AFRICA

CNBC: Africa could be about to see its first post-Covid default after Zambia skips interest payment (Smith, 10/26).

ASIA

AP: India’s festive season spawns fears of renewed virus surge (Saaliq, 10/25).

UPI: Fewer than 4% of people in Wuhan have COVID-19 antibodies, study finds (Dunleavy, 10/23).

EUROPE

Washington Post: Italy imposes harshest coronavirus restrictions since spring lockdown as second wave sweeps Europe (Mellen, 10/25).

Washington Post: Covid-19 surge in Belgium leads to shortage of doctors, teachers and police (Ariès/Birnbaum, 10/24).

Washington Post: In Russia, sick people often treat themselves. That’s not helping in the coronavirus fight (Dixon, 10/24).

LATIN AMERICA

AP: In hard-hit Peru, worry mounts over both COVID-19 and dengue (Abd, 10/23).

MIDDLE EAST

AP: Wary of angering public, Iran has few ways to contain virus (Debre, 10/26).

Xinhua News: WHO says to provide 2 mln USD for Iraq to cope with COVID-19 (10/24).

NORTH AMERICA

AP: U.N. assembly chief unhappy at N.Y. mayor spurning COVID meeting (Lederer, 10/23).

Newsweek: Biden Warned One Year Ago, Before COVID, U.S. ‘Not Prepared for a Pandemic’ (Fearnow, 10/25).

STAT: Universal mask use could save 130,000 U.S. lives by the end of February, new study estimates (Boodman, 10/23).

USA TODAY: U.S. tops one-day record with 83,757 COVID-19 cases, exceeding previous summer high (Rodriguez, 10/24).