At least 22 people were killed and 22 others wounded when gunmen stormed Kabul University in a brutal, hours-long assault that saw students left in pools of blood in their classrooms. The attack in Afghanistan's capital claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL, ISIS) group, came as violence surged across the country. It was also the second time in less than two weeks that an educational institution was targeted in the capital.

The country's first Vice President Amrullah Saleh pointed the finger of blame on the Taliban, which rejected his claims. Saleh told local media that there is evidence to prove his claim, but Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said it was an attempt by Saleh to defame the armed group, which signed an agreement with the US in February. Survivors described horrific scenes following the incident that saw a suicide bomber blew himself up inside the campus. Two gunmen then started shooting, officials said.

Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan have once again failed to agree on a new negotiating approach to resolve their years-long dispute over the controversial dam that Ethiopia is building on the Blue Nile River. In late October, the three African nations resumed virtual talks over the filling and operation of the $4bn Grand Ethiopia Renaissance Dam (GERD) project, which broke ground in 2011. The renewed talks followed US President Donald Trump's comments in which he said downstream Egypt could end up "blowing up" the project, which Cairo has called an existential threat. The remarks angered Ethiopia.

Foreign and irrigation ministers of the three nations met last week and delegated experts from their countries to discuss and agree on an approach so the talks could be fruitful. But differences remained and the meeting failed to bridge the gaps, said Mohammed el-Sebaei, Egypt's Irrigation Ministry spokesman.

Indian police said they arrested firebrand television news anchor Arnab Goswami and charged him with abetment to suicide in connection with the 2018 deaths of an interior designer and the designer's mother. Senior Mumbai police officer Sanjay Mohite said the charges against the Republic TV founder are linked to the deaths of interior designer Anvay Naik and his mother, which police determined to be suicide. A suicide note found by the police and determined to have been written by Naik said he took his life because Goswami and two others owed him a huge sum of money and had refused to pay it back.

Goswami, who has denied the allegations, is known for aggressively backing up Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his nationalist policies during his nightly shows, often shouting down opponents. Critics have accused Republic TV of pandering to Modi's agenda at a time when other media channels say press freedom is under threat. The channel showed video of Goswami being forced into a police van by the officers outside his residence in Mumbai.

Chinese regulators stunned financial markets by slamming the brakes on billionaire Jack Ma's financial tech firm Ant Group's highly anticipated initial public offering just days before its shares were scheduled to start trading in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Ma's financial tech firm was set to raise $37 billion and become the biggest share sale in history. The Shanghai Stock Exchange said in a late night statement that it had postponed the Ant Group IPO because of "major issues" that might cause the company "not to meet the listing conditions or disclosure requirements."

That came after the Chinese central bank and other Chinese government officials called in Ma and Ant Group executives for talks a day earlier. The Shanghai bourse is "fulfilling its responsibility of self regulation," Wang Wenbin, spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told reporters later. Shares in Alibaba (BABA), the e-commerce giant that Ma co-founded, plunged 8% in New York.