03 World

Blurb:

U.S. President Donald Trump has signaled a shift in support toward Russia’s Vladimir Putin as he looks for a quick end to the war in Ukraine, likely striking fear into Ukrainian officials.

Trump held a tense meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House on Friday, with the potential supply of U.S. long-range cruise missiles, Tomahawks, on the agenda.

Zelenskyy walked away from the meeting not only empty-handed, but apparently upbraided by Trump, who said Ukraine should accept Russia’s terms for ending the war — by handing over the entire eastern territory of Donbas, the epicenter of ongoing fighting in Ukraine.

Blurb:

The acting prime minister, Richard Marles, has condemned the “unsafe and unprofessional” behaviour of the Chinese military, saying a fighter jet released flares close to an Australian surveillance plane over the South China Sea.

Australia’s defence forces expressed “concerns” about the incident in a statement, saying it posed a risk to Royal Australian Air Force personnel and their aircraft. No injuries or damage was sustained as a result of actions.

It is at least the third such incident in the past 18 months, with similar contested encounters occurring in February and in May 2024.

Blurb:

The fragile truce in Gaza faced its first major test on Sunday after Israel alleged Hamas had violated the ceasefire and hit back with air and artillery strikes.

An Israeli security official told The Associated Press, on the condition of anonymity pending a formal announcement, that the transfer of aid into Gaza is halted “until further notice.”

Earlier Sunday, Israel’s military said it hit multiple targets in the Gaza Strip using aircraft and artillery, after it accused Hamas of shooting at Israeli soldiers. Military officials later said two soldiers were killed.

An Israeli military official told CBS News that Hamas had targeted its soldiers with a rocket-propelled grenade and sniper fire.

Blurb:

Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to an “immediate ceasefire” after a week of deadly clashes along their border, as the ties between the two South Asian neighbours plunged to their lowest point since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

Both countries agreed to stop fighting and work towards “lasting peace and stability” after peace talks in Doha, the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Sunday, about the deal it mediated alongside Turkiye.

Macron calls U.S. Ambassador Charles Kushner's criticism of France ...

Shortly after being selected, the new PM had to survive a no-confidence vote, which he was able to do. Hope of replacing the current dominant political parties were dimmed when a court ruled that Marine Le Pen, the leading opposition figure, cannot stand for election at all. The decision is sure to further destabilize France as the global oligarchs desperately hold on to power.

Blurb:

France may be teetering on the verge of national snap elections, but the poll-topping sovereigntist leader Marine Le Pen is banned from even standing, a Paris court has confirmed, over a conviction her supporters say is a case of politically targeted lawfare.

The French Council of State, the body of top lawyers which provides legal advice to the government and supreme court, has rejected an appeal by National Rally leader Marine Le Pen to have her “ineligibility” order overturned, reports Le Figaro. The order that was imposed on the politician in March by a judge is considered unusual and controversial because unlike normal criminal punishments, it is being imposed immediately, despite the appeals process to have the conviction itself overturned not having been exhausted.

Blurb:

The US Senate on Tuesday rejected a bill to reopen the government for the eighth time, meaning that lawmakers are still far from reaching a consensus, and the shutdown will continue into its third week.

In a 49-45 vote, senators approved the GOP’s continuing resolution, which would keep the government afloat until the end of November, well short of the 60 votes required to move forward.

The government shutdown revolves around a debate over health care policy—particularly the Affordable Care Act subsidies that are expiring for millions of Americans who rely on government aid to purchase their own health insurance.

Blurb:

Roads were seen with moving tanks as intense clashes continued between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with both sides claiming damage and casualties. This latest confrontation left 15 Afghan civilians dead, officials in Kabul told AFP on Wednesday.The fighting broke out overnight in Spin Boldak, a southern Afghan district.Ali Mohammad Haqmal, a local spokesman, confirmed the casualties to AFP, while Abdul Jan Barak, an official at Spin Boldak district hospital, verified that dozens had been injured.

According to the Pakistan Army, its forces killed at least 15–20 Taliban fighters in the Spin Boldak area, stating that “the attack was effectively repulsed by Pakistani forces.”

Blurb:

Israel restricted aid into Gaza and kept the enclave’s border shut on Tuesday while re-emergent Hamas fighters demonstrated their grip by executing men in the street, darkening the outlook for U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war.

Israel told the United Nations it will only allow 300 aid trucks into Gaza – half the agreed daily number – from Wednesday, and that no fuel or gas will be allowed in, except for specific needs related to humanitarian infrastructure, according to a note seen by Reuters and confirmed by the United Nations.

Blurb:

The military has taken charge of the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar, an army colonel said on Tuesday, after President Andry Rajoelina fled abroad during a standoff with youth-led protesters and security forces.

“We have taken the power,” Colonel Michael Randrianirina, who led a mutiny of soldiers joining anti-government Gen Z demonstrators, said on national radio.

Randrianirina added that the military was dissolving all institutions except the lower house of parliament or National Assembly, which voted to impeach Rajoelina minutes earlier.

Blurb:

“During a search of his residence in Vienna, Virginia, authorities recovered more than a thousand pages of documents marked “TOP SECRET” and “SECRET,” as per court filings…Federal officials further alleged that Tellis met with Chinese government representatives several times over the past few years..”

What happened to people going to jail for this?

Blurb:

The Trump administration is looking for alternative ways to ensure federal law enforcement officers are paid as the government shutdown enters its third week.

With Democrats and Republicans locked in a stalemate over the shutdown, officials in government are exploring alternative ways of paying for some key programmes, including a food programme for women and children.

Members of the US military, meanwhile, will be paid using funds previously allocated to the Pentagon following an order from President Donald Trump.

Blurb:

Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, asks for more detail of what the UK is doing to help ensure more aid gets into Gaza.

He says all the bodies of dead hostages need to be returned.

And he asks what the UK is doing to ensure that the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements on the West Bank stops.

Starmer thanks Davey for the “content and tone” of his response. (He is making a contrast with Badenoch’s.)

On aid, he says there is a need for more trucks be admitted to Gaza.

On the bodies of hostages, Starmer says he agrees with Davey.

He says, when the media are finally admitted to Gaza, he thinks there will be ‘“quite some debate” in the Commons about “the full horror” of what happened.

Blurb:

Nuclear stocks rallied Wednesday after the U.S. Army launched a program to deploy small reactors.

Shares of NuScale, a small reactor developer, soared 17%. Oklo and Nano Nuclear were up nearly 7% and 4%, resepectively. The uranium company Centrus was up 13%.

The U.S. Army on Tuesday launched a program to build micro nuclear reactors in partnership with the Defense Innovation Unit. The microreactors will be commercially owned and operated with the goal of helping developers scale up their businesses, according to the Army.

Blurb:

Conservative members of Canada’s Parliament are investigating the Antifa militant who allegedly threw a smoke bomb inside a Montreal church at which American pro-life Christian singer Sean Feucht was performing.

Last Thursday, a Parliamentary committee grilled Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree about the incident that took place in July.

Conservative MP Dane Lloyd asked the minister, “There have been allegations made that there is an Antifa member who threw smoke bombs into a church service in Montreal this past summer.”

He added that the “allegations are that they’re a government employee that worked at a military base outside of Montreal. Are you aware of these allegations?”

Blurb:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said he believes there is little chance a Palestinian state could exist as a completely autonomous, sovereign state side by side with Israel.

Pointing to historical precedent, Netanyahu argued a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza would leave a security vacuum in the region, allowing radical groups to assert military power. His justification for a long-term Israeli military presence comes as Gazan clans or local militias opposed to Hamas’s rule have been rounded up and executed by the terrorist group after Israel withdrew some forces to make way for phase one of President Donald Trump’s peace deal.

Blurb:

Some Palestinians fear Hamas will not honor President Donald Trump’s Middle East peace plan as footage emerged of the terrorists executing civilians in Gaza’s streets, the New York Post reported Tuesday.

Hamas began rounding up alleged Israeli collaborators and killing them as soon as the country’s military withdrew from Gaza after a ceasefire was announced Oct. 8, an anonymous Gazan activist told NYP. The broader 20-point peace agreement requires Hamas to permanently disarm, but video evidence of its brutality toward Palestinians shows it continues to terrorize Gaza.

Blurb:

Aid trucks rolled into Gaza on Wednesday and Israel resumed preparations to open the main Rafah crossing after a dispute over the return of the bodies of dead hostages that had threatened to derail the fragile ceasefire deal with Hamas.

Israel had threatened to keep Rafah shut and reduce aid supplies because Hamas was returning bodies too slowly, showing the risks to a truce that has stopped two years of devastating conflict in Gaza and freed all living hostages held by Hamas.

Tomahawk missile - Wikipedia

Blurb:

President Donald Trump has suggested that the U.S. could send Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine if Russia refuses to move toward a settlement in the ongoing war.

Speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Trump described the Tomahawk as “an incredible weapon, a very offensive weapon.”

Trump hinted he would use the prospect of deployment as leverage in upcoming discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“I may tell him [Putin] that if the war is not settled, we may very well,” Trump said.

Blurb:

ZELENSKY HOPING ‘PEACE COMES FOR UKRAINE AS WELL’:  Still basking in the glow of his pivotal role ending the bloodshed in Gaza, President Donald Trump is reengaging in the peace negotiations he essentially gave up on last month, inviting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Washington to discuss how to put more pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to seriously consider ending the war which is well into its third year, and has claimed hundred of thousand of lives.

“I will also have the opportunity to come to Washington and meet with President Trump on Friday. I believe we will discuss a series of steps that I intend to propose. I am grateful to President Trump for our dialogue and his support,” Zelensky posted on X. “The main focus of the visit is air defense and our long-range capabilities aimed at exerting pressure on Russia for the sake of peace.”