Twin blasts near parliament offices in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul killed at least 30 people and wounded more than 80 on Tuesday morning (local time). A minibus carrying staff from the National Directorate of Security, Afghanistan's intelligence agency, was targeted in a crowded area during afternoon rush hour. The explosions were followed by another bomb attack in Kandahar that killed seven and wounded 18 including the UAE ambassador to Afghanistan. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the first two explosions, but no one has yet claimed responsibility for the Kandahar explosion.

Shang Fulin, chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC), said on Tuesday that priority must be given to preventing financial risk in areas such as non-performing loans, with tougher screening for risk. He also warned against the dangers of online financing and that rules governing this emerging sector must be strengthened. Reporting on the announcement, Xinhua News Agency noted that “while struggling to stabilize economic growth, Chinese authorities are increasingly taking note of financial risk associated with excess leverage and asset price swings.”

Dylann Roof, who killed nine people when he opened fire on a Bible study group of a historically black church in the US, has been sentenced to death. The massacre happened in 2015 in Charleston, South Carolina. Roof was convicted of 33 different counts connected to the attack, which the jury found to be racially motivated. Roof’s shooting spree led to a nationwide debate over race relations and the Confederate flag, after Roof was photographed holding the flag, a contentious Civil War symbol associated with slavery. It was removed from a number of public buildings in the wake of the massacre.

People suffering from work-related occupational illnesses will receive more welfare benefits following a newly issued plan also urging local governments and companies to strengthen preventive measures. The new rules are aimed at helping the more than 30,000 new cases per year in China of occupational illnesses such as pneumoconiosis (also known as black-lung disease) and exposure to radioactivity and harmful chemicals. The government will also provide a minimum living subsidy to some poor patients' families.

A Beijing court on Tuesday heard an appeal of a gay rights activist against China's Ministry of Education over a textbook that describes “homosexuality” as a "psychological disorder," and recommended "aversion therapy," to treat the “disorder.” The court case was not open to the public but the plaintiff, a senior at Sun Yat-sen University in south China's Guangdong Province, told the Global Times newspaper that the ministry admitted the textbook might exert "indirect influence" on her rights. The court has yet to make a ruling.

President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination for US Attorney General, Senator Jeff Sessions, has faced questions in a Senate confirmation hearing to approve his appointment. The senator had previously made several controversial statements regarding race and the Ku Klux Klan. At the hearing, he said, "I abhor the Klan and what it represents and its hateful ideology." On abortion, he said he disagreed with the landmark Roe vs Wade case but promised to defend access to abortion clinics. While many Democrats have expressed their opposition to his appointment, it appears they will be unlikely to block it.

The world football's supervisory and strategic body held its third meeting in Zurich on January 9 and 10, and decided on a new tournament format with 48 national teams split into 16 groups of three. The top two teams from each group will advance to a 32-team knockout stage. The new format is thought to increase Asian and African participation as more countries from those two continents can play in the finals. This should in turn make it more likely for China to play in the finals every four years.

The Chinese government has blocked Pokémon Go from coming to China – for now. The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television has blocked all augmented-reality location-based mobile games, of which Pokemon Go is the most famous. The government department cited “a high level of responsibility to national security and the safety of people's lives and property,” and “threat to geographical information security and the threat to transport and the personal safety of consumers,” as the reason for not licensing the games. It is also talking to other government departments to evaluate the risks associated with these types of games.