The one-and-a-half-minute handshake and chat on the sidelines of the summit in Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday may have been brief, but they were a stark contrast to previous comments by Macron, who in 2019 had described Maduro as "illegitimate".

A Republican victory could pave the way for a White House comeback bid by Donald Trump -- who returned to his playbook of airing unsubstantiated claims of fraud, after a campaign fought largely over economic issues.

In comments posted by the press service of his Concord catering firm on Russia's Facebook equivalent VKontakte, Prigozhin said: "We have interfered (in US elections), we are interfering and we will continue to interfere. Carefully, accurately, surgically and in our own way, as we know how to do."

His comments came after local broadcaster Global News reported that Beijing had funded a "clandestine network" of candidates in a recent ballot, and days after authorities began investigating illegal Chinese police stations in the Toronto area.

Trump, who has never accepted the truth of his lost re-election bid in 2020, has hinted for months that he is ready to re-enter the fray.

James Zhong, 32, pleaded guilty Friday to committing wire fraud in September 2012 ago when he unlawfully obtained more than 50,000 bitcoin, according to federal prosecutors in New York.

With Republicans well placed to win at least partial control of Congress and Trump hinting at a 2024 White House comeback bid at his own rally late Monday, Democrats braced for the worst.

Before narrowly winning Brazil's run-off election vote on Oct. 30, Lula began reaching out to Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) about forming a united front of tropical forest countries, according to a top aide of the leftist leader. 

Victory it was not. Death came in the form of an end to his presidency, which he grudgingly accepted Tuesday -- two days after the election was declared for his opponent.

The victory marks a stunning turnaround for charismatic but tarnished leftist icon Lula, who left office in 2010 as the most popular president in Brazilian history, fell into disgrace when he was imprisoned for 18 months on controversial, since-quashed corruption charges, and now returns for an unprecedented third term at age 77.

The US$13.9 billion worth of purchase by the Indonesian Defense Ministry of the F-15 Eagle heavyweight fighters from the United States remains in negotiations, Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto has said.

But his one-time boss, former president Barack Obama, is also campaigning hard to rescue a faltering Democratic Party.

The 75-year-old writer, who had received several death threats after the publication of his "The Satanic Verses", was stabbed several times in the neck and abdomen before he was due to give a talk in the state of New York.

A US judge in Texas ruled on Friday that people killed in two Boeing 737 MAX crashes are legally considered "crime victims," a designation that will determine what remedies should be imposed.

Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto met with United States Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin on Thursday to discuss opportunities for the countries to coordinate in pursuit of a “free and open” Indo-Pacific and to bolster bilateral ties.

Deals with Jakarta and ASEAN are a manifestation of Ottawa’s new Indo-Pacific strategy, experts noted.

Indonesia voted in favor of a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution on Wednesday condemning Russia’s annexation of four Ukrainian territories, in a departure from its previously noncommittal stance on the war.

Two people were wounded: a police officer who was treated and released and a person in hospital in critical condition, a police spokesman said.

The 79-year-old Democrat was asked if he'd be announcing a run for a second term after November's midterm elections -- and if Trump would be a factor in his decision.

"My deep condolences to Novita’s family and friends in Indonesia who are suffering due to the tragedy in the United States. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and we have faith that justice will prevail," Kim said in a tweet on Tuesday.

Novita Brazil, 25, was working on her computer in her bedroom at Bald Mountain Drive at about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday when the house came under intense fire, local news outlet mysanantonio.com reported.

"About 60 hectares were affected, including some moai," according to a Twitter post by Carolina Perez, Chile's cultural heritage undersecretary.

"I am announcing a pardon of all prior federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana," Biden said.

Lula, the veteran leftist seeking a presidential comeback, had 48.4 percent of the vote to 43.2 percent for the far-right president with more than 99 percent of polling station results in, according to the Superior Electoral Tribunal.

It was the first Chinese network Meta has disrupted that focused on US politics ahead of crucial midterm elections in November, global threat intelligence lead Ben Nimmo said during a press briefing.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi used her speech on the last day of the United Nations General Assembly on Monday to warn the world against getting dragged into another global war, offer up a “new paradigm of collaboration” to avert it and call for imminent UN reforms.

With just days to go until the first-round vote on Oct. 2, Lula is ahead in the polls against President Jair Bolsonaro, a far-right populist who has sought to discredit Brazil's electronic voting system. Critics fear Bolsonaro may follow the example of former US President Donald Trump and refuse to accept an electoral defeat.

Boeing agreed to the penalty to settle charges it "negligently violated the antifraud provisions" of US securities laws, the Securities and Exchange Commission said in a statement, saying the company and its leader "put profits over people."

Malpass appeared at an event hosted by the New York Times at Climate Week in New York City on Tuesday and was asked whether he believes that the "manmade burning of fossil fuels is rapidly and dangerously warming the planet." Malpass tried at first to dodge the question but later said: "I don't even know. I'm not a scientist."

Indonesia has raised the alarm on a potential fertilizer shortage that could jeopardize the food security of billions of people worldwide, as tougher Russia sanctions are sought even amid fears of disastrous harvests next year.