* At the meeting on March 24 with French President Emmanuel Macron in the southern French city of Nice, Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed the importance of maintaining a sound China-France relationship to both countries' long-term development and its potential impact on the world.
* New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on March 25 a royal commission inquiry into the events leading up to a March 15 attack on two mosques in Christchurch that killed 50 people, including into the country's intelligence services.
* British Prime Minister Theresa May met senior colleagues and Brexit-supporting rebel lawmakers on March 24 at her country residence to discuss her strategy and whether there is sufficient support to put her deal to another vote this week, a Downing Street spokesman said.
* Mali's President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita sacked and replaced two generals on March 24 after gunmen killed 134 Fulani herders in a surge of violence the insurgency-plagued country.
* Britain's Prince Charles and Duchess of Cornwall Camilla arrived in Cuba on March 24, becoming the first British royals to visit the country.
* Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on March 24 that Turkey will take the issue of US recognition of Israeli sovereignty over Golan Heights to the United Nations.
* The cruise ship Viking Sky, with 1,373 people on board, that had encountered engine trouble off Norway's western coast has docked in a port and all passengers and crew are safe, the ship's operator Viking Cruises said on March 24.
* Worshippers gathered at battered churches in the Mozambican port of Beira on March 24, praying for divine protection as the death toll crept up from a cyclone and floods around southern Africa. Cyclone Idai hit Beira, on the Indian Ocean, with winds up to 170 kph (105 mph), before barrelling inland to Zimbabwe and Malawi, flattening homes and killing at least 656 people.
* Israel's army fired artillery at a Hamas post in the Gaza Strip on March 24 night amidst clashes along the fence between the besieged enclave and Israel.
* Recent floods in northern Iran along the Caspian Sea have caused losses of US$392 million to agricultural sectors, Tehran Times daily reported on March 24.
* The Egyptian House of Representatives said on March 24 that it will finish all procedures related to the anticipated constitutional amendments by mid-April for a public referendum.
* Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), will invest AED1 billion (US$270 million) to support technology startups, a government statement said on March 24.
