Headlines: 1-8 November 2026

Wednesday, 4 November 2026

Democrats take full control of Congress, flipping states that have voted Republican for decades and that Trump won by double digits just two years ago (LINK) 4 November 2026

— AP: Results include James Talarico’s stunning Senate victory in Texas, where no Democrat had won statewide office in more than 30 years, and Annie Andrews’ upset victory over Sen. Darline Graham in South Carolina. Trump had thrown his full weight behind both losing candidates. Even Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, a battle-tested survivor of difficult elections, lost to Democrat Troy Jackson.

Trump says he is willing to accept midterm election results, NYT reports (LINK) 3 November 2026

Tuesday, 3 November 2026

Trump says US will stop $4 billion in aid to Israel: deal with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: will still sell weapons (LINK) 3 November 2026

Six Israeli ex-generals among 30 senior ex-military officials condemn settler violence, help Palestinian farmers harvest olives in Qusra (ground news LINK) 3 November 2026

Britain, EU set for 3-year youth mobility deal at summit, although an agreement on student tuition fees is not expected for another six months (LINK) 3 November 2026

Gotthard Pass road to close for winter on 5 November: due to weather conditions and for safety reasons, it is in force between Hospental, canton Uri, and Airolo on the Ticino side (LINK) 3 November 2026

— The walking and cycling path through the Schöllenen has been closed since Monday, the Federal Roads Office (ASTRA) announced. The Susten and Furka Passes are already closed for the winter. The other two Alpine passes in Uri, the Oberalp and Klausen Passes, remain open to traffic as normal until further notice.

Free Swiss app "Snow Safety" launched to help prevent skiing and snowboarding accidents: provides reminders on how to wear a helmet correctly, the rules of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation on the slopes, and what to do in the event of an accident (LINK) 3 November 2026

Brazil's Senate approves Lula's main bet to tackle criminal gangs: expanding federal authority over public security, creating a Public Security Ministry and directing 10% of oil-funded Social Fund surpluses to policing and prisons: the Federal Police gained authority to investigate militias and criminal organizations across state borders, while municipalities may establish civilian patrol forces (ground news LINK) 3 November 2026

US: Federal judge temporarily blocks Trump plan to deport detained Afghans to Afghanistan or Pakistan, citing safety concerns (ground news LINK) 3 November 2026

World Court to rule in Rohingya genocide case on 19 November: re Myanmar's 2017 crackdown against the Muslim Rohingya minority (ground news LINK) 3 November 2026

Pope Leo healthy and needs no extra measures for South America trip, Vatican says (ground news LINK) 3 November 2026

CERN: UK-led scientists detect signals at the smallest scale ever explored: 'Zeptoverse' is a subatomic world about 100 billion times smaller than an atom, using the Large Hadron Collider (ground news LINK) 3 November 2026

— Researchers observed a rare event where a beauty quark decays into two muons, occurring only once in 10 billion instances, providing a unique method to study particles within the Zeptoverse.

Mosquitoes are picky eaters — and scientists just figured out why they prefer certain people: different mosquito species are attracted to distinct human scent signatures (LINK) 3 November 2026

— SciTechDaily: In a study involving 119 volunteers, researchers at Florida International University (FIU) found that three major disease-carrying mosquito species consistently preferred different people. Not a single participant was attractive to all three. The findings, published in iScience, challenge the idea that some people are universally irresistible to mosquitoes. Instead, attraction appears to depend on how individual species detect the chemicals and microorganisms associated with human skin.

Collins Dictionary chooses 'mogging' as its 2026 Word of the Year: originated in the mid-2010s manosphere as 'AMOG', standing for 'Alpha Male of the Group'. It initially described physical dominance in bodybuilding forums before evolving into modern slang — to outshine or outperform someone: 210% surge in usage among Gen Z and Gen Alpha (ground news LINK) 3 November 2026

16-year-old arrested following cyberattack on Swiss schools: gained unauthorised access to an IT platform containing data on around 38,000 pupils and 3,500 teachers in the Swiss canton of Vaud: arrested on 31 October (LINK) 3 November 2026

Freedom24 plans Geneva office for Q1 2027, deepening ties with Swiss finance and research (LINK) 3 November 2026

— The European investment platform of Nasdaq-listed Freedom Holding Corp (FRHC), outlined its plans following a Geneva discussion on connecting Swiss AI research with capital, computing infrastructure and commercial opportunities. KNEWS (Kathimerini Cyprus): "Geneva combines international finance, wealth management and institutional trust with access to world-class research and innovation."

Monday, 2 November 2026

Russian attack on Ukraine aid hub kills 29 as US announces new peace talks (LINK) 2 November 2026

US strikes Iran ahead of midterm elections (LINK) 2 November 2026

— US officials described the strikes as limited and said they were in response to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) firing upon a US aircraft.

Israel's President Herzog to begin coalition consultations with smallest Knesset parties (LINK) 2 November 2026

Iran has a 2-day plan to reopen Strait, resume nuclear talks with US (LINK) 1 November 2026

US Supreme Court rejects Trump, lets California count all ballots (LINK) 2 November 2026

— Reuters: Acting on the eve of the US midterm elections, the Supreme Court quickly rejected on Monday a bid by President Donald Trump's administration to temporarily block California from counting mail-in ballots from more than 20,000 registered voters who federal officials allege are likely non-US citizens.

Bitcoin Suisse CEO: Switzerland has lost interest in cryptocurrencies (LINK) 2 November 2026

Switzerland holds national conference on dangers of the 'manosphere': study shows that in Switzerland, one in five men subscribe to a concept of masculinity based on domination (LINK) 2 November 2026

Sunday, 1 November 2026

Ukraine air raid app apparently hacked as users receive false radiation threat, Air Force says (LINK) 1 November 2026

Civilians in Ukraine's Kherson prepare for the return of war as localized ceasefire in Oleshky and surrounds ends (LINK) 1 November 2026

— AP: An estimated 2,000 civilians were in Oleshky when the temporary truce took hold. They were offered the choice of evacuating to territory controlled by Ukraine or Russia, or remaining in the city with replenished food and medical supplies. For the safety of those who have stayed, exact numbers weren't released after the evacuation.

New Voice of Ukraine: Russia attacks Ukraine with 433 drones, 64 of them jet-powered (LINK) 1 November 2026

Bitter spat between Poland's pro-Europe PM and pro-Trump president erupts (LINK) 1 November 2026

— CNN: The crisis came to a head on Friday when center-left Prime Minister Donald Tusk moved to remake Poland's Constitutional Tribunal, whose chief justice was appointed by the previous government — the far-right Law and Justice party (PiS). The judge, Bogdan Swieczkowski, was suspended after refusing to allow a new member of the Tribunal, who had been nominated by Tusk and approved by the Polish parliament, from taking his seat. His deputy was also suspended.

Initial results indicate victory for Iotova in Bulgarian presidential vote: would become nation’s first elected female head of state if official results confirm her win (LINK) 1 November 2026

French protest violence eases while scattered riots hit Germany ahead of school return (LINK) 1 November 2026

— AP: Around Europe, hundreds of thousands joined overwhelmingly peaceful marches Saturday inspired by young people, despite scattered unrest. In Paris, rioters targeted police with Molotov cocktails at the end of Saturday’s march on the city’s eastern edge, injuring three officers and setting a car ablaze, police said. Across town, masked groups hurled fireworks at officers at a viewpoint across from the Eiffel Tower, and police charged repeatedly, sending panicked visitors fleeing the area. Overall, however, the violence was less severe than on Oct. 17, when a city hall was torched and more than 2,000 stores were looted in hours of violence that authorities seemed unprepared to control, or during follow-up protests Oct. 24.

German ministers vow tough response to Frankfurt riots and looting — (LINK)

Common pesticide used in U.S. agriculture, chlorpyrifos, linked to 2.5 times the risk of Parkinson's disease (LINK) 1 November 2026

— Science Daily: The chemical can interfere with the brain's ability to remove damaged proteins, leading to the loss of nerve cells essential for controlling movement.

China's fifth plenum moves to rein in Communist Party leaders below top level (LINK) 1 November 2026

— Key document endorsed by the Communist Party proposes stronger oversight of principal leaders below the central level, barring them from demanding personal allegiance from their leadership teams — a demand that is only for the top leaders. The proposal is part of a 17,000-word resolution approved at the fifth plenum of the 20th Central Committee, the full text of which was published by state news agency Xinhua on Sunday.