World

Putin agrees to cooperate with Pope Leo's plea for aid for Ukrainian town

VATICAN CITY, Oct 16 (Reuters) - ⁠President Vladimir Putin told Pope Leo he had agreed to cooperate after the ⁠pontiff asked him on Friday to help get vital supplies into the Russian-controlled ‌Ukrainian town of Oleshky, the Kremlin said.

World

Zambia launches oral cholera vaccination campaign to contain outbreak

LUSAKA, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Zambia on Friday launched an oral cholera vaccination campaign targeting Lusaka, the capital and epicenter of the current outbreak, alongside Chibombo District in the country's Central Province.

World

Zambian participants hail China-backed agricultural mechanization training

LUSAKA, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Participants in a China-aided agricultural mechanization training program in Lusaka hailed the initiative on Friday, saying it will help Zambia modernize its agricultural sector.

World

Putin says Russia is building non-negotiable 'security zone' in Ukraine along border

MOSCOW, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Russia is establishing ⁠a "security zone" inside Ukraine along their border, which will be non-negotiable in any future talks with ⁠Kyiv, President Vladimir Putin said on Friday.

World

Namibia seeks Chinese farm technology, investment to boost food security

WINDHOEK, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Namibia seeks closer agricultural cooperation with China's Sichuan Province to improve food security and productivity through technology transfer and local investment, the country's agriculture minister said Friday.

World

South China's Guangdong unveils investigation report on fire accident

GUANGZHOU, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Guangdong Provincial Government recently approved an investigation report into a fatal fire that killed 12 people, with those responsible referred to judicial authorities.

World

Update: Kenya confirms third Ebola case

NAIROBI, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's Ministry of Health on Friday confirmed the country's third case of Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease.

World

Chinese research institute wins 2026 FAO Achievement Award for crop monitoring platform

ROME, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Aerospace Information Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (AIRCAS) won the 2026 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Achievement Award on Friday for developing the CropWatch, a global cloud-based crop monitoring service platform.

World

Kindergarten head sentenced to life imprisonment over lead poisoning of 247 children in NW China

LANZHOU, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- A court in northwest China's Gansu Province on Friday sentenced six people for producing and selling toxic and harmful food, which poisoned 247 pre-schoolers at a kindergarten in Tianshui City, with the kindergarten's person in charge receiving life imprisonment.

World

China raises 1.3 trillion yuan via ultra-long special treasury bonds issuance in 2026

BEIJING, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- China has completed this year's issuance of ultra-long special treasury bonds, bringing the total to 1.3 trillion yuan (about 193 billion U.S. dollars), after the Ministry of Finance issued such bonds to raise an additional 20 billion yuan on Friday.

World

Tanzania calls for action, financing to protect biodiversity

DAR ES SALAAM, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania has called for concrete action, sustainable financing and community participation to strengthen biodiversity conservation and ensure the sustainable use of natural resources, Tanzania's Zanzibar Directorate of Presidential Communications said in a statement issued on Friday.

World

China urges automakers to resist irrational competition, ensure product safety

BEIJING, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Four Chinese government departments have urged major automakers to resist irrational competition, strengthen management of innovative vehicle designs and research and development (R&D) testing and validation, and ensure product safety, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said Friday.

World

Kremlin says Putin told Pope Leo he backs Vatican idea to help civilians in Oleshky

MOSCOW, Oct 16 (Reuters) - ⁠Russian President Vladimir Putin told ⁠Pope Leo in a phone call ‌on Friday that he supported a Vatican initiative to help deliver supplies to civilians in ​the Russian-controlled town of Oleshky ⁠in southern Ukraine ⁠and was ready to cooperate on the ⁠matter. 

World

Trudy forecast to near Mexico's Pacific coast as major hurricane through the weekend

MEXICO CITY; Oct ⁠16 (Reuters) - Hurricane Trudy rapidly intensified on Friday, carrying maximum winds near 120 mph (195 ⁠kph), and is expected to approach Mexico's Pacific coast as a major ‌storm during the weekend.

World

Families wait for answers after Nigerian military plane crash

LAGOS, Oct 16 (Reuters) - More than a ⁠week after a Nigerian Air Force plane crash killed all 25 people on board, families say they are still waiting for ⁠answers as military teams search for wreckage and human remains in swampy terrain.

World

Worsening water crisis sparks protests in Mexico's Guadalajara

GUADALAJARA/MEXICO CITY, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Residents in Guadalajara, one ⁠of Mexico's biggest cities, are demanding answers over a worsening water-quality crisis that has left many households reporting foul-smelling, sediment-filled tap water and sparked police ⁠clashes as protesters urge government action.

World

Starlink disruptions are being felt on the front lines of Ukraine

DONETSK REGION, Ukraine, Oct 16 (Reuters) - For ⁠one artillery unit fighting in eastern Ukraine, the US decision this week to reduce services provided by satellite company Starlink ⁠to the military had an immediate impact.

World

Thousands march in Albanian capital as anti-government protests spread

TIRANA, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Thousands of young Albanians marched ⁠through Tirana on Friday, breaking some windows and traffic lights on the fourth day of an increasingly violent student-led ⁠campaign to force Prime Minister Edi Rama to resign.

World

'Wild-eyed' comedian Russell Brand tried to drag me into toilets, woman tells UK court

LONDON, Oct 16 (Reuters) - One of ⁠six women who accuse Russell Brand of sex offences told a London court on Friday that ⁠the British actor and comedian turned into a "wild-eyed maniac" when he tried to drag her ‌into a toilet cubicle at her workplace.

World

Italy prolongs Schengen suspension with Spain, talks loom

ROME, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Italy ⁠has extended by another week its suspension of ⁠the European Union's border-free travel arrangements with Spain over ‌a surge in migrant arrivals in Ceuta in late July, an Italian government source said on Friday.