*) Daesh leader Baghdadi dies in US raid

"Abu Bakr al Baghdadi is dead," US President Donald Trump announced at the White House on Sunday.

After being targeted by a US military raid in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, Baghdadi was cornered into a “dead-end” tunnel where he detonated a suicide vest, Trump said.

The terror group leader’s identity was later confirmed by a DNA test conducted onsite. No US troops were killed or injured in the raid.

*)Turkey’s Operation Peace Spring continues

Two Turkish soldiers died and four others were wounded by YPG/PKK terrorist attacks in northern Syria, Turkey’s defence ministry said.

The attack took place near the border town of Ras al Ayn where Turkish forces were conducting reconnaissance amid a shaky ceasefire deal over Ankara’s anti-terror operation.

Turkey’s Operation Peace Spring began on October 9 to root out PKK/YPG terrorists in northern Syria and to safely resettle Syrian refugees in the region.

*)Argentine incumbent concedes defeat to Alberto Fernandez

Peronist candidate Alberto Fernandez swept to a first-round triumph in Argentina's presidential election on Sunday, official results showed.

With 93 percent of the ballots counted from nearly 34 million eligible voters, Fernandez received 47.9 percent of votes.

Fernandez assumes power on December 10 and will serve as president until 2023. Former President Cristina Kirchner will serve as his vice president.

*)Lebanese protesters form human chain

Tens of thousands of protesters formed a human chain across Lebanon, pressing a historic wave of anti-government demonstrations.

Protesters joined hands in a 170-kilometre-long chain from Tripoli in the north of the country to the southern city of Tyre.

With the crisis in its second week, there was no sign of moves by the government towards a compromise with protesters.

*)Indian city gets lit

And finally,

The Indian city of Ayodhya set a Guinness World Record by illuminating hundreds of thousands of earthen lamps.

More than 6,000 volunteers lit 409,000 oil lamps on the banks of river Sarayu as part of an annual Hindu festival.

Diwali, also known as Dipavali, is the five-day Hindu “festival of lights” celebrated annually in autumn by millions of Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and some Buddhists across the world.

TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Friday, October 25:

*)Erdogan wants US to hand over YPG leader to Turkey

In an exclusive interview with Turkey’s public broadcaster TRT, President Erdogan accused the US and Europe of siding with terrorists in Syria.

He slammed the US for negotiating with wanted YPG terrorist leader, Ferhat Abdi Sahin, codenamed Mazloum Kobani.

Erdogan said his country has been harassed by terrorists in northern Syria for the past eight years.

*)Regime attack on Idlib kills at least 6

Staying in Syria, where at least six people have been killed and 17 injured after regime forces attacked Idlib province.

Syria's White Helmets says the town of Al Janoudiyah was hit with artillery shelling and rocket fire.

In 2018, Turkey and Russia established Idlib as a de-escalation zone, but the Syrian regime continues to violate the ceasefire by attacking the province.

*)Anti-govt mass rallies continue in Iraq

Mass anti-government rallies continue throughout Iraq despite a security crackdown.

Protesters blame corruption and the failure of political elites to address economic hardship in the country.

PM Adil Abdul Mahdi said protesters can exercise their right to demonstrate but violence will not be tolerated.

*)Clashes at mass demonstration in Santiago

The death toll from violent protests in Chile's capital has risen to 18 despite night-time curfews and a state of emergency.

The president promised to increase pension by 20 percent and proposed a law to provide state coverage of expensive medical treatments.

The UN says it will be sending a special mission to investigate human rights abuses.

And finally,

*)Fire in California began near damaged utility tower

Tens of thousands of Californians have been forced to evacuate as wildfires burn throughout the state.

The state's utility company shut off power to several areas as a safety precaution.

Officials say the wildfires erupted near the base of a damaged high-voltage transmission tower owned by Pacific Gas and Electric utility company.

*)Trump lifts Turkey sanctions, quits ‘blood-stained’ Syria

President Trump ended sanctions against Turkey on Wednesday, drawing a line under US involvement in what he called “blood-stained” Syria.

Trump said he was lifting sanctions because there was relative calm in the area.

The first Russian patrol in northern Syria got under way on Wednesday, the defence ministry in Moscow announced.

*)Truck with 39 dead came to England from Belgium

UK police are revising their theories about a truck found in Essex with 39 bodies inside, saying it traveled from Belgium, not from Ireland.

Essex police said the truck went from Zeebrugge in Belgium to Purfleet in England via ferry.

The 39 people were found dead early Wednesday at an industrial park in southeast England.

*)Republicans disrupt impeachment deposition

GOP House members stormed a closed-door deposition with a defence official, briefly halting the Democrat-led Trump impeachment investigation.

Democrats said the move compromised national security because some of the two dozen Republicans brought electronic devices into a secure room.

Earlier, a US diplomat testified he was told President Trump was withholding aid from Ukraine unless President Zelenskiy pledged to investigate Democrats.

*)Bangladesh sentences 16 to death for burning teen alive

A religious school principal was among 16 people sentenced to death in Bangladesh for the murder of an 18-year-old girl.

The killers set Nusrat Jahan on fire on the roof of her madrasa after she refused to withdraw her sexual harassment complaint against the principal.

Police said in their charge sheet that the murder was carried out at the principal’s order.

*)Two strains of polio eradicated, but threat far from over

And finally,

The World Health Organization and partners are expected to announce that they have rid the world of type 3 polio virus, leaving only type 1.

The global effort to eradicate polio originally aimed to wipe out the potentially fatal crippling disease by 2000.

While cases have dropped dramatically, the virus remains entrenched in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where there have been 72 cases of polio in after only eight in 2018.

*)Turkey and Russia strike border deal

Turkish President Erdogan and Russian President Putin agreed to a plan to remove YPG/PKK from the northeastern Syrian border.

Russia and Syria have 150 hours, starting 0900 GMT today, to push the terror group and its weapons 30 km away from the border with Turkey.

Meanwhile, the Turkish defence ministry said there was no need to expand the operation in Syria beyond the area defined by Operation Peace Spring.

*)Trump linked Ukraine aid to demand for probe - US diplomat

US diplomat William Taylor testified that President Donald Trump made military aid to Ukraine a quid pro quo affair.

Taylor said Trump demanded “everything” President Zelenskiy wanted should be conditional to Ukraine investigating the 2016 US election and Joe Biden.

The diplomat said he discovered the Trump administration’s irregular back channel to foreign policy in Kiev was led by Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani.

*)EU moves towards Brexit delay

EU Council President Tusk is urging EU leaders to delay Brexit after Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s parliamentary defeat on rushing his deal.

Brexit is hanging in the balance as divided UK lawmakers debate when, how and even whether it should happen.

Tusk recommended the remaining 27 EU members to accept the UK request for an extension if they want to avoid a no-deal Brexit.

*)China plans to replace Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam – FT

The Financial Time reported China was planning to remove Hong Kong’s beleaguered Chief Executive Carrie Lam.

The article came as Hong Kong officials withdrew the controversial extradition bill, which triggered months of anti-Beijing protests.

China’s central government has so far supported Lam but FT reported Beijing planned to replace her with an interim chief executive.

*)Biogen reanalyses studies, presses ahead on Alzheimer’s drug

And finally,

A US biotech company is seeking federal approval for a medicine to treat early Alzheimer’s disease.

Biogen’s drug, if approved, could be a landmark step toward finding a treatment that can alter the course of the most common form of dementia.

Biogen said a new analysis of study results suggests their drug helped reduce a decline of thinking skills at the highest dose.

*)President Trump continues to defend Syrian troops withdrawal

US President Donald President Trump continued to defend his decision to withdraw US troops from northern Syria.

He told reporters that [quote] “plenty of Turks” [end quote] died as a result of conflicts near the Turkish border.

Turkey and the US agreed to a 120-hour pause of Ankara’s Operation Peace Spring, which is scheduled to end at 1900 GMT today.

*)Canadian PM Justin Trudeau holds on to power, loses majority

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau retained power but lost his majority in Canada's parliamentary elections.

The vote came down to what was essentially a choice between Liberal leader Trudeau and Conservative leader Andrew Scheer.

Trudeau's Liberals will likely rely on the New Democrats to form a minority government and stay in power.

*)Protests continue despite Lebanese PM's reform package

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced a reforms package and a 2020 budget without new taxes, hoping to quell mass demonstrations.

Many protesters scorned the package as "empty promises" and intensified calls for the government to resign.

The largest protests in Lebanon since 15 years started with the public’s frustration over the government’s inability to tackle the economic crisis.

*)Wikileaks founder Julian Assange loses bid to delay hearing

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange lost a bid to delay proceedings for his extradition to the US by three months in a UK court.

Assange, 48, faces 18 counts in the US, including conspiring to hack government computers and violating an espionage law.

The denial of the delay means the WikiLeaks founder’s full extradition hearing will go ahead in February 2020.

And finally,

*)TRT World Forum 2019 enters its second day

The two-day TRT World Forum will wrap up in Istanbul, with the annual event bringing together thought leaders to discuss “retreating globalisation”.

Day one of the event featured guests including Turkish President Erdogan and Malaysia’s governing party leader Anwar Ibrahim.

Topics to be discussed include far-right extremism, the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi and the global refugee crisis.

*)YPG/PKK terrorists withdraw from Syria’s Ras al Ayn

Turkey has allowed YPG/PKK terrorists cornered in Syria’s Ras al Ayn city to leave the area with Red Cross ambulances and civilian vehicles.

Ankara had earlier paused its military anti-terror Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria for five days as part of an agreement reached with the United States.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that Turkey will resume its military operation in northeast Syria if the YPG does not leave the area.

*)Cross border exchange of fire in Kashmir

At least 10 people were killed in firing along the de-facto border dividing Kashmir between India and Pakistan, according to officials.

Spokesman for Pakistan’s military Major General Asif Ghafoor gave a higher death toll for Indian troops killed in Islamabad’s retaliation to “unprovoked ceasefire violations.”

Ghafoor also refuted the Indian army chief’s allegations of targeting “terrorist camps” in the areas and invited “any foreign diplomat or media outlet to prove” the claims “on the ground.”

*)Fresh curfew imposed in Chilean capital as protests continue

Chile’s military declared another night-time curfew in the capital Santiago as the government struggled to contain violent protests, looting and arson.

Protests and violence continued for another day on Sunday, even after the subway fare hike that had prompted the demonstrations was cancelled.

Five people died after a garment factory was set ablaze by looters in the suburbs of Santiago on Sunday, bringing the death toll in a wave of unrest to seven.

*)Morales narrowly wins first round in Bolivia election, faces runoff

Evo Morales, seeking a controversial fourth term, was leading Bolivia's presidential election but faces a second-round runoff against rival Carlos Mesa, according to partial results.

Morales had 45 percent of the vote to Mesa's 38 percent, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal announced, with most of the votes counted.

Elected as Bolivia's first indigenous president in 2005, Morales won his previous elections in the first round, never having to face a runoff.

*)'Abominable' film axed in Malaysia over map of South China Sea

And finally,

Animated movie "Abominable" will not be released in Malaysia over a scene showing a map of the South China Sea, according to the movie’s distributor.

China, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan all have territorial claims over the disputed South China Sea.

Vietnam has already pulled the movie from cinemas, while the Philippines' foreign minister also called for a boycott of the movie, jointly produced by Shanghai-based Pearl Studio and DreamWorks Animation.

*)Turkey, US agree on 120-hour pause in Syria operation

Turkey paused military Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria to give YPG five days to leave the border area.

The pause came into effect after a meeting between Turkish President Erdogan and US Vice President Pence in Ankara.

Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu reiterated Ankara will end Operation Peace Spring only after YPG/PKK terrorists leave the safe-zone area.

*)Boris Johnson gets Brexit deal; next hurdle is Parliament

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pulled off a new divorce deal from EU leaders, paving the way for his promise for an October 31 Brexit.

Although Johnson returned home from EU with a victory, he may face defeat in the parliament, where he has no majority.

If the deal does not pass the House of Commons, Johnson will have to ask the EU to delay Brexit, which he said he will not do.

*)Protests spread across Lebanon over proposed new taxes

At least two foreign workers choked to death from a fire set during protests in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut.

Demonstrators set tires on fire, some of them ripping out billboards to toss them into the rising flames to protest the government’s new tax plans.

Security forces fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters around the government headquarters in Beirut.

*)Street fires erupt in Barcelona in fourth day of Catalan protests

Thousands gathered in Barcelona on the fourth day of protests –– the worst that Spain has seen on the streets in decades..

Separatists hurled Molotov cocktails, burned barricades and clashed with police in the city centre.

Demonstrations erupted after Catalan leaders were sentenced to lengthy jail terms for their roles in the 2017 bid for independence.

And finally,

*)Life on Mars: Designers reveal Martian clothing, habitat

Is there life on Mars? One day there may be, should international space agencies’ plans come to fruition.

Sending humans to the Red Planet isn’t just a new frontier for scientists, it’s also one for designers.

Designers in the UK are showcasing what those Martians might wear and how they might live, at a new exhibit called “Moving to Mars” in London.

*)Trump says PKK 'probably worse at terror' than Daesh

The PKK terror group is "probably" a bigger terror threat than Daesh, US President Donald Trump said.

Trump's comments came as Turkish forces continue their offensive in northern Syria against YPG/PKK and Daesh.

President Erdogan will meet US State Secretary Pompeo and Vice President Pence in Ankara to discuss Operation Peace Spring.

*)Saudi bus crash kills at least 35 foreign pilgrims

At least 35 foreigners were killed and four others injured when a bus crashed with a heavy vehicle in the Saudi city Medina.

The victims were mostly Arab and Asian pilgrims, local media said, sharing images of the bus engulfed in flames and with its windows blown out.

The injured have been transferred to Al Hamna Hospital.

*)Brexit in the balance as key Johnson ally rejects deal

A Brexit deal was thrown into disarray just hours before an EU summit on Thursday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s key ally, the Northern Irish DUP refused to support a draft compromise on the Irish border issue.

The two-day summit is due to begin later today, but the Brexit issue could be delayed to Friday if the deal's text needs more work.

*)Opposition protests suspend Hong Kong assembly session

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam was again forced from the legislative chamber because of protests on Thursday by opposition members.

The disruption followed a bloody attack on a leader of the nearly 5-month-old protest movement.

A day earlier, Lam was forced to abandon an annual policy address in the chamber, later delivering it by television.

And finally,

*)Scientists in Hawaii discovered why whales blow bubbles

University of Hawaii researchers released what they called “groundbreaking” footage of humpback whales off south-east Alaska.

The images –– captured from an aerial drone and the whale's point-of-view –– show how some whales use bubbles to optimise their consumption of prey by creating 'bubble nets'.

Researchers said seeing the bubble nets up close will shed light on how humpback whales interact with their environment.

*)Turkey 'can never declare ceasefire' in northern Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has rejected a call from US President Donald Trump to declare a ceasefire in northern Syria.

He said Turkey's operation in northern Syria will continue until all of its objectives are met and that he is not worried about sanctions.

Meanwhile, Turkish forces have killed a total of 637 YPG/PKK terrorists as part of Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria.

*)Japan typhoon death toll climbs to 74

Rescue workers in Japan continue to search for the missing as the death toll from Typhoon Hagibis rises to 74.

Twelve people are missing and more than 220 injured after scores of rivers burst their banks across the country.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said the government would spend $6.5 million to facilitate disaster relief.

*)Brexit talks don't get breakthrough, continue on summit eve

European Union and British negotiators failed to reach a breakthrough in Brexit talks during a frantic all-night session.

They will continue seeking a compromise on the eve of Thursday's crucial EU summit.

It was still unclear if London could avoid postponing its departure due on October 31.

The bloc said it might be possible to strike a divorce deal by Thursday's EU leaders' summit but the British government must make more compromises.

*)Hong Kong leader delivers speech via video

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam delivered her annual policy speech by video link after lawmakers prevented her from doing so in the Legislative Council.

In the speech, Lam said that Hong Kong is going through "major crisis".

She was earlier stopped twice from delivering her speech in the chamber, where pro-democracy lawmakers are urging her to step down.

And finally,

*)Performers gather in South Korea for K-pop festival

Thousands of artists from around the world have gathered in South Korea’s Changwon city to take part in K-Pop World Festival.

Some 6,400 teams from more than 80 countries have entered the competition, with 13 groups from places as diverse as Kuwait and Madagascar.

K-pop – along with K-drama soap operas – has been one of South Korea's most successful cultural exports to date.

*)US imposes new sanctions on Turkey over Syria operation

The US Treasury Department announced sanctions on two Turkish ministers and three senior government officials over Turkey’s anti-terror operation in Syria.

Ministers of national defence, energy and natural resources, and interior face blocking of properties if any and having trade relations in the US.

Meanwhile, a total of 595 YPG/PKK terrorists have been killed since the beginning of Operation Peace Spring in northern Syria last week.

*)At least 67 die in Japan’s Typhoon Hagibis aftermath

At least 67 people have been killed by Typhoon Hagibis across Japan as rescuers search for survivors for the third day.

Fifteen people also remain missing after the typhoon smashed into central and eastern Japan.

The highest toll was in Fukushima where at least 18 people were killed, including a mother and her child who were caught in flood waters.

*)Hailing ‘new revolution,’ outsider Saied is elected Tunisia’s president

Kais Saied who wants to remake national politics won a landslide victory in Tunisia’s presidential election which he hailed as “new revolution.”

Saied won 73 percent of the votes, according to preliminary official results by the election commission.

The 61-year-old retired law professor wants to introduce an experimental form of direct democracy in the country which started “Arab Spring” in 2011.

*)India restores post-paid cellphone services in restive Kashmir

India partially restored cellphone services in Kashmir, more than two months after downgrading the region’s semi-autonomy.

People in Indian-administered Kashmir have been living under a military and communication lockdown for two months.

People in Kashmir said having no lines of communication for the past two months was akin to living in the Stone Age.

And finally,

*)Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo joint winners Booker Prize

Rule-breaking Booker Prize judges refused to name one winner for the prestigious fiction trophy this year.

Canadian writer Margaret Atwood and British author Bernardine Evaristo jointly won the Booker Prize in a surprize double-award.

Atwood previously won the prize in 2000 with “The Blind Assassin” while Evaristo becomes first black woman to win it.

The award honours “the best novel of the year written in English in the UK and Ireland.”