January 2, 2023

*) Lula sworn in as Brazil's president amid tight security Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been inaugurated for a third term as Brazil's president, in a ceremony snubbed by outgoing leader Jair Bolsonaro. Da Silva vowed to "rebuild the country, with the people," promising to fight to improve life for poor Brazilians, work toward racial and gender equality, and achieve zero deforestation in the Amazon rainforest, in an inaugural speech on Sunday. In a sign of the scars that remain from Lula's brutal election showdown with ex-army captain Bolsonaro in October, who left the country prior to the inauguration, security was exceptionally tight at the pomp-filled ceremony in Brasilia. *) Gun attack on Mexican jail leaves 14 dead Gunmen have attacked a prison in the northern Mexican city of Ciudad Juarez, leaving 14 people dead and allowing 24 inmates to escape, official say. An unknown number of gunmen aboard armoured vehicles took part in the attack on Sunday, and the dead included 10 prison guards and security agents, it said in a statement. *) Colombia, Venezuela open key bridge as diplomatic ties reestablished Colombia and Venezuela have opened a key bridge linking the countries that had been closed for almost seven years amid political tensions, launching an era of improved relations under Colombia’s new leftist president. Delegations led by Colombian trade minister German Umana and the governor of Venezuela's Tachira state, Freddy Bernal, met in the middle of the “Tienditas” bridge linking Tachira and Colombia’s Norte de Santander state for the opening ceremony. *) Evacuation warnings after California storm Evacuation warnings were in place in rural Northern California on New Year's Day after a powerful storm brought drenching rain or heavy snowfall to much of the state, breaching levees, snarling traffic and closing major highways. Major flooding occurred in agricultural areas about 20 miles (32 kilometres) south of Sacramento, where rivers swelled beyond their banks and inundated dozens of cars along