Nigeria’s medal hopefuls

President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday hosted his South African counterpart, Cyril Ramaphosa, in the Presidential Villa Abuja.⁣ ⁣The South African President who is accompanied by a delegation of ministers and business leaders is on a state visit expected to reinforce South Africa’s bilateral relations with Nigeria as well as strengthen partnerships directed at African development and cooperation in multilateral forums.⁣

As Russia and China attempt to master sophisticated technologies, the head of MI6 is set to warn that "unlike Q in the Bond movies, we cannot do it all in-house."

Since France began its military withdrawal from Mali, many misleading social media posts have appeared. Reports claim that Mali is negotiating with the Russian private military company Wagner. One photo on Facebook from November 10 allegedly shows a Wagner military instructor training Malian soldiers. Another photo from November 20 claims to show that Mali received a delivery of military equipment from Russia. We take a closer look in this edition of Truth or Fake.

Thousands take part in massive protests in Sudan's capital. Dozens are arrested as anger mounts against the country's military. In Ethiopia, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says his army is making significant gains as he calls on Tigrayan rebels to surrender. And African fashion pays tribute to world-renowned designer Virgil Abloh, who died this weekend at the age of 41.

India is pulling out all the stops to avoid a repeat of the devastating wave of delta-fueled infections earlier this year, by ramping up testing while stepping up screening and surveillance of international travelers.

Japan has stopped new bookings onto incoming flights after identifying the first cases of the Omicron strain of Covid-19. The country has also tightened its quarantine requirements for all arriving passengers, and extended a ban on non-citizens coming from ten countries in southern Africa. Travel companies have seen their shares tumble in recent days as governments tighten border rules in response to the new strain. Also today, Australia's economy feels the pinch from the recent lockdowns.

Indian government forces have killed the head of a Pakistan-based militant group in Indian-administered Kashmir. Noor Mohammad Tantray, head in the Kashmir valley of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) group, was killed in a gun battle after being trapped in a house near the city of Srinagar on Monday evening. The 47-year-old, a mere three feet tall, took over the group in Indian Kashmir in 2016.

England chalked up their biggest ever competitive victory with a 20-0 humiliation of Latvia in a Women's World Cup qualifier as Ellen White broke the Lionesses's scoring record on a busy night for the scorekeeper at the Keepmoat Stadium on Tuesday. White bagged a hat-trick to take her tally to 48 from 101 caps for England, beating Kelly Smith's mark by two goals. Ten different players found the back of the net in a one-way encounter with 21-year-old Lauren Hemp striking four times for her first goals with England.

Today we debunk photos shared on Facebook claiming to show "Russian ships arriving in Algeria to support Mali". Also, a slip of the tongue by the French Polynesian president Édouard Fritch is ripe for manipulation. Our team fact-check two stories circulating on social media, that should not be taken at face value.

China's post-COVID recovery has been hurt by Beijing's crackdown on real estate and tech giants. Strong exports have, until now, saved the economy but what happens when global demand for Chinese goods slows?

The World Bank is backing Nigeria’s quest to get rid of fuel subsidy. The Country Director of the World Bank Shubham Chaudhuri, who led his team on a courtesy visit to The Guardian Group on Tuesday, November 30, explained why fuel subsidy is not sustainable. Chaudhuri, nevertheless, advised the Nigerian government to build consensus before its scheduled removal of the controversial subsidy policy.

Here are a few reasons to pick up a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday⁣. Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday.⁣