Wired
An accidental leak revealed that Flock, which has cameras in thousands of US communities, is using workers in the Philippines to review and classify footage.
FLOCK, THE AUTOMATIC license plate reader and AI-powered camera company, uses overseas workers from Upwork to train its machine learning algorithms, with training material telling workers how to review and categorize footage including images people and vehicles in the United States, according to material reviewed by 404 Media that was accidentally exposed by the company.
The findings bring up questions about who exactly has access to footage collected by Flock surveillance cameras and where people reviewing the footage may be based. Flock has become a pervasive technology in the US, with its cameras present in thousands of communities that cops use every day to investigate things like carjackings. Local police have also performed numerous lookups for ICE in the system.
This is an open thread where everyone is welcome, especially night owls and early birds, to share and discuss the happenings of the day. Please feel free to share your articles and stories in the comments.
Deutsche Welle
Benjamin Netanyahu's request for a pardon to "promote reconciliation" in Israel has sparked huge debate, as the prime minister's long-running corruption trial continues to divide Israeli society.
The news hit the headlines in Israel without warning: On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked President Isaac Herzog to grant him a preemptive pardon, ending his corruption trial. It would be a highly controversial, almost unprecedented move, as presidential pardons are usually only granted after a conviction.
Yedioth Ahronoth, one of Israel's leading daily newspapers, on Monday ran with the headline "The pardon dilemma," while free right-wing daily Israel Hayom acknowledged that "the request is unusual and carries significant implications."
In a televised video statement, Netanyahu argued that while it was in his personal interest to prove his innocence in court, it was also in the national interest to cut short the trial, which he claimed was "tearing us apart."
Deutsche Welle
A radio presenter appeared in court, accused of recruiting men to fight for Russia in Ukraine. Former President Jacob Zuma's daughter is facing similar allegations in a separate matter.
A South African radio presenter appeared in court on Monday accused of recruiting men to fight for Russia in Ukraine.
Police said Nonkululeko Mantula was arrested after a tip off, police said.
She is accused of recruiting four men who were arrested with her and making arrangements for them to join the Russian military currently involved in a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Police said the matter has been postponed to December 8 for a formal bail application and that the five accused have been remanded in custody.
What else do we know about the case?
Three of the men were detained as they attempted to fly to Russia via the United Arab Emirates, police said, adding that they believe Mantula had already succeeded in recruiting at least another person who was now in Russia.
Mantula is a presenter on the public broadcaster's SAFM radio station. Her trial comes on the heels of a probe into a daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma, who faces similar allegations.
Al Jazeera
Veteran opposition figure Anicet Ekane has died in military custody in Cameroon, his family and legal representatives have said.
Ekane, 74, passed away on Monday morning in Yaounde, the country’s capital, 38 days after security forces detained him in the port city of Douala, France’s public radio RFI reported.
His death has sparked widespread outrage and threatens to deepen the political turmoil gripping Cameroon following October’s disputed presidential election, which saw 92-year-old Paul Biya claim another term after more than four decades in power.
Ekane, the leader of the African Movement for New Independence and Democracy (MANIDEM), a left-wing party, was seized on October 24 after backing Biya’s rival Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who has rejected official results and insists he won the vote.
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If your doctor decided you needed an MRI (indicating concern about something serious) and you claim that you didn't ask why or what part of your body he wanted to look at, you are:
1. Really stupid; or
2. Dangerously detached from reality; or
4. Lying; or
4. All three. 🎯
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— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@mrsbettybowers.bsky.social) December 1, 2025 at 9:12 AM
Al Jazeera
United States President Donald Trump will host the leaders of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on Thursday, the White House has announced.
Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told reporters that DRC President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwanda President Paul Kagame will sign a “historic peace and economic agreement that [Trump] brokered”.
The event comes after the foreign ministers of the two African nations signed a preliminary peace agreement and economic pact at a White House event in June. After months of talks, they met in Qatar in November and signed a framework with the ultimate goal of putting an end to years of fighting.
The Guardian
Italy and Canada have raised concerns about the treatment of their citizens who were beaten and robbed by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
Three Italians and a Canadian were attacked early on Sunday morning in the village of Ein al-Duyuk, near Jericho, where they had volunteered to help protect the Palestinian population from intensifying settler violence.
All four were hospitalised and one, an Italian man, was still receiving care in Ramallah on Monday for more substantial injuries.
In a written account, the Canadian said: “At 4.30am on 30 November, 10 masked settlers, two carrying army-issued rifles, burst into the home where we were sleeping after night-watch.
“They beat us for about 15 minutes. I was repeatedly kicked in the head, ribs, hips and thighs. They shouted insults at us in Arabic and told us we had no right to be there. They smashed the interior of the house and destroyed the solar batteries before leaving.”
The Guardian
Donald Trump reportedly gave Nicolás Maduro an ultimatum to relinquish power immediately during their recent call – but Venezuela’s authoritarian leader declined, demanding a “global amnesty” for himself and allies.
On Sunday, the US president confirmed the call had taken place, telling reporters: “I wouldn’t say it went well or badly, it was a phone call.”
Neither the US nor Venezuelan government have offered further details of the topics discussed during the highly unusual conversation, which is thought to have happened on 21 November.
But sources told the Miami Herald the US president had sent a “blunt message” to his South American counterpart, who is the focus of a four-month pressure campaign in which Trump has ordered a massive naval deployment off Venezuela’s northern coast.
“You can save yourself and those closest to you, but you must leave the country now,” Trump reportedly said, offering safe passage for Maduro, his wife and his son “only if he agreed to resign right away”.
New York Times (no paywall)
Speaker Mike Johnson put the president on speakerphone during a Monday stop in the state, underscoring the unusual amount of national attention on a House special election.
The crowd milling around the sleek multimillion-dollar barn full of gleaming vintage cars was already a snapshot of the Republican elite in Tennessee. There were donors, state representatives, five members of Congress, the governor and the candidate for the state’s House special election on Tuesday, Matt Van Epps.
Then Speaker Mike Johnson, who flew in from Washington early Monday, called President Trump and put his phone on speaker.
“The whole world is watching Tennessee right now, and they’re watching your district,” Mr. Trump said, his voice crackling over the phone. The election, he added, “has got to show that the Republican Party is stronger than it’s ever been.”
The phone call, coupled with the convergence of political heavyweights, underscored just how much Republicans appear rattled by the Tuesday election for what would normally be a safe conservative seat in Tennessee’s Seventh Congressional District. It is the final special election of 2025 and, as Mr. Johnson told reporters, “we think what will happen here will be a bellwether for the midterms next year.”
NPR
When Rahmanullah Lakanwal came to the U.S. from Afghanistan, he appeared lively and full of hope, but over the course of years, he slipped into isolation and was prone to taking cross-country drives without telling his family, according to a volunteer who worked closely with his family.
Lakanwal, an Afghan national, is accused of shooting two National Guard soldiers on Nov. 26. One of those soldiers, 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, died from her wounds. On Monday, West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey describedthe other guard member, 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe, as in "serious" condition.
"My biggest concern was that [Lakanwal] would harm himself," the refugee resettlement volunteer told NPR. "I worried he would be suicidal because he was so withdrawn."
NPR
WASHINGTON — The Department of Transportation is threatening to shut down thousands of truck driving schools as part of the Trump administration's widening crackdown on the U.S. trucking industry.
The DOT announced Monday it plans to revoke the accreditation of nearly 3,000 trucking schools unless they can comply with federal requirements within 30 days, and warned another 4,000 schools could face similar action.
[...]
But the administration's critics argue there's no data to support this claim, despite a handful of high-profile crashes that have garnered significant attention from conservative media. They say the push for tougher regulations amounts to an immigration crackdown by another name.
All of that leaves immigrant truckers in a difficult spot — particularly those who've been in the business for a while.
Reuters
Dec 1 (Reuters) - Tesla
(TSLA.O), opens new tab registrations in several key European markets plunged in November from a year earlier as the U.S. EV maker continued to struggle to stem market share losses despite rolling out new versions of its best-selling Model Y.
Elon Musk's brand however sold more cars in
Norway and Italy than in November last year, partly offsetting losses elsewhere.
Monthly registrations, a proxy for sales, slumped by 58% in
France to 1,593 vehicles sold, by 59% to 1,466 cars in Sweden, by 49% to 534 cars in Denmark, by 44% in the Netherlands to 1,627, by 47% in Portugal to 425, and by 9% in
Spain to 1,523, official data showed.
Traveling without a REAL ID will soon cost you $45.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced on Monday that 94% of airline passengers in the U.S. have a REAL ID. Starting February 1, the remaining 6% will need to follow an alternative process, which includes paying a fee.
Officials said the fee is meant to cover the technology and administrative costs of verifying the identities of travelers who do not have a REAL ID-compliant document or an accepted alternative.
According to TSA officials, noncompliant travelers who use the new Confirm.ID process should plan to pay the fee and upload their documents through a (coming) TSA web portal, which will go online soon, before they arrive at the airport.
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Sen. Kelly: “This is about a president who doesn't want anybody to say anything that he does not like. I don't think he understands the Constitution. I think he is ignorant to the Constitution and the rule of law…This isn't about me. This is about what he will do next.”
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— The Bulwark (@thebulwark.com) December 1, 2025 at 2:10 PM
The crew of the Overnight News Digest consists of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, FarWestGirl, eeff, annetteboardman, Besame, and jck. Alumni editors include (but not limited to), Rise above the swamp, DoomandGloom, Interceptor 7, Man Oh Man (RIP), wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbeck (RIP), rfall, ScottyUrb, Doctor RJ, BentLiberal, Oke (RIP) and jlms qkw.
