Chilean President Sebastian Pinera declared a state of emergency after nationwide protests, sparked by an announced rise in subway fares, escalated into riots, killing at least eight people (LAHT).
 
The protests, which began last Monday in protest of the fare hike, intensified later in the week when student demonstrators vandalized transit stations (Santiago Times) in the capital, Santiago. Policymakers reversed the increase, but the unrest, which protestors say is driven by rising inequality and unaffordability of daily life, led to the looting and burning of dozens of businesses, including the headquarters of Chile’s largest electricity company (NPR). The state of emergency saw troops deployed on the streets of Santiago and the arrest of nearly 1,500 people (NYT) with some demonstrators calling for a general strike.

Four ministers resigned (Al Jazeera) from Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s cabinet in a show of no confidence after tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets over the weekend to protest corruption and economic mismanagement. In response, Hariri has called for reforms that include halving (Reuters) minister and lawmaker wages.
 
Syria: U.S. troops were transferred (CNN) from Syria to Iraq yesterday while Kurdish forces withdrew from the Syrian town of Ras al-Ain as part of an agreement brokered between the United States and Turkey.
 
In Foreign Affairs, CFR’s Henri J. Barkey writes that going after Kurdish land in northern Syria will not bring Erdogan peace.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who began his second term over the weekend, has asked (SCMP) his top election opponent, Prabowo Subianto, to serve as the country’s defense minister. He has also recruited the founder of Indonesia’s largest tech startup.
 
China: Defense Minister Wei Fenghe issued remarks that resolving the Taiwan question (Straits Times) was China’s priority and no force could prevent the two countries’ “reunification.”
 
This CFR Backgrounder looks at China-Taiwan relations.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper visited Afghanistan today in a bid to restart peace talks (Reuters) with the Taliban, which President Donald J. Trump broke off last month. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also met (Speaker’s Office) with top Afghan officials over the weekend.
 
Kashmir: India and Pakistan traded gunfire (WaPo) over the line dividing the disputed territory, killing nine people, including both soldiers and civilians.

Police raided a religious school in the country’s north to free nearly 150 students that authorities say were being held captive and abused (Al Jazeera). Authorities have rescued more than one thousand students from such schools in recent months.
 
Mozambique: The country’s main opposition party, Renamo, announced it will contest (BBC) the results of last Tuesday’s presidential election, which an EU observer mission said was marred by a “climate of fear.”

Russian hackers have used Iranian espionage efforts as a front (FT) for their cyber operations in order to cloak their own involvement, according to a joint investigation by U.S. and UK intelligence agencies. Investigators said the technique could be linked to attacks in more than thirty-five countries. 
 
CFR’s Cyber Operations Tracker looks at state-sponsored cyber offensives around the world.
 
Switzerland: The country’s environmental parties were the largest gainers (FT) in yesterday’s national elections, with green parties to be the second-largest bloc in parliament.

Canadians are voting (CBC) for their next parliament today in a close contest, with polls indicating that neither incumbent Prime Minister Justin Trudeau nor the Conservative Party’s Andrew Scheer is likely to win a majority (CNN).

President Trump announced he would seek another location (CNN) for next year’s Group of Seven summit, originally planned for his resort in Doral, Florida, after the move drew bipartisan criticism.