Nicaragua is "one of the worst dictatorships in the world" with its President Daniel Ortega and his wife Rosario Murillo preparing "fake elections" to stay in power, Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief says. He made the blunt criticism in a news conference following a meeting of EU foreign ministers that discussed the situation in the Central American country, which is to hold general elections on November 7.

Human rights activists on Monday (October 19) urged governments and athletes world-wide to boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics in China as Athens prepared to hand over the Olympic flame to Beijing in a ceremony in the capital, saying that anything less would make the world complicit in what they called 'genocide' by Beijing. China's treatment of minorities has come under increased scrutiny in the run-up to the games, scheduled from Feb. 4-20. Activists protested at Ancient Olympia on Monday, where the flame lighting ceremony was held.

European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager told DW in an interview that legal action against the tech giant could be endless, but regulation now could limit its damage.

Beijing said the use of spy agencies, not scientists, was "iron-clad proof" of Washington's attempts to politicize the origins of COVID-19. A new report published Friday shed little fresh light on how the virus emerged.

Local traders and residents reacted to the Taliban ban of foreign currencies for trade, at the Sarai Shahzada market in Kabul on Wednesday after the Taliban made the announcement on Tuesday. The US dollar has been used widely in Afghanistan’s markets before the ban.

An official Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic venue held a test ice hockey match on Monday (November 8), with the Games just months away. The match, which was held without spectators and featured local teams Beijing Arcfox and Beijing Shougang, comes amid uncertainty over the participation status of China's men's national hockey team in next year's Games. China is guaranteed a spot in the ice hockey tournament due to its status as host nation, but International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) president Luc Tardif said in September that the men's team could be prevented from playing due to its "insufficient sporting standard".

The UN's World Food Program has warned that half of Afghanistan's population is facing an acute hunger crisis, with millions forced to choose between "migration or starvation" amid drought and economic collapse.

In an interview with FRANCE 24, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, said talks with Iran would continue and that an additional round of negotiations between the regional rivals was expected soon.

Nigeria’s Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama told FRANCE 24 that recent coups in West Africa are undermining democracy and that events have reached a crucial juncture for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) regional bloc. “Clearly it is a threat, it is an unfortunate precedent,” he said.

It is the first time India has opened its borders to foreign travelers since imposing a strict lockdown in March 2020 to curb the spread of COVID.

Riyad Al-Maliki, the Palestinian Authority's foreign minister, granted an interview to FRANCE 24. The top Palestinian diplomat regretted that the idea of a Palestinian state is "shrinking". Al-Maliki, who believes an Israeli annexation of the West Bank is "not off the table", called for the urgent resumption of negotiations with Israel.

On his first visit to Africa, US top envoy Antony Blinken has addressed Ethiopia's raging Tigray conflict, the terrorism threat in Africa and human rights concerns in Nigeria.