World News: 3 November 2026

Spain's Transport Minister Oscar Puente resigned six days after a high-speed train collision near Urda, south of Madrid, killed at least 69 people. He told Congress that a transport minister cannot remain in office after two accidents of this seriousness in less than a year, also citing a deadly crash in Andalusia in January.

Leaked audio showed a train was given clearance to move even though another had stopped on the track about 25 kilometers ahead.

Greenlandic lawmakers voted 16 to 0, with seven abstentions, to approve a security agreement with Denmark and the United States to strengthen Arctic and North Atlantic security. The deal, signed in September, would allow more US bases while keeping Greenland under Danish control, easing tensions over President Trump's calls for the island to join the United States.

Indonesian police detained three senior police generals, including Presidential Chief of Staff General Listyo Sigit Prabowo, over alleged illegal wiretapping of President Prabowo Subianto and other prominent figures. Investigators said the suspects intercepted communications between 2025 and 2026 and later deleted files from a police system, while the motive remains undisclosed.

Poland launched a major security operation along its Kaliningrad border, deploying police, counterterrorism units and GROM special forces until at least 8 November. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said quick action may have prevented a provocation after suspicious movements near the border, though he could not confirm it. The operation aims to detect suspicious activity and protect critical infrastructure.

Syrian security forces said they foiled a plot to attack the Homs oil refinery by arresting two individuals they said were affiliated with Lebanon's Hezbollah and seizing explosive devices. Hezbollah denied the accusation, saying it has no presence in Syria. The refinery is one of Syria's two oil refineries and is important for petroleum products.

The UK Supreme Court will hear a landmark appeal over the government's decision to ban Palestine Action, a direct action group targeting arms suppliers. The case, which begins Wednesday, tests the boundaries of British counterterror legislation, freedom of speech, and the right to protest, with lawyers arguing that the ban criminalizes political dissent.

Since the ban in 2025, 4,000 people have faced arrest under the Terrorism Act, leading to a chilling effect across civil society.

India's border police chief said Indian and Chinese troops confronted each other at several locations in Arunachal Pradesh in the past few days, a situation he said continues. The External Affairs Ministry attributed the incidents to Chinese forces changing patrol routes, while the state chief minister called the border situation normal.

Two French judges opened a judicial investigation into an Israeli air strike on a residential building in Beirut in November 2024 that killed seven civilians, including the parents of Franco-Lebanese artist Ali Cherri. The probe follows a complaint by Cherri and the International Federation for Human Rights and is based on research by Amnesty International and Forensic Architecture.

Paraguay's central bank put Ueno Bank into resolution after its solvency ratio fell below half the legal minimum, leaving millions of customers' savings and public funds in limbo. Ueno manages $800 million to $850 million in public money, including about $380 million from the state pension and health fund. The seizure marks a dramatic turn in a scandal tied to President Santiago Peña, who appointed Ueno's then chief to lead the central bank.

Four planes landed safely after bomb threats across Europe, including flights from London, Manchester, Copenhagen and Israel, with no explosives found. A Ryanair flight from Manchester made an emergency landing in Murcia, Spain, while a LOT flight from London was diverted to Warsaw's Modlin airport. Ryanair flights from Lisbon and Dublin were escorted to Rome's Fiumicino after email threats.

All turned out to be hoaxes, following a Wizz Air diversion to Budapest the day before.

President Donald Trump said he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed that US aid to Israel, which he said is $4 billion a year, will stop by the end of this year. He told Fox News that Washington will still help Israel if it needs it and that Israel can buy its own weapons. The remarks came as US aid to Israel has become a flashpoint in US politics, after the House defeated an amendment to cut off aid in July.

Poland's prime minister said the country thwarted a possible provocation on its Kaliningrad border after guards saw individuals with flashlights just after midnight. Tusk said police and troops were running a special operation in Warmia-Masuria and Podlaskie after warnings of sabotage or an armed incursion in the first half of November. He said it was not possible to confirm the incident was a provocation.

Indian naval forces freed the Iranian fishing boat Azini and 20 crew members hijacked off Somalia after a more than 48-hour operation in the Arabian Sea, India's Defense Ministry said. The vessel had been hijacked on 29 October between Bandar Bayla and Hafun, and Indian forces disarmed 12 suspected Somali pirates before releasing them. The rescue came as Somali piracy has resurged across the Gulf of Aden and western Indian Ocean.

Senegal's National Assembly, dominated by the opposition, rejected a revised version of the country's budget, leaving the west African nation's enormous budget hanging in the balance. The revised budget is crucial to the country sealing a new programme with the International Monetary Fund. The Pastef party, which holds an overwhelming majority in parliament, has long made clear its rejection of the 2026 revised budget.

Investigators in Turkey probing a multi-billion-dollar investment fund scandal have uncovered a comprehensive criminal network that infiltrated the highest levels of financial markets, Justice Minister Akin Gürlek said. The scandal has dominated the headlines for weeks, raising questions about who might have profited and putting pressure on President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's ruling AK Party.

Investigators were looking into 433 suspects, with 112 jailed pending trial.

The United States urged Venezuela to release the remaining political prisoners, with Foro Penal saying 322 remain in detention after more than 1,000 were freed since US forces seized Nicolas Maduro on 3 January. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Venezuelan Foreign Minister Oliver Blanco to discuss reforms and the US three-phase plan aimed at democratic transition.

UNICEF said an airstrike on a school in Loikaw, Kayah state, killed three children and injured five, with further strikes reported in Rakhine, including one that reportedly killed a newborn and healthcare workers. In Mozambique's Cabo Delgado, more than 7,000 people have fled homes since late September, escaping fresh violence and fear of attacks by non-state armed groups. The province already hosts more than 205,000 displaced people.

Two passenger planes were inspected after landing in Warsaw following bomb threats, while a third made an emergency landing in Murcia, Spain. A London Heathrow flight landed at Warsaw Modlin with 181 people on board, and a Copenhagen flight to Chopin airport landed normally. A Ryanair flight from Manchester landed at Murcia with 121 people on board after another threat, and Chopin airport said one runway was briefly closed.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff said the United States will mediate working-level talks between Ukraine and Russia on 10 and 11 November in Abu Dhabi. The discussions will focus on post-war security arrangements, de-escalation, humanitarian efforts and next steps toward peace. American negotiators will also meet this week with France, Germany, the United Kingdom and NATO representatives to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said three tankers exploded after hitting naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. The IRGC said the ships were trying to cross without Tehran's permission and had switched off geolocation tracking, with no casualties reported yet.

Serbia has seen detentions, resignations and probes after a student movement defeated Aleksandar Vucic in an early parliamentary vote. Vucic, now the opposition leader, accused the movement of revolutionary terror and said he is not afraid of arrest. Authorities jailed his former chief of criminal police, Marko Kricak, and another senior police official, and detained Davor Macura, owner of Alta Bank, whose license was revoked.

Sudan has complained to the UN Security Council and African Union over allegations that the Rapid Support Forces are using Ethiopian territory to launch drone attacks on civilian sites. A Sudanese report said 70 assaults involving 187 one-way attack drones were launched from Ethiopia between February and October. The strikes killed 176 soldiers and 484 civilians and have left more than 90 percent of power stations out of service.

Russia bombed a clinical hospital in Kharkiv, injuring at least 73 people and damaging the cardiology department, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. The mayor said more than 1,000 windows were shattered in Monday night's bombardment. Russia struck energy sites in multiple regions, with 289 drones, 17 ballistic missiles and 59 cruise missiles launched overnight, and more than 180,000 people were without power in Zhytomyr region.

The death toll from a Russian attack on a school used as an aid centre in Komyshuvakha, Ukraine, rose to 29, with 48 people still missing. The strike killed four police officers and two rescue workers as part of a broader overnight barrage of drones and missiles that targeted power plants and hospitals across the country.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attacks coincided with US elections, noting that Russia likely believed Washington would not notice the signal.

The UK and EU have completed a deal to remove post-Brexit checks on imports and exports of food and animal products. The sanitary and phytosanitary agreement is not expected to be implemented until the first quarter of 2028 after a six-month delay to the second EU-UK summit, now due on 20 November. The deal is expected to help British food exporters and smaller UK retailers buy smaller batches of cheese and wine.

Israel's opposition is set to meet for the first time since last week's closely contested election, with all parties in the camp endorsing Gadi Eisenkot for prime minister. Eisenkot's bloc won 48 seats, while incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu's camp secured 53, with Arab-majority lists winning a record 19 seats. Netanyahu has called for a broad coalition government under his leadership, ruling out a coalition with Arab-majority lists.

Suspected militants killed two police officers and wounded a third during a drive-by shooting in Mohmand, northwestern Pakistan, while the officers were protecting polio vaccination teams. The attack occurred as Pakistan launched a nationwide campaign to vaccinate 24 million children against polio.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi called the attack intolerable, noting that militant groups often target anti-polio drives by claiming they are part of a Western conspiracy.

Uganda arrested former deputy military chief and presidential adviser Peter Elwelu on Monday over allegations of subversive activities aimed at destabilising the country. Acting military spokesman Chris Magezi said security forces recovered 15 guns, military fatigues and two pick-up trucks from him. Defence chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba had stripped Elwelu of his lieutenant general rank and said 20 former soldiers linked to him were arrested.

Morocco welcomed the end of a decades-long UN peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara after a diplomatic showdown between the US and Russia left the Security Council unable to agree on its future. The council failed to renew the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara after Russia vetoed a US-backed proposal, and a rival Russian draft also failed to secure enough votes.

The decision raises questions about the future of Africa's longest territorial dispute and the fragile ceasefire between Morocco and the Polisario Front.

President Donald Trump said the US may need to go after a suspected underground nuclear complex in Iran known as Pickaxe Mountain if no deal is reached. Telling Fox News, he said Washington could do that in one hour, at any time it wants. Trump did not rule out resuming the war on Iran, but said Tehran wants a deal very badly and there is a very good chance one will be made.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham opened the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua with plans for a debt reset for member nations and talks on a formal UK apology for the slave trade. Burnham said the UK is bringing a new approach to the summit, acknowledging that previous gatherings did not go well from a UK perspective.

While the UK is likely to formally apologize next year, officials insist financial reparations are not the right or feasible answer.

North Korea fired strategic cruise missiles fitted with a new cluster-munition warhead, state media said. Kim Yo Jong called the FBI's claim that North Korean hackers stole $6 billion from Binance a grave political provocation. The FBI said a North Korea-linked group called TraderTraitor was behind the theft, which experts see as potentially the largest cryptocurrency heist in history.

Two helicopters collided while trying to land near Pheriche village, just below Mount Everest's base camp, killing an Indian tourist, 47, and injuring two others. Officials said the aircraft were ferrying trekkers after heavy snow had blocked the route. A New Zealand passenger was being moved to Kathmandu for treatment, while a Nepali pilot was treated locally.

Five people, including two children, were rescued in Kiribati after three months drifting in a 20 foot skiff, while four others remained missing. Villagers found the group off Fanning Island after it had drifted an estimated 5,400 kilometers from the Federated States of Micronesia. The nine-person boat had been reported missing after failing to return to Ruo Island on July 30.

Survivors were dehydrated and malnourished but were receiving treatment.

Cyclone Murasu made landfall near Ongole in Andhra Pradesh with maximum sustained winds of 100 to 110 kph, bringing heavy rain to eastern India. Authorities closed schools, halted train services and some flights and evacuated thousands, warning of flooding and a possible storm surge of up to 1.5 meters. It was the second cyclone to hit the area in a week after Cyclone Arnab killed at least five people.

The Indian foreign ministry said one Indian national was killed after an attack on a commercial vessel near Limah in Oman. It said 14 Indian nationals were on board the MSV AL JUSUFI and 13 were rescued after the incident on Monday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said talks between Tehran and Saudi Arabia are ongoing. He said Iran harbours no hostility toward Gulf Cooperation Council countries and appreciates the positive role of Qatar and Oman. Araghchi said the goal is new regional security arrangements carried out by regional countries themselves, away from any foreign military presence.

An Iranian military spokesperson warned that any renewed US attacks would be met with a harder and broader response than Tehran's past retaliations. He said a new war would not remain limited to West Asia and that US facilities, equipment, personnel and interests in any reachable location could become targets.

Teachers and pupils at a public secondary school in al-Mughayyir are on high alert after five teenage students were killed by Israeli settlers last academic year. The school added metal fences, a metal gate and a new wall shielding classrooms from a hilltop where a settler shot dead two people, including a student. Residents say armed settler raids and military checkpoints are part of a wider effort to displace Palestinians from their land.

Israeli forces killed at least four Palestinians in Gaza on Monday, while a fifth person died of wounds from an earlier assault. Medical sources said two were killed in a gun attack and air raid in Khan Younis and a third in a drone strike in al-Musaddar.

Wafa reported a fourth was killed in a vehicle strike in Gaza City, and Palestinian Ministry of Health said at least 1,593 Palestinians have died since a US-brokered ceasefire began in October 2025.

Americans voted in midterm elections widely viewed as a referendum on President Donald Trump's second term, with control of the Senate and House at stake. The campaign was overshadowed by Trump's rallies urging voters to pretend his name was on the ballot, while high costs of living and the war with Iran dominated voter concerns.

Democrats hoped to exploit Trump's low approval ratings to win both chambers, though the party faces a tougher task to regain the Senate than the House.

The internationally recognised Yemeni government said its troops recaptured positions in the al-Khazzan al-Ahmar area in northern Lahij governorate. The government media centre said the forces repelled Houthi militias on the al-Nusayrah front.

Israeli forces arrested Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent Montaser Nassar early Tuesday in a raid on his home in Dura, near Hebron. Video showed him blindfolded and handcuffed as he was led into a military vehicle. Nassar was among more than 13 Palestinians arrested in Dura and taken to an undisclosed location. The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate recorded 84 alleged press violations in August, including arrests and a death in custody.

Australia's High Court began hearing challenges to its world-first ban on under-16s social media accounts, brought by Reddit and the Digital Freedom Project. Reddit argued the 2024 law was rushed and over-broad, while the group said it limits teenagers' implied freedom of political communication. The ban took effect last December and has led to more than 5 million under-16 accounts being suspended or deactivated across 10 platforms.

Hundreds of garment factories in Bangladesh closed after days of wage protests, with around 670 suspending operations on Monday and hundreds expected to remain shut on Tuesday. Workers demanded a minimum monthly wage of 30,000 taka, more than double the current standard, citing rising living costs. The industry employs about four million people and generates nearly $40bn a year, so prolonged unrest risks disrupting production for global brands.

The US Supreme Court rejected a last-minute request by the Trump administration to intervene in California's midterm election vote count, denying an injunction to set aside 20,000 ballots alleged to be from non-US citizens. Two lower courts had already rejected the request, and state election officials questioned the accuracy of the federal government's claims.

The ruling means the lower court decisions stand, effectively ending the administration's bid to disqualify the ballots before the midterms.

The Yemeni army said it launched 951 operations against Houthi positions over the past 24 hours as part of Operation Dawn of Yemen. Army spokesperson Majed al-Nuzaili claimed the operations neutralized around 332 Houthi field commanders and fighters. He said 56 vehicles, pieces of equipment and weapons were destroyed or damaged across fronts including Al-Jawf, Marib and Al-Bayda.

The United States urged Venezuela to continue a phased plan of economic recovery and political reconciliation before democratic elections. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the plan Monday with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Oliver Blanco. The State Department said Washington reaffirmed a three-phase plan, and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said Rubio set a sequence making clear presidential elections in 2027.

Explosions were reported on Monday on Iran's Qeshm Island and in Bandar Lengeh after US media said the US carried out defensive strikes in the Strait of Hormuz. Officials said the attacks aimed to limit Iran's ability to hit shipping, while Fox News and Axios said they followed an IRGC firing at a US aircraft. Trump said a deal with Tehran could happen, and oil prices fell more than seven percent on optimism.

Forces of Yemen's internationally recognised government carried out air strikes against Houthi positions west of Taiz. A military spokesperson said warplanes targeted Houthi military vehicles in the Jabal Habashi area, killing Houthi fighters. Houthi-affiliated media reported that a strike north of Taiz targeted a plastic shoe factory, killing three and injuring eight others.

66 US lawmakers wrote Monday asking the Trump administration to halt mass Afghan deportations, including some who worked with coalition forces before the 2021 withdrawal. They cited reports that at least 150 Afghans were scheduled to fly Tuesday from Louisiana to Pakistan, while DHS filings said some would eventually be returned to Afghanistan. They warned the Afghans could be targeted for suspected US support or criticism of the Taliban.

The US military carried out strikes on Iran, The Wall Street Journal said, citing an unnamed US official. The attacks were part of a series of limited operations Washington had secretly carried out. Explosions were earlier heard on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz and in Bandar Lengeh, Hormozgan province. The strikes came despite President Donald Trump's remarks that he would not launch attacks against Iran after the midterms.

Researchers say French high school protests that began in mid September over facilities and university admissions became a catalyst for youth demonstrations across France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Greece. The protests drew hundreds of thousands over high living costs, unaffordable housing, poor pay and climate uncertainty, with at least 550,000 in France on October 17.

Ukraine said Russian bombs hit a school used as an aid centre and shelter in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia region, killing at least 26 people, including two rescue workers and four police officers. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the strike vile and said it followed the end of a rare ceasefire in the south. Emergency services said five people were in hospital and 27 were missing as drone attacks hindered rescue efforts.

North Korea on Tuesday denied involvement in the record Binance cryptocurrency heist, calling the US announcement that North Korean hackers were behind it a trite provocation. Kim Yo Jong, sister of leader Kim Jong Un, said the US was spreading misunderstanding about the DPRK. The FBI attributed the theft to the TraderTraitor group, which was also linked to a $1.5 billion hack of Bybit last year.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said the latest Ebola outbreak has killed 5,376 people, with 5,372 deaths in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and two each in Kenya and Uganda. The Bundibugyo strain has infected 10,444 people in the DRC, Uganda and Kenya, with a death rate of more than 50 percent.

The DRC declared its 17th and largest Ebola outbreak in mid May, and no approved treatments or vaccines combat the rare strain.

Delhi authorities demolished homes around a historic mosque in Race Course, relocating 717 families to a colony nearly 31 miles away. The government cited illegal construction on government land and security concerns near military installations, while residents had challenged the evictions in court. The mosque and a nearby Hindu temple were left standing, but water and electricity were cut and access has been restricted.

Britain and France will lead a military exercise in Poland this month to test how a multinational force could deploy to Ukraine if a peace deal is reached. Nearly 3,000 personnel from 12 European nations will take part in Exercise Koalicja from 9 to 22 November. Western officials said the force would reassure Ukraine, help rebuild its armed forces and would not operate under Nato command, on the front line or in offensive operations.

Vance saw progress in the Iran war, while Tehran said the ball was in the US court. Tehran said the US must lift its naval blockade and meet its demands in full before any agreement is reached. Explosions were heard overnight in southern Iran, according to several local reports, on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz and in Bandar Lengeh in Hormozgan province.