“Uganda police said on Thursday they had detained a legislator and senior official of the country’s biggest opposition party for his alleged role in election-related violence in which at least seven people were killed. The lawmaker, Muwanga Kivumbi, is vice president of the opposition National Unity Platform party headed by pop star-turned-politician, Bobi Wine, who has been in hiding since last week. Wine, whose legal name is Robert Kyagulanyi, said he fled a military raid on his house hours before veteran President Yoweri Museveni was declared the landslide winner of the January 15 presidential election. … Hundreds of NUP supporters and officials have been detained before and after the election in what the opposition says has been a campaign to intimidate them. Some have been tortured, they said.” (01/22/26)
“Federal immigration officers are asserting sweeping power to forcibly enter people’s homes without a judge’s warrant, according to an internal Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo obtained by The Associated Press, marking a sharp reversal of longstanding guidance meant to respect constitutional limits on government searches. The memo authorizes ICE officers to use force to enter a residence based solely on a more narrow administrative warrant to [abduct] someone with a final order of removal …. New ICE hires and those still in training are being told to follow the memo’s guidance instead of written training materials that actually contradict the memo, according to the whistleblower disclosure.” (01/21/26)
“A South Korean court has sentenced former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to 23 years in prison after finding him guilty on insurrection charges related to disgraced ex-President Yoon Suk-yeol’s short-lived declaration of martial law. Han was found guilty on Wednesday of abetting Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law and for failing to hold a lawful cabinet meeting, as required by South Korean law, after the decree to mobilise the military was ordered by the then-president in December 2024. … The former prime minister denied the charges against him, saying he had no prior knowledge of Yoon’s plan to impose military rule.” (01/21/26)
“The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee advanced resolutions Wednesday to hold former President Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in contempt of Congress over their refusal to appear for depositions after being subpoenaed in the panel’s investigation into sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The panel voted 34-8 to advance the resolution holding Bill Clinton in contempt and 28-15 on the measure holding Hillary Clinton in contempt. Nine Democrats voted in favor of the Bill Clinton resolution …. Three voted in favor of the Hillary Clinton measure … The Oversight panel had voted on a bipartisan basis last year to subpoena the Clintons, who had personal friendships with Epstein, along with several other former government officials. But after months of negotiations with the panel, the Clintons each declined to appear for in-person depositions that Comer scheduled for last week.” (01/21/26)
“President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he was canceling his planned tariff on [American buyers of goods from] U.S. allies in Europe over US control of Greenland after he and the leader of NATO agreed to a ‘framework of a future deal’ on Arctic security. The abrupt about-face emerged hours after Trump had insisted that he wants to ‘get Greenland, including right, title and ownership,’ but said he would not use force to do so while deriding European allies and vowing that NATO should not try to block U.S. expansionism. In an extraordinary [senile rant] at the World Economic Forum, the president said he was asking for territory that was ‘cold and poorly located.’ … ‘We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force, where we would be frankly unstoppable. But I won’t do that, OK?’ Trump said, later adding, ‘I don’t have to’ and ‘I don’t want to use force.'” (01/21/25)
“Venezuela received $300 million Tuesday as part of revenues from oil sales to the United States, interim President Delcy Rodriguez said on social media. The funds represent the first tranche of a $500 million oil deal announced by President Donald Trump after the United States captured President Nicolas Maduro on Jan. 3. Rodriguez said the resources will be channeled through the national banking system and the Central Bank of Venezuela to ‘protect workers’ purchasing power’ and stabilize the foreign exchange market amid inflationary pressures.” (01/21/26)
“Five soldiers and one police officer have been killed in an ambush in northwest Nigeria, the Nigerian army said on Tuesday. The attack occurred in Zamfara state on Monday, army spokesman David Adewusi said in a statement. … Northern Nigeria has been the hardest-hit part of the country, with a surge in kidnappings for ransom by gunmen across the northwest and north-central regions over the recent months, alongside an insurgency in the northeast. Boko Haram, Nigeria’s homegrown jihadis, took up arms in 2009 to fight Western education and impose their radical version of Islamic law.” (01/21/26)
“Starting March 1, Steak ‘n Shake will provide hourly employees at its company-operated restaurants with a bitcoin bonus of $0.21 for every hour worked. The BTC rewards will vest over a two-year period, allowing employees to collect their bitcoin after meeting the vesting requirement. The initiative, supported by Fold, reflects the company’s commitment to employee incentives while embracing digital assets.” (01/21/26)
“The Federal Court has set aside a government order for TikTok to wind down operations in Canada, meaning the social media company can keep running its offices here while the industry minister conducts another review. In 2024, the Liberal government ordered TikTok to close its offices in Canada, citing national security concerns, but stopped short of banning the app for users. On Wednesday, a federal judge shelved the government’s order and requested that Industry Minister Melanie Joly conduct a new review. A TikTok Canada spokesperson says the tech company welcomes the decision and looks forward to working with Joly.” (01/21/26)
“An Israeli air strike killed an AFP freelancer and two other journalists in Gaza on Wednesday, the territory’s civil defence agency said, while the military said it struck ‘suspects’ operating a drone. Since October 10, a fragile US-sponsored ceasefire in Gaza has largely halted the fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas, but both sides have alleged frequent violations. … According to an eyewitness, the journalists were using a drone to take images of aid distribution by the Egyptian Relief Committee in the Gaza Strip when a strike targeted a vehicle accompanying them. Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas called the strike ‘a dangerous escalation of the flagrant violations of the ceasefire agreement.'” (01/21/26)
