A group of five gunmen, members of the Somalia-based Islamist militant group al-Shabaab, attacked the DusitD2 hotel in Nairobi, Kenya, on Jan. 16, killing at least 21 people, including one American, and injuring 28. During a 19-hour siege, Kenyan security forces killed all five gunmen to stop the attack. Nine people were later arrested in Kenya under suspicion of being involved in the attack.

A statement later released by al-Shabaab said that the attack was in response to President...

Rallying against president Nicolás Maduro's government, more than a million protesters took to the streets in Venezuela's capital, Caracas, on Jan. 23, with smaller protests held in cities throughout the country. More than 40 people were reported killed during the protests, which continued at press time.

Maduro was sworn in for a second term on Jan. 10 after a vote that was widely viewed, internationally and domestically, as illegitimate. On Jan. 23, National Assembly and...

A car bomb was detonated outside of a police academy in Bogotá, Colombia, on Jan. 17, killing 20 people and injuring 38. Colombian authorities blamed the National Liberation Army (ELN), a rebel group that was engaged in peace talks with the government. Those talks were then suspended.

This was the first car bombing since Colombia made peace with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in 2016. The war with FARC had been the longest-running conflict in the world at the time...