Global Express | October 27, 2026 — Israelis Vote as Iran War Shadows Election

1. Israelis Vote as Eight-Month Iran War Shadows the Election

Israelis began casting ballots on Tuesday morning in a national election that will shape the country's next government, with the eight-month war with Iran looming large over their decisions. On the final day of campaigning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Israel's Channel 14 that this was "a fateful moment for the future of the state," adding that challenger "Gadi Eisenkot will not strike Iran."

Defense Minister Israel Katz told voters they faced a choice "between two security paradigms: an approach based on offense, initiative, and decisive victory — or a return to a policy of containment and restraint." He said Israel had "struck Iran twice and eliminated existential threats" and urged voters to support that path "in order to finish the job."

Iran played down the vote. Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said Monday that the outcome would have no bearing on Iran's preparedness to face a resumption of hostilities, or on negotiations to end the war based on its longstanding demands. Mohsen Rezaee, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, wrote on X Tuesday that "security in West Asia must originate from within the region, and any foreign intervention must be prevented."

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2. Jordan Strikes Militant Targets in Syria After Karak Church Attack

Jordan's air force carried out strikes against groups in Syria in retaliation for Friday's attack on a Greek Orthodox church in Karak that killed nine people, Jordanian state media reported Monday. More than two dozen people were wounded when the church was attacked during a funeral.

Jordanian authorities arrested three men earlier Monday following a dawn shootout; all three were wounded. The Public Security Directorate named them as brothers Hazzah Zaidan Mohammad and Mishal Zaidan Mohammad, and their brother-in-law Ahmad Sami Hussein. All three are Jordanian and were taken into custody in Karak. The agency's chief described the gunmen as "takfiri" but said they were not tied to any organized group, adding: "They only represent themselves."

Syrian state TV said there were reports of civilian casualties after the Jordanian strikes south of the village of al-Masmiyah in the southern province of Daraa. The attack shocked Jordan, which declared three days of mourning. Karak, about 55 miles south of the capital Amman, is home to a minority Christian population.

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3. Russian Ballistic Missiles Hit Kyiv University, Southern Bridge

Russian ballistic missiles targeted Kyiv overnight on Oct. 26-27, striking a university campus, a major bridge, an administrative building and medical facilities. Ukraine's State Emergency Service said at least one person was killed and 15 injured, including a paramedic, a medical technician and a 20-year-old university student.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the Southern Bridge over the Dnipro River and metro infrastructure were damaged overnight, and train service on the bridge was temporarily suspended. A second wave of missiles hit the city at around 3:30 a.m., with at least seven explosions in three minutes; an administrative building in the Podilskyi district was struck.

Education minister Andriy Butenko said buildings and dormitories of the State University of Trade and Economics were damaged, with no deaths among students or employees. President Volodymyr Zelensky said missiles struck the university grounds and the surrounding area, Kyoto Park, the area near a metro station and residential buildings, and renewed his calls for air defense systems. An attack on Oct. 13-14 killed five people and injured 25.

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4. UN Panel Accuses Israel of Crimes Against Humanity in West Bank

A United Nations commission of inquiry said Monday that Israel has committed crimes against humanity in the occupied West Bank, including extermination, torture and rape, and that it continues "to commit genocide in Gaza" despite a US-brokered ceasefire. The report was released the day before Israel's general election.

The commission said six Palestinians were killed in air attacks in the West Bank from 2008 to Oct. 6, 2023, compared with 254 from Oct. 7, 2023, to Sept. 30, 2026. Its chair, Srinivasan Muralidhar, said the "intentional killing and injuring of Palestinian civilians and destruction of homes" combined with Israel's "persistent denial of responsibility form part of a broader strategy to exterminate and displace Palestinians."

Israel's mission in Geneva rejected the report as part of the commission's "misinformation campaign to demonize the State of Israel," and urged the international community to reject its findings and demand the commission's dissolution. Gaza's Health Ministry says at least 74,500 people have been killed there.

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5. Oil Plunges More Than 6% as Iran Diplomacy Gathers Pace

Oil prices tumbled on Monday morning as diplomatic efforts to calm the Iran war gathered pace. Brent fell more than 6% from about $117.4 a barrel at Friday's close to around $110, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate dropped about 2% to $101.5.

Prices had surged last week after Yemen's Houthi rebels attacked airports and energy facilities in Saudi Arabia. The mood shifted over the weekend: Qatari mediators reportedly travelled to Tehran on Sunday in coordination with Washington, while Saudi Arabia's defense minister, Pakistan's army chief and Turkey's intelligence chief were due in the Iranian capital on Monday for regional security talks.

In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, President Donald Trump framed it as a choice, asking, "do I make a deal with them, or do I finish them off?" Supply risks have not gone away: the Houthis said they struck Saudi airports and energy sites again over the weekend, while Riyadh reported shooting down further missiles and drones.

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6. Fed Meets This Week; Economists Expect Rates to Hold

The Federal Reserve meets this week and will release its latest policy statement at 2 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Most economists and Wall Street analysts expect the benchmark rate to stay unchanged at 3.75% to 4%.

Headline US inflation rose at a 3.7% annual rate in September as energy costs jumped, while core inflation, which excludes energy and gas, rose 2.6% from a year earlier. The Fed targets 2%. Gasoline prices, above $4 a gallon for the last three months, accounted for more than half of the September increase in consumer prices.

The Fed raised rates by a quarter of a percentage point in September, its first hike in three years. CME Group's FedWatch tool shows traders see an 88% probability of a hold in October and a 71% probability of a hike in December; the next meeting is Dec. 8-9. Chair Kevin Warsh will hold a press conference after this week's decision.

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7. Ebola Responder Killed in DR Congo as Uganda Tightens Border

A nurse has been killed and another health worker seriously injured in an attack as they responded to an Ebola alert in north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. According to the UN-backed Radio Okapi, the two were targeted by local youths who accused them of contaminating water sources and spreading the virus. The World Health Organization condemned the attack.

To prevent the virus spreading, neighbouring Uganda has banned all non-essential travel to and from DR Congo and says citizens returning from there will be quarantined for 21 days at their own cost. Only essential travellers such as aid workers, truck drivers and security personnel may cross after strict health screening, and all arrivals must complete locator forms for contact tracing.

More than 4,800 people have died and nearly 10,000 have been infected in DR Congo since this outbreak began in May. Kenya and Nigeria reported their first linked cases this month. The patient in Nigeria was flown from Abuja to Switzerland on Monday for treatment; she is the Ugandan-born wife of a Swiss diplomat and is stable, conscious and able to communicate.

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8. More Than 30 Countries Warn Sudan's Food Security Is Deteriorating Fast

More than 30 countries, including the United States and major European powers, issued a joint statement saying Sudan's food security is deteriorating at an alarming rate and calling on all parties to the conflict to "remove all obstacles to humanitarian assistance," China News Service reported on Oct. 27.

The statement, released by the US State Department, said that as the IPC food security monitor has warned, famine risk looms in the coming months and urgent action is needed. It urged the parties to authorise humanitarian operations along all cross-line and cross-border routes, maintain and protect humanitarian personnel across Sudan, and avoid attacks on civilian infrastructure.

It was signed by the United States, Australia, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and others, along with the relevant EU commissioner. In June, the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification said 5.1 million people in Sudan faced severe hunger. An IPC report published on Oct. 12 said conflict and severe drought had sharply worsened food insecurity in Kordofan and Darfur.

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9. OpenAI Says Its AI Models Made Scientific Discoveries

OpenAI announced Monday that its AI models had made several scientific discoveries in mathematics, computer science and physics, concerning harmonic analysis, complexity theory and quantum field theory.

According to OpenAI, its models proved the local smoothing conjecture, one of the central propositions of harmonic analysis, in every spatial dimension for the first time; researchers had previously proved it only in three dimensions. Alex Iosevich, a professor of mathematics at the University of Rochester, described it as a "historic development," saying he felt "a twinge of sadness" but believed that would soon give way to the realisation of "so much we can now accomplish."

OpenAI also said its models disproved the Exponential Time Hypothesis, which relates to the time needed to solve complex computational problems, and provided "mathematically rigorous" proof of the existence of quantum chromodynamics. It said that after consulting three expert groups acting as "shepherds," the mathematics and computer science results were made public immediately, while the physics group deferred release to write up its own interpretation.

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10. Fresh Violence in France as 410,000 Join Protests

Protests across France over a worsening cost-of-living crisis and growing inequality descended into violence for a second straight weekend. The Interior Ministry said 410,000 people took part in demonstrations in several major cities, including Paris.

In Paris on Saturday, riot police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse around 500 hooded youths who hurled stones at officers. In Marseille, youths dragged metal sheets to block a street, set fire to bins and threw rocks and bottles at police, and looters raided two jewellery shops, according to Reuters. Clashes also flared in Lyon, Bordeaux and Grenoble, while police fired tear gas at demonstrators in Clermont-Ferrand, Lille, Nantes and Nice.

The demonstrations began last month with high school students in suburban Paris complaining about poor school conditions, including teacher shortages and unsatisfactory facilities, and have since grown into nationwide protests. France's economic and political woes have sharply raised the cost of government borrowing; the yield on its 10-year bond rose above 5% this week for the first time since 2002, settling around 5.03% on Friday.

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