
      • Significant populations of Kurds in Syria are displaced from the northern Aleppo countryside, after factions of the Turkish-backed National Army take control of Kurdish-held territories. (SOHR)
• Russo-Ukrainian War
  • Military aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War
    • U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announces that the United States will provide Ukraine with a $725 million weapons package. (Reuters)
• Allied Democratic Forces insurgency, Kivu conflict
  • At least 10 people are killed during an attack by Allied Democratic Forces gunmen in Batangi-Mbau, North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Several houses are burned. (AP)

Business and economy

• German economic crisis
  • Workers of the German metalworkers' union IG Metall begin a labor strike after failed negotiations with Volkswagen following the closure of three automotive manufacturing plants. (DW)

Law and crime

• COVID-19 pandemic
  • COVID-19 pandemic in the United States
    • The U.S. House of Representatives Oversight and Accountability Committee releases their final reports on the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States investigating the origins of COVID-19, Operation Warp Speed's vaccination program, and mask mandates and lockdowns. (The Hill)
• 2024 Georgian post-election protests
  • Georgian police arrest opposition leader Zurab Japaridze, accusing his party of "coordinating violence" during the protests against Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. (Al Jazeera) (The Guardian)
• Maritime drug smuggling into Australia
  • Australian Federal Police announces they have arrested thirteen men, including the vice president of the outlaw Comanchero Motorcycle Club and two teenagers, for illegally smuggling 2.34 tonnes of cocaine into the country after their fishing boat broke down off the coast of Urangan, Queensland, Australia. (Al Jazeera) (RNZ) (ABC News)
• Forty-four children are injured, including one critically, when a person sprays an unknown gas inside a school in Berlin, Germany. (Blue News)
• Three people are killed and eight others are injured after a mass shooting at a gathering in Gage Park, Chicago, Illinois, United States. (NBC News)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Irish general election
  • In Ireland, Fianna Fáil remains the largest party in Dáil Éireann, increasing its number of seats to 48. Its governing partner Fine Gael wins 38 seats, with the two parties combined winning 86 seats, two shy of a majority. (AP)
• 2024 Romanian presidential election
  • The Constitutional Court of Romania upholds the results of the first round of the presidential elections following a recount last week after far-right independent candidate Călin Georgescu won a plurality of the vote, triggering a run-off. (Al Jazeera) (France24)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Battle of Aleppo
      • 2024 Aleppo University Hospital airstrike
        • Twelve people are killed and 23 others are injured in Russian airstrikes on a hospital in Aleppo, Syria. (SOHR)
      • Turkish-backed militants say that they captured Aleppo's Ramouseh district as well as the city of As-Safira and the town of Khanasir in Aleppo Governorate. (Al Jazeera Mubasher) (SOHR)
    • At least nine people are killed and at least 62 others are injured in Russian airstrikes on Idlib. (SOHR)
    • The Syrian National Army says that they captured the city of Tell Rifaat and Menagh Air Base in Aleppo Governorate. (Al Jazeera Mubasher)
• Sudanese civil war
  • Battle of Khartoum
    • The Rapid Support Forces establish a civilian administration in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, including the adjacent cities of Omdurman and Khartoum North. (The National News) (Dabanga Sudan)
• Colombian conflict
  • After three days of encounters between The Raúl Reyes Front, commanded by a.k.a Calarcá, and the Frontera Commands leaving momentarily 12 militants dead, in the municipality of Puerto Guzmán, Putumayo Department. (Deutche Welle)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • Nineteen people are killed by Cyclone Fengal in India and Sri Lanka. (Reuters)

International relations

• Ukraine–United States relations
  • U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan says that the United States will not return to Ukraine the nuclear weapons that they dismantled. (Reuters)

Law and crime

• 2024 Nzérékoré stampede
  • At least 56 people are killed during a stampede at a football match in Nzérékoré, Guinea, after the police tear gassed the field as rival fans stormed it following a controversial referee decision. A police station is later set ablaze. (Al Jazeera)
• Weiss special counsel investigation
  • United States President Joe Biden pardons his son Hunter Biden of tax and firearms charges. (BBC News)
• Seventy-nine people are injured in football hooliganism clashes between fans of FC Carl Zeiss Jena and BSG Chemie Leipzig following a match in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. (DW)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Icelandic parliamentary election
  • In Iceland, the Social Democratic Alliance wins 15 seats in the Althing elections, with the incumbent Independence Party winning 14 seats. However, no party achieved a majority. (DW)
• 2024 Romanian parliamentary election
  • Romanians vote for the 330 seats of the Chamber of Deputies and the 136 seats of the Senate. (RFE/RL)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Battle of Aleppo
      • Pro-government forces close Aleppo International Airport and major roads in Aleppo, Syria, as rebels continue to advance into the city. The airport is later captured by the rebels. (The Telegraph) (Reuters)
      • Rebels capture the Citadel of Aleppo and the University of Aleppo as they continue to advance through the city. (New Arab)
      • Rebel tanks reach the main Saadallah al-Jabiri Square in Aleppo's city centre with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reporting that a majority of the city is now under the control of rebel forces. (BBC News)
      • The Syrian Army announces a total withdrawal from Aleppo, formally acknowledging the fall of the city to rebel forces, and saying that its troops will regroup and launch a counter-offensive to retake the city. (Reuters)
      • A Russian airstrike hits a busy roundabout in Aleppo, killing at least 16 people and injuring 20 others, the first time that Russian warplanes have targeted the city since 2016. (SOHR)
    • Operation Dawn of Freedom
      • The Turkish-backed Syrian National Army launches an offensive in northern Aleppo Governorate, capturing the town of Tadef. (Caliber)
    • A Syrian rebel coalition declares full control of Idlib Governorate after capturing the towns of Maarat al-Numan and Khan Shaykhun. (Al Arabiya)
    • Rebel forces led by Tahrir al-Sham capture the Abu al-Duhur Air Base in Idlib Governorate following the withdrawal of the Syrian Armed Forces. (Sky News Arabia) (Caliber)
    • The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) take control of the Shiite-majority towns of Nubbul and Al-Zahraa in Aleppo Governorate after Syrian government forces withdraw from the towns. (Kurdistan 24)
    • Rebel forces capture the towns of Morek, Kafr Zita, Qalaat al-Madiq, and Al-Lataminah in Hama Governorate. (Lbc)
    • Rebel forces advance within 20 kilometres (12 mi) of the regional capital Hama with heavy clashes underway on the M5 Motorway. Pro-government forces reportedly retreat from the city and Hama Air Base toward Homs Governorate. (Anadolu Ajansi) (SOHR)
    • SDF forces clash with the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army near Tell Abyad, Raqqa Governorate and in Manbij District, Aleppo Governorate, as pro-government forces withdraw from the region, leaving a power vacuum. (SOHR)
    • Local forces in Talbiseh, northern Homs Governorate, attack Syrian Army convoys withdrawing towards Homs, seizing control of the town's checkpoint and burning it following pro-government forces withdrawal. (SOHR)
  • Southern Syria offensive
    • South Syrian rebel groups announce a new offensive on Daraa Governorate and Suwayda Governorate with the goal of implementing a pincer movement on Damascus. (Al-Araby)
• Arab–Israeli conflict
  • Israel–Hamas war
    • Israel–Hamas war hostage crisis
      • Hamas releases a propaganda video showing Israeli American hostage Edan Alexander. (CBS News)
    • An Israeli airstrike on a car in the Gaza Strip kills five people, including employees of World Central Kitchen. (AP)
  • Israel–Hezbollah conflict
    • Two people are killed and six others are injured in three airstrikes by Israel in southern Lebanon that occurred despite the ceasefire with Hezbollah. (Al Jazeera)
• Sudanese civil war (2023–present)
  • The Rapid Support Forces announce a civil administration formed by a prime minister and a 90-member legislative council. (Dabanga Sudan) (The Conversation)
• Mexican drug war
  • At least nine people are killed and four others are injured after an attack against a comercial zone in Apaseo el Grande, Guanajuato. Authorities related the attack with the drug sales in the zone. (La Silla Rota)

Business and economy

• Vietnam approves a US$67 billion 1,541 kilometres (958 mi) high speed rail line from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City, which will be an updated version of the North–South express railway proposal. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• At least 27 people are killed and more than 100 others are missing when a boat capsizes in the Niger River in Kogi State, Nigeria. (Al Jazeera)

Law and crime

• Ibar-Lepenac attack
  • Police arrest eight people linked to an explosion on a canal near Zubin Potok, Mitrovica District, Kosovo, that supplies water to the country's two main power plants. The Kosovar government blames Serbia for the "terrorist" acts, which Serbia denies. (Al Jazeera) (Euronews) (Le Monde)
• A student attacked his classmates with a hammer injuring two before being subdued by other students in the San Ándres Highschool, Guadalajara, México. The attack was streamed via X and the perpetrator used to share supremacist and violent content in his social media. (El Debate)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Georgian post-election protests
  • More than 100 demonstrators are arrested in Tbilisi, Georgia, while protesting against Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze's decision to temporarily suspend the country's accession plans to the European Union to 2028. (ABC News)
• 2024 Icelandic parliamentary election
  • Citizens of Iceland vote in a snap election to elect the 63 members of the Althing national parliament. (Al Jazeera)

Sports

• 2024 Copa Libertadores
  • In association football, Botafogo win their first Copa Libertadores title after defeating Atlético Mineiro 3–1 in an all-Brazilian final at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, Argentina. (AP)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • Battle of Aleppo
      • Anti-Assad forces led by Tahrir al-Sham enter the city of Aleppo, Syria, for the first time since 2016 with heavy urban fighting reportedly underway in the western neighbourhoods of the city. A rebel coalition spokesman confirms that an operation to capture Aleppo has officially begun. (CNN) (The New Arab)
      • Rebel forces reach the city centre of Aleppo after overrunning multiple neighbourhoods, including New Aleppo. (Anadolu Agency) (AP)
      • Syrian state media reports that four people are killed when rebel forces shell the University of Aleppo. (Reuters)
    • Rebel forces capture the towns of Al-Hadher, Khan Tuman and Al-Eiss in Aleppo Governorate. (SOHR)
    • Rebel forces capture the city of Saraqib in Idlib Governorate, which has been held by government forces since 2020. Pro-government forces withdraw from the city after two days of clashes. (ABC News) (Anadolu Ajansi)
• Russo-Ukrainian War
  • Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine–NATO relations
    • Peace negotiations in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
      • Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that his country is ready to agree to a ceasefire if NATO protects parts of Ukraine. (Kyiv Post)
• Sudanese civil war
  • Battle of Khartoum
    • It is reported that 12 children have died this month in Khartoum, Sudan, due to city-wide malnutrition. (Sudan Tribune)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–2025 floods in Southeast Asia and South Asia
  • At least three people are killed and more than 84,000 people are displaced by flooding in Malaysia, primarily in Kelantan. (AP)
• 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
  • The death toll from the floods and landslides in North Sumatra, Indonesia, increases to 31, with ten others injured, and dozens of others missing. (DW)
• Six people are killed and eight others are injured after a launching gantry and precast concrete segments collapsed onto the Rama II Road at a construction site of the Ekkachai–Ban Phaeo Intercity Motorway [th] in Samut Sakhon, Thailand. (Bangkok Post)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Irish general election
  • Citizens of Ireland vote in a snap election to elect the 174 members of the 34th Dáil Éireann. (DW)
• The United Kingdom House of Commons votes 330–275 to pass the second reading of the Terminally Ill Adults Bill, marking the first time the Parliament has voted in favour of assisted dying. The bill will now need to pass several more stages before becoming law. (The Guardian)

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Eastern front of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
    • The Russian Defence Ministry claims that Russian forces have taken the village of Nova Illinka in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. (Reuters)
  • Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure, Ukrainian energy crisis
    • Russia launches a massive missile and drone attack on civilian and critical infrastructure in Ukraine, injuring at least five people and causing blackouts for more than a million households. (CNN)
• Syrian civil war
  • Northwestern Syria offensive
    • More than 130 Syrian Army soldiers are killed and dozens of others are captured as rebel forces led by Tahrir al-Sham advance to within 10 kilometres of Aleppo, Syria. (Reuters)
    • Rebel forces cut off the strategic M5 Motorway which connects Aleppo to Damascus and also capture the district of Khan al-Asal near Aleppo. (i24 News) (The Guardian)
    • An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps brigadier is killed in a shootout in Aleppo. (Rudaw)
    • Russian and Syrian warplanes strike rebel-held positions across Idlib Governorate. Separately, at least 17 people are killed in airstrikes on the towns of Atarib and Darat Izza in Aleppo Governorate. (Reuters) (SOHR)
• Hezbollah–Israel conflict
  • 2024 Israel–Lebanon ceasefire agreement
    • Israel and Hezbollah accuse each other of violating ceasefire terms that came into action the prior day, following an Israeli Air Force airstrike on a Hezbollah missile storage facility and the Israeli Defense Forces opening fire on suspected combatants moving into southern Lebanon. (Reuters)

Disasters and accidents

• 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
  • Landslides and flash floods caused by Cyclone Robyn kill at least 27 people and injure dozens of others in North Sumatra, Indonesia. (Reuters)
• 2024 North Indian Ocean cyclone season
  • At least twelve people, including four children, are killed and more than 250,000 people are evacuated due to flooding and landslides caused by Deep Depression BOB 08 in Sri Lanka. (DW)
• 2024 South Korean snowstorm
  • At least six people are killed in traffic accidents and more than 140 flights are canceled in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, due to a winter storm in the country, marking the third heaviest snowfall in Seoul since 1907. (AP) (Yonhap) (Newsweek)
• 2024 Ugandan landslides
  • Fifteen people are killed and 113 others are missing in landslides in Bulambuli, Uganda. (Al Jazeera)

International relations

• Georgia–European Union relations, Potential enlargement of the European Union
  • Accession of Georgia to the European Union
    • Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Kobakhidze temporarily suspends the country's accession to the European Union until 2028 and accuses the European Parliament of blackmail. (Al Jazeera) (Politico)
• Chad–France relations
  • The government of Chad announces it will terminate its defense pact with France, stating it wants to fully assert its sovereignty following its independence from France in 1960. (DW) (VOA)

Law and crime

• Anti-corruption campaign under Xi Jinping
  • The Chinese Communist Party suspends the Director of the Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission Admiral Miao Hua from his post following a corruption investigation. (CNA)
• PTI do-or-die protest, Freedom of the press in Pakistan
  • Pakistani senior journalist Matiullah Jan and his colleague are abducted by unidentified men while they were reporting on the protests for the release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad, Pakistan. (DW) (The Nation)

Politics and elections

• 2024 Georgian parliamentary election protests, Accession of Georgia to the European Union
  • Thousands of people gather in Tbilisi, Georgia, to protest against Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and his party's decision to suspend the country's accession plans to the European Union. Riot police fire tear gas and water cannons at protesters near the parliament building. (DW) (Yahoo! News) (The New York Times)
• 2024 Romanian presidential election
  • The Constitutional Court of Romania requests a recount of all votes cast in the first round of the presidential election following a complaint by candidate Cristian Terheș. (AP)
• The Australian House of Representatives passes a bill to restrict social media access for people under the age of 16 years. (NBC News)