Today’s desk

Wednesday, October 28, 2026 edition: 22 stories with labeled sources. Every brief from Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · All editions · RSS feed

Top Stories

• Egypt parliament authorizes military aid for Saudi defense

  Egypt's parliament voted to let President el-Sisi aid Saudi Arabia with military force if asked, after fresh Houthi attacks, AP and Euronews report. The vote is cast as a defensive step. A regional official said help would be air defenses and planes, not ground troops in Yemen.

• Israel count leaves both blocs short of majority

  With about half the votes counted, Netanyahu's bloc stands near 55 Knesset seats and Eisenkot's near 49, Ynet, the BBC, and The Guardian report. Both remain short of the 61 seats needed to govern. Likud leads as the largest party, and Arab-led lists hold about 15 to 16 seats.

• Brazil cancels Flavio Bolsonaro passports as US offers visas

  Brazil cancelled Flavio Bolsonaro's passports after he missed a court order to hand them in, the BBC, CBS News, and ABC Australia report. A US official said visas for him and his family will be granted. He denies money claims and has not been charged, and outlets disagree on whether he reached Florida or headed to Ecuador.

Politics

• High court leaves Texas immigration deal intact

  The Supreme Court refused to freeze a Texas deal with Justice that ended a Biden rule letting judges pause some deportation cases, ABC and the Washington Examiner report. Baltimore, Columbus, and New Haven had asked for emergency help. The unsigned order noted no dissent and gave no reason.

• FBI searches Cloobeck mansion in Swalwell probe

  The FBI searched billionaire Stephen Cloobeck's Beverly Hills mansion Tuesday in a probe tied to former Representative Eric Swalwell, CNN, Fox News, and NBC Los Angeles report. Cloobeck was not home. His lawyers said he has faith in the courts, and he has not been charged in the Swalwell case.

Business

• Healey budget expected to cut gas standing charges

  UK Chancellor John Healey delivers his first budget around twelve thirty Wednesday, the Guardian and BBC report. He is expected to scrap standing charges on household gas bills for millions of homes. Reports also point to a bank tax and rules forcing online marketplaces to collect more VAT.

• Robinhood misses as crypto slump cuts trading income

  Robinhood earned 51 cents a share in the third quarter, below the 56-cent forecast, on $1.42 billion in revenue that matched estimates, CNBC reports. Crypto revenue fell 55% to $120 million, the SEC exhibit shows. Shares dropped about 4% after hours, CNBC said.

• Visa beats estimates as shares slip after hours

  Visa posted $3.48 adjusted earnings per share on $12.1 billion in net revenue for the fiscal fourth quarter, its SEC earnings release shows. CNBC said shares inched down about 2% after hours. The network flagged a non-GAAP operating margin of 66.6%, a touch below the FactSet mark of 66.7%.

• Jio Platforms jumps 21 percent on market debut

  Shares of Meta- and Google-backed Jio Platforms jumped about 21 percent on their India market debut Wednesday after the country's largest IPO, CNBC, The Hindu, and Mint report. The stock listed near 1,358 rupees versus an issue price of 1,119. Market value hit about 12.5 trillion rupees.

Sports

• Flagg's 29-11-5 night lifts Mavericks past Heat

  Cooper Flagg scored 29 points with 11 assists and five steals as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Miami Heat 113-109, The Dallas Morning News reports. At 19, he became the first teenager with at least 25 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and five steals in a game. He blocked Andrew Wiggins late and then scored the sealing layup.

• Rays walk off Brewers in 12th, force Game 5

  The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 in 12 innings Tuesday night to force World Series Game 5, Sportsnet and NBC Sports Philadelphia report. Ben Williamson's walk-off single capped a bottom-12th rally after Cooper Pratt's go-ahead homer. Game 5 is tonight.

World

• Egypt parliament authorizes military aid for Saudi defense

  Egypt's parliament voted to let President el-Sisi aid Saudi Arabia with military force if asked, after fresh Houthi attacks, AP and Euronews report. The vote is cast as a defensive step. A regional official said help would be air defenses and planes, not ground troops in Yemen.

• Hegseth and Koizumi deepen US-Japan defense ties

  Pete Hegseth and Japan's Shinjiro Koizumi met in Cebu on Wednesday, Kyodo and The Japan Times report. Kyodo said they agreed to raise defense spending and harden deterrence along the First Island Chain. The Japan Times said they also agreed to work more closely against cyberattacks.

• South Korea court extends Kim Keon-hee detention

  South Korea's Supreme Court issued a new detention warrant for former first lady Kim Keon-hee on Tuesday, The Korea Herald and Korea JoongAng Daily report. The order keeps her in custody two more months. Her prior detention period was set to end Saturday.

• Cyclone Arnab hits Andhra coast, two electrocuted

  Cyclone Arnab made landfall on the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts Wednesday morning, then weakened, The New Indian Express and Telangana Today report. Two people died by electrocution in separate incidents. Winds at landfall reached 125 to 135 kmph, gusting to 150.

Tech

• Anduril, Qualcomm plan US-assembled BlueChip laptops

  Anduril and Qualcomm unveiled BlueChip, a line of rugged laptops on Snapdragon X chips aimed at the US military, with orders planned for early 2027, The Verge reports. Anduril said the machines will be designed and assembled in the United States. Founder Palmer Luckey said the first units will likely mix US and allied parts.

• OpenAI launches cheaper GPT-6.1 Terra model

  OpenAI released GPT-6.1 Terra, a cheaper model it says is strong at computer use, according to The Verge. The model is available now for Plus, Pro, Enterprise, and Edu users in ChatGPT Work and Codex. OpenAI's own page lists API prices of one dollar per million input tokens and five dollars per million output tokens.

Entertainment

• Ramayana world premiere draws stars in Los Angeles

  Ranbir Kapoor, Yash, and Sai Pallavi walked the red carpet at the world premiere of Ramayana: Rise of a Legend in Los Angeles on Tuesday, The Indian Express and India Today report. The invite-only 3D screening was at the Academy Museum. The film opens in theaters on November 5.

• Connor Storrie in talks for Ghost Rider villain role

  Connor Storrie is in talks to play a villain opposite Ryan Gosling in Marvel's Ghost Rider, Variety and Entertainment Weekly report. Shawn Levy is directing the film for a July 28, 2028 release date. Marvel declined to comment to EW.

Health

• Congo Ebola outbreak tops 10,000 confirmed cases

  Congo's Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak has passed 10,000 confirmed cases, with 10,060 infections and nearly 4,900 deaths, AP and AFP report. Officials call it the country's fastest and deadliest Ebola wave so far. Cases have also been recorded in Kenya and Nigeria.

• Duchenne gene-edit trial shows limited benefit after death

  First results from HuidaGene's Duchenne gene-edit trial show limited benefit after a boy's death, Nature and Science report. Four children were treated in the study. One high-dose patient died of an immune reaction tied to the virus used to deliver the edit.

Science & Climate

• Nature: flickering brain signals track awareness

  Monkey brain recordings show quick flickers that track whether a sight is noticed, Nature reports. Patterns flipped about 15 times a second between aware and unaware states, the news piece says. The study is a preprint and has not yet been peer reviewed.

• WMO says greenhouse gases hit new 2025 highs

  Global carbon dioxide hit a record 426.8 parts per million in 2025, according to the World Meteorological Organization, as reported by RNZ. Methane and nitrous oxide also set new highs. WMO warned the long life of CO2 locks in more warming for decades.