HAVANA TIMES – We bring you some of the top international news stories compiled by Democracy Now on Tuesday, October 27, 2026.
Netanyahu Battles to Hold Power as Israel Holds First Election in Four Years
Oct 27, 2026
Voters in Israel are heading to the polls today in the first general election in nearly four years. At stake are 120 seats in Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, where 61 votes will be needed to form a majority. Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking to extend his term as Israel’s longest-serving prime minister — that’s despite a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court seeking his arrest for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza. Netanyahu also faces criminal charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust. His main challenger is Israel’s former army chief Gadi Eisenkot, who supports illegal Israeli settlements, opposes a Palestinian state and has vowed to destroy Hamas’s military wing in Gaza within 18 months. A prominent Palestinian citizen of Israel, Sami Abu Shehadeh, who leads the Palestinian nationalist political party Balad, was forced out of the race. Meanwhile, millions of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip are ineligible to vote — even as election officials set up polling stations in illegal Israeli settlements.
U.N. Commission of Inquiry Finds Israel Committed Genocide in Gaza, War Crimes in West Bank
Oct 27, 2026
A United Nations commission of inquiry has accused Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip during the war that followed the October 7, 2023, attacks. The report published Monday by the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory found Israel’s attacks on Gaza were intended to “destroy the Palestinian people, in whole or in part.” The commission also accused Israel of committing crimes against humanity in the occupied West Bank, including extermination, torture and rape.
The report was released as Israeli attacks on Gaza killed at least five Palestinians, including a 7-year-old girl. Meanwhile, in the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces have continued a large-scale offensive for a fifth consecutive day in the city of Hebron, where officials say nearly 5,000 Palestinians have been forced from their homes.
Humanitarian Crisis Grows as Houthis Lay Siege to Yemen’s Third-Largest City
Oct 27, 2026
In Yemen, Ansar Allah, known as the Houthis, used explosives to severely damage a critical road into Taiz, according to Human Rights Watch. The Hayjat al-Abd road is critical for delivering food, medicine and fuel to the city. Taiz has been besieged since fighting escalated between the Saudi-backed government and Ansar Allah. Fuel shortages in Taiz are straining hospitals, with one hospital forced to cut the number of incubators, putting newborn babies at risk. This is a neonatal nurse at the Yemeni-Swedish Hospital.
Nada Ahmed: “We reduced the numbers to 10 incubators because of the fuel shortage. There’s no oxygen. There’s no fuel to run the incubators, to keep the babies warm. We also moved from upstairs to downstairs for the babies’ safety. There is shelling near the hospital.”
Seven Are Killed as Jordan Bombs Syria Following Deadly Church Attack
Oct 27, 2026
Image Credit: The White Helmets
In Syria, officials say seven people were killed, including women, children and an elderly man, after Jordan’s military struck sites in Daraa and Suwayda provinces. Jordan’s military said its fighter jets had killed and wounded “several terrorists,” without elaborating. The strikes followed a shooting at a Greek Orthodox church in Jordan on Friday that left nine people dead and 34 injured. Earlier on Monday, Jordan’s government said it had arrested three suspects behind the deadly church attack.
Health Worker Killed in DRC as Ebola Cases Approach 10,000
Oct 27, 2026
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, youths wielding machetes attacked two community health workers who were raising awareness of the Ebola outbreak in the country, killing one and wounding another. A local official said health workers in the area where the latest attack took place are sheltering at the general hospital under police guard. This is a U.N. spokesperson on the latest.
Daniela Gross de Almeida: “These incidents highlight how violence and mistrust can undermine the Ebola response and limit access to essential health services, as the numbers of confirmed cases approach 10,000, according to national authorities.”
Russia and Ukraine Trade Drone Attacks Despite Local Ceasefire in Russian-Occupied Oleshky
Oct 27, 2026
Image Credit: 34th Separate Marine Brigade “Borysfen”
In Ukraine, a local ceasefire is underway in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky, where fighting has left residents cut off from food and medical aid. The rare ceasefire to allow humanitarian access was brokered by U.S. first lady Melania Trump. Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine continue to trade attacks elsewhere. Overnight, Russia launched hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles across Ukraine, killing at least one person and injuring 15 others in the capital Kyiv, including students in a dormitory. And Russian officials said a Ukrainian drone killed a man and wounded six people in the western Russian city of Bryansk near Ukraine’s border, while another person was killed and 30 injured when a drone hit a bus in Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia.
Meanwhile, a new report submitted to the U.N. General Assembly finds Russian officials committed war crimes by directing attacks against civilian targets in Ukraine, as well as crimes against humanity through continuous attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. This is Pablo de Greiff, a member of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine.
Pablo de Greiff: “Those attacks that target civilian objects indispensable to the civilian population are unlawful and amount to war crimes.”
Far-Right Presidential Candidate Bolsonaro Concedes Defeat in Brazil Election
Oct 27, 2026
In Brazil, far-right presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro has backed off his pledge to challenge the results of Sunday’s election, after results showed incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won by nearly 4.5 million votes. Bolsonaro’s concession came just minutes after President Trump signaled he would not intervene on Bolsonaro’s behalf — although Trump did state, without evidence, that the vote “looked like another rigged election.” Bolsonaro also said Brazil’s Supreme Court had ordered police to seize his passport. According to The New York Times, Bolsonaro faces a criminal investigation over his links to a Brazilian lawyer accused of laundering more than $1 billion through a fraud scheme.
Trump Continues Campaign Tour of Deep-Red States with Rally in Mississippi
Oct 27, 2026
President Trump continued his campaign tour of deep-red states on Monday with a rally in Mississippi, where incumbent Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith is facing a challenge from Democrat Scott Colom. Trump spoke for 83 minutes, while Senator Hyde-Smith spoke for exactly three seconds. These were the senator’s entire remarks.
Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith: “Is this not the best president in our lifetime?”
Senator Hyde-Smith has refused to debate her Democratic opponent, Scott Colom, who is seeking to become Mississippi’s first Black senator since Reconstruction. Colom is a district attorney who was nominated by President Joe Biden in 2022 to become a U.S. district judge; his confirmation was blocked by Senator Hyde-Smith, who cited his support for transgender student athletes.
Trump’s Investments in Oil and Gas Stocks Doubled in Value in the Past Year
Oct 27, 2026
A new report finds President Trump’s investments in oil and gas stocks doubled in value in the past year, even as fuel prices surged due to Trump’s war of choice against Iran. The report by Democrats on the Congressional Joint Economic Committee found Trump’s fossil fuel investments are worth up to $81.6 million, and that the vast majority of his new stock purchases came after he ordered strikes on Iran in late February. Over the weekend, Trump rejected that gas prices are too high. He spoke from a campaign rally in Perry, Georgia.
President Donald Trump: “No, I could just see the fake headlines: ‘President Trump is talking about all the money they’re making while people are suffering at the pump.’ That’ll be the headline. But I said, ‘I don’t give a damn. I’m going to say it: We’re making a freaking fortune.’”
Meanwhile, the Costs of War Project at Brown University estimates that Americans have spent an additional $609 per household just for gasoline since the start of the U.S. war on Iran.
House Judiciary Committee Releases Report on Trump’s Epstein Ties with New Assault Allegations
Oct 27, 2026
Image Credit: Davidoff Studios/Getty Images
Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee released a 50-page report Monday detailing testimony from 11 women, five of whom directly accuse Donald Trump of rape or sexual assault in the presence of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The allegations span from the mid-1980s to the 1990s. In the report, there are new details from Beatrice Keul, a model and former Miss Switzerland, who alleged to the Judiciary Committee that she was raped by Trump in 1993 in a Plaza Hotel suite in Manhattan when she was 24. According to the report, Trump “grabbed Keul from behind and forcibly raped her,” leading to “bleeding and bruising on multiple parts of her body.” Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee have formally requested that the DOJ appoint an independent special counsel to investigate Trump’s ties to Epstein.
Federal Judge Rules Firing of Maurene Comey Was Unconstitutional
Oct 27, 2026
A federal judge has ruled that the firing of former federal prosecutor Maurene Comey was unconstitutional. Comey had claimed in a lawsuit that her termination was an act of retribution, because her father, former FBI Director James Comey, is a fierce critic of Donald Trump who oversaw investigations into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election. Maurene Comey was in charge of several high-profile cases, including against convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Justice Department Unseals Charges Against Former FBI Director James Comey
Oct 27, 2026
Image Credit: James Comey via Instagram
Just hours after the judge ruled that Maurene Comey’s firing was unconstitutional, charges against James Comey were unsealed on Monday. It’s the third time he’s been charged. In this latest case, James Comey is charged with knowingly communicating information related to national defense to an unauthorized individual. Comey is also seeking to dismiss another case, after the DOJ obtained an indictment against him on charges of threatening Trump’s life by posting a photo of seashells on a beach on social media, arranged to say “86 47.” In his first indictment, which was later dismissed, Comey was accused of falsely testifying to Congress.
James Comey: “Well, they’re back again. It would almost be funny if it weren’t such an appalling abuse of the Department of Justice, one that we cannot become numb to. Nothing’s changed with me. I’m still innocent, I’m still not afraid of these people, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary.”
Anthropic Seeks IPO as It Reports Losses of Over $80 Billion
Oct 27, 2026
Anthropic is seeking an initial public offering that could make it one of the world’s most valuable corporations. The AI company reported $16.3 billion in revenue during the first half of the year, with losses of over $80 billion. Despite the red ink, Anthropic’s initial valuation could exceed SpaceX’s record-setting $1.8 trillion IPO last summer. In paperwork filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Anthropic warns of the growing risks of “misaligned or misused” AI models, acknowledging that “Sufficiently advanced AI systems could, if not developed, deployed, and operated with appropriate safeguards, oversight, and security measures, pose catastrophic or existential risks to humanity, particularly if such systems were misused, replicated, weaponized, or allowed to operate with a high degree of autonomy.”
In more tech news, Microsoft announced Monday that it would offer voluntary buyouts to about 60,000 workers, or more than a quarter of its global workforce, citing cost-cutting as it spends hundreds of billions of dollars on AI data centers and chips.
Egyptian Court Orders Closure of Independent News Site Mada Masr
Oct 27, 2026
Image Credit: Mada Masr
In news from Egypt, a court in Cairo has ordered the closing of the independent news site Mada Masr. The court also ordered the site’s editor-in-chief, Lina Attalah, to be detained until she pays a fine of over $50,000. She was convicted on charges of managing an unlicensed website. After the court’s ruling, Attalah was taken into custody. Earlier this week, Mada Masr published an editorial that read in part, “We understand that a sword will most likely be raised above our heads very soon. Even the faintest spark shakes darkness to the grounds. We still think of all of this as an interruption, because that’s how you fight a political fight.” We will have more on this story later in the show.