Stories for October 2026

Monday, October 19th 2026 - 06:13 UTC
Rioting returns to Paris after a day of protests that saw 1,800 arrests across France

Clashes between police and groups of protesters returned to central Paris on Sunday around the Place de la République, a day after a nationwide day of protests against the cost of living and conditions in schools ended with the looting of hundreds of shops and at least 1,800 arrests across the country, according to police.
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Sunday, October 18th 2026 - 21:56 UTC
US fears Falklands-related sanctions could hit American companies

The US government has conveyed to Javier Milei’s administration its concern that the National Sovereignty Defence bill, which toughens sanctions against those involved in exploiting resources in the Falklands, could reach American companies, the Argentine newspaper Clarín reported, citing unnamed officials in Washington.
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Sunday, October 18th 2026 - 19:43 UTC
Lula’s campaign takes alleged Meta favouritism towards Bolsonaro to the UN and federal police

The coalition backing Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s re-election on Saturday reported to the UN alleged unequal treatment by Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, in favour of his rival, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, and asked the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Federal Police to investigate possible illegal funding of his campaign. Meta attributes the incidents to technical errors.
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Sunday, October 18th 2026 - 17:51 UTC
Pressure mounts on Paraguay’s Central Bank over doubts about some lenders’ solvency

The Association of Banks of Paraguay, which groups 14 private lenders, on Sunday asked the Central Bank of Paraguay to report on the solvency of institutions that received facilities in merger processes, days after senators from the ruling party and the opposition called on President Santiago Peña to remove the institution’s leadership.
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Sunday, October 18th 2026 - 12:31 UTC
Tesla’s new Roadster uses compressed air and fans to jump and drive upside down

Tesla unveiled on Thursday in Texas a redesigned version of its Roadster electric sports car, developed with SpaceX, which combines suction fans and compressed-air thrusters to climb near-vertical surfaces, drive upside down and flip in the air. The company plans to begin production in 2028.
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Saturday, October 17th 2026 - 06:23 UTC
Bolsonaro and Lula head into the final stretch of Brazil’s campaign in a statistical tie

Senator Flávio Bolsonaro and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva are heading into the final days of the campaign for the October 25 runoff in a statistical tie, according to two new polls. A Datafolha survey released on Thursday night gives Bolsonaro 51% of valid votes and Lula 49%, compared with 52% and 48% a week earlier, with a margin of error of two points.
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Saturday, October 17th 2026 - 06:17 UTC
Brent touches US$110 for the first time since May on Middle East tensions

Brent crude reached US$110 a barrel on Friday for the first time since May, driven by fears that escalation in the Middle East could further tighten supplies and by doubts over how much diesel Russia can supply to the market. Brent settled 3.7% higher at US$109.86, its highest since May 19, while US benchmark WTI rose 3.5% to US$101.41.
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Friday, October 16th 2026 - 21:50 UTC
Trump drops his new press secretary after a week of controversy

Katie Zacharia will leave her post as White House press secretary just five days after taking it up, according to advisers to President Donald Trump quoted by several US media outlets, following a widely criticised first briefing and the revelation that she had presented herself as a lawyer without passing the bar exam.
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Friday, October 16th 2026 - 21:50 UTC
Rodrigues-Birkett, UN leadership hopeful: “Not choosing a woman would send a very negative message”

Guyana’s ambassador to the UN, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, one of the best-placed candidates to succeed António Guterres at the head of the organisation, has warned that not choosing a woman “would send a very negative message to the world”, in an interview with the newspaper El País published on the day the Security Council holds its first informal colour-coded straw poll, which reveals whether any of the five permanent members opposes each candidate.
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Friday, October 16th 2026 - 21:50 UTC
Kast and Paz open the way in La Paz to normalising Chile-Bolivia relations

Chilean President José Antonio Kast and his Bolivian counterpart Rodrigo Paz pledged on Friday in La Paz to move towards normalising diplomatic relations “at the highest level”, broken off since 1978, during a visit the Chilean government described as historic as the first official bilateral visit by a Chilean president to Bolivia in more than seven decades. The two governments signed economic integration and border security agreements, although they did not announce the restoration of embassies.
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