Armed conflicts and attacks

• Libyan civil war
  • A militia attack on a power plant in Sirte leaves at least 19 soldiers dead. (BBC)
• Somali civil war
  • Al-Shabab militants attack AMISOM's headquarters in Mogadishu, leaving three peacekeeping soldiers and a civilian contractor dead. Five of the attackers are also killed. (Al Jazeera)
• Pakistani forces report the killing of the "mastermind" behind the Peshawar school massacre during a gun battle in the Khyber Agency tribal area. (The Telegraph)

Arts and culture

• Urbi et Orbi
  • Pope Francis condemns the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria for violence against women, children, and ethnic minorities. (CNN)
• Iraqi Christians defy persecution and celebrate Christmas in Baghdad. (The New York Times)
• 2014 Ebola epidemic
  • In her Royal Christmas Message, Queen Elizabeth II praises aid workers for fighting ebola in West Africa. (CBS)
• United States President Barack Obama praises U.S. troops and reflects on the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan during his annual Christmas message from Hawaii. (Toronto Star)

Businesses and economy

• 2014 Russian financial crisis
  • Vladimir Putin announces price controls on vodka to reduce bootlegging and moonshining. (New York Daily News)