Ceasefire Begins Across War-Torn Syria
KOSIK: A new cease-fire now under way in Syria. You are looking at live pictures right now from Aleppo. You see it foggy but peaceful, something we have not seen in a long, long time. The new cease-fire part of the deal brokered by Turkey and Russia, including a return to peace talks after more than five years of war. Turkey's president calling the deal an historic opportunity that shouldn't be squandered. But Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledging the path is fragile. So, what's the latest on the ground in Syria? CNN's Ian Lee joins us live now for more. Good morning, Ian.</s>IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alison. We have been talking to people on the ground in Syria. So far, the cease-fire seems to be holding. There have been reports of some sporadic fighting, but by and large, it is quiet today. The cease-fire is three parts. First, the cessation of hostilities between both sides, Turkey and their allies, Russia and Syria regime and their allies. The second part is creating a way for dialogue, so if there are any violations, they can be taken care of without the collapse of the ceasefire. The third part is negotiation. They hope in a month's time, they'll be able to go to the negotiating table and hash out some sort of a peace deal and put an end to this war that has killed hundreds of thousands of people. But most noticeably missing from this is ISIS, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, which is the al Qaeda affiliate, formally known as Jabhat al Nusra, and also the YPG, which are Kurdish fighters who are part of the Syrian democratic force, which is backed by the United States.</s>KOSIK: You know, Ian, President Assad did make some news yesterday. He talked about President-elect Donald Trump saying there is optimism on his end about a Trump presidency. Talk to me more about that.</s>LEE: Let me read you that statement of what he said. He said, "Part of the optimism could be related to the better relations between with the United States and Russia. If there's good relations between these two great powers, most of the world, including small countries like Syria will be the beneficiaries of this relationship." Basically, up until this point, the United</s>KOSIK: All right. CNN's Ian Lee, thanks so much.</s>JOHNS: Alison, new this morning, the United Kingdom criticizing Secretary of State John Kerry for his comments on Israel earlier this week. A spokeswoman for British Prime Minister Theresa May says it is not appropriate to go after the political composition of the democratically elected government of an ally. May's office goes on to say, "While it considers the settlements construction illegal, they are far from the only problem in the conflict with the Palestinians." Kerry on Wednesday went after Israel's government as the most right wing in the state's history and portrayed the settlements as the biggest obstacle standing in the way of peace.</s>KOSIK: France is raising its so-called terror tax to help support victims. Citizens will pay almost $1.70 more on their property insurance policies. The cash goes directly to a fund set up for victims of terror attacks that recently hit the country. More than 200 people have died in France in attacks over the last 20 months. Eighty-six people died this summer in an attack in Nice, while 130 people were killed there in November 2015 attacks in Paris.</s>JOHNS: A record-breaking drug bust in Australia. Take a look at this. Authorities seized over 1,000 pounds of cocaine. It happened as police tracked a local fishing boat from central Sydney en route to Parsley Bay eight miles away. Officers moved in, when the drugs were being loaded off of the boat. The raid is a result of a two and a half years investigation. Police say the cartel was local, but had international connections. Fifteen men were arrested in that operation.</s>KOSIK: All right. Time for an early start on your money. Global stocks are mixed this morning as markets enter the last trading day of 2016. And before you ask, I'm going to tell you, the Dow will not hit that elusive 20,000 mark today. U.S. futures are higher after closing lower yesterday. Despite some of a lack luster end to the year, stocks, though, have enjoyed a great run in 2016. The Dow, the NASDAQ and S&P, they're all on track for solid annual gains. You look at the Dow now, it's up about 14 percent this year. Mortgage rates rose for the ninth straight week yesterday. Now, the steepest increase in three years. That's according to mortgage provider Freddie Mac. So, why the hype? Well, mortgages are tied to bond market rates which have spiked since Donald Trump got elected. But I'm going to give you a little perspective here. Even with the jump, the average rate in 2016 was the lowest on record for the past 45 years. So, keep in mind the Fed is on a trend to raise interest rates incrementally. But even before the Fed went ahead and raised rates this month, interest rates were going up a little bit.</s>JOHNS: Yes, the 20,000 mark looks like it's not happen this year anyway.</s>KOSIK: Well, probably not this year. But never say never for next year.</s>JOHNS: You got it. Security being stepped up in a big way right here in New York ahead of the big New Year's eve festivities in times square. New steps taken to protect millions ringing in 2017.