World, in brief

On Friday, US President Donald Trump signed an order that switches off the sanctions and tariffs in a new US law aimed at Russia's war money. [1][2]

The law is named after Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator who backed Ukraine and died in July. [3][1] It passed both houses of the US Congress by large majorities from both parties. [2]

It was due to take effect on 18 October, two days after the order. [4][3]

The law targets Russian officials, banks and the 'shadow fleet', tankers that carry Russian oil around existing sanctions. [3][4]

It also told the US president to put tariffs, which are taxes on imports, of up to 100% on goods from the five biggest buyers of Russian oil or gas. [4] Those buyers include China and India. [1]

The law itself allows this: its section 115 lets the US president waive it if he tells the US Congress that is in the national interest. [5] Trump sent that certificate, and his office did not immediately explain how the waiver helps the US. [6]

The waiver lasts until Trump or his officials decide that 'further action is appropriate'. [6]

A week earlier, Trump agreed with Vladimir Putin, Russia's president, that the US would buy Russian diesel. [1] He wants fuel prices down before the 3 November midterm elections, which decide who controls the US Congress. [3]

US fuel prices, and diesel above all, have soared since the US-Israeli war on Iran began in February. [1] US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said his government is also discussing easing sanctions on shadow-fleet tankers to cut shipping costs. [7]

India, one of the biggest buyers of Russian oil, had raised worries about the law. [8] Its refineries are built for the kind of crude that Russia and Middle East countries sell. [5]

Richard Blumenthal, the Democratic senator who wrote the bill with Graham, said the waiver had 'nothing to do with our national security'. [6] Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's president, said the diesel deal will put 'more money straight into Putin's pocket'. [9]

At a summit in Brussels the same day, EU leaders promised to keep their own sanctions. [10] The day before, Trump had called Ukraine's renewed drone strikes on Russian oil refineries 'a disgrace'. [11]

Why it matters. Watch whether the US Congress moves to change the law, as Democratic Representative Don Beyer has called for, and whether the waiver stays in place after the 3 November elections. [3]

Zelensky asked EU leaders in Brussels for another 70 billion euros next year for defence and to keep his country going. [13][21] The EU had planned on last year's 90-billion-euro loan covering both 2026 and 2027. [21] Leaders asked the European Commission, the EU's executive, to draw up a plan, and backed no option. [13] They also failed again to agree the EU's next long-term budget of nearly 2 trillion euros. [13] The countries that pay in most and those that receive most both refused to move. [21]

Why it matters. Belgium, France and Italy objected last year to using about 300 billion euros of frozen Russian money, and Sweden's prime minister said 'nothing has changed'. [13] Antonio Costa, who chairs EU summits, is expected to offer a new budget plan before a special summit on 26 November. [21]

Russian attacks on nine regions of Ukraine cut power to hundreds of thousands of homes and wounded at least 15 people, officials said on Friday. [14] Missiles set factories on fire in Odesa and Zaporizhzhia, two cities in the south. [22] Russia attacks Ukraine's power grid every year before winter, to leave people without heat and running water. [14] Ukrainian officials say Russia is storing up ballistic missiles for more attacks. [14]

Why it matters. Ukraine is short of the US-made Patriot missiles that can stop ballistic missiles. [14] Zelensky said only small numbers have arrived, many of them bought for Ukraine by European countries. [14]

Ukrainian drones forced all four of Moscow's main airports to close for up to seven hours overnight, and more than 160 flights were cancelled. [18] Moscow's mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, said 94 drones heading for the city were shot down. [18] Pulkovo airport in St Petersburg also stopped flights twice. [18] A Russian investigative outlet counted 101 hours of closures at Moscow's airports in the first 14 days of October, against 46 in all of September. [18]

Why it matters. Ukraine has not confirmed that it is running a campaign against Russia's airports. [18] The closures in Russia's capital more than doubled from September to the first half of October. [18]

Ukraine says a counter-attack called Operation Vivaldi has taken back about 275 square kilometres in Donetsk, a region in eastern Ukraine. [23][24] Its commander says the fourth phase is now finished and 16 settlements are back in Ukrainian hands. [24] Ukraine says 8,000 Russian soldiers were killed or wounded in the operation, a figure nobody outside can check. [23] The Institute for the Study of War, a US research group, says pro-Russian bloggers admit the Ukrainian advances. [23]

Why it matters. No Russian official has publicly admitted the Ukrainian gains. [23] The gains come while Russia pounds Ukraine's cities from the air. [23]

Pope Leo XIV phoned Putin from hospital on Friday to ask for a ceasefire in Oleshky, a Russian-held town in southern Ukraine. [25][26] About 2,000 civilians there need safe routes out, and food and water have been cut off. [26][25] Russia's government said it supported the Vatican's plan to get supplies in and agreed to cooperate, without mentioning a ceasefire. [25] The 71-year-old Pope was found to have lung cancer after surgery on Tuesday, and the Vatican released the first pictures of him since. [25]

Why it matters. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state and its most senior official after the Pope, said he hoped Putin taking the call was a sign the request would be carried out. [25]

Putin signed a decree taking control of the Russian businesses of five Western companies, including Tarkett, a French maker of floors. [27] The others belong to Belgium's Ontex, Germany's Menshen and Sonoco of the US, plus one that was part of Ireland's Smurfit Kappa. [27] Together they earn more than 50 billion roubles (532 million euros) a year. [27] They now pass to a management company registered in February. [27]

Why it matters. All five kept working in Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, and staying did not protect them. [27] In September Russia did the same to the food giant Nestle and the retailers Metro and Auchan. [27]

All seven candidates to run the United Nations got a 'discourage' vote, which works as a veto, from at least one permanent member of the Security Council in a secret poll on Friday. [28][29] The five permanent members are the US, Russia, China, Britain and France. [30] Rebeca Grynspan of Costa Rica, the UN's trade chief, led with nine 'encourage' votes of 15. [29][30] Argentina's Rafael Grossi, head of the UN nuclear watchdog, and Guyana's Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett got eight each, and all three drew two vetoes. [31][30]

Why it matters. Diplomats say this opens the door to new names, such as Nickolay Mladenov, who works for the US-backed board on Gaza. [28] The council has less than three months, because Antonio Guterres's term ends on 31 December. [29]

Twelve ships reported attacks in and around the Strait of Hormuz between 5 and 11 October, the most in one week since the US-Israeli war with Iran began. [20] The strait is the narrow sea lane out of the Gulf that carries much of the world's oil. UKMTO, a British navy agency that tracks shipping, says most ships that are hit do not report it. [32] Ship traffic through the strait is about 70% below pre-war levels. [32]

Why it matters. Admiral Brad Cooper, who runs US forces in the region, said more than 20 sailors have been killed by Iran's attacks since February. [33] Two US aircraft carriers are in the Arabian Sea, and both sides are warning of more fighting. [34]

Two Houthi missiles landed 500 metres from a plane about to take off at the airport in Aden on Friday, Yemen's information minister said. [19] Aden is the seat of Yemen's internationally recognised government, which Saudi Arabia backs against the Houthis, a rebel group aligned with Iran. [19] The day before, Houthi missiles hit Aden's presidential palace for the first time, killing five security staff. [35] Yemen's government says it will stay in Aden. [35]

Why it matters. Yemen's civil war started again last month after a four-year lull. [35] Government forces claim big gains in Marib province, which cannot be checked. [19]

Britain now advises against all but essential travel to the whole of Saudi Arabia, because of Houthi attacks. [36] It warns of a heightened threat to airports, ports and energy sites, and tells Britons to keep away from King Khalid airport in Riyadh. [36] A Houthi missile attack on that airport last Saturday killed 12 people and injured 309. [37] Saudi Arabia wants more air defence weapons, but defence sources say Britain and France cannot spare systems needed against Russia. [37]

Why it matters. Ukraine, Saudi Arabia and NATO's eastern members are all asking Europe for the same scarce missiles that shoot down missiles. [37]

Masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians picking olives in at least eight West Bank villages on Friday, burning cars and trees. [38][39] At Abu Falah, near Ramallah, at least 80 settlers threw rocks at farmers in view of Israeli army vehicles. [39] Heidi Levine, a Washington Post photographer, was beaten for more than 10 minutes and robbed of her passport and phone. [39] A local official said 12 Palestinians were hurt there, four of them also US citizens. [40]

Why it matters. The UN's aid office counts nearly 200 harvest-season attacks this year, more than the 185 of all of 2025. [41] Several US lawmakers asked the Trump administration to hold the settlers to account. [42]

More than 340 Palestinian children have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire began just over a year ago, Unicef, the UN children's agency, said. [43] Seven were killed in the past two weeks by Israeli air strikes, drone strikes and gunfire. [43] About 800,000 children are still displaced, most in tents or damaged buildings. [43] The UN says nearly 44,000 people still live in damaged buildings that need to be pulled down. [44]

Why it matters. All six of Gaza's sewage plants are out of service, and a fourth winter is coming. [43] Unicef says a half-full stormwater pond could flood homes because Israel has not let in the equipment to drain it. [43]

Prosecutors in Rome have put Israel's defence minister, Israel Katz, and 12 senior officials, including army chief Eyal Zamir, under investigation. [45] The case is about Italian activists held after Israeli forces stopped two aid flotillas heading for Gaza in 2025 and 2026. [46] Fifty of them complained of beatings, tasers and rubber bullets, and the activists reported at least 15 sexual assaults. [45] Italian law lets Rome try crimes committed abroad against Italian citizens. [46]

Why it matters. The case had centred on Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's national security minister. [46] It now reaches the minister in charge of Israel's army. [45]

Israel put 351 of the 635 children it held in prison in 2025 in solitary confinement at least once, figures obtained by two Israeli rights groups show. [47] Most were Palestinians, and five were boys aged 13 or 14. [47] A spell in isolation usually lasted seven days, and sometimes two weeks. [47] Israel's prison service said 92% of the children put in isolation had not been sentenced. [47]

Why it matters. Of those, 115 were held without trial on orders from the Shin Bet, Israel's internal security service. [47]

Israel has set up a new military line, called Sufa 53, beyond the Golan Heights it took from Syria in 1967. [48] About 250 Syrian farmers can no longer reach their land, and Israel has taken over 1,160 hectares of farmland near the line. [48] The UN counted 280 Israeli crossings into Syria in September alone. [48] US-backed talks between Israel and Syria have not settled the frontier. [48]

Why it matters. Syria wants Israeli forces back behind the 1974 armistice line. [48] An Israeli researcher warns that a long stay could weaken Syria's president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, and help ISIS and groups backed by Iran. [48]

Qatar will pay for, build and run an electricity project in Lebanon, Lebanon's prime minister, Nawaf Salam, said on Friday. [49] The first project is a solar plant to be built by QatarEnergy and France's TotalEnergies. [49] Lebanon's treasury will pay nothing up front. [49] Lebanon's economy is expected to shrink by 6 to 7% this year, and its government relies heavily on outside help. [49]

Why it matters. Salam said the aim is steadier power at a lower cost for a country whose power supply is in a dire state. [49]

Police and protesters clashed for a fourth day in Albania, and the unrest spread from the capital, Tirana, to Shkoder, Korca and Elbasan. [15] The protests began as a student movement over the cost of education and of living. [50] Earlier this week, protesters set fire to a floor of Albania's education ministry and other government buildings. [50][15] Prime Minister Edi Rama blamed 'foreign hands' and named no one. [51]

Why it matters. Months of quieter protests began over the sale of part of the coast to a resort linked to Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law. [15] Clashes this size have not been seen in Albania for decades. [50]

More than 1,000 protests were planned across France for Saturday, 17 October, against rising fuel prices. [12] Some leaders of the Yellow Vests, the 2018 movement over living costs that shook President Emmanuel Macron, say they will join. [12] They are backing high-school students who have protested for nearly a month for better classrooms. [12] The call began with a viral TikTok video by a young man angry about prices at the pump. [12]

Why it matters. Left-wing leaders, including Communist Fabien Roussel and Green Marine Tondelier, back the protests. [12]

Thousands of students, university staff and union members protested outside Argentina's parliament in Buenos Aires against President Javier Milei's cuts to education. [16] Masked people threw stones and injured at least eight police officers, and 25 people were arrested. [16] Milei vetoed a 2025 law telling Argentina's government to spend more on public universities. [16] It was the fifth such protest since he took office in 2023. [16]

Why it matters. Milei's security minister said the right to protest is not a right to violence. [16] Other protesters tried to push the stone-throwers back. [16]

Denmark's prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, asked the European Commission to look into Spain's plan to give legal status to 600,000 migrants. [52] She said Spain was doing 'almost the exact opposite' of the rest of the EU. [52] Spain's prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, said the criticism did not match the figures. [53] He compared the Czech prime minister's words to the far right. [53] Denmark, Italy and Poland pushed for tougher EU wording on migration. [54]

Why it matters. Spain votes in a snap election on 29 November. [55] Opposition leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo wants the navy sent to Ceuta, a Spanish city in north Africa that borders Morocco, after reports of a Moroccan patrol boat. [55]

Indian police detained Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party, a youth protest group, before a march in Delhi on Friday, and later formally arrested him. [56][17] The group says India's Election Commission cut voter lists to help Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party, the BJP. [56] Both deny it. [56] Thousands of police sealed off the planned site. [56] Police also said Jantar Mantar, Delhi's main protest street near India's parliament, will no longer be a protest site. [57]

Why it matters. The three sites offered instead are far from India's parliament, or cost tens of thousands of rupees a day to use. [57]

China's ambassador to the Philippines, Jing Quan, said on Thursday that China 'may easily win' if it chose force, but that it loves peace. [58] President Ferdinand Marcos Jr called it a threat and 'not a very diplomatic statement'. [58] The two countries dispute the South China Sea, almost all of which China claims. [58] Chinese aircraft have repeatedly driven Philippine planes away from Scarborough Shoal, a reef both claim, in recent months. [59]

Why it matters. Jing pointed to Ukraine, Gaza and Venezuela as regions without peace. [58] Marcos said he wants to understand what the ambassador meant. [58]

North Korea says it tested a torpedo on Thursday that uses artificial intelligence to find and steer towards targets. [60] Its state news agency did not explain what that means. [60] South Korea's military, which often says the North overstates its weapons, did not comment at once. [60] A day earlier, North Korea fired missiles from under water for the first time in nearly three years. [60]

Why it matters. Experts say those tests probably used a submarine that North Korea says is designed to launch nuclear weapons. [60]

Pakistan's foreign ministry said on Friday that talks with Afghanistan's Taliban government cannot be unconditional. [61] Its one demand is a way to check that attacks from Afghan soil have stopped. [61] Pakistan says the Pakistani Taliban, an armed group, use Afghanistan as a base, and the Afghan Taliban deny it. [61] Russia, the only country that formally recognises the Taliban government, has offered to help. [61]

Why it matters. Talks hosted by Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and China have all failed over the armed groups. [61]

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh activist with US and Canadian citizenship, says FBI agents warned him of 'an imminent threat' to his life. [62] He campaigns for India's Punjab state to become a separate country called Khalistan. [62] The warning came before an unofficial 'Khalistan Referendum' in Edmonton, Canada, on 18 October, which he plans to attend. [62] In February, an Indian man pleaded guilty in a US court to plotting to kill him. [62]

Why it matters. Canada's federal police have also warned him about threats to his life. [62]

Ethiopia's prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, set up a six-month caretaker government for Tigray, the country's northern region. [63][64] It is meant to restore services, bring displaced people home and prepare elections. [63] The Tigray People's Liberation Front, the party that ran the region, launched an uprising last month and has left the capital, Mekelle. [64][65] Hundreds of former fighters lined up in Mekelle to join a programme to help them return to civilian life. [63]

Why it matters. The fighting has wrecked the 2022 peace deal that ended a two-year war. [63] Abiy's office says the TPLF leaders 'did not desire peace'. [65]

Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, phoned Abiy on Wednesday and urged dialogue between Ethiopia and Eritrea, its northern neighbour. [66] Ethiopia accuses Eritrean troops of occupying its land. [66] On Friday its foreign minister wrote to the UN Security Council that Ethiopia is acting in self-defence. [66] Eritrea has called Ethiopia's moves a declaration of war. [66]

Why it matters. Magnus Taylor of the International Crisis Group, a conflict research group, warned that the gains in Tigray could raise the risk of war with Eritrea. [67] He said Tigray's fighters regrouped in the countryside after losing towns in the last war. [67]

Rosemary DiCarlo, a senior UN official, told the Security Council that drones are now the main killer of civilians in Sudan's war. [68] UN data shows more than 1,100 people were killed by drones in the first half of this year. [68] She asked the army and the Rapid Support Forces, the paramilitary group it is fighting, to agree a mutual ban. [68] Separately, army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said he wrote to Trump to restate his commitment to ending the war. [69]

Why it matters. The US proposes a 90-day truce that Sudan's army has opposed. [69] The war has pushed hundreds of thousands of Sudanese into dangerous work in remote gold mines. [70]