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The family of a US journalist held captive in Syria for the last 12 years say they are "incredibly hopeful" that he can be returned safely to them amid the "chaos" following the fall of Bashar al Assad's regime.Austin Tice is thought to have been captured close to Damascus in August 2012 while covering the Syrian civil war. The freelance journalist was 31 years old at the time.His brother and sister told The World with Yalda Hakim on Sky News there had been a "hole in the family" ever since, but they had never given up hope of his return.Now, with the fall of the Assad regime in the wake of a rebel uprising in Syria, Mr Tice's family hopes the 43-year-old can finally be freed. His sister, Abigail Edaburn, said the family have also recently received proof of life from trusted sources, while...

Benjamin Netanyahu has started giving evidence in his corruption trial, calling the case "absurd" and saying he hates champagne in response to claims he accepted gifts of alcohol and cigars.The Israeli prime minister told a fortified, underground court in Tel Aviv he would refute the allegations and called them a "drop in the sea" compared with protecting his country. Mr Netanyahu said he had waited "eight years for this moment" and vowed to "poke holes in the absurd accusations".The 75-year-old denies charges of fraud, accepting bribes and breach of trust in three separate cases, painting them as a witch-hunt designed to end his lengthy rule.He's accused of granting advantageous regulation to two media companies in exchange for favourable coverage of himself and his wife. Tens of thousand...

Podcaster Joe Rogan and Kate Middleton have joined Donald Trump, Kamala Harris and Elon Musk on the ten-name shortlist for Time magazine's Person Of The Year.The award went to music superstar Taylor Swift last year and Barack Obama was crowned twice, in 2008 and 2012. Time magazine says the title goes to the person, group, or concept that had the biggest impact - for good or for ill - on the world over the previous year.The full shortlist for 2024, in alphabetical order, is: Kamala Harris, Kate Middleton, Elon Musk, Yulia Navalnaya, Benjamin Netanyahu, Jerome Powell, Joe Rogan, Claudia Sheinbaum, Donald Trump and Mark Zuckerberg.Kamala Harris The Democratic Party's nominee for president would have been the first woman ever to be US commander in chief, but she failed to beat Mr Trump, who i...

A former world cycling champion is facing up to seven years in prison after admitting a charge in relation to a car crash that killed his wife - fellow Olympic cyclist Melissa Hoskins.Rohan Dennis was arrested and charged with causing death by dangerous driving after Hoskins was hit by a car outside their home in the suburb of Medindie in Adelaide, Australia, on 30 December 2023. The retired cyclist was also charged with driving without due care and endangering life.The 34-year-old appeared in court on Tuesday and admitted the lesser aggravated charge of creating likelihood of harm.Jane Abbey KC said: "There was no intention of Mr Dennis to harm his wife and this charge does not charge him with responsibility for her death." Image: Dennis cel...

A renewed international appeal has been launched to identify the body of a man found in woodland 45 years ago.Skeletal remains, referred to as Glamorgan Man, were found in the remote Rheola Forest near Resolven in Neath Port Talbot, south Wales, on 9 December 1979. Locate International, a charity which investigates cold cases of missing or unidentified people, says the man was a possible visitor from South Africa and is believed to have died between nine and 18 months before he was found.Investigators found in his possession a Salvation Testament bible that bore the name D MALAN and a partial address in the Randburg area of South Africa.Handwriting on an envelope - apparently planning an internal flight in South Africa to Durban - appeared to match writing on the bible. Other clues found o...

Russia has said the Ukraine war will continue until it meets its aims - either on the battlefield or via negotiations - as its spy chief claimed it was close to achieving them.President Putin wants Ukraine to fully pull out of four eastern regions it claims as its own, but Kyiv rejects that as a form of surrender. President Zelenskyy has indicated a diplomatic ceasefire is possible however, and incoming US president Donald Trump has urged both sides to agree on an immediate truce.Mr Zelenskyy told Sky's Stuart Ramsay the "hot phase of the war" could end if unoccupied parts of the country were offered NATO membership, allowing him to negotiate the return of the rest later.He has also raised the prospect of foreign troops being deployed in the free parts of Ukraine until it could join NATO. ...

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is recovering in intensive care after having emergency surgery to drain blood from his brain, a medical note published by the country's government said.The leftist politician, known as Lula, had reduced travel in recent months while doctors monitored his recovery from a trauma he suffered to the back of his head after falling at his home in late October. Mr da Silva was taken to hospital yesterday after he ended a meeting with congressional leaders due to a worsening headache, a source in the presidential office told Reuters.The 79-year-old had an MRI scan at a hospital in the capital Brasilia.He was transferred to Sao Paulo, around 620 miles away, overnight for surgery. The Brazilian president is now recovering "well, under monitoring in an IC...

Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to appear in court later for the first time in his long-running corruption trial.The Israeli prime minister has been charged with bribery, fraud and breach of trust. Judges have ruled he must testify three times a week, despite the ongoing war in Gaza war and new threats in the Middle East, including neighbouring Syria.Netanyahu was indicted in 2019 in three cases involving gifts from millionaire friends and for allegedly seeking regulatory favours for media tycoons in return for favourable coverage.He denies any wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty. Read more:Downing Street indicates Netanyahu would be arrested in UK In the run-up to his court date, Netanyahu described the investigations against him as a witch hunt. More on Benjamin Netan...

Donald Trump has vowed to end birthright citizenship, under which people born in the US are considered citizens. The move would strip rights from those born in the country to undocumented parents - despite the protection being enshrined in the constitution. In a wide-ranging interview - which also touched on his plans for January 6 pardons and the Ukraine war - on NBC's Meet The Press, Sky News' US partner, he redoubled his campaign pledge to oversee mass deportation of illegal immigrants.The programme, he said, will begin with undocumented immigrants who have committed crimes - although he did not reveal which ones - and then turn to "people outside of criminals".The US president-elect said there was "no choice". "I think you have to do it," he said. "It's a very tough thing to do… they c...

An attempt by Rupert Murdoch to change who controls the future of his media empire has been blocked, according to reports in The New York Times.The newspaper claims a sealed court document accuses the 93-year-old of acting in "bad faith" by attempting to amend his family trust to benefit his eldest son, Lachlan. Currently, the trust passes control of the company equally among Mr Murdoch's four oldest children - Lachlan, James, Elisabeth and Prudence - after his death.But Nevada commissioner Edmund Gorman has rejected a bid to change the terms of the trust.Lachlan is head of Fox News parent Fox Corp and News Corp, which owns UK titles including The Sun and The Times. Mr Murdoch's proposed amendment would have blocked any interference by three of Lachlan's siblings, who are more politically ...