Iran/Ukraine
The Iranian government admitted that it accidentally downed a Ukrainian passenger plane flying out of Tehran, killing all 176 passengers onboard. The incident occurred two hours after the Iranian strikes on US military bases in Iraq, explaining why the Iranian military was on "high alert" and therefore mistook the passenger plane for a military plane. Thousands of protestors have gathered in Tehran demanding the resignation of Iran's President after news broke out that all onboard had died.
Oman
Oman's Sultan, who ruled the country for 50 years, has died. Many believe that the sultan was responsible for Oman's modernization and its ability to stay somewhat neutral in middle eastern conflicts. Hours after his death, Haitham bin Tariq Al Said, who was the Minister of Culture, was named Oman's new Sultan.
Taiwan
Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan was re-elected as the country's President with 57% of the vote, and vowed to keep Taiwan independent from mainland China. For decades, China has claimed that Taiwan is part of China's territory, and vows that it will use military force if it attempts to become completely independent.
Australia
Australia's PM has called for a government inquiry into the handling of the bush fires that have ravaged the country. This comes as many citizens are critical of the PM, who has not done much to acknowledge climate change's impact on the wildfires. Many have also criticized his decision to vacation in Hawaii as wildfires continued to burn in his country.