Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) reports three people are found alive in the rubble of a hospital in northwest Syria hit by Russian airstrikes Monday. (UPI)
Iran says that it plans to increase its crude oil output until it achieves pre-sanction levels, although that contravenes OPEC efforts to restrain output. (Reuters)
Germany calls for a no-fly zone in northern Syria which could, among other things, reduce the number of displaced Syrians. Similar requests have been made by Turkey and others throughout the 5-year-old war. Russia rejects this strategy without Syria's consent. (AP via The Washington Post)(Macau Daily Times)
Russia's Finance Ministry sues Ukraine in London's High Court of Justice over a $3 billion debt. Payment was due December 21, 2015. Negotiations between Kiev and Moscow have not reached an agreement. Over the last 6 months Ukrainian government officials repeatedly stated they refuse to pay the debt. (UPI)
Law and crime
Maldives jails opposition leader Sheikh Imran Abdulla for terrorism. It is claimed that he urged the overthrow of the government in a speech. (BBC)
Egyptian authorities order the closure of the Egyptian branch of the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT), a prominent NGO that documents alleged human rights abuses and treats torture victims. Amnesty International condemns the closure of the Nadeem centre, saying the NGO gives a lifeline to hundreds of victims of torture and families of people subjected to enforced disappearances. (Reuters)
Colombian authorities are investigating the discovery of at least 100 dismembered bodies in a sewer system underneath La Modelo prison in Bogotá. Officials say the practice of killing, dismembering, and tossing body parts into drains might have also happened at prisons in other cities, e.g., Popayán, Bucaramanga and Barranquilla. The victims include inmates, visitors, and others. (CNN)