Serbian rector’s phone was infected with spyware during student protests, group saysThe Balkan country is holding a tense election this weekend that is seen as a showdown between the protesting student movement and Vucic, who is seeking to extend his right-wing Serbian Progressive Party’s 14-year rule. In September, digital rights groups reported that at least 14 activists and students had their phones hacked and infected with spyware, including NSO Group’s Pegasus.
https://apnews.com/article/serbia-spyware-election-vucic-pegasus-students-a0c86f8d3776246f1065120a6057e064Amazon ‘Uses AI in Warehouses to Predict Whether Workers Will Join Unions’The online retail giant uses a tool called Atlas in an apparent bid to predict acts of dissent by workers in the UK, the US and Canada, a document released as part of court proceedings between Amazon and Canadian union Unifor show. The document, which appears to be a training manual for company leaders, has led the GMB Union to accuse Amazon of using “Orwellian” AI tools to spy on workers. “Workers deserve to be able to work free of the fear of excessive surveillance,” said GMB organiser Rachel Fagan.“If Amazon bosses are using Atlas or similar AI-fuelled systems in the UK, the British public deserve to know”.
https://novaramedia.com/2026/10/19/amazon-uses-ai-in-warehouses-to-predict-whether-workers-will-join-unions/French government calls for localised curfew to curb rioting and lootingHe said details of curfewed areas would be provided later in the day. The instructions come as Interior Minister Laurent Nunez offered his resignation on Sunday but President Emmanuel Macron asked him to stay on to respond to police needs in an emergency situation.
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/french-government-calls-localised-curfew-curb-rioting-and-lootingArgentina steps up drive to shrink public-sector workforcePresident Javier Milei’s government has launched a voluntary redundancy scheme aimed at eliminating a further 20,000 public-sector jobs, adding to the more than 77,000 posts already cut during his administration. The scheme, established by Decree 1203/2026, published in the Official Gazette on Monday, offers financial compensation of up to the equivalent of 25 gross monthly salaries.
https://www.batimes.com.ar/news/economy/argentina-steps-up-drive-to-shrink-public-sector-workforce.phtmlhttps://archive.ph/QLcNjLula’s campaign takes alleged Meta favouritism towards Bolsonaro to the UN and federal policeThe coalition backing Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s re-election on Saturday reported to the UN alleged unequal treatment by Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, in favour of his rival, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, and asked the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Federal Police to investigate possible illegal funding of his campaign. Meta attributes the incidents to technical errors.
https://en.mercopress.com/2026/10/18/lula-s-campaign-takes-alleged-meta-favouritism-towards-bolsonaro-to-the-un-and-federal-policeSwiss, US Authorities Remove Individual Sanctions Against Venezuelan Officials Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) has lifted “precautionary asset freezes” against Marleny Contreras, wife of Venezuelan Interior, Justice, and Peace Minister Diosdado Cabello, and United Socialist Party (PSUV) lawmaker Jorge Arreaza. The country’s authorities stated that their inclusion on a list of sanctioned Venezuelan officials was “a mistake” after determining that neither holds assets in Swiss territory nor faces corruption accusations.
https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/swiss-us-authorities-remove-individual-sanctions-against-venezuelan-officials/Albertans vote on path to independence as Carney fights to keep Canada unitedMore than 1.35 million Albertans, or 43% of eligible voters, cast advance or special ballots ahead of the referendum, far exceeding the 810,000 who voted early in the 2023 provincial election. Polls on Monday will be open from 9 a.m. until 8 p.m., with results on the independence question expected in the hours after voting closes. But even if Albertans reject the proposal, separatist leaders say the movement that has transformed a fringe cause into a force in provincial politics is not going away.
https://abcnews.com/International/wireStory/albertans-vote-path-independence-carney-fights-canada-united-137370162Egypt postpones Sisi's Saudi troop deployment vote to next weekLawmakers delayed the vote after debating whether Egyptian forces should be sent to Saudi Arabia to support its confrontation with Yemen's Houthi rebels. Sisi has requested parliamentary authorisation to provide air defence forces and logistical support to help Saudi Arabia counter Houthi missiles and drones. The Egyptian National Defence Council, chaired by the president, has also expressed Cairo's readiness to provide Saudi Arabia with necessary and available forms of assistance.
https://www.newarab.com/news/egypt-postpones-sisis-saudi-troop-deployment-vote-next-week Druze families’ homes seized and occupied after owners leave Ashrafiyat Sahnaya The latest incidents follow previous violations against properties belonging to Druze residents in Sahnaya and Ashrafiyat Sahnaya. Independent reports documented raids, looting and damage to dozens of homes during the violence in late April 2025, as well as the movement of Druze families from rural Damascus to Al-Suwaidaa and other areas amid security concerns and pressure on residents. According to Sheikh Yasser, some of the homes had previously been raided and searched on the stated grounds of looking for weapons before they were later seized.
https://www.syriahr.com/en/386849/WFP cuts aid to 500,000 Palestinians in Gaza amid funding shortagesIn a statement on Monday, the United Nations agency said it received less than half as much funding for its Palestine operation in 2026 as in previous years. It said it urgently needs a further $450 million to maintain critical operations in the occupied Palestinian territory over the next six months.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/19/wfp-cuts-aid-to-500000-palestinians-in-gaza-amid-funding-shortageshttps://archive.ph/MnQU0 Virac bishop calls for halt to mining in Catanduanes Most Rev. Luisito Occiano, D.D., Bishop of Virac, is calling for a moratorium or temporary halt to all proposed and ongoing mining activities in Catanduanes. The call stands until the necessary safeguards for the environment and communities that may be affected are ensured. In his pastoral letter issued on October 14, Bishop Occiano urged the faithful, government officials, mining proponents and other sectors to unite in protecting the island from destructive mining.
https://philippinerevolution.nu/angbayan/virac-bishop-calls-for-halt-to-mining-in-catanduanes/ BNP struggles to enforce party discipline The party’s struggle to enforce discipline became clear this month after two of its leaders were embroiled in controversies. One of them resigns as a lawmaker while the other stepped down as state minister. Despite a series of expulsions, suspensions, and dissolutions of committees, reports of extortion, violence, internal feuds, and abuse of power continue to surface almost by the day.
https://www.newagebd.net/post/politics/318711/bnp-struggles-to-enforce-party-discipline