International News Bulletin — October 26, 2026

Politics

• Lula wins a fourth term as Flávio Bolsonaro seeks annulment – Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Sunday’s run-off with 51.76 percent of valid votes against 48.24 percent for Flávio Bolsonaro, a margin of more than 4 million votes, after the Superior Electoral Court declared him the winner, Anadolu reported. Bolsonaro said in Brasília that “It is impossible to recognise the results” and that he would ask for the election to be annulled, calling a court-ordered extension of voting hours a “dirty trick,” France 24 reported. Lula, 80, is due to begin his new term on January 5, 2027.
• Vučić concedes defeat as the Students’ List wins Serbia’s election – “It is clear that we have lost these elections,” Aleksandar Vučić said on Sunday night, as the Ipsos and CeSID pollsters projected 138 to 139 of the 250 seats for the student-led list against 104 for his coalition, France 24 and Anadolu reported. Turnout was close to 70 percent, the highest since the break-up of Yugoslavia in 1992, according to France 24 and Al Jazeera. Students’ List candidate Radomir Saičić told supporters “Serbia has won as we promised,” AFP reported.
• Bulgaria’s presidential race goes to a November 1 run-off – Incumbent Iliana Iotova led Sunday’s first round with 34.6 percent against 32.7 percent for former caretaker prime minister Andrey Gyurov, according to Alpha Research figures cited by Anadolu, while the Myara agency gave 35 and 31.9 percent. With no candidate above 50 percent, the two meet again on November 1, and both agencies put turnout at about 22 percent. Gyurov said after the vote that “Bulgaria must choose between two personalities, two directions,” Al Jazeera reported.
• Trump urges Israelis to re-elect Netanyahu before Tuesday’s vote – Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday “Vote for Bibi Netanyahu for Prime Minister. We have to finish the job that we started!” ahead of Israel’s October 27 election, Anadolu reported. Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot told his final rally on Sunday that “Netanyahu must go home,” according to Al Jazeera. Channel 12 reported that army chief Eyal Zamir had asked for signed legal authorisation before carrying out an unspecified Iran-linked operation, a dispute Netanyahu denied in an interview with Channel 14, Anadolu said.
• María Corina Machado returns to Venezuela after months in exile – The opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate reappeared on Sunday at a church in Barquisimeto, in Lara state, after more than 10 months abroad, posting “I am here. With you,” France 24 and Al Jazeera reported. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the conditions for her return were “the direct result of the U.S. supported reconciliation talks,” according to Al Jazeera. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez has set no date for the presidential election the opposition is demanding.

Economy

• US says it helped Gulf states export 1.5 billion barrels since June – US Central Command said on Sunday that more than 3,000 commercial vessels had crossed the Strait of Hormuz with US support over the past six months, and its commander, Admiral Brad Cooper, said the main transit routes were clear of Iranian mines after clearance operations, Al Jazeera reported. Market intelligence firm Kpler said at least 16.5 million barrels a day left the region in September, excluding Iran, in line with the pre-war average. “We continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with our Gulf partners and the shipping industry,” Cooper said.
• Pakistan’s central bank meets with a rate rise widely expected – The State Bank of Pakistan’s monetary policy committee meets on Monday with its policy rate at 11.5 percent, and most market participants see a 50-basis-point increase as nearly certain, Dawn reported. Senior banker Rashid Masood Alam told the paper that “the market requires a 100bps hike to tame rising inflation,” which Dawn put at 10.2 percent for the first quarter of the fiscal year. The Bank of Japan, which announces its decision on Friday, is widely expected to keep rates unchanged, according to Nikkei Asia.
• SoftBank discusses a $50 billion AI investment in Malaysia – SoftBank Group is discussing a $50 billion plan for artificial intelligence and data centres in Malaysia, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said after a video call with chairman Masayoshi Son, Nikkei Asia reported. The plan would extend the group’s AI infrastructure push into Asia after its investments in the United States and Europe, according to the paper.
• Macao casino operators pledge over $1 billion to a diversification fund – Macao’s six casino operators have pledged more than $1 billion to a new government fund that will invest in emerging non-gaming industries and startups, Nikkei Asia reported. The fund supports the city’s push to diversify its economy under its latest five-year plan.

World News

• Houthis claim a strike on Riyadh airport hours after it reopens – Yemen’s Houthis said on Sunday they had fired on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh after Saudi authorities partly resumed flights there, with spokesman Yahya Saree saying the airport remained a “military target,” AFP reported. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted missiles and drones fired towards Riyadh and the south, where shrapnel injured two people, according to Reuters and AFP. The airport had been shut since an October 10 Houthi-claimed attack that killed 13 people, and the Saudi-led coalition said it then destroyed missile launchers in Sanaa.
• Bus collides with a truck on Kenya’s Nairobi-Mombasa highway – A church bus carrying 45 passengers collided head-on with a truck in the Kanga area of Makueni County on Sunday morning, killing at least 22 people, according to The Standard, while Al Jazeera, citing police, put the toll at 24. County Commissioner Khalif told The Standard that the bus driver “attempted to overtake several vehicles” before the crash. Transport Minister Davis Chirchir said “We cannot continue treating road safety as business as usual,” Al Jazeera reported.
• Attackers kill a nurse responding to Ebola in eastern Congo – A nurse was killed and a second person seriously injured on Saturday in Bafwasende, in Tshopo province, by a group of young people who accused health workers of spreading Ebola by contaminating local water sources, Radio Okapi reported. Local health and administrative authorities rejected the accusations as rumours, and police were searching for the attackers, the broadcaster said. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X that everyone fighting the disease “must be able to work in dignity and safety,” according to Al Jazeera.
• Storms Austen and Boelo cut power across northern Europe – A 60-year-old man was killed by a falling tree in southwestern Scotland on Sunday as Storm Boelo followed Austen across the region, Al Jazeera reported, citing the Press Association. More than 82,000 homes in the UK and at least 10,000 in Germany were without power on Sunday, and hundreds of flights were cancelled or diverted, including at Amsterdam Schiphol, according to AFP and AP. In Ireland, ESB Networks said about 5,000 premises were still cut off on Sunday evening, down from 41,000 in the morning, RTÉ reported.

Bulletin automatically generated on October 26, 2026.