Oceania Australia Police in New South Wales rejected arming guards at Jewish events; The Australian Jewish Association told the antisemitism royal commission that private security guards at Jewish events should be armed, authorities fear that would further fracture society
Asia Turkmenistan Turkmenistan Airlines will launch flights from Ashgabat to Jeddah (Turkmenistan-Saudi Arabia) three times a week starting 16 February 2024; Turkmenistan Airlines is the country's only national airline and flies to ten destinations in Europe and Asia
Oceania Fiji The Fiji Police Fraud Investigation Unit has received numerous reports of MPAiSA accounts being hacked by unknown persons in recent months; head of the anti-crime unit says victims are often people who may not be familiar with modern technology
Africa Sao Tome and Principe FAO will develop a strategy and plan to promote employment in the agricultural sector for young people in Sao Tomé with the final goal of reducing the poverty rate, now over 66%
Africa Djibouti Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed chaired the annual meeting of the Interministerial Committee on the National Disability Strategy for discussions focused on the review of the action plan
Asia Sri Lanka Professionals in Supplementary Medical Service have launched a token strike against the government’s decision to not provide them with Disturbance, Availability and Transport
Asia Palestine Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, stated that nearly 59.000 Palestinians have been injured in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war, reporting a very high number of amputees, especially among children
Africa Central African Republic The government has worked hard to ensure that free healthcare is not just a slogan, but a reality, as President of the Republic emphasised in his end-of-year address to the nation; the number of doctors in hinterland is at 122 in 2023, up from 27 in 2016
Africa Botswana Giyani Metals Corp, developer of the K.Hill battery-grade manganese project in Botswana, has received the Environmental Authorisation and submitted its Mining Licence application
Africa Democratic Republic of the Congo The Electoral Commission wrote off 82 candidates for fraud in December elections for national, provincial and municipal assemblies, the results of which have not yet been published; it did not concern the presidential vote, that took place on the same day
America Honduras Próspera ZEDE, the Honduras special economic zone, has officially recognized Bitcoin as a unit of account: this move effectively acknowledges the legitimacy of the cryptocurrency in diverse commercial, tax, and financial transactions
Asia China iPhone sales in China fell more than 30% year-on-year in the first week of January, while competitors such as Xiaomi and Huawei 'remained much stronger' with flat sales, according to a note from analysts at Jefferies
Oceania Samoa The outgoing Australian High Commissioner to Samoa, Emily Luck, emphasised that Australia is always ready to support Samoa in any solution to combat everyday ongoing problems such as children selling on the streets
Europe Bulgaria Following the traditional Christmas campaign of the Agriculture and Food Ministry for the purchase of Christmas trees, 62.000 saplings will be planted in Bulgarian forests