Japan PM battles for survival in parliament vote as Trump looms large

TOKYO — Japanese lawmakers decide today whether Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba remains the country’s leader after his scandal-tarnished coalition lost its parliamentary majority in a lower house election late last month. Ishiba, who called the snap poll after coming into office on Oct. 1, is expected to prevail as his Liberal Democratic Party and coalition partner Komeito won the biggest block of seats in the election, while losing the majority held since 2012.

Judge to decide whether Trump’s hush money conviction can stand

NEW YORK — A New York judge is set to decide this week whether President-elect Donald Trump’s criminal conviction on charges involving hush money paid to a porn star should be overturned in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s July ruling on presidential immunity. Justice Juan Merchan has said he will make his decision by Tuesday. It is the first of two pivotal choices that the judge must make after Trump’s Nov. 5 election victory. Merchan also must decide whether to go ahead with sentencing Trump on Nov. 26 as currently scheduled. Legal experts have said sentencing now is unlikely to happen ahead of Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration. A favorable ruling by Merchan for Trump on the immunity question or a sentencing delay would pave the way for him to return to the White House largely unencumbered by any of the four criminal cases that once appeared to threaten his ambitions to win back the White House. Officials at the U.S. Justice Department are assessing how to wind down the two federal criminal cases brought against Trump by Special Counsel Jack Smith due to its longstanding policy against prosecuting a sitting president. A separate case in Georgia involving state criminal charges concerning Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss remains in limbo. Trump, 78, pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing in all four cases, which he portrayed as political persecutions by allies of Democratic President Joe Biden designed to thwart his campaign.

Qatar stalls its Gaza ceasefire mediation

Qatar has told Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel it will stall its efforts to mediate a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal until they show “willingness and seriousness” to resume talks, its foreign ministry said on Saturday.