Situation Reports

A suicide bomber killed at least 15 people in Kabul as voting in parliamentary elections concluded in the Afghan capital on Oct. 20, Reuters reported.

A senior official in Turkey's ruling party said on Oct. 20 that his country would "never allow a cover-up" of the killing of Jamal Khashoggi after Saudi Arabia admitted the Saudi journalist had died during a fight in its consulate in Istanbul, AP reported.

Saudi Arabia's government announced Oct. 19 that journalist and Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi died during a fistfight and that 18 Saudi citizens have been arrested in connection with his death, according to Saudi state-run television channel Al Arabiya.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has completed a three-day visit to Russia for a bilateral summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi, where the pair signed a number of agreements on mutual cooperation, Amram Online reported Oct. 17.

Shigeru Kitamura, the head of Japan's Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office, met with an official from the North Korean United Front Department in Mongolia's capital from approximately Oct. 6 to 8 to discuss the past abductions of Japanese nationals, Kyodo reported Oct. 19.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an intergovernmental organization force established to counter money laundering, has chosen to continue suspending countermeasures against Iran until February 2019 to give the Islamic republic more time to enact reforms and bring its financial system in line with global standards, Reuters reported Oct. 19.

Parliamentary elections in Afghanistan's Kandahar province have been postponed after Gen. Abdul Razeq, a powerful security chief and U.S. partner, was killed during an insider attack from the Taliban, Reuters reported Oct. 18.

Ekurhuleni, a metropolitan municipality outside Johannesburg, is preparing to seize around 350 hectares (865 acres) of land within its city limits to relieve pressure on overcrowded shantytowns and provide an early test case for land expropriation without compensation, AP reported Oct. 19.

French President Emmanuel Macron called for the European Union to accelerate the process of reforming the eurozone during a press conference on Oct. 18, Europe1 reported.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced on Oct. 18 that the Spanish and British governments have reached an agreement on Gibraltar's status after Brexit, Politico reported.