News Ledes -- December 25
Reuters: "Tens of thousands of flag-waving and chanting protesters called Saturday for a disputed parliamentary election to be rerun and an end to Vladimir Putin's rule, increasing pressure on the Russian leader as he tries to win back the presidency. The protesters shouted 'Russia without Putin' and 'New elections, New elections' as one speaker after another called for an end to Putin's 12-year domination of the country at the second big opposition rally in two weeks in central Moscow.
Reuters: "Pope Benedict called for an end to violence in Syria and a resumption of Middle East peace talks on Sunday on a Christmas Day marred by a bomb blast at a Catholic Church in Nigeria."
AP: "An explosion ripped through a Catholic church during Christmas Mass near Nigeria's capital Sunday, killing at least 25 people, officials said. A radical Muslim sect waging an increasingly sophisticated sectarian fight claimed the attack and another bombing in the restive city of Jos, as explosions also struck the nation's northeast."
AP: "With violence continuing, the leader of Syria's main opposition group is urging the Arab League to push for U.N. involvement in seeking an end to the bloodshed."
Los Angeles Times: "President Obama spent part of Christmas Eve playing golf with old friends from the islands and White House staff, while the first lady spoke with children who had called into NORAD’s special Santa-tracking phone line."
Los Angeles Times: "In a confidential deposition with congressional investigators, the then-head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives [Kenneth Melson] blamed agents, field supervisors and even his top command for never advising him that for more than a year, his agency allowed illegal gun sales along the southwestern U.S. border.