Cambodia: Cambodia, Rwanda sign deals on bilateral consultations, enhance exchanges<\/a><\/span> Indonesia: Indonesia\u2019s Semeru volcano erupts, alert level raised to highest<\/a><\/span> Japan: Stimulus package tops 20 trillion yen, post-COVID high<\/a><\/span> Japan: Japan warns citizens in China about safety as diplomatic crisis deepens<\/a><\/span> Myanmar: Raids by Myanmar junta troops displace tens of thousands in northern Magway Region<\/a><\/span> North Korea: Kim Jong Un opens 1st \u2018modern\u2019 hospital outside capital, vows 20 more next year<\/a><\/span> South Korea: South Korea, Egypt seek stronger defense industry ties<\/a><\/span> Taiwan: China-Japan spat over Taiwan contingency unlikely to end soon: NSB report<\/a><\/span> Tonga: King Tupou VI to meet President Xi Jinping in China<\/a><\/span> Denmark: Centre-left tipped to lose Copenhagen for first time in electoral history<\/a><\/span> EU: Europe pledges over \u20ac15bn for clean energy for Africa<\/a><\/span> Europe: Drug boats from Venezuela are mainly moving cocaine to Europe – not fentanyl to the U.S., experts say<\/a><\/span> Europe: Multiple people hospitalized after virus spreads across Europe<\/a><\/span> Europe: Airbus chair calls on Europe to acquire tactical nuclear weapons<\/a><\/span> Germany: Ford\u2019s final Focus rolls off the line in quiet farewell<\/a><\/span> Kosovo: Kosovo president dissolves parliament after 2nd attempt to form new government failed<\/a><\/span> Kosovo: Kosovo\u2019s Chief Prosecutor Sacked Amid Wartime Massacre Probe Allegations<\/a><\/span> Poland: Foreign state services behind Polish rail sabotage, says minister – as it happened<\/a><\/span> Portugal: Antonio Costa wiretapped in Portugal without court approval<\/a><\/span> Romania scrambles fighter jets after drone breach during Russian strike on Ukraine<\/a><\/span> Spain rolls out $946 mln Ukraine aid package during Zelenskiy visit<\/a><\/span> Ukraine\/Russia\/United States: Trump says Ukraine deal is not \u2018final offer\u2019 as officials gather for Geneva summit<\/a><\/span> Israel: Huckabee Held Meeting at U.S. Embassy With American Who Spied for Israel<\/a><\/span> Lebanon: Lebanon arrests alleged drug kingpin sanctioned by US State Department<\/a><\/span> Palestine: Israel troops launch new ground invasion over Gaza\u2019s \u2018yellow line\u2019<\/a><\/span> Syria: A Grave Violation: Syrian Foreign Ministry Condemns Netanyahu\u2019s Visit to Southern Syrian Territories<\/a><\/span> Saudi Arabia: MBS tells Trump he wants to join Abraham Accords, but path to Palestinian state crucial<\/a><\/span> Africa: AU Under Scrutiny Over Inability to Prevent Wave of Coups<\/a><\/span> Africa: China\u2019s DeepSeek Chatbot Expansion in Africa Raises Alarms<\/a><\/span> Kenya: Coordinated Efforts Lead Kenya to Major Drug Bust<\/a><\/span> Mali: JNIM Blocks Mali\u2019s Fuel Supply, Driving Insecurity<\/a><\/span> Nigeria: Refutes U.S. Lawmaker Claims On Abducted Girls’ Faith<\/a><\/span> South Africa: Gender-based violence and femicide declared a national disaster<\/a><\/span> South Africa: Massive Women’s Protest in South Africa Exposes Violence Crisis<\/a><\/span> South Africa: South Africa to refuse charter flights of Palestinians over fears of ‘cleansing agenda’<\/a><\/span> Afghanistan: WFP warns of deepening hunger crisis amid funding shortfall<\/a><\/span> Kyrgyzstan: Protests in Kyrgyzstan have intensified protests against China<\/a><\/span> Pakistan: Pakistani forces kill 23 fighters in wave of Afghan border raids<\/a><\/span> Ecuador: Ecuadorian Voters Vote Against the Return of U.S. Military Bases to Tackle Drug Violence<\/a><\/span>
\nKhmer Times (Cambodia)<\/em>
\nCambodia and Rwanda have signed two deals\u00a0establishing\u00a0bilateral consultations and granting visa exemptions to holders of diplomatic and official or service passports, said a press release from Cambodia\u2019s foreign ministry on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\nAl Jazeera (Qatar)<\/em>
\nIndonesia\u2019s\u00a0Semeru\u00a0volcano has erupted, unleashing fast-moving pyroclastic flows as the country\u2019s volcanology agency increased the alert level of Java island\u2019s tallest mountain to the highest.\u00a0The volcano spewed ash clouds as tall as 5.6km (3.48 miles) into the sky, the agency said on Wednesday, adding that residents should stay a 2.5km (1.55-mile) distance away due to risks.<\/p>\n
\nAsahi Shimbun (Japan)<\/em>
\nThe government is preparing a comprehensive economic stimulus package worth more than 20 trillion yen ($128 billion), including major tax cuts, in what is expected to be the largest measure to date after the COVID-19 pandemic.\u00a0Officials confirmed on Nov. 19 that the plan will include raising the income tax threshold and abolishing the long-standing\u00a0additional\u00a0gasoline tax rate.<\/p>\n
\nReuters (United Kingdom)\u00a0<\/em>
\nFollowing comments made by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi regarding Japan\u2019s survival in relation to Taiwan, the Japanese embassy in China has urged citizens to take extreme caution and to respect local customs when in China. In response to the comments, Beijing has urged its own citizens to not travel to Japan and has suspended upcoming Japanese film releases in mainland China.<\/p>\n
\nMyanmar Now (Myanmar)<\/em>
\nVillagers fled their homes as three columns of soldiers rampaged through northern Pauk Township near one of the regime\u2019s many armaments factories in the region.<\/p>\n
\nNK News (United States)<\/em>
\nThe North\u00a0Korean leader attends inauguration near\u00a0a\u00a0key military\u00a0town, though\u00a0the facility\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0yet appear\u00a0fully equipped.\u00a0North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended an inauguration ceremony Monday for the\u00a0Kangdong\u00a0County Hospital, according to\u00a0state media, calling it the first \u201cmodern\u201d health facility outside Pyongyang.<\/p>\n
\nKorea Herald (South Korea)<\/em>
\nEgyptian President Abdel Fattah\u00a0el-Sissi received President Lee Jae Myung during his official visit to the Middle Eastern country on Thursday to discuss deeper bilateral ties, with the Korean president stressing the importance of peace in the Middle East and broader defense industry cooperation.\u00a0At a joint press conference held by the two leaders after the summit in Cairo, Lee described both South Korea and Egypt as “peace promoters” who jointly contribute to international peace, including the Korean Peninsula and the Middle East.<\/p>\n
\nFocus Taiwan (Taiwan)<\/em>
\nChina is strongly responding to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi\u2019s statements around the country\u2019s possible actions of a Chinese blockade of Taiwan, remarking that the event could spark a \u201csurvival-threatening situation\u201d and implied to usage of Japan\u2019s Self-Defense Forces.<\/p>\n
\nMatangi (Tonga)<\/em>
\nKing Tupou VI of Tonga is in China at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping to hold a conversation about \u201can in-depth exchange of views on bilateral relations and issues of mutual interest.\u201d<\/p>\nEurope & Eurasia<\/h3>\n
\nThe Guardian (United Kingdom)<\/em>
\nThe\u00a0center-left could lose control of Copenhagen for the first time in the city\u2019s electoral history as residents of the Danish capital go to the polls amid growing disillusionment with the divisive politics of the prime minister.<\/p>\n
\nYahoo News (United States)<\/em>
\nThe campaign, organized in collaboration with the international advocacy organization Global Citizen and with the policy support of the International Energy Agency, is aimed at driving public and private investment in supporting the clean energy transition in Africa, expanding access to electricity, and promoting Africa’s sustainable economic growth.<\/p>\n
\nNBC News (United States)\u00a0<\/em>
\nDrug cartels operating vessels in the Caribbean, where\u00a0roughly 50%\u00a0recent US airstrikes have taken place, are\u00a0mainly moving\u00a0cocaine from South America to Europe \u2014 not to the United States, according to current and former U.S. law enforcement and military officials as well as narcotics experts.<\/p>\n
\nThe Independent (United Kingdom)\u00a0<\/em>
\nA potentially lethal mpox variant, clade 1b, is spreading across Europe, with at least 45 cases recorded since August, leading to hospitalizations. An effective vaccine is available.<\/p>\n
\nReuters (United Kingdom)\u00a0<\/em>
\nRene Obermann, the chair of Airbus, has called upon European nations to expand their nuclear deterrence by acquiring tactical nuclear weapons in response to the deployment of Russian Iskander missiles in Kaliningrad. Obermann has expressed concern regarding the escalation of nuclear weapons deployment on top of those recently stationed in Belarus.<\/p>\n
\nAutomotive News (Germany)\u00a0<\/em>
\nFord has ended car production in Saarlouis, Germany, after 55 years, without offering any public comment on the milestone.<\/p>\n
\nAnadolu Agency (T\u00fcrkiye)\u00a0<\/em>
\nFollowing repeated failures to confirm a cabinet, the president moved toward snap elections, deepening the country\u2019s internal political deadlock.<\/p>\n
\nBalkan Insight (Serbia)\u00a0<\/em>
\nThe dismissal has triggered fierce domestic arguments over judicial independence and political interference in\u00a0war crime\u00a0cases.<\/p>\n
\nThe Guardian (United Kingdom)\u00a0<\/em>
\nThe government\u2019s announcement of suspects has escalated internal debate about border policy, intelligence failures, and Poland\u2019s political exposure to \u201chybrid war.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nEuronews (France)\u00a0<\/em>
\nCosta, the former PM of Portugal and current president of the European Council, was under investigation for influence peddling,\u00a0embezzlement\u00a0and fraud. According to his chief of staff, he has unblocked concession files for mining operations.<\/p>\n
\nReuters (United Kingdom)\u00a0<\/em>
\nThe Romanian government scrambled two Eurofighters and two Romanian F-16s to the counties of Tulcea and Galati when Russian drones were first detected 8km inside Romanian airspace. There were no reports of Russian drones hitting ground within Romania\u2019s territory.<\/p>\n
\nReuters (United Kingdom)<\/em>
\nSpain has pledged 817 million euros in an aid package for Ukraine, with the bulk of the aid going toward procuring defense equipment through the NATO PURL initiative and as credits for companies investing in the reconstruction of Ukrainian infrastructure.<\/p>\n
\nThe Guardian (United Kingdom)\u00a0<\/em>
\nThe Trump Administration has proposed a 28-point peace plan for the ongoing war in Ukraine. The proposed plan has been met with extreme criticism by Ukrainians, many of whom see the deal as granting amnesty to Russia and crossing many of Ukraine\u2019s red lines. The deal also faced backlash in the US following reports that the deal was a \u201cwish list of the Russians.\u201d The plan is being discussed in Geneva alongside European security partners.<\/p>\nNear East<\/h3>\n
\nThe New York Times (USA)<\/em>
\nAmbassador Mike Huckabee hosted a meeting at the US embassy in Jerusalem with Jonathan Pollard, the former spy who gave reams of classified American documents to Israel. The meeting\u00a0reportedly took\u00a0place in July. It is notable because Pollard served 30 years in a US prison following a high-profile conviction.<\/p>\n
\nAl Jazeera (Qatar)<\/em>
\nThe Lebanese army has detained the country\u2019s most infamous drug lord, two years after he was sanctioned by the United States over suspected links to narcotics rings in Syria.\u00a0The Lebanese army confirmed they had arrested a citizen with the initials \u201cNZ\u201d,\u00a0and three security sources confirmed to the Reuters news agency that the individual in question was the\u00a0fugitive,\u00a0Noah\u00a0Zaitar.<\/p>\n
\nAl Jazeera (Qatar)<\/em>
\nPalestinians in northern Gaza neighborhoods are surrounded and running for their lives after Israel\u2019s army launched a ground invasion into no-go areas under the US-brokered ceasefire.<\/p>\n
\nThe Syrian Observer (Syria)<\/em>
\nSyria issued a condemnation on Tuesday of a visit made by Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel to a region in Southern Syria. Syria described the visit as an unlawful incursion and a blatant violation of Syria\u2019s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Israel moved to grab the chunk of land during the recent transition of power in Syria.<\/p>\n
\nThe Times of Israel (Israel)<\/em>
\nSaudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said Tuesday during his White House meeting with US President Donald Trump that Riyadh wants to join the\u00a0Abraham Accords but\u00a0calls for the need to secure a path towards a two-state solution.<\/p>\nSub-Saharan Africa<\/h3>\n
\nAfrica Defense Forum (Nigeria)<\/em>
\nIn response to the coup in Madagascar led by Col. Michael Randrianirina and his subsequent swearing in on October 17, the African Union (AU) suspended the country’s membership to the organization. This act by the AU has led to criticism of the organization’s protocol for dealing with coups, with security analysts like Fidel Amakye Owusu citing reactionary measures that lack proactivity. Other critics point to the AU’s limitations in ensuring that acts such as coups face repercussions or accountability, with the usual suspensions and sanctions failing to safeguard democratic norms.<\/p>\n
\nAfrica Defense Forum (Nigeria)<\/em>
\nChina has provided a cheaper alternative to other AI models, like ChatGBT, for African users. Partnering with Chinese hedge fund High-Flyer, China\u2019s Huawei Technologies Co. offers DeepSeekAI to African companies in exchange for the operating systems that store users’ information, which the Chinese government can access. Privacy advocates fear that Huawei can use this stored data to aid African authoritarian governments in spying on citizens.<\/p>\n
\nAfrica Defense Forum (Nigeria)<\/em>
\nIn Mombasa, Kenya, six Iranian nationals were arrested and charged with Drug trafficking charges on October 25, 2025. Following a tip from the National Police Service about a suspicious vessel in Kenyan waters, a joint operation involving regional and international partners ensued. Kenyan Marine commandos intercepted the vessel called the Mashallah, which had previously avoided interception efforts in the western Indian Ocean, and seized\u00a01,024 kilograms\u00a0of methamphetamine, worth $63 million.<\/p>\n
\nAfrica Defense Forum (Nigeria)<\/em>
\nThe terror group\u00a0Jama\u2019at\u00a0Nusrat al-Islam\u00a0wal-Muslimin (JNIM) has attacked and stopped hundreds of fuel supply trucks arriving from C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire and Senegal in Mali since declaring in September that it would do so. The country is now facing a fuel shortage that is\u00a0exacerbating\u00a0the weakening economy, with educational institutions shutting down due to power failures. Given the lack of international powers, JNIM and other terror groups have seized the opportunity to blockade the capital Bamako, with many fearing that the fall of the military junta is inevitable.<\/p>\n
\nallAfrica (United States)<\/em>
\nFollowing an attack in Kebbi State in Northwestern Nigeria in which twenty-five schoolgirls were abducted, U.S. lawmaker Miley Moore posted on X, formerly Twitter, that this kidnapping happened in a Christian enclave and urged the Nigerian government to act more. These claims were challenged by local Kebbi state officials, who claimed Moore’s comment was misleading and dangerous at a time when they were trying to get the girls released.<\/p>\n
\nNews24 (South Africa)<\/em>
\nDuring the G20 social summit, which South Africa is hosting this year, President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) a national disaster. Confirmed by the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta)\u00a0Velenkosini\u00a0Hlabisa, this moment has been described as a victory by the non-profit Organization, Women for Change, which organized a national shutdown with thousands of women participants.<\/p>\n
\nallAfrica (United States)<\/em>
\nAs gender-based violence (GBV) spreads across South Africa, women’s rights groups have organized a nationwide movement that became the “G20 Women’s Shutdown”. The National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC) has\u00a0stated\u00a0that declaring\u00a0GBV as\u00a0a national disaster is not supported by the legal framework. This shutdown called for women to refrain from working or attending school, to not contribute to the economy for a day, wear black in solidarity, and lie down at noon for 15 minutes in honor of victims of GBV.<\/p>\n
\nBBC (United Kingdom)<\/em>
\nThe South African government has refused to receive more chartered flights of Palestinians after the arrival of flight carrying 153 people from Gaza arrived under disputed and unclear circumstances. While Palestinians can travel to South Africa for 90 days without visas, the government fears that this ongoing effort is part of a campaign of forced relocation of Palestinians by Israel.<\/p>\nSouth & Central Asia<\/h3>\n
\nAl Jazeera (Qatar)<\/em>
\nRising food security levels predicted for 2026 around the world with Afghanistan as one of the\u00a0main areas\u00a0of concern.<\/p>\n
\nAzattyq (Kazakhstan)<\/em>
\nThere has been increasing conflict between Chinese and Kyrgyz workers in Kyrgyzstan, leading to anti-China protests on social media platforms and the arrest of 16 people.<\/p>\n
\nAl Jazeera (Qatar)<\/em>
\nAs tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan continue, Pakistan launched two raids near the Afghan border resulting in multiple deaths.<\/p>\nWestern Hemisphere<\/h3>\n
\nAl Jazeera (Qatar)<\/em>
\nAs right-wing President Daniel Noboa pushed for direct military intervention by the U.S. to combat the only spiraling drug-fueled crisis in the country. An estimated\u00a014 million people\u00a0had cast\u00a0their ballots this last Sunday as to whether to overturn or defend the constitutional ban on military bases in the country. It was not only\u00a0just about a\u00a0crackdown on drugs as the decision\u00a0would\u2019ve\u00a0had an impact on the number of lawmakers that\u00a0would’ve\u00a0certainly been reduced if citizens voted to overturn the ban. Voters also rejected measures to cut public funding for political parties and create a constitutional assembly to rewrite the country\u2019s constitution.<\/p>\n