Gaza rights group documents 129 Israeli ceasefire violations since truce beganPCHR said Israel was persisting in "its policy of collective punishment and genocide against Palestinians", and called for an immediate and permanent end to the assault and for Israel to be held accountable under international law. Hamas also condemned the attack, urging US President Donald Trump and ceasefire mediators to pressure Israel to stop its violations.
https://www.newarab.com/news/israel-commits-129-ceasefire-violations-gaza-truce-beganRafah border crossing to stay closed ‘until further notice’, says IsraelHamas has said it is committed to the ceasefire deal, but that the retrieval of remains is hampered by the devastation and the presence of unexploded ordnance. The group has told mediators that some remains are in areas controlled by Israeli troops. Hamas, in turn, has urged mediators to increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza for its 2 million people. There are continued closures of crossings and Israeli restrictions on aid groups.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/oct/18/rafah-border-crossing-to-stay-closed-until-further-notice-says-israel Sunni candidate's office attacked in Baghdad Muthanna Thaer al-Azzawi, a member of the Baghdad Provincial Council and a candidate from the Azm Alliance, said his office came under a "cowardly attack" in Baghdad's Yusufiyah district. … On Wednesday, another candidate vying for a seat in the parliament was assassinated in Baghdad. Safaa al-Mashhadani, who also served on Baghdad’s Provincial Council, was running on the Sunni Arab Sovereignty-Legislation Alliance ticket.
https://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/181020251US returning Caribbean strike survivors to Colombia and Ecuador, Trump saysBoth men have arrived home, according to authorities from the two South American countries. "We have received the Colombian detained on the narco submarine, we are happy he is alive and he will be processed according to the law," Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on X on Saturday afternoon, providing no further information.
https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-set-transfer-caribbean-strike-survivors-overseas-instead-pow-style-detention-2025-10-18/President Petro decrees declassification of DAS intelligence filesDuring the act of recognition of international responsibility and forgiveness of the State to the victims of the José Alvear Restrepo Lawyers’ Collective, the Colombian president presented the new decree stating that “it begins now, the reserve of the intelligence and counterintelligence files and the reserved expenses of the extinct Administrative Department is lifted.” The decree allows the declassification of the DAS files that rest in the General Archive of the Nation and the lifting of the reserve of intelligence, counterintelligence and reserved expenses files of the former agency.
https://www.telesurenglish.net/president-petro-decrees-declassification-of-das-intelligence-files/US anti-vax stance to blame for continent-wide surge in measles, say expertsDaniel Salas, executive manager of Paho’s special programme for comprehensive immunisation, said: “Having close-knit communities that are often reluctant to receive vaccinations and having large flows [of people] from country to country through the region are aggravating factors.”
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/oct/17/health-infectious-diseases-vaccination-measles-us-robert-kennedy-latin-america-antivax-blamed-cases-deaths-riseTaiwan opposition party's firebrand new leader pledges peace with China"The KMT will make our home the strongest shelter for everyone against life's storms. Because we will safeguard peace across the Taiwan Strait," she said. Cheng, who started out in politics in the DPP, said during the campaign that she did not support increasing the defence budget, a key policy of President Lai Ching-te's administration, spending which also has strong U.S. backing.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/Taiwan-opposition-partys-firebrand-new-leader-pledges-peace-with-Chinahttps://archive.ph/7JB1uAustralian banks ignore thousands of customers’ hardship requestsNearly 2,900 customers complained their bank had failed to respond to pleas for assistance in 2024-25, new data from the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (Afca) showed. Non-responses have risen for four consecutive years, even though lenders are legally obliged to consider hardship requests, the Afca’s lead ombudsman for banking and finance, Natalie Cameron, said. Big banks’ automated systems for hardship requests had generated “cookie cutter” responses and failed to account for individual customers’ circumstances, while smaller lenders lacked even those systems, Afca found.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/oct/19/australian-banks-ignore-customer-hardship-requestsProtest hits Rome over Libya migrant deal after boat wreckDuring the protest, dozens of migrants from Sub-Saharan Africa recounted what they endured in Libya, and a minute of silence was held for those who died trying to cross the Mediterranean. Hundreds of people attended the event, including activist Sarita Fratini.
https://www.newarab.com/news/protest-hits-rome-over-libya-migrant-deal-after-boat-wreckBurqa ban bill approved by Portugal’s parliament seen as targeting Muslim womenThe measure was proposed by the far-right Chega party and would prohibit coverings such as burqas (a full-body garment that covers a woman from head to foot) and niqabs (the full-face Islamic veil with space around the eyes) from being worn in most public places. Face veils would still be allowed in airplanes, diplomatic premises and places of worship.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/oct/17/burqa-ban-bill-approved-by-portugals-parliament-seen-as-targeting-muslim-womenUnite vows to 'fight for every job' after Nestle announces cutsUnite represents around 1,000 workers at sites in York, Halifax, Dalston and Tutbury as well as additional staff at Buxton Water. The union’s general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Nestle is a profitable company, selling billions of produce every month. Job losses are simply unacceptable.
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/unite-vows-fight-every-job-after-nestle-announces-cuts