The UN World Food Program (WFP) was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (NYT) for its efforts to stop global hunger, a problem exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.

​The chair of the Nobel committee said the award was also a call to the world to adequately fund the WFP (Guardian), which has estimated that the number of people facing food insecurity will double (WaPo) to roughly 270 million as a result of the pandemic. Last month, WFP Executive Director David Beasley said the agency needed $5 billion to prevent thirty million people from dying of starvation.

China announced that it is ​joining COVAX (WaPo), a global effort led by the World Health Organization (WHO) that aims to deliver COVID-19 vaccines, after previously declining to do so. The United States and Russia remain outside the alliance.

This CFR Backgrounder looks at the global effort to develop a vaccine.

​North Korea: The country could unveil a new missile during a military parade on Saturday celebrating the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party, sources told Yonhap. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is expected to deliver an address.

Following mass protests that led to the annulment of the country’s parliamentary elections and a power vacuum, Kyrgyz President Sooronbay Jeenbekov said he is willing to resign (RFE/RL) once a new cabinet is installed. The Central Election Commission said new elections must be held within a month.

​Bangladesh: Gang violence in Rohingya refugee camps have forced hundreds to flee (Guardian). Seven people have died in the past week.

The Donald J. Trump administration imposed new economic sanctions (NYT) on eighteen Iranian banks in a move that could effectively cut off Tehran from the global financial system. Critics said the sanctions are unlikely to force Iran back into negotiations with the United States and will further alienate U.S. allies in Europe.

CFR’s David J. Scheffer looks at the Trump administration’s flawed effort to revive Iran sanctions.

​Israel: Thousands of people continued to protest (Times of Israel) against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu despite a ban on public gatherings, including demonstrations. Netanyahu has said the ban is in response to a resurgence of coronavirus cases, but critics accused him of trying to stifle dissent.

Sierra Leone’s Anticorruption Commission said its agents were prevented from questioning (Nation) former President Ernest Bai Koroma by his supporters. Koroma and more than one hundred former officials from his administration are wanted for suspected corruption.

​Mali: Former Malian opposition leader Soumaila Cisse and French aid worker Sophie Petronin were reunited with their families in the country’s capital after being released by suspected jihadis (Africanews). French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted that he would welcome Petronin, the last French citizen held hostage abroad, back to France.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry announced that top diplomats from Armenia and Azerbaijan will attend talks in Moscow (RFE/RL) today, after Russian President Vladimir Putin called for an end to fighting in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. French, Russian, and U.S. officials have been holding talks in Geneva.

United Kingdom: European Council President Charles Michel said the upcoming week of Brexit negotiations will be the “moment of truth” and called on the United Kingdom to “put all of its cards on the table” (Politico). Appearing with the Irish prime minister, Michel said the Brexit standoff jeopardized peace in Ireland.

​CFR’s Sebastian Mallaby explains what’s going on with Brexit.

Thousands of Venezuelans are again fleeing the country (AP), many on foot, after months of pandemic lockdown measures. Officials in neighboring Colombia expect two hundred thousand Venezuelans to enter the country in the coming months.

​Mexico: Former security minister Genaro Garcia Luna pleaded not guilty (BBC) to charges connecting him to the Sinaloa drug cartel. Prosecutors allege that he allowed the cartel to operate freely in the country in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes.

President Trump said he hoped to resume campaigning tomorrow (NYT), despite testing positive for the coronavirus nine days ago. He also lamented that his administration has not pursued the prosecution of his political foes, including former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden.

​Federal and state officials announced charges against thirteen people who were allegedly plotting to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer (WaPo), overthrow the government, and start a civil war. Officials said the foiled plot showed how civil unrest has energized extremists.