This week in West Africa’s ongoing Ebola crisis, Sierra Leone announced that it would be enforcing quarantines that impact over one million people—more than a third of the country’s population. Public health officials warn that the disease’s rapid spread could make it a long-term fixture in the region, but others say that the disease is simply too deadly to take hold for long.

Ukraine’s President Petro O. Poroshenko announced that he would lead an effort to strengthen ties with the European Union, as well as to make economic strides and cut corruption. Poroshenko also claimed that the most dangerous part of its war with Russia is in the past. If reforms proceed as planned, Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, could apply to join the E.U. in as little as six years.

The Islamic State extremists (also known as ISIS or ISIL) publicly executed a female human rights’ lawyer after removing her from her home in Mosul and torturing her. Samira Salih al-Nuaimi was accused of “apostasy” after Facebook comments critiquing the terrorist group’s destruction of religious sites. According to the Pentagon, the U.S. along with two Arab allies attacked oil refineries and other sites critical to oil production in territories controlled by the Islamic State. Oil sold on the black market by the Islamic State could be generating profits of up to $1 million per day. Additional missile strikes in Syria on extremist training camps, among other targets, also took attacks on the Islamic State to a new level this week.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced his resignation, citing worries that he would remain locked in to the position for the remainder of President Obama’s years in office. Holder was the first black Attorney General in United States’ history, and his record on civil rights was praised by some but admonished by others who expected more from his tenure in the position. According to NPR, which first broke the story, a potential candidate for Holder’s soon-to-be vacated position is Solicitor General Don Verrilli, the Obama administration’s top representative to the Supreme Court.

In Ferguson, MO, Police Chief Thomas Jackson publicly apologized to the family of slain teen Michael Brown in a video released early last week. Brown’s death at the hands of police officer Darren Wilson in August sparked fierce protests and racial tensions, including outrage over the failure to remove Brown’s body from the street until four hours after his death; a failure which Jackson addressed in his apology. However, in a statement to CNN, Jackson announced he has no intention of resigning from his position.

The Navajo Nation is receiving $554 million in a settlement with the U.S. government over mismanaged resources and improper investment of proceeds from land leases. Tribal President Ben Shelly called the settlement “a victory for tribal sovereignty.” The settlement is the largest ever for a single tribe.

In the largest school board protest in history, 700 Jefferson County high school students in Denver, Colorado walked out on their classes in opposition of new policies and guidelines that would reward teachers for promoting “positive” aspects of U.S. history while discouraging conversation of topics found to be promoting, among other things, “civil disorder.”

Sources: Al-Jazeera, Washington Post, CBS News, Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, Vox, New York Times, Reuters, TIME, Associated Press, National Public Radio, CNN, The Denver Post, ABC News.