Magnitude 7.0 earthquake strikes northern Tibet, killing at least 16 and injuring 46
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck northern Tibet at 10:33 p.m. local time on October 22, with its epicenter about 190 kilometers east-northeast of Nagqu in the Baqen area at a depth of 18 kilometers, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. CNN and the Associated Press report at least 16 people were killed and 46 injured — 11 of them seriously, revised up from an initial count of 32 injured — with at least 339 homes collapsed. More than 1,600 rescue personnel have been deployed, a section of National Highway 317 is closed by rockfalls, and intermittent snow is forecast in the quake zone over the next three days; it is China's strongest earthquake since January 2024. (Casualty and damage figures come from local official reports, unverified independently.)
Abyei revises market strike death toll to 153; UNISFA urges restraint
Abyei caretaker information minister Yohana Akol Ngor revised the official death toll: 153 bodies have been buried from the Amiet market drone strike (the earlier "220" figure was an unverified number circulating on social platforms), with about 30 people still hospitalized and others missing. The UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) issued a statement on October 22 condemning the October 19 drone attacks near Amiet Market and Todach, saying it has intensified day-and-night patrols, continues emergency medical assistance and has extinguished most of the fires, urging all parties to refrain from retaliation. Reuters sources said the strike hit a fuel depot reportedly used by the RSF for supplies, while a witness said he saw no uniformed fighters in the market — attribution and victim identities remain unverified by independent sources.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that future talks on settling the war in Ukraine should focus on security guarantees for both countries and an overall European security framework, rather than a short-lived ceasefire, adding that Russia was "ready to resume these contacts." The Kremlin has said it is willing in principle to resume US-mediated trilateral talks after November 10, possibly in Abu Dhabi. Putin also reiterated that any discussion of territory must consider what he called "historically Russian land," while Kyiv insists on freezing the current front lines with security guarantees, leaving the core dispute unresolved.
Background: Hours after the Witkoff–Putin meeting, Russia fired 21 ballistic missiles at Kyiv, killing at least 2 and injuring 34, according to Ukrainian officials; Trump said a ceasefire was "closer than ever."
🐱 Scout French anchor · France bans non-union protests
President Emmanuel Macron announced Thursday that all non-union protests will be banned across France from Saturday, October 24, with only union-organized marches permitted. Paris extended gathering bans around the Élysée, parliament, the Louvre and the Champs-Élysées, and imposed an 11 p.m.–6 a.m. curfew on Place de la République and Les Halles; Lyon and Marseille issued their own bans and curfews. More than 500 demonstrations are expected nationwide on Saturday, with the CGT union planning a march from Place de la Bastille to Place de la Nation; unions have called for rolling strikes starting November 5.
Background: Last weekend's riots saw about 3,000 shops looted and thousands arrested; France's 10-year bond risk premium hit its highest since the eurozone debt crisis.
Sources: The Times, informedclearly, Pollar (3 outlets)
Houthis claim four attacks inside Saudi Arabia as US continues diplomat drawdown
🐱 Scout field reporter · Houthis claim attacks on Saudi targets
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a televised statement Thursday that the group carried out four military operations inside Saudi Arabia, targeting the Defense Ministry in Riyadh, King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, an Aramco facility in Yanbu and Abha airport; the Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted drones over Riyadh and Medina. Saudi civil aviation said the Dammam airport attack toll rose to two dead and eight injured; the Gulf Cooperation Council condemned the attacks, citing four deaths and ten injuries. Egypt's president said Cairo's military support would be limited to defending Saudi territory.
Background: The United States has ordered non-emergency diplomats and families to leave Saudi Arabia amid near-daily Houthi attacks; the war with Iran is in its eighth month.
Political developments and international relations
Serbia enters campaign silence ahead of Sunday's snap election
Serbia's snap parliamentary election entered its final phase as the ruling "Aleksandar Vučić – United Serbia" coalition and the opposition Student List held closing rallies in Belgrade on Thursday; a campaign silence period runs from midnight until polls close at 8 p.m. Sunday. Eighteen lists are contesting 250 parliamentary seats, with 6.45 million registered voters and 8,392 polling stations including 93 abroad; a poll this week put the Student List neck and neck with Vučić's Progressive Party.
Background: A Reuters investigation found activists, students and journalists facing beatings, detention and threats ahead of the vote, the biggest challenge to Vučić's 12-year rule; the protest wave began after the November 2024 Novi Sad station canopy collapse that killed 16.
Trump ordered to sit for deposition by Dec 11 in $10 billion BBC defamation suit
A US federal judge on Thursday ordered Donald Trump to sit for a deposition by December 11 in his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC. Trump accuses the broadcaster of misleadingly editing his January 6, 2021 speech to suggest he directed supporters to storm the US Capitol; the BBC admitted the edit was misleading and apologized but denies defamation. The judge ordered Trump to take questions from the BBC's lawyers under oath; Trump canceled an October deposition citing presidential duties. (single source, unverified)
Background: The case is one of several private lawsuits Trump has filed against the news media.
Sources: Reuters (citing AP; single source, unverified)
Mideast escalation sparks global selloff; Brent settles at $113.17
Escalating Middle East tensions battered global markets on Thursday: the Nasdaq 100 plunged 2.9%, its worst day since June; the S&P 500 fell 1.21% and the semiconductor index (SOX) tumbled 6.72%, with Meta down 6.98% and Amazon down 4.57%. Brent crude settled up 4% at $113.17 a barrel, while the 10-year Treasury yield posted its biggest drop in over a year to 4.96%; Asian markets also slid, with the Nikkei down about 1.7% and the Hang Seng nearly 3%.
Background: The New York Times reported US-Israeli plans for renewed strikes on Iran after the midterms; Houthi attacks on Saudi oil facilities deepened supply fears; Brent had already broken above $111 earlier in the week.
Wiz Research disclosed two unauthenticated remote-code-execution flaws in PHP, CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619, rated CVSS 9.2 and affecting nearly every PHP version back to PHP 5.4 — PHP powers roughly 70% of the web. An early leak of the disclosure forced patches (fixed in 8.5.12) to ship ahead of schedule; the NSA advised taking unpatchable sites offline, and Australia's Signals Directorate warned government websites were exposed. The flaws were found with AI tooling, underscoring how AI-driven bug hunting lowers the barrier to attacks at scale.
Background: Several government websites have already been taken offline for maintenance over the flaws.
Sources: Wiz Research, BBC, Australian Signals Directorate (multiple outlets)
Meta raises AI capex to $135–145 billion; Muse agent passes 10 million users
Meta reported Q3 revenue of $64.6 billion, beating expectations, and raised its 2026 AI capital expenditure to $135–145 billion; its Muse AI agent passed 10 million users. Meta also announced a new class of stock to fund its AI push, fueling market fears that tech giants will pile on debt to finance AI infrastructure, sending shares lower; Anthropic launched a new AI agent to rival Meta's Muse and OpenAI's dots. (single source, unverified)
Background: Capital markets are increasingly divided over the sustainability of AI infrastructure spending.
Military developments, security situations and conflicts
Iran warns of 'zero red lines' retaliation if attacked again; Khamenei meets parliament speaker
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei met parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf on Wednesday to review US-Israeli military developments and stress strengthening Iran's sources of power. Iranian security officials warned through media channels that if the US and Israel launch another round of war including assassinations and civilian massacres, Iran would treat US political targets and the infrastructure of participating countries as legitimate, with "zero red lines." Tehran also asked the UN Security Council to condemn the US naval blockade of Iranian ports; Foreign Minister Araghchi said Iran's seven-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz remains on the table, conditional on a full ceasefire, a US sanctions waiver on oil sales and the release of $12 billion in frozen assets.
Background: The New York Times reported US-Israeli plans for renewed strikes on Iran after the November 3 midterms; the IRGC claimed it hit four vessels and laid mines near Hormuz (single source, unverified).
Protesters squared off with police in Tirana in what have become violent daily protests against what they describe as a corrupt government. (single source, unverified)
Background: France, Italy and other European countries have seen similar unrest over living costs and public services.
Thousands in Indonesia protest rainforest fires, demand national emergency
Thousands of Indonesian protesters have taken to the streets this week, angry at the government's failure to stop fires in the rainforests, with demonstrations spreading to more than half a dozen cities. They demand President Prabowo Subianto declare a national emergency and curb destructive agricultural practices blamed for fueling the fires. (single source, unverified)
Background: The UN weather agency warned El Niño could drive record Pacific ocean temperatures, heightening flood and drought risks worldwide.
Sources: The New York Times via Just Security (single source, unverified)
China-related news (international media coverage only)
Taiwan probes organized crime links to China's 'transnational repression'
Taiwan is probing organized crime's links to Chinese "transnational repression" efforts, National Security Bureau Director-General Tsai Ming-yen told parliament on Thursday, after the island's government said Beijing was behind an attack on a comedian who mocked President Xi Jinping. Tsai said local networks cooperating in such incidents are mostly criminal gangs or private investigation firms linked to organized crime, and that Taiwan may need to amend its laws to better deal with Beijing's activities. (single source, unverified)
Background: Other China critics in Taiwan, including Hong Kong singer Denise Ho, have also been attacked.
FCC blocks two devices with Chinese-made surveillance chips in first use of new rules
The Federal Communications Commission said Thursday it blocked two devices from the US market — a dashboard camera and a wireless video transmitter — containing surveillance chips produced by Huawei subsidiary HiSilicon, the first time it has exercised authority under new rules. The agency said HiSilicon advertises its chip as "designed for the surveillance market" with human-face detection algorithms. (single source, unverified)
Beijing deputy mayor Xia Linmao placed under graft probe
China's anti-graft watchdog said Thursday that Beijing deputy mayor Xia Linmao, 56, an alternate member of the Communist Party's Central Committee and the top-ranked of the capital's eight deputy mayors, has been placed under investigation for "suspected serious violations of discipline and law." The announcement comes ahead of a key party conclave on internal governance and discipline in Beijing next week. (single source, unverified)
