Congressman expected to be given key role, while Trump reportedly to name Marco Rubio as US secretary of state

President-elect Donald Trump has reportedly decided to appoint Republican congressman Mike Waltz of Florida as his national security adviser.

Waltz, a Trump loyalist who also served in the national guard as a colonel, has criticized Chinese activity in the Asia-Pacific and has voiced the need for the United States to be ready for a potential conflict in the region.

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Victorian sentenced to more than four years in prison after leaving wife ‘grief-stricken and traumatised’ in Sudan

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A Victorian man who tricked his wife into travelling to Sudan before taking her children and passport back to Australia has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison.

After a county court trial, the 52-year-old man in April became the first Victorian convicted of exit trafficking – where someone is coerced, threatened or tricked into leaving Australia against their will.

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The actor and producer has responded to a viral news story from April – but denied being eight hours’ late to filming

Dwayne Johnson, AKA The Rock, has admitted he does sometimes urinate in water bottles during filming – and is occasionally slightly late to set.

In an interview with GQ magazine, the actor and producer responded to claims made by industry news site the Wrap about his on-set behaviour during the filming of his latest movie, Christmas comedy Red One : “I’ve said a thousand times: ‘Hey, I’m here. Come and ask me. And I’ll tell you the truth.’ ”

Red One is in cinemas now

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• Tennis Channel removes Jon Wertheim from WTA Finals line-up
• Wertheim sorry for being ‘neither professional nor charitable’

American journalist Jon Wertheim has been removed as an on-air analyst for the Tennis Channel for a derogatory comment he made about Barbora Krejcikova’s forehead.

Covering the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Wertheim said in a statement on Sunday that his comment “inadvertently” made it on air after he joined the Tennis Channel broadcast via Zoom.

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At a moment when the world feels like a particularly unsettling place, Science Weekly is asking what it is that makes humans happy – and how can we bring more happiness into our lives?

In episode one, Ian Sample asks what makes a country happy? Johannes Eichstaedt, assistant professor of psychology and human-centred AI at Stanford University, explains why the Nordic countries often rank highly in the annual World Happiness Report, and what we can learn if we look beyond them

Clips: Good Morning America, France 24

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Experts say once-a-day varenicline tablet reduces nicotine cravings and side-effects from cutting out tobacco

Hundreds of thousands of smokers will be given a pill that increases people’s chances of quitting, in a move that NHS bosses believe will save thousands of lives.

About 85,000 people a year in England will be offered the chance to use varenicline, a once-a-day tablet that experts say is as effective as vapes at helping people to kick the habit.

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Foreign minister says talks continuing over Israel’s stated objectives of pushing Hezbollah away from Israeli border

Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Saar, said on Monday that “certain progress” had been made on ceasefire talks in Lebanon, where Israel has been engaged in fighting Hezbollah for more than 13 months.

“We will be ready to be there if we know, first of all, that Hezbollah is not on our border, is north of the Litani River, and that Hezbollah will not be able to arm with new weapons systems,” Saar said. He added that diplomatic efforts were taking place through US mediation, but that the lack of enforcement mechanism in any future deal remained a stumbling block.

Israel’s stated objective in its ground invasion of south Lebanon was to enable the return of residents of north Israel, of which tens of thousands have been displaced since Hezbollah began firing rockets “in solidarity” with Hamas on 8 October 2023. Israel has said that Hezbollah would need to retreat north of the Litani, 18 miles from its northern border, to ensure the security of north Israel.

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Tubman helped free several Black people from slavery and led soldiers on a gunboat raid during US civil war

Revered abolitionist Harriet Tubman, who was the first woman to oversee an American military action during a time of war, was posthumously awarded the rank of general on Monday.

Dozens gathered on Veterans Day at the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad state park in Maryland’s Dorcester county for a formal ceremony making Tubman a one-star brigadier general in the state’s national guard.

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• Robins sacked last week after seven years in charge
• Doug King, the club’s owner, confirms Lampard’s interest

Doug King, the Coventry owner, has revealed that Frank Lampard is a contender to replace Mark Robins as the Championship club’s next manager.

King has said the former Chelsea, Derby County and Everton coach is among a large number of interested parties in the vacant post.

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