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AI turns the midterms into a vast electoral laboratory

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The upcoming U.S. midterms are not just another vote. They are on track to become a new testing ground for autonomous AI agents that first emerged in the Hugging Face attack. Experts are already warning of the potential for these “rogue agents,” seen in action this summer, to carry out more refined, dangerous and harder-to-trace disinformation campaigns and electoral interference than those observed in previous election cycles.

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Netanyahu, other officials summoned to testify in state inquiry over submarine affair

Former Mossad head Yossi Cohen, ex-defense chief Moshe Yaalon among those summoned under warning; IDF chief Zamir, ex-president Rivlin also to give testimony, but not as suspects
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Netflix Is Great at Making Money. Its Problem Is Keeping Viewers Hooked.

The streaming service reported a 12 percent increase in quarterly revenue, but acknowledged that stagnant viewership, particularly in the U.S. and Canada, was a major concern.

© Mario Tama/Getty Images

Despite being the most-watched paid streaming service in the world, Netflix is not growing fast enough for its top executives or its shareholders.
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Michelin stars: Greece’s gastronomy boasts with 21 stars in three regions

The highly coveted Michelin Guide stars, shining over Athens and Santorini, have just been announced. Greece now boasts a total of 21 stars across the regions currently covered by the guide. The prestigious Michelin stars for Greece have been announced. Beyond Athens, the famous guide’s inspectors have now also visited Santorini and Thessaloniki. In fact, […]

The post Michelin stars: Greece’s gastronomy boasts with 21 stars in three regions appeared first on Keep Talking Greece.

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105-year-old suspect in Nazi crimes case dies during investigation

J. S. was one of the best-known residents of a small town in western Germany. At 105, he regularly featured in local media reports marking his birthdays, and the mayor honored him as a revered centenarian. What many of his fellow townspeople did not know was that he had also served as a guard at Germany’s largest prisoner-of-war camp during World War II: Stalag 326. At least 15,000 inmates, most of them Soviet soldiers, died there under inhumane conditions, although some estimates put the real death toll as high as 70,000.

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Prisoner-of-war camp Stalag 326 in Germany, where J. S. served as a guard and where at least 15,000 prisoners of war died, in an image dated April 9, 1945.
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Trump defends waiving Russia sanctions, says it keeps Moscow at negotiating table

President Trump defended his decision to waive Russian sanctions on Sunday, writing in a Truth Social post that it keeps Moscow at the negotiating table amid backlash from both sides of the aisle over the decision. “My decision on Russia is a very simple one. I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the…

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Romania downs two Russian jet drones near Sulina, days before NATO allies meet on Black Sea security

romania downs two russian jet drones near sulina days before nato allies meet black sea security · post missile fired romanian f-16 during mission shoot down over 17 2026 853877788_1089835267016426_3152631372123116528_n

Two Romanian F-16s shot down two jet-powered Russian Geran attack drones over Romania’s territorial waters near Sulina on the evening of 17 October, Romania’s Defense Ministry said. The ministry released cockpit images of the mission the next day, as NATO allies prepare to discuss Black Sea security at a special session Romania requested.

This comes as Moscow continues its air attacks on Ukraine, while the US is trying to make deals with Russia over its diesel and lift sanctions. Russia keeps striking Ukraine’s energy system and cities, while its drones and suspected saboteurs keep turning up inside NATO, from tankers hit off Romania to a foiled arson attempt at a Starlink site in Lithuania.

Down within minutes

The F-16s took off from the 86th Air Base at Borcea at 17:43 after radar detected a group of air targets about 120 km east of Zmiinyi (Snake) Island, flying southwest, Ukrainian military outlet Militarnyi reported, citing the ministry. The first drone entered Romanian airspace at 17:59 and was shot down at 18:01 southeast of Sulina. The second entered at 18:01 and was downed at 18:05 east of Sulina.

romania downs two russian jet drones near sulina days before nato allies meet black sea security · post where romanian radar detected about 120 km east snake island f-16s shot
Where Romanian radar detected two drones, about 120 km east of Zmiinyi (Snake) Island, and where Romanian F-16s shot them down over Romania’s territorial waters near Sulina, 17 October 2026. Map: Euromaidan Press

Both were jet-powered attack drones of the Geran family, the ministry said. The Geran is Russia’s version of the Iranian-designed Shahed. When first detected, the drones were about 65 km from the coast of Russian-occupied Crimea and 140 km from the Ukrainian-held shore, and their southwest course may point to Russian origin, Militarnyi calculated.

The White House, seen from Lafayette Square. File photo, June 2024.
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The ministry posted the cockpit images on 18 October, showing a missile launch and a fireball over the sea. “Targets spotted, identified, engaged and neutralized!” it wrote.

romania downs two russian jet drones near sulina days before nato allies meet black sea security · post fireball over seen cockpit romanian f-16 during mission shoot down 17 2026
A fireball over the Black Sea seen from the cockpit of a Romanian F-16 during the mission to shoot down two drones near Sulina, 17 October 2026. Photo: Romanian Defense Ministry/Facebook

Allies to meet on the Black Sea

A special session of the North Atlantic Council, NATO’s top decision-making body, will discuss defense and deterrence in the Black Sea on 20 October at Romania’s request. Romanian President Nicușor Dan has confirmed that the two tankers that caught fire near Sulina last week were hit by drones, and a NATO military source told Reuters they were Russian.

Romanian radar has logged 54 drone intrusions into the country’s air and sea space since Russia’s full-scale invasion, 35 of them this year, and the military has shot down six such targets in 2026, Defense Ministry data show.

romania downs two russian jet drones near sulina days before nato allies meet black sea security · post romanian air force f-16am/bm block 15 militarnyi f-16am вм повітряних сил румунії
A Romanian Air Force F-16AM/BM Block 15. Illustrative photo: via Militarnyi

Searches in Poland and Lithuania

Within hours, Poland’s Operational Command said it was checking a possible airspace violation by an unknown object overnight into 18 October. Troops, police, and military police searched for a possible crash site south of Lublin after residents reported the loud sound of a flying object around 02:00, Militarnyi reported.

On the morning of 18 October, an unknown drone entered Lithuania’s airspace and triggered air raid alerts, the country’s crisis management center said. NATO jets accompanied it but could not shoot it down because of bad weather, Defense Minister Robertas Kaunas said. Debris preliminarily identified as drone parts was later found in the village of Juodžioniai in Pasvalys district, and the army said the drone may have entered from the direction of Poland.

Romania moved from escorting Russia’s stray drones to firing on them in July, when its F-16s downed three in 72 hours.

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Fiber-optic drones and cartel members at the front: Ukraine’s imprint on Mexico’s narco groups

The video released by Al Jazeera lasts just 25 seconds but has once again reignited public debate. The footage shows at least 10 fighters in a forest, “coming back from a mission,” as one of them can be heard saying. The group of soldiers, who are Mexican, Colombian, and Panamanian — as acknowledged by the person filming — is allegedly part of Ukraine’s front line in the war launched by Russia.

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© Scott Peterson (Getty Images)

An attack drone in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, in February 2024.
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Ilhan Omar’s Sister’s Phone Was Seized Before Search of Lawmaker’s Home

A criminal investigation into the lawmaker’s immigration process advanced after federal investigators reviewed family text messages from a seized phone.

© J. Scott Applewhite/Associated Press

A Homeland Security officer carries a box from the Washington residence of Rep. Ilhan Omar, during a search on Monday.
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