October 27, 2021

*) Brazil Senate report backs criminal charges against Bolsonaro A Senate committee has recommended Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro face a series of criminal charges over his government's Covid-19 response. The committee suggested prosecutors put Bolsonaro on trial for charges ranging from inciting crime, to misuse of public funds and crimes against humanity. Brazil has the world's second-highest death toll from the virus. *) Protests grow larger in Sudan Demonstrations against the military takeover of Sudan have brought much of the capital Khartoum to a halt with protesters calling for a return to civilian rule. The ousted prime minister Abdalla Hamdok and his wife are back at home, after being detained at the military chief's residence on Monday. Soldiers detained Hamdok, his ministers and members of Sudan's ruling council, who have been heading a transition to civilian rule after the 2019 overthrow of leader Omar al Bashir. *) Turkish parliament approves cross border operations in northern Iraq, Syria Turkey’s parliament has approved a motion that will extend Ankara's authority to launch cross-border military operations in northern Iraq and Syria for two more years. The ruling allows Turkey to deploy troops and expand its missions in Iraq and Syria. Turkey has long decried the threat from terrorists east of the Euphrates River in northern Syria, pledging military action to prevent the formation of a "terrorist corridor". *) Colombia says 42,600 hectares deforested in Amazon in first half of 2021 Some 42,600 hectares of rainforest were destroyed in Colombia's Amazon across three of the Andean country's provinces in the first half of 2021. That’s according to the government who says the figure represents a 34 percent decrease in deforestation across the provinces of Caqueta, Meta and Guaviare. Deforestation in Colombia rose 8 percent to 171,685 hectares in 2020, driven mainly by cattle ranching and agricultural expansion. And finally… *) Pakistan sink New Zealand in World Cup 'grudge match' P