Two ships hit by drones off Bulgarian coast, one sunk
Two ships have been hit by drones off the coast of Bulgaria in the Black Sea, with one vessel sunk and another damaged. Rescue operations are underway, according to The Guardian.
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Two ships have been hit by drones off the coast of Bulgaria in the Black Sea, with one vessel sunk and another damaged. Rescue operations are underway, according to The Guardian.
· 2 sourcesFormer DR Congo president Joseph Kabila has joined a new political-military coalition that includes the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group, dealing a fresh blow to peace efforts as a United Nations envoy warns the window for a settlement will not remain open indefinitely.
· 3 sourcesUkraine's former commander-in-chief has said Kyiv has stabilised the front line and "broken Russia's ability to advance" by inflicting heavy losses on its invading forces, in his first interview since being dismissed this summer.
As renewed fighting in Ethiopia's Tigray region threatens to unravel the November 2022 Pretoria peace agreement and destabilise the Horn of Africa, the United Arab Emirates has publicly backed Ethiopia's federal government while Saudi Arabia has remained silent on the latest escalation, according to reporting from Addis Ababa.
Saudi Arabia's energy minister has vowed a 'serious' response to Houthi attacks on the kingdom's airports and oil and gas facilities, as international carriers suspend flights to Riyadh and Dammam and authorities say Riyadh's main airport will stay closed until Saturday.
· 2 sourcesPolish authorities say two Turkish citizens have been arrested in Germany over a fire that destroyed a Starlink station in central Poland, an attack Warsaw has branded an act of sabotage carried out on Russia's behalf.
Missile strikes on the Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv and Kyiv have killed at least four people and wounded dozens, as the Kremlin declined to confirm a US-announced ceasefire on attacks against energy infrastructure.
Yemen's Houthi rebels launched fresh missile attacks on Riyadh on Monday, the third consecutive day of strikes targeting Saudi Arabia's capital, as authorities scramble to understand how the weekend's barrage breached air defences. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted a ballistic missile fired towards the city and two aimed at Khamis Mushait, while King Khalid International Airport remained closed and airlines cancelled flights. US President Donald Trump accused the Houthis of 'misbehaving very badly' and said he is considering direct American strikes.
· 10 sourcesNATO’s top commander has warned that his forces would destroy “anything and everything” if someone was “foolish enough” to attack the alliance, as European governments accuse Moscow of stepping up sabotage, drone incursions and cyberattacks against them.
An alleged air strike on a gold mining site in northern Sudan has killed at least 72 workers, according to a Khartoum-based rights group, underscoring the severe security vacuum along the lawless, disputed border region with Egypt. Egypt has not responded to the accusations.
· 2 sourcesThe head of the International Energy Agency says the world is facing its biggest energy crisis ever, driven by the US-Israel war on Iran and the resulting disruption to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway carrying about 20 percent of global oil and liquefied natural gas.
A teenager was killed and dozens of people injured on Monday when unexploded ordnance exploded near the Lebanese border in northern Israel, striking students and staff from a religious high school on an outing, the Al Jazeera news network reported.
· 2 sourcesThe UK government has formally accused Iran of orchestrating the security incident at RAF Fairford, with Prime Minister Andy Burnham telling parliament the plot was "almost certainly directed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard". Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband summoned the Iranian ambassador to make clear that "Britain will not tolerate threats on our soil", while the Foreign Office imposed sanctions on two Iranian nationals, including the head of Iran's counterespionage operations. The attribution was backed by a joint statement from 29 countries condemning Iranian hostile activities.
· 3 sourcesUkrainian drone strikes seriously damaged three Yandex data centers over the past week, forcing Russia's largest technology company to shut down two facilities and partially disable a third. The attacks, which Yandex confirmed caused widespread service outages, have left customers unable to access cloud files, payments, and other key services. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes were retaliation for Russian drone attacks that targeted data centers in Kyiv.
· 3 sourcesIranian authorities have signalled they will disrupt the Arab-operated, US-assisted oil shuttle moving exports through the Strait of Hormuz, with Tehran's security chief declaring the system an explicit military target amid the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran.
Forces aligned with Yemen's internationally recognised government and the former Southern Transitional Council cut the main road linking the Red Sea port of Mocha to the Bab al-Mandeb strait on Monday, in one of the first major military gains against the Houthis in years.
US President Donald Trump has said Ukraine needs a new president, claiming Volodymyr Zelenskyy's strikes on Russian refineries have hurt global diesel supplies. Zelenskyy has responded by proposing elections if Russia guarantees a 60-day ceasefire, with analysts naming former top general Valerii Zaluzhnyi as his most dangerous potential challenger.
A second-in-command of the largest Uyghur militia in Syria has described how a deadly brawl at a toy factory in China’s Guangdong province in 2009 set him on the path from his home in Xinjiang to the front lines of Syria’s civil war, according to a new book by journalist Emily Feng.
Israel has expanded its military control in the Gaza Strip beyond the boundaries of the US-brokered ceasefire's 'Yellow Line', forcing Palestinians into an ever-smaller share of the territory. Nearly two-thirds of Gaza is now under Israeli military control or subject to access restrictions.
The European Union will limit Chinese hybrid electric vehicle imports to 350,000 cars a year under a four-year agreement reached in Beijing last week, with the European Commission confirming the cap will halve China's market share when it comes into force in December.
· 3 sourcesMyanmar's military leader, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, is set to visit Indonesia and Brunei, a regime spokesperson has announced, marking the latest step in the junta chief's efforts to normalise ties within the region.
China has sanctioned Paraguay's communications minister and Belize's foreign minister over their governments' ties with Taiwan, freezing their assets and denying them entry to Hong Kong and Macau. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the measures on Monday, saying they took effect the same day.
A Ukrainian-born Russian spy who reported the locations of Ukrainian forces to Moscow has described how a low-tech spying career, built on Google searches and a Facebook group, ended in his capture. The man, identified only as Alexander, told his story from Central Ukraine in an interview published on October 12, and said his actions led to soldiers' deaths.
· 3 sourcesNorth Korea fired multiple ballistic missiles towards the sea off its east coast on Monday, with one missile flying more than 900km from the Pyongyang area, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff. The launch came days after Seoul test-fired its first hypersonic missile, an event Pyongyang appears to have answered with a show of force.
Saudi Arabia extended the suspension of flights at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport on Monday, a day after a second projectile attack on the domestic terminal killed one person and wounded 11, as authorities reviewed why Houthi missiles keep penetrating Saudi air defences.
· 4 sourcesUS President Donald Trump has claimed both sides in the Ukraine war have agreed to an energy truce, even as Russian drones, glide bombs and missiles killed more than 150 people and wounded 700 others in the past week. Analysis of the ceasefire push argues Ukraine is unlikely to accept punitive terms and that Trump cannot force it to, with the US midterm elections looming on November 3.
· 3 sourcesMPs will debate a petition calling for the United Kingdom to rejoin the European Union on Monday, the first day back in Parliament after the conference season. The petition, titled 'Apply to Rejoin', argues that 'Brexit’s not working' and has collected over 110,000 signatures, passing the threshold for parliamentary debate. The debate has been welcomed by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has urged the government to prepare voters for a return to the EU, and follows Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s recent signals that his administration could eventually propose rejoining.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pledged to continue drone strikes targeting Russian oil refineries, pushing back against criticism from US President Donald Trump over the campaign.
· 3 sourcesAn analysis published by Al Jazeera warns that United States sanctions on the International Criminal Court could paralyse its operations, urging member states to use a 180-day grace period to strengthen the court's resilience instead of pursuing negotiations with Washington.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signalled his willingness to accept an energy ceasefire with Russia after US President Donald Trump declared the deal unilaterally on social media, but reported that Russian drone and missile strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure continued throughout Sunday, including an attack on a power plant in Kharkiv.
· 7 sourcesRussian strikes hit Ukrainian energy infrastructure, including a power plant in Kharkiv, within hours of US President Donald Trump declaring that both sides had agreed to an immediate 'energy ceasefire'. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the announcement was 'news to him' but expressed willingness to support the truce if Moscow reciprocates. The Kremlin has not publicly confirmed the agreement.
· 10 sourcesUkraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused Russia of violating the US-brokered 'energy ceasefire' almost as soon as it was announced, saying a power plant in Kharkiv was hit 'immediately after' President Donald Trump declared the truce. Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum on Monday, Zelenskyy said Putin 'does not read Truth Social', urged Washington to enforce the agreement and warned that Ukraine would respond if Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure continue.
· 8 sourcesUS President Donald Trump has claimed that Russia and Ukraine have agreed to halt attacks on each other's energy infrastructure, a proposal that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he supports but is awaiting details from the American side. Zelenskyy also proposed a 60-day full ceasefire as a condition for holding elections in Ukraine.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said it is "clear" that Russia interfered in the 2016 Brexit referendum, becoming the first UK leader to publicly acknowledge the Kremlin's involvement. In an interview with The Rest Is Politics podcast, Burnham said he asked the question upon entering Downing Street and received confirmation. He warned voters in France and Germany that similar Russian-backed disinformation efforts are targeting their politics.
· 7 sourcesDonald Trump has called for Ukraine to get "a new president" and announced an "energy ceasefire" between Russia and Ukraine that Volodymyr Zelenskyy said was "news to me", as tensions between Washington and Kyiv over the US president's Russian diesel deal escalate weeks before the US midterm elections.
· 4 sourcesIsraeli authorities have installed three iron gates across a 200-metre stretch of Hebron's Old City, part of a tightening web of restrictions that residents say is turning their neighbourhood into a ghost town, according to an Al Jazeera report. The gates, erected in recent days, block vehicle access and pedestrian routes, adding to 89 checkpoints and 925 movement obstacles across the West Bank, with a heavy concentration in the Israeli-controlled H2 sector of Hebron.
Ethiopia and Eritrea have accused each other of aggression in letters to the UN Security Council, raising fears of a fresh conflict in the Horn of Africa as fighting intensifies in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region.
Attacks around the strategic Strait of Hormuz have escalated again as mediated attempts to end the US-Israel war on Iran remain deadlocked, with Iran warning oil tankers against ignoring its security rules and the US continuing to enforce a naval blockade of Iran's ports.
Official development finance to Southeast Asia fell by nearly 10 percent to $US26 billion in 2024, the lowest level in a decade, according to new research from the Lowy Institute. The latest Southeast Asia Aid Map shows that Japan, China and the United States all reduced funding, with deeper cuts from Washington expected to hit future flows.
Air strikes have resumed on Yemen's capital Sanaa after the internationally recognised government announced a new military offensive, Operation Dawn of Yemen, to oust Houthi forces who have held the city since 2014. At least one child has been killed and seven civilians wounded in attacks that residents say have revived fears of the devastating Saudi-led bombing campaign that began a decade ago.
Poland's police have received information about a possible plot to attack Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, with authorities assessing a high probability the threat would have been carried out. The development emerges as Poland remains on high alert following multiple school stabbings this week and ongoing concerns over potential Russian hybrid warfare aimed at weakening Western support for Ukraine.
A second projectile struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Sunday, sparking a fire and causing injuries, Saudi authorities said, one day after a deadlier attack killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300. The Saudi-led coalition blamed Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels and vowed to respond firmly, while the Houthis renewed their warning against using Saudi airports, saying 'the worst is yet to come' if Saudi military operations in Yemen continue.
· 11 sourcesUkrainian drones damaged a Yandex data centre in the Russian city of Vladimir on Sunday, forcing the tech giant to suspend operations completely at the site in the third attack on its facilities this week. The strike came hours after US President Donald Trump warned Ukraine to “damn well stop” attacking Russian oil refineries, deepening a diplomatic rift between Washington and Kyiv.
· 3 sourcesPrime Minister Andy Burnham has made the UK's firmest attribution yet of the RAF Fairford security scare, telling parliament that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was almost certainly behind the incident and that further sanctions on Tehran would follow.
· 5 sourcesThe Iran-backed Houthi militia seized territory alongside the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world's most important waterways, in a single night of chaos and panic, plunging Yemen back into war and prompting Saudi Arabia to launch a bombing campaign with intelligence and targeting assistance from the US military.
· 3 sourcesUnited States forces have disabled a commercial cargo vessel in the Gulf of Oman after its crew ignored warnings and attempted to run the US naval blockade against Iran, according to Central Command. In a separate incident, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it struck a different vessel in the Strait of Hormuz for taking an 'illegal route.'
At least five people were killed near the al-Maashiq presidential palace in Aden on Thursday after Houthi missile strikes, with Yemeni Prime Minister Shaya al-Zindani present but unharmed, as the Iran-backed group continues to disrupt government supply lines and advance around Taiz and the Red Sea coast.
· 2 sourcesHundreds of doctors have gathered outside the World Medical Association summit in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, calling for the suspension of the Israeli Medical Association over its alleged complicity in the destruction of Palestinian healthcare during the Gaza war.