It's that time of year filled with Christmas cheer, presents, and the ever-present parental question: Do we tell the kids the truth about Santa Claus? There's no getting away from Santa Claus, the jolly, bearded old man who's been celebrated for the better part of two centuries for bringing presents in a one-night, world-wide giving spree. For a lot of parents and other adults, perpetuating that Santa Claus is real is a chance to give young children a bit of holiday magic, a brief, precious time before the realities of life sweep the illusions away.
The strikes further escalate Israel's campaign against the Iranian-backed Houthis, who have so far avoided the same level of intense military strikes that have targeted the Palestinian Hamas militant group and Lebanon's Hezbollah, members of Tehran's self-described “Axis of Resistance.” Meanwhile, Israel and Iran have exchanged direct fire while the government of Syria, an enemy of Israel since its founding in 1948, collapsed in the face of a rebel advance as the region's wars have upended Iran's network of allied proxy groups.
BERLIN (AP) — Thousands of Syrian doctors work in Germany, and the fall of Bashar Assad is raising concern over the potential consequences for the health sector if many of them were to return home.