Thursday morning news: December 26, 2024

Azerbaijani airliner crash in Kazakhstan » Tragedy in Kazakhstan.

SOUND: [Airplane crashing]

That’s sound from an amateur video taken Wednesday morning… as an Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed in the former Soviet republic. Video shows the aircraft climbing and diving repeatedly, then making an emergency landing at an airport in the city of Aktau…where it burst into flames.

SOUND: [Rescue crews]

Rescue crews rushed to the scene. The airline says at least 38 of the 67 people aboard the plane died. But miraculously, more than two dozen survived.

SURVIVOR: [Speaking Russian]

This man was pulled from the wreckage. He says his wife was sitting next to him when the plane crashed…but he hasn’t seen her since and doesn’t know where she is.

Russia’s civil aviation authority immediately blamed the crash on a bird strike.

ALIYEV: [Speaking Azerbaijani]

But speaking here, Azerbaijan’s president says it’s too early to determine a cause and that the government has launched a criminal investigation.

Russia targets Ukrainian infrastructure in Christmas attacks » Russia launched a blistering Christmas Day assault on Ukraine… targeting the country’s energy and power infrastructure. It left at least one person dead and half a million people in the country’s Kharkiv region were without heat.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the attack ‘inhumane,’ and California Congressman Ami Bera agrees.

BERA: I do think it’s inhuman to choose this particular day, but that’s not unusual for Vladimir Putin.

The attack involved a barrage of more than 70 missiles and more than 100 drones, according to Ukraine, which also says it intercepted over 50 of both types of weapons and jammed dozens more drones.

Ukraine’s government applied preemptive power outages across the country to keep distribution of electricity going to as many people as possible.

SOUND: [Christmas in Bethlehem]

Pope Christmas message calls for end of fighting in Ukraine, Gaza » Worshippers lifted their voices in Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity Wednesday for Christmas morning mass. The church is built on the traditional site where many believe Jesus was born.

Meanwhile, in Rome…

SOUND: [Catholic pomp and circumstance]

Pope Francis gave a special Christmas address.

POPE FRANCIS: [Speaking Italian]

That’s the pope calling for the sound of weapons to be silenced in war-torn Ukraine. He went on to call for the same in the Middle East… characterizing the situation for Israeli and Palestinian Christians as extremely grave, and advocating for a ceasefire and the release of hostages in Gaza.

Former hostage speaks at D.C. Menorah lighting » A former Hamas hostage was among the thousands of people coming together in Washington D.C. for the lighting of the national menorah. WORLD’s Travis Kircher has details on how they marked the first night of Hanukkah.

TRAVIS KIRCHER: One of those who addressed the crowd Wednesday was 63-year-old Aviva Siegel.

Siegel is one of the 250 hostages kidnapped by the terror group Hamas during the Oct. 7 attacks last year. She spent 51 days as a hostage until Hamas released her and more than 100 others during a six-day ceasefire.

Her husband Keith remains in captivity.

Siegel told the crowd...

SIEGEL: I felt it. I saw it. And it should not happen to anybody in the world, and no Jew. I'm standing now for my Keith that is still a hostage, and for all the hostages that are still there. We need to bring them home now.

KIRCHER: She went on to say that those hostages deserve to be reunited with their families...so they can light their own menorah candles.

For WORLD, I'm Travis Kircher.

Trump appoints ambassador to Panama » Christmas is generally a quiet day in American politics, but President-elect Trump made sure to make some news… announcing Kevin Marino Cabrera as his pick for U.S. ambassador to Panama.

Cabrera is a Miami-Dade County commissioner who worked on Trump’s campaign.

His appointment comes at a time when Trump is suggesting the U.S. should take back control of the Panama Canal, claiming Panama is charging excessive fees to American ships passing through the waterway.

Panama’s president has pushed back against that claim, saying experts set the fees. He also insists the canal will continue to belong to Panama.

King Charles praises healthcare workers in Christmas speech » In London, King Charles used his Christmas address to express gratitude for the healthcare workers who’ve helped him and his daughter-in-law, Princess of Wales Kate Middleton, in their battles with cancer.

CHARLES: I offer special heartfelt thanks to the selfless doctors and nurses who this year have supported me and other members of my family through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness.

The king added those healthcare workers have provided the strength, comfort, and care he and his family have needed.

He also encouraged people to do a better job of listening to one another… saying good listening is essential for learning to respect differences, defeating prejudice, and opening up new possibilities. As an example, he alluded to Mary the mother of Jesus… listening to the angel Gabriel, who revealed a future of hope for all people.

I'm Mark Mellinger.

Straight ahead: the Washington State prison system is under scrutiny for its policies regarding male inmates who claim to be women. Plus, a Kentucky church that is keeping a medieval tradition alive as it celebrates Christmas.

This is The World and Everything in It.

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