Key Storylines
- AFRICA: Voting officially started in Tanzania’s presidential election and is already marred by deadly violence and opposition accusations of manipulation.
- AMERICAS: Tropical Storm Zeta is set to make landfall upon the US Gulf Coast as a hurricane.
- ASIA: The Australian city of Melbourne, the country’s second-largest, emerged from a 111-day long coronavirus lockdown.
- EUROPE: French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to announce some form of new coronavirus lockdown amid a growing coronavirus death toll and a fast-rising tide of virus patients filling hospitals across the country.
- MIDDLE EAST: Qatar issued an apology for its authorities forcibly examining passengers on a flight heading towards Australia.
- TECH & COMMUNICATIONS: US President Donald Trump’s election campaign website was “defaced” by an “attack”, as his campaign said it was working with law enforcement to identify who was behind the incident.
Top Story
- Europe: Turkish leaders condemn French caricature of Turkey’s Erdogan.
- Turkey’s government condemned France’s Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine for “cultural racism” after the satirical magazine mocked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the cover of its latest issue.
- Turkish government officials also accused Charlie Hebdo’s cover of sowing “the seeds of hatred and animosity.”, and accused French President Emmanuel Macron of an “anti-Muslim agenda”.
- Additionally, the office of Turkish President Erdogan said “that necessary legal and diplomatic actions will be taken against this cartoon”.
- Turkey and France are involved in a row in recent weeks after Ankara took umbrage at President Macron’s recent characterization of Islam as a religion “in crisis”, as well as after Paris took anti-Islamist measures following the beheading of a teacher who showed his class a photo of the Prophet Muhammed.
- Turkish President Erdogan also sought to lead the criticism of France by Muslim countries among anti-France protests and condemnations of France by political leaders across the Muslim world after French President Macron took measures to protect his country’s secular values against radical Islam.
- Reporting: Reuters, Bloomberg, AP, AFP, DPA, BBC, NYT
Africa
- Egypt: President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said freedom of expression stops if it offends 1.5 billion people across the world, referring to the recent extremist killing of a teacher in France who showed his class an image of the Prophet Muhammed. (Reuters)
- Libya: The UN Security Council ratified the recently agreed ceasefire agreement between the country’s warring factions. (AFP)
- South Africa: President Cyril Ramaphosa is self-quarantining after coming into contact with a COVID-19 positive person at a dinner last weekend. (DPA)
- Tanzania: Voting officially started in the country’s presidential election and is already marred by deadly violence and opposition accusations of manipulation. (AP)
Americas
- Bolivia: Exiled former President Evo Morales urged for calm in the country after a group of right-wing protesters demanded a “military junta” be installed in place of socialist president-elect Luis Arce’s government. (AFP)
- Canada: The lawyers of Huawei official Meng Wanzhou questioned a federal policeman on why he waited for three hours before arresting the Huawei executive on a US warrant. (AFP)
- Nicaragua: The country’s legislature voted in favor of a controversial proposed law mandating prison sentences for those who use online platforms to spread false information. (AP)
- United States: Tropical Storm Zeta is set to make landfall upon the country’s Gulf Coast as a hurricane. (AP)
- Venezuela: Opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez, who escaped to self-exile in Spain from the Spanish embassy in capital city Caracas, pledged to fight to “free” the country. (AP)
Asia
- Region: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said China was operating as a “predator” in Sri Lanka at the beginning of his visit to the island nation. (Reuters)
- Region: Australia announced that the Pacific island country of Palau will build an undersea telecoms cable that will be jointly-financed by Australia, Japan, and the US. (Reuters)
- Australia: The city of Melbourne, the country’s second-largest, emerged from a 111-day long coronavirus lockdown. (NYT)
- China: Senior government official Li Gao accused the US of breaking promises and deflecting blame in the fight against climate change. (Reuters)
Europe
- Region: Paris’s Charles de Gaulle airport overtook London’s Heathrow airport to become Europe’s largest airport amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. (Guardian)
- Region: The WHO said that Europe’s daily coronavirus deaths rose by almost 40% compared to the previous week, with France, Spain, the UK, the Netherlands, and Russia accounting for most cases. (BBC)
- France: President Emmanuel Macron is expected to announce some form of new coronavirus lockdown amid a growing coronavirus death toll and a fast-rising tide of virus patients filling hospitals across the country. (AP)
- Germany: Chancellor Angela Merkel is set to pursue new coronavirus measures restrictions such as fresh shutdowns on the leisure, sports and food and drink sectors, at a meeting with the country’s state premiers. (AFP)
- Poland: A women’s strike is being held in the country by those opposed to the recent court ruling that introduced a near-total ban on abortion in the country. (BBC)
Middle East
- Region: Israel and Lebanon started the second round of UN and US-backed discussions over their maritime border disputes. (AFP)
- Iran: International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Grossi said the country started building an underground centrifuge assembly plant near the Natanz nuclear facility. (RFE-RL)
- Israel: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office indicated that the US is set to lift its ban on US funding of the country’s research projects in the West Bank and Golan Heights regions. (Reuters)
- Qatar: Doha issued an apology for its authorities forcibly examining passengers on a flight heading towards Australia. (AP)
Tech & Communications
- Cybersecurity: US President Donald Trump’s election campaign website was “defaced” by an “attack”, as his campaign said it was working with law enforcement to identify who was behind the incident. (Guardian)
World
- Cyclones:
- Typhoon Molave
- Location: 38 nautical miles S-SE of Da Nang, Vietnam
- Wind: 80 mph
- Movement: W-NW at 14 mph
- Map
- Typhoon Molave
- Hurricanes:
- Tropical Storm Zeta
- Location: 355 miles S-SW of New Orleans, Louisiana
- Wind: 85 mph
- Movement: N-NW at 15 mph
- Map
- Tropical Storm Zeta
- Earthquakes: Nothing to report.
- Volcanoes: Nothing to report.
- Global Disease Outbreaks:
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
- Confirmed Cases as of 28OCT20: 44,010,870
- Total Recovered Cases as of 28OCT20: 29,825,804
- Deaths as of 28OCT20: 1,167,817
- Countries with Confirmed Cases: 189
- Sourcing: John Hopkins University
- Ebola Virus Disease: DR Congo (11th Ebola outbreak figures from Equateur Province)
- Confirmed Cases as of 17OCT20: 119
- Probable Cases as of 17OCT20: 9
- Deaths as of 17OCT20: 53
- Sourcing: WHO
- COVID-19 Coronavirus Disease: Global
Tomorrow’s Outlook (29OCT20)
- Global: The UN Security Council will hold its annual debate on women, peace and security.
- Global: Sunni Muslims will observe the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, amid growing tensions between France and the Islamic world.
- Asia: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Indonesia. (to 30OCT)
- Asia: The US and Vietnam government-sponsored Indo-Pacific Business Forum will be held virtually.
- Europe: The leaders of EU member countries will hold virtual informal discussions on the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic.
- Europe: The European Central Bank will make an interest rate announcement.
- Europe: The Transport Ministers of EU member states will hold a meeting.
- Bangladesh: A protest against French President Emmanuel Macron could potentially be held.
- China: The 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party will hold its 5th plenary session.
- China: The Defense Ministry is expected to hold a press conference.
- Denmark: New face mask requirements will take effect.
- Japan: The Bank of Japan will announce a monetary policy decision.
- Jordan: The country will reopen its borders with Saudi Arabia and Israel. (to 31OCT)
- Norway: New coronavirus measures and restrictions for capital city Oslo will take effect.
- Russia: President Vladimir Putin is expected to speak at the VTB Capital Investment Forum.
- Spain: Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is expected to ask Parliament to extend the country’s coronavirus state of emergency to May 2021.
- Turkey: Republic Day – 1923
- United Kingdom: The government and the EU will resume Brexit discussions.
- United States: The government is expected to publish its GDP data for Q3 2020.
- United States: The German Marshall Fund of the United States will host an online discussion with Greece’s Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos.
- United States: Ireland’s Ambassador to Washington Daniel Mulhall will discuss Brexit during a CSIS think-tank online event.
- United States: Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf and other government officials will take part in a press conference on the completion of 400 miles of a border wall.
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