Our daily voyage around the world

🇨🇳 China eased some pandemic restrictions yesterday, but also reiterated its commitment to ‘Zero Covid.’ The move came as protests against Beijing's strict pandemic policies spread to at least a dozen major cities around the world yesterday, including London, Paris, Tokyo, and Sydney. The initial catalyst for these demonstrations was an apartment fire in Xinjiang last week that killed at least 10 people, and raised questions over whether residents were allowed to flee the building, which was under Covid lockdown. On Monday, China reported its fifth consecutive record of new daily Covid cases (40,052).

🇮🇷 The niece of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khameini was arrested last week for anti-government activities. Two days after she was arrested, her brother posted a video message in which she called on all foreign governments to cut ties with the Iranian regime, and compared Khameini to dictators like Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. More than 14,000 Iranians have been arrested for participating in widespread and ongoing anti-government protests that began in September, with at least 21 facing the death penalty.

🇪🇺 A "super cartel" controlling one-third of Europe's cocaine supply was busted by Europol. Authorities arrested a total of 49 people across six countries and seized a combined 33 tons worth of illicit substances as part of a two-year operation. While record amounts of cocaine have been seized across Europe in recent years, NBC News reports the drug’s availability on the continent has never been higher, with extremely high purity and low prices.