Early Edition: November 6, 2026

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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the last 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:

IRAN WAR

President Trump yesterday said he’ll soon decide whether to resume military action in the Iran war, after a meeting with his national security advisers. Trump said that he’ll “make a decision” now the U.S. midterm elections are over. Barak Ravid reports for Axios.

Iran has sent the United States a nuclear proposal via Qatar which would only be discussed after the United States meets Iran’s seven demands to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a senior Iranian official told Reuters yesterday. The official said the United States was reviewing the proposal but declined to provide further details. Parisa Hafezi reports.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy yesterday said Ukraine must adapt to the new realities of U.S. politics in order to build dialogue and address its needs for more foreign aid and bolstered air defenses to counter Russian attacks. Zelenskyy said Ukraine “has to move quickly,” and “unite the bipartisan support that we get.” Ron Popeski and Bogdan Kochubey report for Reuters.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov today accused Europe of struggling to decide who would represent it in any future talks about ensuring the continent’s security as part of a potential Ukraine settlement. Peskov said Europe would need to be involved in any future potential peace talks, but said the continent has struggled to get its act together. Anastasia Lyrchikova reports for Reuters.

Trump yesterday said he met with “the head person of Russia” envoy Kirill Dmitriev who was at the White House for an event with U.S. First Lady Melania Trump. Trump said he promised Dmitriev a Ukraine peace deal that “might involve all of Europe,” and added that “it’s going to be a big agreement.” Anton Troianovski reports for the New York Times.

Ukraine’s contract with the U.S. government for access to its Starshield satellite network expires next year and Ukraine is urgently seeking to start talks on a new contract, the Chargé d’affaires at Ukraine’s embassy in the United States Denys Sienik told the Defense Writers Group in Washington yesterday. Sienik said Ukraine never received an explanation for what happened to Starlink satellites from either SpaceX or the United States. Sienik did not provide the exact month the contract would expire, saying only that it would be in the middle of next year. Phil Stewart reports for Reuters.

SUDANESE CIVIL WAR

The United Arab Emirates hired Colombian mercenaries to fight alongside the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces, according to a confidential report submitted to the U.N. Security Council last week obtained by the New York Times. The report details how an Emirati security company with close ties to the government moved the Colombians into Sudan through territory controlled by Emirati proxies in Libya and Somalia. Declan Walsh reports.

OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS

Belgium’s parliament early today approved a law allowing police to enter the homes of suspected undocumented migrants who have ignored orders to leave the country. The measure is part of a broader push by Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever’s coalition to limit migration and increase expulsions of those who have been denied the right to stay in the country. The legislation has drawn opposition from human rights groups, who argue that allowing police to enter private homes for immigration enforcement risks undermining constitutional rights and privacy laws. Charlotte Van Campenhout and Bar Meijer report for Reuters.

Actor Russell Brand yesterday was found guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault in a U.K. court. Brand was acquitted of two other rape charges and one allegation of attempted indecent assault, and will be sentenced on Monday. The Head of the Metropolitan Police Sir Mark Rowley today said he “wouldn’t be surprised” if more people came forward to make allegations about Brand, and said there were “two ongoing rape investigations” into the actor. Rowley also described reporting he heard from Brand’s trial as coming very close to “victim blaming.” Helena Wilkinson and Sima Kotecha report for BBC News.

Former Paraguayan president Santiago Peña yesterday resigned after a major bank with close ties to his administration went under. The bank’s collapse left half of Paraguay’s population without access to their money. Paraguay’s lower house of Congress voted unanimously to proceed with impeachment minutes after Peña’s resignation, and described the bank failure as a “systematic dereliction of duty.” Laurence Blair reports for the New York Times.

Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak’s transfer to house arrest today was halted after Malaysia’s Attorney-General Chambers said questions have arisen over the legal interpretation of Najib’s royal pardon and the subsequent court order. Najib’s party the United Malays National Organization paid a $12.3 million fine required under the terms of a royal pardon. Malaysian King Ibrahim Iskandor of Johor in Sep. 2026 granted Najib a clemency, allowing him to serve the rest of his graft sentence under house arrest. The house arrest applies only to his reduced six-year sentence, and does not cover a separate 15-year prison sentence imposed in Dec. 2025 for corruption and money laundering which Najib is appealing against. The Chambers said “the implementation of house arrest… should be temporarily suspended until further investigation and clarification… are completed.” Ashley Tang and Rozanna Latiff report for Reuters; AP News reports.

Indonesian police today named a fourth senior officer as a suspect in the alleged wiretapping of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto. Investigators alleged that the police officer, who local media identified as Slamet Uliandi, gave the go-ahead for the wiretapping. Ananda Teresia and Stefanno Sulaiman report for Reuters.

A Nigerian federal court yesterday disqualified the leadership of the African Democratic Congress party two months before elections. The court ruled the leadership of ADC was illegally constituted and therefore voided the candidacy of Atiku Abubakar. Earlier in the year, a court ordered the party deregistered for failing to meet constitutional requirements, but an appeals court overturned the ruling. Ope Adetayo reports for AP News.

U.S. MIDTERM DEVELOPMENTS

Foreign efforts to covertly interfere with the midterm elections were minimal overall, current and former U.S. officials, and disinformation and election-security experts told the New York Times. Officials said there were also no signs that overseas hackers interfered in the voting process or ballot counts. Dustin Volz and Julian E. Barnes report.

Trump yesterday said voters had themselves to blame for the stock market’s historic sell-off. The tech-heavy Nasdaq sunk more than 5% as AI-linked stocks sold off. Trump on social media said “The Stock Market crashed today because the Dumocrats had a big Tuesday – So sad to see, you only have yourselves to blame!” Ben Berkowitz reports for Axios.

Trump on social media yesterday said incumbent Alaska Sen. Dan S. Sullivan (R) should receive the votes of Dan J. Sullivan, a candidate which the Democrats are accused of placing on the ballot to confuse voters. Trump said “The vote totals for the Fake Dan Sullivan, plus the other ‘slug’ that the Dems put on the Ballot, should be immediately given to the REAL Dan Sullivan, and the Election is over,” and added that “He easily wins. There is no other fair solution!” Avery Lotz reports for Axios.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) yesterday told AP News that Democrats will not allow Trump to put a “right-winger” on the Supreme Court once they take power. Schumer would not say if he would hold a Supreme Court vacancy open until after the next presidential election, but said that Democrats are “not going to allow any crappy nominees” get elected to the Supreme Court, lower courts, or Trump’s Cabinet. Mary Clare Jalonick reports.

Chair of the Mississippi Republican Party Mike Hurst yesterday said the party will accept Democrat Senate nominee Scott Colom’s victory if he beats incumbent Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R). Hurst said “there is no election denying going on here. If the laws are followed and the voters spoke, that is it and Mississippi Republicans will accept that.” Suryatapa Chakraborty reports for The Hill.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth yesterday released a video message defending his tenure and vowing to fight for his job amid reports of a likely congressional impeachment effort next week. Hegseth said “we are more determined than ever, more resolute than ever, to finish what we have started.” Trump yesterday backed Hegseth and said he was doing a “fantastic job.” Greg Jaffe reports for the New York Times.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is weighing whether to leave the Trump administration, sources told Bloomberg. The sources said Rubio and his advisers are going over options for his future, but Rubio hasn’t made a decision about whether to quit his posts. Rubio yesterday dismissed the rumours in an interview with the New York Times and declined to answer questions about his political future, while the State Department called the reports a “baseless hoax.” Saleha Mohsin, Natalia Drozdiak, Eric Martin, and Annmarie Hordern report; Tyler Pager and Anatoly Kurmanaev report; Suryatapa Chakraborty reports for The Hill.

U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Rubio yesterday told the New York Times that elections in Venezuela would “ideally” be held next year, but warned that the country still must take several steps to set the right conditions for a vote. Rubio said the United States was focused on supporting Venezuela’s return to democracy and voiced support for closer military cooperation between the two countries. Rubio declined to guarantee elections would be held before Trump left office. Anatoly Kurmanaev and Tyler Pager report.

The State Department yesterday announced another wave of sanctions against 10 individuals and entities tied to the Cuban government, military, and oil industry. The department accused Cuba’s “ruling elite” of “hoarding the island’s energy, shipping, and technology resources for its own enrichment.” Rubio said the “Marxist regime in Havana relies on a web of state-owned enterprises, joint ventures, and offshore intermediaries to keep this system running.” Finya Swai reports for The Hill.

Federal prosecutors yesterday charged Jacobo Abdala Bucaram-Pulley, the son of former Ecuadorian president Abdalá Bucaram, Jaime Estrada Medranda, a former member of Ecuador’s National Assembly, and three other Ecuadorians with trafficking tons of cocaine to the United States and Europe. U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said the five defendants played a “critical role” in turning Ecuador into a key transit point for the vast majority of cocaine sent to the U.S. and Europe. Sudhin Thanawala reports for AP News.

In an interview with the New York Times on Wednesday, Brazilian Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro said he received help “from absolutely no one, from no government” when he fled from Brazil, despite U.S. officials stating that the White House arranged the jet that flew Bolsonaro to Miami, Florida. Bolsonaro said he only made the decision to flee the morning after losing Brazil’s presidential election, and that he knew he had friends abroad who “may have been cheerleading, but nothing else.” Bolsonaro accused the Brazilian judiciary of being overzealous and politically motivated, and argued that he knew “the final outcome [of his election loss] will be my imprisonment.” Ana Ionova reports.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s new budget introduced to the Canadian House of Commons yesterday looks to reduce Canada’s longstanding dependence on the United States and diversifying its trade with the rest of the world. Canadian Finance Minister François-Phillipe Champagne told the house that “the rules we counted on no longer seem to hold.” Ian Austen reports for the New York Times.

U.S. TECH DEVELOPMENTS

Google, Meta, and TikTok yesterday filed separate lawsuits seeking to block a California law designed to protect children from the risks of social media, alleging it violates their First Amendment rights. The law, scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027, prohibits tech companies from offering addictive feeds, endless scrolling, and autoplayed videos to children under 16. Companies must also implement “reasonable measures” to ensure under 16s are not given access to the addictive features by verifying users’ ages. The three companies argue that the law violates section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which shields tech companies from liability for material posted on their sites by third parties. Barbara Ortutay reports for AP News.

U.S. AI DEVELOPMENTS

Parents in California on Wednesday sued Google, alleging their AI Gemini chatbot offered on school Chromebooks helped a young teen prepare plans for a suicide attempt and her funeral. The suit said the girl chatted with Gemini over the course of several months, prompting a “severe psychological crisis,” and alleges Google’s top executives knew Gemini was dangerous but released the chatbot anyway. Miranda Nazzaro reports for The Hill.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang yesterday was asked by three House Republican committee chairs to brief Congress behind closed doors about his reported ties to Alice Huang, a businesswoman accused of spying for China. The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal recently reported on Alice’s close ties to Jensen, on the fact that Trump was briefed by intelligence officials about the pair’s relationship, and on reports that at least three countries had concerns that Alice was passing information to the Chinese government, potentially including sensitive details on Nvidia chips. Donica Phifer reports for Axios.

U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS

Four men named in the Cornell 7 lawsuit have joined an effort to block New York Attorney General Letitia James from leading the criminal investigation into the rape allegations, according to court filings yesterday. The petition seeks to remove James from the case because of social media posts she made prior to her involvement in which she condemned the alleged assault and expressed support for Jane Doe. James on Wednesday appointed Jacqueline Kelly as outside counsel for the investigation, whose team will be responsible for evidence gathering, witness interviews, and other investigative steps. Kelly’s team will still ultimately report to James. Michael R. Sisak reports for AP News.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) yesterday commuted the sentences of all 548 prisoners on the state’s death row. Newsom said he made the decision because he finds capital punishment morally objectionable. He reduced every death sentence to life in prison without parole. Newsom in an open letter to California residents wrote that “State-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California’s values, undermines the foundations of our legal system and diminishes each of us.” Laurel Rosenhall reports for the New York Times.

House Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) yesterday said he felt confident that he could force a follow-up bill to the original Epstein Files Transparency Act once Congress returns next week. Massie on social media said he felt assured he would be able to get enough signatures for a discharge petition, which forces a vote on the House floor. Rebecca Beitsch reports for The Hill.

Hegseth yesterday authorized the National Guard to begin using boats, several dozen marked police cars, Humvees, and light medium tactical vehicles in Washington D.C., according to an Oct. 29 memo obtained by POLITICO. It is unclear why the Trump administration is making the move now, as the memo does not provide further details beyond doubling down on Trump’s plan to use the National Guard to crack down on what he’s called a “crime emergency” in the capital. Jack Detsch and Leo Shane III report.

The Head of the Civil Rights Division in the Justice Department Harmeet Dhillon yesterday resigned from her role. Attorney General Todd Blanche on social media announced Dhillon’s resignation and thanked her for her service. During Dhillon’s tenure the division implemented dramatic changes, pushing out roughly 300 career attorneys and hiring inexperienced allies to replace them, and using the division’s enforcement powers to advance Trump’s policies. Ryan Lucas reports for NPR.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTION

Trump yesterday signed a proclamation that seeks to designate the Oval Office and the adjacent Cabinet Room as national monuments. Trump said he was sending a request to Congress to attach the federal designations to sites of “great victories.” Erica L. Green reports for the New York Times.

The DOJ in recent weeks has ramped up in pursuing a criminal investigation into who leaked the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning the right to abortion, sources told the New York Times. Despite an internal inquiry by the Supreme Court, no leaker has ever been publicly identified. The U.S. Attorney in Washington Jeanine Pirro (R) is overseeing the investigation, and has assigned prosecutor Carlton Davis to the investigation. Jodi Kantor and Michael S. Schmidt report.

The DOJ yesterday filed a complaint against Penn State University, challenging its policy of offering in-state tuition rates to some undocumented migrants. Two dozen states previously offered the tuition breaks, which often received bipartisan support. A Penn State spokesperson said the university was aware of the complaint and reviewing it. Heather Hollingsworth reports for AP News.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

A federal judge yesterday ordered the DOJ to cease insisting that Washington state set aside ballots of people suspected of being noncitizens and stop threatening election officials who defy demands from the federal government. The judge issued a temporary restraining order and said that for “the next two weeks, while Washington’s counties count and certify the ballots already cast, DOJ may not demand that election officials set aside a registered voter’s ballot because the voter’s name appears on a federal list and may not threaten those officials with prosecution for counting votes as state law requires.” Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO.

A federal judge last night blocked construction of Trump’s “triumphal arch” near the entrance of Arlington National Cemetery after a Trump-friendly panel approved it. The panel’s decision would have allowed construction to begin today, but the judge’s ruling halted construction for 14 days while legal challenges make their way through the court system. Luke Broadwater, Zach Montague, and Emily Badger report for the New York Times.

Did you miss this? Stay up-to-date with our Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions.

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