Following an armed intrusion on a live TV newscast, Ecuador's major cities faced closures; schools and stores remained shut. Citizens stayed home as soldiers patrolled streets on Wednesday, responding to the president's directive to eliminate drug gangs terrorizing the nation.

Denmark's Queen Margrethe II, Europe's longest-serving monarch, will abdicate on Jan. 14 after 52 years on the throne and will be succeeded by her eldest son Crown Prince Frederik, she announced on Sunday (December 31).