The most important world events of the past 24 hours
Trump says US "doesn't need a deal" with Iran, pulls Vance off talks
🐱 Scout anchor · Trump says no Iran deal needed
President Donald Trump said Thursday on social media that the United States "doesn't need a deal" with Iran, adding that Washington already holds "hundreds of billions of dollars" of Iranian money and "their Strait," and directed Vice President JD Vance, who had been leading the Iran negotiations, to focus instead on corruption and crime in Democratic-run cities. Later Thursday, in a radio interview, Trump struck a different note, saying it would "absolutely" be a defeat to leave office with Iran's current regime still in power.
Background: As recently as November 9, Trump said new military action against Iran would not be necessary for now and authorized Vance to pursue talks; Iran had submitted a nuclear proposal to Washington through Qatar.
Microsoft 365 global outage enters second day as Outlook and Teams stay down
🐱 Scout scientist · Microsoft global outage enters second day
Microsoft's global Microsoft 365 outage stretched into a second day on Friday, with Outlook, Teams, SharePoint and Copilot still not fully restored. The failure began Thursday afternoon, with Downdetector reports of Outlook problems in the US peaking above 130,000 and outages logged in 74 countries and territories; Microsoft said a large number of servers failed automated health checks, overloading the rest, and admitted its repair efforts were "not progressing as expected," with some restored servers going unresponsive again under live traffic. The company said there was no indication of a cyberattack.
Background: The outage mainly hit services depending on Exchange Online, and disrupted customer-support email at Indian airlines including IndiGo; OpenAI said it was investigating an issue with its Microsoft connectors.
Another gas carrier hits mine in Strait of Hormuz, fifth ship struck in a week
🐱 Scout rescue worker · Gas carrier hits mine in Strait of Hormuz
Iran's Revolutionary Guards navy said Friday that a tanker carrying liquefied gas struck a naval mine and suffered an explosion in the eastern Strait of Hormuz while using what Tehran called an "unauthorised and dangerous route"; the vessel's identity, crew and damage were not disclosed, and Reuters said it could not independently verify the claim. The Joint Maritime Information Center recorded four more tanker attacks in its November 12 advisory, bringing recorded vessel incidents since March 1 to 181; at least 10 ships were hit in the first 10 days of November, after 37 attacks in October, the highest monthly tally since the conflict began.
Background: Four oil tankers were already hit by explosions in the strait between Wednesday night and Thursday, carrying more than 4 million barrels combined; shipping through the strait has fallen to about a fifth of pre-war levels.
Sources: Reuters, Joint Maritime Information Center (2 outlets)
US envoys say Europe will join next Ukraine talks; Putin's stance on territory unchanged
🐱 Scout diplomat · US envoys say Europe will join next Ukraine talks
US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin for about two hours on Thursday, then flew to Dublin to brief Volodymyr Zelenskyy; Zelenskyy said European representatives would join the next round of talks, and the sides are preparing what could be the largest prisoner exchange of the war. But Putin said afterwards that Russia's position on territory had not changed, rejecting demilitarized zones and foreign peacekeeping troops, and his aide Yuri Ushakov did not confirm any agreement on European participation, leaving EU leaders meeting in Dublin on Friday to decide who should speak for Europe.
Background: Two days of talks in Abu Dhabi agreed in principle on a large prisoner exchange, but ceasefire and territory remain deadlocked, with Kyiv refusing to hand over the whole of Donbas.
Sources: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Reuters (2 outlets)
Political developments and international relations
Indonesia's vice president Gibran resigns as eligibility dispute deepens
Indonesian Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka submitted his resignation on Thursday to the leadership of the People's Consultative Assembly, after courts ruled last month that the education documents he submitted for the 2024 election did not meet requirements and the Supreme Court annulled his high-school equivalency certificate. Gibran, 39, the son of former President Joko Widodo, becomes the first Indonesian vice president to resign in office since the democratic reforms of 1998; under the constitution, the assembly must elect a successor from two presidential nominees within 60 days.
Background: Gibran was below the minimum age of 40 when selected as a running mate in 2024, and 120 lawmakers from eight parties this week began a parliamentary process that could have led to his impeachment.
Dutch coalition nears collapse over wealth tax as PM calls crisis talks
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten called crisis talks on Friday with the leaders of his two coalition partners in a bid to save his three-party minority government, less than nine months into its term. His centrist D66 party and the Christian Democrats had bypassed the right-wing, pro-business VVD to pass a 2027 tax package with left-wing opposition support, including a wealth-tax adjustment dubbed a "millionaire's tax"; the VVD voted against its own government's plan, and the finance ministry warned of a funding shortfall of more than 400 million euros.
Background: Jetten's government lacks a majority in either house of parliament and needs opposition support for every proposal; a collapse could trigger a fourth Dutch election in five years.
Democrats prepare probes of Trump administration; White House warns of criminality
With Democrats set to take control of Congress in January after the midterm elections, the party is preparing a series of investigations into the Trump administration covering the Iran war, immigration policy and intelligence agencies; White House Counsel Will Scharf warned in a letter to Representative Robert Garcia, expected to lead the House Oversight Committee, that investigating the administration could amount to "blatant criminality." Vice President Vance is using the moment to build his own 2028 campaign brand, while Democrats gather in Denver from November 12 to 14 for a "Next Step" conference.
Background: Democrats won control of Congress in last week's midterm elections and will take over in January 2027.
US stocks steady in premarket as Nvidia rebounds about 2% ahead of October PPI
US stock futures were narrowly mixed on Friday, with Dow and S&P 500 futures slightly higher and Nasdaq 100 futures slightly lower; Nvidia rose about 2% in premarket trading after losing around 11% for the week, as investors kept digesting Jensen Huang's resignation and its impact on the AI trade. Markets awaited October's producer price index due later Friday for clues on the size of the Federal Reserve's December rate hike; traders have fully priced in a hike of at least 25 basis points, with odds of a 50-point move at about 12%.
Background: US stocks fell across the board on Thursday, with the 10-year Treasury yield breaking above 5.1% as expectations of a December hike hardened.
Sources: Reuters, The Wall Street Journal (2 outlets)
Trump threatens to double tariffs on Mexican goods
President Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to "immediately" double tariffs on Mexican goods if Mexico does not stop a caravan of about 1,500 migrants, mostly from Central America, walking north toward the US border after setting off Tuesday from Tapachula in southern Mexico. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum acknowledged people were walking north but said no migrant caravans had reached the US border since Trump returned to power; Trump named no products, rates or start date, and the White House published no implementing order on Thursday.
Background: The US and Mexico are negotiating a new trade deal after Trump chose in July not to extend the US-Mexico-Canada pact; the Supreme Court ruled in February that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act does not authorize tariffs, clouding the legal basis for doubling duties.
Sources: Reuters, The Hindu BusinessLine (2 outlets)
Brent crude briefly traded around $96 a barrel on Thursday after President Trump's comments on Iran and the attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, before closing at $95.77, up 4.91%; WTI closed at $88.70, up 4.02%. Oil has fallen about 20% from its late-October peak of $118, but the Middle East keeps markets caught between hopes of de-escalation and the risk of renewed escalation.
Background: Attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz continue, and the Houthis have also threatened Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline, raising risks for energy export routes.
Tech companies, research breakthroughs and digital policy
FBI: North Korean hackers stole over $400 million in crypto using fake video calls and deepfakes
North Korean state-backed hackers stole more than $400 million in cryptocurrency over the past 18 months through a social-engineering scheme the FBI calls "FaceStealer," the bureau said Thursday. Victims are lured into video chats on imposter versions of Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet, where they see prerecorded webcam footage of trusted contacts persuading them to install malware; the hackers have also begun using AI deepfakes of well-known figures in the crypto industry. The FBI said it seized more than 900 victim webcam videos and disrupted the cloud infrastructure behind the scheme.
Background: The FBI attributed the activity to a North Korean cluster known as "Sapphire Sleet" or UNC1069; the Justice Department separately obtained court authorization to seize or restrain more than $1.2 billion stolen in last month's $6.3 billion Binance heist.
Google launches Gemini 4 Hydrogen and opens pre-orders for smart glasses
Google on Thursday launched Gemini 4 Hydrogen, a new model it says runs 2.5 times faster than Gemini 3.8 Flash at $1.50 per million input tokens, deploying it the same day in Google Search and the Gemini app; the same day Google opened pre-orders for its first Gemini-powered smart glasses, built with Samsung and designed by Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, priced from $395 and going on sale December 10 in the United States and South Korea.
Background: Google has already rolled out Gemini 4 across its products this month; the glasses weigh about 41 grams, carry a 12-megapixel camera and last about nine hours on a charge, and work only with US or South Korean Google accounts.
Sources: Google official blog (single source, unverified)
Military developments, security situations and conflicts
Houthis strike Saudi East-West pipeline pumping station and Yanbu oil facilities as UN extends sanctions
Yemen's Houthis said Thursday they had hit Pumping Station No. 7 on Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline with a drone and struck oil facilities at Yanbu on the Red Sea coast with a ballistic missile, as well as Aramco facilities in Riyadh; Saudi authorities did not confirm damage but said air defenses intercepted several drones and missiles. The UN Security Council voted unanimously the same day to extend sanctions on the Houthis for another year, including asset freezes and travel bans, and demanded an end to attacks on Saudi Arabia.
Background: The East-West pipeline is Saudi Arabia's bypass around the Strait of Hormuz, carrying about 4 million barrels a day to Yanbu, roughly 4% of global supply; it was closed for about 11 days for emergency repairs after an attack in September.
Sources: Institute for the Study of War, Reuters (2 outlets)
Russia-Ukraine strikes escalate: Ukrainian drones hit Volgograd refinery, killing 4; Russian strikes kill 2 in Odesa
Ukrainian drones struck Russia overnight from November 12 to 13, setting fire to the Lukoil refinery in Volgograd and killing four workers in the industrial zone, with two more wounded; Russia's defense ministry said it shot down 1,198 Ukrainian drones across more than 15 regions. Russian strikes on Ukraine the same night killed two people and wounded five in Odesa, killed a 17-year-old boy in Zaporizhzhia, set a medical facility ablaze in Kyiv and damaged a kindergarten in Rivne, wounding six people including two children.
Background: Since resuming long-range strikes on Russian refineries on October 30, Ukraine has hit nine of the country's roughly 35 major refineries in about two weeks, disrupting an estimated 30% of refining capacity; the raid came as US-Russian-Ukrainian talks restarted.
Storm Charles moves toward Italy after sweeping Iberia; flooding closes roads on French Riviera
Atlantic storm Charles moved toward Italy after sweeping Portugal and Spain, bringing flooding, rock falls and road closures around Cannes on the French Riviera and flight cancellations in Lisbon and Madrid. Portugal shut about 8,000 schools nationwide on November 11 and cancelled more than 300 flights, while Madeira recorded 502.7 mm of rain in 24 hours, an all-time record; after splitting into two centres over the Atlantic the storm weakened, and no deaths were reported on the Portuguese mainland.
Background: Lisbon was hosting the Web Summit, drawing about 70,000 attendees, when its second day was cancelled on government advice; Spain held its first housing strike in 14 years on the same day.
Pope Leo XIV returns to Chiclayo, the city he served as bishop, as crowds gather
Pope Leo XIV returned on Friday to Chiclayo in northern Peru to celebrate an outdoor Mass at the Pampas de Pimentel, the centrepiece of his 12-day South America tour in the diocese he led as bishop for eight years. Some 3 million people gathered in Lima on Wednesday for his arrival, and officials in Chiclayo estimated about a million could attend the Mass; the pope will stay in the area until Sunday, leading eight events.
Background: The tour of Uruguay, Argentina and Peru began on November 6, less than a month after the pope underwent surgery for lung cancer; on Wednesday he called Peru, where he served as a missionary for about 20 years, his homeland.
China-related news (international media coverage only)
APEC summit in Shenzhen next week to bring Trump, Putin and Xi together
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders' meeting will be held in Shenzhen on November 18 and 19, with US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping set to attend, preceded by a CEO summit on November 17 and 18. Reuters notes both the US and China are falling short on commitments under their extended trade truce, with rare earths, artificial intelligence, tariffs and US arms sales to Taiwan likely on the agenda; Treasury Secretary Bessent and Trade Representative Greer have pressed Vice Premier He Lifeng by video call, and China extended its pause on expanded rare-earth export controls to January 10, 2027.
Background: China is hosting APEC for the third time, after Shanghai in 2001 and Beijing in 2014; Trump travels first to Manila for the ASEAN summit on November 16, while Premier Li Qiang will represent China at the ASEAN summit from November 15 to 18.
Nvidia turmoil involves alleged Chinese spy link; board says no secrets compromised
Nvidia's board opened an independent investigation on November 8 into reports about Jensen Huang's personal relationships, including an affair with a businesswoman US intelligence officials suspect of ties to Chinese intelligence; the New York Times later reported a second affair. The board said it had no reason to believe company secrets or national security were compromised. Huang is expected to testify before Congress, and Trump said "there is only one man" who can replace him — former Apple chief executive Tim Cook; Nvidia still reports earnings on November 17.
Background: Huang resigned Thursday as Nvidia's president, chief executive and board member, with CFO Colette Kress named interim CEO; Nvidia shares closed down 4.34% at $166.19 on Thursday and rebounded about 2% in premarket trading on Friday.
Sources: The Wall Street Journal, Reuters (2 outlets)
