Headlines: 19-31 October 2026

Tuesday, 20 October 2026

French cities calm overnight after curfews imposed to quell violence, PM says: earlier Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez admitted police had "lost control" in some cities: more than 2,500 people have been arrested since the disorders broke out (LINK) — 19 October 2026

Alberta rejects a move toward independence from Canada in a victory for Carney (LINK) — 20 October 2026

Monday, 19 October 2026

Mali forces, Russian backers kill scores of civilians in drone strikes, Human Rights Watch says (ground news LINK) — 19 October 2026

— Mali's junta has ramped up airstrikes since April to combat Islamist and separatist insurgents; 49 strikes between April and August resulted in 89 civilian deaths, more than double the prior year.

Israel police arrest suspects over settler attacks on US journalist, European diplomats (ground news LINK) — 19 October 2026

— According to the Israeli human rights group Yesh Din, settler attacks against Palestinians have surged to at least 170 since September 27, with incidents typically intensifying during the autumn harvest.

Florida issues arrest warrant for Cuba's Raúl Castro, charging him with conspiracy to commit murder in the fatal downing of two civilian aircraft in 1996 (LINK) — 19 October 2026

Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil asks US Supreme Court to hear case seeking to avoid re-arrest (LINK) — 19 October 2026

US: Berkeley's beloved Nabolom Bakery closes after 60 years, blames political backlash for pro-Palestinian stances, high costs (LINK) — 19 October 2026

US: 28 green card holders in California charged with election fraud (LINK) — 19 October 2026

Trump admin cuts to satellites will set back US weather forecasting by a decade, experts say (LINK) — 19 October 2026

China economy grows thanks to AI export boom but domestic slump remains a drag (LINK) — 19 October 2026

Kenyan starvation cult leader found guilty of murder of 191 children, one adult (ground news LINK) — 19 October 2026

Gold mine collapse kills at least 14 in southwest Colombia (ground news LINK) — 19 October 2026

U.N. conference on transnational organized crime (COP13) in Vienna 19-23 October: Criminal networks threaten the Amazon. Indigenous leaders want the UN to act (ground news LINK) — 19 October 2026

Guardian: Cop17 at a glance: everything you need to know about the UN's nature summit on 19-30 October in Yerevan, Armenia: 23 targets agreed in 2022 (LINK) — 19 October 2026

Trump calls judge who demanded a halt to redevelopment of historic golf course in East Potomac a 'crazed lunatic' as interior official testifies on who ordered hundreds of trees cut (LINK) — 19 October 2026

France: Macron rejects Interior Minister's resignation after weekend of riots and looting (LINK) — 19 October 2026

— More than half a million people took to the streets on Saturday — part of protests that began in schools last month. Some disorder continued on Sunday — in Paris, police arrested more than 100 people, with five shops looted. The French cabinet will hold an emergency meeting. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez says police "lost control" of protests in some cities over the weekend. He also says there had been a "lack of anticipation" ahead of the violence and offered his resignation to Emmanuel Macron because he "felt responsible for everything that happened".