People stuck on roofs after Jamaica's worst hurricane, says minister, as storm heads to Bahamas
Summary
Much of Jamaica is without power or phone service after the country's strongest-ever hurricane, our correspondent in Kingston says
Nick Davis reports floods, mudslides, roofs being ripped from buildings, and "palm trees tossed like toothpicks"
After crossing Jamaica, Hurricane Melissa hit Cuba, bringing 115mph winds and heavy rain and warnings of "life-threatening" storm surges
"The night was terrifying," one man in Cuba tells us. "It sounded like a tornado. I was awake all night"
The hurricane is now moving north-east towards the Bahamas and Bermuda
Twenty people killed in Haiti flooding, AFP reports
At least 20 people - including 10 children - have died in river floods in Haiti, local authorities have told AFP news agency.
A further 10 people are missing, the country's civil defence agency says.
Funerals across Gaza as Israel violates truce, kills 104 Palestinians
By Edna Mohamed and Jillian Kestler-D'Amours
- Israel says it has “resumed enforcing ceasefire” after at least 104 people were killed in strikes across Gaza, including at least 46 children, according to medical sources.
- US President Donald Trump says Israel “hit back” after a soldier was “taken out” but claims “nothing is going to jeopardise” the ceasefire. He also says Hamas has “to behave”.
- The killings in Gaza come after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered “powerful” strikes following an exchange of gunfire in Rafah in southern Gaza. The Israeli military later said an Israeli soldier was killed.
Strikes on Gaza followed days of hawkish rhetoric from Israeli politicians
Over the days leading up to the latest strikes on Gaza, we saw a build-up of rhetoric from Israeli politicians.
Those comments saw Hamas accused of manipulating the guarantors of the ceasefire agreement, of withholding the bodies of Israeli captives, of foot-dragging and not doing what it was supposed to.
Revealed: Israel demanded Google and Amazon use secret ‘wink’ to sidestep legal orders
Wed 29 Oct 2025 13.15 GMT
When Google and Amazon negotiated a major $1.2bn cloud-computing deal in 2021, their customer – the Israeli government – had an unusual demand: agree to use a secret code as part of an arrangement that would become known as the “winking mechanism”.
The demand, which would require Google and Amazon to effectively sidestep legal obligations in countries around the world, was born out of Israel’s concerns that data it moves into the global corporations’ cloud platforms could end up in the hands of foreign law enforcement authorities.
Sudan: WHO 'appalled' by RSF maternity ward massacre
Jon Shelton | Richard Connor with AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters
The World Health Organization has said 460 people were killed in a hospital by RSF militants over the weekend. The news comes amid reports of ethnic killings as paramilitaries gain ground in North Darfur.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday condemned reports of the killing of hundreds of individuals and their companions at a maternity ward in el-Fashar, Sudan, over the weekend.
In a statement, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, "WHO is appalled and deeply shocked by reports of the tragic killing of more than 460 patients and companions at Saudi Maternity Hospital in el-Fasher, Sudan, following recent attacks and the abduction of health workers."
Dutch voters head to polls in high-stakes election testing populism’s grip
The Netherlands votes Wednesday in a pivotal national election that will determine whether the country doubles down on the anti-immigration populism of Geert Wilders or shifts back toward centrist politics. The result is seen as a bellwether for the strength of Europe’s far right as nationalist movements surge across Britain, France and Germany.
Polls opened Wednesday in a Dutch vote offering a choice between doubling down on the anti-immigration nationalism of populist Geert Wilders, who sank the last conservative coalition after a fractious two years, or a return to the centre.
With nationalist parties topping polls in Britain, France and Germany, the Dutch vote is a test of whether populism can expand its reach or whether it has peaked in parts of Europe.
Hegseth urges swift Japanese defense spending boost in talks
By MIZUKI SATO/ Staff Writer
October 29, 2025 at 18:48 JST
Visiting U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth pressed his Japanese counterpart on Oct. 29 in talks at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo to speedily increase the nation's defense spending, as promised to the United States.
In the meeting, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi conveyed Japan’s commitment to increase its defense budget and strengthen its defense capabilities based on the summit held the previous day between Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and U.S. President Donald Trump.
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