Rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas reached a deal (Al Jazeera) during reconciliation talks this week to hold the territories’ first elections in almost fifteen years. Successive elections, which will occur (Al-Monitor) in the next six months, will choose the Palestinian Legislative Council, the Palestinian Authority (PA) president, and the Palestinian National Council, senior Fatah official Jibril Rajoub said. Palestinian leaders will likely meet next week to solidify the plans.
 
PA Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said the body was ready to facilitate elections. Palestinian leaders have recently sought to coalesce after two Arab countries normalized relations with Israel. Still, previous election plans have crumpled (TOI), and the government formed after the last election in 2006 failed.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un apologized for his military’s killing of a South Korean official at sea, South Korea’s presidential office said. In a notice released by South Korean officials, North Korea detailed its findings (Yonhap) about the incident.
 
Thailand: Before recessing, the country’s parliament delayed a vote on constitutional amendments (Straits Times). The decision angered protesters (FT), who have taken to the streets to criticize the government and monarchy in recent weeks.
 
On CFR’s Asia Unbound blog, Joshua Kurlantzick and Pavin Chachavalpongpun explain the Thai protesters’ demands.

As part of a nationwide protest, thousands of farmers obstructed roads and railways (Reuters) over agricultural bills passed by India’s Parliament. They fear the government could stop purchasing grain at guaranteed prices, a charge the government has denied.
 
Pakistan: The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) reportedly recommended (Al Jazeera, Reuters) the country stop issuing new pilot licenses and reform its licensing system. Pakistan’s aviation industry is embroiled in a scandal over pilots obtaining false credentials.

The United States announced sanctions (State Dept.) on three Iranian prisons, two judges, and a court for human rights violations, including in the case of Iranian wrestler Navid Afkari. Iran executed Afkari earlier this month after convicting him of murder during 2018 protests.
 
This CFR timeline looks at U.S.-Iran relations.

Kenya’s High Court paused the dissolution (Bloomberg) of Parliament, a move Chief Justice David Maraga had recommended to President Uhuru Kenyatta over the body’s failure to implement rules to increase female participation in elected bodies. A court case on the recommendation is pending (Nation).
 
CFR’s Women and Foreign Policy Program examines where women wield political power in this index.
 
Mali: Former Defense Minister Ba N’Daou will be inaugurated (FT) as president tomorrow, kicking off what is meant to be an eighteen-month transition back to civilian rule after an August military coup. The coup’s leader, Colonel Assimi Goita, will become vice president.

Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu resigned his prominent post (Guardian) and gave up his rights as a cardinal, the Holy See announced. Becciu denied accusations of embezzling church funds and said that Pope Francis told him to resign (BBC).
 
Russia: A spokesperson for Russian dissident Alexey Navalny said Russian authorities froze (NYT) Navalny’s bank accounts and blocked him from selling or mortgaging his Moscow apartment. Navalny was released from a German hospital this week after being poisoned.

Colombian Defense Minister Carlos Holmes Trujillo ignored a Supreme Court order (Colombia Reports) to publicly apologize for police brutality, saying he would appeal before the Constitutional Court. After opposition lawmakers raised rule of law concerns, the defense minister announced criminal charges against an opposition senator.
 
Brazil: The organizers of Rio de Janeiro’s world-renowned carnival parade indefinitely postponed the February event due to the coronavirus. It was last suspended (NBC) in 1912. Brazil has recorded 4.5 million COVID-19 infections (BBC).

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died last week, will lie in state (NYT) at the U.S. Capitol today, becoming the first woman to do so. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the posthumous tribute, which only thirty-three other people have received, on Monday.