US News
- A police officer killed a man while trying to enforce a ‘Red Flag’ law. [Link]
- The House may pass two bills in the coming week that assert Congress has not approved Trump to go to war with Iran. Trump is threatening to veto the bill. [Link]
- Poland will sign a contract with the US to buy 20 F-35s for $4.6 billion. [Link]
Afghanistan
- That Taliban are repelling Afghan Army efforts to reach the site of a downed US plane in Afghanistan. [Link] The US reports it was able to recover the remains of the two people on board the plane. The Taliban claim they saw six bodies at the crash site. [Link]
Israel
- Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu withdrew his bid for immunity from parliament and was formally charged with corruption. Netanyahu is accused of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in corrupt money. [Link]
- Trump unveiled his “Deal of the Century.” According to Trump, the deal creates a sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. However, Israeli leader Netanyahu said the plan will create a Palestinian state with limited sovereignty and its capital will be in an area east of Jerusalem. [Link]
- A map of the proposed Palestinian state shows small, disconnected areas separated by Israeli settlements. [Link]
- Israel will hold a vote on Sunday about annexing 30% of the West Bank. [Link]
Iran
- Iranian lawmakers introduce a motion that would withdraw Iran from the NPT. [Link]
Iraq
- The Pentagon now says 50 US soldiers suffered some form of brain injury in the January 8th Iranian missile attack on Iraqi bases. Thirty-one of the soldiers have returned to their jobs. [Link]
- The UN expresses concern for how Iraq is prosecuting cases of people accused of supporting ISIS. Teenagers who sold food to ISIS have been sentenced to 15 years and a pharmacist who provided medical care to an ISIS fighter was sentenced to life in prison. [Link]
Africa
- The French Foreign Minister tells the US reducing troops in West Africa is dangerous. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper says the US has not made a decision on troops. [Link]
- Thirty-nine people were killed by militants in Burkina Faso. The government claims it was a terrorist attack. Al-Qaeda and ISIS-linked groups operate in the region. [Link]
- Up to 50 people were killed when rival Muslim factions clashed in the Central African Republic. [Link]