Saturday

January 17, 2015

Armed conflicts and attacks

Violence surrounding various protests against Charlie Hebdo leaves five protesters dead as well as some churches set ablaze in Niger. (BBC) (AFP via The Telegraph)

Greek anti-terror police arrest four people in Athens, Greece in alleged relation to the January 15 failed terrorist plot to kill police officers in Belgium. (Sky News Australia)

Terrorism in Yemen

Gunmen abduct the chief of staff to Yemen's president in the center of the capital, Sana'a. It is uncertain if Shiite Houthi rebels or al-Qaeda militants kidnapped Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak. (AP)

Islamist insurgency in Nigeria:

Following the January 16 Chad authorities decision to send troops to Nigeria and Cameroon to fight Boko Haram militants, the Russian ambassador to the country pledges to supply Cameroon with more modern weapons to combat the Islamist insurgents. (AFP via The Economic Times)

2013–15 Ukrainian crisis:

Clashes between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russia rebels over Donetsk International Airport intensifies. (Al Jazeera)

Arts and culture

Pope Francis's visit to the Philippines

Pope Francis celebrates mass at Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda)-hit city of Tacloban with an audience of half-a-million people. (BBC)

The Pope cuts his Tacloban trip short as an approaching typhoon threatened the city in the Philippines. This cyclone may also affect Francis's scheduled closing Mass on Sunday in the capital, Manila. (CNN) (AP via U-T San Diego)