Snake-themed Bing Dwen Dwen unveiled ahead of year of the snake, celebrating Beijing Winter Olympics' legacy

A Chinese zodiac snake version of 2022 Winter Olympic Games mascot Bing Dwen Dwen was unveiled on Tuesday in Beijing ahead of the upcoming Year of the Snake in January 2025.

The special version of the mascot was released to mark the third anniversary of the Beijing Games. Its new style comes in five versions: "Fu," "Lu," "Shou," "Xi," and "Cai," representing the "five blessings"- good fortune, prosperity, longevity, happiness, and wealth - which play a vital role in Chinese New Year celebrations.

Notably, the design of accessories on the mascot's head was inspired by the Peking Opera "The Legend of the White Snake", which tells a love story between a man and a female snake fairy who transforms into a beautiful woman.

"We drew inspiration from the hair accessories worn by the performers of the Peking Opera 'The Legend of the White Snake'. These accessories incorporate the elements of a snake, which were transformed into exquisite decorative pieces. We thought the design is really good, so we learned from the idea to use the snake as a headgear," said Lin Cunzhen, chief designer of the snake version of Bing Dwen Dwen.

The new version of Bing Dwen Dwen will be available for sale in five Chinese cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin, and Chongqing on Friday before a nationwide release in December. Meanwhile, other licensed products of the new version including plush toys, figurines, badges, and keychains will also be available for purchase both online and in stores.

Snake-themed Bing Dwen Dwen unveiled ahead of year of the snake, celebrating Beijing Winter Olympics' legacy

The U.S. Senate on Thursday failed to advance a funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), raising the prospect of a partial government shutdown as temporary funding for the department expires at the end of Friday.

The procedural vote was 52-47, short of the 60 votes required to advance the bill.

The legislative stall came as the White House and congressional Democrats have been unable to reach an agreement on immigration enforcement regulations, following two fatal shootings by federal law enforcement officers in the city of Minneapolis.

"Democrats have been very clear: We will not support an extension of the status quo," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday.

The recent fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens -- Renee Good and Alex Pretti -- by federal enforcement in Minneapolis have prompted Democrats to seek changes to how immigration agencies operate.

The Congress has recently passed a funding package to fund multiple U.S. federal agencies for the remainder of the fiscal year, yet DHS only received a two-week continuing resolution at current funding levels.

U.S. Senate fails to advance DHS funding bill, partial gov't shutdown looms