Some in Ukraine are celebrating Christmas Sunday, Dec. 25, in a break from their traditional Jan. 7 observance.
Why it matters: The date shift is a cultural and religious rebuke of Russia, whose Orthodox church continues to follow the Julian calendar, and a further hewing to Western societies that follow the Gregorian calendar.
Why it matters: In his first Christmas speech as a monarch, Charles invoked the “selfless dedication” of public service workers and shared empathy for those struggling to make ends meet.
The big picture: China is frustrated by what it believes are unfair Western trade practices, driven by U.S. policy and Yi's comments may be aimed more at Washington, D.C. than at Moscow.
Pope Francis in his annual Christmas message Sunday called for the end to conflicts and wars worldwide, saying the world was suffering from a "famine of peace"
What he's saying: "Indeed, we must acknowledge with sorrow that, even as the Prince of Peace is given to us, the icy winds of war continue to buffet humanity," Francis said during his annual “Urbi et Orbi” ("to the city and the world)" blessing and message at the Vatican.
Major international aid groups suspended their operations in Afghanistan on Sunday after the Taliban banned all foreign and domestic non-governmental organizations from employing women.
Why it matters: Afghanistan faces one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. NGOs like Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council, CARE, the International Rescue Committee and Afghanaid have been crucial in providing aid to millions, particularly after the country's economy collapsed following the Taliban takeover last year.
Protesters and police clashed in Paris on Saturday, a day after a gunman killed three people and left three others wounded at a Kurdish community center, CNN reports.
Driving the news: Local Kurdish community members called for justice after Friday's deadly shooting at the Ahmet-Kaya Kurdish cultural center.
The Taliban on Saturday ordered all non-governmental groups in Afghanistan to stop employing women, AP reports.
The big picture: The order is the new government's latest attempt to restrict women's rights and freedoms in the country, and comes just days after the Taliban also banned women from attending universities.
Ten months after Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, the West remains united in its staggering support for Ukraine.
The big picture: Neither the sheer scale of the global response, nor the West's ability to maintain it, seemed inevitable — or even likely — when the invasion began. But the support for Ukraine has changed the course of that war and sent a signal that the West may be more united overall than some experts believed.
