authorities close primary schools due to record pollution

Today’s news: pro-European Maia Sandu wins the second round in Moldova. Burmese General Min Aung Hlaing will travel to China for the first time since the coup d’état. Netanyahu employee arrested for leaking documents to complacent media to break up hostage negotiations. In a Japanese city, online voting for citizens to choose the mayor’s end-of-term assignment.

PAKISTAN

The government of Punjab, in Pakistan, has decided to close all primary schools in lahore for a week from today due to record pollution levels. On Saturday, the concentration of PM2.5 was more than 40 times higher than the level considered acceptable by the World Health Organization. The provincial environmental protection agency had already announced new restrictions in four “hot spots” in the city. Tuk-tuks equipped with two-stroke engines and restaurants with unfiltered barbecues were banned. Government offices and private companies will have to have half of their staff work from home.

MOLDOVA

In Moldova, the pro-European president Maia Sandu He was victorious yesterday for a second term after a tense second round of elections against his rival Alexandr Stoianoglo, supported by the pro-Russian Socialist Party. With more than 99% of the votes counted, Sandu obtained 55% of the votes and in a night speech she promised to be the president of all Moldovans.

MYANMAR-CHINA

Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, He will travel to China this week to attend some regional summits. This was announced today by the Burmese state media: it will be the general’s first visit to the influential neighboring country since he took power in a coup in 2021. Min Aung Hlaing will attend the summits of the Greater Mekong subregion and the Strategy of Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation (ACMECS) and will join a meeting with Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam on November 6 and 7 in Kunming.

ISRAEL

An associate of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was arrested in Israel on charges of filter information that could have harmed the Gaza hostages. Eli Feldstein, a former collaborator of Ben Gvir, allegedly leaked partial documents to compliant media outlets with the aim of corroborating Netanyahu’s demands in the truce negotiations with Hamas and exonerating him of responsibility for their failure. Three other people whose identities have not been revealed are also being investigated.

CANADA-INDIA

In Canada, a protest by radical Sikh groups broke out yesterday in violence at a Hindu temple in the greater Toronto area, with some worshipers attacked. The incident occurred at the Hindu Sabha Mandir in the city of Brampton, where pro-Khalistan protesters had gathered in front of the premises to oppose the presence of officials from the Delhi consulate. The Indian High Commissioner in Ottawa declared that the “violent disturbance” had been “orchestrated by anti-India elements.” The attack drew condemnation from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and across the Canadian political spectrum.

JAPAN

The inhabitants of Tsukubaa city in the Japanese prefecture of Ibaraki, vote online to determine the mayor’s end-of-term assignment. 130,000 people over the age of 15 have been asked to rate Tatsuo Igarashi’s performance during his second term before November 11. Voting is done through the city’s smartphone app. Depending on the average score he receives, the 46-year-old mayor will receive between 22 yen (0.13 euros) and 20,394,000 yen (123,171 euros).

KYRGYZSTAN-CHINA

The government of Kyrgyzstan announces the construction of a “commercial and logistics city” called Manas, which will be built on an area of ​​700 hectares in the Čuj region, on the shores of the Ala-Arčinsk basin, with a large investment from China, fulfilling Chinese standards according to the strategic program of the “Eurasian Continental Bridge”.