December 13: COP 28
The controversial COP 28 conference ended with an agreement urging nations to transition away from all fossil fuels in order to achieve global net-zero emissions by 2050. This is the first mention of “all fossil fuels” in the 28 years of the conference’s history. [The Daily Star]
December 15: Nigeria
Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) ordered former president Mohamed Bazoum to be released from prison and reinstated as president. The former president had been ousted and detained in July of 2023 under the military junta that orchestrated the Nigerien coup d’etat. [ABC News]
December 17: Serbia
Serbians voted for their National Assembly. President Aleksandar Vučić declared his Serbian Progressive Party earned a majority in Parliament with 127 seats, while opponents raised concerns of voting irregularities. On the 24th, police tear gassed protesters outside the City Assembly building of Belgrade who claimed alleged voting irregularities. [news.com.au]
December 19: U.S.
The Colorado Supreme Court disqualified former U.S. president Donald Trump from the state’s primary ballot under the Fourteenth Amendment. Trump was returned to the ballot on the 28th as Republicans appealed the ban. [CBS News]
December 21: U.S.
Apple suspended its sale of two models of Apple Watches due to a patent dispute with the medical technological company Masimo over the watches’ measurement of blood oxygen. Experts predict that the two watches being pulled from the U.S. market could lead to a $300-400M loss for the company in its holiday season sales. [Apple News]
December 22: UNSC
The UN Security Council passed a resolution to ramp up aid for Gaza, with the US and Russia abstaining. [Independent]
December 22: U.S.
A jury in Colorado convicted two paramedics of negligent homicide in Elijah McClain’s death in 2019. The death had been publicized, with many seeing it as a case of disproportionate police brutality against Black people. Mr. McClain was unarmed when he got into a struggle with the police. The paramedics had sedated him with ketamine, a powerful sedative. [The Guardian]
December 29: Argentina
Argentina President Javier Milei rejected the BRICS invitation to join. BRICS is a bloc of developing countries, with its letters standing for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. [BBC]
January 2: U.S.
Claudine Gay, Harvard’s first Black president, resigned after scrutiny due to plagiarism allegations. After testifying in Congress on antisemitism, where she refused to condemn hate speech against Jews, an action she later apologized for, Gay received backlash from critics. She spent six months as president and defended her dissertation, affirming that she stands by her research and never claimed credit for others’ work. [AP News]
January 3: Iran
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Iran on January 3 that killed 84 people. Two militants detonated bombs attached to them at a memorial procession for Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, a revered Iranian military general who was assassinated four years ago by an American drone strike. This is the most recent terrorist attack on Iran by the Islamic State, which sees Iran as an irreversible enemy. [NY Times]
January 9: U.S.
Former president Donald Trump claimed he could not be prosecuted for trying to overturn the 2020 election. Trump’s claim raised concerns about the extent of presidential immunity. [CNN]
January 13: Taiwan
Taiwan held its presidential and legislature election. Vice President Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party, who won around 40% of the vote, was elected as president. In the Legislative Yuan elections, the DPP lost its majority, with the Nationalist Party winning 52 seats ahead of the DPP’s 51. Beijing denounced countries supporting the election, threatened economic actions, and reiterated the inevitability of reunification. [CSIS]
January 15: Yemen
The United States and Britain struck over a dozen targets in Yemen controlled by the Houthi militia, which is allegedly supported by the Iranian government. The attack came in retaliation for the continued assault of commercial ships traveling through the Red Sea by the Houthis. The US and other countries had warned the Houthis a week prior of serious consequences, but the Houthis took no action to stop the attacks. [NY Times]
January 24: U.S.
The New Hampshire primaries for the 2024 elections were held. On the Democratic side, Biden gained 63.9% of the vote despite not being on the ballot; Dean Phillips, considered his (relatively) strongest opponent, gained 19.6%. On the Republican side, Donald Trump won with 54.3% of the vote while his primary challenger, Nikki Haley, received 43.2%. The state was considered Haley’s best chance of coming close to or defeating Trump. [NY Times]
January 25: U.S
Alabama executed convicted murderer Kenneth Smith through suffocation via nitrogen gas, the first new execution method since lethal injection around 40 years ago. Smith, convicted in a 1988 murder-for-hire, previously survived execution by lethal injection in 2022. Alabama claims the new method was the “most painless and humane” and would only take one or two minutes, but experts say this execution method could lead to non-fatal injuries or a painful death, and Smith was, in fact, pronounced dead after 32 minutes. [Reuters]