The World

One year since Myanmar’s military took power in a coup on Feb. 1, 2021, citizens are fed up with nonviolent resistance. Now, people are taking on the army with whatever they’ve got, from homemade rifles to dynamite. And ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics kicking off this week in Beijing, we hear from athletes as they prepare to travel to China. Also, the pandemic took a heavy toll on couples trying to tie the knot in India. Millions who planned to have a large, traditional wedding in the last few years had to drastically scale back plans, reschedule or travel to other destinations to make their wedding dreams come true.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said his organization has received “credible allegations” that more than 100 former members of the Afghan government and security forces were killed since the Taliban came to power last August. Also, the global COVAX initiative aims to make COVID-19 vaccines equitable to low- and middle-income countries. But one year since delivering its first vaccine shipments, COVAX has faced massive challenges in living up to its directive, with billions of people around the world without a single shot. And a Ugandan satirist sat in detention for 28 days, where his lawyer says he’s been tortured. His crime? Referring to the son of Uganda’s president as “obese.”

A huge convoy of trucks is heading to Ottawa for a giant protest on Parliament Hill on Saturday. The so-called Freedom Convoy started as a grassroots movement to protest a new vaccine mandate for truckers crossing the US-Canadian border, capturing the attention of far-right groups. Also, much of Europe's energy comes from natural gas piped in from Russia. What is the potential impact of a Russia-Ukraine war on European energy supplies? Plus, the word inshallah is a commonly invoked Arabic expression that means “if God wills ... ” For writer Abdullah Shihipar, it's ultimately an expression of humility and hope.

When China won its bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing promised to improve China's human rights record. By most accounts, that didn’t happen. As Beijing prepares to host the Olympics again, tough questions about human rights in China remain. Also, Democratic socialist Xiomara Castro became Honduras’ first female president today. She says she’ll work to tackle corruption and bolster alliances with the US. Plus, Lee Oskar, co-founder of the 1970s funk and soul band War, has a new album called, “Never Forget,” with music that helped him process his family's multifaceted history going back to World War II and the Holocaust.

Researchers are still studying the omicron variant and its effects. As part of our regular series of conversations about the pandemic, The World’s reporter Elana Gordon moderated a discussion with epidemiologist Bill Hanage of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health about what researchers have learned so far and how that could inform our preparations for the next variant.

ISIS fighters have carried out deadly, sophisticated attacks on a prison in northeast Syria since last Thursday. The prison holds hundreds of ISIS members, among them children who were brought to the caliphate by their parents. And, Jan. 26 is officially Australia Day, but to Indigenous communities, it's Invasion Day. In 1972, an Indigenous demonstration in front of the Canberra Parliament building became a major turning point for Indigenous rights in Australia. Plus, Olavo de Carvalho, a self-proclaimed philosopher whose ideas helped fuel a far-right resurgence in Brazil, has died of COVID-19.

Five former members of a civil defense were found guilty Monday of sexual assaults that occurred during Guatemala’s civil war. The men raped dozens of Indigenous women. Also, omicron is hitting Brazil hard, with record-high COVID-19 numbers. Indigenous communities are especially struggling with vaccination rates amid this new wave. Plus, Tennis Australia initially defended its policy against spectators wearing T-shirts at the Australia Open that refer to the whereabouts of tennis star Peng Shuai. But after swift and fierce blowback, Australia’s tennis authorities backed down, saying T-shirts are OK — but not banners.

Amid the standoff between Russia and Ukraine, the US and other Western countries continue to provide Ukraine with military assistance. Now, the Biden administration is weighing sending more troops to countries like Poland and Romania to reinforce NATO allies in Eastern Europe. Also, the rate of global chemical pollution exceeds the planet’s ability to absorb it, threatening the stability of ecosystems and human health. Plastic pollution, pesticides, and industrial materials are top concerns, according to a new study. Plus, the tiny Pacific island of Tuvalu has struck a deal with US-based internet company Go Daddy to manage its highly coveted internet address: .tv.

As COVID-19 cases rise in China, even by small numbers, the government continues to take drastic measures to contain the outbreaks. Measures include a hamster cull in Hong Kong, and thousands stuck in shopping malls for 48-hour quarantines in Shanghai. And US State Department officials traveled to Sudan this week to help mediate the ongoing political crisis in Sudan following the military coup in October. They condemned the use of "disproportionate" force against protesters. Plus, more than 700 years ago, the poet and Sufi mystic Rumi started spinning as a form of meditation. The practice of his modern descendants, known as the "whirling dervishes,” is misunderstood and between commercialism and tradition, even in Konya, where it began.

Ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine continue as Russia has amassed tens of thousands of troops near its border with Ukraine. What will Russia's President Vladimir Putin do next? Also, US President Joe Biden’s foreign policy team has brought experience and an emphasis on diplomacy to US engagement abroad. But that hasn’t always been enough to prevent crises from spiraling. Plus, Joy Crookes is one of the UK's breakout recording artists from the past year. Born in London to a Bangladeshi mother and Irish father, she is a student of history and brings the same rigor to her music.