Sean's Daily Digest

Two ships attacked in Persian Gulf, far from Hormuz; Iran says supertanker hit mine in strait

Ongoing · day 5 ↗

Two ships were reportedly attacked hundreds of kilometres from the Strait of Hormuz, according to Der Spiegel. Iran separately reported that a supertanker struck a sea mine in the strait.

Russian strikes kill at least 8 across Ukraine and cut power to over a million; Moscow says it hit steelworks

Russian attacks on Friday killed at least eight people, injured 60 and cut power to more than a million people across nine regions, Ukrainian officials said. Russia's defence ministry said it carried out a large-scale overnight attack on Ukrainian infrastructure, including the country's largest steelworks. Ukraine's energy ministry said crews had restored power to more than a million people, and the UN said October's first two weeks were among the deadliest for civilians in years.

Putin tells Pope Leo he backs aid for besieged Oleshky; pope leaves hospital Saturday

Pope Leo XIV phoned Vladimir Putin from his hospital bed on Friday and asked for a ceasefire and aid access for the Russian-occupied Ukrainian town of Oleshky. The Kremlin says Putin supports a Vatican initiative to help deliver supplies to civilians there. The New York Times reports mines and drones have trapped some 2,000 people at risk of starvation. The Vatican says Leo, treated for lung cancer at Rome's Gemelli Hospital, will leave on Saturday and lead the Sunday Angelus prayer from his Vatican apartment.

Grynspan narrowly leads UN chief race, but every candidate draws permanent-member vetoes

Former Costa Rican vice president Rebeca Grynspan stayed narrow frontrunner in the Security Council's sixth informal poll on Friday, with nine "encourage" and five "discourage" votes, two of them from permanent members. It was the first poll with color-coded ballots showing which vetoes came from the five permanent members. All candidates drew opposing votes from them, so no one is clear to win and new entrants may join, diplomats said.

Italy places Israeli defence minister Katz and military chief Zamir under investigation over Gaza flotilla detainees

Rome prosecutors said Friday that Defence Minister Israel Katz, military chief Eyal Zamir and 11 other senior military, police and prison officials are suspects in a probe of suspected torture, kidnapping and other offences against flotilla activists. The case began with complaints from 50 Italian citizens detained after two Gaza-bound flotilla missions, in 2025 and 2026, and earlier focused on National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. Being under investigation does not imply guilt or automatically lead to trial. Prosecutors sent Israel a request for judicial assistance in June, and did not say whether it replied.

French police use tear gas as students, unions and Yellow Vests protest over prices

Police used tear gas and batons in Paris, Marseille and Lyon on Saturday as protesters staged unsanctioned marches and tried to raise barricades, according to France 24. Students, trade unionists and remnants of the Yellow Vest movement are protesting high prices and a fraying social model; organizers plan more than 600 demonstrations, and a police source told AFP that authorities expect nearly 200,000 people. The protests follow weeks of school demonstrations in which more than 900 police and several protesters were injured, and the police watchdog is investigating at least two dozen cases of alleged police violence.

Kenya confirms third Ebola case, a close relative of the first two patients

Ongoing · day 8 ↗

Kenya has confirmed a third Ebola case, a close relative of the first two patients and of a man who died earlier this month after travelling from DR Congo. Africa CDC says over $700 million in Ebola response funds is unaccounted for in Congo, and Africa's top public health body and Congolese health authorities this week called for greater transparency in how the funds are used. Kenya's Health Ministry says there is no need for panic over the Ebola cases, while questions are being raised about the country's public health preparedness and border controls.

Masked Israeli settlers burn olive trees and injure Washington Post photojournalist in West Bank

About 80 Israeli settlers set fire to olive trees and threw stones at Palestinians harvesting in a West Bank village on Friday, injuring at least two people, including a US photojournalist working for The Washington Post, according to France 24. The Globe and Mail reports at least four Palestinians have been killed and more than 100 injured since the harvest season began earlier this month.

Albanian students riot for a third day; PM Rama refuses to resign and blames 'foreign hands'

Student-led protests turned violent in Tirana and spread to other Albanian cities. Police say 71 officers were hurt, and 152 people have been arrested over three days. Prime Minister Edi Rama, in power since 2013, ruled out resigning, saying governments change in elections, and on Friday blamed "foreign hands" for trying to block Albania's EU bid. Opposition leader Sali Berisha rejected the claim and backed the protests.

Anthropic quietly pitches its own AI safety bill to US lawmakers, Politico reports

Anthropic has proposed a law to regulate AI to US lawmakers, according to a Politico report relayed by Reuters. The Straits Times says security became a hot topic after recent revelations of security incidents caused by AI agents. Separately, an Anthropic co-founder backed "common sense standards" for AI regulation, Nikkei Asia reported.

Philippines rebukes Chinese ambassador over remark that Beijing "may easily win" a confrontation

The Philippine foreign ministry called Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan's remarks to journalists on Thursday a "poor choice of words". President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said they sounded "very much like a threat" and merit a discussion with the envoy. Jing had said China "may easily win" but would not use force because "we love peace"; the Chinese embassy said he was selectively quoted, called Manila's reaction an "over-interpretation" and said relations were at an "extremely sensitive stage".