🌏 Russia's "Hypocritical" Christmas Ceasefire, Top Iranian Woman Chess Player Competes Without Hijab And More

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• 👩 Women To Know
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Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced a 36-hour ceasefire in Ukraine for Orthodox Christmas, but Ukraine authorities have called it a “trap”.

The announcement comes after the head of Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, made a ceasefire request.

The ceasefire started on noon on Friday Jan. 6, according to Putin’s announcement.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said the truce is Russia’s way to prevent Ukrainian troops from mobilizing in Donbas.

He added during his nightly address that “the war will end either when your soldiers leave or we throw them out”.

Meanwhile, Zelensky’s senior advisor called it a “cynical trap” and “an element of propaganda” on Twitter.

US President Joe Biden was also skeptical of the announcement and reminded that Putin “was ready to bomb hospitals and nurseries and churches on the 25th and New Year”.

Also Happening Around The World

🇮🇷 Iran has executed two more men for participating in the Mahsa Amini protests after rushed trials.

🇰🇪 Edwin Chiloba, a 25-year-old Kenyan fashion designer and LGBTQ activist has been found dead, with his body stuffed in a metal box on the side of the road, sparking calls for justice.

🇸🇳 Also in Africa, two male lawmakers have been jailed for six months after they hit and kicked a pregnant woman colleague.

🇪🇹 And in Ethiopia, families are reuniting after commercial flights resumed following a peace deal between Ethiopia’s government and Tigray forces to end the two-year civil war that has killed 600,000 people.

🇮🇳 In India, people are demanding justice after a 20-year-old woman died after she was hit by a car and dragged underneath the vehicle for 10 kilometers.

🇷🇴 Misogynistic British influencer Andrew Tate has been detained for 30 days in Romania for alleged human trafficking and rape, days after he was destroyed on Twitter by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg for picking a fight with her.

🇧🇷 People in Brazil are mourning football legend Pelé who died at age 82.

Sara Khadem, a 25-year-old Iranian chess player who currently ranks 10th in the country, played without a hijab during a competition in Kazakhastan for two consecutive days on Dec. 27 and 28.

Iranian women athletes are required to wear a covering on their heads and modest clothes when representing Iran in international competitions.

Unprecedented protests are sweeping Iran following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died after she was detained by “morality” police over allegedly breaking the hijab law.

Out of fears for her and her family’s safety after she defied the dress code, Khadem – who is ranked 804 in the world – will not return home and will move to Spain, two sources told Spanish news outlet El Pais.

Khadem later denied in a post on Instagram that her move was a political decision.

In October, an Iranian woman rock climber also competed without a headscarf at a tournament in South Korea.

More Women You Should Know About

🇮🇷 Also in Iran, Taraneh Alidoosti, the country’s top actress who was jailed for criticizing the government’s execution of Mahsa Amini protesters, has been released on bail.

🇧🇷 Two women Brazilian Amazon activists, Marina Silva and Sônia Guajajara, have been appointed as the country’s environment and Indigenous ministers.

🇲🇽 Elsewhere in Latin America, Norma Piña, an environmentalist lawyer, has been elected as the first woman Supreme Court president.

The Japanese shiba inu from the “Doge” meme, Kabosu, is on a slow but steady road to recovery after being diagnosed with cancer.

The owner of the 17-year-old internet sensation said Kabosu stopped eating and drinking on Christmas Eve after being diagnosed with chronic lymphoma leukemia, a type of blood cancer, and acute cholangiohepatitis, a liver disease.

Kabosu had risen to fame in 2013 with the “Doge” meme, which featured a picture of her accompanied by a caption written in multi-colored Comic Sans font and broken English.

After Kabosu’s human, Atsuko Sato, described her condition as “very dangerous”, thousands of fans sent messages of support to Kabosu, praying for a speedy recovery.

After a week, Sato says Kabosu finally started to feel better.

“I took her for a five minute walk to the park today. She looked happy in the sun and fresh air,” Sato wrote.

Kabosu is now eating well, drinking plenty of water, taking short walks, but only takes her medicine if it is mixed with cat food.

More Good News For Your Week

🇿🇲 Zambia’s president has announced that the country has abolished the death penalty for all crimes.

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