Iranian plots move closer to home
Today is Sunday, October 25, 2026
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- Good morning, and welcome to Hark News. Here's what the world got up to while you slept. First, the weather in New York. A high of 65 and a low of 36, with clear skies.
- U.S. intelligence says Iran has substantially increased efforts to target American diplomats and officials, with possible lethal plots now at advanced stages. The warning is helping drive personnel reductions at several Middle Eastern posts, and it raises the risk that the current conflict could widen after the midterms.
- The Justice Department is suing to block certification of Alaska’s Senate result if Republican Dan Sullivan loses, arguing that voters could be confused by another candidate with a nearly identical name.
- Ukraine says Starlink access has returned, but restrictions have come and gone before, sometimes after requests from both the Biden and Trump administrations. Senators from both parties are now threatening to block Trump nominees until communications for Ukraine’s military are restored.
- After two Israeli soldiers were killed in a shooting, Israeli forces killed two suspected Palestinian gunmen and ordered a full lockdown of the occupied West Bank.
- France has deployed 70,000 law enforcement officers ahead of demonstrations over rising living costs, with the Louvre and other museums closing as a precaution. At least 3,000 storefronts were looted or vandalized during last week’s unrest, so Paris is preparing for a repeat performance, only with more police and fewer paintings.
- Artificial intelligence is helping hackers move faster, find weaknesses and hide their tracks, Noah Smith reports. At the same time, defenders are racing to fix a surge of software flaws uncovered by AI.
- American Express says it will cut about 3,500 jobs, or 5% of its global workforce, as it automates internal processes and tries to become more efficient. The company also reported that third-quarter sales rose 9% and lifted its profit outlook.
- The White House removed tariffs from 9 categories of Canadian goods important to Maine agriculture, then announced new 50% tariffs on other products, including certain valves, carpets, and waste materials.
- Democrats are quietly lowering expectations for their possible House gains as Republican spending and narrowing internal polls improve the map in the Midwest and Florida. The Washington Post is also flagging deep-red districts that have become competitive.
- POLITICO’s interviews with Gen Z voters suggest that debt and a lack of financial security may explain more of their politics than cultural trends do.
- New Mexico is staging its first Fourth in the Nation Matanza, a political gathering built around a slow-cooked pig, mariachi, and an early look at Democratic presidential hopefuls.
- The United States Grand Prix is turning Austin’s Circuit of the Americas into a hybrid of race track, music festival, political rally, and cowboy-themed amusement park.
- Milwaukee beat Tampa Bay 3 to 2 in Game 1, with catcher William Contreras supplying the decisive combination of defense, offense, successful challenges, and general crisis management.
- Winnipeg ended a long Connor Hellebuyck saga by sending the goaltender to New Jersey for a package viewed as solid but unspectacular. The Athletic rates the deal 9 out of 10 for significance, while docking points for the return and the Devils’ relative lack of glamour.
- The Indiana Fever’s president, Kelly Krauskopf, stepped down, and the team fired general manager Amber Cox hours later. Coach Stephanie White is expected to stay.
- The NWSL has dropped restrictive eligibility criteria for its so-called Rodman Rule, opening the door for more players to qualify for major contracts. The change could spread star-level pay beyond the narrow group previously covered, which is progress of the administrative sort, less glamorous than a goal but considerably better for the bank account.
- Madison Square Garden told employees they were receiving Knicks championship rings, then sent anyone who clicked a fake link to cybersecurity training. The company now says it will provide more than 275 real rings and calls the simulation an unfortunate mistake.
- A startup backed by Palmer Luckey and Ben Lamm has raised $200 million to genetically engineer and clone hardier military dogs. The project aims to reduce problems such as poor eyesight and hip dysplasia, while adding technology like protective gear and specialized sensors.
- Japan’s MMX mission has launched toward Phobos and Deimos, Mars’s two small, puzzling moons. A rover will explore Phobos before a lander collects samples for Earth, potentially resolving whether the moon is a captured asteroid or debris from an ancient impact.
- At Sayburç in Turkey, archaeologists found a carved stone bench showing a bull, two men, and two leopards in relation to one another. The figures may form one of the oldest known narrative scenes carved in stone, although nobody can yet say what the story was.
- A study suggests that a retrovirus spreading 5 to 7 million years ago may help explain why human brains became much larger than chimpanzee brains.
- And before you go, a little extra from 1440 Daily Digest. Did you know the real James Bond was a bird scientist, not a spy? Want the answer? Tap Sources on this story to see the full section.
- And that's your world for today. The full stories and the links are waiting in the app. Tap through, bookmark what matters, and share what's worth sharing. And if you want to see what stuck, take today's quiz in the app: five quick questions. And if Hark is making your mornings a little better, share it with a friend. It's the best way to help us grow. I'll see you again tomorrow morning. Until then, have a great day.