A 19-year-old woman died after masked gunmen fired into a crowd outside Fitzy’s Loganholme pub in Brisbane’s south on Saturday night. Three men were also injured, and police are investigating the shooting.
Key Facts
Vana-Reese Schuster-Togiatau, from Jimboomba, was hit in the head and neck.
She died at Princess Alexandra Hospital on Thursday morning.
Three men, aged 27, 37 and 38, were taken to hospital; one had surgery, and two were released.
The shooting happened while the pub was hosting a boxing event.
Police said about 80 officers were involved in the murder investigation.
Police are seeking information from people who know who was involved or why the shooting happened.
Schuster-Togiatau’s family asked for privacy.
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The Justice Department told a court that the National Park Service plans to submit a golf course design for review on Oct. 30 and close part of East Potomac Park, including its golf course, on Nov. 15. The filing came after a judge temporarily barred further tree removal and ordered administration officials to explain the closure plans in a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s renovation plans.
Key Facts
The National Park Service plans to submit a design by architect Tom Fazio to the National Capital Planning Commission on Oct. 30.
The planning commission is scheduled to consider the design at its Dec. 3 meeting.
The Justice Department filing says East Potomac Park south of Buckeye Drive, including the golf course, will close on Nov. 15.
Under a new lease agreement, National Links Trust will stop operating the East Potomac course by Nov. 15 but will continue operating two other public golf courses.
The closure and renovation plans are challenged in a lawsuit filed by the DC Preservation League and two golfers.
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes issued a preliminary injunction on Oct. 26 that bars the government from removing or damaging additional trees at the course.
The injunction requires the administration to give 10 days’ written notice before making an irreparable change to the course while the lawsuit is active.
Reyes ordered Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. and an Interior Department solicitor’s office representative to appear for a court hearing on Friday.
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National polling averages show Democrats leading Republicans ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, but several Senate contests remain close. Democrats are seeking control of both chambers, while President Donald Trump, former President Barack Obama and Vice President JD Vance campaigned in key states on Wednesday.
Key Facts
RealClearPolling’s national average puts Democrats ahead of Republicans 51.4% to 43.2%.
In Texas, Democrat James Talarico leads Republican Ken Paxton 48.5% to 46.7% in the RealClearPolling average.
A Mitchell Research poll for CBS Detroit found Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed leading Republican Mike Rogers 51% to 44%.
RealClearPolling showed a closer Michigan race, with El-Sayed at 48% and Rogers at 46%.
Democrats need a net gain of three House seats and four Senate seats to take control of both chambers, according to the article.
Republicans currently hold 53 of the Senate’s 100 seats; Democrats hold 47, including two independents who caucus with them.
The article reports that Trump, Obama and Vance campaigned in Ohio, Georgia and North Carolina on Wednesday.
Democratic and Republican campaigners were both seeking support from young voters in Michigan.
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Mondelēz, owner of Toblerone, has filed a lawsuit in London against British vegan chocolate maker Catherine’s Originals. It alleges that the company’s O’bar copies Toblerone’s distinctive shape and infringes its trademarks; Catherine’s Originals disputes the claim and says it will defend its design.
Key Facts
Mondelēz filed papers at the High Court in London alleging passing off and trademark infringement.
The O’bar is a chocolate bar divided into segments with rounded, semi-oval humps.
Catherine’s Originals founder Catherine Dodd said the shape represents the O in the brand name Originals.
The company was founded in 2021 and makes its chocolate in Walberton, Sussex.
O’bars weigh 200 grams and cost from £9.20, while the article says a standard milk Toblerone costs £2.50.
Mondelēz said it had tried for several months to resolve the matter directly but had not reached an agreement.
In 2017, Poundland delayed the launch of its Twin Peaks bar after receiving a legal warning from Mondelēz; it later changed the bar and packaging before relaunching.
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Chancellor John Healey said the government has a “moral duty” to help young people who are out of work and pledged to reduce welfare spending before the next general election. The OBR forecasts that welfare spending will rise from £353bn this year to £431bn in 2031/32.
Key Facts
Healey made the comments in an interview with BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
He pledged to reduce the welfare bill ahead of the next general election.
The OBR forecasts welfare spending of £353bn this year.
The OBR forecasts welfare spending of £431bn in 2031/32.
The Conservatives accused Labour of being “addicted to welfare.”
Reform UK said the Budget did not address what it called the “ballooning” benefits bill.
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The article describes how Serbian students built an independent protest movement after a 2024 train-station canopy collapse killed 16 people. It says the students organized university occupations, public demonstrations, and student-run services, and that their movement later dealt the government an unprecedented electoral setback.
Key Facts
The protests began after a canopy collapsed at a renovated train station in 2024, killing 16 people.
The movement remained separate from Serbian opposition parties and from Russia, China, the European Union, and the United States.
Students occupied universities and organized peaceful protests and vigils across Serbia.
At the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Novi Sad, students arranged security, food, medical supplies, lectures, and administrative services.
Student-organized discussions on political and economic issues drew 300 to 400 people and lasted five or six hours.
The article says the students’ organization helped them withstand police efforts to evict them.
By March 2025, students called for citizens’ assemblies modeled on student plenaries to support their pursuit of justice for those killed.
The article says the movement dealt the government an unprecedented electoral blow, but the provided text does not identify the election or give results.
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Small business owners in Bilston and Wolverhampton said rising energy, fuel, wage and material costs are squeezing their businesses, and they criticized the Budget for offering too little help. The Budget includes a 3.9% rise in the legal minimum wage, a one-off £100 payment for eligible households in England, and changes to energy bills and import taxes.
Key Facts
Butcher Kevin Evans said electricity costs and higher prices for goods are putting pressure on his business.
Evans said he cannot afford to hire another worker as National Insurance and minimum wage costs rise.
Plasterer Glen Gandy said he spends about £350 a week on fuel and cannot afford to expand his workforce.
Chip shop owner Lutfu Efe said his electricity bill is nearly £800 a month and his gas bill is £600 a month.
The legal minimum wage is set to rise by 3.9% from April.
The Budget provides a one-off £100 payment for up to 20 million households in council tax bands A to D in England.
Standing charges are to be removed from gas bills in England, Scotland and Wales, and the electricity-bill VAT cut has been extended until July.
Import taxes will be removed on more than 100 food products, as well as kerosene and fertilisers.
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Spain began three days of mourning after a collision between two high-speed trains in Castilla-La Mancha killed 68 people and injured scores. Emergency crews searched the wreckage while authorities helped relatives find missing passengers and identify victims.
Key Facts
The collision happened Wednesday morning on the rail line between Madrid and Seville.
A Renfe train struck the back of a stationary train operated by Iryo.
The crash killed 68 people and injured scores.
Spain began three days of national mourning on Thursday.
Emergency crews used cranes to move wreckage and search for victims.
Authorities opened offices in Madrid, Toledo, Cordoba and Seville to collect DNA samples from relatives and help identify missing people.
Blood donation points were set up in Castilla-La Mancha and Madrid.
Transport Minister Oscar Puente described an error and circumstances he called inexplicable as factors in the crash.
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ECB survey data show a large gap in household wealth across 22 European countries: households headed by people under 35 have median net wealth of about €25,000, compared with €208,000 for those headed by people aged 55 to 64. Consumer prices in the eurozone, Hungary and the Czech Republic rose 67.2% from 2000, with the sharpest increase among surveyed countries in Hungary.
Key Facts
The survey covers the eurozone, the Czech Republic and Hungary and measures assets minus debts.
Under-35 households hold 2.8% of household wealth across the 22 countries surveyed; households headed by 55- to 64-year-olds hold 24%.
In Finland, under-35 households hold 0.8% of household wealth, while people over 55 hold more than 71%.
Wealth is more evenly distributed by age in several Central and Eastern European countries, including Lithuania, Croatia, Slovakia and Estonia.
Everyday consumer prices rose 67.2% in the eurozone, Hungary and the Czech Republic between 2000 and the survey’s reporting period.
Hungary had the steepest consumer-price increase among the countries shown, with prices more than tripling since 2000.
EU annual inflation reached 9.2% in 2022, driven mainly by higher energy costs; subsequent easing did not reverse earlier price increases.
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El Salvador has sent more than 2,000 soldiers to Haiti to search for four air force technicians who went missing nearly two weeks ago and to support efforts against gangs. El Salvador’s president rejected Haiti’s handover of four bodies as a match for the missing soldiers, while the UN says gang violence has killed more than 5,700 people in Haiti this year.
Key Facts
El Salvador’s foreign ministry said President Nayib Bukele informed Haiti’s Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime of the deployment earlier this week.
The four missing technicians were serving with the UN-backed Gang Suppression Force.
They were travelling in an armoured vehicle when armed groups ambushed it in Croix-des-Bouquets, an area controlled by gangs.
No gang has claimed responsibility for the ambush.
Haiti handed four bodies to special forces, but Bukele said they were not the missing servicemen.
Bukele said one body was that of a child and another wore a military uniform from a different country.
The UN Security Council approved expanded powers for the Gang Suppression Force in October last year.
The UN says more than 5,700 people have been killed in gang-related violence in Haiti this year.
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A Worcester haulage company says thieves stole about 400 litres of diesel from two lorries over the weekend, causing roughly £800 in fuel losses. West Mercia Police said it received a report of a burglary between 24 and 25 October and that inquiries are ongoing.
Key Facts
Martin Pinches, director of M Pinches & Sons Ltd, said the fuel was taken from two vehicles.
Pinches estimated the stolen diesel was worth about £800.
He said thieves damaged fuel-sending units and fuel caps, leaving the vehicles out of service for a day while repairs were made.
West Mercia Police said a large quantity of fuel was reported stolen from two lorries at the site.
Pinches linked the theft to rising fuel prices and said the company may wait until the morning of a trip to fill its lorries.
The article reports that diesel recently rose above £2 per litre and that filling a typical family car with diesel costs about £30 more than in late February.
The article says the 5p-per-litre fuel duty cut will continue until July, with the levy remaining at 52p per litre.
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European officials and Ukraine have accused Russia of expanding sabotage and other disruptive operations across Europe, including alleged airspace violations, drone activity, border incidents and attacks on shipping. Experts say European countries should strengthen defenses and impose greater costs on those behind such operations, as officials warn that European infrastructure and defense supply chains could face further threats.
Key Facts
European officials have alleged that Russian fighter planes entered Polish, Lithuanian and Estonian airspace.
Suspected Russian drones have been downed over Poland, Finland and the Baltic states.
Ukraine accused Russia of using aerial and surface drones in October to sink four cargo ships near Bulgaria’s territorial waters.
Latvia’s ambassador said masked individuals on the Belarusian side tried to push migrants into Latvia, threatened border personnel and damaged border infrastructure.
Ukraine’s Independent Anti-Corruption Commission head Olena Tregub said European governments should identify and disrupt the networks, financing and logistics behind suspected operations.
The article says two Ukrainian counteroffensives blunted Russia’s advance toward capturing parts of Donetsk and left Russia without territorial gains that year.
Czech intelligence chief Michal Koudelka warned in September that Russia could attempt a military attack on a NATO member within months.
The Financial Times reported that representatives of five EU intelligence agencies said Russia was seeking to kill European defense executives and target their supply chains.
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Amnesty International alleges that Cambodian police and military personnel worked as guards at online scam compounds where trafficked people faced confinement and abuse. Its investigation linked five private security companies to the compounds, including Leap Somnang, which the report says had ties to at least 15 sites; the company’s alleged controller denied holding an ownership or management role.
Key Facts
Amnesty based its findings on interviews with 151 survivors, visits to 82 compounds and social media videos from guard accounts.
The report alleges that guards controlled exits, pursued people who escaped and used violence to enforce compliance.
Survivors told Amnesty that guards used electric shocks and beatings, held people in dark rooms and guarded women during rapes.
Amnesty said it identified more than 20 military and police members with an active presence at compounds, including as guards.
The report links Leap Somnang to at least 15 compounds across eight Cambodian provinces.
Amnesty alleges that Ban Sophat, a colonel, controlled Leap Somnang; a letter quoted by the group says he denied ownership, director or management roles and described himself as an adviser.
The UN says hundreds of thousands of people have been trafficked into scam operations in south-east Asia.
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Labour MPs are urging Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Chancellor John Healey not to overrule Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh if she rejects environmental approval for the Rosebank oilfield. Fahnbulleh’s aides say she alone will decide, while ministers have expressed support for developing North Sea oil and gas fields.
Key Facts
Sources told the Guardian that Fahnbulleh was minded to refuse environmental permission for Rosebank, but no decision has been made.
Labour MPs have raised concerns with party leadership and Healey about the possibility of ministers intervening in Fahnbulleh’s decision.
MP Catherine Fookes said approving Rosebank would undermine Labour’s green credentials and conflict with the direction of its manifesto.
Fahnbulleh’s aides circulated a memo saying she is the sole decision-maker and will consider all relevant factors through a quasi-judicial process.
Burnham has said the Rosebank decision belongs to Fahnbulleh, while describing the recently approved Jackdaw gasfield as a bridge to the future.
The Treasury says forecast tax revenues from Rosebank, estimated at about £500 million by the end of the parliament, do not prevent Fahnbulleh from blocking the project.
The Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast includes estimated production from Rosebank and other new fields.
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Diana Simpson is seeking a judicial review of Westminster City Council’s approval for a Pimlico home to become Montenegro’s embassy, arguing the council failed to consider the effect on her mental health. The council denies her claims and is seeking a summary judgment without a hearing.
Key Facts
The embassy occupies a five-bedroom family home on Cambridge Street in Pimlico, central London.
Simpson, 35, lives next door with her parents and has lived on the street for more than three decades.
She says the embassy’s arrival has worsened her anxiety and disrupted her sleep.
Simpson has been diagnosed with clinical anxiety, long Covid and a functional neurological disorder, and receives disability benefits.
Her legal claim concerns the council’s handling of planning permission for the home’s change of use and a flagpole.
Simpson alleges the council failed to consider her health conditions and conducted a flawed public consultation.
Westminster City Council denies that the embassy interferes with her home or private and family life.
The dispute has drawn attention to conflicts between embassies relocating to London and residents of nearby streets.
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Ofcom recommended four methods social media companies could use to check whether UK users meet the age limit under a planned ban on access for under-16s. The measures require government approval, and platforms must choose and implement checks that protect privacy and personal data.
Key Facts
The UK ban is due to take effect in March next year and would block under-16s from ten major platforms, including Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.
Ofcom named photo ID matching, bank-based checks, facial age estimation and digital ID services as methods it considers highly effective.
The regulator said social media companies remain responsible for carrying out age checks, even if app stores verify users’ ages at the device level.
Meta and other technology companies have advocated device-level checks, while Apple has already introduced age verification in the UK.
Ofcom said many adults may also have to show they are not under 16, but it has not estimated how many accounts would be affected.
The regulator acknowledged that age checks cannot prevent all circumvention and some children may bypass them.
Ofcom said its recommendations draw on its experience introducing age checks for pornographic websites.
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Chancellor John Healey said the government will reduce the benefits bill before the next general election, but ruled out crude cuts and has not yet set out detailed reforms. Two reviews due in November will inform proposals that the government plans to publish by year-end, with legislation expected next year.
Key Facts
Welfare spending is forecast to rise by £19 billion this year to £353 billion.
The Office for Budget Responsibility projects welfare spending will reach £431 billion in 2031/32, driven mainly by health-related and pensioner benefits.
Healey said helping young people who are not in education, employment or training could reduce welfare spending over the long term.
A review of disability benefits and a review of young people not in education, employment or training are due to be published in November.
The government expects to respond to the reviews by the end of the year and publish legislation next year.
The government has pledged to reform the state pension triple lock from 2030.
Conservative and Reform UK politicians criticised the Budget for not setting out more detail on welfare reform.
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Analysts say a Democratic victory in the U.S. midterms would not fundamentally change European elections, but could affect political debates in Europe. They warn it might make some Europeans less concerned about far-right movements and could lead President Donald Trump to increase pressure on Ukraine to accept a deal with Russia.
Key Facts
Polls cited in the article give Democrats an average eight-point lead in both the House and Senate.
Catherine Fieschi of Carnegie Europe said a Democratic win could encourage the view that democracies can recover from far-right or authoritarian politics.
French politician Marine Le Pen is leading polls for the presidential election scheduled for April 18, with surveys putting her at about 34 percent.
An ECFR poll conducted in June 2025 found that majorities in Western Europe viewed the U.S. political system as broken; majorities in Eastern Europe viewed it as working well.
Greek Migration Minister Thanos Plevris said European shifts toward tighter migration policies developed independently, while U.S. actions influenced the tone of the debate.
The article says Le Pen has proposed reducing France’s contributions to the EU budget and military aid to Ukraine, and has raised the possibility of replacing the euro with a devalued franc.
The article cites the Kiel Institute’s Ukraine Support Tracker for an estimate that France provides 3.5 percent of Ukraine’s foreign military aid.
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Emails obtained by Guardian Australia show that Defence Secretary Meghan Quinn backed Deputy Secretary Celia Perkins’ plan to ask a Senate committee not to share edited clips of public servants’ testimony on social media. Perkins cited concerns about bullying and security risks, but the committee rejected the request after advice from the Senate clerk.
Key Facts
Perkins made the request during a 4 September Senate committee hearing.
Perkins said edited or out-of-context clips could lead to personal abuse and ridicule of staff.
She also warned that online posts could increase risks from cyber and foreign intelligence actors.
Emails show Perkins said Quinn and Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil supported her plan.
The offices of Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles and Khalil were informed about the proposal, but neither gave an on-record response to the newspaper.
Greens senator David Shoebridge objected that the hearing was public and witnesses could not censor what Australians saw.
The committee rejected Perkins’ request on the Senate clerk’s advice.
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Spain began a three-day mourning period after a high-speed train collision killed 68 people and injured many others. Officials are investigating the cause as emergency crews search the wreckage and relatives seek information about missing loved ones.
Key Facts
A Renfe train struck the rear of an Iryo train near Urda in Castilla-La Mancha.
The two trains were traveling in the same direction on the line between Madrid and Andalusia.
Officials said 107 people received hospital treatment, including 15 in serious condition.
Emergency crews searched the wreckage overnight, and regional officials said more victims might be found.
Authorities opened offices in Madrid, Toledo, Córdoba, and Seville to collect DNA samples and help identify victims.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said investigators were examining the cause and that any security failures or negligence would be addressed.
The article reports that 46 people died in a separate collision on the same line in January.
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