The most important world events of the past 24 hours
FBI attributes $6.3 billion Binance theft to North Korea's TraderTraitor
🐱 Scout banker · FBI attributes Binance hack to North Korea
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Saturday formally attributed the October 29 theft of more than $6.3 billion in digital assets from Binance to TraderTraitor, a North Korean hacking operation, in the largest single cryptocurrency theft on record. The FBI said it has observed the group converting the stolen assets primarily into ether, published a list of associated wallet addresses, and urged exchanges and decentralized finance platforms to block related funds. The FBI is tracking the money jointly with the Secret Service and IRS Criminal Investigation, while President Donald Trump said the administration was still assessing the North Korea link.
Background: Binance previously confirmed the breach exploited a compromised engineer's laptop and a weakness in its transaction approval system, and has since raised its replenishment of stolen assets to about 95%.
Dakar Youth Olympics open: first Olympic event ever staged in Africa
🐱 Scout anchor · Dakar Youth Olympics open
The 2026 Dakar Youth Olympic Games opened in Senegal on Saturday evening, the first Olympic sporting event ever held on African soil. Nearly 2,700 athletes aged 14 to 17 will compete in 25 sports and 153 medal events through November 13. Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye said that after 130 years of Olympic history, the flame had finally reached African soil; the Games also mark the first Youth Olympics with full gender equality in quota places and the debut of a Refugee Olympic Team, while Russian athletes return under their national flag and colours for the first time since 2022.
Background: The Dakar Games were originally set for 2022 but were postponed to 2026 by the COVID-19 pandemic; IOC President Kirsty Coventry said the event would show Africa's capabilities to the world.
Sources: Reuters, The Telegraph Nigeria (2 outlets)
France youth protests : Halloween night clashes escalate, over 560 arrested nationwide, unrest spreads in Germany
🐱 Scout French anchor · France Halloween night protests escalate
France's youth-led protest movement escalated on Halloween night as masked groups set fires, threw homemade firebombs and torched cars and buses in Paris as marches dispersed, with police responding with tear gas and more than 560 arrests nationwide. The Interior Ministry estimated 320,000 demonstrators on Saturday, down from 410,000 on October 24 and over 500,000 on October 17. In Germany, more than 100,000 people marched in about 30 cities, with looting and clashes in Berlin, Frankfurt and Cologne, where police arrested around 110 people and a gun shop in Frankfurt was broken into.
Background: The morning edition covered Saturday's daytime marches and the deployment of 70,000 police; the night-time violence and the spread of disorder across German cities are the substantive new turn.
Sources: AP (via republication), NBC (via republication), The Sun (3 outlets)
India opposition rally in Delhi: tens of thousands protest voter roll revision, demand election chief's resignation
🐱 Scout Indian anchor · India opposition rally in Delhi
India's opposition INDIA alliance rallied in New Delhi on Sunday, with tens of thousands marching from central Delhi to Ramlila Maidan under Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The opposition says a nationwide Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls has removed about 130 million names and favours Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The Election Commission and the BJP deny favouritism, saying the revision removes the deceased, the relocated and the untraceable, and that wrongly deleted voters can re-enroll; police imposed heavy security and traffic diversions for the rally.
Background: The dispute intensified in September after reports that Kumar made key decisions despite objections from his two fellow commissioners, and the opposition has protested almost daily for the past month.
Political developments and international relations
Poland Constitutional Tribunal standoff : justice minister seeks to strip president and deputy of immunity, president forces way into court
Polish Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek has formally requested the lifting of immunity from Constitutional Tribunal President Bogdan Święczkowski and Vice-President Bartłomiej Sochański, filing five motions backed by 50 volumes of case files to pave the way for criminal charges. President Karol Nawrocki, back in Warsaw after cutting short a trip to Senegal, forced his way into the Tribunal building, which Żurek called "unacceptable" and said he hoped prosecutors would act on. The Tribunal said on social media that the two judges remain its legally appointed senior justices and accused the government of a "coup d'état", while Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in a televised address on Saturday evening that the court would operate lawfully and independently.
Background: The morning edition covered the suspension of the Tribunal president, Nawrocki's return to Warsaw and Tusk's televised address; the immunity motions and the president's forced entry into the court are the substantive new developments.
Sources: AP (via republication), Brussels Reporter (2 outlets)
US midterms : Trump holds back-to-back rallies in Iowa and Kansas on final Sunday
President Donald Trump returned to the campaign trail on Sunday with rallies in Dubuque, Iowa, and Salina, Kansas, backing Republican Senate candidates Ashley Hinson and Roger Marshall; both events were cancelled on October 29 and restored the next day, becoming a focal point of the final weekend. Trump also promised a $5,000 "Trump dividend" for all American adults if Republicans hold both chambers. Republicans currently lead 53-47 in the Senate and hold a narrow House edge, while the Senate races in Iowa and Kansas, traditionally Republican states, have become unexpectedly tight.
Background: The morning edition previewed Sunday's rallies and early voting above 43 million; the rallies actually taking place and the dividend pledge are the new developments of the final campaign push.
Iran war diplomacy: Trump says war will end "soon" but sees no hurry for a deal, Iran offers 48-hour Hormuz reopening plan
Speaking at a Halloween event at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday, Donald Trump said negotiations to end the Iran war were "going fine" but that the United States was "not in a hurry", since Iran's navy, air force and air defences had been knocked out, and that one or two targets remained that could be handled "in 10 minutes", naming the suspected underground nuclear complex Pickaxe Mountain; he added that strikes would not resume before the midterm elections. Meanwhile, Iran, through Qatari mediators, offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours if Washington acts on the first day, with Tehran's conditions including sanctions relief, the release of frozen funds, restored oil waivers and a reduced US military presence.
Background: The war, which began in February, has outlasted a June memorandum of understanding that failed to secure a lasting ceasefire, and the strait remains contested.
How US news organizations will call the midterm races: AP deploys 4,000 reporters, Fox and CBS to make their own projections
Reuters on Sunday explained how US newsrooms will call midterm winners on Tuesday night: the Associated Press will deploy more than 4,000 reporters at county election offices and polling places, supplying vote counts to ABC, CBS, Fox, CNN and NBC. The Wall Street Journal and MS NOW will rely solely on the AP's calls, while Fox News and CBS News will make their own projections from the AP count, exit polls and statistical models. The first calls will come soon after polls close in Indiana and Kentucky at 6 p.m. ET, followed by Georgia, South Carolina, Vermont and Virginia at 7 p.m. (single source, unverified)
Background: The AP has counted votes in every US election since 1848, and this midterm cycle is among the most closely contested in recent years.
OPEC+ agrees in principle to hold December output targets steady, Brent near six-month high
Seven core OPEC+ members agreed in principle at an online meeting on Sunday to keep December oil output targets unchanged at a combined 30.9 million barrels a day, including 10.5 million for Saudi Arabia, 9.9 million for Russia, 4.4 million for Iraq and 2.7 million for Kuwait; most Gulf producers are still pumping well below their targets as Iran war disruptions constrain exports through the Strait of Hormuz. The pause follows September's completion of the phased rollback of a 1.65 million-barrel-a-day cut agreed in 2023, with a further layer of about 2 million barrels a day in cuts remaining through the end of 2026; Brent's December contract closed Friday at $117.64 a barrel.
Background: The morning edition reported Brent's December contract touching $118 intraday on Friday, its highest since April 30; Sunday's meeting confirms market expectations of no policy change until 2027 quota talks.
Binance : replenishment rises to about 95%, phased withdrawal resumption begins November 1
Binance confirmed on Sunday that replenishment of stolen assets has risen to about 95%, with the top 10 tokens fully backed, and that phased withdrawal resumption began between 06:00 and 09:00 UTC on November 1, starting with major networks including Bitcoin, Ethereum, BNB Chain, Solana, Tron and XRP Ledger. About $3 billion in stolen assets has been frozen on-chain, and the company still plans a full proof of reserves on November 2 and a zero-knowledge proof by November 3.
Background: Saturday's evening edition reported the $6.34 billion set-aside and a phased timetable; the rise from 90% to about 95% and the actual start of withdrawals are the substantive new steps in the recovery.
Sources: Binance official statement, CryptoAdventure (2 outlets)
Tech companies, research breakthroughs and digital policy
Chinese EV makers' October sales: BYD extends growth streak to six months, Xiaomi deliveries top 50,000
Reuters reported on Sunday that BYD's vehicle sales grew 11% year on year to 490,168 units in October, a sixth straight month of growth driven by overseas markets, with exports surging 102.8% to 170,194 units to offset weak domestic demand and intense price competition at home; growth cooled from 17% in September, and third-quarter profit growth slowed to 28%, missing forecasts. Xiaomi said on Sunday it delivered more than 50,000 electric vehicles in October, its highest monthly total of 2026, taking January-October deliveries to about 336,000 vehicles, about 61% of its 550,000 full-year target.
Background: China's domestic car market is set for only a modest recovery in 2027 after a steeper-than-expected downturn this year, and BYD, a top hybrid exporter to the EU, could face new curbs under a China-EU deal aimed at reining in hybrid imports.
Military developments, security situations and conflicts
US approves $2.1 billion sale of 500 Patriot PAC-3 interceptors to Ukraine, Zelenskyy warns delivery could take years
The US State Department on Friday approved the potential sale of 500 Patriot PAC-3 MSE interceptors to Ukraine for an estimated $2.1 billion, with Lockheed Martin as principal contractor; the purchase will be funded by donations from Canada, Germany and Norway through the US JUMPSTART programme plus national funds financed by the European Union's Ukraine Support Loan, with no US funds involved. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed the approval but warned deliveries "may begin ONLY IN A FEW YEARS", urging the US and allies to transfer interceptors from existing stockpiles first and backfill them later, as Russian strikes intensify against Ukraine's energy infrastructure ahead of winter.
Background: Ukraine has complained for weeks that interceptor stocks were running critically low, with Zelenskyy saying Kyiv had waited almost a month for sign-off on the critical supplies.
Global dockworkers' strike: 113 ports in 22 countries protest arms shipments and seafarer deaths
Dockworkers walked out at 113 ports in 22 countries on Friday in a coordinated strike against the use of civilian ports for arms shipments and the rising death toll among seafarers in the wars in the Gulf and the Black Sea. Backed by more than 25 unions, the action disrupted cargo and ferry services at hubs including Piraeus in Greece, Valencia in Spain, Le Havre in France, Genoa in Italy, Tangier Med in Morocco and Nhava Sheva in India. Unions cited 28 attacks on vessels in the Gulf in the first 21 days of October, a record since the Iran war began, and 570 confirmed attacks in the Black Sea this year, leaving 40 seafarers dead and hundreds wounded; strikers also demanded pay rises, better working conditions and doctors on board vessels crossing war zones.
Background: The mobilisation traces to the Istanbul Declaration published in May 2026 by dockworkers' unions from more than 35 European countries, demanding that port facilities not be used to transport weapons to war zones.
Sources: Reuters (via republication), AP (via republication) (2 outlets)
UN staff member dies in Houthi detention: Guterres condemns death and demands investigation, 70-plus UN personnel still held
The United Nations said on Saturday that Mohammad el Shami, a staff member of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Yemen, died in Houthi detention, with his family informed only recently, more than a month after his death, and given no explanation of the cause or circumstances. Secretary-General António Guterres said he was "appalled" and condemned the death, demanding an immediate, impartial, transparent and thorough investigation, while High Commissioner Volker Türk demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all detained UN personnel. El Shami had been arbitrarily detained since June 6, 2024, with the Houthis providing neither information about his well-being nor proof of life despite repeated UN requests; he is the second UN staff member to die in Houthi detention after a World Food Programme colleague in February 2025, and more than 70 UN staff and dozens of humanitarian workers remain detained.
Background: The Houthis say those detained belong to a US-Israeli spy network, and the UN paused operations in parts of Houthi-held Yemen in February 2025 over staff safety concerns.
China-related news (international media coverage only)
Taiwan says China's coast guard patrols off its east coast are "harassing shipping", coast guards square off
Taiwan's Coast Guard said late on Saturday that China's Coast Guard was harassing shipping with its latest patrol off Taiwan's east coast and trying to exert a "fictional jurisdiction", adding that it had sent its own ships to keep watch. China also sent another coast guard ship close to the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands at the top of the South China Sea, and Taiwan's Coast Guard said it has so far this year "expelled" Chinese coast guard vessels from Pratas waters 13 times. Reuters previously reported that China's coast guard carried out what it described as routine law enforcement patrols east of Taiwan on Saturday and would continue to step up patrols. (single source, unverified)
Background: China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up activity off the island's east coast since June with regular coast guard patrols.
