The D Brief: Rajiv Shah to step down; Pakistan unites in outrage; A Yemen school attack; A Navy pilot in the ISS; The flak jacket of the future; And a bit more.

Pakistan’s fragmented political factions are uniting (temporarily) while the government is cautiously lifts its ban on the death penalty for terrorists. This as the nation begins three days of mourning over the deaths of at least 132 children at Peshawar’s Army Public School Tuesday. Qasim Nauman, Safdar Dawar and Saeed Shah for WSJ: “The gathering of the country’s political leaders was specially convened by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif... [and included] Imran Khan, the cricketer-turned-politician who has led months of demonstrations and sit-ins seeking…to oust the prime minister, accusing Mr. Sharif of rigging the elections last year that brought him to power. The challenge has paralyzed the functions of government and damaged the economy, according to Mr. Sharif’s administration…” More here.

The death penalty ban has been in place for 6 years, The New York Times reports, “and governments have been reluctant to lift it, fearing a backlash from the militants. But the attack in Peshawar appears to have altered their thinking.” More on that, here.

The Pakistani Taliban’s leader, Maulana Fazlullah, transformed from a ski lift operator to a fanatical radio emcee before turning his group’s sights on Pakistan’s women and children. Terrence McCoy has a profile of Fazlullah for WaPo: “He lacks the mystique of the Islamic State’s Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who rarely makes public appearances and is reported to don a mask in the presence of subordinates. And he lacks the wild eyes of Boko Haram’s Abubakar Shekau, who grins ear-to-ear when promoting his group’s latest abomination. Rather, Fazlullah appears to be an intensely charismatic figure, more interested in publicity than combat.” More here.

And here’s a bit more on the Pakistani Taliban’s violent history from WaPo’s Time Craig and Pamela Constable, here.

And a harrowing account from one of the surviving students, here.

Tuesday’s attack could push President Obama to renew a counter-terrorism partnership with Islamabad. Josh Rogin and Eli Lake for Bloomberg View: “‘The main reason the Pakistanis finally went into North Waziristan was because they knew they were going to have to do it in order to continue to get U.S. Coalition Support Funding. To justify U.S. funding after the Afghanistan withdrawal, they had to show they are becoming more aggressive against terrorism at large,’ said Shamila Chaudhary, a former National Security Council specialist on Pakistan. ‘Now, after this attack, they have no choice but to continue doing it.’

However, "If and when the Obama administration does decide to increase its material and financial support for the Pakistani government, it will face an uphill climb on Capitol Hill." More here.

The Afghan Taliban expressed condolences for the attack at the school and has “always condemned the killing of children and innocent people at every juncture,” according to the Site Intel Group, here.

Meantime, extremists in Yemen plant a bomb that ends up killing more than a dozen schoolchildren. AFP: “Fifteen children on a schoolbus were among at least 25 people killed in a suicide car bomb attack in central Yemen targeting a Shia militia leader, security sources have said. The children were killed when their bus was caught up in the attack targeting the home of a leader of the Shia militia, known as Huthis, in the town of Rada, a security source said, blaming the attack on al-Qaida militants.” More here.

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Happening today: The Atlantic magazine will host current White House Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Advisor, Lisa Monaco, and Fran Townsend, who served in the same role for George W. Bush, for a discussion of the latest national security challenges, from ISIS and Syria, to Ebola and cyber threats. (4:30 PM at the Newseum, 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Knight Broadcast Studio. Watch the livestream Here. Media interested in attending can RSVP Here or by emailing ssimon@theatlantic.com.

Also today at 1pm, the U.K.s Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology Philip Dunne will give an Atlantic Council Defense Industrial-Industrial policy talk called “Securing Operational Superiority Through Defence Innovation: A U.K. Perspective.” Deets here.

In Defense One: Tomorrow’s flak jackets for U.S. troops could be outfitted with “sensors capable of reporting biophysical feedback on blasts, shocks and other events to which soldiers are exposed.” Our own Patrick Tucker has more on what “organic sensors” could add to American body armor: “…the military is looking at a much wider set of applications for body sensors than just recording data blast info, including but not limited to heart rate and blood oxygen levels, which can speak to how well a soldier is performing and what the soldier is experiencing. It’s all information that could make its way into future electronic medical records…

“Bio-physical signals could give commanders a bird’s eye-view of every soldiers’ current physical and mental state, everything from how rested a soldier is to the possible presence of toxins in the air or in the blood.”

The A-10 does its first airstrike. The WaPo’s Dan Lamothe with this mini-scoopage: “The A-10 Thunderbolt II attack jet has been carrying out airstrikes against the Islamic State since late November on a near-daily basis, a U.S. military official said Tuesday. It marks the first time the use of the pugnacious plane against the militant group has been confirmed, although U.S. military officials disclosed last month that they had deployed the A-10 in support of the mission in Iraq and Syria.” More here.

It’s official: USAID’s Rajiv Shah will announce he’s stepping down this morning. The WaPo’s Colby Itkowitz on the departure of Shah, the chief of the Agency for International Development: “…Shah spoke to us Tuesday night, but gave very little insight into why he was leaving now other than the oft-cited government official reason that after six years working in the Obama administration he wanted to spend time with his family.” More here.

... and Tony Blinken, Obama’s deputy former national security adviser, just got the nod for State’s No. 2 job over John McCain’s objections. “…During his confirmation hearing last month, McCain asked Blinken whether he was wrong two years ago when he said ‘Iraq today is less violent, more democratic and more prosperous.’

The nation is embroiled in conflict again today.

‘Not only is Mr. Blinken unqualified, but he is, I believe, a threat to the traditional interests and values that embody the United States of America,’ McCain, the incoming chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Tuesday.” More here.

A former Marine held in Iran pleads with Obama: don’t forget me. The NYT’s Rick Gladstone: “Relatives of a former Marine imprisoned in Iran for more than three years said Tuesday that he had begun a hunger strike, and they released an open letter he had written to President Obama urging him “not to forget me” as the United States intensifies negotiations with the Iranians on their disputed nuclear program…. The letter by the former Marine, Amir Hekmati, 31, of Flint, Mich., was his first to Mr. Obama, and reflected despondency over the paralysis of his case.” More here.

Inside Iraq’s “killing zones.” Reuters’ Ned Parker and Ahmed Rasheed: “The death zones now scar the more than 200 km-long (124 mile) Baghdad Belt, as it is commonly known. Since January, at least 83,000 people, the vast majority of them Sunnis, have abandoned their homes in the rural area around the capital, according to the International Rescue Committee, an aid group. The figure could be higher, but is impossible to confirm because of the poor security situation.” More here.

A toxic command climate is blamed for a suicide aboard a ship. Navy Times’ David Larter: “A young boatswain's mate committed suicide on the destroyer James E. Williams in June and a subsequent investigation has found the ship's skipper, the former executive officer and the command master chief responsible for a toxic command climate that contributed to the tragedy. When investigators started digging into the suicide, they found a ship with a rogue chiefs mess led by a junior command master chief with an alcohol problem, and a CO and XO either oblivious or unwilling to reign in the mess, according to a newly released report obtained by Navy Times.” Read the rest here.

A Navy veteran F-16 pilot now commands the International Space Station. David Larter, Lars Schwetje, Alan Lessig and Robert Lennox for Military Times: “Navy Capt. Butch Wilmore, a Tennessee native and F/A-18 fighter pilot with nearly 7,000 flight hours and more than 660 carrier landings, took command of the station Nov. 9, and will be there until March… ‘This is the first opportunity in my more than 20 years that I've had an opportunity to command anything. It's an honor and a privilege.’” More here.

‘Tis the season: Check out War on the Rocks’ holiday reading list, here.

The widow of acclaimed “American Sniper” Chris Kyle says the new biopic—which so far has gotten near-unanimous praise—is right on point. Jon R. Anderson for Military Times, here.

Paul Szoldra writes about the “incredible film” with a “sad (and perhaps too abrupt)” ending over at the military blog We Are the Mighty, here.

The front lines of Libya’s 2011 war are being revived. Reuters’ Ulf Laessing from Ras Jdir, Libya, here.

The plunging ruble in Russia poses a big test for Putin. The WSJ’s By James Marson, Olga Razumovskaya and Alexander Kolyandr: “As Russian President Vladimir Putin has ratcheted up the conflict with the West for most of the year, the economic fallout on ordinary Russians has been limited. Suddenly, though, the plunging ruble is reawakening fears of rising prices and the kind of financial crisis Mr. Putin has sought to put behind his country. As the ruble hit a record low, falling as much as 20% against the dollar Tuesday, Moscow residents rushed to buy electronics and other big-ticket items and drained rubles from ATMs to swap them for dollars and euros—signaling a new feeling of vulnerability among Russians and a fresh challenge to their leader.

“From St. Petersburg to Siberia, money changers ran out of foreign currency and were raising exchange rates. Sberbank, Russia’s state savings bank, and Alfa Bank, Russia’s largest private lender, said they were experiencing a rush for dollars and euros.” Read the rest here.

Is Obama ruining the Russian economy? Politico’s Mike Crowley: “Speaking at a Moscow event in early October, Russian President Vladimir Putin sounded cocky about the sanctions imposed on his country by Washington and its European allies. The penalties, Putin said, were “utter silliness” that would only hurt Western businesses.

“But now that Russia’s economy is rapidly imploding, with oil prices plunging and the ruble collapsing, Putin is the one feeling the pain. And the question already being debated in Washington is whether President Obama’s strategy of economically sanctioning and isolating Russia deserves any credit.” More here.

Obama has some leverage on foreign policy with the plunge of global oil prices. The WaPo’s Steven Mufson: “The swift drop in the price of oil is realigning global economic power — and might help President Obama achieve some of his foreign policy goals.

“The precipitous fall in oil prices, which is hammering countries heavily dependent upon oil exports, could prod Russia into abiding by a ceasefire in Ukraine, make Iran more pliable in talks over its nuclear program, undercut Venezuela’s influence in the Caribbean, and weaken the finances of the Islamic State.” Read the rest here.

More drones to Korea. Seth Robson for Stars and Stripes: “The U.S. government has approved the sale of four RQ-4 Global Hawk surveillance drones to South Korea… Northrop Grumman said the contract is the first sale of the aircraft to an allied nation in the Asia Pacific under the Foreign Military Sales process. Several other U.S. allies in the region, including Japan and Australia, have expressed interest in acquiring the Global Hawk or a naval version of the aircraft—the MQ-4C Triton.” More here.

Terror threats for “The Interview” are putting Sony in a quandary. The NYT’s Michael Cieply and Brooks Barnes: “Sony Pictures Entertainment, the F.B.I., theater owners and competing film studios scrambled on Tuesday to deal with a threat of terrorism against movie theaters that show Sony’s “The Interview,” a raunchy comedy about the assassination of the North Korean leader, Kim Jon-un.

“The threat was made in rambling emails sent to various news outlets Tuesday morning. A version posed by The Hollywood Reporter said, in part: “Remember the 11th of September 2001. We recommend you to keep yourself distant from the places at that time. (If your house is nearby, you’d better leave.).” Read the rest here.

The EU’s second-highest court says Hamas should be removed from its list of terrorist groups. The BBC with more, here.

But that tribunal, the General Court of the European Union, said “EU member states could maintain their freeze on Hamas's assets for three months to give time for further review or to appeal the verdict.” Reuters with more, here.

The EU also just passed a resolution supporting Palestinian statehood, but stopped short of backing a full and immediate recognition. Reuters with more, here.

Germany just cleared the deployment of 100 troops to train the Pesh in northern Iraq. Reuters this hour, here.