ON TREND

After months of protests, France will prohibit face coverings and even specific people from rallies. from BBC News - World https://bbc.in/2D0jVbQ

The bomber who blew himself up outside a Nairobi hotel last week, launching an attack that killed 21 people, was already so well-known to Kenyan police that they had emblazoned his face across billboards under the slogan "WANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE". from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2DK0Egn

The European Union can offer Britain more assurances over the Irish border 'backstop' in a political declaration on post-Brexit ties if London moves toward accepting a permanent customs union, a leading EU lawmaker dealing with Brexit said. from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2UBjdZN

Britain's parliament is likely to abandon plans for a 10-day break in February, House of Commons leader Andrea Leadsom warned lawmakers on Thursday, as the country's March 29 exit from the European Union draws nearer. from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2DLnQe4

Flames from gas-fed heaters stop snow and ice from clogging up the track at railway intersections. from BBC News - World https://bbc.in/2RsdKSK

Creating artworks from ARV bottles and old pills to encourage Ugandans to take their medicine. from BBC News - World https://bbc.in/2ToJ5HM

Russia will host the Taliban and Afghan politicians opposed to President Ashraf Ghani on Tuesday, Russian and Taliban sources said, promoting its role of power broker in what a U.S. official called an attempt to "muddle" the U.S.-backed peace process. from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2Gd0Wh9