China is exporting a record amount of clean energy technology and equipment as the energy crisis from the Iran war drives surging demand for renewables, and that will help reduce global emissions, according to a report released Thursday.

Once installed or deployed, these 2026 exports will likely avert emissions of about 450 million metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, roughly equal to Brazil's annual emissions, says the analysis by the Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

Russia's most renowned independent newspaper, Novaya Gazeta, on Friday announced its closure after more than three decades of operation, blaming relentless official pressure.

"They have killed us," it said in an editorial statement, announcing that it will shut its office on Nov. 9 after publishing its final issue. "The Russian authorities and the Russian security services have forced our editorial team to cease operations."

The Dakar Rally in January will start in Portugal and finish in Morocco after being moved from Saudi Arabia because of the Middle East conflict.

Organizers announced the new route on Friday. They canceled the race in Saudi last weekend but reaffirmed it will return to the kingdom in 2028.

Europe's economy persevered with moderate growth in the third quarter despite higher oil prices from the U.S.-Iran war, as gross domestic product increased by 0.4% over the quarter before.

The figure released Friday for the 21 European Union member countries that use the euro currency was better than the 0.2% expected by market analysts. Compared to the same quarter a year ago, the economy of the 21 countries using the euro grew by 1.3% in the July-September period, according to EU statistics agency Eurostat.

Dockworkers in Europe and beyond were staging strikes on Friday as part of an international campaign against arms shipments and to demand better working conditions, unions said.

Unions in France, Italy, Greece, Spain, Turkey and Morocco issued a joint call to demand an end to the wars in the Middle East, including the war in Gaza, and "an end to the militarization of ports."

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and European Union leaders are set to conclude a two-day summit Friday as the EU's top official presses to make Canada the bloc's first "associate member" and both sides seek to reduce their dependence on the United States.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa joined Carney in Montreal to pursue an unprecedented alliance that could bring Canada closer to the EU than any previous arrangement with a country outside the bloc. But some European governments have resisted the proposed associate membership designation.

Pope Leo XIV has become the first pope to vote in a U.S. general election.

The Vatican confirmed Friday that the Chicago-born pontiff had submitted a mail-in ballot in Chicago ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections, citing his long-standing belief in civic participation.

Early voting is continuing to significantly outpace the last midterm election, with millions more Americans casting ballots in advance and particularly sharp increases in states hosting competitive Senate races, according to an Associated Press analysis of voting data five days before Election Day.

The surge is especially pronounced in Texas, where voters are deciding closely watched Senate, House and governor's races. More than 6.3 million Texans had voted early as of Wednesday, compared with 4.2 million at the same point four years ago, a 50% increase.

The top diplomats from the Group of 20 largest world economies, including envoys from Russia and China, are meeting in Atlanta as they face deep rifts over multiple wars and other global crises that threaten international security and trade.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will chair the gathering Friday and Saturday that will set the stage for a G20 leaders summit hosted by President Donald Trump at his Miami golf club in December.

Israel's final election results confirmed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc lost its majority of parliamentary seats and that weeks of difficult negotiations among very different parties, from ultra-Orthodox Jewish to secular to Arab-led, lie ahead.

The results released early Friday showed Netanyahu's bloc won 53 seats in Tuesday's elections. The main opposition bloc won 48. Arab-led parties secured the other 19, a historic showing. Now parties must meet, bargain and seek a way to team up for at least 61 seats in the 120-seat Knesset.