USA - US ready to strike Iran 'within 96 hours' of Trump's order, Israel pushes for joint attack. While Trump has not made a final decision on whether to commit to major military action after the US midterms, officials said any attack that would be conducted would "be a big effort." Any attack launched by the US - or Israel - would trigger immediate retaliation against US personnel and facilities in the Middle East, the sources added, which is one of the reasons the US is expected to withdraw more personnel from its embassies in the region. However, one source familiar with US intelligence assessments said that officials believe that both Iran and the Houthis were unlikely to preemptively strike US or Israeli infrastructure at this stage.

USA - In one of the strongest signs yet that the US could be readying for another offensive, Gulf allies have been told to prepare for a “short, intense military campaign”, according to The Wall Street Journal. A White House official said: “We do not comment on sensitive military plans that may or may not exist. President Trump keeps all options on the table to ensure that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.” Oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz and via other Middle Eastern routes have now surpassed pre-war levels, removing one of Iran’s main points of leverage. Trump appears eager to capitalise on the effective reopening of the waterway, although the price of oil remains high at more than $115 a barrel.

ISRAEL - The political deadlock in Israel caused by the inconclusive result of its general election may come as a big disappointment for those, both in Israel and the wider world, who were desperately hoping for a change of government. The result certainly represents a setback for Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu, whose Right-wing coalition failed to win an overall majority in the Knesset. It remains highly unlikely, though, that, even if Gadi Eisenkot, the former military commander who is the other main contender for the premiership, were to replace Netanyahu, the outcome will have any profound impact on the many security challenges facing the wider Middle East. For when it comes to issues surrounding Israel’s security, there is little to distinguish between the two candidates in terms of their uncompromising approach to defeating Israel’s many foes.

UKRAINE - Volodymyr Zelensky has revealed fresh peace talks between Russia and Ukraine could take place as early as November 10. A US team is expected to lead the summit in Abu Dhabi, in what would be the first face-to-face negotiations since the American president lifted sanctions on Moscow. Zelensky said he remained hopeful of progress and was prepared to discuss even sensitive issues to keep negotiations moving. But he urged Trump, who has accused him of obstructing a deal, to change his approach towards Vladimir Putin and recognise Russia as the aggressor. Speaking from his fortified presidential compound in Kyiv, Zelensky said: 'We are ready to speak, we are ready for negotiations, any kind of format, we are even ready to speak about any kind of topics, sensitive topics for us.' He acknowledged that even discussing some subjects might be unfair to Ukraine, but said he did not want his country to be portrayed as blocking the peace process.

UK - Taxpayers will stump up more than £850 billion in just six years to pay the interest on Britain’s towering debt pile. With the UK facing the highest borrowing costs in the G7, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said the interest bill will hit £123.9 billion this year alone. That is £14.5 billion more than expected seven months ago - and is eating up cash that could go on better public services or be used to lower taxes. The cost of servicing the national debt – which already stands at a record £3 trillion – is due to reach £160 billion in 2031-32. By that point, the debt pile is forecast to have reached almost £3.7 trillion, up more than ten-fold since the turn of the century when it was £350 billion, and well on the way to £4 trillion.

EUROPE - The surging Alternative for Germany (AfD) wants to destroy the EU if Alice Weidel, its leader, replaces the deeply unpopular Friedrich Merz as chancellor. Ms Weidel has demanded the bloc be turned into a loose federation of “sovereign nations”, or face a Brexit-style “Dexit” referendum if she wrests power from the centre-Right Christian Democratic Union (CDU). “We would like to rebuild and reform the European Union,” the hard-Right leader said in the European parliament in Strasbourg. “The EU is not a group of sovereign states any more. National parliaments and governments need to take over the decision-making process.”

UK - The modern military should use AI instead of manpower wherever possible, the head of the Royal Air Force (RAF) has said. Air Chief Marshal Sir Harv Smyth said Britain’s military should adopt an “autonomy, not flesh” philosophy and master AI in case of future conflict. He said he had seen AI technology gain the equivalent of 50 years of “human air combat training and experience” in just 14 days during a recent simulation. The RAF chief referred to the “steel not flesh” Second World War doctrine that embraced new technology to avoid “bloody and costly trench warfare”. “Given today’s changing character of war, I would argue strongly that the modern paradigm must now become autonomy, not flesh.” Speaking at the Royal United Services Institute on Monday, Sir Harv said: “AI never gets tired. AI doesn’t lose consciousness at 9G. AI doesn’t get mentally exhausted at the end of a 10-hour mission, and my own personal nemesis in a cramped fast jet cockpit, AI definitely doesn’t need to go to the loo when it is miles from home.”

USA - Microsoft has put up to 60,000 jobs at risk, including roles in the UK, as the tech giant seeks to trim costs. The company, which has 223,000 workers globally including 6,000 in Britain, has offered thousands of workers a type of voluntary redundancy in an effort to cut its headcount. Staff across the United States, Canada, India and the UK will be offered the “buyout” package, which allows workers to leave with a lucrative package, with those affected working in finance, HR, AI, Microsoft Copilot and the company’s Xbox division. The move comes as Microsoft seeks to shrink the number of workers as it turns to AI to complete more tasks.

UK - Baked beans, bottled water and batteries are selling out at supermarkets after the Government warned households to stockpile survival packs in case of cyber attacks. Shoppers were unable to buy several brands of bottled water and other durable essentials from Ocado, the online grocer, on Monday. It comes after Wes Streeting, the Defence Secretary, urged Britons on Thursday to prepare “be ready” emergency kits that include three days’ worth of non-perishable food and bottled water.

UK - For the un-prepped among us, who haven’t yet acted on the Government’s advice to stock up on essential food items in readiness for a geo-political catastrophe, our larders on the morning after the apocalypse will be pretty useless when it comes to feeding our hungry families. Our parents and grandparents would have been far better prepared for the apocalypse, in the 1960s and 1970s, when British larders were stuffed with instantly edible tinned meals. Any self-respecting family would have been able to lay its hands on a cupboardful of tins of “chunky chicken”, “chunky steak”, spaghetti Bolognese, baked beans, spaghetti rings, macaroni cheese, and Frey Bentos pies. That post-apocalyptic meal would have been rounded off with a choice of tinned rice pudding, tinned peaches, tinned mandarin oranges, or tinned fruit salad containing scarlet glacé cherries.