Axios

President Biden made the "painful decision" to swap jailed basketball star Brittney Griner for notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout after determining that Russia was never going to meet his demand that another jailed American, Paul Whelan, also be freed, U.S. officials said on Thursday.

The big picture: Not only did that mean leaving Whelan behind and freeing a man nicknamed "the Merchant of Death," Biden also had to weigh the risk that other governments might seek to detain Americans to swap them for their own high-value prisoners.

Authorities in Iran executed a man in connection with months-long protests against the country's ruling party on Thursday, state media reported.

The big picture: It's believed to be the first execution in response to the protests, which were triggered by the Sept. 16 death in Tehran police custody of Mahsa Amini, 22, who was detained for wearing an "improper hijab," Iran's mandatory head covering.

WNBA star Brittney Griner is free — in exchange for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout who has been known as the “Merchant of Death.”

Driving the news: The U.S. freed convicted Russian arms dealer Bout in an exchange for Griner that took place in the United Arab Emirates, according to a senior administration official.

Honduras has become the latest Latin American country to take a strong-armed approach to deal with gangs, declaring a state of emergency that human rights groups warn will likely be ineffective and could lead to rights abuses.

The big picture: The partial state of emergency in Honduras, which went into effect on Tuesday, follows a similar controversial, yet popular, move by Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele earlier this year.

The number of people in the United States who speak a language other than English at home — mainly Spanish — has nearly tripled over the last 40 years, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Why it matters: Major shifts in immigration from Latin America and Asia have transformed the nation's linguistic diversity and reshaped the United States.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, spoke out about the media frenzy and racism they experienced as a royal couple in the first installment of their new Netflix series, “Harry and Meghan,” released Thursday.

Driving the news: Harry drew comparisons between the frenetic media coverage endured by his mother Princess Diana and by Meghan.

Cherelle Griner said Thursday that she is "overwhelmed with emotions" after her wife, WNBA star Brittney Griner, had been freed from Russian detention in a prisoner swap.

Driving the news: "Over the last nine months, you all have been so privy to one of the darkest moments of my life," Cherelle Griner said Thursday, appearing with President Biden.

Dina Boluarte was sworn in as Peru's first woman president on Wednesday — hours after her predecessor Pedro Castillo was arrested following his ouster from office in an impeachment trial, per AP.

State of play: Peru's Public Ministry said in a statement Castillo is being investigated for the crimes of "rebellion" and "conspiracy" in breach of the constitutional order after he announced he was dissolving Congress as lawmakers debated whether to impeach him.

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita (R) announced Wednesday that he is suing TikTok for allegedly failing to protect children from mature content and deceiving users about the Chinese government's ability to access their data.

Why it matters: None of the allegations are new to TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company Bytedance. The platform, like its peers, has faced heightened scrutiny in recent years amid growing concern over social media apps' influence on children and adolescents.

Peru's Congress voted to oust President Pedro Castillo in an impeachment trial on Wednesday, shortly after he attempted to dissolve the legislative body and install an emergency government.

The big picture: Wednesday's events deepen the political crisis in the country, which has seen six presidents in as many years amid corruption investigations and impeachments.

The Biden administration is pressing UN human rights chief Volker Türk not to expand the list of companies that operate in the Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, according to Israeli officials and an Israeli Foreign Ministry cable.

Why it matters: While the U.S. had a long-standing position of giving Israeli diplomatic backing in UN institutions and has opposed the blacklist in the past, it is unusual that the Biden administration is helping Israel on the issue given U.S. opposition to settlements in the West Bank.

The Sudanese military and the country's coalition of civilian parties signed a political agreement on Monday, but there is still a lot of skepticism about whether it will truly lead to a transition to democracy in the country.

Why it matters: The agreement could be a first step toward the exit of the Sudanese military from the political system and the establishment of a full-fledged civilian government, though the specific details still must be worked out. The deal also doesn't have the support of several key players.

CIA director Bill Burns gave his Turkish counterpart a strongly worded message opposing the recent Turkish artillery strikes and airstrikes against the Kurds in northern Syria, warning that they put U.S. forces in danger, according to two U.S. sources with direct knowledge of the issue.

The big picture: Several of the airstrikes, which U.S. officials said endangered American forces in northern Syria, were conducted by the Turkish intelligence service using drones, according to the U.S. sources.

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for a four-day visit that will include three summits with several Arab leaders.

Why it matters: The visit comes about five months after President Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia, which included a summit with nine Arab leaders that was aimed at asserting U.S. leadership in the Middle East as part of the global competition with China.

The White House held a high-level meeting last week to discuss its approach toward the new Israeli government and the possibility of not engaging with some of its ultranationalist ministers, two U.S. officials told Axios.

Why it matters: It was the first such meeting since the Israeli elections took place on Nov. 1, and it was highly sensitive because Israel is one of the U.S.' closest allies.

The women of Iran have been named Time magazine's Heroes of the Year for leading the mass protests over the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the country's morality police.

Driving the news: A tribute written by former Time columnist Azadeh Moaveni acknowledges women's roles in past protests in Iran that have built toward this moment, while highlighting the singularity of the current movement.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been named Time's 2022 Person of the Year.

Driving the news: "This year's choice was the most clear-cut in memory," Time CEO and editor-in-chief Edward Felsenthal wrote in a letter to readers.

German authorities on Wednesday arrested 25 members of a far-right group that prosecutors said was plotting to violently overthrow the government.

Driving the news: Authorities believe that 22 of the individuals arrested are suspected members of a "terrorist organization," while the remaining three are suspected supporters, according to a press release from Germany's federal public prosecutor.

China's government said Wednesday it is easing some of its key COVID-19 rules in a significant pivot for the country's pandemic strategy after nationwide protests.

The big picture: China — with its "zero COVID" policy — has implemented some of the world's strictest prevention measures throughout the pandemic. Authorities said they would roll back many of the policy's testing and quarantine requirements.

A growing number of GOP-led states are barring state employees and contractors from using TikTok on government-issued devices as the FBI warns of possible threats to national security posed by the Chinese-owned social media platform.

Driving the news: Texas became the latest to do so on Wednesday, joining South Dakota, South Carolina and Maryland, all of which banned the app on government devices in the past week. Wisconsin Republicans are urging their Democratic governor to do the same.