December 23, 2022

*) US January 6 committee unveils report, says Trump engaged in ‘conspiracy’ The US House committee probing the January 6th Capitol Hill riots has released its final report after an 18-month investigation into the insurrection two years ago. The report asserts that former President Donald Trump criminally engaged in a “multi-part conspiracy” to overturn the lawful results of the 2020 presidential election and failed to act to stop his supporters from attacking the Capitol. The panel voted unanimously to adopt the report and refer Trump to the Department of Justice. *) Mali armed groups withdraw from 2015 peace deal A coalition of armed groups in Mali have pulled out of long-running peace talks based on a major 2015 agreement that restored peace after the groups sought to break away from the country. The armed groups said the decision was due to a lack of political will on the part of the country’s military government. The coalition said in a statement that it would only come back to the table if talks were held in a neutral country under international mediation. *) Afghan women protest in Kabul against Taliban's university ban A small group of Afghan women have staged a defiant protest in Kabul against a Taliban order banning them from universities. Around two dozen women could be seen raising their hands and chanting slogans as they marched through the streets. The ban announced earlier this week is the latest restriction on human rights in Afghanistan ordered by the Taliban since their return to power in August last year. *) England reports almost a hundred deaths due to scarlet fever England has reported nearly a hundred deaths, including those of 21 children, from scarlet fever and invasive strep A infections. The British government said last week that it was enacting protocols to ease shortages of penicillin medicines used to treat strep A infections. The National Health Service has been under intense pressure this winter, with thousands of ambulance workers in England and Wales walking out