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Hard Numbers: Nigerian schoolgirls freed, Brits trust vaccines, US-EU sanction Russians, birdwatchers rejoice

Girls who were kidnapped from a boarding school in the northwest Nigerian state of Zamfara walk in line after their release, in Zamfara, Nigeria March 2, 2021

279: All 279 schoolgirls kidnapped last week by gunmen in northwest Nigeria have now been released. The girls were set free after the government negotiated with the abductors, but many observers criticize this approach, saying it only emboldens militants to kidnap children for ransom.


7: The US and EU announced joint sanctions on seven Russian officials involved in the poisoning and subsequent arrest of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny. It's the first time that Moscow has been targeted by Washington since President Biden came into office and ordered a sweeping review of US foreign policy towards Russia.

89: Vaccine skepticism is a problem in many parts of Europe, but not in the United Kingdom, where 89 percent of Brits say they intend to get a COVID-19 jab, compared to 73 percent in Germany and 59 percent in France.

170: The black-browed babbler bird, native to Asia, has surfaced in an Indonesian forest for the first time in 170 years. Birdwatchers from all around the world have been contacting the bird nerds in in Borneo that discovered the babbler to coordinate a once-in-a-lifetime visit.

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A family votes during the second round of Hungary's general election in Budapest, April 23, 2006. Hungarians went to the polls on Sunday with the Socialist-led government of Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany looking set to make history by becoming the first to retain power since the return of democracy in 1990.

A family votes during the second round of Hungary's general election in Budapest, April 23, 2006. Hungarians went to the polls on Sunday with the Socialist-led government of Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany looking set to make history by becoming the first to retain power since the return of democracy in 1990.

REUTERS/Laszlo Balogh
With the year's end fast approaching, it's time to look ahead to the elections that could reshuffle global power dynamics in 2026. Here are a few you should keep an eye on.Hungary’s parliamentary electionsAfter consolidating power and chipping away at democratic freedoms, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán faces his most credible challenger in [...]
Slovenia's Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset applaud during a Council of Europe diplomatic conference in The Hague, Netherlands, December 16, 2025.

Slovenia's Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset applaud during a Council of Europe diplomatic conference in The Hague, Netherlands, December 16, 2025.

REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
Ukraine peace talks up their paceUkraine peace talks are showing new signs of progress. US and European negotiators emerged from meetings in Berlin yesterday agreeing to provide so-called Article 5-like security guarantees and reportedly saying “90% of the issues between Ukraine and Russia” had been resolved. However, the promise seems vague and [...]
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., USA, on Dec. 5, 2025.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney draws his country’s name at the FIFA World Cup draw at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., USA, on Dec. 5, 2025.

ddp/Marc Schüler via Reuters Connect
158: Canada has been a self-governing nation for 158 years, and has been fully independent of the UK Parliament since 1982. But Prime Minister Mark Carney has been sprinkling British English spellings – think words like “globalisation” or “colour” – into some of his communiqués, rather than Canadian English. Some linguists are upset at his [...]
​Chief Superintendent of the police force's National Security Department Steve Li Kwai-wah speaks at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building after the verdict in the national security collusion trial of pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai, in Hong Kong, China, on December 15, 2025.

Chief Superintendent of the police force's National Security Department Steve Li Kwai-wah speaks at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building after the verdict in the national security collusion trial of Jimmy Lai, founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, in Hong Kong, China, on December 15, 2025.

REUTERS/Lam Yik
156: After a 156-day trial, Hong Kong’s High Court found media tycoon Jimmy Lai guilty on national security charges on Monday. Lai, who advocated for democracy in the semi-autonomous Chinese city before the 2019 crackdown, now faces life imprisonment. The decision is another blow for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. [...]