Headlines: 9-15 November 2026

Friday, 13 November 2026

UN watchdog 'increasingly concerned' over uninspected Iran nuclear site (LINK) 13 November 2026

Iran says LNG tanker hit mine in Strait of Hormuz via a route not authorized by Iran (LINK) 13 November 2026

Al Jazeera: With every rainfall, Gaza risks losing access to power and healthcare (LINK) 13 November 2026

Jerusalem Post: How Hamas shaped Gaza's winter flooding narrative: it was written before it rained — (LINK)

Dutch prime minister holds hours of crisis talks as coalition acrimony erupts over wealth tax package: trying to and stave off government's collapse less than nine months into its four-year term (LINK) 13 November 2026

BBC: Neither war nor peace in Tigray — is Ethiopia's latest conflict really over? Ethiopian government officials and supporters argue that the war is effectively over and that the only remaining task is to clear Tigray of TPLF elements (LINK) 13 November 2026

UK: Wife of Northern Ireland Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Jeffrey Donaldson placed on sex offenders' register and given supervision order after his rape conviction: could not be given a prison sentence as it was determined she was medically unfit for a criminal trial (LINK) 13 November 2026

— Last month Jeffrey Donaldson was sentenced to 15 years in prison for a series of child sex offences against two victims, including one count of rape, which took place between 1985 and 2008. He is seeking to appeal against his convictions.

African Miss Universe beauty queens in limbo as US visa restrictions bite: 75th edition of the Miss Universe pageant, with the winner set to be crowned on 24 November: 19 countries subject to partial US travel restrictions introduced under the Presidential Proclamation 10998, which took effect on 1 January 2026 (LINK) 13 November 2026

Microsoft outage: millions still affected as disruption stretches beyond 18 hours (LINK) 13 November 2026

Four killed in Ukrainian drone strike on industrial zone in Russia's Volgograd, official says (LINK) 13 November 2026

Russia demands Finland leave NATO in Abu Dhabi talks: Report (LINK) 13 November 2026

— German daily Bild reports Russia’s proposal to end war in Ukraine carries far-reaching demands from Europe, including ban on NATO military bases in Baltic states.

Kushner: Russia has agreed to include Europe in Ukraine war talks (LINK) 13 November 2026

Moscow car explosion injures former aide to pro-Russian Ukrainian politician, the second apparent attack in two days: on Thursday, a car explosion in St. Petersburg killed a Russian serviceman, the local Investigative Committee said. (LINK) 13 November 2026

US wholesale inflation rose in October to highest annual rate in nearly four years (LINK) 13 November 2026

Condo manager says DC gym shooter was 55-year-old doctor, confessed in phone call, noting dispute over living conditions: person killed identified as a manager at the condominium complex (LINK) 13 November 2026

Navy has quietly fired some commanders and other officials, drawing congressional pushback (LINK) 12 November 2026

Nvidia's board is still investigating Jensen Huang despite his resignation, sources say (LINK) 13 November 2026

PM Burnham, the only G7 leader to attend COP 31, says climate consensus 'gone' and pledges 'new era of British leadership' in COP31 speech (LINK) 12 November 2026

Thursday, 12 November 2026

Ukraine: Zelenskyy sees 'window of opportunity' for peace as US envoys to meet Putin: day 1,723 of war (LINK) 12 November 2026

Russia's largest oil refinery, in Omsk, slammed by drones in 8-hour attack 2,500 km from Ukraine (LINK) 12 November 2026

Deadly Israeli air strike hits hospital; 13 killed across Gaza: United Nations made an emergency appeal for waterproof tents to shelter hundreds of thousands exposed to flooding due to heavy rains (LINK) 12 November 2026

Two Iranian men found guilty of spying on UK-based journalists for Tehran's intelligence services: hired through social media (LINK) 12 November 2026

U.S. seizes $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency stolen from Binance (LINK) 12 November 2026

Planet 'is being killed by the very same people thought to come to our rescue', Greta Thunberg tells Cop31 climate summit (LINK) 12 November 2026

— "We are heading towards a future of more genocides and more ecocides and the complete compromise of our basic rights and where basic necessities become luxuries," she said.

Pope Leo XIV denounces 'machismo' and violence against women — and demands women be protected in an emotional return to Peru (LINK) 12 November 2026

Gold falls to $3,955, marking third drop below $4,000 since late October (LINK) 12 November 2026

Oil prices fall below $93 as OPEC+ restores 97% of prewar production (LINK) 12 November 2026

Indonesia's vice president resigns as his eligibility and academic credentials are questioned (LINK) 12 November 2026

Six more women make allegations against Russell Brand (LINK) 12 November 2026

EPFL introduces a new Bachelor in Artificial Intelligence (LINK) 12 November 2026

— "Our goal is to educate students who can do more than apply existing AI technologies. We want them to understand the scientific principles behind these technologies and acquire the knowledge needed to develop new ones. That requires a rigorous education in both mathematics and computing. We are working closely with EPFL's Institute of Mathematics to ensure that both are at the heart of the curriculum," explained Haitham Al Hassanieh, professor at IC and director of the new program.

— The Bachelor in Artificial Intelligence will welcome its first students in the 2027–2028 academic year. During the first year, programming courses will be taught in French, while students will be able to choose between French and English for their mathematics and physics courses. All courses in the second and third years will be taught in English.

Explore our feature on AI and university education. — (LINK)

Wednesday, 11 November 2026

US to seek Putin's 'blessing' on Thursday for Europe to join Ukraine talks: agreed a major prisoner swap, with final numbers to be confirmed (LINK) 11 November 2026

Russia and Ukraine agree to a large prisoner exchange as talks conclude with no major breakthrough (LINK) 11 November 2026

Russia refused to discuss ceasefire or territorial issues on second day of Abu Dhabi peace talks, shifting focus to European security architecture, RBC-Ukraine reports (LINK) 11 November 2026

Finland detects Ukraine drone strike on Russian warship as Zelenskyy meets US envoys (LINK) 11 November 2026

ISW: Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, November 11, 2026 (LINK) 11 November 2026

Black Sea and Danube, the world's most dangerous maritime route: "It's a new phase of the war" (LINK) 11 November 2026

— Mundo America: Andrej Klimenko, director of the Strategic Research Institute dedicated to the Black Sea, states it "has become the most dangerous maritime route in the world," resulting in more fatalities among crew members than any other route in the world, such as Hormuz or the Yemeni coast. According to the maritime security firm Ambrey, over 570 ships have suffered attacks in this area in 2026, resulting in at least 40 sailors' deaths, compared to 24 who have died in Hormuz. These recurring incidents are merely an extension of the offensive that Russia launched against the Odesa region starting last July, particularly targeting the port facilities in that area, which forced Ukraine to suspend all its maritime exports. Kiev retaliated by attacking Russian port enclaves in the same area, also causing a significant reduction in the traffic of freighters destined for those locations. On October 28, the crisis reached a new turning point when the Liberian-flagged vessel 'Contship Jet' was rammed by three unmanned marine vehicles.

Israel's political shake-up enters new phase as former PM Naftali Bennett plays kingmaker — and deadline looms (LINK) 11 November 2026

— Fox News: The official election results left Netanyahu's bloc with 53 seats, while the four parties seeking to replace him secured 48. The remaining 19 seats went to two Arab-led parties: the Joint List, with 11, and Ra'am, led by Mansour Abbas, with eight. While 67 lawmakers supported Eisenkot receiving the mandate to form a government, that support does not automatically translate into a workable governing coalition. Eisenkot has outlined four principles for potential coalition partners: recognizing Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, accepting the values of the Declaration of Independence, supporting military or civilian national service for all, and recognizing Hamas as a terrorist organization whose military and governing capabilities must be dismantled. A vote to replace current Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, a Netanyahu ally, is scheduled for Nov. 17.

Peruvian homecoming: Pope Leo welcomed by record crowd on return to the country that shaped his path to the papacy (LINK) 11 November 2026

— CNN: The Vatican says an estimated 3 million people turned out, the largest crowd of his papacy so far. Earlier this week, roughly 2.5 million attended a mass he held in Argentina. Padre Robert, as he is known in Spanish in Peru, will receive a new Peruvian ID card that will list Chiclayo as his address. A young Prevost first arrived in the South American country as a missionary in 1985.

Kenya discharges last Ebola patient, awaits disease-free status: will continue to exercise prevention measures until December 23 (LINK) 11 November 2026

Congo's Ebola outbreak tops 11,000 cases as disease keeps spreading, the country's deadliest such crisis in history (ground news LINK) 11 November 2026

— The virus has now reached Kenya, Uganda, and Nigeria, continuing the 17th Ebola outbreak in Congo. Declared in mid-May, the outbreak involves the Bundibugyo virus, which has spread to eight of the country's 26 provinces.

US faces loss of measles-free status as experts meet for review: childhood vaccination rates have fallen below the 95% immunization threshold needed to prevent virus spread, according to an NBC News and Stanford University analysis. (ground news LINK) 11 November 2026

— Reuters: The determination is expected to be made public early next week. Losing elimination status would position the country alongside Canada as the only nations in the Americas to have lost control of the virus, reversing decades of progress against the world's most contagious disease. In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the share of kindergarteners receiving the MMR vaccine in 2025-26 dropped to 87.6%, a significant decline from the 95.5% coverage level reported before the pandemic.

— PAHO asked all 35 member states in the Americas to submit measles status reports for review by a panel of outside experts. They will ?make their recommendations during closed-door deliberations in Washington, where their annual meeting convenes through November 13. Mexico and Bolivia are also ?on the watch list due to prolonged outbreaks, a PAHO spokesperson said by email on Tuesday.

Bomb threats hit hundreds of schools in Italy, Ireland and UK (LINK) 11 November 2026

— In Italy, more than 300 schools were evacuated on Wednesday after receiving identical bomb threats. More than 270 Scottish schools and over 300 schools in Northern Ireland were targeted. Some schools in England and the Republic of Ireland also received emails. ANSA reported that the threats against flights were signed "Fighters of the Male State" — a reference to a Russian ultranationalist, misogynistic movement which Moscow banned in 2021. The group's founder denied involvement.

Poland's president joins a right-wing march as the country reels from the Krakow shooting: he did not address the full crowd (LINK) 11 November 2026

US Pentagon chief Hegseth and aides scolded by guard for laughing at Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during Veterans Day ceremony (LINK) 11 November 2026

Brazil's Lula blasts absence of world's top polluters at COP31 (LINK) 11 November 2026

Turkey's president calls the war in Gaza "not only a genocide, but [...] also an ecocide" at the UN climate summit (LINK) 11 November 2026

— "Centuries old olive trees have been cut down. The soil and water have been polluted in Gaza, and cities in Gaza have been turned into enormous piles of rubble," Erdogan said. "With Gaza's destroyed infrastructure, compounded by torrential rain and by flooding, tens of thousands of tents and shelters have been inundated."

World heading for 'irrevocable overshoot' of global temperature thresholds, Climate Action Tracker (CAT) warns (LINK) 11 November 2026

— Under current policies, the planet will heat up by 2.7C on average by the end of the century compared with preindustrial times, the report found. This is up slightly from a prediction of 2.6C in the group's analysis conducted last year.

12 free reports about climate change for COP31 (LINK) 11 November 2026

Iran tells COP31 it wants compensation for environmental damage from US-Israeli strikes (ground news LINK) 11 November 2026

Israeli Court refuses to release 14 Gaza doctors held without charge or trial (ground news LINK) 11 November 2026

Amnesty International reported that United Nations peacekeepers and South Sudanese authorities ignored warnings weeks before an insurgent raid on Abiemnom killed more than 200 people earlier this year (ground news LINK) 12 November 2026

— UNMISS knew an attack on Abiemnom was likely but failed to reinforce the roughly three dozen peacekeepers stationed there until after violence occurred. Tigere Chagutah, an Amnesty regional director, said their failure to take stronger action cost lives. Facing budget cuts and reduced personnel, UNMISS spokesperson Priyanka Chowdhury said the mission concentrated available capacity on protecting roughly 2,500 people at its base. The Security Council reduced authorized troop levels from 17,000 to 12,000 in April.

Kenya discharges last Ebola patient, awaits disease-free status: will continue to exercise prevention measures until December 23 (LINK) 11 November 2026

At Argentina's national shrine, Pope Leo calls country to reconciliation, communion and mission (LINK) 11 November 2026

Swiss businessman Schmidheiny faces fresh Italian trial on accusations of 60 counts of aggravated manslaughter related to asbestos (LINK) 11 November 2026

— the statute of limitations was declared to apply in respect of a further 25 victims of asbestos-related diseases. The request by the Attorney General's Office, which had sought confirmation of the nine-year-and-six-month prison sentence for the defendant, was rejected.

Millions of Spaniards stage first general strike in 14 years as anger rages over housing (LINK) 11 November 2026

Tigray displaced families fear renewed war as hopes of returning home fade (LINK) 11 November 2026

Arsene Wenger, 77, considers challenging Gianni Infantino in FIFA Presidential election (ground news LINK) 11 November 2026

— The deadline for candidates to declare falls next Wednesday, 18 November. UEFA stated in August it would work to identify a credible candidate to stand against Infantino. Wenger is French but has been FIFA's chief of global football development since November 2019.

Farewell to Elon Musk's Cybertruck (LINK) 11 November 2026

— The tech mogul, who moved from California to Texas to escape Democrats and regulations, now finds himself in a newly blue state. "This is not a case of Cybertruck being unprofitable, as has been misreported by legacy media," Musk tweeted on Monday. "But rather that the opportunity cost of the complexity of Cybertruck is vastly outweighed by the value of incremental Cybercab production." (The Cybercab is a two-passenger robotaxi.)

Elon Musk offers to hire Jensen Huang as Nvidia CEO's exit odds hit 90% (LINK) 11 November 2026

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