Chad's transitional authorities on Tuesday (January 18) released the first of some 250 members of armed groups it has promised to free from prison under an amnesty aimed at fostering dialogue after the battlefield death of President Idriss Deby last April. Justice Minister Ahmat Mahamat Alhabo led a short ceremony at Klessoum prison near the capital N'Djamena, granting the immediate release of 22 detainees convicted of taking up arms against the central government in the past 10 years.

We look at reactions to the assassination of a teenage indigenous activist in Colombia, which is the most dangerous place in the world for environmental activists. In other news, British PM Boris Johnson continues to dominate headlines. Elsewhere, could Showtime's star TV show "Yellowjackets" upend the Netflix binge model? Finally, find out why U2 frontman Bono hates his voice, the band's early songs and even the band's name itself!

Belarusian activist calls on EU leaders to investigate Lukashenko

FRANCE 24 spoke to Ramy Shaath, an Egytian-Palestinian activist who spent two and half years in jail in Egypt on accusations of aiding a terrorist group. He was a member of several secular political groups and a co-founder of the pro-Palestinian BDS movement. Shaath, who was never formally charged, described the conditions of his arrest, detention and finally his release from jail on January 8. He claimed "arbitrary detentions and arrests" increasingly account for "the majority" of inmates in Egyptian jails under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. He also said he understood that he was expected to keep silent following his release and had already received threats.

The US said the leader of the so-called "Islamic State" was "taken off the battlefield" in a raid in northwestern Syria. Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi blew himself up during the raid, President Joe Biden said.

In Durban, Romario Valentine, a young eco-warrior, dedicates his weekends to beach cleanups, environment classes and protecting the planet. Instead of opening gifts on his birthdays, he concentrates on crowdfunding.

Rights groups have said the suspected Russian bombing of chicken farms and water stations in Idlib, one of Syria's last rebel-held areas, is meant to push out displaced locals. It may have been a war crime.

A Turkish court has ordered that activist Osman Kavala must stay in jail, where he has been for four years without conviction. He is being held on an espionage charge widely seen as fabricated.

The coalition fighting in Yemen said Houthi hit several economic facilities in Saudi Arabia. This comes days after the rebels rejected a GCC invitation for talks on the conflict.

Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate began her activism back in 2019 by staging a solo climate protest at the gates of the Ugandan parliament, before going on to co-found both the Rise Up Movement and Fridays for Future Uganda. She is currently in Paris as part of a delegation of Ugandan and Tanzanian activists who are fighting to drum up opposition to a huge oil pipeline under construction in East Africa. She joined us for Perspective to tell us more about her activism, her hopes for her meeting with Pope Francis and how she feels about being dubbed the African Greta Thunberg.

Researchers spent years collecting evidence of Russian war crimes in Syria, using everything from social media to satellite images. Open-source research has evolved. Could it help bring justice to Ukraine faster?

Yemen's Houthi rebels say they carried out several attacks on Friday, the largest being on an oil storage and shipping facility in Jiddah. Sunday's F1 Grand Prix there will go ahead as scheduled, say organizers.