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The Iran war and rising costs shaped a day of political strain, while Gaza’s children faced danger returning to school.
Saturday, October 31, 2026. The Iran war and rising costs ran through a day of political strain, from Washington to Europe, while Gaza’s children faced danger returning to school. Technology and business brought a mix of costly bets, new investment and hard limits.
In Gaza, children and teachers returning to makeshift classrooms remained exposed to Israeli strikes and gunfire, according to Al Jazeera. The report described the death of 14-year-old Mohammed Hamad and the shooting of fourth-grade student Suad Abd Rabbo. It also described continuing danger near the Yellow Line. The accounts put the risks of a return to school in stark terms: a classroom could not be separated from the dangers around it. In Britain, Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said he had begun storing food and water weeks ago in preparation for a national emergency. He urged households to keep basic supplies as the country faced rising threats. Streeting also pointed to increased defence spending and the need to prepare the armed forces, while saying public money had to be spent carefully. At the United Nations Security Council, rival United States and Russian resolutions on Western Sahara both failed. Russia vetoed a US-backed draft that would have renewed the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara for a year and made Morocco’s autonomy plan the sole basis for further talks. A separate Russian draft did not receive enough votes. The mission’s mandate was due to expire on Saturday, leaving its renewal unresolved. The war in Ukraine also dominated a meeting of Group of 20 foreign ministers in the United States. Ministers ended two days of talks without agreement on several major global security issues. European ministers confronted Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov over the war. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced two diplomatic initiatives on the sidelines, but the ministers did not reach consensus on the broader security questions. In France, authorities deployed 70,000 security personnel for demonstrations planned on Saturday over the cost of living and conditions in schools. Some areas imposed curfews. The interior minister warned that covering one’s face at a demonstration was illegal. In Poland, dozens of protesters gathered outside the Constitutional Tribunal to oppose the government’s suspension of its president. Protesters said the move was unlawful, and police increased security around the court. In the United States, the Iran war and the economy were also shaping the approach to November’s midterm elections. At a Florida rally, President Donald Trump said 18 US service members had died in the conflict. He compared that toll with the thousands of Americans killed in earlier wars, including Vietnam, and said Iran was finished and the war would end soon. He gave no timeline, and the conflict’s end and the safety of US personnel remained unresolved. A poll conducted by Harris for The Guardian in October found that voters ranked government corruption as their second-biggest concern, behind the cost of living. The poll indicated that voters were more concerned about elected officials serving their own or donors’ financial interests than about fraud in public benefit programs. The finding lands as the Trump administration has highlighted benefit fraud. Democrats need to gain at least four Senate seats in November to take control from Republicans, who hold a 53-to-47 majority. The campaign has turned on voter concerns about Trump, the war with Iran and rising prices. Races in Alaska, Iowa and Kansas were among those drawing attention as potentially more competitive than their usual Republican lean might suggest. Trump’s political coalition is not free of internal disagreements either. Disputes over foreign policy, the economy and what “America First” means have divided parts of the MAGA movement, though Trump remains its central figure and is working to rally supporters. Economic pressure was visible in interviews with voters in Texas’s Rio Grande Valley. Some residents who backed Trump in 2024 told Al Jazeera they were disappointed by financial strain and immigration enforcement. They described feeling unrepresented by both parties as candidates competed for border-area votes. Money in the midterms is on a striking scale. Federal Election Commission data through October 29 showed that Elon Musk had given at least $445.77 million to Republican-aligned political action committees and groups during this election cycle. His largest contribution was $216 million to America PAC. The group has spent money in House and Senate contests in 17 states, including more than $33 million supporting Texas Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton. In business, Indian telecom and technology company Jio Platforms raised $3.2 billion in what Al Jazeera described as India’s largest-ever initial public offering. Its shares rose 21 percent on the first day of trading, valuing the company at $131.5 billion. That made Jio India’s second-most valuable company, behind its parent, Reliance Industries. The contrast was less buoyant in central London property. Coutts found that 80 percent of homes in the city’s most expensive postcodes sold below asking price, at an average discount of 10 percent. Prices fell 5 percent in the third quarter and stood 14 percent below their 2014 peak. Listings and sales also declined. And the cost of fuel brought an abrupt end to one luxury travel venture. Villa Vie Residences said it could no longer afford to operate the MV Odyssey after fuel costs surged during the Iran conflict. Passengers were told to leave the ship in Cambodia. Its planned continuous voyage, marketed as a way to live at sea for a presidential term or longer, was over. In technology, earnings from major cloud and technology companies showed continued demand for artificial intelligence services, but also pressure on established businesses and profits. Technology shares came under pressure as companies kept committing large sums to AI infrastructure. The central tension was plain in the results: demand was growing, while the cost and commercial payoff of the investment remained consequential. On another front, the United States, Russia and China are planning nuclear reactors to power lunar bases and mining. The plans are tied to efforts to extract water ice near the moon’s south pole. NASA aims to develop its reactor by 2030, while Russia and China are targeting a joint project around 2036. The proposals also carry a risk: a radioactive accident during transport or operation. And the world’s best-known orbital telescope may need a new plan. NASA asked commercial companies for proposals to reboost or service the Hubble Space Telescope, or safely dispose of it. The request seeks information, not a commitment to fund a mission. Companies have until November 30 to respond, and any mission would need to take place by 2032. A separate digital-security story involved a reported $6.3 billion hack of Binance. Blockchain analytics firms TRM Labs and Chainalysis identified North Korea’s Lazarus Group, also known as TraderTraitor, as the likely culprit. Binance said its investigation found additional points of breach and that it had secured about 80 percent of the stolen assets. The rest remained unaccounted for.
In Manchester, Fallon Sherrock beat world darts number one Luke Littler in Netflix’s live “Beat Luke Littler” event. Sherrock was the 15th challenger, and the win earned her £501,000. Littler had beaten the earlier contestants. Paris Saint-Germain beat Le Havre 5, 1 in Ligue 1, extending their winning run to nine matches and strengthening their hold on first place. Achraf Hakimi scored a hat-trick and assisted the other two goals. PSG moved to 20 points, two ahead of Lille, while Le Havre remained bottom with two. On Sunday, Liverpool host Arsenal at Anfield in a Premier League meeting between title contenders. Arsenal are second with 21 points after eight matches. Liverpool are fourth with 15 points and have won their last five. In Dakar, the 2026 Youth Olympic Games opened as the first Olympic event held on African soil. About 2,700 athletes aged 14 to 17 are set to compete in 153 medal events across 25 sports through November 13. Former Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry Johnson said he has little memory of much of his NFL career and fears football affected his brain. He suspects he may have chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative disease linked to repeated head impacts. It can only be confirmed after death. In tennis, Canada’s Leylah Fernandez defeated Kamilla Rakhimova 7, 5, 6, 3 to reach the Pan Pacific Open final in Tokyo. She will face Diana Shnaider or Mia Pohankova on Sunday, seeking her seventh WTA Tour title. That's the day. The Actual News.
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