Key Storylines
- AFRICA: Cameroonian Government troops have rescued 11 kidnapped victims during a mopping-up operation in one of the two unstable English-speaking regions of the country, the army reported.
- AMERICAS: A U.S federal judge has refused to end Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s order limiting worship to as few as 10 congregants in communities seeing increases of COVID-19 infections.
- ASIA: Pro-democracy protesters in Thailand said they would defy an emergency decree banning gatherings for a third consecutive day after confrontations the previous night saw riot police use water cannons against the mainly young activists.
- EUROPE: Germany recorded 7,830 additional COVID-19 infections in the last 24-hour period, creating a new record as the highest daily figure since the pandemic began, the country’s Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for disease control reported.
- MIDDLE EAST: A U.S. guided-missile destroyer helped an Iranian-flagged vessel in distress in the Arabian Sea, an international maritime coalition said on October 16.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: Drones carrying PPE and COVID-19 test kits will soon move supplies between NHS hospitals after receiving support from the UK Space Agency.
Top Story
- New Zealand: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s Labour Party is on track for a landslide victory in the general election
- Early results put Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on course to win a second term, aided by her successful handling of the COVID-19 pandemic
- Labour is on track to win 66 of the 120 seats in the nation’s unicameral parliament, the majority by any party since New Zealand adopted a proportional voting system in 1996.
- NZ Electoral Commission results report that with 73% of votes counted, Labour has 49.1% of the votes, or 64 seats, with 26.9% for the opposition National Party, led by Judith Collins.
- Main opposition National Party leader Judith Collins conceded defeat in a speech to supporters in Auckland, saying she had spoken to Ardern earlier in the evening to congratulate her.
- Reporting: BBC, Reuters, Axios, Bloomberg
Africa
- Cameroon: Government troops have rescued 11 kidnapped victims during a mopping-up operation in one of the two unstable English-speaking regions of the country, the army reported. (Xinhua)
- Nigeria: The military confirmed that an unknown number of Boko Haram fighters were killed in airstrikes around the towns of Tudun Wulgo and Tumbun Gini in the restive northeast state of Borno. (Xinhua)
- Zimbabwe: Electricity generation in the nation declined by 39 percent in the first seven months of 2020, mainly due to reduced operating levels at the country’s major hydroelectric power plant, the country’s Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube reported. (Xinhua)
Americas
- Mexico: More than 10,000 doses of an influenza vaccine have been stolen from a distribution company in Mexico, one week after the theft of almost 38,000 units of cancer medications, authorities reported. (DPA)
- United States: A federal judge has refused to end Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s order limiting worship to as few as ten congregants in communities seeing increases of COVID-19 infections. (AP)
- United States: President Donald Trump will campaign in Michigan and Wisconsin before starting a tour of western states to shore up political support as he trails Democratic opponent Joe Biden in national polls. (Reuters)
Asia
- India: A local-level leader of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was assassinated in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, police reported. (Xinhua)
- South Korea: The nation expressed “deep regrets” over Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s sending of a ritual offering to a war shrine seen as a sign of Japan’s past militarism. (YNA)
- Thailand: Pro-democracy protesters said Saturday they would defy an emergency decree banning gatherings for a third consecutive day after confrontations the previous night saw riot police use water cannons against the mainly young activists. (AFP)
- Thailand: The nation has reported its first two locally transmitted cases of COVID-19 in more than one month, the COVID-19 administration center said. (Reuters)
Europe
- Austria: Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg has tested positive for COVID-19 and might have caught the disease at a meeting with his European Union counterparts on Monday, a spokeswoman for his ministry reported. (Reuters)
- Czech Republic: The nation is now facing the biggest surge in new COVID-19 per capita, reporting 11,105 COVID-19 cases, its largest single-day tally so far of the pandemic, Health Ministry data showcased. (Reuters)
- France: The man suspected of beheading a teacher who showed his students cartoons of the prophet Mohammed was an 18-year-old Chechnyan born in Moscow, a judicial source reported. (AFP)
- Germany: The nation recorded 7,830 additional COVID-19 infections in the last 24-hour period, marking a new record as the highest daily figure since the pandemic began, the country’s Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for disease control reported. (DPA)
Middle East
- Region: A U.S. guided-missile destroyer helped an Iranian-flagged vessel in distress in the Arabian Sea, an international maritime coalition said on October 16. (RFE)
- Lebanon: The nation marks the first anniversary of a non-sectarian protest movement that has rocked the political elite but has yet to achieve its goal of sweeping reform. (AFP)
Tech & Communications
- Aerospace: Drones carrying PPE and COVID-19 test kits will soon move supplies between NHS hospitals after receiving support from the UK Space Agency. (Telegraph)
World
- Cyclones: Nothing to report.
- Hurricanes: Nothing to report.
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
- Confirmed Cases as of 17OCT20:39,377,091
- Total Recovered Cases as of 17OCT20: 27,111,043
- Deaths as of 17OCT20: 1,105,090
- Countries with Confirmed Cases: 188
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- Ebola Virus Disease: DR Congo (11th Ebola outbreak figures from Equateur Province)
- Confirmed Cases as of 10OCT20: 119
- Probable Cases as of 10OCT20: 9
- Deaths as of 10OCT20: 53
- Sourcing: WHO
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
Tomorrow’s Outlook (18OCT20)
- Global: UNSC arms embargo on Iran to expire.
- Asia-Pacific: Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to begin his first official overseas trip to Vietnam and Indonesia.
- MENA: Israeli delegation to travel to Manama, Bahrain, in first official Israeli visit.
- Bolivia: Presidential and parliamentary elections
- Chile: Mass protests to be held.
- Cyprus: Northern Cyprus presidential elections run-off
- Guinea: Presidential elections
- Israel: Lifts nationwide lockdown
- South Asia: Pakistani Democratic Movement protesters to gather for an anti-corruption demonstration in Karachi.
- Saudi Arabia: Nation will expand Umrah pilgrim quota to 250,000.
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