The University of Mississippi launched an investigation after a video purportedly showing students making racist gestures on another student's doorbell camera was shared on social media.

The video shows two girls making monkey sounds and gestures as they pass by a Ring camera on an apartment door. The person who posted it said her daughter's doorbell camera captured it and that her daughter is a freshman at Ole Miss and has two Black roommates, CBS affiliate WREG reported.

A university spokesperson told CBS News that it condemned the "offensive, hurtful, and unacceptable behaviors" depicted in the video and that the appropriate university offices and processes are actively investigating the incident.

"It's important to note that student conduct cases, records and any potential disciplinary action are protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)," the statement said. "We are committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for all of our students, faculty, staff, and visitors and will follow our processes to ensure the well-being and safety of our community."

In a subsequent statement to students, faculty and staff, the vice chancellor of student affairs condemned the behavior depicted in the video and said that it "does not reflect our university's values or the kind of community we strive to be every day."

"The behavior depicted in this video is deeply troubling, hurtful, and unacceptable," Shawnboda Mead said in a statement posted on the university's website.

Mead said staff have reached out to the students directly impacted and will continue to support them through the process. She also recognized that situations like this can cause "hurt and concern" among students and assured that the matter is "being taken seriously."

Mead also urged people to be thoughtful about the information being shared online as one student has already been incorrectly identified as being involved in this incident. She said, despite online rumors, no members of the university's sorority community were involved in the incident.

"Every student deserves to feel safe, respected, and valued at the University of Mississippi," Mead said. "Racism and actions that disparage people because of an aspect of their identity have no place in our campus community."

Mexican authorities announced on Sunday the arrest of a powerful cartel's regional leader who is wanted by the U.S.

The arrested suspect was identified as Rafael Alvarez, alias "R2," who headed a Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) cell linked to homicides, drug trafficking and extortion of avocado industry entrepreneurs.

The CJNG was designated a "foreign terrorist organization" by the American government in 2025 and is known for its violent tactics and attacks on authorities.

It competes with the Sinaloa Cartel for drug trafficking into the United States, but since the death of its founder, Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera, in a military operation in February, several of its top leaders have been apprehended.

The drug gang operates in the states of Jalisco and Michoacan.

Alvarez is also linked to the killing a year ago of Carlos Manzo, a popular mayor known for the way he confronted organized crime.

Mexico's navy released an image of Alvarez on social media after his arrest.

The kingpin was wounded in a shootout that broke out during the operation to capture him and is receiving medical care, Mexico's Security Secretary Omar Garcia Harfuch said on X. Another 19 people were arrested along with Alvarez, he said.

The trafficker was located thanks to information shared by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Harfuch added.

The DEA said in a social media post that "R2" was wanted in the U.S. on federal drug trafficking and firearms charges, calling the suspect a "senior leader of the CJNG terrorist organization responsible for drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping, and deadly violence across Mexico."

The U.S. Justice Department said that R2's brother Ramon Alvarez Ayala, alias "R1," was arrested in Mexico earlier this year on the same charges.

The announcement comes just weeks after security forces in Mexico arrested an alleged CJNG leader who is accused by the U.S. of drug trafficking and a large-scale fuel smuggling operation.   Officials said Ivan Cazarin Molina (a.k.a. "El Tanque"—meaning "The Tank"), was captured in the town of Zapopan in Jalisco state. 

Washington — House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who's poised to become House Speaker in the new Congress following his party's widespread gains in the midterm elections, said Monday that Democrats will focus "relentlessly" on addressing affordability in their majorities, while also setting their sights on combatting corruption.

"We're committed to accountability and to holding the crooks accountable if you've been stealing from the American people, screwing over the American people or shortchanging the American people," Jeffries said on "CBS Mornings."

As the high cost of living became a key driver in the midterm elections, corruption has also invigorated voters at the ballot box. Roughly nine in 10 voters nationally said government corruption was a major factor in their vote, according to CBS News exit polling. And Democrats put the issue front and center in their final pitch to voters, who turned out overwhelmingly for the party, resulting in the House and Senate flipping control. 

Now, as Democrats prepare to take control of Congress, they're working to align priorities, amid concerns that investigations and possible impeachment efforts against the administration could detract from their ability to address affordability for voters.

Asked whether Democrats can address both cost-of-living and corruption concerns, Jeffries said, "Yes, and we have to."

Jeffries said Democrats will "focus aggressively and relentlessly on dealing with the affordability crisis," while also pursuing accountability. He said, "We're going to follow the facts, apply the law, be guided by the Constitution, and then let the chips fall where they may."

The New York Democrat linked the affordability issue to corruption concerns, just as a number of Democratic candidates did on the campaign trail, saying, as Americans have struggled with high prices, "we've seen unprecedented corruption unleashed on the American people." 

"We've got to get to the bottom of it so we can actually deliver a government that is committed to solving problems for hardworking American taxpayers, as opposed to enriching folks, their family members, their friends, or their donors," he added.

Jeffries said "far too many people" throughout the U.S. are "working hard, they're playing by the rules, but they're struggling."

"They can't thrive, and they can barely survive," he said. "We've got to turn that situation around, lower the high costs of gas and groceries and housing, and make healthcare affordable for every single American."

In a "60 Minutes" interview that aired Sunday, President Trump said he would be open to working with Democrats on immigration. But after the interview was taped on Friday, Mr. Trump named hard-line immigration enforcement advocate Stephen Miller as White House chief of staff. 

Asked about the president's move to elevate Miller, Jeffries said Monday that Democrats can work with the Trump administration on issues of affordability and other major issues "without having to work with someone who is so clearly unqualified and absolutely in the context of being the architect of the violent mass deportation machine."

"It is fair to say that Stephen Miller has blood on his hands," Jeffries added. 

Disgraced actor Russell Brand was sentenced Monday to 10 and a half years in prison for raping a woman in 2009 and sexually assaulting three others.

The disgraced British television personality and Hollywood actor was convicted last week on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault, but acquitted on two other counts of rape and an attempted indecent assault charge.

A jury of eight men and four women in Southwark Crown Court, in South London, found Brand guilty of groping a woman's breasts at a London bar in 2004, sexually assaulting a woman at a London radio station in 2004 and 2005, and raping a woman at his west London home in 2009.

The judge, Joel Bennathan, called Brand a "sexual predator" in his sentencing remarks, saying he displayed "staggering arrogance" and believed that "fame meant you could act ⁠how you liked, when you liked."

For the rape he was sentenced to nine years, plus 18 months for the sexual assaults. Brand is expected to serve at least seven years in prison, and the rest of his sentence under heavy restrictions, such as wearing a tag.

Six women made the allegations against him, spanning from 1999 to 2009.

Before the sentencing Monday, victim impact statements from the women involved in Brand's crimes were read out in court, three by the prosecutor and one by one of the women, who was hidden from everyone but the judge by a screen. 

"I've been in shock and turmoil for years. I was extremely upset and traumatized. I didn't have any respect for myself," the woman reading her statement said, according to CBS News partner network BBC.

"I was thinking I was damaged goods - scared of giving off signals that could be taken the wrong way."

Another statement, read out by the prosecutor, called Brand "a sexual predator who has no remorse … I just hope he is not allowed to hurt any more women."

A third statement, from the woman who Brand was convicted of raping in 2009, said she "struggled to sleep and eat" and "cope with my emotions" after the attack. 

Before the sentence was announced, Brand's lawyer Ian Winter KC said his client was a "fundamentally different person today" compared to when the rape took place 17 years ago. He called the rape a "momentary total failure to respect [the woman's] consent."

Brand was denied bail after the conviction and remained in custody ahead of Monday's sentencing, as the London judge rejected his request to be released on bail to spend time with his wife and children before Monday's hearing.

"I regret the hardship caused to the children, of course," judge Bennathan said of his decision Thursday, according to the BBC. "But the hardship has been caused by serious criminal offending by their father."

Following the verdicts being handed down last week, the BBC reported that police were investigating Brand over additional rape allegations made by two women — one of whom was 16 years old at the time of the alleged incident. The head of London's Metropolitan Police said Friday that he "wouldn't be surprised ‌if many ⁠more [women] came forward."

When the guilty verdict was read out, Brand closed his eyes. When bail was denied he said, "I'm good, I'm good, I'm good," before being led away. 

His lawyers argued that the victims' cases were weakened by the fact they had only gone to the police years after the encounters. 

Brand, who had pleaded not guilty to all charges, suggested the claims were part of a coordinated attack on his character due to his prominence as an online wellness influencer and political commentator.

He admitted to leading a promiscuous life and being obsessed with sex as a young man, but claimed he never forced anyone to do anything against their will. 

During the trial, a prosecutor described Brand as a ruthless and manipulative sexual predator.

A meteor lit up skies over parts of North Carolina and Tennessee on Thursday night, zooming by at 47,000 mph, according to NASA. 

Eyewitnesses have shared numerous photographs on social media of the fireball, which initially sprang into view about 50 miles above the North Carolina town of Robbinsville. NASA said the meteor was also captured by its specialized imaging systems — called sky cameras — which were stationed throughout the region. 

Those cameras tracked the fireball as it proceeded to travel westward into southern Tennessee, eventually dissipating once it reached a spot about 25 miles above the city of East Ridge, near Chattanooga. Just about 10 seconds passed between the meteor's first and final sighting.

NASA said it was able to analyze the meteor using the footage from sky cameras at the Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville, Georgia, and others stationed in Huntsville, Alabama, Tullahoma, Tennessee, and one more location near the Tennessee-North Carolina border. The agency determined that the object was a small piece of an asteroid, measuring two inches in diameter and weighing six ounces.

Meteors, also called "shooting stars," are the visible paths of asteroid fragments that have entered Earth's atmosphere, according to NASA. Astronomers use the term "fireball" to describe an especially bright meteor, which can be seen over a wide area because of how starkly they appear. Some fireballs are much larger than the one spotted over North Carolina and Tennessee last week, with NASA saying they can measure three feet or bigger in size.

NASA said the meteor was not part of the Taurid meteor shower, which is currently active.

Washington — Lawmakers are returning to Capitol Hill on Monday for the first time since the midterm elections, which delivered a slew of Democratic victories that will dramatically reshape the balance of power in Washington in the new year. 

Now, with the sun setting on their majorities, Republicans are aiming to make the most of their lame-duck period. But first, they'll select their new leaders — and work to prevent a possible government shutdown. 

Leadership elections

House and Senate Republicans are set to hold their leadership elections on Tuesday, while House Democrats will hold theirs the following week, and Senate Democrats will elect their leaders in early December. 

On the House side, Speaker Mike Johnson is stepping aside after the GOP's extensive losses last week, leaving Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Rep. Jim Jordan, the House Judiciary Committee chairman, to jockey for minority leader. Rep. August Pfluger is challenging Majority Whip Tom Emmer for the position of minority whip. Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain has two opponents — Reps. Erin Houchin and Greg Steube. 

Democrats up for a handful of leadership positions are running unopposed. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is poised to become speaker, with House Whip Katherine Clark as majority leader and Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar as whip. Rep. Joe Neguse is set to become assistant speaker and Rep. Ted Lieu, the current Democratic Caucus vice chair, chair of the Democratic Caucus.

In the upper chamber, Senate Republicans are scheduled to hold leadership elections Tuesday morning. But at least a handful of Senate GOP members, led by Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, want to delay their elections to recalibrate after last week's electoral bloodbath for the party.

In a letter to Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who chairs the Senate Republican Conference, the Wisconsin Republican argued that "we need to have serious discussions within our conference" about 2028, after the party's "stunning defeat." 

"Holding leadership elections without engaging in a robust discussion and evaluation of how those running for leadership intend to lead would be political malpractice," the senator wrote in the letter seeking to compel a conference meeting before moving forward with the leadership elections. 

Johnson said the letter would be signed by at least five of his colleagues, per Senate rules. Sens. John Kennedy of Louisiana, Mike Lee of Utah, Rick Scott of Florida and Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania were among those expressing support for the effort.

In an interview with "The Takeout with Major Garrett" on Friday, Johnson said the letter was not "hostile" to Senate Majority Leader John Thune or other leaders. No senator has announced a challenge to Thune, and his conference widely expects him to be elected to a second term as leader. But the Wisconsin Republican argued that there's "no reason to rush," noting that the GOP doesn't yet know the size of its conference with the outcome of two races — Mississippi and Alaska — still unresolved. 

"There's a lot of reason for robust discussion and reflection about what went wrong," he said.  

As for Senate Democrats, leadership elections are slated for early next month. And with Democrats' overperformance of expectations in the midterms, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has appeared to improve his standing, despite facing intense criticism over the last two years for his leadership that originated with a fight over funding the government.

Government funding

After Congress approved a stopgap measure to keep the government funded earlier this year, funding is set to run out on Dec. 11, teeing up a familiar fight on Capitol Hill. 

Lawmakers now have a condensed timeline to negotiate and pass the 12 annual appropriations bills that fund the federal government, or opt to kick the can down the road further. 

The initial deadline to fund the government was Sept. 30, but Congress approved a short-term extension in a move that avoided a messy funding fight ahead of the midterm elections. 

In an interview with CBS News in late October, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said House and Senate negotiators "will start to do business" after the election, acknowledging that Democrats would have more leverage after the midterms if they won the majority. 

Asked about the points of agreement and disagreement between Democrats and Republicans, DeLauro said, "we're going to find out when we sit down and talk about it." 

"What I am going to work to do is to pass all 12 appropriations bills, if we can," she said. "No one wants a continuing resolution that goes through next year." 

"As it unfolds, we will see what we have to do and where we go," she said. 

The war in Iran could take center stage in the funding fight, as some Democrats advocate for using their leverage to block funds for the unpopular conflict. But doing so could risk a shutdown that could spill into the new Congress, and detract from other priorities. Congress also faces an end-of-year deadline to pass its annual defense policy bill, which could also be complicated by opposition to the Iran war and Pentagon leadership that's been under scrutiny after the GOP's significant losses. 

Hegseth impeachment

Anger toward Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, which was simmering before the elections, boiled over after the GOP's crippling losses, with intense criticism over his strategy in the Iran war. 

GOP Rep. Thomas Massie, a frequent thorn in the side of Republican leadership, introduced articles of impeachment against Hegseth in September, but House GOP leaders recessed the chamber early, pushing off a vote on the issue until November.

But since then, the environment has appeared to grow less favorable for Hegseth, and some Republicans, who were once fierce defenders of Hegseth, appear to be reconsidering their support for him.

"I can tell you with a high level of confidence, there's a lot of questions about Hegseth," Rep. James Comer, who leads the House Oversight Committee, said in an interview with News Nation. "We have no idea what the strategy is moving forward in Iran. No one's happy about Iran. I think the Republican voters are more upset about what's going on in Iran than the Democrat voters." 

Massie said he plans to push ahead with forcing a vote on Hegseth's impeachment upon Congress' return, unless he resigns. 

"There is one contingency in which I won't reintroduce the articles of impeachment: Hegseth resigns," Massie said last week. 

A day later, Massie warned that his impeachment resolution "is a much gentler version of what's coming when Dem's control Congress." 

"They'll have hearings & trials," he posted on social media. 

Other Republicans remained noncommittal about whether they would support the impeachment effort, like Rep. French Hill of Arkansas. Hill said he's not satisfied with how the war has been handled, but he drew a distinction between Hegseth's job performance and whether he's committed impeachable offenses.

"I want to hear the debate on it to see if it merits impeachment versus some other disciplinary action or action by the president if he's not getting the job done in leading the Department of War," Hill said Sunday on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan." 

Reconciliation bill in limbo

For months, Republicans have been eyeing the possibility of a third reconciliation bill, which would allow them to approve GOP priorities like additional defense funding without the help of Democrats. But as the House has pushed forward with the effort, it's faced headwinds in the Senate. And now, time is running out. 

The upper chamber returns this week to a busy schedule, with intense pressure for Republicans to confirm as many of President Trump's administration and judicial nominees as possible as Democrats are poised to block the GOP's ability to move the president's nominees in the final two years of his term. The Senate is also expected to move forward upon its return on a long-sought permitting reform bill, after a bipartisan deal was reached earlier this fall. 

But the push for a party-line bill has continued. Last week, Hegseth urged congressional Republicans to approve additional funds for the Pentagon, saying, "The Department of War must be funded to meet the moment" and calling for a "generational investment" of at least $350 billion.

"We don't back down. And that especially applies now," Hegseth said in a video posted on social media. "Regardless of how people feel about the war — which I believe is a courageous and historic effort that will ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon — we need to continue as President Trump did in his first term, to rebuild our military."

Ron Johnson said on "The Takeout" that, as budget chair, he's been "working behind the scenes preparing for reconciliation 3.0.

"If we can gather everybody together, if we get the direction from the White House, exactly what they need — what we can pass through Republican majorities here in the House and the Senate — it's not going to be an easy lift but I'm ready to do it if leadership, if the White House, wants to act."

But the move could also endanger other efforts. If Republicans try to push through another party-line reconciliation package, DeLauro told CBS News that it would threaten bipartisan negotiations on appropriations bills. 

Thune told CBS News ahead of the election that he remained open to a third reconciliation bill, but he noted at the time that the votes weren't there. 

"It's an option, but it takes 50 votes, which right now we don't have, and maybe that changes after the election," Thune said in late October. "There are some things obviously that the president wants to get done. He wants to deal with the debt limit, defense funding, and we'll see what the appetite is among Democrats to do some of those things, and if we need to do another Republicans-only bill, obviously I'm open to doing that."

Mexican police shot dead a 7-year-old American girl when they opened fire on her family's vehicle from a helicopter during a drug enforcement operation, the state prosecutor confirmed Friday.

Police captured a local criminal in Matamoros, which borders Brownsville, Texas, on October 29, triggering a series of street blockades by gunmen in the area.

The Tamaulipas state prosecutor's office said Friday that Aranza, a 7-year-old who was born in the United States, was hit in the head by police gunfire.

The girl's mother told Mexican media she was traveling with five children and her husband in a pickup truck when they noticed a police helicopter was following them.

She said the family stopped the vehicle and her husband got out to say they were civilians with children but they were fired at anyway.

Tamaulipas Attorney General Jesus Govea told Mexico's Milenio network the officers were responding to "an attack they allegedly came under" from the ground during the roadblocks.

The officers who opened fire remain free but "significant progress is being made in the course of the investigation," Govea said.

KABB-TV in San Antonio reported that the violence erupted following the arrest of Alfredo Cárdenas Rodríguez, an alleged high-ranking member of the Ciclones faction of the Gulf Cartel.

Mexico's Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch said on social media that Cárdenas Rodríguez – also known as  "Axel" --  was a linked to homicides, kidnappings, extortion and trafficking drugs, weapons and people into the United States.

The U.S. Consulate in Matamoros said at the time that it issued a shelter-in-place order for employees following the law enforcement operation.

Numerous civilians have died in the crossfire of drug-related violence in Mexico over the past two decades.

In 2024, human rights activists and relatives in the Mexican border city of Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas, blamed the army and National Guard troops in the deaths of a nurse and an 8-year-old girl. The relatives said that the victims were apparently caught in the crossfire of gun battles with suspected drug cartel vehicles being pursued by military patrols. 

The governor of Okinawa said Monday he would request a review of a pact seen as giving the U.S. military preferential treatment in Japan, following a murder allegedly committed by an American Marine.

Prosecutors indicted the Marine last month on suspicion of murdering a 39-year-old Japanese woman at an Okinawa hotel, in a case that triggered outrage and reignited controversy over the U.S. military presence on the southern island.

The United States has around 54,000 military personnel stationed in Japan, mostly on Okinawa, and crimes committed by its personnel have been a thorn in relations between the close security allies.

Crimes including rapes, assaults, hit-and-run and drunk-driving incidents by U.S. personnel have long sparked protests on the island, which hosts about 70% of U.S. military facilities in Japan. 

"I'll call for a fundamental review of the SOFA," said Okinawa Governor Genta Koja, referring to the 1960 Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement that critics say has rendered U.S. military bases virtually extraterritorial and immune to Japan's domestic laws.

Under the accord, U.S. military authorities have the primary right to investigate and punish service members in Japan when they are on official duty.

Critics say this arrangement has sometimes blocked indictments by Japanese investigators, while the extraterritoriality of the U.S. bases has deterred Japanese authorities from probing suspected soil pollution around them.

Lawmakers in Okinawa adopted a resolution last month calling for revisions to the pact, which will soon be submitted to the U.S. embassy.

"After every incident or accident involving U.S. military service members or civilian employees, Okinawa has repeatedly lodged a strong protest with the U.S. military and the governments of both Japan and the United States," Koja told a news conference in Tokyo on Monday.

The alleged murder "was an extremely heinous crime that has caused great anxiety amongst residents of Okinawa," he said.

Okinawa prefectural police said they arrested Lance Cpl. Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, who is stationed at Futenma Air Station, on suspicion of strangling Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in the island's capital city of Naha early on Oct. 3, 2026 and stealing her wallet and backpack. He has denied the allegations, according to Japanese media.  

Koja, who was elected governor in September, is the first Okinawa leader in 12 years who has approved of a contentious U.S. military base relocation plan.

The central government's plan is to keep the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma air base on Okinawa's main island, but move it to a less populated location.

Koja said on Monday he would seek the "swift return" of lands used by the U.S. military in Okinawa's commercial center under a 2013 agreement, which he said will help boost the local economy.

The review of the pact should include "prompt compliance with requests from the Japanese side to transfer suspects in detention prior to indictment and adoption of Japanese laws such as the Aviation Act to the U.S. military," he said.

Tokyo and Washington agreed on Friday to measures aimed at preventing crimes by U.S. service members on Okinawa, including holding talks on community relations and Japan's legal system.

U.S. officials also said on Friday they would extend for some service members a 30-day curfew imposed after the woman's murder through Dec. 7.