The most important world events of the past 24 hours
Spain train collision : Death toll rises to 69 as recordings show controllers ordered "resume normal speed"
🐱 Scout rescue worker · Spain train collision death toll rises to 69
The death toll from the high-speed train collision near Urda, Spain, rose to 69 on Thursday as rescue crews worked through the night with heavy cranes to clear overturned carriages and recovered more bodies; 50 injured people remain in hospital, four of them improving among 15 critical cases. Recordings cited by Spanish media show that after the LZB automatic protection system failed, controllers instructed a Renfe train to disconnect and reconnect the system and resume normal speed, while the Iryo train ahead reported it could not move about six minutes before impact; the controller has been questioned by police. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez pledged a full investigation, while train drivers went ahead with a planned strike demanding more rail safety investment.
Background: The evening edition reported 68 deaths; the revised toll and the leaked recordings are the substantive new developments.
Israel election : Final count gives Netanyahu bloc 53 seats, Arab parties a record 19
🐱 Scout anchor · Israel election final count leaves no majority
Israel's Central Elections Committee completed the count on Thursday, leaving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud as the largest party with 27 of 120 Knesset seats but his right-wing and religious bloc with only 53; Gadi Eisenkot's opposition bloc holds 48 and the two Arab parties hold a record 19. No bloc reaches the 61 seats needed to form a government, with turnout at 77.7 percent, the highest since 1999, and Arab turnout reported near 80 percent. The next step falls to President Isaac Herzog, who must decide whom to task with forming a government, and whether the opposition can govern with outside Arab support.
Background: The evening edition reported about 90 percent counted at 53 to 48; the final count confirms that balance and puts the Arab parties' kingmaker role at the center of coalition bargaining.
Sources: Israel Central Elections Committee (via reports) (2 outlets)
🐱 Scout field reporter · Russian drone strikes Dnipro railway station
A Russian jet-powered drone struck a platform at Dnipro's main railway station on Thursday morning while a commuter train and a scheduled passenger train were standing there, killing at least 13 people and injuring 10. State railway operator Ukrzaliznytsia said the weapon hit the platform where train No. 866, bound for Zaporizhzhia, was stationed, and the city was already under an air-raid alert. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the strike as a horrific attack on ordinary people using public transport, one of the deadliest single attacks on Ukrainian passenger rail this year.
Background: Russian strikes on Ukrainian rail infrastructure have intensified; this attack brought that campaign onto a crowded passenger platform.
Riyadh : Saudi Arabia intercepts two Houthi missiles aimed at the capital as "hostile aerial threat" alerts sound
🐱 Scout field reporter · Saudi Arabia intercepts missiles aimed at Riyadh
The Saudi-led coalition said on Thursday evening that air defenses intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis toward Riyadh, while civil defense sent mobile alerts warning that the capital, Al-Kharj and Najran faced a "hostile aerial threat"; AFP correspondents heard at least eight explosions in Riyadh. The Houthis claimed the same day to have targeted the Ras Tanura refinery, an Aramco facility at Abqaiq, Riyadh and Dammam airports and the Rabigh refinery, though Saudi authorities have not confirmed casualties or ground damage. The strikes mark a renewed escalation after the coalition reported intercepting a missile aimed at the Eastern Province earlier in the day.
Background: The evening edition reported the Eastern Province interception and Riyadh air cargo at about 6 percent of normal; the return of missile fire to the capital is the new turn.
Political developments and international relations
Vance letter to Iran : Trump frames it as medical aid; Tehran says letter received, no reply yet
President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Vice President JD Vance's letter to Iran's Supreme National Security Council secretary Mohsen Rezaei concerned medical supplies, saying Tehran needs help with medicines and other necessities; Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported the same day that Tehran has received the letter but has not responded, insisting US positions must fit Iran's stated framework. US media had reported Vance proposed talks starting next week in Qatar or Turkey with the nuclear program on the agenda; on Thursday Admiral Brad Cooper, the senior US officer for the Middle East, met Trump at the White House to outline military options, keeping diplomacy and pressure in parallel.
Background: The evening edition reported Vance's outreach to restart peace talks; Trump's reframing and Tehran's "received, not answered" response are the follow-up developments.
Trump cancels Kansas and Iowa weekend rallies, switching to tele-rallies in 19 states
President Donald Trump on Thursday canceled planned weekend campaign stops in Salina, Kansas, on Saturday and Dubuque, Iowa, on Sunday, with the Republican National Committee saying he will instead phone in to rallies nationwide. MAGA Inc said it will host tele-rallies with the president in at least 19 states before Election Day. Trump has held 25 rallies in 19 states since October 1 and said hour-plus speeches have been demanding; Tuesday's midterms will decide whether Republicans keep their narrow control of the Senate and House, with the Kansas Senate race unexpectedly competitive.
Background: The shift to tele-rallies in the final days reflects a campaign trading in-person presence for wider reach.
Trump administration revises lawsuit seeking to block Alaska Senate certification if Republican loses narrowly
The US Justice Department filed a revised lawsuit on Thursday seeking to block Alaska's election results if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan loses narrowly, and issued more than 40 subpoenas and document requests, Reuters reported. The complaint cites a New York Times report that Democratic operatives recruited another candidate named Sullivan who could siphon votes from the incumbent to help Democrat Mary Peltola; Peltola's campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee denied involvement, and Reuters said it has not independently verified the Times report. Alaska's governor called for a state investigation, raising the prospect of a contested outcome in a race that could decide Senate control.
Background: Republicans hold a 53-47 Senate majority; Democrats need a net gain of four seats, making Alaska a pivotal contest.
US economy grows 3.4 percent in Q3, beating forecasts, as September PCE inflation rises to 3.6 percent
The US Bureau of Economic Analysis said real GDP grew at a 3.4 percent annual rate in the third quarter, up from 2.2 percent in the second quarter and above forecasts of about 3.2 percent, driven by accelerating investment, resilient consumer spending and an upturn in government spending, partly offset by surging imports. A separate report the same day showed the PCE price index up 3.6 percent from a year earlier in September, from 3.4 percent in August, with core PCE at 3.1 percent. The combination of stronger growth and firmer inflation complicates the Federal Reserve's deliberations ahead of its December meeting.
Background: The Fed held rates steady on Wednesday by 10 votes to 2, with two officials favoring a hike.
Sources: US Bureau of Economic Analysis (via reports) (2 outlets)
Alphabet plunges more than 11 percent, erasing over $464 billion in value as Nasdaq falls over 1 percent
Alphabet shares fell 11.7 percent on Thursday, their steepest one-day drop on record, wiping out more than $464 billion in market value and dragging the Nasdaq down more than 1 percent, with Nasdaq-100 constituents set to erase over $500 billion combined. The selloff followed disappointing search advertising, $51.4 billion in quarterly capital spending and negative free cash flow, as investors stopped giving every hyperscaler a free pass on AI spending; Microsoft rose on its cash-flow beat and Oracle gained after capping external financing, sharpening the market's divide between AI spenders that fund themselves and those that burn cash.
Background: The evening edition reported Alphabet down more than 10 percent in premarket trading; Thursday's session confirmed the record loss.
ECB holds rates steady as Lagarde announces early departure in February 2027
The European Central Bank kept rates unchanged on Thursday, holding the deposit rate at 2.50 percent and the main refinancing rate at 2.65 percent, even as September inflation reached 3.8 percent with energy inflation at 18.9 percent; policymakers debated a hike but unanimously agreed to wait for more data, keeping a December increase in play. Hours earlier, President Christine Lagarde announced she will step down on February 7, 2027, about nine months before her term ends, saying she cannot remain neutral at the present time; the euro fell to its lowest since May, around $1.113.
Background: The ECB has raised rates twice this year, and Lagarde's early exit opens a leadership transition amid rising French fiscal and political uncertainty.
Tech companies, research breakthroughs and digital policy
Amazon Q3: AWS grows 39 percent, its fastest in nearly five years, but free cash flow turns to negative $42 billion
Amazon reported third-quarter net sales of $201.9 billion and earnings of $1.89 per share, both slightly below expectations, while AWS sales rose 39 percent to $46.0 billion, its fastest growth in nearly five years, with management projecting AWS growth above 40 percent in both 2027 and 2028. The catch is the bill: Amazon kept its plan to spend about $220 billion on capital projects this year, pushing trailing 12-month free cash flow to negative $42.4 billion from positive $14.8 billion a year earlier, while long-term debt nearly tripled to about $173 billion; shares fell in after-hours trading.
Background: After Microsoft and Alphabet, Amazon is the latest hyperscaler to face the market's "cash is king" test on AI infrastructure spending.
Intel Q3: Data center and AI revenue jumps 78 percent, but weak Q4 guidance sends shares down 17 percent after hours
Intel reported third-quarter revenue of $16.51 billion, up 21 percent year over year, and adjusted earnings of $0.52 per share, beating expectations, as data center and AI revenue surged 78 percent to $7.3 billion and foundry revenue rose 58 percent. But the company guided fourth-quarter revenue of only $15 billion to $16 billion and earnings of $0.25 per share, far below expectations of $17.29 billion and $0.45, with CEO Lip-Bu Tan warning the PC slowdown will last at least into the first half of 2027; shares fell about 17 percent in after-hours trading.
Background: Intel's stock has more than doubled this year, making the guidance miss a sharp reset for its recovery story.
Military developments, security situations and conflicts
North Korea : About 10 short-range ballistic missiles fired in its third launch this month
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea fired about 10 short-range ballistic missiles on Thursday from around Wonsan on its east coast, each flying about 250 kilometers into the eastern sea; Japan's Defense Ministry also reported a suspected ballistic missile launch that did not appear to land in Japan's exclusive economic zone. South Korea's presidential National Security Office held an emergency meeting and called the launches a serious violation of UN Security Council resolutions. It is the North's third launch this month, amid sharply raised border tensions since September land-mine blasts wounded three South Korean soldiers and Pyongyang's threat to resume front-line loudspeaker broadcasts.
Background: The evening edition reported a single projectile; the scale of about 10 missiles and the third-launch-this-month framing are the substantive updates.
Oleshky : Russia and Ukraine say demining complete, humanitarian convoy ready to depart
Russia and Ukraine said in a joint statement on Thursday that demining operations around the embattled Russian-held town of Oleshky in southern Ukraine have been completed and an operation to bring aid in and allow residents to leave is ready to begin, with a convoy headed first for the district hospital before distributing aid packages. The US-brokered six-day ceasefire took effect early Tuesday and neither side has reported violations so far; Russia's human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova had taken four US journalists into the area while her Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Lubinets also traveled there, and the Kremlin said it hoped aid would arrive Thursday or Friday.
Background: The evening edition reported evacuation and aid could start under the ceasefire; completed demining is the step that makes the convoy possible.
Haiti : El Salvador deployment nearly complete as elections postponed to July 2027
Reuters reported on Thursday that about 2,000 Salvadoran soldiers were in Haiti as of Wednesday night, capped for now at 2,500, with President Nayib Bukele saying the deployment is nearly finished and his government is covering 90 percent of the costs; authorities have not clarified the troops' command or rules of engagement, fueling concern about civilian risk. Haiti's electoral council at the same time postponed the first round of presidential and legislative elections from December 13 to July 18, 2027, with a second round on October 4, citing gang violence; Haiti has held no elections since 2016 and its last president was assassinated in 2021.
Background: The evening edition reported El Salvador sending 2,000 troops to rescue four missing soldiers; the deployment details and the election postponement are the follow-up developments.
Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the organization that became the United Farm Workers with Cesar Chavez, died on Wednesday at her home in Bakersfield, California, at 96; her family said the cause was cancer. She helped lead the grape strikes and national boycotts that brought attention to California field conditions and helped pass the landmark California Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975, establishing collective bargaining rights for farmworkers, and she coined the slogan "Si, se puede" — "Yes, we can" — later adopted by Barack Obama, who awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.
Background: Huerta's death closes an era for the US labor and civil rights movements; earlier this year she publicly accused Chavez of sexually assaulting her.
China-related news (international media coverage only)
China-Switzerland upgraded trade deal to be signed Friday, giving 99.8 percent of Swiss exports duty-free access
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Swiss President Guy Parmelin will sign an upgraded trade accord in Beijing on Friday that gives 99.8 percent of Swiss exports duty-free access to China, up from just over half previously, Reuters reported. Swiss officials described it as one of the most favorable deals Beijing has granted a European country; Western diplomats read it as China's bid to burnish its free-trade credentials as the US raises tariffs and the EU leans protectionist. Parmelin's visit coincides with a visit by Germany's president, following the EU trade chief earlier this month.
Background: Chinese and Swiss officials announced the deal in August, a year after the US saddled Switzerland with the highest US tariffs in Europe.
China's clean-tech exports in 2026 to cut emissions by as much as Brazil's annual fossil-fuel total
China's exports of solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles and batteries this year will help the world avoid 450 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, equivalent to Brazil's annual emissions from fossil fuels and about 2 percent of annual emissions outside China, according to an analysis by the Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. Avoided emissions are up from 370 million tons last year, driven largely by the Global South, with solar power the biggest source; the report estimates clean-tech imports pay back their manufacturing emissions in about six months.
Background: The findings land ahead of next month's COP31 climate summit, highlighting China's dominance of clean-energy supply chains.
