777rainbow Thursday Briefing: Rebel Factions Try to Unite Syria

ImageA Syrian Air Force helicopter that was destroyed by Israeli strikes.Credit...Daniel Berehulak/The New York TimesSyria’s new leaders are trying to unite rebel factions

A number of rebel factions agreed to dissolve and be integrated under the defense ministry, according to the Syrian state-run news service. Trying to establish a single national military is the latest step to consolidate control by the fighters who overthrew the country’s leader, Bashar al-Assad.

Analysts say that dissolving the rebel factions was a top priority because “wayward factions” were acting outside their command in some rural areas. The new administration has also appointed a caretaker prime minister to lead a transitional government until March 2025, and has promised that a legal committee would draft a new constitution.

Shifting gears: Pictures posted on social media on Tuesday showed Ahmed al-Shara, the leader of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group that overthrew the Assad dictatorship, meeting with dozens of rebel faction leaders, many of them clad in military uniforms. Al-Shara has recently presented himself as more of a statesman than a rebel leader, and has displayed relatively moderate political positions despite his past links to Islamist extremists.

Understanding the crisis: Here’s a visual guide to the tangled alliances and rivalries in Syria.

mega888 slotImageRescuers working atop the wreckage of a drone strike in Kharkiv, Ukraine, yesterday.Credit...Sergey Bobok/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesRussia unleashed a wave of strikes in Ukraine

Russian missiles and drones targeted the nation’s energy infrastructure on Christmas Day. At least six people were wounded in Kharkiv, and one person was killed in Dnipro. Officials said the toll could rise. Ukraine’s largest private energy company said that the attacks seriously damaged emergency equipment, and power outages were declared across the country.

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, declined to say exactly how many troops were deploying, citing operational security.

“In recent weeks, a conversation around whether to change how we allocate our Electoral College votes has returned to the forefront,” Mr. McDonnell said in a statement on Monday. “I respect the desire of some of my colleagues to have this discussion, and I have taken time to listen carefully to Nebraskans and national leaders on both sides of the issue. After deep consideration, it is clear to me that right now, 43 days from Election Day, is not the moment to make this change.”

Already a subscriber? Log in.

Want all of The Times? Subscribe.777rainbow