* Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in Paris on Monday, agreeing to promote bilateral ties and strengthen cooperation on international affairs.
* Syrians in the northeastern town of Al-Darbasiyah near the Turkish border are fleeing their homes in large numbers for fear of a Turkish assault, The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights - a war monitor - reported Monday.
* Belarus and Russia started joint paratrooper drills on Sunday (October 20), the Belarusian defense ministry said. The active phase of the drills will take place from Oct. 21 to 25, during which soldiers from the two states will practice forcing a water barrier, landing personnel and equipment, and offensive and defense combat shooting during daytime and night.
* Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed security developments in Syria during a phone call on Monday.
* The Prime Minister of Norway Erna Solberg arrived in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Monday to meet with top Iraqi officials over boosting bilateral ties and regional issues.
* Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party won the 2019 Canadian federal election on October 21 night, according to Elections Canada on October 22. However, the Liberal Party won 156 seats out of 338 seats in the House of Commons, failing to reach the 170-seat threshold needed for a majority government.
* US President Donald Trump said on Monday that the United States would keep a limited military presence in Syria to "secure the oil," without elaborating on the troop numbers.
* Brazilian Vice President Hamilton Mourao announced on Monday that 5,000 more troops will be dispatched to the nation's northeastern shore to help clean up oil pollution.
* The British government on Monday night published its Brexit Withdrawal Agreement Bill ahead of the beginning of a key Commons debate on Tuesday. The bill runs to 110 pages, and is accompanied by 124 pages of explanatory notes.
* The US forces in Syria have moved more than 1,500 Islamic State (IS) women from Syria to Iraq since Turkey launched an assault in northern Syria on October 9, state news agency SANA reported Monday.
* Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said in Zagreb on Monday that Germany is Croatia's most important economic partner and the doors are still open to German investors.
* Libyan navy said on Monday that it rescued 126 illegal immigrants off the country's western coast, navy spokesman Ayob Qassem told Xinhua.
* Over 100 migrants, including ringleaders of a riot, were arrested at a reception center in Malta on Monday. The riot occurred at the Hal Far center late on Sunday night. It was sparked by a row over a drunk migrant being banned from entering the center.
* Egypt and Kuwait on Monday signed two agreements valued at about US$1.09 billion to finance the second phase of the Sinai Peninsula Development Program, official news agency MENA reported.
* At least 15 police and eight militants were killed after a dozen Taliban militants stormed a security checkpoint in Ali Abad district in Afghanistan's northern Kunduz province early on Tuesday morning, a provincial source said.
* A 6.0-magnitude earthquake jolted off Samoa on October 22, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said. The quake, which occurred at 0418 GMT, was centered 136 km southwest of Gataivai with a depth of 89.1 km.
* The eastern Libyan town of Umm Ar Rizam is calling for urgent assistance as deadly floods overwhelm the town, Alwasat news site reported Monday.
