World AM News Briefs For Tuesday, 2 January 2018

Good Morning Australia!! - The death toll rises in Iran's anti-government protests - Trump picks a fight with Pakistan, ignoring its strategic importance in the war on terror - Lightin' up in Cali! - And more in your CareerSpot Global News Briefs:

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is characterizing a fifth night of anti-government protests as "nothing", while noting that "criticism and protest are an opportunity not a threat" - but he vowed to crack down on "rioters and lawbreakers".  At least 14 people are dead in the widening unrest, including for the first time one police officer.  The latest protests have expanded the locations of these demonstrations to at least 13 cities. 

The orange clown Donald Trump's first tweet of the year might have handed a big opening to Chinese President Xi Jinping to expand his nation's influence at the expense of the dwindling United States.  The moron tweeted: "The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools.  They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help.  No more!"  The seemingly unprovoked tantrum appears to be based on the false impression that Pakistan has failed to crackdown on terror groups.

Pakistan's Defence Ministry set the record straight, noting it had provided America with "land & air communication, military bases & intel cooperation that decimated Al-Qaeda over last 16yrs" at no cost to Washington.  But it accused the US of giving back "nothing but invective & mistrust".  The Ministry also accused the US of overlooking "cross-border safe havens of terrorists who murder Pakistanis".  Earlier this year, the Pentagon withheld US$50 million in funding for Pakistan in a dispute over a terrorist group, while China provided a similar amount for an infrastructure project.

The other blowhard with a stupid haircut says the nuclear button is always within reach.  Sounds like something Trump would say, but it was Kim Jong-un, who used his New Year's address to try and open new avenues for dialogue with South Korea.

Nigeria's military says as many as 700 captives of Boko Haram have escaped the terrorist group's strongholds in the islands on Lake Chad.  These where mainly fishers and farmers and their families who were held as forced laborers, apparently feeding the Islamist insurgency.  President Muhammadu Buhari in his New Year's address said Boko Haram said the group had been "beaten".  Since Buhari took office, the Nigerian army has gotten serious about Boko Haram and largely beaten it back to its small strongholds.

Millions of Californians who were already smoking pot a day ago can now do so legally, as the state's new law decriminalizing the recreational use of Marijuana came into force for the new year.  Many municipalities hadn't okayed new pot shops yet, so lines at existing dispensaries were pretty long.  Here's a real, confirmed photo from a trip to the reefer store in Oakland, CA on Monday, 1 January 2018:

The new law means one-in-five Americans can now legally smoke according to their state and local laws, while there are still people serving prison terms in less enlightened redneck states for extremely minor possession convictions - convictions usually based on the race of the defendant.

Catalonia's Independence Crisis has cost it One Billion Euros, which is way more than AU$1.5 Billion.  Spain's Economy Minister Luis de Guindos attributes that to an economic slowdown that occurred while separatists staged an unauthorized independence referendum, and the loss of businesses and corporate headquarters that relocated out of Barcelona due to the crisis.  That uncertainty is going to continue anyway, because the separatists came out on top in snap elections and while form a government opposed to Madrid - again.

Plane crashes:  Authorities say it could be months before the determining the cause of the crash in the Hawkesbury River north of Sydney.  Six people died, including Aussie pilot Gareth Morgan from charter company Sydney Seaplanes, British top CEO Richard Cousins and his two sons Edward and William, Cousins' fiance Emma Bowden and her daughter Heather Bowden-Page.  In Costa Rica, a single-engine Cessna Caravan crashed killing the two pilots and ten American tourists. 

An ancient clay seal discovered in a dig near Jerusalem's Western Wall might confirm one detail in the Old Testament:  It was inscribed with the words "Governor of Jerusalem". 

The office is mentioned twice, held by Joshua during the reign of King Hezekiah and Masseiah during the days of Josiah.

"It supports the Biblical rendering of the existence of a governor of the city in Jerusalem 2,700 years ago," said archeologist Shlomit Weksler-Bdolah, as quoted by the Israel Antiquities Authority.  That would put the seal in use around 600 - 700 years after Joshua had the gig. 

In the northern Hemisphere, some people mark the New Year by jumping into cold water in the middle of winter.  Like in Coney Island, New York, Rome, or along the North Sea.