The Gazette
The world's checked news, in five minutes
☀ Morning Edition · Sunday, 25 October 2026 · US morning
B.alotaby / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0- 2Ukraine talks set for Abu Dhabi in November
- 3Clocks go back; health sign-up opens 1 Nov
- 4Gas dips to $4.27 as winter fuel arrives
- 5Oil pushes the Dow down 653 points
- 6'FTC' says your line will be cut? Hang up
- 7AI agents broke into 100+ company websites
- 8Brazil votes today; Israel on Tuesday
- 9Brewers come back again, lead Series 2–0
- 10A wildlife bridge cut I-25 crashes by 91%
1 of 10Top story · Gulf
Riyadh airport reopens under fire
- Terminals 1 and 2 at King Khalid reopened Sunday after over two weeks
- Saudi forces say they downed a ballistic missile and a drone aimed at Riyadh
- The coalition says it stopped 10 missiles fired at southern Saudi Arabia
Why it mattersCheck the State Department's updated travel advice before any trip to the region.
Houthis an Iran-backed group that controls much of northern Yemen.
Read more
The airport closed after a Houthi strike earlier this month. On Saturday the Houthis said Saudi strikes in Yemen had killed civilians, and fired at Saudi airports, energy sites and an air base. Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said possible new US strikes would not change Iran's positions: 'Whether there is war or not, our policies remain the same.' Brent crude settled near $117 a barrel on Friday, up from under $97 at the start of October.
Source: CBS News, AFP, Bloomberg
2 of 10Second story · Ukraine
Ukraine, Russia and the US plan three-way talks in Abu Dhabi in the first half of November
- The Kremlin's Dmitry Peskov says the talks will focus on security after a peace deal
- The two sides swapped 540 prisoners of war, 270 each, on Friday
- President Zelenskyy says much depends on Russia
Why it mattersThese are the first planned talks since the last round stalled while Washington focused on Iran. Expectations are low.
Two of this year's three earlier rounds of talks were also held in Abu Dhabi; the third was in Geneva.
Read more
Russia signalled it was ready to talk again after US envoy Steve Witkoff met President Putin in St Petersburg. Russia still demands large parts of Ukraine's land and no NATO membership; Zelenskyy wants strong security guarantees and Europe involved. The fighting goes on: Russian attacks killed at least 4 people in Ukraine on Saturday, and Ukrainian drones hit plants deep inside Russia.
Source: Al Jazeera, Anadolu Agency, Reuters
3 of 10What changes for you
Next Sunday, 1 November, the clocks go back an hour, and HealthCare.gov sign-up opens
- Daylight saving time ends at 2 am on Sunday, 1 November: clocks go back to 1 am
- HealthCare.gov open enrollment runs 1 November to 15 January
- Sign up by 15 December for cover that starts on 1 January
Why it mattersYou get an extra hour of sleep, but darker evenings. And if you buy your own health insurance, prices and plans change for 2027, so compare before you renew.
Britain and most of Europe put their clocks back this morning, so for one week London is four hours ahead of New York, not five.
Read more
Most phones change by themselves; oven, car and wall clocks do not. Hawaii and most of Arizona do not use daylight saving time. A bill to make daylight time permanent passed the House in July but is not law. Some states run their own health marketplaces with different dates, so check yours if you do not use HealthCare.gov.
Source: CMS (HealthCare.gov), AccuWeather, Fox Weather
4 of 10Your money
Gas prices dip a little as cheaper winter fuel arrives, but stay more than a dollar above last year
- AAA's national average for regular fell 6 cents in a week to $4.27 a gallon
- Winter-blend gasoline is cheaper to make, which helps
- Prices have stayed above $4 since late July
Why it mattersCrude oil near $100 a barrel limits how far pump prices can fall. Apps that compare nearby stations can save you a few dollars a tank.
Winter blend a gasoline mix sold in colder months. It evaporates more easily, and costs less to produce, than summer fuel.
Read more
The national average is more than a dollar higher than at this time last year. Oil prices have risen with the war with Iran and attacks on shipping and Saudi oil sites. Diesel has risen even faster than gasoline this year, which pushes up the cost of moving goods.
Source: AAA
5 of 10Markets
Rising oil pushed the Dow down 653 points on Friday, ahead of a big week for the Fed and tech
- Dow −1.2% to 52,215; S&P 500 −0.5% to 7,624; Nasdaq −0.2%
- Nearly 3 in 4 S&P 500 stocks fell; energy shares rose
- US oil topped $100 a barrel on fears the Iran conflict will flare up again
Why it mattersIf you have a 401(k), days like this are normal. The Fed's decision on Wednesday may matter more for your savings and loan rates.
The Dow still ended the week higher, its third weekly gain in a row.
Read more
American Express fell 3.7%, the biggest drag on the Dow. Chip stocks steadied after a sharp drop on Thursday. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq had their second losing week in a row. This week, big companies report results, including Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon.
Source: AP, Reuters
6 of 10Scam alert
A caller says the FTC will cut off your phone number? It's a scam, the FTC warns
- Callers claim criminals abroad registered a phone in your name
- They pass you to a fake police officer and ask for your ID 'for a report'
- A later call threatens arrest and asks for a 'security deposit'
Why it mattersThe real FTC never threatens to cut off your phone, never asks for money and never asks you to keep a call secret. Hang up and report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
A badge number or a photo of an ID card proves nothing; both are easy to fake.
Read more
The FTC issued the warning on 22 October. Callers may tell you to check their story by calling a police number you find online, which is also part of the scam. In the FTC's words: 'None of this is true — it's all a scam.' If you shared your ID, visit IdentityTheft.gov for the next steps.
Source: Federal Trade Commission
7 of 10Tech & AI
One hacker used AI agents to break into more than 100 company websites, a Reuters investigation found
- The agents tried more than 1,200 sites, mostly online shops in the US, Canada, Australia and Japan
- A break-in took about 23 hours on average and an estimated $50 of AI computing
- The instructions were under 100 Chinese characters
Why it mattersAttacks that once took skilled people can now run on their own, cheaply. If a company says your data was exposed, change that password and watch your card statements.
AI agent an AI program that works through a series of steps on its own, such as searching, writing code and trying again.
Read more
Researcher Snorre Fagerland of NorForge spotted the campaign because the hacker's control panels were open to the internet. Reuters named Deere, SharkNinja and Cummins among the victims; Deere said it had fixed the problem and found no sign sensitive data was taken. How much data was stolen overall is not known. 'It's not script kiddie stuff,' Fagerland said.
Source: Reuters
8 of 10Elections
Brazil chooses between Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro today; Israel votes on Tuesday
- Brazil's polls close at 4 pm ET; the count starts at once and is usually fast
- Final Datafolha poll: Flávio Bolsonaro 51%, Lula 49% of valid votes, within the margin of error
- Israel votes Tuesday, 27 October; a government needs 61 of 120 seats
Why it mattersBrazil is the world's biggest grower of soy and coffee, and Israel's vote comes in the middle of a regional war. Both results will shape US policy.
No one has ever won Brazil's presidency after coming second in the first round, as Lula did.
Read more
Flávio Bolsonaro, 45, a senator and son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, led the first round with 47.03% to Lula's 45.16%. More than 158 million Brazilians are registered to vote. In Israel, final TV polls give the opposition bloc 52 seats and Prime Minister Netanyahu's alliance 50, with Arab-led parties possibly deciding who governs.
Source: Rio Times (TSE), NBC News, Al Jazeera, Anadolu Agency
9 of 10Sport
Brewers rally to beat the Rays 5–4, lead 2–0
- Liam Hicks's homer helped the Rays to a 4–0 first-inning lead
- Sal Frelick homered to tie it in the 6th; Cooper Pratt's single won it in the 7th
- Game 3: Monday, 8 pm ET (5 pm PT) in St. Petersburg, on Fox
Why it mattersMilwaukee has never won the World Series. Teams up 2–0 have won about 4 times in 5.
Read more
Aaron Ashby closed out the ninth; the game ended on a check-swing strike-out of Yandy Díaz with the tying run on third. A close play at home plate was upheld on video review. The Brewers also won Game 1, 3–2.
Source: MLB.com, ESPN
Your Body TodayMuscles & blood sugar
A short walk after a meal helps your muscles soak up blood sugar
- After a meal, sugar from your food enters your blood
- Working muscles pull sugar out of the blood, partly without needing insulin
- Even 2 to 5 minutes of light walking after eating lowered the rise in studies
Do todayAfter your biggest meal today, take a slow walk of a few minutes, even just around the house or down the street.
If you take medicine for diabetes, talk to your doctor before changing your routine.
The evidence
A 2022 review in Sports Medicine pooled seven studies that compared sitting with standing or light walking after meals. Light walking lowered the rise in blood sugar more than sitting, and standing helped a little. When your leg muscles contract, they move sugar transporters to their surface, letting sugar in.
Source: Buffey et al., Sports Medicine (2022)
10 of 10Good news
A wildlife bridge over I-25 cut animal crashes by 91%
- The overpass is 200 feet wide and cost $15 million, under budget
- It opened in December 2025; underpasses and fencing guide animals to it
- Cameras have seen elk, deer, bears and pronghorn crossing
Why it mattersHitting a deer or elk is costly and can kill. Crossings like this protect drivers and animals alike.
Pronghorn rarely jump; they crawl under fences, so a wide, open bridge suits them.
Read more
It is the largest wildlife overpass in North America, built by the Colorado Department of Transportation in Douglas County, between Denver and Colorado Springs. Officials hoped for a 90% cut in crashes; with the bridge, five underpasses and fencing, the cut was 91% in nine months. It is also meant for smaller animals, such as frogs and the rare Preble's meadow jumping mouse.
Source: CBS Colorado, Colorado DOT
You're up to date
10 points · 1 word · 1 health note
Houthis an Iran-backed group that controls much of northern Yemen.
Your library
The next edition arrives tomorrow morning.
The Gazette · The world's checked news, in five minutes. Every story is summarised from published reports; sources are under "Read more".