Asia Israel The Knesset has passed a media overhaul law giving government greater regulatory control; PM Netanyahu attended the debate, skipping the vote; the news has been released by a number of online media in the late hours of 16 July
Europe Latvia Riga Airport signed a €248.000 contract with BM-projekts for the development of a multi-storey car park; the short-term 400-space car park project will be developed and approved by the construction authority within nine months
Europe Hungary Renew Europe called on the European Council to explore all legal means to stop the Hungarian Presidency of the Council and hand it over to Poland, whose presidency would be at the end of the semester
Africa Eritrea Biniam Girmay said he hopes to encourage more diversity in elite cycling after the Eritrean won the third stage of this year's Tour de France
Asia Georgia Around 5.000 employees, over half of thetotal employed by Evolution Georgia online casino, are participating in the strike that began on 12 July, according to Evo-Union
Europe Germany A particular proposal providing tax incentives for qualified foreign workers is being discussed; it is contained in the economic growth plan presented by the government coalition of Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals
Asia Iraq Speaking at an online conference organised by Aid to the Church in Need, Archbishop Semaan drew a parallel between the enduring nature of olive trees and the steadfast spirit of Iraqi Christians driven out by Islamic State militants
America Trinidad and Tobago Shell Trinidad and Tobago, a subsidiary of UK energy major Shell, has made the final investment decision for the Manatee gas field to enhance its integrated gas business through this initiative
Africa Benin French-Beninese citizen Kemi Seba, a well-known pan-Africanist activist in both France and West Africa, has been stripped of his French citizenship for his strongly anti-Western analyses cloaked in pan-Africanism
Africa Zimbabwe 7,6 million Zimbabweans, almost half the population, are in need of aid given the severe drought in the country, the UN has reported; in June, the UN appealed for $429 million, but funding has been slow to materialise
Asia Cambodia A series of workshops entitled 'Governance of Financial Institutions to Ensure Sustainable, Effective and Inclusive Operations' was launched to address the challenges of the banking and financial sector
Europe Denmark From 15 July in Copenhagen, tourists who travel by public transport or bicycle and take part in activities that are good for the environment will be rewarded with free meals and free entry to museums in a pilot programme called CopenPay
Asia Japan Unable to get married legally in Japan, LGBTQ couples are celebrating their special bond by donning traditional kimonos and fashionable formal wear for "photo weddings"; still, these choreographed images are often kept hidden in the conservative society
Africa Ivory Coast Abidjan has given the go-ahead for the establishment of a US base in Odienné, north-west Ivory Coast, from where Sahelian jihadist groups can threaten the Gulf of Guinea countries