ITALY: The Italian Senate gave final approval today to an agreement with Albania to house migrants during the processing of their asylum requests, part of the government’s effort to share the migration burden with the rest of Europe.

Under the five-year deal, Albania would shelter up to 3,000 migrants at a time in two centres while Italy fast-tracks their asylum requests.

THAILAND: City employees in Thailand’s capital Bangkok were ordered today to work from home for two days, and those in the private sector were encouraged to do so as well, as air pollution soared to unhealthy levels.