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Trump says he is 'in no hurry' on Iran strikes as Tehran calls Vance letter a 'positive' shift

Ongoing · day 5 ↗

Iranian negotiators held talks in Doha with Qatari mediators on Saturday, October 31, to discuss paths out of the war in the Gulf, according to Reuters. President Donald Trump has held off on striking Iran ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Trump has not yet decided whether to launch new strikes against Iran, and that the US is open to diplomacy.

Why it matters

The Nov. 3 US midterms sit between both sides' positions: Trump has held off striking until after the vote, Khamenei has ordered an updated target list, and the Vance letter is being read as a possible last chance before action.

How reporting varies

Al-Monitor: Calls Vance's letter to Mohsen Rezaei possibly a last chance to avoid a US-Israeli strike after the midterms, and says it repeats the demand for nuclear concessions.

Haaretz Middle East: Reports Rubio saying Trump has not decided on strikes and the US is open to diplomacy, alongside Tehran's claim of an attack on a tanker.

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FBI blames North Korea's TraderTraitor for $6.3bn Binance hack as exchange covers 90% of losses and reopens withdrawals

Ongoing · day 2 ↗

Binance says it has replenished about 90% of the roughly $6.3 billion stolen in the hack, setting aside around $6.34 billion of company funds to cover losses. The FBI said on Saturday that North Korean hackers orchestrated the theft, which it tied to a group known as TraderTraitor, the same actors behind a $1.5 billion Bybit hack last year. Binance resumed bitcoin and ether withdrawals on Sunday after suspending them due to the hack, proceeding in stages.

Why it matters

If the FBI's attribution holds, this is the second record heist the agency has tied to the same North Korean unit, after the $1.5bn Bybit theft in 2025, so a sanctioned state is now draining the industry's largest custodians faster than recovery efforts can follow the money.

How reporting varies

CBC News: Details how Binance rebuilt the assets: part of its $1bn SAFU reserve, a futures insurance fund and its corporate treasury, with the less liquid 10% to follow.

Financial Times: Frames the theft as a record that is pushing crypto exchanges to tighten their security.

8 reports · 8 outlets · 3 left · 4 center · 1 right

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Herzog to open talks Wednesday on who forms Israel's next government, with meetings broadcast live

Ongoing · day 8 ↗

President Isaac Herzog will begin consultations on Wednesday with the parties elected to the Knesset, and the meetings are to be broadcast live, Haaretz reported, according to Der Spiegel. Netanyahu's Likud won 27 of 120 seats, and Gadi Eisenkot's new Yashar party won 21. Neither the ruling bloc nor the opposition reached the 61 seats needed for a majority.

Why it matters

Herzog picks the candidate he thinks can win a majority, not automatically the largest party's leader. His choice starts a 28-day clock, and if every route fails the Knesset dissolves and a new election follows within 90 days, which Herzog has said he wants to avoid.

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Hundreds of Israelis rally for an opposition alliance with Arab parties, which won a record 19 seats

Hundreds of Israelis marched on Saturday urging opposition parties to ally with Arab parties to oust Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has gone on the offensive against the minority group. The two Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats and say they want to work with opposition factions to bring down his government. Netanyahu, who lost ground in the election, must now try to build a coalition.

Why it matters

Bedouin turnout helped the Arab parties reach 19 seats, so a bloc long left outside Israeli coalitions could now decide whether Netanyahu or his rivals can form a government, and any opposition deal would need to survive the divides inside the opposition itself.

How reporting varies

Le Monde: Historian Jean-Pierre Filiu argues the choice is between Netanyahu's dismantling of the rule of law and a coalition including Arab parties, and says the opposition has too often matched Netanyahu's intransigence toward Palestinians.

Haaretz Middle East: Says Netanyahu faces an alternative coalition backed by Arab or ultra-Orthodox parties and is likely to press Trump again for war on Iran.

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Third weekend of French protests draws about 320,000 as clashes flare and youth rallies spread to Germany

About 320,000 people marched across France on Saturday, according to the interior ministry. Organisers counted nearly 500,000. Paris saw a largely peaceful march, then clashes between masked groups and police and tear gas, and Clarín reports almost 300 detained nationwide. A Straits Times report says an officer was hit by a Molotov cocktail. Youth-led protests also reached more than 30 German cities, where shops were looted in some places, and others in Europe.

Why it matters

Authorities deployed some 70,000 security personnel to prevent a repeat of the October 17 violence, yet the protests continue weekly and have spread beyond France, so the cost-of-living grievances are now a cross-border political problem rather than a French one.

How reporting varies

Le Monde: Describes festive, determined marches hemmed in by security measures, with the original demands unchanged week to week.

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Should Know

Tusk vows to press on with Polish court overhaul as Brussels urges president to swear in new judges

Ongoing · day 2 ↗

Riot police were deployed in a standoff over Poland's top court after judges backed by the current government suspended the court's chief justice, in a feud with the right-wing party that last held power. The suspension of the Constitutional Tribunal's president has been announced, and Prime Minister Donald Tusk is defending it. Brussels has called on President Karol Nawrocki to validate the appointment of new judges to the Constitutional Tribunal.

6 reports · 7 outlets · 4 left · 2 center

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Rubio says interest is growing in limited Black Sea ceasefire for grain and energy shipping

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after a G20 foreign ministers' meeting in Atlanta that there is growing interest, "if not momentum," in a limited Black Sea ceasefire to protect grain and energy shipments by Russia and Ukraine. The US is reviewing proposals from Turkey and India, and Canada's foreign minister said Russia has not shown it is willing to move ahead. Separately, the Financial Times reports Russia is shipping grain through Arctic routes as Black Sea fighting rages, raising costs for overseas buyers.

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Hundreds evacuated from Russian-occupied Oleshky reach Ukraine via Belarus during truce

Hundreds of residents of Oleshky crossed from Belarus into Ukraine's Chernihiv region on Saturday, after a humanitarian ceasefire brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump let them leave the Russian-occupied city. Many had gone without food, water and electricity and cooked garden weeds to survive. Ceasefire measures in Kherson region are due to stay in place until the end of Sunday, Nov. 1, and several hundred people reportedly chose to stay in the city.

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Bulgaria votes in presidential runoff between Iotova and Gyurov, with result likely Monday

Bulgarians voted on Sunday in a presidential runoff between incumbent Iliana Iotova and ex-caretaker prime minister Andrey Gyurov, 50, after neither passed 50% in a 27-candidate first round that saw record-low turnout. Exit polls are due after voting ends at 8 p.m. (1800 GMT), with a result likely on Monday. The race follows drone attacks on merchant ships off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast; both candidates condemned them, but Iotova favours dialogue with Moscow while Gyurov, backed by pro-Western parties, has long supported Ukraine.

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  • Reuters · wire — Backs: Runoff between Iotova and Gyurov; result likely Monday; Gyurov, 50, ex-caretaker PM; 27-candidate first round, record-low turnout; Exit polls after 8 p.m. (1800 GMT); Drone attacks on merchant ships; both candidates condemned; Gyurov backed by pro-Western parties, long supported Ukraine
  • Republished by Straits Times · Lean right

UN demands probe after Yemeni rights office employee dies in Houthi custody

A Yemeni staff member of the UN Human Rights Office, Mohammad el Shami, has died after more than two years in Houthi detention, UN rights chief Volker Turk said on Saturday. Turk demanded an independent investigation and the release of all other detained UN personnel, including seven colleagues from his office. Yemen's prime minister blamed the Houthis and said more than 70 UN employees remain held; the Houthis, who have called detainees part of a US-Israeli spy network, had not commented. Der Spiegel, citing Al Arabiya, reported the man was allegedly tortured to death, but the circumstances remain unclear.

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  • Der Spiegel — Backs: UN demands probe after employee dies in Houthi custody; Mohammad el Shami detained more than two years; Seven colleagues from his office still detained; Yemen PM blamed Houthis; more than 70 UN staff held; Houthis call detainees a US-Israeli spy network; no comment; Allegedly tortured to death per Al Arabiya via Der Spiegel

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Syria says it is weighing joining Saudi-Turkish-Pakistani Mecca defence pact

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said talks are under way to assess admitting Syria to the Mecca pact, speaking at a conference in Manama, Bahrain, on Saturday. Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan signed the pact in August; each must back the others militarily if one is attacked. The NYT says a move by Syria could draw more countries into Saudi Arabia's conflict with the Iran-backed Houthis, who have hit targets in the kingdom almost daily for weeks, per Der Spiegel. Pakistan and Turkey have not announced any strikes on the Houthis.

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US warns of 'mass casualty' threat at Moscow's Tsaritsyno park; FSB says it is acting

Russia's FSB said the United States passed it information through partner channels about preparations for a terrorist attack in Moscow, and that it was taking measures. The US Embassy said it knew of a "credible threat of a mass casualty event" on Saturday at the Tsaritsyno Museum Reserve, and the German embassy also told citizens to avoid the park. Russian media reported the park was closed and police were at the site. In March 2024, a similar US warning came days before the Crocus City Hall attack near Moscow.

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UN ends its Somalia mission after more than 30 years as al-Shabab still holds large areas

The UN's Untmis mission in Somalia officially ended on Saturday, its head Raisedon Zenenga said, with Somali institutions to take over most of its tasks. Zenenga said Somalia had made "considerable progress", though "significant challenges remain". The jihadist al-Shabab militia still controls large parts of the country, and parliamentary and presidential elections are planned for next year.

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  • Der Spiegel — Backs: UN mission ended after more than 30 years; Untmis officially ended Saturday; head Raisedon Zenenga; Somali institutions take over most tasks; 'considerable progress' and 'significant challenges remain'; Al-Shabab controls large parts; elections planned next year

Trump says US is looking 'closely' at report Nvidia's Huang is target of China spy plot

Ongoing · day 2 ↗

Trump said Jensen Huang is "a great, brilliant person" as the US looks "closely" at a report that the Nvidia chief executive is the target of a Chinese spy plot.

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Stocks gain as Fed official backs quarter-point rate hike

Stocks rose after a Federal Reserve official voiced support for a quarter-point rate hike, according to a Reuters headline.

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