Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, current leader Neon Vincent, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, Doctor RJ, Magnifico, annetteboardman and Man Oh Man. Alumni editors include (but are not limited to) palantir, wader, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse, ek hornbeck, ScottyUrb, Interceptor7, BentLiberal, Oke and jlms qkw.
OND is a regular community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00 AM Eastern Time (or if it is Friday night and the editor is me, perhaps a bit later).
First up, pictures of the week, of nature from The Guardian, from the BBC, Al Jazeera, and Buzzfeed.
And just because we all need it, a video from Toronto of panda cubs falling over.
Malaysia is losing their panda Cub.
We begin stories tonight with a “nature fights back” item from The Sun:
Wolves spotted prowling on outskirts of Rome for the first time in 100 years…days after Brit was ‘eaten alive’ by pack in Greece
The predatory beasts were captured on hidden cameras at a nature reserve on the edge of the busy ring road which surrounds the Italian capital
PROWLING wolves have been spotted on the outskirts of Rome for the first time in more than a century.
The predatory beasts were captured on hidden cameras at a nature reserve near a busy ring road just days after Brit tourist was feared to have been eaten by the predators in Greece.
They have not been seen in the Italian capital -whose symbol is a she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus - for at least 100 years.
The cameras captured a pair of mature cubs drinking from a watering hole in the undergrowth of the Castel di Guido reserve.
Experts believe there are at least two cubs and two adults living in the reserve. The male adult has already been nicknamed Romulus by researchers.
“This is the first time in more than 100 years that wolves have been found living near Rome,” Professor Alessia De Lorenzis who is monitoring the pack told The Telegraph.
And a cat, from the BBC:
Wldlife officials in India have caught a leopard nearly 36 hours after it was first spotted in a car factory.
Rescuers tranquilised the animal after a massive search operation at Maruti Suzuki's manufacturing plant in Manesar town, not far from the capital, Delhi.
The big cat was first spotted early on Thursday morning on CCTV, and made several other appearances after that.
And another, from Al Jazeera:
Survivors of massive Nepal earthquake had a difficult time rebuilding their lives. But now some of them are facing another threat: Their newly built homes are sinking into the ground.
Al Jazeera’s Subina Shres-tha reports from Sinna-palchook district, Nepal.
From AOL.com:
ALEX LASKER
Six toddlers and one nursery school teacher are dead after a fired security guard sprayed them with alcohol and set them ablaze in Brazil on Thursday, according to local media reports.
The disgruntled guard, identified as 50-year-old Damiao Soares dos Santos, lit himself on fire at the scene and later died from self-inflicted injuries.
Election news, first from the BBC:
By Serena Tarling
Tensions are running high in Spain in anticipation of a possible declaration of independence by the Catalan government. On 1 October, 43% of Catalans voted in a referendum, which the Spanish government declared illegal then tried to suppress by force.
The final results from the outlawed poll show 90% of the 2.3m people who voted backed independence.
There has been a big focus on relations between the government of Mariano Rajoy and the Catalan regional government. But what about relations within Catalonia itself, between people who are pro- and anti-independence?
Support for independence among Catalans isn't unanimous: some just wanted greater autonomy, while others are fearful of the economic and political impact of a split from Spain. These are the thoughts of two prominent Catalans, with different perspectives on the crisis.
Also elections, from the Middle East Monitor:
The Independent High Authority for the Elections in Tunisia officially declared 25 March as the final date for municipal elections.
The president of the Independent High Authority for Elections, Anwar Ben Hassan, presented the municipal elections’ calendar, with nominations being open on 2 January for a week. Election campaigns will be launched from 2-23 March.
From Al Jazeera:
Interior ministry files lawsuit asking CNRP be dissolved on ground that it was involved in plot to topple government.
The government of Cambodia has taken the first legal steps seeking to disband the country's main opposition party, the latest in a series of moves that would help it gain an advantage ahead of a general election next year.
The interior ministry on Friday filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court asking for the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) to be dissolved on the ground that it was involved in a plot to topple the government, said spokesperson Khieu Sopheak.
The CNRP is the only party aside from the ruling Cambodian People's Party with representatives in parliament, and no third political grouping comes close in terms of popularity and support. The opposition posed an unexpectedly strong challenge in 2013's general election, and the government has since taken steps to tighten its grip on power.
And there are positive stories in the news, as well. This first from the BBC:
Nearly 60 years ago, the US Navy launched Vanguard-1 as a response to the Soviet Sputnik. Six decades on, it’s still circling our planet.
From his desk at the European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany, space debris analyst Tim Flohrer keeps track of the 23,000 or so catalogued objects currently orbiting the Earth. They range from spacecraft and satellites – some working, most not – to discarded rocket stages and fragmented space hardware. All of them the result of 60 years of space exploration.
Using radar data from the US Space Surveillance Network (also, primarily, the country’s early warning system) and observations from optical telescopes, Flohrer helps ensure none of this space junk puts operational spacecraft at risk
Moving on to Arts news, the first item comes from The Washington Post:
A controversial mural at the Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum in Massachusetts will be replaced after several children’s authors complained that it promoted racial stereotypes — and that they were boycotting an upcoming festival at the newly opened museum because of it.
The authors — including Mo Willems, the Caldecott-winning writer and illustrator behind the popular Pigeon and Knuffle Bunny books — issued a joint letter Thursday saying they were skipping the upcoming Children’s Literature Festival in Springfield, Mass.
Willems, Lisa Yee (“DC Super Hero Girls” series) and Mike Curato (“Little Elliot” series) said the mural, which illustrates a scene from Theodor Geisel’s “And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street,” includes a “jarring racial stereotype of a Chinese man, who is depicted with chopsticks, a pointed hat, and slanted slit eyes.” The authors called the caricature “deeply hurtful.”
From Sky News:
The father-of-five was held at an airport after ancient coins were found in his bags as he prepared to board a flight home.
A British tourist held in a Turkish jail after he was accused of trying to smuggle ancient coins out of the country has said he is "delighted and relieved" to be home.
He was accused of smuggling historical artefects after the coins, which he found on the seabed while snorkelling, were sent to a museum for authenticity checks.
Mr Robyns, 52, returned home to Southwick in West Sussex on Monday after he was released by the Turkish authorities.