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By Issam Ahmed, AFP Brian Thompson was the CEO of the largest US health insurer, UnitedHealthcare. Photo: LinkedIn / Supplied Jokes, snark, and a striking absence of sympathy have dominated public sentiment since the murder of a US health insurance executive - exposing deep frustration and anger with the nation's medical system. Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare was fatally shot in Manhattan on Wednesday, setting off a citywide manhunt. Within moments of the news breaking, the internet erupted - not with outrage, but with cheers over the death of the 50-year-old father of two. A Facebook post mourning his loss, shared by UnitedHealth Group, racked up more than 71,000 laugh emojis as of Friday - dwarfing other interactions, before the counter was disabled. "My thoughts and p...

Photo: Getty Images / Brett Carlsen Hegseth faces opposition in Congress amid misconduct allegations Trump considers alternative nominees like DeSantis and Ernst Hegseth criticized after reports of drinking, alleged sexual assault US President-elect Donald Trump on Friday reiterated his support for Pentagon nominee Pete Hegseth, citing the Ivy League-educated former Fox News host's "charisma" and calling him "a WINNER" even as the nomination faces headwinds in Congress amid allegations of misconduct. A 44-year-old Army National Guard veteran, Hegseth has vowed to continue fighting for the top Department of Defense job and spent the week meeting with US senators as some key lawmakers have said they are not yet ready to support him. "Pete Hegseth is doing very well. His support is st...

Yoon Suk Yeol bowed during a televised speech to the nation, only hours head of a planned impeachment vote. Photo: ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has apologised for his attempt to impose martial law and bowed during a televised speech to the nation, only hours head of a planned impeachment vote. Yoon said he would not seek to avoid legal and political responsibility for his decision, which he said was born of desperation. The speech was the embattled leader's first public appearance since he rescinded the martial law order early on Wednesday, just six hours after it was declared and after parliament defied military and police cordons to vote against the decree. "I am very sorry and would like to sincerely apologise to the people who were shocked," Yoon said. ...

By Bianca Flowers for Reuters Since Joe Biden's pardon of his son Hunter, civil rights activists and politicians have called for clemency for other people they believe were unfairly convicted or sentenced. Photo: Mandel NGAN / AFP The White House is listening to demands for President Joe Biden to extend the same grace to thousands of people wronged by the US judicial system as he did to his son Hunter, officials say. Since Biden's pardon of Hunter on Sunday, a growing chorus of civil rights activists and lawmakers have called for broader clemency for other people they believe were unfairly convicted or sentenced. Defence attorneys and civil rights groups are ramping up efforts to highlight compelling cases, working in conjunction with state legislators to draft letters to the White H...

By Timour Azhari for Reuters Anti-government fighters celebrate in Syria's northwestern Idlib province in November. (file photo) Photo: ABDULAZIZ KETAZ Iraqi Shi'ite Muslim ruling parties and armed groups are weighing the pros and cons of armed intervention in Syria, viewing as a grave threat the advance of Sunni Islamist rebels who have taken two Syrian cities and now bear down on a third. Baghdad has a dark history with Syria-based Sunni fighters, thousands of whom crossed into Iraq after the 2003 US invasion and fuelled years of sectarian killing before returning again in 2013 as Islamic State to conquer a third of the country. The Syrian rebels currently advancing in Syria, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, have disavowed Al Qaeda and IS and say they have no ambitions in Iraq, but the...