Main news of November 1

A roundup of what has happened in the past 24 hours

RUSSIA

* Russia's prime minister briefed his Swedish counterpart, the current EU president, about possible problems with Ukrainian payment for Russian gas and its transit to European consumers, a spokesman said.

* A Russian nuclear submarine has successfully test-launched a ballistic missile, the Defense Ministry said

* A Thai-flagged fishing vessel with 23 Russians on board that was captured by pirates has been taken to Somalia, the ship’s owner said

WORLD

* Hamid Karzai will take part in the second round of Afghanistan's presidential election despite the withdrawal of his opponent, a spokesman for the Afghan president said

* Italian police have arrested one of Italy's most wanted and dangerous mafia bosses, local media reported

* Egyptian authorities have opened the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip for three days, Palestinian radio reported

* Ukraine's president has asked the international community for help dealing with a flu epidemic that the country's Health Ministry said has killed 53 people

* The Ukrainian government will review all pharmacies in the country to ensure they meet requirements imposed over the current flu epidemic, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said

* The number of people infected with A/H1N1 virus in Belarus has risen to 59, the Health Ministry said

BUSINESS

* Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has signed amendments to the criminal law stipulating criminal liability for offences damaging investors' rights on the securities market, the Kremlin press office said

SPORTS

* Spartak Moscow extended their winning streak to five games with a 5-1 demolition of Rostov on Sunday, cutting the gap to Rubin at the top of the table to one point