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Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the package would double payouts for victims under compulsory passenger insurance. He said it would also advance compensation payments and improve cover for temporary incapacity. He spoke on Monday at a forum in Barcelona, where he said the government wanted to win back public trust in high-speed rail as fast as it could.

Puente said a computer failure knocked out the signalling system. He called the control centre's later order for the train to resume its journey inexplicable. Investigators estimate the impact speed at 160km/h to 200km/h.

Reports citing unidentified sources said the government is considering a 40km/h limit when drivers must rely on sight if signals fail. It may also hire more staff and improve conditions in rail control centres. Several railworkers' unions rejected blaming human error before the investigation ends.

A crash on the same line in January killed 46 people. Spain holds an election on 29 November.Share

Thousands of people rallied in Prague, including on Wenceslas Square, and in other Czech cities. The coalition also wants to cancel the monthly household broadcasting fee of 205 crowns ($9.43). The bill passed a preliminary vote last month and awaits more debate in parliament.

Jan Molacek, a Czech TV reporter and strike committee member, said the plan would give the coalition tools to influence the content of both public media. Critics said it would cut the link between the media and paying viewers and expose funding to political pressure. Opposition parties compared the changes to reforms in Hungary under former Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Prime Minister Andrej Babis said on Monday that the government was keeping a promise to ease the financial burden on the public. He denied that the government wants to control public media or that democracy is at stake.Share

Trump spoke on Tuesday in an interview with Fox News. He said some Democrats and left-wing politicians use US financial support to Israel as a talking point against Republicans. He said the US cannot allow that to continue. Netanyahu's office had not commented.

The US gives Israel $3.8bn a year in military aid under a memorandum of understanding that nears expiry in 2028. Netanyahu said in a May interview that he hoped to wean Israel off US military support within a decade.

A Quinnipiac University poll in June found that 48% of voters believe the US is too supportive of Israel. Among Democrats the figure was 66%. When the question was first asked in 2017, the figures were 16% for voters and 20% for Democrats.Share

Critics say the report was littered with false citations. They also say it credited research to the wrong authors. The critics were not named.

The claims are accusations, and the fact sheet gives no response from Accenture.Share

The agency said maternal deaths are rising. Clashes between the Saudi-backed government and the Houthi movement have isolated the city, and fighting stops supplies from entering and civilians from leaving. About 147,000 women and girls of childbearing age are cut off from essential healthcare services.

UNFPA Yemen representative Francesco Galtieri said insecurity, shelling and high fuel prices stop many women and medical staff from reaching the main maternal care hospital. He warned that the Yemeni-Swedish Motherhood and Childhood Hospital could shut if officials do not ease access restrictions within days. Daily deliveries there have fallen to around 5 from 10 before the fighting.

Only 5 of 27 emergency maternal and neonatal health facilities in and around Taiz still work, and only in part. The agency expects about 1,500 obstetric emergencies among 6,400 displaced pregnant women. Galtieri also said pregnant women are living on little more than tea, bread or rice.

The latest fighting has displaced 300,000 people across Yemen. The UN World Food Programme said more than 800,000 people in Taiz and nearby areas have had no food assistance since early October.Share

Cape Town has 2,158,976 registered voters and eThekwini has 2,032,565. Ekurhuleni has 1,711,998 and the City of Tshwane has 1,684,463.

The three smaller metros have far fewer voters. Nelson Mandela Bay has 636,660, Buffalo City has 458,695 and Mangaung has 447,397.Share

Modlin airport in Poland closed for a short time while officers searched a LOT flight. A Wizz Air flight from London to Sofia diverted to Budapest after a bomb threat, the Hungarian defence minister, Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, said.

Bulgaria's interior ministry secretary-general, Lyubomir Nikolov, said a threat came by email for a plane flying from Israel to Sofia. This was according to the BTA news agency.

Officials said the Murcia airport report, about a Ryanair flight from Manchester, proved to be a hoax.Share

Novo Nordisk now expects 2026 adjusted sales and adjusted operating profit to move between a 2% rise and a 2% fall at constant exchange rates. Its earlier forecast was a fall of 0% to 6%. The company said higher expectations for GLP-1 sales in the US and international markets drove the change.

US sales of the pill were 4.18-billion Danish crowns, and international sales were 1.22-billion. About 3.6-million prescriptions were filled in the US in the quarter, and more than 8-million since launch. Adjusted sales were 79.20-billion crowns, against 73.22-billion expected. Adjusted operating profit was 31.72-billion crowns, against 28.39-billion projected by analysts.

Sales of injectable Wegovy in the US fell 13% at constant exchange rates, but combined US Wegovy sales rose 21%. Chief executive Mike Doustdar said growth was led by the obesity portfolio. Analysts said the pill is the company's main route back to growth.Share

A Greek container ship was sunk by naval drones in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone last week. Ambrey said 74 vessels were struck in the previous half-year. In the third quarter, Ukraine carried out 137 attacks on ships and Russia carried out 92. In October, Russia hit 38 ships and Ukraine struck five.

Romania's government accused Russia of systematic strikes on civilian ships. Bulgaria did not blame Russia but said some attacks seem to benefit it. Ambrey said a naval drone seen on video of the last strike looked like a Russian type.

Sidharth Kaushal, a senior fellow at the RUSI think tank, called the attacks an escalation. Iulia Joja of the Middle East Institute said Russia is testing red lines. A Nato official said the attacks aim to dissuade allies from supporting Ukraine, and that Nato's duty to defend all members is firm. Russia says European governments escalate the war with military aid.

Russian grain exports through the two seas fell to 300,000 tonnes in September, from 4.74 million tonnes a year earlier. Ukraine's port grain exports were 810,000 tonnes, against 2.1 million tonnes. Naval analyst Andriy Ryzhenko said cutting grain volumes is Russia's main goal, with testing Nato second. Nato has committed $40bn (R666.4bn) to counter-drone capabilities over five years.Share

Police from Bloemspruit responded to the call about a shooting. They found the bodies of a 35-year-old man, a 33-year-old woman and a 15-year-old girl. Police said the man was inside the house and the woman was in the lounge. The girl was in a bed.

The shooting happened in Bloemfontein on the morning of voting day. Experts from the local Criminal Record Centre processed the scene.Share

The dollar index fell 0.6% to 101.27, its lowest level in a month. The euro rose 0.6% to $1.1258, and sterling gained 0.3% to $1.3458. The 10-year US Treasury yield dropped by nearly 5 basis points to 4.915%.

Gold rose 2.2% to $4,017 per ounce in early trading. Platinum rose 2.9% to $1,460. Oil edged down to $102.9 a barrel. Reports said Democrats had flipped six Republican Senate seats so far.

Moh Siong Sim, a currency strategist at OCBC, said the price moves fit concerns about closer scrutiny of AI under a Democratic sweep. He added that passing federal laws would still be hard under President Donald Trump.

Carol Kong, a currency strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said strong US data should support more rate hikes and the dollar. She said oil could jump if Trump escalates the conflict in the Middle East. Markets expect the Bank of England to raise rates for the first time since August 2023.Share

The Commission issued a statement on which political activities are prohibited inside and outside voting stations. It said the law does not require a period of silence from campaigners on election day. Campaigning inside the boundaries of a voting station is still banned.

A person who breaks the campaigning rules can face a fine, a prison term of up to five years, or both.

The Commission also reminded voters how to check their registration. A voter can send an ID number by SMS, which costs R1 per message.Share

El-Sayed is 42 and a former public health official. Rogers is 63 and a former congressman and FBI agent. US President Donald Trump backed Rogers.

Republicans held a 53-47 majority in the Senate going into the midterm elections. Democrats needed a net gain of four seats to take control of the chamber.

Rogers tried to portray El-Sayed as a radical sympathetic to Islamic extremism, through alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Those claims remain unsupported by evidence, and El-Sayed denies them. Democrats said the attacks relied on Islamophobic tropes.

Rogers also said that ending the war in Iran and the US trade dispute with Canada was necessary to help bring down costs for businesses and consumers.Share

The regional leaders said their special national executive committee took the decision. They named charges of dereliction of duty, conduct that brings the union into disrepute, gross violations of the Numsa constitution and wasteful expenditure. Mbuso Ngubane, a national office bearer, is also among those suspended.

The regional leaders said the national office bearers imposed their suspensions without proper constitutional authority, and that those suspensions must be lifted. They also said the central committee meeting of 23 October was properly constituted and that its decisions remain valid and binding. They said the union's recovery cannot come through factional manoeuvres, intimidation or the undermining of elected structures.

Jim and Chirwa said in a letter that the national office bearers remain the legitimate leadership. The national office bearers said their own special national executive committee resolved to suspend the regional leaders, pending investigations into alleged misconduct. Numsa national spokesperson Mbali Ngwenda was approached for comment.

Reports said the power struggle threatens the credibility of the union. Numsa had about 360,000 members at its peak, before Cosatu expelled it in November 2014.Share

The US government announced the removal on Monday. Deputy Trade Minister John Steenhuisen said South Africa will move to most-favoured-nation status, which adds roughly 3.5 percentage points to existing tariffs. He said the US has not closed its market to South African goods.

Steenhuisen said citrus and automotive exporters will feel the effect most. He urged a bilateral trade deal with the US and more export markets. Agricultural economist Wandile Sihlobo also said exporters keep access, but at higher tariffs. He said the higher tariffs do not necessarily mean disaster.

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) said the government should use the 60 days before the exit to negotiate. Its parliamentary coordinator, Matthew Parks, said farmers in the Western Cape, Limpopo and Northern Cape are of most concern. He said jobs were already lost over the past year and a half because of changing US tariffs.

Saul Levin of Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies said the impact looks fairly limited. He said sectors hit by earlier tariffs, such as autos and fruit canning, will feel more pain from those.Share

In Pretoria, AccuWeather forecasts a 55% chance of rain during the day, with a 50% probability of thunderstorms and about 2.5mm of rain. Northerly winds will blow at 19km/h, with gusts up to 37km/h. The UV index will reach 13, which is extreme.

Pretoria will see a low of 17°C overnight, with a 62% chance of thunderstorms and 5.4mm of rain. In Johannesburg, the forecast gives a 33% probability of thunderstorms and about 1mm of rain in the day. Gusts there could reach 44km/h, and the UV index will also be 13. The overnight low is 15°C.

Cape Town has a 70% chance of rain in the day, with about 3.8mm expected. Northwesterly winds will blow at 28km/h, with gusts up to 59km/h. The minimum temperature is 15°C, and the UV index will be 10, which is very high. The overnight forecast gives a 63% chance of rain.Share

Voters at the Soshanguve station spoke about their hopes. Thabo Maleka, 39, said he came to vote for change. He said he had been voting for the opposition, but not much had changed.

Bokang Maleka, 19, voted for the first time. The teenager said young people are committed to making the right decisions. Another voter, Baloyi, said illegal migration, unemployment and crime are top of mind.

Baloyi said unemployment keeps rising every year. Baloyi also said the many political parties have turned politics into a business that no longer serves the people. Voters who did not register this time will still be able to vote in the 2029 national elections, Baloyi said.

Voters in metropolitan municipalities receive two ballots. Voters in local municipalities receive three. The Electoral Commission has said it is ready for the polls.Share

Evelyn Mdlalose, 84, voted at Boitshepo Secondary School. She said the area has no clean water, no roads and no electricity. She hopes the party she voted for will deliver these services.

Piet Kekana, 80, said crime is his priority. He said he wants peace and a candidate who will fight crime, which he described as severe in the area.

Linah Kwinaka, 81, said she voted for a candidate who could address the water crisis. Elderly residents in general said they hope the next administration will solve the area's long-standing service problems.

Water is a sore point in Hammanskraal. More than 30 people died in a cholera outbreak linked to contaminated water supply in May 2023.Share

The authors argue that these carbonates are an overlooked carbon sink. They also suggest the carbonates could be a route for carbon to move into the deep Earth. The work links seabed earthquakes to the way carbon is locked away on the ocean floor. The carbon sink claim is the authors' own view, and it has not been independently checked.Share

A US official said American forces carried out defensive strikes on Iran's Oeshm island overnight. The official said the strikes hit surface-to-air missiles used against US assets. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they downed one US MQ-9 drone and two Lucas drones near the Strait of Hormuz.

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said the US response to Iran's demands was not convincing. He wrote on X that the Strait of Hormuz would reopen only if Iran's seven conditions were met. The senior official said Tehran would not accept excessive US demands, and that nuclear talks could start only after Iran's conditions were met. Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said Iran will not submit.

Majed al-Ansari, spokesperson for Qatar's foreign ministry, said intensive joint regional efforts were under way to avoid escalation. He said that as a mediator, Qatar cannot lose hope. A draft deal was discussed over eight days, and feedback from Washington and Tehran on the mediators' proposals was expected within 36 hours.

US President Donald Trump told Fox News Channel on Tuesday that he did not want to kill many people, but would if he had to. Kayhan newspaper said US facilities in Britain, Italy, Greece, Romania, Albania and Cyprus could be targeted if war resumed.Share

More than 29 million voters are on the voters' roll. The Electoral Commission said it is preparing for 100% turnout. Its chief executive, Sy Mamabolo, said special voting went smoothly the day before. He said the only significant problem was late delivery of ballot papers in Cape Town.

Several party leaders, including DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis and Good Party leader Patricia De Lille, planned to vote in Cape Town in the morning. Hill-Lewis is also the DA candidate for Cape Town mayor.

Analysts expect many councils to be hung. The Mapungubwe Coalition Barometer expects about half of the 257 municipalities to be hung. Analyst Tessa Dooms said smaller parties and independents may hold the balance of power. She also said trust in politicians is low.

Pre-election polls suggest no party will win a majority in any of the three Gauteng metros. ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has said the party must review its place with the DA in the national unity government. An analysis said DA leaders may drive a harder bargain in coming talks.Share

The Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Freedom Front Plus, both partners in the Government of National Unity, blamed the ANC for the decision. DA MP Ryan Smith said the exclusion was avoidable and unnecessary. He blamed International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola and called him diplomatically inept.

Freedom Front Plus leader Corne Mulder said the US demands on South Africa were not unreasonable. He said Lamola refused to meet US requirements for normalising relations. The DA and the Freedom Front Plus predicted thousands of job losses and industry closures.

The government said South Africa will suffer losses because it must now pay tariffs on exports that were exempt from duties. The two parties urged voters to turn against the ANC in the ballot on Wednesday.

Former US diplomat Brooks Spector said the US midterm elections are unlikely to change the decision. He said the US president and his administration hold the power to decide which countries are eligible. He added that South Africa can still make its case to be included again.Share

Voters elect municipal representatives for the next five years. The Electoral Commission says about 16.1 million registered voters are women and 13 million are men.

Gauteng has the most registered voters, with 6.4 million, or 23.1% of the total. KwaZulu-Natal has 6 million, the Eastern Cape 3.6 million and the Western Cape 3.4 million.

Mpumalanga Premier Mandla Ndlovu voted at the Thulamahashe Civic Centre. He urged voters to hold their councillors to account and said the province would pay special attention to water in Mbombela. He said plans for a new dam in the City of Mbombela and the Loskop Bulk Water Supply Project are under way.

In Pietermaritzburg, voter Nondumiso Nzuza said the new councils must create jobs and help young people, as many graduates are unemployed. Voter Ntombi Kofane said leaders must enforce municipal by-laws, including those on underage drinking.Share

Fhumalini Thovhagale, the IEC Municipal Electoral Officer in Bushbuckridge, said the parties raised concerns about trust in the process. She said they told the IEC they wanted to guard the ballots.

Thovhagale said parties may guard outside the storage facilities. They must stay out of the warehouse area where the ballots are kept.

The parties claim that ballot boxes might be tampered with at the storage facilities. The IEC did not confirm any tampering.Share

Google announced the option for schools to disable its AI tools. The company said schools that choose to restrict AI entirely will not be able to use Search.

The reason is that AI features are now built into Search. A school cannot block the AI part and keep the rest of the search engine.Share

Reports said the new placements could help Reddit earn more revenue from existing users. The test comes as Google's AI search changes how people find Reddit content.

Reddit has not been reported to have said how long the test will run or how many users will see the ads.Share