Three members of the controversial Oxfam Haiti team that was under investigation for sexual exploitation and other breaches physically threatened a colleague to ensure that person’s silence, according to the charity’s own inquiry into the claims. The confidential report, finally released on Monday as part of Oxfam’s efforts to draw a line under the crisis that has engulfed it for a week, contains damning new details of serious misconduct in Oxfam’s operations following Haiti’s devastating earthquake.

In addition to the breaches of using sex workers and physical threats, a staff member was dismissed for using the charity’s computing equipment to download “pornographic and illegal material” to a laptop. The Guardian understands the “illegal material” to have been pirated videos. A copy of the report – with the names of former employees who were dismissed following the scandal redacted – includes details of how the allegations came to light and of Oxfam’s investigative process, which included interviews with some 40 witnesses.(theguardian)…[+]

Brazilian president Michel Temer has signed a decree putting the military in charge of security in Rio de Janeiro, following a rise in street crime and drug gang violence.

Massed robberies and gunfights during carnival, followed by a storm that killed four and caused chaos, have heightened a sense that the city is slipping out of control. “I am taking this extreme measure because the circumstances demand it,” Temer said after signing the decree on Friday. “Enough.” The army has operated in Rio during the last year and did so during the Olympics and the World Cup. But Temer’s decree will also put the army in charge of the city’s police force – the first time Brazil has taken such a decision since it introduced a new constitution in 1988 following two decades of military dictatorship.It takes immediate effect, though a vote in Congress could overturn it, and lasts until the end of the year. Security in Brazil is normally under the control of individual states. It will now be run by General Walter Braga Netto, who helped coordinate security during the Olympics two years ago, local media reported.

“It is a recognition that there is serious instability in the state of Rio de Janeiro,” said Roberto Dias, a professor of constitutional law at the Getulio Vargas Foundation in São Paulo. “It is very serious to suspend the autonomy of a state because the rule in a federation is autonomy.”(Theguardian)…[+]

Cyril Ramaphosa invoked the memory and message of Nelson Mandela as he pledged to restore economic growth, fight corruption and tackle entrenched inequality in South Africa in the first major speech of his presidency on Friday.

“Guided by [Mandela’s] example, we will use this year to reinforce our commitment to ethical behaviour as well as ethical leadership. We are not merely honouring the past but building the future … South Africa belongs to all who live in it,” Ramaphosa, 65, said. “It is a new dawn that is inspired by our collective memory of Nelson Mandela and the changes that are unfolding … We will build a new nation and confront the injustices of the past and the inequalities of the present.” The former deputy president was sworn in as head of state hours after being elected unanimously by parliament to replace Jacob Zuma, who resigned late on Wednesday following accusations of corruption and economic mismanagement.(theguardian)…[+]

The FBI admitted on Friday it failed to investigate a specific report in January that Nikolas Cruz could be plotting a school shooting. The agency said the tip should have been investigated thoroughly because it was a “potential threat to life”. Cruz was arrested on Wednesday and has since been charged with murdering 17 people at a high school this week. On 5 January, a tipster who was close to Cruz called the FBI and provided information about Cruz’s guns, desire to kill people, erratic behavior and disturbing social media posts. The FBI says the caller expressed concerns Cruz could attack a school.

Jeff Sessions, the US attorney general, issued a curt statement after the FBI admission saying that warnings signs had been missed with “tragic consequences”. He said: “We must do better.” Sessions said he had ordered a department of justice review of how the FBI and DOJ respond to indications of potential violence. The review would consult family members, mental health officials, school officials and local law enforcers, he said.(theguardian)…[+]

The treatment of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, the British-Iranian woman serving a five-year jail sentence in Tehran, amounts to torture, her family have claimed in an appeal to the UN. Richard Ratcliffe, who has resumed campaigning for his wife’s release after promises of an early release or a furlough were unfulfilled, said that a submission had been presented to the UN special rapporteur on torture.It has outlined why in their view her 22 months of imprisonment over allegations of spying amounted to torture, given “the conditions of solitary confinement, the psychological pressures in the arbitrary detention and court proceedings, and her use as a tool of pressure in wider diplomatic affairs”.  Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who had been accused of running “a BBC Persian online journalism course” and seeking a “soft overthrow” of the Islamic republic, was arrested in April 2016 at a Tehran airport while she and her then 22-month-old daughter, Gabriella, were about to return to the UK after a family visit.(theguardian)…[+]

Donald Trump should treat people – especially women – with more respect, and continue investments in poorer countries for the sake of global security, the world’s leading philanthropic couple Bill and Melinda Gates said on Tuesday. In remarks accompanying the annual letter to the public about global development issued by their philanthropic foundation, Melinda Gates said: “I wish our president would treat people, and especially women, with more respect when he speaks and tweets.”

And Bill Gates warned that the proposed Trump administration budget could directly lead to millions of preventable deaths around the globe, due to proposed vast cuts to foreign aid and development funds. “US generosity: if that goes away, even a 10% cut would mean 5 million deaths over the next decade,” he said at an event with his wife to launch the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s 2018 letter. The Trump administration, as it did last year, proposed billions of dollars in cuts to foreign aid, which makes up less than 1% of US spending, in its 2019 budget outline. Last year, lawmakers in Congress from both parties mostly ignored the request, and Gates said he hoped they would again this year too.(theguardian)…[+]

Benjamin Netanyahu has described a police report on allegations of bribery and fraud against him as “full of holes, like Swiss cheese”, as he fights for his political life. Following a 14-month investigation into two cases of alleged corruption, police recommended on Tuesday evening that the Israeli prime minister be indicted on charges of bribery and breach of trust.

Israel’s attorney general will examine the evidence and then – possibly in several months’ time – decide whether to issue an indictment. Speaking in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, Netanyahu said the police report was misleading and “contrary to the truth and logic”. “I want to reassure you, the coalition is stable,” he said of his government in response to rumours that political allies might abandon him. He promised to serve his full term until the end of 2019 and dismissed talk of an early election.(NU.nl)…[+]

President Rodrigo Duterte has been branded a misogynist and “macho-fascist” after he ordered soldiers to shoot female communist rebels in the vagina.In a speech to over 200 former communist soldiers in Malacañang last week, the Philippines president gave a directive of what to do with female guerrilla fighters.

“‘There’s a new order coming from the mayor, ‘We will not kill you. We will just shoot you in the vagina,’ ” said Duterte. He went on to say that without their vaginas, women would be “useless”. Duterte mentioned the Visayan word “bisong”, meaning vagina, repeatedly throughout the speech, although it was later censored from an official Palace transcript, replaced simply with a dash. However, the remarks were recorded as having drawn laughter from the audience. The crude orders drew anger from human rights organisations and women’s groups in the region.(theguardian)…[+]

The purchase of thousands of new guns by the Bosnian Serb police has raised concerns over the intentions of the separatist-led regional government and deepening Russian influence in a divided and economically depressed nation. A shipment of 2,500 automatic rifles from Serbia is due to arrive in the Serb-run half of Bosnia in March, weeks before the scheduled opening of a new training centre where Russian advisers are expected to play a role.The weapons are arriving at a time when Bosnia’s long-term stability is in doubt. The Dayton peace agreement ended the Bosnian conflict just over 22 years ago, dividing the country into two semi-autonomous parts: the Republika Srpska (RS) and a Muslim-Croat Federation. The deal stopped the killing but created a system that rewarded ethnically based politics. Nationalist parties have a tight grip on power in their separate fiefdoms, corruption is rife, and the country has the highest official rate of youth unemployment in the world.(theguardian)…[+]

A teenage Palestinian protester filmed slapping and kicking two soldiers outside her home has appeared before an Israeli military court to face various charges including assaulting security forces, incitement and throwing stones.Ahed Tamimi, who turned 17 in jail last month, arrived on Tuesday morning for the first day of what could be a months-long trial, in what has become a symbolic case in the battle for international public opinion.The judge ordered a closed-door hearing and ejected a large group of journalists who had gathered at the Ofer military base, despite a request by Tamimi’s lawyer for the media to be able to observe proceedings.Tamimi’s supporters say the incident in December occurred soon after she discovered Israeli troops had seriously wounded her 15-year-old cousin, who was shot in the head with a rubber bullet during a stone-throwing clash.(theguardian)…[+]