The United States has released a statement confirming that they will be imposing sanctions on Taban Teng Gai, South Sudan's first vice president, over allegations that Gai was involved in the killing of opposition politicians and strengthen his political standing.

Israel has approved the construction of 1,936 illegal settlements on Sunday and Monday, according to activist group Peace Now – adding that such settlement buildings have greatly increased under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has received strong political backing from US President Donald Trump.   

Four Rohingya children were killed in Rakhine, the northern state of Myanmar, in a landmine explosion on Tuesday.

Neither the state nor the Arakan Army, an ethnic Rakhine armed group fighting for more autonomy in the region, have accepted responsibility for the attack.

Armed forces in Libya loyal to opposition leader Khalifa Haftar claim to have taken control of Sirte, a key coastal city, as conflict continues to rage in the country.

The capture of Sirte marks an important gain to Haftar, who has been staging a military offensive on the capital, Tripoli since April. Tripoli is home to Libya’s UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA).

Following the US assassination of Iran’s chief General, Qasem Soleimani, Iraq’s parliament has voted to expel the approximately 5,200 US troops stationed in their country.

The bill was passed through Iraqi parliament on Sunday 170-0 however many of the representatives, particularly Kurdish and Sunni representatives, did not attend the session to vote.

Spain’s electoral board has ordered that pro-independence Catalan presidency Quim Torra be disqualified from being a member of the region’s parliament, meaning he would lose his presidential post.

The English Football Association (FA) has charged Barnsley Football Club with sectarian abuse of Stoke FC player, James McClean. 

The FA has stated that Barnsley FC had not effectively stopped abuse from its supporters. The association saw “abusive and/or insulting words which included a reference, whether express or implied, to nationality and/or religion and/or beliefs" in the match on November 9, 2019.

Iranian opposition website, Kaleme, has reported that at least 631 people have been killed in protests against the rise in fuel prices which began on 15 November. 

US President Donald Trump was pictured with a former US Navy Seal who was granted clemency after being committed for war crimes.

Chief petty Officer Eddie Gallagher, who had initially been cleared by a military jury of murder but was convicted with posing with the body of a dead teenage Islamic State fighter, was pictured with Trump in Florida last week.

Some 400 protestors were arrested by police in Hong Kong after hundreds of thousands of people reportedly attended a New Year’s Day march in the city, in the latest round of anti-government demonstrations.

Riot police were deployed and tear gas fired after police officials blamed radical protestors for “hijacking” the march, which was initially permitted by authorities before they attempted to shut it down.

A mother of a British woman who was convicted in Cyprus after authorities claimed she had lied about being raped, has called for a tourism boycott of the country.