A Senate committee that has for months investigated Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and his government’s handling of the pandemic presents its findings today and will reportedly recommend that Bolsonaro be charged (NYT) with crimes against humanity. Dozens of other people could also face criminal charges. For any charges to officially move forward, they would need to be approved (Reuters) by a prosecutor general Bolsonaro appointed.
 
The Senate investigation stands out globally for its detailed airing of a government’s mishandling of the pandemic. The Brazilian government’s missteps include pushing unproven medications and spurning physical-distancing guidelines. Bolsonaro’s popularity has sunk (AP) as the investigation revealed allegations of bribery in government vaccine procurement.

The emergency, closed-door meeting today is at Washington and London’s request (Al Jazeera). It follows Pyongyang’s test firing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile.
 
China: A report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said a Chinese Communist Party commission has expanded its role (Bloomberg) in directing surveillance and repression in the Xinjiang region. It identified dozens of officials (Axios) responsible for the efforts.
 
This Backgrounder looks at the Chinese Communist Party.

Delegates from the Taliban and countries including China, India, Iran, and Pakistan meet in Moscow today (Mint) to discuss terrorism and aid to Afghanistan.
 
India/Nepal: Flooding and landslides have killed more than one hundred people (AFP) in India and Nepal over the last several days, officials said.

Syrian state media reported that the attack on an army bus killed fourteen people (AFP). No group claimed responsibility for the bombing, though rebel groups based in Idlib Governorate have claimed such attacks in the past. Government forces shelled Idlib shortly after the bombing.
 
Egypt: Ninety-eight women judges were sworn in (AP) to the country’s State Council, a major judicial body that until recently was exclusively staffed by men.

Demonstrations occurred in Lagos today (AP) to mark the anniversary of marches against police brutality last year that snowballed into the worst unrest (Reuters) in Nigeria since 1999.
 
For the Net Politics blog, Tunde Okunoye writes that in the wake of last year’s protests, technology and young people represent Nigeria’s best path forward.
 
South Africa: Natural gas prospectors in the country discovered reserves of helium (AFP), which is produced by fewer than ten countries.

The city’s mayor ordered unvaccinated people over sixty and people with chronic illnesses to stay home (BBC) as Russia struggles with record COVID-19 deaths. Only 35 percent of the population has had at least one vaccine dose.
 
Germany: Central bank chief Jens Weidmann, who has been critical of the European Central Bank’s loose monetary policy, will step down (FT) at the end of the year.

A new law limits the circumstances (Bloomberg) in which the president can dissolve Congress, as President Martin Vizcarra did in 2019.

More than five hundred thousand U.S. health-care workers quit in August (Politico), the most to resign in a single month in more than twenty years, a Cornell University tracker showed.

A UN Environment Program report found that in 2030, countries are planning to produce double the amount of fossil fuels than what would be consistent with the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above preindustrial levels.
 
For Foreign Affairs, William Nordhaus examines why climate policy has failed and how governments can do better.