1/18/16 Situation Report - Headlines

• Islamic State fighters swept into Deir Ezzor, Syria, killing dozens of people after the Assad regime airdropped supplies to besieged neighborhoods. • A U.S. drone strike struck a vehicle in Shabwa Province, Yemen, killing three men believed to be affiliated with al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula; it is the first drone strike in Yemen reported this year. • The United States is discussing with Arab coalition states the possibility of deploying special operations forces to fight the Islamic State, according to remarks last week by the U.S. secretary of defense. • Seven people were killed in Aden, Yemen, when a car bomb was detonated at the home of the city’s police chief in a failed assassination attempt. • Saudi Arabia authorized $50 million in aid to Somalia on January 7, the same day that Somalia severed diplomatic relations with Iran, according to a report by Reuters. • The International Atomic Energy Agency released a report Jan. 16 that confirmed Iran has complied with a deal with six world powers to end its nuclear program. • Ahead of the nuclear announcement, Tehran announced that it had freed four Iranian-American prisoners. • However, Washington later announced new U.S. sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile program. Tehran called the measures illegitimate and said it will continue developing its conventional military deterrents. • U.S. authorities are trying to locate Americans reported missing in Baghdad. • Islamic State militants kidnapped at least 400 civilians when they attacked government-held areas in the eastern Syrian city of Deir el-Zour. • Chinese President Xi Jinping officially announced the launch of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank at a ceremony in Beijing. • Taiwanese Nationalist Party candidate Eric Chu conceded defeat in presidential elections to Democratic Progressive Party candidate Tsai Ing-wen — Taiwan's first female president. • A suicide bomber killed at least 13 people at a meeting of tribal elders at the Jalalabad home of a local Afghan politician. • Local and French security forces stormed the Splendid Hotel in Ouagadougou on Jan. 16, killing four al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb militants and freeing 126 people taken hostage a day earlier. • Burkina Faso and Mali agreed to work together to counter the growing threat of Islamic militants following attacks in each country. • Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro declared a 60-day state of emergency during which he will govern by decree amid the crumbling economic situation.