Hello! It’s December 16, and we’re tracking today’s top stories: Assad Family Lives in Russian Luxury as Bashar Brushes Up on Ophthalmology, Danske Bank Completes U.S. Justice Department Probation Period, The Anti-Corruption Call That Helped Topple a Government, Miami Man Convicted of Leading $300M Money Laundering Operation, and much more…

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Assad family live in Russian luxury as Bashar ‘brushes up on ophthalmology’. The children and their mother spend much of their time shopping, filling their new Russian home with luxury goods. Guardian

🔥 TOP STORIES

Danske Bank Completes U.S. Justice Department Probation Period WSJ

‘Don’t Feed the Pig’: The Anti-Corruption Call That Helped Topple a Government NYT

Miami Man Convicted of Leading $300M Money Laundering Operation for Transnational Criminal Organizations DOJ

Russia’s Smuggled Grain Finds New Market in Saudi Arabia Bellingcat

Trump signs executive order to classify illicit fentanyl as weapon of mass destruction CNN 

A Powerful New Drug Is Creating a ‘Withdrawal Crisis’ in Philadelphia NYT

German regulator orders oversight, limits on online bank N26 Reuters 

Goldman Sachs taps Robert Sobelman — prosecutor on scrapped US corruption case against Eric Adams — to run investigations at bank New York Post

US Threatens to Cut Fiji Aid Over Impunity for Doomsday Cult OCCRP

UK watchdog investigates EY's Shell audit over potential breaches Reuters

Crypto mogul aims to build Caribbean utopia outside local courts Cryptopolitan

US military kills eight in strikes on alleged narco-trafficking vessels in eastern Pacific AFP

FBI arrests four people it says were planning to detonate pipe bombs on New Year’s Eve in California CNN

🚩 RUSSIA & CHINA

The Chinese Billionaires Having Dozens of U.S.-Born Babies Via Surrogate WSJ

Texas AG Paxton Sues Five Major TV Companies, Including Some with Ties to the CCP Texas Attorney General 

EU Sanctions Target Russia’s ‘Shadow Fleet’ Backers and Disinformation Network Moscow Times

Beijing sanctions former Japanese military chief for ‘colluding with Taiwan separatists’ South China Morning Post

💸 CORRUPTION & FINANCIAL CRIME

Somali fraud probe in Minnesota underscores growing warnings on cash reaching extremists Fox News

Nigeria’s richest man Dangote escalates oil fight with regulator, seeks corruption probe Reuters

Dominican judge orders prison for 7 accused in $250 million government corruption scheme AP

Serbia organized crime prosecutors charge minister, others in connection with Kushner-linked project AP

Romania in turmoil over judicial corruption revelations DW

Paraguay Banks Pledging Sustainability Financed Companies Owned By Businessman With Record of Environmental Crime OCCRP

Oxfam chief forced to step down over 'serious issues' with conduct BBC 

Former Meta integrity chief says new report reveals ‘disappointing’ ad fraud epidemic Fortune

🔐 CRYPTO & CYBER

Hamas Linked Hackers Using AshTag Malware Against Diplomatic Offices Hackread

Militant groups are experimenting with AI, and the risks are expected to grow AP 

UK Treasury Plans to Bring Crypto Firms Under Full FCA Oversight Decrypt

Binance to advise Pakistan on $2 billion asset tokenization as country prepares stablecoin launch The Block

Data breach at credit check giant 700Credit affects at least 5.6 million TechCrunch

Profiting From Exploitation: How We Found the Man Behind Two Deepfake Porn Sites Bellingcat

🚚 TRAFFICKING

Sex trafficking in L.A. made worse by California law Los Angeles Times

Myanmar calls on countries to take back citizens held in crackdown on scam centers AP

They Answered an Ad for Surrogates, and Found Themselves in a Nightmare NYT

Balloons from Belarus are causing chaos in Lithuania. Is it smugglers or a hybrid attack? BBC

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