The UK and US condemned a 10-year jail sentence imposed on Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong after he pleaded guilty to foreign collusion under Hong Kong’s national security law. The US called for his release, while China urged outside parties to stop commenting on Hong Kong judicial cases.
Key Facts
Wong received the 10-year sentence on Thursday.
He pleaded guilty to foreign collusion under Hong Kong’s national security law.
The article says Wong is the only person prosecuted twice under the law.
The UK Foreign Office said the sentence showed the law being used against political expression and participation.
The US consulate in Hong Kong condemned the sentence and called for Wong’s immediate release.
China warned relevant parties to stop making remarks about Hong Kong judicial cases.
Wong has spent six years in detention and had been due for release in January 2027.
Hong Kong was promised 50 years of “one country, two systems” when Britain handed it to China in 1997.
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A London jury found actor Russell Brand guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault on Nov. 5, 2026. Brand had pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Key Facts
The jury returned its verdict Thursday in London.
Brand was convicted on one rape count and three sexual assault counts.
Brand faced seven charges involving six women.
The charges also included three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one count of indecent assault.
Brand pleaded not guilty to all seven charges.
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Russell Brand was found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault after a three-week trial at Southwark Crown Court. A BBC reporter described his quiet courtroom demeanor and his interactions with reporters, while the trial heard allegations from six women about events between 1999 and 2009.
Key Facts
Brand was found guilty of one charge of rape and three charges of sexual assault.
He was found not guilty of two counts of rape and one count of attempted indecent assault.
The allegations involved six female complainants and spanned 1999 to 2009.
Brand mostly sat still in the dock during the trial, according to the reporter.
On the first day of trial, Brand told reporters he felt blessed, concerned, and hopeful.
The reporter said Brand greeted her in a court corridor during the trial.
The complainants gave evidence from behind a screen, according to the article.
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Families affected by the Southport and Nottingham attacks have called for stronger safeguards after NHS staff accessed victims’ confidential medical records without authorization. They want a required confirmation of a legitimate reason to view records, audits of access and stronger recognition of patients’ rights; NHS officials announced tighter measures in September, but the letter’s authors say more is needed.
Key Facts
More than 30 people signed the open letter, including people affected by maternity scandals.
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust said 15 staff had been dismissed after its investigation into unauthorized access to records of victims of the 2023 Nottingham attack.
Nearly 50 University Hospitals of Liverpool Group staff wrongly accessed medical files of Southport attack victims, the group admitted in May.
Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust and North West Ambulance Service Trust are also investigating alleged unauthorized access related to the Southport attack.
The letter said Ministry of Justice and HM Courts and Tribunals Service had apologized for inappropriate access to sensitive information about Southport victims.
In September, NHS officials said staff suspected of snooping would be suspended immediately and lose access to NHS computer systems.
The letter calls for a confirmation step before staff access records, audits of access and stronger recognition of patients by the Information Commissioner.
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British conductor Timothy Henty is leading more than 80 musicians in a live orchestral performance of a Harry Potter film in Paris. The concert is part of the Harry Potter Film Concert Series, which pairs film screenings with live music.
Key Facts
Timothy Henty is a British conductor.
Henty is conducting the performance in Paris.
More than 80 musicians are taking part.
The performance is part of the Harry Potter Film Concert Series.
The series presents Harry Potter films with live orchestral music.
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A jury found Russell Brand guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault. The 51-year-old comedian and actor was remanded in custody and is due to be sentenced on Monday.
Key Facts
The charges concerned alleged offenses from 1999 to 2009.
The case involved six women.
The women are entitled to lifelong anonymity.
BBC correspondent Sima Kotecha explains how the trial unfolded.
The article directs readers to follow live updates on the case.
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A London jury convicted comedian and actor Russell Brand of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault. Brand denied the charges; the jury acquitted him of two other rape counts and one count of attempted indecent assault.
Key Facts
The jury delivered its verdict on Thursday, November 5, 2026.
The convictions relate to allegations dating back more than 20 years.
Brand testified that he had never forced anyone to do something against their will.
The jury acquitted Brand of two counts of rape.
The jury also acquitted Brand of one count of attempted indecent assault.
Presiding Judge Joel Bennathan said Brand would face a significant custodial term.
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Russell Brand was found guilty of raping a woman in 2009 and sexually assaulting three other women. The allegations involved six complainants and spanned 1999 to 2009; Brand had pleaded not guilty.
Key Facts
Brand was found guilty of rape and sexual assault.
The rape involved a woman and occurred in 2009.
Three other women were sexually assaulted, according to the verdict reported in the article.
Six women made allegations against Brand.
The allegations span a 10-year period from 1999 to 2009.
Brand faced three rape counts, three sexual assault counts and one count of attempted indecent assault.
Brand pleaded not guilty to the charges.
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France is preparing for new protests as the government seeks to prevent a repeat of unrest in October. Protesters are calling for better public services, including education, and criticizing the cost of living.
Key Facts
The protests are taking place in France.
The government is working to prevent a repeat of October's unrest.
Protesters are demanding better public services.
Education is among the services protesters say need improvement.
Protesters are also criticizing the cost of living.
FRANCE 24 reporter Claire Paccalin reported from the protest scene.
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Rubbish has piled up across Taiz since early October after fighting and a month-long siege blocked sanitation trucks from reaching the main landfill. Residents have burned some of the waste, filling nearby neighborhoods with smoke as fuel shortages and road closures worsen the city’s wider humanitarian crisis.
Key Facts
Taiz produces an estimated 550 to 600 tonnes of waste each day.
Sanitation trucks cannot reach the main landfill in western Taiz, which is controlled by Houthi forces.
Sanitation workers said snipers near the landfill and gunfire have prevented waste disposal operations.
Fuel shortages have further disrupted waste collection.
Residents have burned accumulated rubbish, and waste has also built up in streets and storm drains.
Residents reported that smoke and foul odors affect nearby homes and raise concerns about illness, especially among children.
The United Nations humanitarian coordinator warned on October 20 that insecurity and road closures were blocking vital supplies, including fuel, and leaving the health system close to collapse.
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The Joint List alliance said it would recommend opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form Israel’s next government. Together with the eight-seat Ra’am party, its support is expected to give Eisenkot recommendations from 67 lawmakers, above the 61 seats needed for a Knesset majority.
Key Facts
Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats in Israel’s 120-seat parliament.
The Joint List has 11 lawmakers and said it would formally recommend Eisenkot to President Isaac Herzog.
Ra’am, which holds eight seats, also said it would recommend Eisenkot.
Netanyahu’s bloc holds 53 seats, but Degel HaTorah said it would recommend neither candidate.
Degel HaTorah holds four of United Torah Judaism’s seven seats and broke with Netanyahu over legislation on exemptions from military service for Haredi men.
Herzog accepted the certified election results and began consultations with party leaders.
After consultations, Herzog will choose a candidate to try to form a government; the nominee will have 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension.
If neither Netanyahu nor Eisenkot forms a government, Israel could hold another election early next year.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he hopes the results of the U.S. midterm elections will bring more support for Ukraine. The headline also refers to citizens coping without water, but the supplied article text gives no details about the water situation.
Key Facts
Volodymyr Zelenskyy is the president of Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said he hopes the U.S. midterm results will generate additional support for Ukraine.
The article links hopes for greater U.S. support to the midterm election results.
The headline says citizens are making do without water.
The supplied text does not identify the affected citizens or explain the water shortage.
CBS News reporter Aidan Stretch reported on Zelenskyy's reaction.
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Australia’s One Nation party has asked guests paying A$3,000 to attend a private Sydney fundraiser to sign an agreement barring them from sharing details about attendees or event discussions. Transparency advocates criticized the requirement, while the article reports that senior Labor and Liberal officials involved in fundraisers said such agreements were unprecedented.
Key Facts
The four-hour event is scheduled for next Thursday at an undisclosed venue in central Sydney.
The invitation lists Pauline Hanson, James Ashby, Barnaby Joyce, Chris Taylor and Mike Newman as attendees.
The agreement bars guests from disclosing attendee identities or sharing conversations, activities, images, recordings or other event details.
The agreement says its restrictions continue after the event and prohibits sharing information with journalists, media outlets, bloggers or other publishers.
One Nation previously held an invite-only Melbourne fundraiser in September that charged A$2,000, according to the article.
Transparency International Australia chief executive Clancy Moore and Australian Democracy Network campaigner Christian Slattery criticized the agreement as a threat to transparency.
For 2026–27, One Nation had disclosed A$5,000 in reportable donations across three donations linked to a fundraising dinner with Joyce.
The NSW Electoral Commission's individual threshold for a reportable donation is A$1,000.
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A parish councillor in Lancashire hid an Apple AirTag in a stone from a 300-year-old wall after about 30 stones were stolen. The tracker led police to an address in Wigan, and Craig Barker pleaded guilty to theft and handling stolen goods; he received a suspended sentence.
Key Facts
About 30 stones were taken from a half-mile stretch of wall near Rufford Old Hall in October 2025.
Matt Smith said CCTV would have been costly and difficult to install across the long stretch of wall.
Smith drilled an AirTag into a small coping stone and returned it to the wall.
About four weeks later, the tracker showed the stone moving to an address in Winstanley, Wigan.
Police went to the address and arrested a man.
The stones were returned, and local residents rebuilt the wall.
Craig Barker, 41, pleaded guilty to two counts of theft and one count of handling stolen goods at Wigan Magistrates' Court.
Barker received a 12-month sentence, suspended for 22 months.
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Sir Tom Jones said he feared he was dying after a severe case of flu led to a week-long hospital stay in Los Angeles. He returned to the stage at the Greek Theatre on Wednesday and said performing was where he belonged.
Key Facts
Jones, 86, was treated for a week at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.
His illness forced him to cancel or reschedule several concerts.
Jones told the Greek Theatre audience that he thought his life was over while he was ill.
He said he told medical staff he wanted to return to performing.
Jones is due to perform at Yaamava' Theater in San Bernardino, California, on Friday.
Jones recently said ITV had decided to remove him from The Voice UK coaching panel.
Jones coached Cate McHugh, who won the latest series of The Voice UK.
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The Eiffel Tower closed amid protests in Paris on Nov. 5, 2026. ABC News reported that tens of thousands of police officers had been deployed to help maintain public order.
Key Facts
The Eiffel Tower closed amid protests in Paris.
The report was published on Nov. 5, 2026.
ABC News correspondent Tom Soufi Burridge reported from Paris.
Tens of thousands of police officers had been deployed.
Authorities deployed the officers to help maintain law and order.
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Rep. John Moolenaar, a Republican from Michigan who chairs the House Select Committee on China, condemned the sentencing of Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong. A Hong Kong court sentenced Wong to 10 more years in prison under a national security law imposed by Beijing.
Key Facts
John Moolenaar is the chair of the House Select Committee on China.
Moolenaar condemned the court’s sentencing of Joshua Wong.
Moolenaar called Wong a “hero.”
A Hong Kong court sentenced Wong to 10 more years in prison.
The sentence was imposed under a national security law imposed by Beijing.
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Yemen’s internationally recognized government has replaced ministers and military commanders after Houthi forces captured territory and advanced toward Taiz. The reshuffle adds southern figures to the government and gives a new general responsibility for coordinating forces and lifting the siege of Taiz, amid divisions among pro-government forces.
Key Facts
The government launched a counteroffensive on October 5, but it failed to regain territory from the Houthis.
Taiz, Yemen’s third-largest city, has been under a four-week siege, and fighting has moved into the mountains around the city.
Reuters reported that Houthi forces were about 37 miles (60 kilometers) from Aden, the government’s nominal seat.
President Rashad al-Alimi replaced information minister Muammar al-Eryani with Salem al-Awlaki, a former Southern Transitional Council spokesperson.
Al-Alimi also appointed southerners to local administration and civil service ministerial posts and named new leaders for several transport-related bodies.
The president removed commanders Yusuf al-Sharaji and Abu Bakr al-Jabouli after government forces lost areas on fronts they oversaw.
Maj Gen Rashad al-Yousfi was assigned to coordinate forces and work to lift the siege of Taiz.
The article reports tensions among government-aligned forces, including accusations of treason following heavy losses by the Saudi-funded Homeland Shield Forces.
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Hampshire police have arrested two more 16-year-old boys in connection with the stabbing of five teenagers at a Halloween party in Chandler’s Ford. One 17-year-old remains in hospital in serious condition, while the other four injured boys have been discharged.
Key Facts
Police were called to a home on Park Road shortly after 22:30 GMT on Saturday.
Police said an unknown group entered the supervised party over a garden fence.
The two newly arrested boys are from Southampton and are suspected of attempted murder.
Two other 16-year-old boys arrested earlier remain in custody while police continue questioning them.
Two additional boys arrested and questioned in the investigation have been released on bail with strict conditions.
Police are appealing for witnesses and information about the incident.
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