Top News Stories –

David Bowie dies of cancer aged 69 –

Singer David Bowie has died at the age of 69 from cancer. Tributes have been paid from around the world to the “extraordinary artist” whose last album was released days ago. His son, film director Duncan Jones, confirmed the news and a statement was issued on his social media accounts. “David Bowie died peacefully today surrounded by his family after a courageous 18-month battle with cancer,” it said, asking for privacy for the family. [BBC]
Iman and David Bowie

‘El Chapo’ Guzman: Sean Penn interview provokes US scorn –
The Obama administration and a US presidential hopeful have criticised Sean Penn’s interview with Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. It was conducted in October in the Mexican jungle after Guzman’s jail break, and published by Rolling Stone. A White House spokesman said the Hollywood actor’s “so-called interview” was “maddening”, while Republican Marco Rubio said it was “grotesque”. Guzman, 58, was recaptured on Friday after months on the run. Unnamed Mexican officials say Penn’s secret meeting helped lead them to the boss of the Sinaloa drug cartel. He has now been returned to the maximum-security Altiplano jail, from where he escaped in July via a tunnel dug to the shower in his cell. [BBC]

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“Starman” 1972 from David Bowie on Vimeo.

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Armed conflicts and attacks

• PKK rebellion (2015–present)
  • Turkish security forces kill at least 32 Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants over the weekend, in military operations across the embattled Kurdish-majority southeast. (Reuters)
• Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
  • Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
    • A suspected Saudi missile strike on a Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) clinic in Razih, located in Yemen‘s northern Saada Governorate, leaves at least five people dead and around a dozen injured.(RT)
• War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
  • The Afghanistan defense ministry reports its forces have recaptured Darqad District in northern Takhar Province. According to the ministry, twenty Taliban militants and one Afghan soldier were killed in two days of fighting. (The Gulf Today) (Reuters)

Arts and culture

• The 73rd Golden Globe Awards are held at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California. (Los Angeles Times)
  • The Martian wins the award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and lead actor Matt Damon winning Best Performance by an actor in a musical or comedy. (AP)
  • The Revenant wins the award for best drama with lead actor Leonardo DiCaprio winning best actor in a drama. (Variety)
• British musician and actor David Bowie dies, aged 69. (BBC)

Disasters and accidents

• 2015–16 South Pacific cyclone season
  • Residents of the islands of Tafea are urged to seek shelter as Severe Tropical Cyclone Ula approaches Vanuatu. (Radio New Zealand)
• Twenty people are killed after a bus carrying amateur football players and fans plunges into a river in Veracruz, eastern Mexico. (Business Standard), (AP)
• The two-month-old Nipigon River Bridge near Nipigon, Ontario is closed to traffic after a mechanical failure, severing the Trans-Canada Highway and forcing a detour into the United States. (CBC), (National Post)

International relations

• 2016 North Korean nuclear test
  • A United States Air Force B-52 long-range strategic bomber makes a low-level flight over South Korea, close to the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), in a show of force following North Korea‘s fourth nuclear test on January 6, before returning to its base in Guam. (Reuters)
• Germany–Poland relations
  • Poland summons the German ambassador in Warsaw over “anti-Polish” remarks made by German politicians. (BBC)

Law and crime

• U.S. Army officials set August 8 as the start date for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s court-martial. Bergdahl, charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, was held captive by the Taliban for five years after he left his base in Afghanistan. A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for early this week. (AP)
• Mexican Drug War
  • Mexican authorities want to question American actor Sean Penn and Mexican actress Kate del Castillo about a secret October meeting and interview with Joaquín Guzmán, published by Rolling Stonemagazine yesterday. Mexico Attorney General Arely Gomez says it was the Penn interview that led authorities to a Guzman hiding place. (CNN) (CBS News) (USA Today) (Rolling Stone)

Politics and elections

• Catalan independence
  • The newly appointed President of Catalonia, Carles Puigdemont, vows to continue his predecessor Artur Mas i Gavarró‘s plans to secede from Spain within 18 months. (BBC)

Sport

• Lawyers for former FIFA chief Sepp Blatter confirm that he will appeal his eight year ban from the organisation. (AFP via Yahoo! News)

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