First Thing: UN report condemns Israeli treatment of Palestinians in West Bank

UN high commissioner for human rights says there is ‘rapid deterioration’ of rights in West Bank. Plus, how instant noodles took over the world

Good morning.

A UN report published today deplored what it said was a “rapid deterioration” of human rights in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and urged Israeli authorities to end violence against the Palestinian population there.

The office of the UN high commissioner for human rights (OHCHR) said it had recorded mass arbitrary detentions, unlawful detentions, and cases of reported torture and other forms of ill-treatment of Palestinian detainees. It said about 4,785 Palestinians had been detained in the occupied West Bank since 7 October.

“Some were stripped naked, blindfolded and restrained for long hours with handcuffs and with their legs tied, while Israeli soldiers stepped on their heads and backs, [they] were spat at, slammed against walls, threatened, insulted, humiliated and in some cases subjected to sexual and gender-based violence,” said the OHCHR.

The report, published by OHCHR, said 300 Palestinians had been killed in the West Bank since 7 October. Most of the killings occurred during operations by Israeli security forces.

What else is happening? The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has demanded a “lasting ceasefire” in Gaza during a call with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, his office has said, as an escalating humanitarian crisis grips the Palestinian territory.

Colorado Republicans appeal to supreme court after Trump disqualified from state ballot

The Colorado Republican party has asked the US supreme court to intervene after Colorado’s top court disqualified the former president Donald Trump from appearing on the state’s Republican primary ballot, an attorney for the Republican group said.

The Colorado supreme court last week disqualified Trump because of his role in the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol by his supporters. The court barred Trump under a US constitutional provision prohibiting anyone who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” from holding public office.

The Colorado Republican party is being represented by Jay Sekulow of the conservative litigation firm the American Center for Law & Justice.

Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican 2024 presidential nomination, is expected to file his own appeal. The state high court had put its decision on hold until 4 January, stating that Trump would remain on the ballot if he appealed.

On what basis was Trump disqualified? The Colorado court’s ruling marked the first time in history that section 3 of the US constitution’s 14th amendment – the so-called disqualification clause – had been used to deem a presidential candidate ineligible for the White House.

John Oates opens up about Daryl Hall amid bitter legal battle: ‘I have moved on’

John Oates, half of the hugely successful pop rock duo Hall & Oates, has opened up about his partnership with Daryl Hall amid their ongoing and fractious legal battle.

Hall, 77, is suing Oates, 75, in an initially confidential lawsuit that came to light in November when Hall also filed for and received a temporary restraining order against Oates in a Nashville court.

A week later it was revealed that Hall was attempting to block Oates from selling his share of the duo’s Whole Oats Enterprises to the music publisher Primary Wave Music, which has acquired numerous song catalogues in recent years by artists including Prince, Bob Marley, Whitney Houston,Stevie Nicks, The Doors, Ray Charles and more.

In a declaration filed in November, Hall called the planned sale a “completely clandestine and bad faith move” in “blatant violation” of longstanding business agreements between the pair. Oates filed a response within hours, describing Hall’s statements as “inflammatory, outlandish, and inaccurate”.

What has Oates said now? Speaking on the latest episode of David Yontef’s Behind the Velvet Rope podcast yesterday, Oates said their music “will stand the test of time, that will hopefully live on for ever”. But he later added: “I have moved on. It’s just a matter of living in my present.”

In other news …

The US Congress should “act swiftly” to renew the flow of aid to Ukraine, the state department has said, after the White House announced what it said was the last remaining package of weapons available under the existing authorisation.

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has met Mexico’s president in an attempt to limit the surge of migrants reaching the US south-western border. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has said he is willing to help, but he wants to see progress in US relations with Cuba and Venezuela.

A Florida woman holding her 11-month-old son in a baby carrier was fatally shot by her 14-year-old brother while trying to defuse an argument over Christmas gifts he was having with a 15-year-old brother, who also was armed, authorities said.

Heat exhaustion caused the death of a Brazilian fan who attended a Taylor Swift concert in November, according to a forensics report obtained by the Associated Press yesterday. Ana Clara Benevides, 23, passed out during Swift’s second song at the show in Rio de Janeiro on 17 November.

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Don’t miss this: ‘People eat two or three packets a day’ – how instant noodles took over the world

High-salt, processed noodles have become a favourite cheap meal, especially in developing countries. The popularity of instant noodles is spreading quickly in developing countries: in Africa, South America and parts of Asia where noodles are not part of traditional diets. This has come with concerns about their link to the rise of non-communicable diseases, particularly those related to the heart, because of the high levels of salt they typically contain. Yet consumers who are attracted by their affordability, moreish taste and convenience are often unaware of the related health problems because of weak regulations around labelling.

… or this: ‘Historical reparation’ – new bookshops in Europe give voice to female authors

With its neatly arranged tables and shelves laden with books written by women, Greta Livraria’s small space masks its big ambitions, writes Ashifa Kassam. Since opening earlier this year, the bookstore in Lisbon has dedicated its space entirely to promoting a group that has, for the most part, been overlooked and undervalued by society: female authors. It is a “form of historical reparation”, said Lorena Travassos, the store’s founder – one that aims to “counter the longstanding disparities in sales and publications faced by women.”

It is the latest in a wave of bookshops that have sprouted up across Europe with the intention of giving voice to female authors, past and present. In Madrid, a 2017 crowdfunding campaign gave rise to Mujeres & Compañia, while in Berlin the bookshop She Said is dedicated to books by female and queer authors.

Climate check: New breed of climate protesters vows to take fight to ‘cowards’ of US politics

A climate protest group backed by a cadre of Hollywood film-makers is preparing to take action against “cowards” and “criminals” of all political stripes as the 2024 election approaches. Climate Defiance, which disrupted events featuring a string of Biden administration officials this year, and targeted Darren Woods, the chief executive of ExxonMobil, in December, will consider protesting at events staged by Democrats and Republicans on the campaign trail after concluding that its “very disruptive” action was bearing fruit.

Last Thing: The weird but true history of cereal – from anti-sex campaigns to mind control

The year is 1863. Cheerios won’t be invented for almost 60 years; Lucky Charms won’t emerge for more than a century. But a middle-aged doctor in upstate New York is at work on a snack that will change the American breakfast – and, some might argue, the nation itself – for ever. Dr James Caleb Jackson, who ran a sanatorium in upstate New York, has invented what he called Granula: a recipe made from water and dried graham flour broken into pieces. The stuff was so hard that it had to be mixed with milk to be edible – and thus breakfast cereal was born. Here’s the surprising story of how we got from bland hunks of flour to neon-colored sugar nuggets and back again.

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