Parks Canada is ending its 55-year canine search-and-rescue program in Banff National Park, effective this month. The agency says rescue operations will continue through other means, while critics warn that removing the dog-handler role could affect public and staff safety.
Key Facts
Parks Canada confirmed it will eliminate the program’s only remaining dog-handler position in Banff National Park.
The agency said the decision is part of efforts to modernize its law-enforcement branch.
The program operated for 55 years and used dogs to locate missing people and search for victims after avalanches.
The last working dog, a German shepherd named Leroy, retired in August after seven years on the job.
Parks Canada said Leroy helped track 156 people, find 57 people lost in the wilderness, and solve two murders in Banff.
A replacement dog had been trained and was ready for duty before Parks Canada announced the program’s closure.
More than 5,000 people signed a petition to restore the program, started by Conservative MP William Stevenson.
The closure comes amid C$145 million in Parks Canada budget cuts and wider federal public-service reductions.
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Russia’s independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta announced on Friday that it would stop publishing after more than three decades. The newspaper said a Kremlin crackdown and a ban on the outlet had made it impossible to continue its work.
Key Facts
Novaya Gazeta announced it was ceasing publication on Friday, October 30, 2026.
The newspaper had published for more than three decades.
Novaya Gazeta described itself as an independent newspaper.
The outlet said a Kremlin crackdown had made its work impossible to continue.
The newspaper said it had been banned by Russian authorities.
Novaya Gazeta was known for investigative journalism.
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UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham met Scotland and Wales’s first ministers and Northern Ireland representatives in Glasgow to discuss economic growth and further devolution. He called for the four nations to move together, while Scottish First Minister John Swinney and Welsh leader Rhun ap Iowerth described the meeting positively; Burnham ruled out another Scottish independence referendum.
Key Facts
The Glasgow meeting was the first National Economic Council for the UK’s nations.
The participants discussed giving regions more control over employment support and funding for reindustrialisation.
Burnham said the UK government would examine further devolution of employment support for young people in Scotland and Wales.
Burnham urged the Scottish and Welsh governments to work with the UK government on a model of deeper devolution.
Swinney said he would work with Burnham on devolving more powers from Westminster, linking proposals to economic growth and living standards.
Ap Iowerth called the meeting positive.
Northern Ireland was represented by officials amid political fallout from the Drumcree parade dispute.
A Downing Street spokesperson said the government’s review of issues raised would not include a second Scottish independence referendum.
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Court of Justice of the European Union President Koen Lenaerts said the International Criminal Court deserves the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. In an interview, he also discussed rule-of-law issues within the EU and legal questions raised by stricter migration policies across the bloc.
Key Facts
The interview was published on October 30, 2026, as part of France 24’s Talking Europe program.
Koen Lenaerts is president of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).
The CJEU ensures that EU law is interpreted and applied across the bloc’s 27 member states.
The European Parliament awarded its annual Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought to the International Criminal Court.
Lenaerts said the ICC’s work is important as autocratic leaders gain influence around the world.
The interview also addressed rule-of-law issues within the EU.
Lenaerts discussed legal aspects of the apparent hardening of migration policies across the EU.
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Some residents left the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky in southern Ukraine on Friday during a rare ceasefire brokered by the United States. Ukrainian and Russian officials visited the town together to deliver aid and help residents leave; the ceasefire was due to end Sunday evening.
Key Facts
Oleshky is a Russian-occupied town in southern Ukraine.
Residents have faced shortages of food and medicine.
Some residents left on Friday during a rare ceasefire.
The United States brokered the ceasefire.
Ukrainian and Russian officials visited the town together.
Officials delivered aid and organized the departure of residents who wanted to leave.
The ceasefire was due to end on Sunday evening.
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Russia’s military satellite Cosmos-2612 maneuvered close to Iceye-X36, a Finnish-American commercial satellite that provides radar images to Ukraine’s armed forces. US officials described the move as threatening, and space analysts said the Russian satellite changed orbit before coming within a few hundred metres to about one kilometre of Iceye-X36.
Key Facts
Cosmos-2612 approached Iceye-X36 between October 15 and 18, 2026.
Iceye-X36 is operated by Finnish company Iceye and uses synthetic-aperture radar to produce satellite images.
The satellite’s imagery supports Ukraine’s armed forces.
The US State Department said Russia’s actions were consistent with in-orbit military operations.
Norbert Pouzin, an orbital analyst at Aldoria, said Cosmos-2612 and other satellites launched with it began changing orbit after launch.
Russia launched Cosmos-2612 on April 6, 2026, with five other Cosmos satellites.
Pouzin said Cosmos-2612 came within a few hundred metres to about one kilometre of Iceye-X36.
Satellite imaging company Vantor published an image showing the satellites’ orbits about 1.02 kilometres apart.
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Israel’s election results gave no bloc a majority, leaving party leaders to negotiate for at least 61 seats in the 120-seat Knesset. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and rival Gadi Eisenkot face difficult choices, including whether to work with Arab-led parties, form a unity government, or seek defectors; failure to form a coalition could lead to early elections.
Key Facts
Neither Netanyahu’s camp nor Eisenkot’s camp won a majority.
Arab-led parties won 19 seats, a historic result, and could influence coalition negotiations.
A coalition needs at least 61 seats in the 120-member Knesset.
Eisenkot could potentially form a 67-seat coalition with Arab-led parties, but that option would face political opposition.
A unity government between Netanyahu and Eisenkot’s allies could also reach 67 seats, but Eisenkot’s allies have pledged not to govern with Netanyahu.
Netanyahu could try to attract opposition figures such as Naftali Bennett or Avigdor Lieberman, who have also pledged not to join him.
If party leaders fail to form a coalition, Israel could hold early elections next year, while Netanyahu’s government remains as caretaker.
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Police Scotland has opened an early-stage investigation into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s time with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell at the Balmoral estate. The force said it received information but did not identify the possible offences or provide further details; Andrew has denied committing crimes.
Key Facts
Police Scotland said the investigation began after it received information.
The inquiry concerns Andrew’s time with Epstein and Maxwell at the king’s Balmoral estate in Scotland.
Police Scotland described the investigation as being at a very early stage.
The Daily Express reported that the inquiry related to claims that women were trafficked to Balmoral; police did not confirm that account.
US Department of Justice files included images that appeared to show Epstein and Maxwell on a shooting trip at Balmoral in 1999.
The article notes that appearing in the files does not prove wrongdoing.
Thames Valley Police arrested Andrew in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office; he was released on police bail pending further investigation.
Andrew has repeatedly denied committing crimes.
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A France 24 program examines how Donald Trump’s policies have strained relations between the United States and the European Union. Two members of the European Parliament discuss whether the November U.S. midterm elections could change the relationship or deepen tensions.
Key Facts
The program was published on October 30, 2026.
The article says Trump has imposed tariffs on European goods and made territorial claims on Greenland.
The article cites a diesel deal between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin as a source of tension.
It says Trump has urged Ukraine to get a new president.
The program asks how the November U.S. midterm elections could affect U.S.-EU relations.
The guests are Italian MEP Brando Benifei and Polish MEP Arkadiusz Mularczyk.
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Former Taunton Town chief executive Karl Lindsay, 56, pleaded guilty to offences connected to the drugging and rape of a woman by her husband and other men. The offences took place between 2015 and 2025 in the Stockport area; Lindsay will be sentenced after the trial of nine other defendants.
Key Facts
Lindsay resigned from Taunton Town Football Club before he was charged.
Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard that Lindsay’s offences involved administering substances to stupefy the woman for sexual acts.
The woman’s husband has admitted 62 offences against her, including rape.
Three other men have also admitted sexually abusing the woman.
Nine other defendants deny sexual offence charges and are due to go on trial.
The court scheduled the trial to begin on Monday after several delays.
The woman attended court with a relative and watched Lindsay enter his guilty pleas.
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An international dockworkers’ strike has highlighted workers’ role in global supply chains amid Europe’s growing military investment. Economist Renaud Foucart said port workers may win concessions on automation and working conditions, but questioned whether they can influence military policy.
Key Facts
The report was published on October 30, 2026.
The strike involves dockworkers in multiple countries.
The report links the strike to organized labor, technological change, and Europe’s military investment.
Renaud Foucart is a senior lecturer in economics at Lancaster University.
Foucart said dockworkers’ strategic position in supply chains gives them significant leverage.
Foucart expects dockworkers to secure concessions on automation and working conditions.
Foucart questioned whether the strike can redirect military policy.
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Novaya Gazeta said it will cease operations on Nov. 9 after Russian authorities pressured the newspaper, according to editor in chief Sergei Sokolov. Its closure leaves no major independent newspapers operating inside Russia, after the outlet lost its media license in 2022 and suspended publication following warnings over its coverage.
Key Facts
The newspaper said it would stop operating on Nov. 9.
Editor in chief Sergei Sokolov said Russian authorities and security services forced the staff to stop working.
Staff learned they were being evicted from their Moscow newsroom, and the newspaper’s donation system was shut off.
The Anna Politkovskaya Museum, located in her former office, will close with the newspaper.
Novaya Gazeta was founded in 1993 with money donated by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev from his Nobel Peace Prize award.
Journalist Anna Politkovskaya, known for reporting on the war in Chechnya, was murdered in Moscow in 2006.
The outlet suspended print and online operations after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022; a court revoked its media license that September.
Independent radio station Ekho Moskvy and TV Rain had already stopped operating inside Russia under pressure from authorities.
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Palestinian citizens of Israel voted in record numbers, giving two Arab-led parties 19 seats in the Knesset, their strongest result ever. Voters and party leaders said anger over crime, anti-Arab rhetoric and years of neglect drove the surge, which could help opposition parties form a government but may face resistance from rival leaders.
Key Facts
Nearly 840,000 people voted for Ra'am and the Joint List, 64% more than in the 2022 election.
The two Arab-led parties won 19 seats in the 120-member Knesset, exceeding their previous record of 15.
Sakhnin recorded the country’s highest turnout, at 87%.
In the Bedouin village of Tarabin, turnout nearly doubled, and Ra'am received 93% of the vote.
Local leaders and voters cited violent crime in Arab communities and anti-Arab incitement as reasons to vote.
Netanyahu warned against forming a government with the Arab-led parties and said it would lead to the “Islamization of Israel.”
Only one Arab-led party has previously served in an Israeli government.
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Residents described as starving and exhausted were being evacuated from Oleshky, a Russian-occupied town in southern Ukraine, on Friday, October 30, 2026. The evacuation was part of a joint relief operation involving the opposing sides, which the report described as the first of its kind in four years and eight months of war.
Key Facts
Oleshky is a town in southern Ukraine under Russian occupation.
Evacuations were under way on Friday, October 30, 2026.
The residents being evacuated were described as starving and exhausted.
The operation involved both sides in the conflict.
The report called it the first operation of its kind in four years and eight months of war.
France 24 Ukraine correspondent Emmanuelle Chaze reported on the evacuation from Kyiv.
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Andy Burnham’s Manchester-based Number 10 North office has advertised 50 jobs, with basic salaries totaling an estimated £2.8 million. The government says the hires will support work with mayors and councils and will be funded from existing budgets; the office is due to move to a new Manchester location in spring 2027.
Key Facts
The job advertisements cover strategy, communications, engagement, private office and policy roles.
A deputy director role focused on “rewiring the state” has a listed salary range of £86,000 to £117,000.
The £2.8 million estimate covers basic salaries and excludes civil service employer pension contributions.
Number 10 North has 120 staff, compared with 280 staff at Number 10 in London.
The government says some jobs will be relocated and some vacant roles closed, with no civil service redundancies resulting from the hiring.
The office expects most staff to work in person at least 60% of the time, according to the job advertisements.
The office will move from Heron House to a government building on First Street in Manchester in spring 2027.
Conservative politicians criticized the hiring, calling the office a source of extra bureaucracy and raising questions about its funding and transparency.
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Thousands gathered in La Verrière, a Paris suburb, on Friday to protest a week after a racist terrorist attack killed one person and injured five. The suspect, identified as Kevin T., admitted targeting people because of their appearance or religion and was transferred to a Paris court.
Key Facts
Thousands attended the rally in La Verrière.
The protest took place on Friday, one week after the attack.
The attack killed one person and injured five others.
Authorities identified the suspect as Kevin T.
The suspect admitted targeting people based on their appearance or religion.
The suspect was transferred to a Paris court.
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The report says Israel’s siege on Hebron has displaced at least 4,969 people. It also reports that a settler opened fire near children at a playground, Israeli forces arrested three Palestinians returning to Gaza, and Israel announced final election results.
Key Facts
The report says at least 4,969 people have been displaced through Israel’s siege on Hebron.
Israel has tightened its siege on Hebron, according to the report.
A settler opened fire on a group of children at a playground near Hebron.
Israeli forces arrested three Palestinians returning to Gaza.
Israel announced its final election results.
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Prosecutors told jurors at Russell Brand’s trial that six women had been haunted for years by alleged sexual offenses and had little to gain by coming forward. Brand denies seven charges involving alleged rape, sexual assault and attempted indecent assault; the trial is continuing.
Key Facts
The trial is taking place at Southwark Crown Court in London.
Brand faces three rape charges, three sexual assault charges and one charge of attempted indecent assault.
Prosecutor Reil Karmy-Jones KC said the six complainants do not know one another and had not sought publicity.
The prosecutor said the women had to relive their experiences during the trial.
Brand’s lawyer, Polly Dyer, told jurors he had pleaded guilty to possessing cannabis in 1995 and received a fine.
Dyer said Brand has no other convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings.
Brand’s wife, Laura, testified that he is a kind person and a wonderful father; the prosecutor said she was not with him during the periods connected to the charges.
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Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis visited North Korea for two days and held talks on restoring political dialogue and normalising relations. Switzerland formally reopened its diplomatic office in Pyongyang, which will operate without an ambassador and report to the Swiss embassy in Beijing.
Key Facts
Cassis’s visit was the first by a Swiss government minister to North Korea in more than 20 years.
He met North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui and ruling party official Jo Yong Won.
Cassis said the talks covered relations, dialogue and security on the Korean Peninsula and in Eurasia.
Switzerland’s Pyongyang office became operational on October 19 and formally reopened on Thursday.
The office closed in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
North Korea’s state news agency confirmed Cassis’s arrival but did not explain the visit’s purpose.
No report said Cassis met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Cassis traveled to South Korea on Friday for talks on regional security, easing tensions and bilateral ties.
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A Manchester jury found Simon Richardson guilty of murdering cyclist and head teacher Michael Mullins, who was hit by Richardson’s car while cycling home. Richardson’s cousin Gabrielle Debotte, who was in the passenger seat, told police she saw the collision and identified him as the driver.
Key Facts
Mullins, 56, was struck by a car on 20 April while cycling home from Stretford Grammar School.
The car dragged Mullins under its wheels for more than a mile, according to the article.
Debotte told her manager she had witnessed the collision and knew who was driving.
Debotte identified her cousin, 35-year-old Simon Richardson, during a police interview at Stretford Police Station.
Richardson was convicted of murder after a two-week trial at Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court.
Richardson had been released from prison on 26 March after serving 47 days on remand and receiving a community order for stalking, harassment, threats to damage property and assaulting an emergency worker.
Richardson was driving Debotte from Altrincham to a beauty salon in Lymm when the collision occurred.
Debotte said Richardson drove fast, ignored her warning to slow down and did not brake when she shouted “bike.”
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