The US sends a third aircraft carrier toward Iran, and Trump says Iran's offer to reopen Hormuz is not enough

The rest of the day

42 more stories on this beat.

Each with its own sources. None of these is a link to the story above.

1. 02

   Ethiopia and Eritrea cut ties after blasts in the capital

   Ethiopia closed its embassy in Eritrea on Thursday and gave 10 Eritrean diplomats 48 hours to leave. [12] Eritrea answered by cutting all diplomatic ties. [20] Hours earlier, blasts were heard in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, some near the army's headquarters. [21] A source from the rebel alliance fighting Ethiopia's government told Reuters it carried out drone strikes. [12] Ethiopia says Eritrea, Sudan and Egypt back that alliance, led by the TPLF, the party that runs the Tigray region, and all three deny it. [12]

   Why it matters — If confirmed, it would be the rebels' first drone attack on the capital, hundreds of kilometres from the front. [12] Ethiopia and Eritrea fought on the same side in the 2020-22 civil war, which an African Union mediator says cost about 600,000 lives. [22][21]

2. 03

   Russian drones hit a Kyiv school and a bridge

   A Russian drone tore through a school in Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, on Thursday, after more than 100 pupils had reached the shelter, and nobody was hurt. [11][23] Later two drones hit the Pivdennyi bridge over the Dnipro river as a metro train crossed, the first strike on a Kyiv bridge. [11] Russia launched 107 drones overnight, 63 of them jet-powered, Ukraine's air force said. [24] Jet drones fly higher and faster than older propeller drones, and many get through. [25]

   Why it matters — Ukrainian makers say new interceptors that can catch them could take up to six months to build in numbers. [25] Russia is meanwhile hitting power, rail and phone networks as winter nears, and power cuts have spread to five regions. [25][24]

3. 04

   Putin rejects a truce on energy strikes

   Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, on Thursday rejected a deal in which both sides would stop striking each other's energy sites, calling it 'simply ridiculous'. [26] Ukraine's president had offered one at a meeting with Trump on 22 September. [26] Putin admitted Ukraine's strikes on Russian oil refineries had cost Russia about 1% of its economy. [17] He also said Russia would use 'all weapons' if Kaliningrad, its territory on the Baltic between Poland and Lithuania, were attacked. [17]

   Why it matters — This week Russia sent NATO a written warning that it could use nuclear weapons if Kaliningrad were cut off. [27] NATO answered that it denounces 'any irresponsible nuclear rhetoric', and a senior European defence official called it the first threat like this since the Cold War. [27]

4. 05

   Pakistani air strikes kill civilians in Afghanistan

   Pakistan bombed targets in Afghanistan's Helmand and Kunar provinces overnight into Thursday. [28] Pakistan says it hit hideouts of the Pakistani Taliban, an armed group that attacks inside Pakistan, and killed 22 fighters. [29][30] The UN mission in Afghanistan says at least 10 civilians died, most of them children. [28] It was Pakistan's third strike inside Afghanistan in two weeks. [31]

   Why it matters — The UN says cross-border fighting has killed or hurt more than 1,100 Afghan civilians this year. [28] Pakistan says the threat comes from Afghanistan, and Afghanistan's Taliban government denies sheltering the fighters. [31]

5. 06

   The US presses Europe over diesel

   US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Europe on Thursday to release its emergency diesel stocks 'immediately'. [15] The US exports 1.2 to 1.5 million barrels of diesel a day and is weighing a ban on those sales. [15] Britain held calls with the European Commission, Germany, France, Italy and Ireland about a joint answer. [32] Diesel across the EU hit a record average of 2.24 euros a litre, against 1.59 euros before the war. [14]

   1.59 eurosEU diesel, February

   vsvs

   2.24 eurosEU diesel, now

   Why it matters — About a third of Britain's diesel imports came from the US last year, so a ban would hit British drivers hard. [32] Gulf crude now reaches buyers by pipelines and other routes, but diesel and other refined fuels leaving the region are below a fifth of pre-war levels. [5]

6. 07

   Saudi Arabia says a Houthi drone hit Medina

   The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen says a drone from Yemen's Houthi rebels hit a power station in Medina on Tuesday, putting one transformer out of service. [13][33] The station supplies the Prophet's Mosque, one of Islam's two holiest sites, and the coalition says the city's grid was not affected. [13] The Houthis, who hold Yemen's capital, called the accusation a lie. [13][33] Two weeks ago Saudi Arabia said it destroyed a Houthi drone heading for Mecca, the other holy city. [13]

   Why it matters — The Gulf Cooperation Council, a group of Gulf states, said the attack 'crossed all red lines'. [33] Houthi attacks also threaten the Red Sea route that Gulf oil uses while the Strait of Hormuz is largely blocked. [33]

7. 08

   Brazil votes on Sunday without a Lula debate

   Brazilians choose a president on Sunday, and the race between President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro is too close to call. [34] Lula, 80 and seeking a fourth term, chose to skip Thursday's final TV debate on Globo, Brazil's biggest broadcaster. [35][36] Flavio is the eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving 27 years in prison for a coup attempt. [37][38] An electoral court ordered false posts about Brazil's patron saint taken down. [34]

   Why it matters — The saint row matters because Brazil's Catholic majority tends to back Lula, while its growing evangelical churches back the Bolsonaros. [34] Lula has led every major poll for the first round, and a runoff against Flavio Bolsonaro is likely. [35]

8. 09

   Brazil investigates a US plan to fund its critics

   Brazil's attorney general, Jorge Messias, asked police on Thursday to investigate a report that the Trump administration planned to give 1 million dollars to groups opposing Brazil's supreme court. [38] The Guardian reported that the US State Department pushed 43 awards worth 176.9 million dollars from its human rights fund to right-wing causes abroad. [39] That court tried Jair Bolsonaro for his coup attempt, and a US sanction on the judge who led the trial was later lifted. [38] Messias said foreign meddling 'cannot be tolerated'. [37]

   Why it matters — The report landed three days before Brazil's vote, in which Trump's ally Flavio Bolsonaro is running against Lula. [37] The US State Department declined to answer the Guardian's questions about the money. [39]

9. 10

   Germany braces for serious Russian attacks

   Germany's chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said on Thursday his country is preparing for more Russian 'hybrid' attacks, 'including serious ones'. [17] In August a drone carrying explosives was found on the tarmac at Leipzig airport, close to Ukrainian cargo planes. [17] Estonia's foreign minister, Margus Tsahkna, said Europe should stop saying 'hybrid' and call these acts of sabotage and terror what they are. [19] He said Russia pays recruits 'easy money' to start fires and fly drones. [19]

   Why it matters — Tsahkna wants European countries to share evidence and punish the recruits hard. [19] Merz warned that if Russia is not stopped in Ukraine, its war machine will sooner or later turn against NATO. [40]

10. 11

    Finland investigates break-ins at MPs' homes

    Finnish police are investigating a 'significant' number of break-ins and attempted break-ins at the homes of members of parliament, the parliament's speaker said on Thursday. [18] The first is believed to have happened about a year ago. [18] Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said it was 'quite possible' a foreign power is behind them. [18] Finland, which shares a 1,340km border with Russia, joined NATO in 2023. [18]

    Why it matters — The speaker said nobody yet knows the motive or who did it. [41] President Alexander Stubb said an attack on a member of parliament is an attack on democracy. [41]

11. 12

    Russia expels Hungarian diplomats

    Russia ordered staff of Hungary's embassy in Moscow and its consulates in St Petersburg and Kazan to leave within two weeks. [16] It was answering Hungary, which expelled 10 Russian diplomats on 8 September. [16] Hungary's prime minister, Peter Magyar, took office after Viktor Orban lost the April election. [16] For 16 years Orban kept closer ties with Russia than any other EU leader. [16]

    Why it matters — Hungary's new government now calls Russia a threat to the country, and says it will keep its missions in Russia open. [16] Orban had used Hungary's EU veto to block help for Ukraine. [16]

12. 13

    UAE opens a terror inquiry into the flydubai attack

    The UAE's attorney general ordered an inquiry into Wednesday's flydubai flight to Tel Aviv, on which a co-pilot stabbed the captain and the plane dropped 14,000ft. [42][43] It will look at whether the attack was terrorism and whether others planned or directed it. [42] Saudi Arabia, where the plane landed, sent both pilots to Abu Dhabi on Thursday. [43] Flydubai has suspended its flights to and from Israel. [44]

    Why it matters — Cockpit doors were made strong after the 11 September 2001 attacks to keep attackers out, but that does not stop an attacker who is one of the pilots. [45] The same strong door let a co-pilot lock his captain out and crash a Germanwings plane in 2015. [45]

13. 14

    A UK-Iranian man is arrested over RAF Fairford

    British counter-terrorism police arrested a 27-year-old man with UK and Iranian citizenship in London on Thursday, on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts. [46] The arrest is part of the inquiry into Sunday's incident at RAF Fairford, a British base that US bombers use to strike Iran. [47] Five young British men arrested near the base on Sunday are out on bail. [48] Britain's prime minister, Andy Burnham, says there are 'strong indications' Iran played a part. [46]

    Why it matters — Iran's foreign minister said Burnham was 'barking up the wrong tree'. [46] Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, says Israel warned Britain about an Iranian plot before it happened. [48]

14. 15

    The US military creates a command for drones

    US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a new four-star command for drones and robots on Wednesday, called Autonomous Warfare Command. [49] The US military is asking for 54.6 billion dollars for drones in its 2027 budget, against 226 million this year. [49] Hegseth also ordered the number of generals and admirals cut by a fifth by January 2027. [50] He said 'the pace of war is changing faster than the process to support it'. [50]

    $226mUS drone budget, 2026

    ↓→

    $54.6bnRequest for 2027

    Why it matters — In the war with Iran, US forces have fired hundreds of expensive interceptor missiles at cheap Iranian drones and missiles, some of which still killed US troops. [50] Elon Musk will help lead a Pentagon study of future war. [50]

15. 16

    Gaza buries 105 people killed in 2023

    Palestinians in Gaza City buried the remains of 105 people this week, recovered from buildings levelled by Israeli strikes on 25 October 2023. [51] At least 20 bombs destroyed the seven-storey Al Taj 3 building in the Yarmouk area. [52] Gaza's civil defence said it had been impossible to reach the bodies until now. [52] The UN estimates more than 8,000 bodies are still under Gaza's rubble. [53] On Thursday an Israeli drone also killed a man in a tent camp in southern Gaza. [54]

    Why it matters — Israel has not let in the heavy machinery needed to clear the rubble, so mass funerals have become more common. [53] In the West Bank, Israeli settlers shot dead a Palestinian man near Ramallah the same day. [54]

16. 17

    France calls school protests 'urban violence'

    France's prime minister, Sebastien Lecornu, held a crisis cabinet meeting on Thursday as high-school protests turned violent. [55] Police detained 1,949 people that day, and 305 officers were hurt. [56] Fires spread to two schools in Nantes and one in Rouen. [56] About 900 blockades and incidents hit schools across France, more than 160 schools shut, and some will move classes online. [55]

    Why it matters — Students aged 15 to 18 are protesting about crowded classes, missing teachers and run-down buildings. [55] University students joined on Thursday and blocked about 30 campuses. [57]

17. 18

    Iraq gives militias until June to disarm

    Iraq's prime minister, Ali al-Zaidi, set 30 June 2027 as the new deadline for armed groups to hand their weapons to the state. [58] He had dropped an earlier deadline of 30 September. [58] The US-led coalition against the Islamic State group ended its mission in Iraq the day before. [58] Kataib Hezbollah, a powerful militia backed by Iran, denied any deal to disarm and said 'the resistance has won this round'. [59]

    Why it matters — Only two Iran-backed groups and the militia of the cleric Moqtada al-Sadr say they have put their weapons under the state. [59] Iraq's government hopes the US exit removes the militias' reason to stay armed, but many fear it will make them stronger. [58]

18. 19

    Lebanon seizes explosives smuggled from Syria

    Lebanon's army seized almost 250kg of TNT, four bombs and eight detonators being smuggled across its north-eastern border from Syria. [60] The smugglers fled back into Syria when an army patrol arrived. [60] A day earlier, Syrian security forces said they had arrested three suspected members of a cell of Hezbollah, the armed Lebanese group, and taken apart rocket launchers. [60]

    Why it matters — Reuters reported a secret meeting in Turkey between Syria's government and Hezbollah to ease tension. [60] Turkey and Syria both denied that the meeting took place. [60]

19. 20

    Gunmen kill seven Alawite workers in Syria

    Gunmen attacked a minibus taking factory workers home in Homs province, central Syria, late on Wednesday, killing seven and wounding four. [61] The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group, said all the victims were Alawites. [61] Alawites are the minority that Bashar al-Assad belongs to, and they dominated Syria's government from 1963 until he fell in December 2024. [61] The area has seen several revenge killings of Alawites since then. [61]

    Why it matters — The attack adds to fears about the safety of minorities under Syria's new Islamist-led authorities. [61] A gas pipeline blast at the Tishreen power plant the same night brought more power cuts. [61]

20. 21

    South Korea demands an apology from Ukraine

    South Korea's president, Lee Jae Myung, threatened 'further action' if Ukraine does not apologise in public. [62] Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, told the UN last week that two North Korean prisoners of war had been sent to South Korea. [62] Seoul says the move was meant to stay secret, partly to protect the soldiers' families. [62] Ukraine's foreign minister called it a 'diplomatic misunderstanding', and Lee rejected that. [62][63]

    Why it matters — The row sets two US partners with strong armies against each other. [63] The two soldiers were among thousands of North Koreans fighting for Russia, and had said they wanted to go to the South. [62]

21. 22

    Family of a woman killed by ICE sues

    The family of Renee Good, a US citizen shot dead by an immigration officer in Minneapolis in January, filed two lawsuits on Thursday. [64] ICE, the US agency that arrests and deports immigrants, had sent armed agents to the city. [65] One lawsuit blames the US government's operation for her death. [64] The other names the officer, Jonathan Ross, and senior officials including Stephen Miller and Kristi Noem. [64]

    Why it matters — A White House spokeswoman called the lawsuits 'baseless'. [64] Trump first blamed Good for her own death, and weeks later called it a 'tragedy'. [64]

22. 23

    Tennessee fails to execute a woman

    Tennessee injected Christa Pike, 50, with two lethal doses of the drug pentobarbital on Wednesday, and she survived. [66] She is in critical condition in hospital, her lawyer said. [66] Pike was sentenced to death for a murder she committed at 18, in 1995, and would have been the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years. [67] Governor Bill Lee halted the state's one other execution planned this year. [67]

    Why it matters — A death penalty expert called the failure unprecedented. [67] Pike's lawyers now ask for her sentence to be changed to prison. [66]

23. 24

    The ICC drops its insurer under US pressure

    The International Criminal Court, which tries people for war crimes, ended its health and life insurance contract with Axa, a French company. [68] The Trump administration is preparing sanctions on the court over its call to arrest Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. [68] The US has already sanctioned more than a dozen of the court's judges and prosecutors. [68] Axa and the court feared the sanctions would force the insurer to stop working with it. [68]

    Why it matters — The court says sanctions could stop it making payments in US dollars. [68] Trump called the court 'evil' at the UN last week and urged countries to leave it. [68]

24. 25

    A US energy worker is accused of helping the Houthis

    US agents arrested Ashton Ellaboudy, 51, who works for the Department of Energy in Washington state, accusing him of helping Yemen's Houthi rebels. [69][70] Prosecutors say he travelled abroad to use his 'specialised expertise' for the group. [70] They also accuse him of buying materials to build explosives that drones can carry. [70] He was due in court on Friday. [69]

    Why it matters — The US lists the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organisation, and he is accused of trying to give them material support. [69] The Energy Department office said his alleged actions did not involve harming its site or staff. [70]

25. 26

    Pakistan edges toward US sanctions on Iran

    Pakistan's foreign ministry said on Thursday it will follow 'all applicable sanctions regimes' under international and domestic law. [71] Its earlier line stressed only international law and its trade deals with Iran, its neighbour. [71] The same day the US sanctioned a Pakistani arms dealer, Waseem Pasha Tajammal, accusing his companies of buying weapons for Iran's military. [72] The US also sanctioned A7, a Russian payments firm it says helped Iran sell oil. [73]

    Why it matters — The US has threatened to cut any company still trading with Iran out of the dollar system. [73] Pakistan is in a defence alliance with Saudi Arabia and Turkey, which the Saudi crown prince praised on Wednesday. [74]

26. 27

    Egypt arrests a fact-checking team

    Egypt's interior ministry said it arrested six staff of Matsadaash, an independent fact-checking website, which rights groups say is its whole team. [75] Egypt's government accused the site of being unlicensed and run for the banned Muslim Brotherhood, without giving evidence. [75][76] Matsadaash denies any party ties and says it has also debunked claims by Brotherhood supporters. [75] No charges have been filed, and the site says nobody knows where the six are. [75]

    Why it matters — Since 2018 the site has often checked statements by Egypt's own government. [75] A rights group says 26 journalists are now held in Egypt over their work. [75]

27. 28

    Algeria makes arson a capital crime

    Algeria's national assembly voted on Thursday to make setting fire to forests or fields punishable by death, after deadly wildfires this summer. [77] The law also covers some child kidnappings. [77][78] The official death toll from the fires is 12, but an independent journalist's count of death notices puts it at 200. [77] Algeria has not carried out an execution since 1993. [77]

    Why it matters — The justice minister says arson has reached 'the level of organised crime', with links to 'foreign parties'. [77] The upper house must still review the law. [77]

28. 29

    Amnesty says Morocco spied on its critics

    Amnesty International, the London-based rights group, said on Thursday that Morocco has used spyware for years against journalists and activists, including French and Spanish politicians. [79] Its report describes tapped phones, hidden recorders in cells, offices and bedrooms, and phones sold already infected. [79] It says Morocco's domestic intelligence service bought the tools from Israeli, American and European companies. [79]

    Why it matters — Amnesty says the data is used to run smear campaigns against the people watched. [79] Rights groups, Amnesty among them, have accused Morocco for years of using Pegasus spyware. [79]

29. 30

    Libya's teachers keep schools shut

    A teachers' strike over pay has kept Libya's state schools closed since early September, leaving about 1.6 million pupils out of class. [80] Teachers want higher pay, health insurance and overtime pay, as other public workers got raises. [80] Teachers held a large protest outside Libya's government headquarters in Tripoli this week. [80] Libya has two rival governments, one in Tripoli and one in the east, after years of turmoil that followed Muammar Gaddafi's fall in 2011. [80]

    Why it matters — Libya is rich in oil, but its divided government has not met the teachers' demands. [80]

30. 31

    A Congo official is killed after defending Ebola work

    Marie-Celestin Karondwa, a local politician in Butembo in eastern Congo, was beaten on Sunday after defending the Ebola response of Congo's government on the radio, his party said. [81] His house was then set on fire, and he died in hospital. [81][82] Congo's outbreak, its deadliest ever, has passed 8,000 cases and nearly 4,000 deaths. [81] There is no vaccine for this strain of the virus, called Bundibugyo. [81]

    Why it matters — Some residents call Ebola a hoax or a way for officials to make money, and that distrust makes it harder to trace cases. [81][82]

31. 32

    Tinubu praises his reforms before a re-election bid

    Nigeria's president, Bola Tinubu, said in his Independence Day speech that the economy grew by more than 4% this year and inflation has fallen from its peak. [83] In 2023 he scrapped a decades-old fuel subsidy and let the naira, Nigeria's currency, float, and its value fell sharply. [83] He faces re-election on 16 January 2027, and remains unpopular with many young Nigerians. [83]

    Why it matters — Investors cheered his reforms, but they brought soaring prices for ordinary Nigerians. [83] Analysts expect a three-way race against Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, the two men he beat in 2023. [83]

32. 33

    A Zimbabwe tycoon dies in a helicopter crash

    Wicknell Chivayo, 43, a businessman close to Zimbabwe's president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, died with his wife when their helicopter crashed on Wednesday. [84] The crash happened about 72km east of Harare, the capital, and all six people on board died. [85] Chivayo won many government contracts and was known for lavish gifts to allies. [84] He also had ties to leaders including South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa and Kenya's William Ruto. [84]

    Why it matters — His cash and car gifts to allies stood out against the hardship most Zimbabweans live with. [86] People are now asking how he and others close to the ruling party made their fortunes. [86]

33. 34

    Avalanche toll in Nepal reaches 15

    Rescuers have recovered the bodies of 15 Nepali workers buried by an avalanche at the base camp of Himlung Himal, a 7,126-metre peak in central Nepal. [87] The workers were pitching tents and fixing ropes for foreign climbers, who had not yet arrived. [87] Eight bodies were found on Thursday, and one worker is still missing. [87] It is the deadliest accident of the autumn climbing season. [87]

    Why it matters — The foreign climbers had not yet reached the camp, so everyone killed was a local worker preparing it for them. [87] The head of Nepal's mountain guides' association says the chance of finding the last worker is dim. [87]

34. 35

    Japan raises its residency fee twentyfold

    Japan has raised the fee for foreigners seeking permanent residency 20 times, to 200,000 yen, about 1,270 dollars. [88] Applicants must now also meet income, pension and Japanese-language rules. [88] Queues at Tokyo's main immigration office ran past seven hours as people rushed to beat the change. [88] Japan had a record 4.12 million foreign residents at the end of 2025. [88]

    10,000 yenOld fee

    ↓→

    200,000 yenNew fee

    Why it matters — Japan's ageing population relies more and more on foreign workers. [88] Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has made controlling immigration a top priority. [88]

35. 36

    MI5 warns UK universities about a Chinese front

    MI5, Britain's domestic security service, told universities on Wednesday to stop working with the China General Technology Research Institute. [89] It says the institute is a front for China's Ministry of State Security, and has paid 100 or more UK academics for access to their research. [89] Working with it could now be prosecuted under Britain's 2023 National Security Act. [89] China's embassy called the claims 'purely fabricated'. [89]

    Why it matters — The research targeted included AI, cybersecurity and hidden messages in files, MI5 says. [89] British universities short of money have turned to China for funding for years. [90]

36. 37

    Britain's prime minister puts rejoining the EU on the table

    Britain's prime minister, Andy Burnham, said on Wednesday that rejoining the European Union is one option for the country. [91] A day earlier he told his Labour party's conference that Brexit had 'caused more harm than good'. [91] He listed staying as things are, a customs union, the EU's single market, or 'going all the way'. [91][92] Britain voted to leave the EU in 2016. [91]

    Why it matters — Before he became prime minister, Burnham said he was not seeking to rejoin the EU, though he hoped it would happen in his lifetime. [91] His words are the clearest sign yet that his government will consider a much bigger change in ties with the EU. [92]

37. 38

    EU ministers back deportation hubs abroad

    EU interior ministers meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday approved a rule letting countries set up 'return hubs' outside the EU. [93] The hubs would hold migrants who must leave the EU but cannot be sent home. [93] Greece, Germany, Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands plan the first one in an unnamed African country in the second half of 2027. [94] Greece also proposed suspending asylum claims in emergencies. [93]

    Why it matters — Critics say the hubs break migrants' basic rights. [93] The push follows more than 72,000 migrants entering Ceuta, Spain's city in North Africa, in late July. [93]

38. 39

    Latvia votes with Russia on its mind

    Latvians elect their 100-seat parliament on Saturday. [95] Polls put Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs's centrist United List ahead of its populist rivals. [95] Most parties call Russia and Belarus the biggest threat, and Latvia is legally bound to spend 5% of its economy on defence. [95] German jets guard Latvia's skies after drones crossed into Baltic airspace. [95]

    Why it matters — Latvia has cut imports from Russia and Belarus by more than 90% since 2022, and some businesses are still hurting. [95]

39. 40

    Bosnia votes on Sunday, along ethnic lines

    Bosnians vote on Sunday for a three-person presidency, one Serb, one Bosniak and one Croat, and for several parliaments. [96] The 1995 Dayton peace deal that ended the war built ethnic quotas into the state, which now has 14 governments and parliaments. [96] Bosnia has lost about 600,000 people, nearly one in six, to emigration in ten years. [96]

    1 of 6

    Bosnians who left in ten years: nearly one in six

    Why it matters — A political scientist told DW that many voters will again back parties of their own ethnic group. [96] Prices, wages, housing and corruption get little attention in the campaign. [96]

40. 41

    A British Sikh activist is freed in India

    Jagtar Singh Johal, a British Sikh activist, walked out of a Delhi prison on Thursday after nine years without a full trial. [97] Delhi's high court had warned India's government it would be in contempt if it kept him after a bail order on 18 September. [97] India accused him of carrying 3,000 pounds to France to fund a plot to kill people in Punjab in 2016-17. [97]

    Why it matters — His case strained ties between Britain and India for years. [97] The campaign group Reprieve says it never came to trial because India could not find credible witnesses. [97]

41. 42

    Pirates free eight Egyptian sailors

    Eight Egyptian sailors held by pirates off Somalia since early May have been freed. [98] They were among 22 crew seized from the tanker MT Eureka off Puntland, a region of Somalia. [98] Their release followed talks by Egypt's foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty, with Somali and Yemeni officials. [98] Earlier talks had collapsed when the pirates demanded a bigger ransom. [98]

    Why it matters — Somali piracy has returned in recent years, helped by Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping. [98]

42. 43

    The EU says Ukraine's 2026 money is covered

    The European Commission said on Thursday it has found the money to cover Ukraine's budget and military needs for 2026. [99] A month ago Ukraine reported a 27 billion dollar gap in its defence budget. [99] The EU says about 37 billion dollars from its loan and an older aid fund is still available this year. [99] Ukraine's finance minister says the gap for 2027 is far bigger, 78 billion dollars. [99]

    Why it matters — The Commission has not confirmed the 2027 figure and wants other allies to pay more. [99]