Israel Election Leaves Both Blocs Short of Majority (Politics)
Nordic Call to Putin Exposes European Divisions (Europe)
US Weighs Lifting Sanctions on Russian Investment Fund (US)
Brazil Probes Alleged Foreign Election Assistance (South America)
UK Charges Two Over Alleged Iran-Linked Airbase Plot (UK)
Pentagon Puts Iran War Cost at $47.1 Billion (US)
El Salvador Sends 1,000 Troops to Haiti After Ambush (Caribbean)
EU Proposes Expanding Frontex Powers Beyond Its Borders (Europe)
EU Plans for a World Three Degrees Warmer (Climate)
Lancet Calls for Global Climate Health Emergency (Health)
A succinct daily briefing delivered each weekday to help you stay on top of the stories shaping the world.
Israel’s general election has left both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition and former military chief Gadi Eisenkot’s opposition bloc without a parliamentary majority, according to exit polls. Two broadcasters projected both blocs winning 51 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, while another gave Netanyahu a narrow lead. Both leaders claimed victory as counting continued.
The two Arab parties are projected to secure a record 18 or 19 seats, potentially determining who can form a government. However, only one opposition party has openly supported working with them and a unity government between Netanyahu and Eisenkot also appears unlikely.
Turnout reached 77.7%, its highest level at that stage since 1999. Around 600,000 absentee ballots, mostly from military personnel, will not be fully counted until Thursday. Once results are confirmed, Israel’s president will consult political factions before selecting a leader to attempt forming a coalition, a process that could take weeks. Another election remains possible.
Sources: Axios, BBC
Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere held a rare 90-minute telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, urging an end to the war in Ukraine. They subsequently spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The initiative preceded planned talks involving Russia, Ukraine and the United States in Abu Dhabi next month.
The outreach exposed divisions among European leaders. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen criticised the lack of coordination and said she saw no signs Russia wanted peace. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson warned against dividing Europe’s position, while Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha welcomed the contact as coordinated with Kyiv.
The Kremlin offered no indication of compromise, insisting Russia’s interests must be fully considered. The call followed US President Donald Trump’s shift towards Russia, including purchases of Russian diesel and eased sanctions. Stubb and Stoere said they acted for their own countries, not Europe.
Sources: Reuters, New York Times
The Trump administration is considering lifting sanctions on the Russian Direct Investment Fund, a government investment vehicle previously described by US officials as a slush fund for President Vladimir Putin. An American official said the fund’s application was being assessed through established procedures as Washington seeks improved relations with Moscow and an end to the Ukraine war.
Russian officials have sought relief during negotiations over diesel shipments to the United States. The fund, headed by Kremlin economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev, has helped arrange shipments following President Donald Trump’s suspension of sanctions on Russian diesel on 9 October. Three tankers have sailed this month, according to Russian officials.
The proposal would reverse part of the economic pressure imposed after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Washington sees potential business agreements as incentives for peace, while critics argue they reward Moscow without securing an end to fighting. Russia continues missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities.
Sources: New York Times, Kyiv Independent
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Flávio Dino has ordered a police investigation into possible illegal foreign assistance to Flávio Bolsonaro’s presidential campaign, following his defeat by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Sunday. Investigators will examine alleged contacts involving the Rockbridge Network, a US donor group co-founded by Vice President JD Vance, and Brazilian intermediaries. Brazilian law prohibits foreign campaign funding and other economic assistance.
The allegations arose from complaints by Bolsonaro’s opponents, including former presidential candidate Renan Santos. Rockbridge denied involvement, saying Brazilians claiming to represent the network had falsely presented themselves as its agents. Dino emphasised that the investigation did not establish wrongdoing.
The inquiry will also examine election advertising linked to Polymarket and Meta, possible manipulation of online content, and whether foreign economic interests in Brazil’s critical minerals were connected to political financing. Meta denied favouring any candidate. The investigation could further strain Brazil-US relations.
Meanwhile Flavio Bolsanaro has left Brazil despite the fact that the Brazilian Supreme Court banned him from doing so as he was being investigated in relation to alleged money laundering. The US State Department confirmed that Mr Bolsanaro and his family would be granted visas.
Sources: Washington Post, Bloomberg
Two men have been charged under Britain’s National Security Act following a September incident at RAF Fairford, a British base used by US bombers for strikes on Iran. Prosecutors told a London court that five men drove petrol-loaded vans to the base on instructions from a handler known as Ali, whom police believe was working for Iranian intelligence.
One driver called emergency services after the handler allegedly warned that a bomb had been planted in a van. Mohmed Abdulkarim, 24, is accused of assisting a foreign intelligence service by purchasing vans and other equipment. Nouman Essghir, also 24, is accused of entering a prohibited site for a purpose prejudicial to Britain after allegedly filming the base in August.
Abdulkarim was released on bail and Essghir remanded in custody. Both are due at the Old Bailey on 20 November.
Iranian officials have denied that the Fairford activity was coordinated in Iran.
Sources: South China Morning Post, The Guardian
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The Pentagon has put the cost of the US war against Iran at $47.1 billion through 16 October, with munitions accounting for more than 60% of spending. The figure exceeds Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth’s July estimate of $37.5 billion by more than 25%, even as President Donald Trump holds back from restarting major combat operations.
The military has used $29 billion in munitions, drawing down critical weapons stockpiles and supplies from US commands in Asia and Europe. Another $6.1 billion has gone towards replacing damaged or destroyed aircraft and equipment. More than 50,000 troops are assigned to the mission.
Congressional officials said the total excludes $1.5 billion in additional fuel and other requested costs, alongside repairs to US bases damaged by Iranian attacks. The disclosure comes ahead of the 3 November congressional elections, with higher global energy costs weighing on Republican support and Trump’s approval ratings.
Sources: Arab News, New York Times
El Salvador has sent about 1,000 troops to Haiti after four Salvadoran aviation technicians serving in a UN-backed security mission disappeared following a gang ambush on 18 October. President Nayib Bukele ordered reinforcements to search for the men, who escaped a burning vehicle east of Port-au-Prince. The United States provided military transport aircraft to assist the deployment.
The operation substantially expands El Salvador’s presence in Haiti, where the Gang Suppression Force has reached about 2,000 personnel, barely a third of its planned strength. Armed gangs have expanded their control around the capital, displacing nearly 1.5 million people. The command arrangements for the new Salvadoran troops remain unclear.
Gang leader Wilson Joseph denied involvement in the ambush, while another gang leader claimed the missing men were dead. Authorities have not confirmed their deaths. Human rights advocate Pierre Esperance welcomed the reinforcements but warned against harming civilians in gang-controlled neighbourhoods.
Sources: Straits Times, Miami Herald
The European Commission has proposed expanding the powers of Frontex, the European Border & Coast Guard Agency, allowing it to help non-EU countries deport migrants to their countries of origin. The change would extend the agency’s operations beyond Europe, including transfers involving people who have not reached EU territory. Frontex could also assist deportations from return hubs established outside the bloc.
The proposal would expand Frontex’s standing force to 30,000 officers over 15 years, create a return coordination centre and establish an online monitoring unit. EU Home Affairs Commissioner Magnus Brunner said a new rapid-response force could deploy within 24 hours to address emerging border crises.
Rights groups have criticised the expansion and called for stronger accountability. Dutch Green MEP Tineke Strik warned that the changes risk turning Frontex into a European version of US immigration enforcement agency ICE. The proposed reform would narrow the agency’s internal rights watchdog, referring complaints to national authorities.
Sources: Euronews, DW
The European Commission is proposing rules requiring member states to prepare for a 3C rise in global temperatures by 2100 and identify which authorities are responsible for managing climate risks. EU Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said cutting emissions alone would not protect citizens from increasingly severe heatwaves, floods and wildfires. Europe is warming at roughly twice the global average.
The proposals would bring climate scenarios into decisions on infrastructure and public investment. Hoekstra estimated that extreme weather caused more than €100 billion in economic damage across Europe this summer, while high temperatures contributed to approximately 50,000 deaths.
Financing remains a central gap. The Commission estimates that adaptation will require €70 billion annually until 2050, but the proposed framework includes no new funding.
Only around a quarter of assets exposed to climate impacts are insured, leaving households, property owners and governments facing substantial potential losses. The proposals come ahead of the COP31 climate summit in Turkey.
Sources: FT, Euronews
Researchers behind the Lancet Countdown report have called on the World Health Organization and United Nations to declare climate change a global health emergency, warning that health risks are accelerating faster than efforts to address them. The report estimates that heat caused three million deaths worldwide between 2016 and 2023, with 68% attributable to climate change.
Heat-related deaths reached a record 710,000 in 2023, more than 70% linked to human-caused warming. The researchers also identified growing risks from drought, extreme rainfall and conditions favouring dengue transmission. They argue that an emergency declaration could strengthen health surveillance, early warnings and coordinated action.
The report also estimates that reduced worker productivity from warming has cost the global economy more than $1 trillion annually over the past three years. Lancet Countdown executive director Marina Romanello called for a long-term response rather than successive emergency measures, as climate-related health threats continue to grow.
Sources: Arab News, Euronews
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On this day …
On this day in 1886, US President Grover Cleveland formally dedicated the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbour. A gift from France commemorating American independence and the friendship between the two nations, the monument was designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, with its internal structure engineered by Gustave Eiffel.
Over subsequent decades, the statue became closely associated with immigration, particularly as millions of newcomers passed through nearby Ellis Island. Its symbolism expanded beyond Franco-American relations to encompass ideals of liberty, opportunity and democratic government.
Today, the monument remains an internationally recognised symbol.
Lady Liberty has welcomed countless waves of immigrants to the shores of the USA with the promise of life, prosperity and liberty.
Unfortunately this welcome seems to have substantially worn out for many seeking a new life in America.