Donald Trump has suggested the US could take control of Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal in a series of Christmas Day social media posts.

The president-elect wished a merry Christmas to all on his Truth Social platform, “including to the wonderful soldiers of China, who are lovingly, but illegally, operating the Panama Canal”.

In the lengthy posts, Mr Trump referred to the American lives lost during the canal’s construction and said the US “puts in billions of dollars in ‘repair’ money, but will have absolutely nothing to say about ‘anything’.”

He also mocked Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “governor” and again suggested the country could be turned into a US state – following similar comments made in recent weeks.

“If Canada was to become our 51st state, their taxes would be cut by more than 60%, their businesses would immediately double in size, and they would be militarily protected like no other country anywhere in the world,” he wrote.

In another post, Mr Trump, 78, said he had encouraged former ice hockey star Wayne Gretzky to run for prime minister but he “had no interest”.

He also addressed “the people of Greenland, which is needed by the United States for national security purposes and, who want the US to be there, and we will!”

It comes after Mr Trump renewed the call he made during his first term in office for the US to buy Greenland from Denmark.

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The world’s largest island, which sits between the Atlantic and Arctic oceans, is 80% covered by an ice sheet and is home to a large US military base. Greenland gained autonomy from Denmark in 1979.

The island’s Prime Minister Mute Egede has insisted Greenland is not for sale.

Mr Trump has also previously threatened to retake control of the Panama Canal, accusing Panama of charging excessive rates to use the crucial trade passage and warning of potential Chinese influence.

Panama’s President Jose Raul Mulino previously said his country’s independence was non-negotiable and that China had no influence on the canal’s administration.

The canal is a critical waterway for world trade, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and allows ships to avoid lengthy and hazardous journeys around the southernmost tip of South America by cutting through the middle of the Americas.

After the ambitious project was opened in 1914, the canal and surrounding territory were controlled by the US until an agreement with Panama in 1977 paved the way for it to return to full Panamanian control in 1999.

China does not control the canal but a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings has long managed two ports at the canal’s Caribbean and Pacific entrances.

A Syrian former equestrian champion has told how he was jailed and tortured for 21 years after he beat Bashar al Assad’s older brother in a competition.

Adnan Kassar, once a celebrated figure in the country’s sports scene, spoke to Sky News about his ordeal for the first time following the fall of the Assad family regime‘s more than 50-year rule.

He won multiple gold medals and captained the national equestrian team in the late 1980s, with his career peaking in 1993 at the third International Equestrian Championship in Latakia, where his flawless performance secured victory for the team.

Mr Kassar was a close friend of Bassel al Assad but the achievement apparently drew the ire of his fellow equestrian, who had faltered during the competition.

Bassel was the heir apparent to the Syrian presidency before his death in a car crash in 1994 led to his brother Bashar al Assad‘s return from London, where he worked as an eye doctor, to be trained to take over when his father died.

“The crowd lifted me on their shoulders. It was a moment of pure joy, but for Bassel, it wasn’t the same. That day marked the beginning of my nightmare,” he said.

Shortly after the event, Mr Kassar was arrested over vague accusations, which he said were fabricated as a result of Bassel’s resentment.

He told how his detention turned into a prolonged ordeal marked by brutal interrogations and years of physical and psychological abuse.

“I was kept underground for six months, beaten constantly, and interrogated without end,” he said.

He was then transferred to the notorious Sednaya Prison, dubbed the “human slaughterhouse”, where he said “the torture only got worse”.

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Mr Kassar said his treatment became even more severe after Bassel died.

“They blamed me for his death,” he said. “Every year on the anniversary of his passing, the torture intensified.”

He was also held for seven-and-a-half years at Tadmur Prison, which is also infamous for its inhumane conditions.

“They pierced my ear one morning and broke my jaw in the evening,” he recalled, saying acts as simple as praying were met with extreme punishment.

“For praying, they lashed me 1,000 times. My feet were torn apart, my bones exposed,” he said.

Many activists repeatedly raised his case following the outbreak of the Syrian revolution, which demanded the end of the Assad family rule.

But despite international appeals, his name was repeatedly excluded from amnesty decrees issued during his imprisonment.

Mr Kassar was finally released on 16 June 2014 after sustained pressure from international groups – nearly 22 years after his arrest.

Until now, he has remained silent about his imprisonment, fearing that any attempt to share his story could result in re-arrest and a return to prison, but has spoken out after Assad was toppled as Syrian president.

“After years of imprisonment, torture, and injustice, the revolution finally toppled the dictatorial regime,” he added.

The Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed killing 38 people was downed by a Russian air defence system, according to four Reuters sources.

The Embraer 190 passenger jet was en route from Azerbaijan‘s capital of Baku to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus on Wednesday when it changed course.

It crashed around two miles from Aktau in Kazakhstan while making an attempt to land after flying east across the Caspian Sea, killing 38 people and injuring all of the other 29 survivors.

The aircraft had diverted from an area of Russia in which Moscow has used air defence systems against Ukrainian drone strikes in recent months.

Mobile phone footage circulating online appeared to show the plane making a steep descent before smashing into the ground in a fireball.

Other footage showed part of its fuselage ripped away from the wings and the rest of the aircraft lying upside in the grass.

People can be heard praying as oxygen masks are lowered in the plane’s cabin in footage filmed by a passenger before the plane went down.

Euronews, citing Azerbaijani government sources, reported a preliminary investigation found a Russian surface-to-air missile was fired at the plane during drone air activity above Grozny.

Shrapnel hit the plane as the missile exploded next to the aircraft mid-flight, according to the network.

The damaged aircraft wasn’t allowed to land at any Russian airports, despite requests from the pilots for an emergency landing, and it was ordered to fly towards Aktau, the sources said.

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Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier on Thursday it would be wrong to speculate before the end of the investigation into the cause of the crash.

Russian, Azerbaijani and Kazakhstani officials have all called for investigations into the crash.

Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, said preliminary information indicated the pilots diverted to Aktau after a bird strike led to an emergency on board.

Azerbaijan is observing a national day of mourning, with flags lowered across the country on Thursday.

Traffic stopped at noon, and signals were sounded from ships and trains as the country observed a nationwide moment of silence.

Nazakat Asadova, the wife of survivor Zulfugar Asadov, said: “He got up early in the morning, prayed early and left the house at almost six o’clock.

“He said, God willing, at 12 to 1pm, I’ll be landing already. Then we heard on TV that the plane had crashed.

“Then his name came up on TV and on the lists. They said that people died, but Zulfugar Asadov survived.”