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Hamas will not participate in cease-fire talks this week

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Hamas will not participate in cease-fire talks this week – CBS News


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Hamas will not attend cease-fire negotiations that were scheduled for Thursday, accusing Israel of only using the sessions to prolong the war. This comes as Israel remains on alert for a possible retaliatory attack from Iran and its proxies. Ramy Inocencio has the details.

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In their final meeting, Xi tells Biden he is “ready to work with a new administration”

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In their final meeting, China’s leader Xi Jinping told U.S. President Biden that his nation was “ready to work with a new administration,” as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take over.

The two leaders gathered Saturday on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. Mr. Biden was expected to urge Xi to dissuade North Korea from further deepening its support for Russia’s war on Ukraine. It marked their first in-person meeting since they met in Northern California last November.

Without mentioning Trump’s name, Xi appeared to signal his concern that the incoming president’s protectionist rhetoric on the campaign trail could send the U.S.-China relationship into another valley.

“China is ready to work with a new U.S. administration to maintain communication, expand cooperation and manage differences so as to strive for a steady transition of the China-U.S. relationship for the benefit of the two peoples,” Xi said through an interpreter.

Biden Xi
US President Biden shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Lima, Peru, on Nov. 16, 2024.

LEAH MILLIS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images


Mr. Biden, meanwhile, spoke in broader brushstrokes about where the relationship has gone and reflected not just on the past four years, but on their long relationship.

“Over the past four years, China-U.S. relations have experienced ups and downs, but with the two of us at the helm, we have also engaged in fruitful dialogues and cooperation, and generally achieved stability,” he said.

Mr. Biden and Xi, with top aides surrounding them, gathered around a long rectangle of tables in an expansive conference room at Lima’s Defines Hotel and Conference Center.

There’s much uncertainty about what lies ahead in the U.S.-China relationship under Trump, who campaigned promising to levy 60% tariffs on Chinese imports.

Bobby Djavaheri, president of Los Angeles-based Yedi Houseware Appliances — which manufactures its products in China — told CBS News in an interview this week that such tariffs “would decimate our business, but not only our business. It would decimate all small businesses that rely on importing.”

Trump has also proposed revoking China’s Most Favored Nation trade status, phasing out all imports of essential goods from China and banning China from buying U.S. farmland.

Already, many American companies, including Nike and eyewear retailer Warby Parker, have been diversifying their sourcing away from China. Shoe brand Steve Madden says it plans to cut imports from China by as much as 45% next year.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Biden administration officials will advise the Trump team that managing the intense competition with Beijing will likely be the most significant foreign policy challenge they will face.

It’s a big moment for Mr. Biden as he wraps up more than 50 years in politics. He saw his relationship with Xi as among the most consequential on the international stage and put much effort into cultivating that relationship.

Mr. Biden and Xi first got to know each other on travels across the U.S. and China when both were vice presidents, interactions that both have said left a lasting impression.

“For over a decade, you and I have spent many hours together, both here and in China and in between. And I think we’ve spent a long time dealing with these issues,” Mr. Biden said Saturday.

But the last four years have presented a steady stream of difficult moments.

The FBI this week offered new details of a federal investigation into Chinese government efforts to hack into U.S. telecommunications networks. The initial findings have revealed a “broad and significant” cyberespionage campaign aimed at stealing information from Americans who work in government and politics.

U.S. intelligence officials also have assessed China has surged sales to Russia of machine tools, microelectronics and other technology that Moscow is using to produce missiles, tanks, aircraft and other weaponry for use in its war against Ukraine.

And tensions flared last year after Mr. Biden ordered the shooting down of a Chinese spy balloon that traversed the United States.



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Trump selects Liberty Energy CEO Chris Wright as secretary of Energy

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President-elect Donald Trump has selected Chris Wright, a campaign donor and fossil fuel executive, to serve as energy secretary in his upcoming, second administration.

CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, Wright is a vocal advocate of oil and gas development, including fracking, a key pillar of Trump’s quest to achieve U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market.

Trump also said in a statement Saturday that Wright will serve on the newly-created National Energy Council, which will be chaired by North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s selection for secretary of the Interior.  

Burgum will oversee a panel that crosses all executive branch agencies involved in energy permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation and transportation, Trump said in a previous statement.  

Wright has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change and could give fossil fuels a boost, including quick action to end a year-long pause on natural gas export approvals by the Biden administration.

Wright also has criticized what he calls a “top-down” approach to climate by liberal and left-wing groups and said the climate movement around the world is “collapsing under its own weight.”

Consideration of Wright to head the administration’s energy department won support from influential conservatives, including oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm.

Hamm, executive chairman of Oklahoma-based Continental Resources, a major shale oil company, is a longtime Trump supporter and adviser who played a key role on energy issues in Trump’s first term.

Hamm helped organize an event at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in April where Trump reportedly asked industry leaders and lobbyists to donate $1 billion to Trump’s campaign, with the expectation that Trump would curtail environmental regulations if re-elected.

The Energy Department is responsible for advancing energy, environmental and nuclear security of the United States. The agency is in charge of maintaining the country’s nuclear weapons, oversees 17 national research laboratories and approves natural gas exports, as well as ensuring environmental cleanup of the nation’s nuclear weapons complex. It also promotes scientific and technological research.

Republican Sen. John Barrasso, who is expected to become chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said Trump promised bold choices for his Cabinet, and Wright’s nomination delivers.

“He’s s an energy innovator who laid the foundation for America’s fracking boom. After four years of America last energy policy, our country is desperate for a secretary (of energy) who understands how important American energy is to our economy and our national security,″ Barrasso said of Wright, adding: “Wright will help ensure America remains committed to an all-of-the-above energy policy that puts American families first.”

Thomas Pyle, president of the American Energy Alliance, a conservative group that supports fossil fuels, said Wright would be “an excellent choice” for Energy secretary. Pyle led Trump’s Energy Department’s transition team in 2016.

Liberty is a major energy industry service provider, with a focus on technology. Wright, who grew up in Colorado, earned undergraduate degree at MIT and did graduate work in electrical engineering at the University of California-Berkeley and MIT. In 1992, he founded Pinnacle Technologies, which helped launch commercial shale gas production through hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.

He later served as chairman of Stroud Energy, an early shale gas producer, before founding Liberty Resources in 2010.



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A week before Texas mom Alyssa Burkett’s murder, the killer received a text: “I hope you handle it”

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After Alyssa Burkett was murdered, detectives quickly learned that the prime suspect was the father of her child, Andrew Beard. But as the investigation unfolded, they would find out that Beard wasn’t the only one involved in the murder plot.

 Take a look inside the investigation.

Oct. 2, 2020 | 9 a.m.

Alyssa Burkett crime scene
On the morning of Oct. 2, 2020, Alyssa Burkett parked outside the Greentree Apartments leasing office when a man in a black Ford Expedition pulled into the spot next to her. He got out of his SUV and shot Burkett through the driver’s side window.

Carrollton Police Department


Shortly after 24-year-old Alyssa Burkett pulled into her parking space at work in Carrollton, Texas, a man with a gun shot her in the head through her car window and fled.

Alyssa Burkett crime scene
On a window at the Greentree Apartments leasing office “there was a blood handprint smear where Alyssa (Burkett) was trying to get anyone to come out and help her,” said Carrollton Police Sgt. Michael Harding. 

Carrollton Police Department


Burkett survived the gun blast, got out of her car and tried to get help. Her bloody hand left a print on the office window.

The assailant saw Burkett running and chased after her. He stabbed and slashed Alyssa 44 times and left the scene in his black SUV.

burkett-beard-combo.jpg
Andrew Beard, left, and Alyssa Burkett with their daughter Willow.

Lizatte Bowers/Alyssa Burkett, Facebook


When Burkett’s mother, Teresa Collard, arrived at the scene, she immediately gave detectives a name: Andrew Beard. Beard was the father of Burkett’s 1-year-old child, Willow. 

Oct. 2, 2020 | 12 p.m.

Andrew Beard police bodycam
Andrew Beard, right, is seen with an officer in a resized still from police bodycam video during a stop for an alleged traffic violation on the day Alyssa Burkett was killed.

Carrollton Police Department


Hours after the murder, police officers stopped Beard in his white Ford F-150 pickup truck. His fiancée, Holly Elkins, and baby Willow were with him. Beard was told he could leave the scene, but he couldn’t return home. Officers also seized his pickup truck.

Oct. 2, 2020 | 9 p.m.

Alyssa Burkett evidence
A tracking device found on Alyssa Burkett’s car.

Carrollton Police Department


Later that night, police searched Beard’s home and found a GPS tracker battery and charging stations that matched a tracking device detectives discovered under Burkett’s car earlier that day.

Alyssa Burkett evidence
The gun silencer found in Andrew Beard’s home.

Carrollton Police Department


Investigators also uncovered what they believed to be an unregistered gun silencer. 

Oct. 3, 2020 | 12 p.m.

Alyssa Burkett evidence
Vials of dark colored makeup and a pair of cut up hiking boots were found during a search of Andrew Beard’s pickup truck.

Carrollton Police Department


The next day, detectives searched Beard’s white F-150 pickup truck and found a backpack. Inside, they uncovered two bottles of dark brown makeup, and a pair of men’s hiking boots that had been cut into pieces and were soaking in bleach.

Oct. 3, 2020

burkett-abandonedsuv.jpg
Police learned Andrew Beard had bought the black SUV specifically to commit the murder.

Carrollton Police Department


Later that night, police located that black Ford SUV the assailant drove to the scene. It was found abandoned less than a mile from Beard’s house.

Fake beard evidence
During a search of Andrew Beard’s SUV, Carrollton Police found part of his disguise: a fake beard.

Carrolton Police Department


When detectives searched the SUV, they found a fake beard smeared with dark brown makeup.

Oct. 5, 2020

Andrew Beard booking photo
Three days after Alyssa Burkett was killed, Beard turned himself in to Carrolton, Texas, police.

Carrolton Police Department


When Beard learned there was a warrant for his arrest, he turned himself in to the Carrollton Police Department. He was charged with murder.

Oct. 6, 2020

Beard’s fiancée, Holly Elkins, voluntarily went to speak with detectives at the Carrollton Police Department.

Holly Elkins with detectives
Holly Elkins is interviewed by Carrollton Police detectives Jeremy Chevallier and Michael Harding.

Carrolton Police Department


During the interview, Elkins told investigators that Beard was at home with her on the morning of the murder. She also described herself as a “stage 5 clinger girlfriend,” and said she would have known if Beard left the house that morning.

Oct. 6, 2020 | 1:30 p.m.

Holly Elkins' internet searches
Some of Holly Elkins’ internet searches.

Carrollton Police Department


After her interview, investigators said Elkins made the following internet searches:

“Can I not be brought to court if I have a psychiatrist note?”

“vulnerable patients going to court”

“contact psychiatrist in Dallas”

“Can I not be subpoenaed to jail if I have a mental issue?”

Oct. 29, 2020

Beard spent two weeks behind bars before he was released on bond. Carrollton Police Det. Jeremy Chevallier said he was worried about baby Willow’s safety, so he reached out to the federal government to take the case under federal firearm laws.

Because detectives found an unregistered silencer during the search of Beard’s home, the federal government agreed to take the case.

Andrew Burkett arrest
Andrew Beard was rearrested and charged with cyberstalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in death.

Carrollton Police Department


Eight days after he bonded out, Beard was rearrested and ultimately charged with cyberstalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in death.

July 15, 2022

In June 2022, Beard pleaded guilty to cyberstalking and using a dangerous weapon resulting in death.  

Andrew Beard with FBI agents
A year and nine months after Alyssa Burkett was killed, Andrew Beard spoke to the FBI as part of a plea deal.

FBI


One month later, he spoke to the FBI as part of a plea deal. And he had a lot to say about Elkins’ involvement in Burkett’s murder.

“…It was…’this is how you’re gonna do this,’ it was, ‘… you’re gonna wear this dark makeup …’ That was her plan…that’s how it’s gonna be done,” Beard told the FBI. 

May 24, 2023

Beard was sentenced to 43 years in federal prison. 

June 21, 2023

After speaking with Beard, the FBI spent about a year building a case against Elkins.

Investigators found internet searches and a Walgreens receipt that connected her to the crime.  

Holly Elkins texts
Text messages between Holly Elkins and Andrew Beard.

Carrollton Police Department


They also dug into text messages between Elkins and Beard. In a text sent to Beard one week before Burkett’s murder, Elkins wrote, “I hope you handle it I’m not coming home to b**s***”

Elkins was indicted on three charges: conspiracy to stalk, stalking using a dangerous weapon resulting in serious bodily injury and death and brandishing a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.

July 6, 2023

Holly Elkins booking photo
Holly Elkins was arrested by federal agents almost three years after Alyssa Burkett’s death.

Johnson County Sheriff’s Office


Elkins was arrested at the Miami airport by federal agents after returning from a trip to the Dominican Republic. 

April 9 – 16, 2024

Andrew Beard, Holly Elkins and Willow
Andrew Beard and Holly Elkins with Willow, the daughter Beard shared with Alyssa Burkett.

Lizette Bowers


Elkins’ trial began at the federal courthouse in downtown Dallas. After six days, the case went to the jury.

April 17, 2024

Holly Elkins
Holly Elkins

Stephen Green


The jury deliberated for about an hour-and-a-half before they found Elkins guilty on all counts. On Aug. 15, 2024, Elkins was sentenced to two life terms. 



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