Day News Recap: Ukraine power grid battered, Gaza floods worsen, and US steps up pressure on Iran

Russia intensified its campaign against Ukraine’s energy system, with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying 172 drones and 36 ballistic missiles were launched overnight, damaging power infrastructure, causing blackouts and disrupting water supplies in several areas, including Kyiv.  🔗 Separate reports said Russian strikes hit energy facilities around the capital and elsewhere, while civilians south of Zaporizhzhia described daily drone attacks that are forcing families to leave villages they had hoped to keep.  🔗  🔗

On the diplomatic front, the European Union rejected any reported US and Russian deal on European security that would bypass European governments, after President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin discussed the issue. Poland also urged Europe to adopt a Cold War style deterrence model for AI warfare, arguing that the continent needs a stronger response to emerging threats.  🔗  🔗

The United States stepped up pressure on Iran with a reward of up to $20 million for information on its nuclear programme, while also carrying out what it described as limited new airstrikes on Qeshm Island in southern Iran.  🔗  🔗 The latest strikes came as reports said two projectiles hit Qeshm Island and nearby Hormuz, raising fears of further escalation, and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said it is moving missile and drone production underground and building new subterranean military complexes.  🔗  🔗

Regional tensions were also reflected in other reports from the Middle East. Iraq said it had evidence that external parties used its territory to launch attacks on neighbouring countries, while the United Arab Emirates said its oil exports and energy services had continued through the regional crisis despite strike fears.  🔗  🔗 In Yemen, dozens were killed when a missile struck a market in Taiz governorate, deepening concern over the war there.  🔗

Gaza’s humanitarian crisis worsened as heavy rain and strong winds flooded tens of thousands of tents and shelters, leaving displaced families struggling to protect children and belongings from the weather.  🔗  🔗 The flooding also raised fears for war damaged buildings already at risk of collapse, adding to the strain on civilians living in camps.  🔗

Elsewhere in the Americas, Guatemala was shaken by the killing of an opposition lawmaker and three National Civil Police officers in an armed attack in Zacapa.  🔗 Paraguay’s political and financial crisis deepened after Congress impeached President Santiago Pena and authorities placed him under house arrest, with Vice President Pedro Alliana taking over.  🔗 In the United States, Donald Trump replaced White House chief of staff Susie Wiles with Stephen Miller after Republican midterm defeats, while top Florida federal prosecutor resigned amid fallout from an election probe.  🔗  🔗

In North America’s legal and security news, the US Treasury sanctioned eight Canadian money exchange firms, saying they helped Iranian entities evade financial restrictions, and federal prosecutors in Southern California filed 93 border related cases this week.  🔗  🔗 The US also said it was offering the Iran reward and taking further action against alleged financial networks linked to Tehran.  🔗  🔗

In Asia Pacific, early results from New Zealand showed the governing National Party ahead of Labour as counting continued, and China’s Manned Space Agency selected a Pakistani astronaut as a payload specialist for an upcoming Shenzhou mission to the space station.  🔗  🔗

In Europe, Russia’s battlefield gains in Ukraine were reported to have dwindled to almost nothing in the first 10 months of 2026, even as losses mounted, underlining the strain on Moscow’s war effort.  🔗 Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani said hackers had leaked his personal data and targeted his family, in what he linked to the political row over support for Ukraine.  🔗

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