Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a rare apology today following the deadly plane crash

of an Azerbaijani airliner earlier this week. Putin spoke with the leaders of Azerbaijan

and Kazakhstan to send his condolences following the crash that killed at least 38 people,

but he stopped short of taking responsibility. The flight was on route to the Chechen capital of

Grozny when it crashed landed Wednesday. The Kremlin said Ukrainian drones were attacking the area

and Russian air defense systems were firing near the airport, but did not say those systems

hit the plane. White House official said this week early indications point to the possibility

that the Russian air

defense system brought down the plane. The investigation is ongoing. The head of one of the last

functioning hospitals in northern Gaza is now in the custody of the Israeli military. The Gaza health

ministry says the director was forcibly arrested by the IDF one day after troops stormed the hospital. The IDF says

Hamas used the hospital to conduct operations but provided no evidence. In central Gaza and Israeli

airstrike hit a home overnight, killing nine people. Witnesses say four children were among

those killed. There are fears more victims could be stuck beneath the rubble.

One lucky person in California will be going into the new year as a mega-million's jackpot winner.

A winning ticket was sold at a convenience store in Cottonwood, California.

That's about 130 miles north of Sacramento.

The ticket is worth an estimated $1.2 billion, or a cash payout of $549 million before taxes.

And Olivia Hussie, the star of the 1963 film Romeo and Juliet, has died.

Hussey was 15 when she was cast as Juliet opposite 16-year-old British actor Leonard Whiting.

She won a Golden Globe for Best New Actress and the film won two Oscars.

Decades later, Hussie and Whiting sued Paramount Pictures,

...