News in pictures: Facebook's India policy head quits; UAE to open consulate in Laayoune; NIA 'pet agency' of BJP; Italian watchdog probes Google...

MOHAMED BIN ZAYED ANNOUNCES UAE'S DECISION TO OPEN CONSULATE IN LAAYOUNE, MOROCCO: His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, has announced the decision to open a Consulate-General in the city of Laayoune, a Moroccan province in the Western Sahara. The Moroccan King expressed his heartfelt thanks and appreciation to Sheikh Mohamed for this important historic decision in support of the Kingdom's territorial integrity, especially as the UAE also participated in the "Green March". https://gulfnews.com/uae

ITALIAN WATCHDOG INVESTIGATES GOOGLE OVER ALLEGED ADVERTISING MARKET ABUSE: Italy's antitrust authority is investigating Alphabet's Google for alleged abuse of its dominant position in the Italian online display advertising market, it said on Wednesday. The investigation follows a complaint filed by Italian digital advertising lobby group IAB last year and will have to be completed by November 2021, adding to regulatory scrutiny of the Silicon Valley tech giant around the world. https://gulfnews.com/business

FACEBOOK'S INDIA POLICY HEAD QUITS: Facebook Inc.'s senior-most public policy executive in India will quit the firm, amid the social media company's recent tensions with the government over moderation of right-wing political content in the South Asian nation. Ankhi Das, the public policy director for India, South and Central Asia, has decided to leave after working with the firm for nine years, Facebook's Managing Director for India Ajit Mohan said in a statement. Das first figured in the public spotlight after the Wall Street Journal reported in August that the US firm failed to remove an alleged hate speech post from a lawmaker belonging to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. Facebook then deleted the anti-Muslim posts after being questioned by the paper. Current and former Facebook employees told the paper that Das opposed the deletion of the posts despite being flagged internally as breaching standards. https://gulfnews.com/technology

SOUTH AFRICA'S RAMAPHOSA BEGINS COVID-19 SELF-QUARANTINE: South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa is in self-quarantine after a guest at a dinner he attended on Saturday tested positive for the coronavirus. Ramaphosa is "showing no symptoms" of coronavirus infection and will be tested if he presents any signs, the presidency said in a statement posted on Twitter on Wednesday. The 67 year-old was at a charity event in Johannesburg on Oct. 24 which was attended by about 35 people. A guest at the event tested positive on Tuesday after showing symptoms of the virus. https://gulfnews.com/world/africa

AUNG SAN SUU KYI, MYANMAR PRESIDENT SET TO CAST EARLY VOTES: Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint will be among voters casting early ballots ahead of the Nov. 8 general elections, according to government spokesman Zaw Htay. The leaders will vote at the office of Naypyidaw Council on Thursday morning, Zaw Htay wrote on Facebook. Myanmar is well prepared to hold the voting amid the coronavirus pandemic as much-needed protective medical gears for election workers and voters continue to arrive from China, Suu Kyi said this week. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia

HARLEY-DAVIDSON UNVEILS ITS 1ST ELECTRIC BICYCLE 'SERIAL 1': Harley-Davidson has unveiled its first-ever electric bicycle inspired by the brands very first motorcycle from 1903. The new business called 'Serial 1 Cycle Company' started as a project within the motorcycle manufacturer's product development center. In terms of design, the bicycle will come with white tires, leather saddle, hand grips and sleek black frame. The company plans to bring its first line of electric bicycle products to market in spring 2021. The price of the electric bicycle is yet to be announced. https://gulfnews.com/business

DOCTOR'S CHARRED BODY FOUND IN A CAR IN GURUGRAM, INDIA: A doctor's charred body was found in his car on Wednesday morning near Ghamroj village on the Sohna Road, around 10 km from India's Gurugram city. Deceased Kanwar Pal alias Sonu (35), a resident of Ghamroj, owned a private hospital in Sohna. "Family members say that since the car was parked on the roadside, it is clear that someone killed Sonu and then set it on fire," said a police officer. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india

GLOBAL CORONAVIRUS CASES CROSS 43.72 MILLION: More than 43.72 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 1,161,943? have died, according to a Reuters tally published on Wednesday. With 225,828 deaths and around 8.7 million confirmed cases, the United States tops the list of twenty countries with the highest recorded infections and deaths in the world, followed by India, Brazil and Russia. https://gulfnews.com/world/coronavirus

INDIA'S MEHBOOBA MUFTI CALLS NIA 'PET AGENCY' OF BJP: India's People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday said that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has become BJP's pet agency to intimidate and browbeat those who refuse to fall in line. Her remark came after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted raids at multiple locations in Srinagar, Bandipora and Bengaluru including the residence of Khurram Parvaiz, offices of NGO Athrout and Greater Kashmir Trust. https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india

TWO DEAD, 26 MISSING AS TYPHOON MOLAVE SLAMS INTO VIETNAM: Two people were reported killed and 26 others missing as Typhoon Molave hit central Vietnam Wednesday, knocking down trees and tearing roofs off homes in some of the worst destruction seen in years. Authorities relocated around 375,000 people to safety, cancelled hundreds of flights and closed schools and beaches ahead of the typhoon, which made landfall south of Danang packing winds of up to 145 kilometres per hour (85 miles per hour). https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/india