Axios

The White House will lift the travel restrictions it imposed on eight African countries last month after the Omicron variant was first reported in South Africa, White House assistant press secretary Kevin Munoz said on Friday.

Driving the news: The restrictions will end on Dec. 31, according to Munoz. He said the decision to lift travel restrictions was recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

At least 39 people died and 70 more were injured in a fire on a crowded river ferry in Bangladesh early Friday, AP reports.

Driving the news: The fire started at around 3 a.m. local time, and the ferry was carrying 800 passengers from Dhaka, the country's capital, to Barguna, officials said.

The South Korean government will pardon imprisoned former President Park Geun-hye, who was convicted of corruption in 2018, per Bloomberg.

Why it matters: Park, 69, was the first South Korean leader to be impeached and removed from office.

President Biden signed a bill Thursday banning imports from China's Xinjiang region and punishing the Chinese government for its genocide of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities, per a White House release.

Why it matters: Human rights activists say the bill will impose the first substantive costs the Chinese government has ever faced for its atrocities in Xinjiang. This could set a precedent for other countries to follow suit, writes Axios' Zachary Basu.