CHINA FIRES DIPLOMATIC WARNING SHOTS “In a veiled warning to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, China’s ambassador to the United States said on Wednesday that Beijing would never bargain with Washington over issues involving its national sovereignty or territorial integrity.” And reports emerged that China has installed weapons on the seven man-made islands in the South China Sea. [Reuters]

REPORT: PUTIN PERSONALLY DIRECTED DNC HACK NBC is reporting the attack originally started as a “vendetta” but then “morphed into an effort to show corruption in American politics.” All the while, Vladimir Putin’s favorability has been climbing with Republicans. [Mollie Reilly, HuffPost]

MEET THE SYRIANS FIGHTING TO SAVE THOSE TRAPPED IN ALEPPO These medical workers and activists are struggling to deal with the onslaught. Here’s how Aleppo factors into Bashar Assad’s plans to deal with Trump, as well as how you can help. [Rowaida Abdelaziz, HuffPost]

1 BILLION YAHOO ACCOUNTS COMPROMISED IN 2013 HACK Yes, that’s billion, not million. [Reuters]

FACEBOOK PLANS TO BUY ITS OWN VIDEO CONTENT Watch out Netflix. [Recode]

TRAVEL ADVISORY ISSUED FOR BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS After five people contracted locally transmitted Zika. [Reuters]

PREPARE YOURSELVES The polar vortex is back. [Gizmodo]