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Oct 18, 2026 - World

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee broke his silence this weekend on an American journalist who was “severely” beaten by Israeli settlers, and quickly drew scorn for what he said.On Friday, The Washington Post’s Heidi Levine was attacked by Israeli settlers despite “wearing a protective vest clearly marked PRESS on front and back,” the Post reported. She was “kicked repeatedly” after being knocked to the ground and “stripped of her cameras and phone.”Outrage soon poured in as Huckabee remained silent on the matter until the next day, when he released a statement.“Heidi Levine, photojournalist for [The Washington Post], suffered serious injuries from vicious & cowardly attack. Heidi is US Citizen, clear ID as journalist. Details of who under investigation, but those who attacked unarmed reporter should spend YRS in prison,” Huckabee wrote. “We have called for a full investigation, arrest, and prosecution to the fullest extent of the law to whoever participated in this. Attacking a female photographer is despicable act of terror carried out by masked cowards. Dishonorable act of senseless violence.”Despite the encounter being captured on video, Huckabee did not identify the assailants as Israeli settlers, which multiple outlets had already confirmed. More than 700,000 Israeli settlers live in settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, which are considered illegal under international law, with Israeli settler violence reaching record-high levels in recent months.“[Thirty-six] hours later and no mention of the illegal Israeli settlers we all saw on camera attacking her. No mention of Israel whatsoever. Pathetic stuff here,” wrote journalist and former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan.Independent journalist Jasper Nathaniel, who extensively reports on Israeli settler violence, sarcastically jabbed at Huckabee’s omission of the incident’s assailants.“Dang it the unknowable masked bandits of the West Bank strike again,” Nathaniel wrote in a social media post on X.Others, like the independent news outlet Drop Site News, condemned Huckabee for his past rhetoric, which it alleged helped fuel such attacks.“[Levine] was left with a broken rib, four broken vertebrae and a finger ripped open to the bone, the Post said. Israeli military jeeps drove through while the attack continued, and soldiers fired tear gas at Palestinians, witnesses said. No arrests have been reported,” reads a statement from the outlet.“Huckabee has spent his career erasing the people Israeli settlers target. He rejects the term ‘West Bank’ in favor of ‘Judea and Samaria,’ and said in 2008 that ‘there's really no such thing as a Palestinian.’”“Those who attacked”Who are they?— Assal Rad (@AssalRad) October 17, 2026

Oct 18, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump said he was “not inclined” to continue his deeply unpopular war against Iran if a far-right ally of his loses in an election next week.That ally is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose party is trailing behind his chief political rival’s party in recent polls ahead of next week’s Israeli elections.“If Israel has the wrong Leader, which would be anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do this work ourselves, and I am not inclined to do so. Bibi Netanyahu has been Strong, Brave, and Brilliant in the face of tremendous opposition, including that coming from even Israel, itself,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.“Please let this Letter serve to represent my Complete and Total Endorsement of Bibi Netanyahu in his upcoming Race for Re-Election as Prime Minister of Israel. BIBI NETANYAHU WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, accusing the criminally indicted leader of intentionally targeting civilians and using starvation as a method of war during Israel’s ongoing siege on Gaza.Netanyahu’s top political rival, Gadi Eisenkot, the former chief of staff for the Israel Defense Forces, is a chief proponent of the Dahiya doctrine, an Israeli military strategy involving the mass destruction of civilian infrastructure.

Oct 18, 2026 - World

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued President Donald Trump a fierce rebuke Sunday after striking a Russian oil terminal just days after the U.S. president demanded a halt to attacks on energy infrastructure.In what Russian state media called “one of the biggest drone attacks of the year,” Ukraine struck an oil terminal in St. Petersburg on Sunday — just one week after Trump claimed that a ceasefire had been brokered between Ukraine and Russia to halt attacks on energy infrastructure.Three days after Trump’s ceasefire announcement, Ukraine’s access to Starlink — the internet service provided by Elon Musk’s SpaceX — was abruptly restricted, with subsequent reporting suggesting that the order to limit Starlink services came directly from the White House.Zelenskyy has since broken with Trump publicly, and on Sunday issued a scathing message in defense of Ukraine’s latest attack on Russian energy infrastructure.“In total, over this past week, the Russians have attacked Ukraine with almost 2,700 attack drones, 1,700 aerial bombs, and 66 missiles, most of them ballistic,” Zelenskyy said in a statement. “The main targets of these strikes are energy facilities – the Russians are trying to cause a blackout. And America should see that Russia is not taking any reciprocal steps in response to sanctions relief or agreements. On the contrary, they take every signal of an opportunity to make money as proof that their bet on war is paying off and they can keep fighting.”Trump has increasingly pressed Zelenskyy to cede territory to Russia in his bid to end the Russo-Ukraine war. Zelenskyy has refused, sparking a threat from Trump to cut Ukraine off from U.S. intelligence.“It is because of this position of Russia’s that the war continues, not because Ukraine is rightfully defending itself,” Zelenskyy continued. “It is Russia that must face pressure for peace to have a chance. Thank you to everyone who understands this and helps.”Since the American President announced the energy ceasefire a week ago, Russia has deliberately attacked Ukraine’s energy and oil and gas sectors 76 times. Last night alone, there were strikes on substations in the Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, and Odesa regions. Tens of thousands of families remain without power. Energy workers and repair crews are working virtually around the clock to restore electricity supply. Overnight, the Russians also struck residential buildings in our regions. As of now, 12 people have been reported injured, including two children. Two people have been killed. My condolences to their families and loved ones. This morning, there was a strike on an agricultural enterprise in Volyn. All necessary services are working at the site.In total, over this past week, the Russians have attacked Ukraine with almost 2,700 attack drones, 1,700 aerial bombs, and 66 missiles, most of them ballistic. The main targets of these strikes are energy facilities – the Russians are trying to cause a blackout. And America should see that Russia is not taking any reciprocal steps in response to sanctions relief or agreements. On the contrary, they take every signal of an opportunity to make money as proof that their bet on war is paying off and they can keep fighting. It is because of this position of Russia’s that the war continues, not because Ukraine is rightfully defending itself. It is Russia that must face pressure for peace to have a chance. Thank you to everyone who understands this and helps.— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) October 18, 2026

Oct 18, 2026 - World

Protests erupted throughout France on Saturday, with demonstrators citing a wide variety of grievances including inequality, the high cost of living, and poor conditions in the nation’s schools.As reported by Agence France-Presse, tens of thousands of demonstrators marched in Paris and other cities to protest what they said was inaction by the French government on the biggest problems facing the country.“For years we’ve had climate, economy, and equality problems,” one protester identified as Agnes told AFP, “but the government is not doing anything about it.”18-year-old student Kamil Alahyan told AFP that there are “so many reasons” to protest, including “the elections coming up in 2027, politicians who lie, the ultra-rich who’ve been taking more and more wealth over the past 10 years.”A 19-year-old protester identified as Lola expressed a similar view in an interview published by The Guardian on Saturday.“We are fighting because the cost of living is too harsh,” Lola said, “because the price of fuel is too high, because high school pupils are being violently attacked and hurt all over the country just for trying to protest and ask for more teachers and decent learning conditions.”Student organizer Ryad Rani told AFP that “the government is trembling and it’s right to tremble because when the French people are angry, they never let up.”Saturday’s demonstrations mark the expansion of a movement that began last month when students blockaded their schools to protest staffing shortages, dilapidated buildings, and a widely criticized university application system.According to The New York Times, demonstrations took place in at least 140 cities across the country.Some of the protests did turn violent in major cities including Lyon, Marseille, and Paris, AFP reported. A Saturday BBC report claimed that more than 270 protesters have been arrested nationwide.French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu accused “ultra-left groups” of inciting violence at the demonstrations.“To those who clearly want to use these acts of violence as a ‘warm-up’ ahead of the presidential election, let me be clear: we will not be intimidated,” Lecornu wrote in a social media post. “No one will impose their political agenda through violence.”Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader the left-wing France Unbowed party, slammed the media for focusing too much on the isolated incidents of violence and not reporting on the overwhelmingly peaceful nature of the demonstrations.“Crowds of people everywhere, calm and joyful everywhere when the police aren’t around,” Mélenchon wrote in a social media post that featured photos of peaceful marches from across the country, which he described as “images you won’t see in the official media.”

Oct 17, 2026 - World

Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) says President Donald Trump’s plans for the post-election session of Congress are finished. He blamed the president’s latest move on Russia.“Congress has a lame-duck session. The President has an agenda: supplemental, reconciliation, Ballroom, etc… I think the agenda is dead,” Bacon wrote on X Saturday.“Many of us won’t fund these things knowing he is propping up a dictator’s invasion and throwing an ally under the bus,” he added.Bacon is a retired Air Force brigadier general. He was replying to CNN anchor Kate Bolduan, who had pointed to the GOP backlash over Trump’s decision to put on hold the sweeping Russia sanctions law named for the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).“Tillis. Not holding back. Also saw @JohnCornyn just tweet ‘Lindsey would be appalled,’” Bolduan wrote. “But key question…what can/is the senate going to do about it?”Bacon’s answer was money.Trump signed an executive order Friday pausing the package, which he had signed into law only last month. He told Congress the pause was in the national interest. The law targets Russian banks, officials and the “shadow fleet” of tankers carrying Russian energy. It also calls for tariffs on the biggest buyers of Russian oil and gas.A week earlier, Trump had announced a deal to import Russian diesel. He has since said Ukraine needs “a new president.”Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) had already blasted the pause as “beyond irresponsible.” He accused the administration of “capitulating to a Russian dictator who illegally invaded Ukraine and butchers innocent civilians every single day.”Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said, “Lindsey would be appalled,” Bolduan noted.Bacon isn’t running for reelection. He has been one of the few House Republicans willing to break with Trump on Ukraine.Congress has a lame-duck session. The President has an agenda: supplemental, reconciliation, Ballroom, etc… I think the agenda is dead. Many of us won’t fund these things knowing he is propping up a dictator’s invasion and throwing an ally under the bus.— Rep. Don Bacon ????????✈️????️⭐️????️ (@RepDonBacon) October 17, 2026