Dario Salvi

He won 200 votes out of 329 MPs elected in October. The first session was characterised by clashes and disruptions over majority status between the pro-Iranian Fatah and MPs close to al-Sadr. The acting speaker was hospitalised from exhaustion. The election of the new head of state is now set to begin; whoever is picked will be charged with naming the future prime minister who will form the government.

The woman who was fleeing from the Taliban died after being caught in a storm, but her two children, who are now in the care of Iranian soldiers across the border, are safe. Turkish officials offload responsibility. AsiaNews sources: "Many people" have died in recent weeks while trying to enter the country. Caritas Turkey rushes to aid of 30 migrant families.

Revenues last year reached US$ 6.3 billion, the highest ever. The net tonnage was 1.27 billion, up over 2020. Despite the accident in March that blocked the canal for almost a week, some 20,694 ships transited through the waterway, way up compared to 18,830 in 2020.

Change must start in families, churches, mosques, schools and the media. Differences must be preserved and values ​​such as "love, tolerance and forgiveness" must be strengthened. Extremists exploit religion for political and economic ends. The fragmentation and dispersion of society must be fought.

Today's headlines: Japanese expatriates in Taiwan are studying escape routes in the event of a Beijing attack on the island; Omicron alert, Riyadh reimposes social distancing measures at Mecca and Medina; on Christmas Eve, Vietnamese authorities attacked dozens of Montagnard Christians; the Russian Duma introduces a committee for the defence of Christian values.

Mostly for labour rights, but also for basic resources such as water. 299 death row inmates executed. Abuses and violations against ethnic and religious minorities, convictions for "propaganda against the regime". Christian detainees granted a 10-day permit to celebrate Christmas with their families.

Under Beijing's security law police have detained journalists or former staff members of the territory's last independent media outlet. Computers and archive material were confiscated. Deputy editor Ronson Chan was also questioned and released. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the attack.

MDLBeast Soundstorm, a four-day electronic music event, a first in the Wahhabi kingdom. Young men and women dance side by side, stopping at the moment of Islamic prayer. HRW critical and recalls abuses and human rights violations. Muslims abroad also slam behaviour contrary to morality in the land of Mecca and Medina.

In Hong Kong, two more universities remove statues in memory of Tiananmen; Hun Sen prepares ground for his son's succession to power in Cambodia; Moon Jae-in grants a pardon to former president Park Geun-hye; at least 30 dead and 100 injured in Bangladesh after a fire on board a ferry.

In his Christmas message to the faithful, the cardinal underlines a charged climate full of ethnic and confessional "tensions and conflicts". These are compounded by pollution, climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic. The birth of Christ renews hope and enthusiasm, a "special" time for reconciliation and fraternal relations.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported a steady decline in recent years. This year, 1,505 civilians were killed, including 360 children. Some 297 people were killed by anti-personnel mines and explosive devices. Human rights groups say that the situation remains critical, unsuited for the return of refugees.

Today's headlines: China has been blocking visits to Tibetan political prisoners for a year under the pretext of the pandemic; A Yangon court has sentenced more than 90 people to death since the military coup in February; Colombo wants to trade tea for its oil debts with Iran; radical Indian leaders close to Modi are calling for ethnic cleansing of minorities, especially Muslims.