An Iranian journalist who interviewed families of protesters who had been sentenced to death has been arrested, his wife and Iranian media say. Mehdi Beik was detained on Thursday night, reformist newspaper Etemad, which Mr Beik works for, said. The reasons for his arrest are not known, but it comes amid an ongoing crackdown and anti-government protests. Iran has been rocked by months of protests since the death of an Iranian Kurdish woman in police custody. Protests erupted in September following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained by morality police for allegedly wearing her hijab, or headscarf, “improperly”. They quickly spread across the country, becoming the most serious challenge to the Islamic Republic since its inception in 1979. In a tweet on Friday, Mr Beik’s wife, Zahra, said he had been “detained by agents of the Ministry of Information and his cell phone, laptop and belongings were seized”. Mr Beik is the head of the politics desk at Etemad.(BBC)…[+]

A unilateral ceasefire called by Russia appears to have had little effect on fighting on the ground, with officials accusing each other of opening fire on several areas. A Ukrainian rescue worker was killed in a Russian strike, while Russian state TV said the city of Donetsk was hit. Russia ordered a 36-hour unilateral ceasefire, to coincide with the Orthodox Christmas. Ukraine rejected it saying Moscow might use it to reinforce troops. Russia’s defence ministry insisted it was observing the truce along the entire “line of contact”, starting at 12:00 Moscow time (09:00 GMT) on Friday. It blamed Kyiv for continuing to shell Russian positions and settlements in occupied Ukraine. Air alerts were reported across Ukraine shortly after the purported truce began, and then the governor of Kherson region said a strike on a fire station left rescuer dead and four other people wounded in the main city, liberated in November by Ukrainian forces.(BBC)…[+]

Police in Kenya are investigating the death of young fashion designer and LGBTQ activist Edwin Chiloba after his body was found dumped in a metal box by the roadside near the town of Eldoret. The motive for the killing is unknown, a police spokesperson is quoted in the Star newspaper as saying. But rights organisations in Kenya, where gay sex is outlawed, are linking it to his sexuality. One group estimates that more than half of LGBTQ Kenyans have been assaulted. “Words cannot even explain how we as a community are feeling right now. Another soul lost due to hate. You will be missed,” rights organisation galck+ posted on Twitter.

“Edwin’s death reminds us that queer bodies continue to be under attack all over the country,” the National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission wrote on Instagram. Tributes on social media describe Chiloba, who was in his mid-20s, as “an amazing human” and an “iconic fashion designer”.(BBC)…[+]