Protestors clashed with riot police in Santiago, Chile on Friday after four months of sustained protests against the government initially sparked by grievances over metro fare pricing and the national cost of living.
The big picture: Chile has the greatest level of income inequality among all countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Wall Street Journal reports. Chileans have cited education and health care costs as especially cumbersome.
The U.S. military officially ceased offensive operations against the Taliban in Afghanistan early Saturday morning, The Washington Post reports.
Why it matters: This is the first step in the U.S.-Afghanistan peace process. If the "reduction of violence" for the next seven days is effective, the U.S. government and Taliban will likely sign a peace deal at the end of February.
The nation's top election-security official warned the House Intelligence Committee last week that Russia is interfering in the 2020 election to help President Trump get re-elected, continuing to attempt to sow discord among the American electorate, the AP reports.
Why it matters: The warning raises questions about the integrity of the presidential campaign and whether Trump's administration is taking the proper steps to combat the kind of interference that the U.S. saw in 2016.
The State Department confirmed Friday morning the U.S. and Taliban have "reached an understanding" that starts a 7-day "reduction of violence" to be followed by a signed U.S.-Taliban agreement.
Why it matters: The Afghanistan war is the longest war in U.S. history. President Trump has previously pulled out of talks at the last minute, only to restart them.
