December 15 top stories
It is December 15. Here are today’s top stories.
Kentucky family finds baby owl nesting in Christmas tree
Local news in Kentucky reported that a family found a baby owl in their Christmas tree and that they didn’t realize it was there for four days.
The owl was found by a carpet cleaner who saw the animal moving after he plugged in a piece of equipment. The cleaner sent a picture to the homeowner and the homeowner thought it was a joke at first.
The carpet cleaner retrieved the owl from the tree and released it into the wild.
Israeli military said it mistakenly killed three hostages
The Israeli military said it mistakenly killed three hostages who were being held in northern Gaza. The Israeli military said they thought they were a threat, expressed deep remorse and are investigating. There are over 100 hostages still being held in Gaza.
In separate news, there were rockets launched against Jerusalem but they were stopped by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system.
There continues to be fighting between Israeli and Hamas fighters all across Gaza. U.S. officials said they are pushing Israel to transition from a wider war to carrying out more precise and targeted attacks against Hamas. But there are no signs that Israel’s military action is slowing down.
BBC reported that according to a Palestinian organization, support for Hamas had more than tripled in the West Bank compared with three months ago. An analyst with BBC said although Israel’s military may destroy Hamas’s infrastructure, its ideology may persist among Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.
Largest credit union rejected over half its Black mortgage applicants
CNN reported that according to its analysis of the largest credit union in the U.S., Navy Federal Credit Union, less than 50% of Black borrowers who applied for a new conventional home purchase mortgage were approved and this is contrasted with more than 75% of White borrowers being approved.
Navy Federal Credit Union lends to military service members and veterans. CNN said while many other banks also approved White applicants at higher rates than Black borrowers, Navy Federal had the widest gap.
Navy Federal defended itself in a statement, saying its lending practices are equal and equitable and that CNN’s analysis is not accurate.
———
Sponsored video by Sorenson: www.sorenson.com
———
Prince Harry wins 15 claims in phone-hacking case
BBC News reported that Prince Harry has won 15 claims in his case accusing Mirror Group Newspapers of hacking phones and breaking other laws to gather information for stories published about him.
A court found there was evidence of widespread and habitual use of phone hacking by Mirror employees. The court awarded Prince Harry the equivalent of around 180,000 dollars in damages.
Prince Harry called on the police and law enforcement authorities to investigate bringing charges against the company.
No charges for cop who shot 11-year-old who called for help
NPR reported that a grand jury in Mississippi determined there was no criminal conduct by the police officer who shot and wounded an 11-year-old boy named Aderrien Murry.
In May, Murry’s mother asked him to call 911 after a man came to their home in an angry mood. When police arrived, officers told everyone inside to come out with their hands up. Murry came from around a corner and ran towards the door. The officer shot him, causing injuries to his organs.
Mississippi’s attorney general said she will not be taking any action against the officer after the grand jury’s decision. She did not provide details on why the grand jury thought the shooting was justified.
Murry’s family said they would continue to pursue justice through the civil legal process. The family also wants the police body camera footage to be released to the public.
Powerful solar flare knocks out radio frequencies
Axios said the Sun sent out a monster solar flare of high-energy radiation that was so powerful that it caused radio frequency blackouts on Thursday.
NASA said these powerful bursts of energy can cause problems with radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.
That’s all the top stories for this week. Have a nice weekend and stay with the light.
https://www.axios.com/2023/12/15/sun-strongest-solar-flare-years-radio-frequencies-blackouts
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-67332563
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-middle-east-67709805?src_origin=BBCS_BBC
https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/14/business/navy-federal-credit-union-black-applicants-invs/index.html
https://fox56news.com/news/local/lexington-family-finds-owl-in-christmas-tree/