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French police have killed a suspected terrorist 48 hours after he allegedly attacked the Strasbourg Christmas market. Pictured: A French police officer is seen in Strasbourg during a visit by the French interior minister, Christophe Castaner, 13 December 2018. Photo credit: Christophe Castaner on Twitter 

Strasbourg terrorist suspect dead

Chérif Chekatt was killed in a shootout with French police, reported the BBC, DW, France 24 and Reuters. The 29 year old suspected gunman, who allegedly killed three people in an attack at the Christmas market in Strasbourg on Tuesday evening, had convictions for robbery and other crimes in France, Germany and Switzerland, and was a burglary suspect in Luxembourg.

May’s Brexit ideas snubbed by EU

European leaders rejected British PM Theresa May’s proposals to revise the Brexit deal--including a time limit on the backstop to avoid a hard Irish border--during a summit in Brussels, saying the agreement was not open to renegotiation. May still hopes to gain further “assurances” from the EU. The British parliament is now expected to vote on the deal in mid-January. Reported by the BBC, Financial Times and Guardian.

Ireland passes abortion bill

Legislation legalising abortion has passed both houses of Ireland’s parliament, reported the AFP, DW and RTE. Allowing abortions was supported by 66% of voters in a referendum held in May. The bill now goes to the Irish president for signature.

Three capital cities win air pollution case against European Commission

The European Commission did not have authority to loosen diesel emissions standards, the EU General Court has ruled, reported DW, the Guardian and Reuters. Brussels, Paris and Madrid can ban “Euro 6” diesel vehicles from their cities, the judges in Kirchberg said.

ECB to end €2.6trn stimulus scheme

As expected, the European Central Bank said it would end its quantitative easing programme of buying bonds to help prop up the European economy at the end of the year. Mario Draghi, head of the ECB, forecast euro zone economic growth of 1.7% in 2019. Reported by DW, the Economist, Financial Times, Guardian and Marketwatch.

Virgin scores space flight success

Virgin Galactic has successfully completed a test flight to space over California, reported the BBC, CNN, NPR and Space.com. This brings the company, owned by Richard Branson, one step closer to taking tourists (including Luxembourger Jean Ries) to space.

Princess Tessy considering divorce settlement appeal

Tessy Antony said she is considering an appeal to her divorce case, according to Royal Central. Last week’s judgement in London ordered Prince Louis to pay £4,000 a year in child support for each of their two sons.

Viking cats got bigger

Animals typically get smaller when they’re domesticated, but a recent study said that was not the case for cats, as explained by Science magazine.

Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald