US imposes sweeping sanctions on International Criminal Court
The United States has imposed sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court, the latest escalation in the Trump administration's campaign against the tribunal. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington would seek to dismantle the world's only permanent war crimes court, while US officials said the measures were designed to restrict the ICC's resources and ability to operate. The administration has accused the court of politicization and unfairly targeting Americans for war-crimes charges; the ICC, in turn, accused Trump administration officials of attempting to obstruct justice.
The sanctions were announced just hours after the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to a former ICC judge, underscoring the timing of the move. The European Union said it was ready to take any necessary measures to enable the court to carry out its work.
Hurricane Isaias threatens Gulf Coast with expected landfall
Hurricane Isaias, the first hurricane of the 2026 Atlantic season, is barreling toward the northern U.S. Gulf Coast, with forecasters saying landfall is expected Friday evening along the Florida Panhandle. Officials warn of dangerous storm surge, hurricane‑force winds, heavy rainfall, flooding and possible tornadoes across Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, while millions of people are under hurricane warnings and several states have declared emergencies.
Mandatory evacuations are in effect along parts of the coast, and offshore oil and gas production has already been affected. Advisories differ on the storm’s exact strength, with some listings showing Category 3 and others Category 2 as it approaches land.
Pentagon plans livestreamed execution of Fort Hood shooter
The Pentagon plans to execute convicted Fort Hood gunman Nidal Malik Hasan by firing squad on December 3 and to livestream the execution, a Pentagon official said. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the execution would be public; if carried out, it would be the first US military execution by firing squad since World War II and the first military execution since 1961. Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 in the 2009 shooting at the Texas military base.
The plan has drawn sharp criticism. The United Nations said livestreaming the execution would amount to torture, lawmakers called the proposal disturbing and grotesque, and Vice President Vance said he would not watch and cast doubt on whether the public execution would proceed as Pentagon officials have planned. A survivor of the 2009 attack, Alonzo Lunsford, said the punishment befits the crime but questioned whether the public should be able to watch.
South African jurist Navi Pillay wins Nobel Peace Prize
Navanethem "Navi" Pillay, a South African jurist and former United Nations high commissioner for human rights, has been awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote peace and international law, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced Friday in Oslo. She is currently a judge at the International Court of Justice.
The award came a year after a UN commission she led investigating the war in Gaza found that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians. The Norwegian Nobel Committee chose her from a field of 287 nominees.
Trump selects Katie Zacharia as White House press secretary
President Donald Trump has selected conservative commentator Katie Zacharia to serve as White House press secretary, replacing Karoline Leavitt, who left the post in August after the birth of her second child. A White House official confirmed that Zacharia has been offered the job, though it was not immediately clear whether she had accepted.
Zacharia, described as a devoted fan of the president, briefly worked at the Department of Homeland Security and is currently a communications adviser at Trump Media & Technology Group.
Indian police detain 'Cockroach' protest leaders ahead of Delhi rally
Indian police detained leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party, including founder Abhijeet Dipke, ahead of a major youth-led protest in New Delhi on Saturday. Authorities imposed sweeping security restrictions, suspended transport and telecommunications services, and deployed thousands of personnel to block demonstrators demanding the resignation of India's chief election commissioner over controversial changes to voter lists.
The Cockroach Janta Party began as a satirical movement but has emerged as a political force among young Indians, with opposition parties and student groups joining the call for the election chief to step down. Despite the clampdown, hundreds of protesters defied the restrictions.
Christa Pike returns to prison after botched execution
Christa Pike, a 50-year-old convicted murderer, has been discharged from hospital and returned to a Tennessee prison more than a week after the state botched her execution by lethal injection. Her lawyers said she survived two doses of lethal-injection drugs on September 30 and will continue to receive medical care at the Deborah K Johnson rehabilitation center, where she has been imprisoned for three decades.
The failed execution, which renewed scrutiny of capital punishment in the United States, left Pike in critical condition before her hospitalization.
Trump creates panel to investigate Federal Reserve's Lisa Cook
President Trump has established a White House committee to investigate Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook over allegations that she made false statements on mortgage documents, pressing anew his effort to remove her despite a June Supreme Court ruling that her earlier firing was unconstitutional. Cook denies the allegations, which have been described as unsubstantiated.
A hearing is scheduled for November 5 at the White House, which Cook "shall" attend, according to a presidential memo. Trump wrote that it is his job to ensure laws are faithfully executed, "including by firing subordinates who cannot be trusted to tell the truth and follow the law."
Trump announces Russian diesel deal, drawing Zelenskyy rebuke
President Trump announced a deal under which Russia will immediately supply more than 300,000 tonnes of diesel to US and global markets in an effort to cut fuel prices before November's midterm elections. The agreement marks a sharp reversal of years of US and Western sanctions and pressure on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the move as a "weak decision" and a "gift to Putin," while Trump defended it as essential to lower US fuel prices. Diesel prices in the United States have doubled since the war with Iran began in February, increasing pressure on Republicans ahead of the vote.
UAE says Flydubai co-pilot plotted Ben Gurion suicide attack
UAE prosecutors say Hammam al-Hammami, the Omani co-pilot who tried to seize control of a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv last week, planned a suicide attack targeting the passenger terminal at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv. The country's attorney general said the suspect admitted acting alone after preparing psychologically and physically for the attack.
Emirati officials said the plot was inspired by the September 11 attacks and that al-Hammami had previously been barred from flying in Oman because of extremist views. He attacked the plane's Indian captain before the crew restrained him.
Three convicted in murders of Australian surfers and US friend
A Mexican judge has convicted three men of the 2024 murders of two Australian surfer brothers, Jake and Callum Robinson, and their American friend Carter Rhoad, during a surfing trip in Baja California. The victims' bodies were found at the bottom of a well, and the case drew international outrage.
Jake Robinson was 30, Callum Robinson 33, and Carter Rhoad 30. The verdict ends the prosecution of the case.
Stolen Renoir paintings recovered in France, six arrested
Two Renoir paintings worth millions of dollars, stolen last month from a museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer on the French Riviera, have been recovered and six suspects arrested, the local mayor said. Thieves had cut through a fence, climbed through a window and initially taken four works by the French master, abandoning two as they fled.
The recovery closes the daring heist that targeted the Renoir Museum.