Wednesday, October 21, 2026
Israel Detains US House Candidate Supporting Palestinians in West Bank
Israeli forces briefly detained U.S. congressional candidate Brad Lander in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday while he accompanied Palestinians gathering olives under threat from extremist settlers.
The New York Democrat said he was held with rabbis and volunteers at a harvest site west of Bethlehem. He later announced his release, attributing it to his public profile.
“The occupation is a crime under international law. Harvesting olives isn't a crime under any law I know,” Lander wrote on X.
He said his treatment reflected his prominence, adding that “Palestinians face far worse consequences every day.”
Israel Cites Coordination Requirements
Israel’s foreign ministry accused Lander of staging a political provocation and disregarding instructions to arrange the visit with Israeli authorities.
“This was not about harvesting olives. It was about harvesting headlines,” the ministry said.
The military separately said the Palestinian owner had not sought authorization for the harvest.
It argued that coordination was required to protect security and public order because the land was near an Israeli settlement.
Violence During the Harvest
The detention follows mounting international scrutiny of settler violence during the olive season.
Rights organizations have recorded attacks and interference targeting Palestinian harvesters on a daily basis.
Israeli authorities said Monday that several people had been arrested after settlers assaulted an American photojournalist reporting on the violence and a French mayor visiting for the harvest.
The incidents come shortly before Israel’s election, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to consolidate support among right-wing voters who strongly back settlements.
A Prominent Democratic Critic
Lander, who is Jewish, is favored to secure a New York City House seat on November 3.
He defeated incumbent Dan Goldman, a supporter of Israel, in June’s Democratic primary.
He is also closely aligned with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a vocal opponent of Israeli policies.
His detention comes as criticism of Israel grows in the U.S., its longstanding principal ally.
'SpaceX Must Not Dominate European Telecom: EU Lawmakers'
The EU must prevent its telecom overhaul from opening a route to European market dominance for Elon Musk’s SpaceX, the European Parliament’s lead negotiator on the legislation has warned.
Michał Kobosko told the Financial Times that the bloc needed stronger safeguards as SpaceX moves beyond satellite broadband into consumer mobile services.
Europe “cannot just wake up and see that SpaceX is aiming to control fully the European market and we are doing nothing against it,” he said.
“That would be too far, that would be dangerous for us in Europe.”
Spectrum Safeguards
Kobosko is preparing Parliament’s position on the Digital Networks Act, a proposed overhaul intended to encourage investment in the bloc’s digital infrastructure.
His draft includes strict “sovereignty and resilience criteria for pan-European (mobile) spectrum licenses,” he told the FT.
The intervention follows SpaceX’s purchase of U.S. licenses earlier this month that could support a direct consumer mobile service.
Such an offering would widen its potential customer base and bring it into competition with major American telecom operators.
European operators fear a similar expansion in their own market.
SpaceX already supplies broadband in Europe and provides mobile connectivity through other companies, but has announced no plans for a broader European offering.
Ukraine Sharpens Dependence Concerns
The debate has gained urgency as European governments seek greater control over critical communications infrastructure.
Restrictions imposed on Starlink last week disrupted Ukrainian frontline communications and impeded several military missions during intensifying Russian attacks.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent subsequently described President Volodymyr Zelensky’s accusation that Washington had deliberately slowed the service as reckless.
Kobosko linked the disruption to Europe’s exposure to American political and commercial decisions, citing the close relationship between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The European Commission proposed in May that part of the spectrum used for direct smartphone-to-satellite connections be reserved for European providers.
The U.S. ambassador to the EU has warned of possible retaliation over the measure.
Wider Telecom Dispute
Kobosko also wants tougher obligations governing relations between European network operators and large technology companies.
The Commission’s original proposal offered voluntary cooperation instead of the mandatory network payments sought by telecom providers.
His draft would require the largest generators of internet traffic to negotiate agreements with operators on network interconnection and data exchange.
National regulators could intervene if negotiations failed.
Parliament and EU governments must establish their respective positions before negotiating the final legislation.
A compromise drafted by Ireland, which holds the rotating EU presidency, has yet to address the most contentious questions, according to a text reviewed by the FT.
Netanyahu says Iran considering Israeli election interference - Jerusalem Post
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an interview with The Jerusalem Post Wednesday that Israeli intelligence had warned Iran and its allies were considering ways to influence Israel’s elections next week.
“We have clear warnings from military intelligence and the Mossad that Iran and its proxies are considering ways to influence the elections,” Netanyahu told the newspaper.
“If they do, it’ll be a big mistake for them because we’ll respond with force and might they can’t even imagine,” he added.
Netanyahu said Iran and its allies could seek to undermine public confidence in Israel’s security through attacks aimed at challenging perceptions of Israel’s military gains.
He also said Israel had completed “90% of the job” against Iran and its allies but warned that Tehran could rebuild its nuclear and missile capabilities.
“As long as the Iranian regime is there, they’ll reconstitute themselves,” Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu added that Iran had planned to acquire 20,000 ballistic missiles and estimated that Tehran still possessed more than 1,000. The Jerusalem Post said Israel’s defense establishment assesses Iran’s arsenal at 1,600 missiles.
IRGC deploys forces, heavy weapons across Iran’s Kordestan - rights group
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have deployed large numbers of forces and military equipment, including heavy and medium weapons, to several areas of Iran’s Kurdistan region, the Kordestan Human Rights Network reported Wednesday, citing local sources.
The group said deployments had been reported in Sanandaj, Kamyaran, Sarvabad, Marivan and Baneh, with forces and military convoys arriving from other provinces.
A source in Kamyaran told the rights group that hundreds of IRGC special forces, believed to be members of its Saberin unit, had been deployed in recent weeks around villages on the slopes of the Shaho mountains and had set up ambush positions after arriving.
Sources in Sanandaj, Sarvabad and Marivan also reported that IRGC reconnaissance forces from the Hamzeh Seyed al-Shohada base in Urmia had been transferred to the Guards’ Beit al-Moqaddas base in Sanandaj, the network reported.
According to the report, those forces took part in artillery shelling and drone attacks last week in the mountainous areas of Shaho and Marivan.
Another source in Baneh told the network that an IRGC convoy equipped with artillery had been deployed around the border mountain area of Surin.
'Iran’s shadow tanker oil reserves depleted after US blockade - WSJ'
Iran has depleted millions of barrels of oil stored aboard tankers in Asian waters after a months-long US naval blockade prevented Tehran from replenishing supplies normally sold to China, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, citing analysts at Kpler.
The floating reserves, which had provided Iran with a steady source of revenue during the war, were fully depleted by mid-October, according to the report.
“There’s no more oil to discharge to China anymore,” Homayoun Falakshahi, head of crude oil analysis at Kpler, told the Journal.
US Central Command said Saturday that the blockade had denied Tehran at least $25 billion in oil revenue and would constrain its ability to replace destroyed factories and weapons.
“US actions have imposed devastating costs on Iran’s security apparatus,” Admiral Brad Cooper, head of US Central Command, said.
NORAD: Aircraft violated restricted airspace over South Carolina
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said its F-16 fighter jets intercepted a general aviation aircraft over Clemson, South Carolina, where US President Donald Trump held a rally.
NORAD said the interception took place at approximately 5:39 pm EST. "The aircraft landed safely at a nearby airfield while being monitored by NORAD aircraft," it added.
The statement noted that pilots who violate Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) airspace "may also be met by federal authorities upon landing and subject to enforcement action."