Travel curbs widen as DR Congo reports its deadliest Ebola outbreak
DR Congo’s government puts Ebola deaths above 5,000, making this the country’s deadliest recorded outbreak. Saudi Arabia has extended travel restrictions to Kenya, while researchers have started recruiting participants for a trial to test protection against the Bundibugyo virus. Cyclone Arnab caused deaths and damaged homes, infrastructure and farmland on India’s eastern coast, with full damage estimates likely to take days or weeks. In Ukraine, repeated Russian attacks are delaying electricity repairs, the Energy Ministry says, while Zelenskyy says hundreds of thousands of households have lost power.
Written by AveNews superintelligence (SI) from AveNews articles and their sources.
Table of contents
Science
DR Congo Ebola deaths reach 5,372, Africa health agency says
The Democratic Republic of the Congo accounts for 5,372 Ebola deaths in Africa CDC’s latest figures. Researchers have begun vaccine trials against the outbreak strain, for which there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
Updated since this editionCyclone Arnab hit India on 28 October with winds up to 135 km/h
Cyclone Arnab struck India’s eastern coast after authorities evacuated vulnerable coastal residents. Flooding damaged homes, infrastructure and farmland, leaving the scale of crop losses to be assessed.
Updated since this editionAfrica’s disease control chief seeks over $2bn in unpaid Ebola pledges
Jean Kaseya says more than $2 billion of the $3 billion pledged for the Ebola response remains unpaid. Africa CDC says about 80% of recorded cases in Congo are outside monitored contacts, indicating transmission chains health authorities have not identified. Kaseya plans to seek leaders’ agreement in November to let response teams reach communities safely.
Politics
Spain’s identification body reports 69 train-crash deaths
The death toll from the high-speed collision remains 69 after an identification body confirmed the final three victims' identities.
Updated since this editionRussian strikes cut power to hundreds of thousands, Zelenskyy says
Zelenskyy said Russian strikes disrupted electricity supplies across 4 Ukrainian regions. Dnipropetrovsk’s governor later said most customers there had been reconnected, while repair crews continued work to restore the remaining connections.
Updated since this editionFrance’s police make 779 protest and Halloween arrests, ministry says
France’s Interior Ministry puts arrests during the demonstrations and Halloween night at 779, a combined total rather than a protest-only count. Students plan further blockades, and unions have called a nationwide strike and demonstrations for 5 November.
Updated since this editionBusiness
EU to add €2 handling fee on online imports on 1 November 2026
The EU is due to introduce its import handling fee on 1 November 2026, with businesses filing customs declarations legally liable. Irish Revenue says sellers or delivery businesses may pass the cost to shoppers, collecting it at checkout or before delivery.
Bank of Canada raises key interest rate to 2.5%
The Bank of Canada raised its key rate to 2.5%. It also increased its growth and inflation forecasts, with Governor Tiff Macklem warning that businesses passing higher energy costs on to customers would prolong inflation. The bank says further increases may be needed, with its next decision on 9 December.
Bank of Japan holds rate at 1.25% and raises inflation forecasts
The Bank of Japan held its rate in an 8–1 vote, with one board member seeking an immediate increase. The bank judges borrowing conditions still supportive of economic activity.
Technology
Binance reports $5.27 billion net outflow after theft
Binance customers have withdrawn a net $5.27 billion since transactions resumed after the theft. Fortune reported that Binance had put the theft at around $6.3 billion; Binance’s latest disclosure put the amount drained from its cryptocurrency wallets at $6.34 billion. The exchange says it is replacing affected coins and that the latest FBI information indicates North Korea was responsible. Binance says suspending withdrawals alone could not stop all unauthorized asset movements and that new procedures to revoke authorizations slowed its response.
Updated since this editionReports for this week
TechnologySouth Korea’s payment order requires changes to Google and Apple billing
South Korea’s regulator is requiring Google and Apple to allow external payment links and submit compliance plans within one month of receiving its orders, with changes due within three months. Binance reports $5.27 billion in net withdrawals since transactions resumed after the theft. The US cyber agency has confirmed PHP2Shell exploitation and set a remediation deadline for federal civilian agencies.
Weekly report · covering
4 min48 sources
ScienceDR Congo’s Ebola toll, Nepal flood aid, immunoglobulin safety review
DR Congo’s government puts Ebola deaths above 5,000 as researchers begin enrolling participants in a trial to test protection against the Bundibugyo virus. Nepal has secured approval for $20 million in emergency flood aid. The European Medicines Agency has opened a safety review of human normal immunoglobulins after reports of allergic reactions linked to particular batches.
Weekly report · covering
4 min73 sources
BusinessCanada’s rate rise, EU online-import fee, Japan’s rate hold
Canada raised its key rate to 2.5%, and its central bank says further increases may be needed. The EU is due to introduce a €2 import handling fee, which sellers or delivery businesses may pass to shoppers. Japan’s central bank held its rate at 1.25% in an 8–1 vote.
Weekly report · covering
4 min25 sources
CultureCalifornia film credits hinge in part on diversity reviews
California puts the final 4% of most production credits behind diversity plans and assessments for commission review; a basic checklist remains compulsory even for productions that opt out. Japan’s government has requested roughly JPY250 billion for content-industry investment in fiscal 2027. Armenia’s national opera theatre has regained 1,050 square metres for a small concert hall.
Weekly report · covering
4 min44 sources
SportsRussian hockey ruling, women’s football funding, Antonelli’s title
The first of five ice hockey tournaments affected by the court’s order starts on 26 December 2026 in Canada; the federation says it will assess the ruling before deciding practical arrangements. FIFA raised Women’s World Cup preparation funding to $2.5 million per team. Kimi Antonelli’s third place in Mexico City secured the Formula 1 drivers’ championship.
Weekly report · covering
3 min87 sources
PoliticsSudan famine warning, Ukraine power cuts, Gaza winter aid
The US and 30 other Western states urge Sudan’s warring parties to remove barriers to aid as they warn of famine risk. Ukraine’s Energy Ministry says repeated attacks are delaying electricity repairs. Available and incoming supplies could provide partial shelter and household-item assistance to around 52,000 Gaza families.
Weekly report · covering
4 min42 sources
