Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party accused Arab political parties of trying to steal the election through widespread voter fraud. Preliminary results showed no clear winner, and the allegations appeared in a statement Netanyahu shared on X.
Key Facts
Likud made the allegations on Wednesday.
The party accused Arab political parties of widespread voter fraud.
Likud alleged that the parties used bribery, voter intimidation and forgery.
Netanyahu shared the party’s statement on X.
Preliminary election results showed no clear winner.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Brazilian presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro fled to the United States after losing Sunday’s election, traveling through Argentina and Ecuador. Brazil’s Supreme Court had ordered him to surrender his passports amid ongoing investigations, but he did not comply; his departure triggered a search for his whereabouts.
Key Facts
Flavio Bolsonaro lost Brazil’s presidential election on Sunday.
Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered Bolsonaro to surrender his passports.
The court’s order came amid concerns he might leave Brazil and investigations involving him.
Bolsonaro did not surrender his passports and left Brazil.
He traveled to the United States via Argentina and Ecuador.
His departure prompted Brazilian authorities to search for him.
Related reports say he arrived in Miami and that the United States granted him a visa.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Israel is still counting ballots after a national election with the highest turnout in decades and major gains for Arab parties. Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud had its worst result since 1999, but he may still form a coalition; the final balance will depend on negotiations among parties seeking seats in the 120-member Knesset.
Key Facts
Ballot counting was still underway on October 28, 2026.
The election had the highest turnout in decades, according to the article.
Arab parties made historic gains, and Arab Israeli voters turned out in large numbers.
Netanyahu’s result was his worst since 1999, but he still had a possible path to power.
Eleven parties were expected to make up the next 120-seat Knesset.
Coalition talks were expected to address whether Arab parties could support or join a government.
The article identifies disputes over religion, Israel’s democracy, and Netanyahu’s policies as issues in the coalition negotiations.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
A collision between two high-speed trains south of Madrid killed at least 68 people and injured more than 100. Spain is demanding answers as the crash raises concerns about rail safety, less than a year after another deadly collision.
Key Facts
At least 68 people died in the collision.
More than 100 people were injured.
Two high-speed trains collided south of Madrid.
The crash is Spain’s deadliest rail disaster in over a decade.
Another deadly rail collision occurred less than a year earlier.
The recent crashes have raised concerns over rail safety.
Spain is demanding answers about the disaster.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
A high-speed train collision south of Madrid killed 68 people and injured more than 100 on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, Spanish authorities said. The death toll could rise, and the transport minister cited an “error” and circumstances he described as inexplicable.
Key Facts
The collision occurred south of Madrid, Spain.
Authorities reported 68 deaths and more than 100 injuries.
Officials said the death toll could rise.
Spain’s transport minister said an error and unexplained circumstances led to the collision.
The article described this as the second train accident in Spain this year.
The crash was reported on October 28, 2026.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
As vote counting in Israel wound down Wednesday, Benjamin Netanyahu’s political position improved. His Likud party and coalition partners edged ahead of their leading competitor, but the article title says there was no clear path to an outright victory.
Key Facts
The vote count was taking place in Israel.
More than 80 percent of the votes had been counted.
Likud was projected to win 26 seats in the Knesset.
Netanyahu’s coalition partners were also edging ahead of the leading competitor.
The leading competitor was retired Gen. Gadi Eisenkot.
The article describes Netanyahu’s prospects as improving but says an outright victory was not assured.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Vladimir Putin told leaders from dozens of African nations that Russia was the continent’s best partner. At a two-day Russia-Africa Summit hosted by the Kremlin, he accused Western countries of continuing to exploit Africa’s resources.
Key Facts
Putin addressed leaders from dozens of African nations.
The Kremlin is hosting a two-day Russia-Africa Summit.
Putin described Russia as Africa’s best partner.
Putin accused Western countries of continuing to exploit Africa’s resources.
The article reports Putin’s claims but provides no supporting evidence or responses from African leaders.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
RAND Israel Policy Chair Shira Efron says she and others underestimated the depth of divisions in Israeli society. She describes a political landscape shaped by polarization, a rightward shift among Jewish voters and disputes over Arab political participation, which complicate coalition-building.
Key Facts
Shira Efron is RAND’s Distinguished Israel Policy Chair.
Efron said many observers underestimated the extent of social fracture in Israel.
The article describes ideological polarization in Israeli politics.
It says the Jewish electorate has shifted to the right.
The article identifies contested legitimacy of Arab political participation as a barrier to forming coalitions.
The article says Netanyahu’s governing bloc has lost ground but retains options for building political support.
Options discussed include another election, a national unity government or efforts to bring opposition partners into Netanyahu’s orbit.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Flávio Bolsonaro and his family traveled from Brazil through Argentina and Ecuador before arriving in Miami on Wednesday, according to officials and flight-tracking data cited in the article. The trip followed the U.S. decision to issue them visas and a Brazilian court order requiring Bolsonaro to surrender his passports; he is under investigation and denies wrongdoing.
Key Facts
Argentine migration officials said Bolsonaro, his wife and two daughters entered Argentina from Brazil at 10:50 p.m. Tuesday with valid travel documents.
The family boarded a private charter plane within an hour of entering Argentina, according to the Argentine authority.
Flight-tracking data showed the plane landed in Guayaquil, Ecuador, before continuing to Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport on Wednesday.
A Brazilian diplomat told the Associated Press that Bolsonaro entered Argentina using an Italian passport; AFP reported that he has held Italian citizenship since 2023.
The U.S. State Department said Tuesday that it would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family.
A Brazilian judge had ordered Bolsonaro to surrender his regular and diplomatic passports by noon Tuesday.
Bolsonaro is under investigation by Brazil’s Supreme Court over allegations of corruption, money laundering and foreign exchange violations; he denies wrongdoing.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil’s runoff with 51.8 percent of valid votes, compared with Bolsonaro’s 48.2 percent, according to the article.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Israel’s election left both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing alliance and the main opposition bloc short of the seats needed to form a government alone. Palestinian citizens’ parties made major gains, raising the question of whether the opposition will seek their support amid ongoing Israeli military operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Key Facts
The election took place on Tuesday and had record turnout.
Netanyahu’s alliance includes right-wing and far-right parties but lacks a majority.
The opposition bloc, led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, cannot form a government on its own.
Parties representing Palestinian citizens of Israel made unprecedented electoral gains.
Netanyahu has refused to work with Arab-led party lists.
The article raises whether the opposition could reach an agreement with Arab-led parties.
The discussion takes place amid continuing Israeli military operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Vladimir Putin told leaders at the Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow that Russia does not exploit African resources in a neo-colonial way. He criticized Western lending practices and said Russia was ready to expand agricultural shipments to Africa amid disruptions to grain exports and fertilizer supplies.
Key Facts
Putin spoke at the third Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow.
Delegations from 48 African countries attended, including 22 represented by their heads of state.
Putin accused Western countries of using debt and financial terms that he said hinder Africa’s development.
Putin said Russian businesses support local processing of raw materials, job creation, and tax revenue.
Russia supplied 13 million metric tonnes of agricultural products to Africa in the first nine months of the year, according to Putin.
Putin said Russia was prepared to expand the reach of its agricultural shipments to Africa.
The article said attacks in the Black Sea were disrupting Russian and Ukrainian grain exports, while the U.S.-Israel war on Iran had interrupted global fertilizer supplies.
Putin was scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with African leaders on trade, security, grain supplies, and arms deals. The summit was expected to end with a declaration on closer cooperation.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
The article says Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition lost its mandate in Israel’s election, while opposition parties held a majority. But many opposition leaders opposed forming a government with Palestinian-led parties, creating a possible path for Netanyahu to remain in office as caretaker prime minister or seek another election.
Key Facts
Yair Golan called for a government that partners with Arab citizens of Israel.
A survey taken as polls closed found that most opposition voters supported forming a government with Ra’am to remove Netanyahu, according to researcher Eran Halperin.
Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot did not directly rule out working with Palestinian parties but set conditions that the article said made their participation politically impossible.
Yousef Jabareen, leader of the Joint List, said Palestinian parties were ready to help remove Netanyahu’s government through Jewish-Arab partnership.
Ra’am placed a Jewish former police chief second on its candidate slate.
Netanyahu’s coalition had 64 seats after forming in 2022 and lost about 10 seats in the election described in the article.
The article cites Yitzhak Rabin’s reliance on Palestinian support for a minority government three decades earlier as a precedent.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Students at Jamia Millia Islamia university in New Delhi are on hunger strike to demand the return of their student union. The union has been banned since 2006; students also accuse university authorities and police of restricting their movement and blocking access to basic supplies.
Key Facts
The protest is taking place at Jamia Millia Islamia university in New Delhi.
Students are on hunger strike.
They are demanding restoration of the student union.
The student union has been banned since 2006.
Students accuse university authorities and police of restricting their movement.
Students say authorities have blocked access to basic supplies.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Donald Trump said his endorsement helped Benjamin Netanyahu perform better than expected in Israel’s election. With 85 percent of votes counted, Likud led the party race, but neither Netanyahu’s bloc nor the opposition had a clear path to the 61 seats needed for a governing majority.
Key Facts
Trump said he had heard Netanyahu did better than early polling suggested and described the result as possibly a stalemate or a win.
Trump said he had not spoken with Netanyahu about the election results and that it was too early to draw conclusions.
With 85 percent of votes counted, Likud had 20.8 percent of the vote and the opposition party Yashar had 16.1 percent.
Israeli media projections put Likud and its allies at about 53 of the Knesset’s 120 seats, while Eisenkot’s allied parties were projected to hold 48.
Arab-led parties were projected to hold 19 seats, according to the reported figures.
A governing coalition needs support from at least 61 lawmakers.
Netanyahu has rejected partnering with Arab-led parties, and those parties have also ruled out joining his coalition.
Election officials cited by the AP said absentee ballots, including votes from military personnel and diplomats, were expected to be counted through Thursday evening.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Flávio Bolsonaro, a defeated presidential candidate in Brazil, has landed in Miami after uncertainty about his whereabouts. The U.S. State Department told the BBC it would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family; BBC Verify traced his route through Brazil, Argentina and Ecuador.
Key Facts
Flávio Bolsonaro is a defeated presidential candidate in Brazil.
Bolsonaro has landed in Miami.
There had been uncertainty about his whereabouts.
The U.S. State Department told the BBC it would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family.
BBC Verify traced his journey through Brazil, Argentina and Ecuador before he reached Miami.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Brazilian Senator Flávio Bolsonaro arrived in Miami with his family after losing Brazil’s presidential election on Sunday. Their journey followed conflicting reports about his whereabouts, while Brazilian authorities had cancelled his passport after he missed a deadline to surrender it amid an ongoing criminal investigation; he denies wrongdoing.
Key Facts
Bolsonaro and his family crossed by land from Brazil into Argentina on Tuesday night, according to Argentine migration authorities.
Flight-tracking data reviewed by the BBC indicated the family left Puerto Iguazú, Argentina, for Guayaquil, Ecuador, on Wednesday.
The family then flew to Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport, where they were photographed arriving shortly before 09:30 local time.
The U.S. State Department said it would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family.
Brazilian authorities cancelled Bolsonaro’s passport after he failed to surrender it within a 24-hour deadline.
Brazil’s newly reelected president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, criticised Bolsonaro’s departure and said, “those who have nothing to hide have nothing to fear.”
U.S. President Donald Trump said he had heard Bolsonaro was in Argentina.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham ruled out calling a general election in the next 12 months. He said his focus was on governing and that his government’s plans would extend beyond the coming year.
Key Facts
The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
Burnham made the pledge after opposition politicians suggested he might call an early election.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said she believed Burnham would call an election sooner than he had indicated.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said in September that he expected an election the following spring.
Burnham entered Parliament after winning the Makerfield by-election in June and later became Labour leader and prime minister.
Burnham said he wanted an “honest conversation” about the UK’s relationship with the EU.
On Wednesday, Burnham said he would keep his party’s 2024 manifesto positions on freedom of movement, the single market and the customs union for the rest of the parliamentary term.
Burnham said a 10-year plan would inform a spending review next year.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
The White House says First Lady Melania Trump helped broker a temporary Russia-Ukraine ceasefire around the occupied city of Oleshky, scheduled to begin October 29 to allow aid deliveries and civilian evacuations. A University of Denver professor said a local truce alone is unlikely to earn her the 2027 Nobel Peace Prize; the article also reports betting-market odds and her earlier efforts to reunite Ukrainian children with relatives.
Key Facts
The White House said Melania Trump initiated discussions with Russia and Ukraine and worked with a representative and both countries’ leadership on ceasefire terms.
The temporary ceasefire is scheduled to begin October 29 around Oleshky.
The stated purpose of the truce is to allow humanitarian aid to enter and civilians to leave through a designated safe passageway.
Melania Trump’s office described her role as the agreement’s “exclusive intermediary.”
Polymarket listed Melania Trump at a 5 percent chance of winning the Nobel Peace Prize, according to the article.
Timothy D. Sisk, a University of Denver professor, said a local ceasefire alone is unlikely to win her the 2027 prize.
The article says Melania Trump previously contacted Vladimir Putin about Ukrainian children separated from their families and later announced that eight had reunited with relatives.
The article reports that the Nobel Peace Prize this year went to former U.N. human rights chief Navanethem “Navi” Pillay.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
A study of 100 adults in England found that four weeks of wall-squat exercise lowered blood pressure compared with no exercise. Afterward, exercising once a week maintained some reductions for at least four more weeks, while participants who stopped exercising lost their gains.
Key Facts
The study was published in BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine.
Participants had an average age of 37.4 and systolic blood pressure readings from 120 to 140 mmHg.
Participants were randomly assigned to four exercise groups or a control group.
The initial exercise program lasted four weeks and involved four wall-squat holds per session, three times a week, with two minutes of seated rest between holds.
After four weeks, the exercise groups showed significant reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure and mean arterial pressure compared with the control group.
During the next four weeks, researchers assigned exercise groups to train three, two or one time per week, or to stop exercising.
The group that continued exercising three times a week saw the largest improvements; the group that stopped lost earlier gains.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage missed the chancellor’s budget speech, saying he avoided Parliament because he feared a physical confrontation over a reserved seat. At a press conference, he criticised the planned £10bn in aid for Ukraine, defended a proposed 10% tax on crypto gains and said Reform could be ready for a general election as early as December.
Key Facts
Farage said another MP had removed the paper slip marking his seat and that a previous seating dispute had turned physical.
Farage said he reviewed the budget line by line with economists instead of attending the Commons.
He said the £10bn in promised economic and military aid for Ukraine concerned him, especially whether the money would be spent properly.
Farage said Reform’s proposed 10% tax rate on cryptocurrency gains remained in place, describing it as a way to encourage activity in a regulated industry.
He criticised higher machine-games duty on gambling shops, saying it could hurt horse racing and push gambling offshore or into crypto.
Farage said Reform would be prepared for a general election as early as December and suggested the budget pointed to a possible election in May next year.
He said Tommy Robinson’s conduct in harassing journalists was wrong, but argued that party members who liked a social media post should not automatically face penalties.
Read the Original
Want the full story? Tap a source to open the original
article.
