Lead Story
US enters final day of campaigning as voters brace for decisive November 3 midterms
With early voting having run for weeks, Republicans and Democrats made their last pushes on November 2 ahead of Tuesday's midterms, which will decide all 435 House seats, 35 of the 100 Senate seats and 39 governorships. President Trump, who has pledged to spend more than $400 million on the campaign, and Vice President JD Vance spent the final day rallying in battleground states, while former President Obama made closing appearances for Democratic candidates. Analysts describe the vote as a referendum on Trump's second term, noting it is the first midterm since 1894 held during a non-consecutive presidency, with control of Congress and dozens of governor's mansions on the line.
Read more →Lead Story
US enters final day of campaigning as voters brace for decisive November 3 midterms
With early voting having run for weeks, Republicans and Democrats made their last pushes on November 2 ahead of Tuesday's midterms, which will decide all 435 House seats, 35 of the 100 Senate seats and 39 governorships. President Trump, who has pledged to spend more than $400 million on the campaign, and Vice President JD Vance spent the final day rallying in battleground states, while former President Obama made closing appearances for Democratic candidates. Analysts describe the vote as a referendum on Trump's second term, noting it is the first midterm since 1894 held during a non-consecutive presidency, with control of Congress and dozens of governor's mansions on the line.
Israel's President Herzog set to open formal coalition consultations this week after deadlocked election
After the October 27 Knesset election left Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing bloc with 53 seats and Gadi Eisenkot's opposition bloc with 48 — both short of the 61 needed to govern — President Isaac Herzog is expected to receive the final certified results and begin formal consultations with party representatives this week, with Basic Law: The Knesset giving him one week from Wednesday to decide whom to task with forming a government. Eisenkot is widely expected to get the first mandate, but he has repeatedly ruled out serving in any Netanyahu-led government, even under a rotation deal, while Netanyahu allies keep floating a Netanyahu-Eisenkot unity arrangement that Herzog's office says it has not discussed.
Read more →Israel's President Herzog set to open formal coalition consultations this week after deadlocked election
After the October 27 Knesset election left Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing bloc with 53 seats and Gadi Eisenkot's opposition bloc with 48 — both short of the 61 needed to govern — President Isaac Herzog is expected to receive the final certified results and begin formal consultations with party representatives this week, with Basic Law: The Knesset giving him one week from Wednesday to decide whom to task with forming a government. Eisenkot is widely expected to get the first mandate, but he has repeatedly ruled out serving in any Netanyahu-led government, even under a rotation deal, while Netanyahu allies keep floating a Netanyahu-Eisenkot unity arrangement that Herzog's office says it has not discussed.
Push for a Ukraine-Russia summit continues as Zelenskyy and Erdogan coordinate on security guarantees
After US envoy Steve Witkoff's October trip to Oslo and then St Petersburg produced Russian President Vladimir Putin's statement that he 'agrees in principle' to resume three-way peace talks, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has kept pressing for a direct Trump-Putin-Zelenskyy format, which Russia has so far resisted while the Kremlin says it is still reviewing the US-drafted terms. On November 1, Zelenskyy discussed security guarantees and the broader peace effort by phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who also condemned recent attacks on Black Sea shipping; both sides say momentum toward a leaders' summit is continuing into this week.
Read more →Push for a Ukraine-Russia summit continues as Zelenskyy and Erdogan coordinate on security guarantees
After US envoy Steve Witkoff's October trip to Oslo and then St Petersburg produced Russian President Vladimir Putin's statement that he 'agrees in principle' to resume three-way peace talks, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has kept pressing for a direct Trump-Putin-Zelenskyy format, which Russia has so far resisted while the Kremlin says it is still reviewing the US-drafted terms. On November 1, Zelenskyy discussed security guarantees and the broader peace effort by phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who also condemned recent attacks on Black Sea shipping; both sides say momentum toward a leaders' summit is continuing into this week.
French unions call a tenth day of nationwide strikes, timed to coincide with King Charles III's state visit
Weeks after protests that turned into some of France's worst riots in years on October 17, and after the Interior Ministry counted roughly 410,000 demonstrators nationwide on October 24-26 (unions put the figure at up to 800,000) over school staffing shortages that broadened into anger about living costs, clashes flared again on the edge of Paris on November 1. French unions have now called for a tenth day of coordinated strikes and marches, which is set to coincide with a planned state visit by King Charles III, raising concerns among officials about security and disruption during the visit as tens of thousands of police remain deployed nationwide.
Read more →French unions call a tenth day of nationwide strikes, timed to coincide with King Charles III's state visit
Weeks after protests that turned into some of France's worst riots in years on October 17, and after the Interior Ministry counted roughly 410,000 demonstrators nationwide on October 24-26 (unions put the figure at up to 800,000) over school staffing shortages that broadened into anger about living costs, clashes flared again on the edge of Paris on November 1. French unions have now called for a tenth day of coordinated strikes and marches, which is set to coincide with a planned state visit by King Charles III, raising concerns among officials about security and disruption during the visit as tens of thousands of police remain deployed nationwide.
Spain's Guardia Civil investigation into deadly Urda train crash intensifies as rail workers challenge official account
In the days since an October 28 collision in which a Renfe AVE high-speed train slammed into a stopped Iryo train near Urda, Toledo, killing dozens, Spain's Guardia Civil has questioned the Adif signal operator who authorized the AVE's departure before the crash, with both a judicial inquiry and the separate CIAIAF rail-accident commission now running formal probes. Engineers and railway unions have continued to publicly challenge Transport Minister Óscar Puente's initial account — which pointed to a signaling failure followed by an erroneous decision to restart the train — calling it incomplete given the line's safety systems, while Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has pledged to 'get to the end' of the investigation and act forcefully if negligence is confirmed.
Read more →Spain's Guardia Civil investigation into deadly Urda train crash intensifies as rail workers challenge official account
In the days since an October 28 collision in which a Renfe AVE high-speed train slammed into a stopped Iryo train near Urda, Toledo, killing dozens, Spain's Guardia Civil has questioned the Adif signal operator who authorized the AVE's departure before the crash, with both a judicial inquiry and the separate CIAIAF rail-accident commission now running formal probes. Engineers and railway unions have continued to publicly challenge Transport Minister Óscar Puente's initial account — which pointed to a signaling failure followed by an erroneous decision to restart the train — calling it incomplete given the line's safety systems, while Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has pledged to 'get to the end' of the investigation and act forcefully if negligence is confirmed.